King James Version
Exodus 10
29 verses with commentary
The Eighth Plague: Locusts
And the LORD said unto Moses, Go in unto Pharaoh: for I have hardened his heart, and the heart of his servants, that I might shew these my signs before him:
View commentary (4 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
Verse 1 describes the locust plague, targeting Osiris (agriculture god) and Isis (grain goddess). Moses warns locusts will 'cover the face of the earth' and devour everything the hail left. Pharaoh's servants beg him to relent, recognizing Egypt's destruction.
Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
X.
THE EIGHTH PLAGUE.
(1-4) The eighth plague, like the third and fourth, was one where insect life was called in to serve God’s purposes, and chastise the presumption of His enemies. The nature of the visitation is uncontested and incontestable—it was a terrible invasion of locusts. Locusts are an occasional, though not a frequent, scourge in Egypt. They are not bred there, and necessarily arrive...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
5-6. Stretch forth thine hand with thy rod over the streams, &c. The miracle consisted in the reptiles leaving their marshes at the very time he commanded them.
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 10
Chapter Outline
The plague of locusts threatened, Pharaoh, moved by his servants, inclines to let the Israelites go.(1-11)
The plague of locusts.(12-20)
The plague of thick darkness.(21-29)
**Verses 1-11**
The plagues of Egypt show the sinfulness of sin. They warn the children of men not to strive with their Maker. Pharaoh had pretended to humble himself; but no ac...
Read full commentary →And that thou mayest tell in the ears of thy son, and of thy son's son, what things I have wrought in Egypt, and my signs which I have done among them; that ye may know how that I am the LORD.
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KJV Study Commentary
Verse 2 describes the locust plague, targeting Osiris (agriculture god) and Isis (grain goddess). Moses warns locusts will 'cover the face of the earth' and devour everything the hail left. Pharaoh's servants beg him to relent, recognizing Egypt's destruction.
Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(2) **That thou mayest tell.**—Those who experience God’s mercies are bound to hand on the memory of what He has done for them to future generations. Natural gratitude would prompt such action. But, lest the duty should be neglected, the Israelites had it at this time constantly enjoined upon them (Exodus 12:26-27; Exodus 13:14-15; Deuteronomy 32:7; Joshua 4:6, &c):
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**7. the magicians did so with their enchantments--**required no great art to make the offensive reptiles appear on any small spot of ground. What they undertook to do already existed in abundance all around. They would better have shown their power by removing the frogs.
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 10
Chapter Outline
The plague of locusts threatened, Pharaoh, moved by his servants, inclines to let the Israelites go.(1-11)
The plague of locusts.(12-20)
The plague of thick darkness.(21-29)
**Verses 1-11**
The plagues of Egypt show the sinfulness of sin. They warn the children of men not to strive with their Maker. Pharaoh had pretended to humble himself; but no ac...
Read full commentary →And Moses and Aaron came in unto Pharaoh, and said unto him, Thus saith the LORD God of the Hebrews, How long wilt thou refuse to humble thyself before me? let my people go, that they may serve me.
View commentary (3 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
Verse 3 describes the locust plague, targeting Osiris (agriculture god) and Isis (grain goddess). Moses warns locusts will 'cover the face of the earth' and devour everything the hail left. Pharaoh's servants beg him to relent, recognizing Egypt's destruction.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**8-15. Pharaoh called, ... Intreat the Lord, that he may take away the frogs from me--**The frog, which was now used as an instrument of affliction, whether from reverence or abhorrence, was an object of national superstition with the Egyptians, the god Ptha being represented with a frog's head. But the vast numbers, together with their stench, made them an intolerable nuisance so that the king w...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 10
Chapter Outline
The plague of locusts threatened, Pharaoh, moved by his servants, inclines to let the Israelites go.(1-11)
The plague of locusts.(12-20)
The plague of thick darkness.(21-29)
**Verses 1-11**
The plagues of Egypt show the sinfulness of sin. They warn the children of men not to strive with their Maker. Pharaoh had pretended to humble himself; but no ac...
Read full commentary →Else, if thou refuse to let my people go, behold, to morrow will I bring the locusts into thy coast:
View commentary (4 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
Verse 4 describes the locust plague, targeting Osiris (agriculture god) and Isis (grain goddess). Moses warns locusts will 'cover the face of the earth' and devour everything the hail left. Pharaoh's servants beg him to relent, recognizing Egypt's destruction.
Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(4) **To morrow will I bring the locusts into thy coast.**—Locusts, as already observed, are not indigenous to Egypt, but only occasional visitants. Consequently they always enter the country from some other, as Nubia, Abyssinia, Syria, or Arabia. On the quarter from which the present plague came, see the comment on Exodus 10:13.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**8-15. Pharaoh called, ... Intreat the Lord, that he may take away the frogs from me--**The frog, which was now used as an instrument of affliction, whether from reverence or abhorrence, was an object of national superstition with the Egyptians, the god Ptha being represented with a frog's head. But the vast numbers, together with their stench, made them an intolerable nuisance so that the king w...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 10
Chapter Outline
The plague of locusts threatened, Pharaoh, moved by his servants, inclines to let the Israelites go.(1-11)
The plague of locusts.(12-20)
The plague of thick darkness.(21-29)
**Verses 1-11**
The plagues of Egypt show the sinfulness of sin. They warn the children of men not to strive with their Maker. Pharaoh had pretended to humble himself; but no ac...
Read full commentary →And they shall cover the face of the earth, that one cannot be able to see the earth: and they shall eat the residue of that which is escaped, which remaineth unto you from the hail, and shall eat every tree which groweth for you out of the field: face: Heb. eye
View commentary (4 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
Verse 5 describes the locust plague, targeting Osiris (agriculture god) and Isis (grain goddess). Moses warns locusts will 'cover the face of the earth' and devour everything the hail left. Pharaoh's servants beg him to relent, recognizing Egypt's destruction.
Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(5) **They shall cover the face of the earth, that one cannot be able to see the earth.**—This is the case almost invariably with all the severer visitations of locusts. “The plain was covered with them,” says Denon (*Travels,* p. 286), speaking of Egypt. “The ground is covered with them for several leagues,” declares Volney (*Travels,* vol. i., p. 285).” Over an area of 1,600 or 1,800 square mile...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**8-15. Pharaoh called, ... Intreat the Lord, that he may take away the frogs from me--**The frog, which was now used as an instrument of affliction, whether from reverence or abhorrence, was an object of national superstition with the Egyptians, the god Ptha being represented with a frog's head. But the vast numbers, together with their stench, made them an intolerable nuisance so that the king w...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 10
Chapter Outline
The plague of locusts threatened, Pharaoh, moved by his servants, inclines to let the Israelites go.(1-11)
The plague of locusts.(12-20)
The plague of thick darkness.(21-29)
**Verses 1-11**
The plagues of Egypt show the sinfulness of sin. They warn the children of men not to strive with their Maker. Pharaoh had pretended to humble himself; but no ac...
Read full commentary →And they shall fill thy houses, and the houses of all thy servants, and the houses of all the Egyptians; which neither thy fathers, nor thy fathers' fathers have seen, since the day that they were upon the earth unto this day. And he turned himself, and went out from Pharaoh.
View commentary (4 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
Verse 6 describes the locust plague, targeting Osiris (agriculture god) and Isis (grain goddess). Moses warns locusts will 'cover the face of the earth' and devour everything the hail left. Pharaoh's servants beg him to relent, recognizing Egypt's destruction.
Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(6) **They shall fill thy houses.**—“They shall run to and fro in the city,” says the prophet Joel; “they shall run upon the wall, they shall climb up upon the houses; they shall enter in at the windows, like a thief.” Modern travellers bear abundant witness to the same effect; as Burckhardt: “They overwhelm the province of Nedjd sometimes to such a degree that, having destroyed the harvest, they ...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**8-15. Pharaoh called, ... Intreat the Lord, that he may take away the frogs from me--**The frog, which was now used as an instrument of affliction, whether from reverence or abhorrence, was an object of national superstition with the Egyptians, the god Ptha being represented with a frog's head. But the vast numbers, together with their stench, made them an intolerable nuisance so that the king w...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 10
Chapter Outline
The plague of locusts threatened, Pharaoh, moved by his servants, inclines to let the Israelites go.(1-11)
The plague of locusts.(12-20)
The plague of thick darkness.(21-29)
**Verses 1-11**
The plagues of Egypt show the sinfulness of sin. They warn the children of men not to strive with their Maker. Pharaoh had pretended to humble himself; but no ac...
Read full commentary →And Pharaoh's servants said unto him, How long shall this man be a snare unto us? let the men go, that they may serve the LORD their God: knowest thou not yet that Egypt is destroyed?
View commentary (4 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
Verse 7 describes the locust plague, targeting Osiris (agriculture god) and Isis (grain goddess). Moses warns locusts will 'cover the face of the earth' and devour everything the hail left. Pharaoh's servants beg him to relent, recognizing Egypt's destruction.
Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(7) **Let the men** **go.**—Though the heart of Pharaoh remained hard, the plagues had a certain effect on the minds of the Egyptians. First, the magicians were impressed, and said, “This is the finger of God” (Exodus 8:19). Then a certain number of the people “feared the word of the Lord, and made their servants and their cattle flee into the houses” (Exodus 9:20). Now the very officers of the Co...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**8-15. Pharaoh called, ... Intreat the Lord, that he may take away the frogs from me--**The frog, which was now used as an instrument of affliction, whether from reverence or abhorrence, was an object of national superstition with the Egyptians, the god Ptha being represented with a frog's head. But the vast numbers, together with their stench, made them an intolerable nuisance so that the king w...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 10
Chapter Outline
The plague of locusts threatened, Pharaoh, moved by his servants, inclines to let the Israelites go.(1-11)
The plague of locusts.(12-20)
The plague of thick darkness.(21-29)
**Verses 1-11**
The plagues of Egypt show the sinfulness of sin. They warn the children of men not to strive with their Maker. Pharaoh had pretended to humble himself; but no ac...
