Exodus
Chapter 9
The Fifth Plague: Pestilence
The Lord said to Moses:
“Go to Pharaoh and say to him, ‘This is the message of the Lord, the God of the Hebrews: Let my people go and offer sacrifices to me.
If you refuse to let them go and hold them back any longer,
the hand of the Lord will bring a terrible plague on your horses, your donkeys, and your camels, on your cattle and your sheep.
But the Lord will make a distinction between the livestock of Israel and that of Egypt. Nothing belonging to the people of Israel will die.’”
The Lord then fixed a time and said, “It will be done tomorrow.”
The Lord did this the following day; all the livestock of the Egyptians died, but not one owned by the Israelites died.
Pharaoh made inquiries and found that none of the cattle belonging to the Israelites had died. But Pharaoh remained adamant and did not let the people go.
The Sixth Plague: Boils
The Lord said to Moses and Aaron:
“Take two handfuls of ashes from the brick oven and let Moses throw them up in the air in front of Pharaoh’s eyes.
It will become fine dust all over Egypt and bring festering boils on people and animals.”
So they took ashes from the oven and, in the presence of Pharaoh, Moses threw them up in the air, bringing festering boils on people and animals.
And the magicians could not stand before Moses because they had boils like all the other Egyptians.
But the Lord made Pharaoh stubborn, and he did not listen to Moses and Aaron as the Lord had foretold.
The Seventh Plague: Thunder and Hail
The Lord said to Moses:
“Rise early; present yourself to Pharaoh and say to him: ‘This is the message of the Lord, the God of the Hebrews: Send my people away to worship me
because this time I will send the full force of my plagues against you, your ministers and your people, that you may know there is no one like me in the whole world.
For had I wished, I could have raised my hand against you and your people and, with a similar pestilence, wiped you from the face of the earth.
But this is why I have let you live: that you may witness my power and that my name may be celebrated throughout the earth.
Are you still opposed to my people leaving the country?
Tomorrow, at this time, I will send very heavy hail, such as has never been in Egypt since its foundation.
So now let all your livestock and all that you have in the fields take shelter because when the hail falls on all that remains in the fields, whether people or animals, they will die.’”
Those among Pharaoh’s officials who believed the Lord’s word hurried to bring their slaves and cattle inside;
but those who paid no attention to the Lord’s warning left their slaves and their cattle in the fields.
Then the Lord said to Moses:
“Stretch out your hand towards heaven and let hail fall throughout Egypt on people and animals, and all that grows in the field.”
Moses stretched out his staff towards heaven, and the Lord sent thunder and hail; lightning struck the earth,
and the Lord rained hail on the land of Egypt: lightning flashed amid the hail. It was very heavy hail, such as had never been known in all Egypt since it had first become a nation.
Throughout Egypt, the hail struck everything in the fields, both people and animals. It beat down everything growing in the fields and felled every tree.
But where the Israelites lived, there was no hail.
Pharaoh summoned Moses and Aaron, saying:
“Now it is clear I have sinned. The Lord is in the right; my people and I are in the wrong.
Pray the Lord to stop the thunder and hail! I will let you go, and no longer will you stay here.”
Moses said to him:
“As soon as I leave the town, I will lift my hands towards the Lord; the thunder will cease, and there will be no more hail, and you will know that the earth is the Lord’s.
But as for you and your officials, I know that you don’t yet fear the Lord, our God.”
The flax and the barley were ruined, as the barley was almost ripe and the flax was in flower,
but the wheat and the spelt, which are late crops, were not destroyed.
Moses left Pharaoh, went out of the city, and raised his hands towards the Lord. The thunder and hail ceased, and the rain stopped.
Pharaoh, seeing no rain and the thunder and hail had ceased, sinned yet again.
He and his ministers remained unyielding and would not let the Israelites go, just as the Lord had foretold through Moses.