Exodus 9

The fifth plague—the murrain on cattle (vs. 1-7)—The KJV and ASV use the word “murrain” to describe the disease. The Hebrew word is indefinite, so the NKJV calls the disease a “pestilence.” Interestingly, the Septuagint, which is the 200 B.C. Greek translation of the Hebrew Old Testament, translates the word “death.” Whatever it was, the Lord made “a difference between the livestock of Israel and livestock of Egypt. So nothing shall die of all that belong to the children of Israel” (v. 4). The disease struck all kinds of Egyptian livestock—“cattle in the field, on the horses, on the donkeys, on the camels, on the oxen, and on the sheep” (v. 3). And indeed, “all the livestock of Egypt died; but of the livestock of the children of Israel, not one died” (v. 6). “All” is hyperbolic; a huge number is meant, not every single animal. The next two plagues mention animals as well, so it’s important to understand the various figures of speech used in the Bible. Oriental peoples frequently spoke in such broad, generic terms. Pharaoh continued to harden his heart, however, and would not let God’s people go.

The sixth plague--boils (vs. 8-12)—The Lord then commanded Moses and Aaron to “take for yourselves handfuls of ashes from a furnace, and let Moses scatter it toward the heavens in the sight of Pharaoh” (v. 8). Boils broke out “on man and beast throughout all the land of Egypt” (v. 9). “Blains” (KJV, ASV) are just “sores” (NKJV). Moses makes a point to say that “the magicians could not stand before Moses because of the boils” (v. 11). But this didn’t persuade Pharaoh, either (v. 12).

The seventh plague—rain and hail (vs. 13-35)—Jehovah sends Moses to Pharaoh to announce the next plague. When the Lord told Pharaoh “indeed for this purpose I have raised you up, that I may show My power in you, and that My name may be declared in all the earth” (v. 16), that must have really grated on the Egyptian king, who claimed to be a god as well. That another god “raised him up” and, in effect, put him on his throne would be extremely galling. The Lord proclaimed the next plague: “tomorrow about this time I will cause very heavy hail to rain down, such as has not been in Egypt since its founding until now” (v. 18). He gave them a day so that the people of Egypt could “gather [their] livestock and all that [they] have in the field, for the hail shall come down on every man and every animal which is found in the field and is not brought home; and they shall die” (v. 19). All of the Egyptians “who feared the word of the Lord” did as He said and they and their livestock were protected. There were, of course, those who did not listen (v. 21).

The hail, “and fire mingled with the hail” came the next day, “so very heavy that there was none like it in all the land of Egypt since it became a nation” (v. 24). Whether this “fire” was caused by lightening, or whether it was miraculous, is unknown; it appears to have been the latter. But regardless, anything--man, beast, and herb--that were in the field were struck (v. 25). “Only in the land of Goshen, where the children of Israel were, there was no hail” (v. 26).

Pharaoh called for Moses and admitted his sin: “The LORD is righteous, and my people and I are wicked” (v. 27). He asked for Moses’ intercession with Jehovah, an appeal which was granted, but Moses wasn’t fooled: “I know that you will not yet fear the LORD God” (v. 30). Verses 31 and 32 gives us another interesting historical vision of ancient Egypt: “Now the flax and the barley were struck, for the barley was in the head and the flax was in bud. But the wheat and the spelt were not struck, for they are late crops.” But, in spite of his promise, when Pharaoh saw that the rain had ceased, “he sinned yet more” (v. 34), and he did not “let the children of Israel go, as the LORD had spoken by Moses” (v. 35). The war between Jehovah and Pharaoh is not over yet.