Read full commentary →And Moses and Aaron were brought again unto Pharaoh: and he said unto them, Go, serve the LORD your God: but who are they that shall go? who: Heb. who and who, etc
View commentary (4 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
Verse 8 describes the locust plague, targeting Osiris (agriculture god) and Isis (grain goddess). Moses warns locusts will 'cover the face of the earth' and devour everything the hail left. Pharaoh's servants beg him to relent, recognizing Egypt's destruction.
Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(8) **Moses and Aaron were brought again unto Pharaoh.**—Moses and Aaron had uttered their threat, and had straightway left his presence. The courtiers “brought them again to Pharaoh.” The courtiers, no doubt, supposed that the king would yield; and the king was prepared to yield *to a certain extent.* But he had conceived of a compromise in his own mind, and this he hoped to impose upon Moses; he...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**8-15. Pharaoh called, ... Intreat the Lord, that he may take away the frogs from me--**The frog, which was now used as an instrument of affliction, whether from reverence or abhorrence, was an object of national superstition with the Egyptians, the god Ptha being represented with a frog's head. But the vast numbers, together with their stench, made them an intolerable nuisance so that the king w...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 10
Chapter Outline
The plague of locusts threatened, Pharaoh, moved by his servants, inclines to let the Israelites go.(1-11)
The plague of locusts.(12-20)
The plague of thick darkness.(21-29)
**Verses 1-11**
The plagues of Egypt show the sinfulness of sin. They warn the children of men not to strive with their Maker. Pharaoh had pretended to humble himself; but no ac...
Read full commentary →And Moses said, We will go with our young and with our old, with our sons and with our daughters, with our flocks and with our herds will we go; for we must hold a feast unto the LORD.
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KJV Study Commentary
Verse 9 describes the locust plague, targeting Osiris (agriculture god) and Isis (grain goddess). Moses warns locusts will 'cover the face of the earth' and devour everything the hail left. Pharaoh's servants beg him to relent, recognizing Egypt's destruction.
Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(9) **With our sons and with our daughters . . . for we must hold a feast.**—It was customary in Egypt for children to join in festivals (Herod. ii. 60).
**With our flocks and with our herds.**—The family of Jacob brought numerous flocks and herds into Egypt (Genesis 47:1). These had, no doubt, increased, notwithstanding the oppression, and at the time of the Exodus must have been very numerous. T...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**8-15. Pharaoh called, ... Intreat the Lord, that he may take away the frogs from me--**The frog, which was now used as an instrument of affliction, whether from reverence or abhorrence, was an object of national superstition with the Egyptians, the god Ptha being represented with a frog's head. But the vast numbers, together with their stench, made them an intolerable nuisance so that the king w...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 10
Chapter Outline
The plague of locusts threatened, Pharaoh, moved by his servants, inclines to let the Israelites go.(1-11)
The plague of locusts.(12-20)
The plague of thick darkness.(21-29)
**Verses 1-11**
The plagues of Egypt show the sinfulness of sin. They warn the children of men not to strive with their Maker. Pharaoh had pretended to humble himself; but no ac...
Read full commentary →And he said unto them, Let the LORD be so with you, as I will let you go, and your little ones: look to it; for evil is before you.
View commentary (4 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
Verse 10 describes the locust plague, targeting Osiris (agriculture god) and Isis (grain goddess). Moses warns locusts will 'cover the face of the earth' and devour everything the hail left. Pharaoh's servants beg him to relent, recognizing Egypt's destruction.
Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(10) **Little ones.**—Heb., *families.* These would include the children and the dependents. (See comment on Exodus 1:1.)
**Evil is before you.**—Heb., *evil is before your faces*—*i.e.,* you contemplate doing me a mischief, by depriving me of the services of so large a body of labourers.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**8-15. Pharaoh called, ... Intreat the Lord, that he may take away the frogs from me--**The frog, which was now used as an instrument of affliction, whether from reverence or abhorrence, was an object of national superstition with the Egyptians, the god Ptha being represented with a frog's head. But the vast numbers, together with their stench, made them an intolerable nuisance so that the king w...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 10
Chapter Outline
The plague of locusts threatened, Pharaoh, moved by his servants, inclines to let the Israelites go.(1-11)
The plague of locusts.(12-20)
The plague of thick darkness.(21-29)
**Verses 1-11**
The plagues of Egypt show the sinfulness of sin. They warn the children of men not to strive with their Maker. Pharaoh had pretended to humble himself; but no ac...
