Exodus
9: Fifth to Seventh Plagues
v.1-7
FIFTH PLAGUE: Plague on Livestock
v.8-12
SIXTH PLAGUE: Plague of Boils
v.13-35
SEVENTH PLAGUE: Plague of Hail
v.1-7
FIFTH PLAGUE: Plague on Livestock
Challenge
v.1
Then
the Lord said to Moses, “Go to Pharaoh and say to him, ‘This is
what the Lord, the God of the Hebrews, says: “Let my people go,
so that they may worship me.”
Warning
v.2,3
If
you refuse to let them go and continue to hold them back, the
hand of the Lord will bring a terrible plague on your livestock
in the field—on your horses, donkeys and camels and on your cattle,
sheep and goats.
Distinction
v.4
But
the Lord will make a distinction between the livestock of Israel
and that of Egypt, so that no animal belonging to the Israelites
will die.'”
Time
Set
v.5
The
Lord set a time and said, “Tomorrow the Lord will do this in the
land.”
Plague
v.6
And
the next day the Lord did it: All the livestock of the Egyptians
died, but not one animal belonging to the Israelites died.
Heart
Unyielding
v.7
Pharaoh
investigated and found that not even one of the animals of the
Israelites had died. Yet his heart was unyielding
and he would not let the people go.
[Notes:
Challenge & Warning given. SECOND DISTINCTION =
no Hebrew cattle will die. It happened.]
v.8-12
SIXTH PLAGUE: Plague of Boils
Instructions
v.8
Then
the Lord said to Moses and Aaron, “Take handfuls of soot from
a furnace and have Moses toss it into the air in the presence
of Pharaoh.
v.9
It
will become fine dust over the whole land of Egypt, and festering
boils will break out on people and animals throughout the land.”
Applied
- boils
v.10
So
they took soot from a furnace and stood before Pharaoh. Moses
tossed it into the air, and festering boils broke out on people
and animals.
Magicians
flee
v.11
The
magicians could not stand before Moses because of the boils that
were on them and on all the Egyptians.
Heart
Hardened
v.12
But
the Lord hardened Pharaoh's heart and he would
not listen to Moses and Aaron, just as the Lord had said to Moses.
[Notes:
No warning given. Appears [v.11] there is a THIRD DISTINCTION
– boils on Egyptians only.]
v.13-35
SEVENTH PLAGUE: Plague of Hail
Challenge
v.13
Then
the Lord said to Moses, “Get up early in the morning, confront
Pharaoh and say to him, ‘This is what the Lord, the God of the
Hebrews, says: Let my people go, so that they may worship me,
Warning
v.14
or
this time I will send the full force of my plagues against you
and against your officials and your people, so you may know that
there is no one like me in all the earth.
Perspective
v.15
For
by now I could have stretched out my hand and struck you and your
people with a plague that would have wiped you off the earth.
Purpose
v.16
But
I have raised you up for this very purpose, that I might show
you my power and that my name might be proclaimed in all the earth.
v.17
You
still set yourself against my people and will not let them go.
Timing
& Plague
v.18
Therefore,
at this time tomorrow I will send the worst hailstorm that has
ever fallen on Egypt, from the day it was founded till now.
Opportunity
v.19
Give
an order now to bring your livestock and everything you have in
the field to a place of shelter, because the hail will fall on
every person and animal that has not been brought in and is still
out in the field, and they will die.'”
Responses
v.20
Those
officials of Pharaoh who feared the word of the Lord hurried to
bring their slaves and their livestock inside.
v.21
But
those who ignored the word of the Lord left their slaves and livestock
in the field.
Command
& Hail
v.22
Then
the Lord said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand toward the sky
so that hail will fall all over Egypt—on people and animals and
on everything growing in the fields of Egypt.”
v.23,24
When
Moses stretched out his staff toward the sky, the Lord sent thunder
and hail, and lightning flashed down to the ground. So the Lord
rained hail on the land of Egypt; hail fell and lightning flashed
back and forth. It was the worst storm in all the land of Egypt
since it had become a nation.
v.25
Throughout
Egypt hail struck everything in the fields—both people and animals;
it beat down everything growing in the fields and stripped every
tree.
Distinction
v.26
The
only place it did not hail was the land of Goshen, where the Israelites
were.
Confession
v.27
Then
Pharaoh summoned Moses and Aaron. “This time I have sinned,” he
said to them. “The Lord is in the right, and I and my people are
in the wrong.
Request
& Promise
v.28
Pray
to the Lord, for we have had enough thunder and hail. I will let
you go; you don't have to stay any longer.”
Acknowledgement
& Caveat
v.29
Moses
replied, “When I have gone out of the city, I will spread out
my hands in prayer to the Lord. The thunder will stop and there
will be no more hail, so you may know that the earth is the Lord's.
v.30
But
I know that you and your officials still do not fear the Lord
God.”
v.31
(The
flax and barley were destroyed, since the barley had headed and
the flax was in bloom.
v.32
The
wheat and spelt, however, were not destroyed, because they ripen
later.)
Prayer
& Ceasing
v.33
Then
Moses left Pharaoh and went out of the city. He spread out his
hands toward the Lord; the thunder and hail stopped, and the rain
no longer poured down on the land.
Hardening
& Recanting
v.34
When
Pharaoh saw that the rain and hail and thunder had stopped, he
sinned again: He and his officials hardened their hearts.
v.35
So
Pharaoh's heart was hard and he would not let the Israelites go,
just as the Lord had said through Moses.
[Notes:
We have included mini-subheadings to emphasise the stages.
Note a FOURTH DISTINCTION – no hail on Israelites. We will note
effects of the various plagues at the end of the next chapter.]
Continue to Chapter 10