Read full commentary →Not so: go now ye that are men, and serve the LORD; for that ye did desire. And they were driven out from Pharaoh's presence.
View commentary (4 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
Verse 11 describes the locust plague, targeting Osiris (agriculture god) and Isis (grain goddess). Moses warns locusts will 'cover the face of the earth' and devour everything the hail left. Pharaoh's servants beg him to relent, recognizing Egypt's destruction.
Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(11) **Ye that are men.**—Heb., *haggëbarim*—*i.e.,* the full-grown males.
**That ye did desire.**—There was no ground for this reproach. Moses and Aaron had always demanded the release of the entire nation (“let my *people* go”); and nations are composed of women and children as much and as essentially as they are of adult males.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
Ex 8:16-19. Plague of Lice.
**16. smite the dust of the land, &c.--**Aaron's rod, by the direction of Moses, who was commanded by God, was again raised, and the land was filled with gnats, mosquitoes--that is the proper meaning of the original term. In ordinary circumstances they embitter life in Eastern countries, and therefore the terrible nature of this infliction on Egypt may be imagined ...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 10
Chapter Outline
The plague of locusts threatened, Pharaoh, moved by his servants, inclines to let the Israelites go.(1-11)
The plague of locusts.(12-20)
The plague of thick darkness.(21-29)
**Verses 1-11**
The plagues of Egypt show the sinfulness of sin. They warn the children of men not to strive with their Maker. Pharaoh had pretended to humble himself; but no ac...
Read full commentary →And the LORD said unto Moses, Stretch out thine hand over the land of Egypt for the locusts, that they may come up upon the land of Egypt, and eat every herb of the land, even all that the hail hath left.
View commentary (2 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
Verse 12 describes the locust plague, targeting Osiris (agriculture god) and Isis (grain goddess). Moses warns locusts will 'cover the face of the earth' and devour everything the hail left. Pharaoh's servants beg him to relent, recognizing Egypt's destruction.
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 12-20**
God bids Moses stretch out his hand; locusts came at the call. An army might more easily have been resisted than this host of insects. Who then is able to stand before the great God? They covered the face of the earth, and ate up the fruit of it. Herbs grow for the service of man; yet when God pleases, insects shall plunder him, and eat the bread out of his mouth. Let our labo...
Read full commentary →And Moses stretched forth his rod over the land of Egypt, and the LORD brought an east wind upon the land all that day, and all that night; and when it was morning, the east wind brought the locusts.
View commentary (3 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
Verse 13 describes the locust plague, targeting Osiris (agriculture god) and Isis (grain goddess). Moses warns locusts will 'cover the face of the earth' and devour everything the hail left. Pharaoh's servants beg him to relent, recognizing Egypt's destruction.
Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(13) **An east wind.**—The LXX. translate by νότον*,* “a south wind,” probably because locusts most commonly enter Egypt from the south, being bred in Nubia or Abyssinia; but the Hebrew (*ruakh kddim*) is undoubtedly an east wind; and modern travellers tell us that this is a quarter from which locusts arrive in Egypt occasionally (Denon, *Voyages en Egypte,* p. 286). In such cases they are bred in...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 12-20**
God bids Moses stretch out his hand; locusts came at the call. An army might more easily have been resisted than this host of insects. Who then is able to stand before the great God? They covered the face of the earth, and ate up the fruit of it. Herbs grow for the service of man; yet when God pleases, insects shall plunder him, and eat the bread out of his mouth. Let our labo...
Read full commentary →And the locusts went up over all the land of Egypt, and rested in all the coasts of Egypt: very grievous were they; before them there were no such locusts as they, neither after them shall be such.
View commentary (3 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
Verse 14 describes the locust plague, targeting Osiris (agriculture god) and Isis (grain goddess). Moses warns locusts will 'cover the face of the earth' and devour everything the hail left. Pharaoh's servants beg him to relent, recognizing Egypt's destruction.
Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(14) **The locusts went up over all the land of Egypt.**—It is not, perhaps, certain that this is intended literally, since universal expressions are continually used by the sacred writers where something less than universality is meant. But, strengthened as the clause is by the succeeding one, we must suppose a very general visitation to be spoken of. Now Egypt extends, from north to south, a dis...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 12-20**
God bids Moses stretch out his hand; locusts came at the call. An army might more easily have been resisted than this host of insects. Who then is able to stand before the great God? They covered the face of the earth, and ate up the fruit of it. Herbs grow for the service of man; yet when God pleases, insects shall plunder him, and eat the bread out of his mouth. Let our labo...
Read full commentary →For they covered the face of the whole earth, so that the land was darkened; and they did eat every herb of the land, and all the fruit of the trees which the hail had left: and there remained not any green thing in the trees, or in the herbs of the field, through all the land of Egypt.
View commentary (4 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
Verse 15 describes the locust plague, targeting Osiris (agriculture god) and Isis (grain goddess). Moses warns locusts will 'cover the face of the earth' and devour everything the hail left. Pharaoh's servants beg him to relent, recognizing Egypt's destruction.
Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(15) **They covered the face of the whole earth,** **so that** **the land was darkened.**—See the comment on Exodus 10:5, and compare also Clarke’s *Travels in Russia,* p. 445:—“The steppes were literally covered with the bodies of these insects. . . . The whole face of nature seemed to be concealed as by a living veil.”
**They did eat every herb of the land.**—“When these animals arrive in swarms...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
Ex 8:20-32. Plague of Flies.
**20-24. Rise up early ... Pharaoh; lo, he cometh forth to the water, &c.--**Pharaoh still appearing obdurate, Moses was ordered to meet him while walking on the banks of the Nile and repeat his request for the liberation of Israel, threatening in case of continued refusal to cover every house from the palace to the cottage with swarms of flies--while, as a proof ...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 12-20**
God bids Moses stretch out his hand; locusts came at the call. An army might more easily have been resisted than this host of insects. Who then is able to stand before the great God? They covered the face of the earth, and ate up the fruit of it. Herbs grow for the service of man; yet when God pleases, insects shall plunder him, and eat the bread out of his mouth. Let our labo...
Read full commentary →Then Pharaoh called for Moses and Aaron in haste; and he said, I have sinned against the LORD your God, and against you. called: Heb. hastened to call
View commentary (4 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
Verse 16 describes the locust plague, targeting Osiris (agriculture god) and Isis (grain goddess). Moses warns locusts will 'cover the face of the earth' and devour everything the hail left. Pharaoh's servants beg him to relent, recognizing Egypt's destruction.
Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(16) **Pharaoh called for Moses and Aaron in** **haste**.—Heb., *hasted to call for Moses and Aaron.* The expression “hasted to call” is new, and marks extreme urgency. The visitation of the locusts was felt as far more severe than any previous one. It entirely destroyed all the remaining harvest, both of grain and fruit, and must have produced a terrible famine, had it not been for the Egyptian i...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
Ex 8:20-32. Plague of Flies.
**20-24. Rise up early ... Pharaoh; lo, he cometh forth to the water, &c.--**Pharaoh still appearing obdurate, Moses was ordered to meet him while walking on the banks of the Nile and repeat his request for the liberation of Israel, threatening in case of continued refusal to cover every house from the palace to the cottage with swarms of flies--while, as a proof ...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 12-20**
God bids Moses stretch out his hand; locusts came at the call. An army might more easily have been resisted than this host of insects. Who then is able to stand before the great God? They covered the face of the earth, and ate up the fruit of it. Herbs grow for the service of man; yet when God pleases, insects shall plunder him, and eat the bread out of his mouth. Let our labo...
Read full commentary →Now therefore forgive, I pray thee, my sin only this once, and intreat the LORD your God, that he may take away from me this death only.
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KJV Study Commentary
Verse 17 describes the locust plague, targeting Osiris (agriculture god) and Isis (grain goddess). Moses warns locusts will 'cover the face of the earth' and devour everything the hail left. Pharaoh's servants beg him to relent, recognizing Egypt's destruction.
Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(17) **This death.**—Comp, Exodus 10:7. The entire destruction of the harvest threatened death to large numbers of the poorer class of persons.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
Ex 8:20-32. Plague of Flies.
**20-24. Rise up early ... Pharaoh; lo, he cometh forth to the water, &c.--**Pharaoh still appearing obdurate, Moses was ordered to meet him while walking on the banks of the Nile and repeat his request for the liberation of Israel, threatening in case of continued refusal to cover every house from the palace to the cottage with swarms of flies--while, as a proof ...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 12-20**
God bids Moses stretch out his hand; locusts came at the call. An army might more easily have been resisted than this host of insects. Who then is able to stand before the great God? They covered the face of the earth, and ate up the fruit of it. Herbs grow for the service of man; yet when God pleases, insects shall plunder him, and eat the bread out of his mouth. Let our labo...
Read full commentary →And he went out from Pharaoh, and intreated the LORD.
View commentary (3 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
Verse 18 describes the locust plague, targeting Osiris (agriculture god) and Isis (grain goddess). Moses warns locusts will 'cover the face of the earth' and devour everything the hail left. Pharaoh's servants beg him to relent, recognizing Egypt's destruction.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
Ex 8:20-32. Plague of Flies.
**20-24. Rise up early ... Pharaoh; lo, he cometh forth to the water, &c.--**Pharaoh still appearing obdurate, Moses was ordered to meet him while walking on the banks of the Nile and repeat his request for the liberation of Israel, threatening in case of continued refusal to cover every house from the palace to the cottage with swarms of flies--while, as a proof ...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 12-20**
God bids Moses stretch out his hand; locusts came at the call. An army might more easily have been resisted than this host of insects. Who then is able to stand before the great God? They covered the face of the earth, and ate up the fruit of it. Herbs grow for the service of man; yet when God pleases, insects shall plunder him, and eat the bread out of his mouth. Let our labo...
Read full commentary →And the LORD turned a mighty strong west wind, which took away the locusts, and cast them into the Red sea; there remained not one locust in all the coasts of Egypt. cast: Heb. fastened
View commentary (4 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
Verse 19 describes the locust plague, targeting Osiris (agriculture god) and Isis (grain goddess). Moses warns locusts will 'cover the face of the earth' and devour everything the hail left. Pharaoh's servants beg him to relent, recognizing Egypt's destruction.
Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(19) **The Lord turned a mighty strong west wind** . . . —As locusts come, so they commonly go, with a wind. They cannot fly far without one. It often happens that a wind blows them into the sea. Pallas says, speaking of Crimean locusts in the year 1799:—“Great numbers of them were carried [from the Crimea] by northerly winds into the sea, where they perished, and were afterwards washed on shore i...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
Ex 8:20-32. Plague of Flies.
**20-24. Rise up early ... Pharaoh; lo, he cometh forth to the water, &c.--**Pharaoh still appearing obdurate, Moses was ordered to meet him while walking on the banks of the Nile and repeat his request for the liberation of Israel, threatening in case of continued refusal to cover every house from the palace to the cottage with swarms of flies--while, as a proof ...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 12-20**
God bids Moses stretch out his hand; locusts came at the call. An army might more easily have been resisted than this host of insects. Who then is able to stand before the great God? They covered the face of the earth, and ate up the fruit of it. Herbs grow for the service of man; yet when God pleases, insects shall plunder him, and eat the bread out of his mouth. Let our labo...
Read full commentary →But the LORD hardened Pharaoh's heart, so that he would not let the children of Israel go.
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KJV Study Commentary
Verse 20 describes the locust plague, targeting Osiris (agriculture god) and Isis (grain goddess). Moses warns locusts will 'cover the face of the earth' and devour everything the hail left. Pharaoh's servants beg him to relent, recognizing Egypt's destruction.
Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(20) **The Lord hardened Pharaoh’s heart.**—Comp. above, Exodus 9:12.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**25-32. Pharaoh called for Moses, ... Go ye, sacrifice to your God in the land, &c.--**Between impatient anxiety to be freed from this scourge and a reluctance on the part of the Hebrew bondsmen, the king followed the course of expediency; he proposed to let them free to engage in their religious rites within any part of the kingdom. But true to his instructions, Moses would accede to no such...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 12-20**
God bids Moses stretch out his hand; locusts came at the call. An army might more easily have been resisted than this host of insects. Who then is able to stand before the great God? They covered the face of the earth, and ate up the fruit of it. Herbs grow for the service of man; yet when God pleases, insects shall plunder him, and eat the bread out of his mouth. Let our labo...
Read full commentary →The Ninth Plague: Darkness
And the LORD said unto Moses, Stretch out thine hand toward heaven, that there may be darkness over the land of Egypt, even darkness which may be felt. even: Heb. that one may feel darkness
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KJV Study Commentary
Verse 21 introduces the plague of darkness, directly targeting Ra, Egypt's supreme sun god. Darkness covered Egypt for three days—'darkness which may be felt' (v.21)—while Israel had light in Goshen. This penultimate plague strikes at Egypt's chief deity.
Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
THE NINTH PLAGUE.
(21-23) The ninth plague, like the third and sixth, was sent without any previous warning. It consisted in a “thick darkness,” which may have been brought about by means of the *Khamsin,* or “Wind of the Desert,” which frequently blows about the time of the vernal equinox, and brings with it such clouds of a fine impalpable sand that the light of the sun is obscured, and an effec...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**25-32. Pharaoh called for Moses, ... Go ye, sacrifice to your God in the land, &c.--**Between impatient anxiety to be freed from this scourge and a reluctance on the part of the Hebrew bondsmen, the king followed the course of expediency; he proposed to let them free to engage in their religious rites within any part of the kingdom. But true to his instructions, Moses would accede to no such...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 21-29**
The plague of darkness brought upon Egypt was a dreadful plague. It was darkness which might be felt, so thick were the fogs. It astonished and terrified. It continued three days; six nights in one; so long the most lightsome palaces were dungeons. Now Pharaoh had time to consider, if he would have improved it. Spiritual darkness is spiritual bondage; while Satan blinds men's ...
Read full commentary →And Moses stretched forth his hand toward heaven; and there was a thick darkness in all the land of Egypt three days:
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KJV Study Commentary
Verse 22 introduces the plague of darkness, directly targeting Ra, Egypt's supreme sun god. Darkness covered Egypt for three days—'darkness which may be felt' (v.21)—while Israel had light in Goshen. This penultimate plague strikes at Egypt's chief deity.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**25-32. Pharaoh called for Moses, ... Go ye, sacrifice to your God in the land, &c.--**Between impatient anxiety to be freed from this scourge and a reluctance on the part of the Hebrew bondsmen, the king followed the course of expediency; he proposed to let them free to engage in their religious rites within any part of the kingdom. But true to his instructions, Moses would accede to no such...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 21-29**
The plague of darkness brought upon Egypt was a dreadful plague. It was darkness which might be felt, so thick were the fogs. It astonished and terrified. It continued three days; six nights in one; so long the most lightsome palaces were dungeons. Now Pharaoh had time to consider, if he would have improved it. Spiritual darkness is spiritual bondage; while Satan blinds men's ...
Read full commentary →They saw not one another, neither rose any from his place for three days: but all the children of Israel had light in their dwellings.
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KJV Study Commentary
Verse 23 introduces the plague of darkness, directly targeting Ra, Egypt's supreme sun god. Darkness covered Egypt for three days—'darkness which may be felt' (v.21)—while Israel had light in Goshen. This penultimate plague strikes at Egypt's chief deity.
Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(23) **They saw not one another.**—Heb., *man did not see his brother.* The darkness was absolute, equal to that of the darkest night.
**Neither rose any from his place.**—Comp. Exodus 16:29. No one quitted his house. Mr. Millington imagines that they all sat “glued to their seats” (*Plagues of Egypt,* p. 159), but this savours of over-literalism. It is not necessary to suppose that they had no ar...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**25-32. Pharaoh called for Moses, ... Go ye, sacrifice to your God in the land, &c.--**Between impatient anxiety to be freed from this scourge and a reluctance on the part of the Hebrew bondsmen, the king followed the course of expediency; he proposed to let them free to engage in their religious rites within any part of the kingdom. But true to his instructions, Moses would accede to no such...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 21-29**
The plague of darkness brought upon Egypt was a dreadful plague. It was darkness which might be felt, so thick were the fogs. It astonished and terrified. It continued three days; six nights in one; so long the most lightsome palaces were dungeons. Now Pharaoh had time to consider, if he would have improved it. Spiritual darkness is spiritual bondage; while Satan blinds men's ...
Read full commentary →And Pharaoh called unto Moses, and said, Go ye, serve the LORD; only let your flocks and your herds be stayed: let your little ones also go with you.
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KJV Study Commentary
Verse 24 introduces the plague of darkness, directly targeting Ra, Egypt's supreme sun god. Darkness covered Egypt for three days—'darkness which may be felt' (v.21)—while Israel had light in Goshen. This penultimate plague strikes at Egypt's chief deity.
Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(24) **Let your little ones also go with you.**—Rather, *your families.* Pharaoh yields another point, but he will not yield all. He has not yet made up his mind really to “let the people go.” He must still keep some hold on them, and the cattle will serve his purpose equally with the “little ones.” If the Israelites depart without their cattle, they will be sure to return for them.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**25-32. Pharaoh called for Moses, ... Go ye, sacrifice to your God in the land, &c.--**Between impatient anxiety to be freed from this scourge and a reluctance on the part of the Hebrew bondsmen, the king followed the course of expediency; he proposed to let them free to engage in their religious rites within any part of the kingdom. But true to his instructions, Moses would accede to no such...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 21-29**
The plague of darkness brought upon Egypt was a dreadful plague. It was darkness which might be felt, so thick were the fogs. It astonished and terrified. It continued three days; six nights in one; so long the most lightsome palaces were dungeons. Now Pharaoh had time to consider, if he would have improved it. Spiritual darkness is spiritual bondage; while Satan blinds men's ...
Read full commentary →And Moses said, Thou must give us also sacrifices and burnt offerings, that we may sacrifice unto the LORD our God. us: Heb. into our hands
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KJV Study Commentary
Verse 25 introduces the plague of darkness, directly targeting Ra, Egypt's supreme sun god. Darkness covered Egypt for three days—'darkness which may be felt' (v.21)—while Israel had light in Goshen. This penultimate plague strikes at Egypt's chief deity.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**25-32. Pharaoh called for Moses, ... Go ye, sacrifice to your God in the land, &c.--**Between impatient anxiety to be freed from this scourge and a reluctance on the part of the Hebrew bondsmen, the king followed the course of expediency; he proposed to let them free to engage in their religious rites within any part of the kingdom. But true to his instructions, Moses would accede to no such...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 21-29**
The plague of darkness brought upon Egypt was a dreadful plague. It was darkness which might be felt, so thick were the fogs. It astonished and terrified. It continued three days; six nights in one; so long the most lightsome palaces were dungeons. Now Pharaoh had time to consider, if he would have improved it. Spiritual darkness is spiritual bondage; while Satan blinds men's ...
Read full commentary →Our cattle also shall go with us; there shall not an hoof be left behind; for thereof must we take to serve the LORD our God; and we know not with what we must serve the LORD, until we come thither.
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KJV Study Commentary
Verse 26 introduces the plague of darkness, directly targeting Ra, Egypt's supreme sun god. Darkness covered Egypt for three days—'darkness which may be felt' (v.21)—while Israel had light in Goshen. This penultimate plague strikes at Egypt's chief deity.
Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(26) **Our cattle also shall go with us.**—Once more Moses rejects the proffered compromise—rejects it absolutely and altogether. The cattle shall *all* go with the people; “not an hoof shall be left behind.” And why? First, because it is theirs (“*our* cattle,” “*our* flocks,” *“our* herds”), and not Pharaoh’s; secondly, because it is God’s—*all,* to the last head, if He requires it; and He has n...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**25-32. Pharaoh called for Moses, ... Go ye, sacrifice to your God in the land, &c.--**Between impatient anxiety to be freed from this scourge and a reluctance on the part of the Hebrew bondsmen, the king followed the course of expediency; he proposed to let them free to engage in their religious rites within any part of the kingdom. But true to his instructions, Moses would accede to no such...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 21-29**
The plague of darkness brought upon Egypt was a dreadful plague. It was darkness which might be felt, so thick were the fogs. It astonished and terrified. It continued three days; six nights in one; so long the most lightsome palaces were dungeons. Now Pharaoh had time to consider, if he would have improved it. Spiritual darkness is spiritual bondage; while Satan blinds men's ...
Read full commentary →But the LORD hardened Pharaoh's heart, and he would not let them go.
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KJV Study Commentary
Verse 27 introduces the plague of darkness, directly targeting Ra, Egypt's supreme sun god. Darkness covered Egypt for three days—'darkness which may be felt' (v.21)—while Israel had light in Goshen. This penultimate plague strikes at Egypt's chief deity.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**25-32. Pharaoh called for Moses, ... Go ye, sacrifice to your God in the land, &c.--**Between impatient anxiety to be freed from this scourge and a reluctance on the part of the Hebrew bondsmen, the king followed the course of expediency; he proposed to let them free to engage in their religious rites within any part of the kingdom. But true to his instructions, Moses would accede to no such...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 21-29**
The plague of darkness brought upon Egypt was a dreadful plague. It was darkness which might be felt, so thick were the fogs. It astonished and terrified. It continued three days; six nights in one; so long the most lightsome palaces were dungeons. Now Pharaoh had time to consider, if he would have improved it. Spiritual darkness is spiritual bondage; while Satan blinds men's ...
Read full commentary →And Pharaoh said unto him, Get thee from me, take heed to thyself, see my face no more; for in that day thou seest my face thou shalt die.
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KJV Study Commentary
Verse 28 introduces the plague of darkness, directly targeting Ra, Egypt's supreme sun god. Darkness covered Egypt for three days—'darkness which may be felt' (v.21)—while Israel had light in Goshen. This penultimate plague strikes at Egypt's chief deity.
Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(28) G**et thee from me.**—This address is ruds, fierce, uncourteous. That a Pharaoh of the nineteenth (or eighteenth?) dynasty should have so spoken implies extreme and very uncommon excitement. Generally the Pharaohs of this polished period were as imper turbable as Chinese mandarins. We must suppose that up to this time the king had persuaded himself that he would be able to bring Moses to a co...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 21-29**
The plague of darkness brought upon Egypt was a dreadful plague. It was darkness which might be felt, so thick were the fogs. It astonished and terrified. It continued three days; six nights in one; so long the most lightsome palaces were dungeons. Now Pharaoh had time to consider, if he would have improved it. Spiritual darkness is spiritual bondage; while Satan blinds men's ...
Read full commentary →And Moses said, Thou hast spoken well, I will see thy face again no more.
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KJV Study Commentary
Verse 29 introduces the plague of darkness, directly targeting Ra, Egypt's supreme sun god. Darkness covered Egypt for three days—'darkness which may be felt' (v.21)—while Israel had light in Goshen. This penultimate plague strikes at Egypt's chief deity.
Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(29) The division between Exodus 10 and Exodus 11 is unfortunate. The interview between Pharaoh and Moses was not yet over. It is continued in Exodus 10:4-8 of the next chapter, and only terminates when the prophet “went out from Pharaoh in a great anger.” Exodus 10:1-3 of Exodus 11 are parenthetic.
**Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers
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Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 21-29**
The plague of darkness brought upon Egypt was a dreadful plague. It was darkness which might be felt, so thick were the fogs. It astonished and terrified. It continued three days; six nights in one; so long the most lightsome palaces were dungeons. Now Pharaoh had time to consider, if he would have improved it. Spiritual darkness is spiritual bondage; while Satan blinds men's ...
Read full commentary →