The Second Book of Moses: Exodus

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- Chapter 10 -

And the Lord said to Moses: “Enter to Pharaoh. For I have hardened his heart, and that of his servants, so that I may accomplish these, my signs, in him,

and so that you may describe to the ears of your sons and your grandsons how often I opposed the Egyptians and wrought my signs among them, and so that you may know that I am the Lord.”

Therefore, Moses and Aaron entered to Pharaoh, and they said to him: “Thus says the Lord God of the Hebrews: How long will you be unwilling to be subject to me? Release my people to sacrifice to me.

But if you resist, and you are unwilling to release them, behold, tomorrow I will bring locusts into your borders.(a)

And they shall cover the face of the earth, lest any part of it be seen. Yes, and what remains from the hail shall be eaten. For they will gnaw away all the trees that spring up in the fields.

And they will fill your houses, and those of your servants and of all the Egyptians: so many as your fathers and ancestors have not seen, from the time that they rose up over the earth, even until this present day.” And he turned himself away, and he departed from Pharaoh.

Then the servants of Pharaoh said to him: “How long must we endure this scandal? Release the men, in order to sacrifice to the Lord their God. Do you not see that Egypt is perishing?”

And they called back Moses and Aaron to Pharaoh, who said to them: “Go, sacrifice to the Lord your God. Who are they who would go?”

Moses said: “We will travel with our little ones and our elderly, with our sons and daughters, with our sheep and herds. For it is a solemnity of the Lord our God.”

And Pharaoh responded: “So let the Lord be with you. But if I were to release you and your little ones, who would doubt that you intend some great wickedness?

It will not be so. However, go only with the men, and sacrifice to the Lord. For this, too, is what you yourselves requested.” And immediately they were cast out from the sight of Pharaoh.

Then the Lord said to Moses: “Extend your hand over the land of Egypt, toward the locusts, so that they may rise up over it, and devour every plant which remains from the hail.”

And Moses extended his staff over the land of Egypt. And the Lord brought a burning wind all that day and night. And when morning came, the burning wind lifted up the locusts.

And they ascended over the entire land of Egypt. And they settled into all the parts of the Egyptians: innumerable, such as had not been before that time, nor ever would be thereafter.

And they covered the entire face of the land, laying waste to all things. And the plants of the land were devoured, along with whatever fruits were on the trees, which the hail had left behind. And nothing at all of the greenery remained on the trees or on the plants of the earth in all of Egypt.

For this reason, Pharaoh hurriedly called Moses and Aaron, and he said to them: “I have sinned against the Lord your God, and against you.

But now, release me from my sin even this time, and petition the Lord your God, so that he may take this death away from me.”

And Moses, departing from the sight of Pharaoh, prayed to the Lord.

And he caused a very strong wind to blow from the west, and, seizing the locusts, it cast them into the Red Sea. There remained not so much as one in all the parts of Egypt.

And the Lord hardened the heart of Pharaoh; neither did he release the sons of Israel.

The Ninth Plague: Darkness

Then the Lord said to Moses: “Extend your hand into the sky. And let there be a darkness over the land of Egypt, so dense that they may be able to feel it.”(b)

And Moses extended his hand into the sky. And there came a horrible darkness in the entire land of Egypt for three days.(c)

No one saw his brother, nor moved himself out of the place where he was. But wherever the sons of Israel were living, there was light.

And Pharaoh called Moses and Aaron, and he said to them: “Go, sacrifice to the Lord. Only let your sheep and herds remain behind. Your little ones may go with you.”

Moses said: “You must also permit us victims and holocausts, which we may offer to the Lord our God.

All the flocks shall travel with us. Not one hoof of them shall remain behind. For they are necessary for the worship of the Lord our God, especially since we do not know what ought to be immolated, until we arrive at the very place.”

But the Lord hardened the heart of Pharaoh, and he was not willing to release them.

And Pharaoh said to Moses: “Withdraw from me, and beware that you no longer see my face. On whatever day you will appear in my sight, you shall die.”

Moses responded: “So be it, just as you have said. I will no longer see your face.”

Footnotes

(a)10:4 Note that ‘fines’ is used here to mean ‘parts,’ not ‘ends,’ just as in some of the Psalms (e.g. Psalm 4:1).(Conte)

(b)10:21 Darkness upon the land of Egypt, so thick that it may be felt:By means of the gross exhalations, which were to cause and accompany the darkness.(Challoner)

The LORD said to Moses, “Go in to Pharaoh, for I have hardened his heart and the heart of his servants, that I may show these my signs among them;

and that you may tell in the hearing of your son, and of your son’s son, what things I have done to Egypt, and my signs which I have done among them; that you may know that I am the LORD.”

Moses and Aaron went in to Pharaoh, and said to him, “This is what the LORD, the God of the Hebrews, says: ‘How long will you refuse to humble yourself before me? Let my people go, that they may serve me.

Or else, if you refuse to let my people go, behold, tomorrow I will bring locusts into your country,

and they shall cover the surface of the earth, so that one won’t be able to see the earth. They shall eat the residue of that which has escaped, which remains to you from the hail, and shall eat every tree which grows for you out of the field.

Your houses shall be filled, and the houses of all your servants, and the houses of all the Egyptians, as neither your fathers nor your fathers’ fathers have seen, since the day that they were on the earth to this day.’” He turned, and went out from Pharaoh.

Pharaoh’s servants said to him, “How long will this man be a snare to us? Let the men go, that they may serve the LORD, their God. Don’t you yet know that Egypt is destroyed?”

Moses and Aaron were brought again to Pharaoh, and he said to them, “Go, serve the LORD your God; but who are those who will go?”

Moses said, “We will go with our young and with our old. We will go with our sons and with our daughters, with our flocks and with our herds; for we must hold a feast to the LORD.”

He said to them, “The LORD be with you if I let you go with your little ones! See, evil is clearly before your faces.

Not so! Go now you who are men, and serve the LORD; for that is what you desire!” Then they were driven out from Pharaoh’s presence.

The LORD said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand over the land of Egypt for the locusts, that they may come up on the land of Egypt, and eat every herb of the land, even all that the hail has left.”

Moses stretched out his rod over the land of Egypt, and the LORD brought an east wind on the land all that day, and all night; and when it was morning, the east wind brought the locusts.

The locusts went up over all the land of Egypt, and rested in all the borders of Egypt. They were very grievous. Before them there were no such locusts as they, nor will there ever be again.

For they covered the surface of the whole earth, so that the land was darkened, and they ate every herb of the land, and all the fruit of the trees which the hail had left. There remained nothing green, either tree or herb of the field, through all the land of Egypt.

Then Pharaoh called for Moses and Aaron in haste, and he said, “I have sinned against the LORD your God, and against you.

Now therefore please forgive my sin again, and pray to the LORD your God, that he may also take away from me this death.”

Moses went out from Pharaoh, and prayed to the LORD.

The LORD sent an exceedingly strong west wind, which took up the locusts, and drove them into the Red Sea.(a) There remained not one locust in all the borders of Egypt.

But the LORD hardened Pharaoh’s heart, and he didn’t let the children of Israel go.

The Ninth Plague: Darkness

The LORD said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand toward the sky, that there may be darkness over the land of Egypt, even darkness which may be felt.”

Moses stretched out his hand toward the sky, and there was a thick darkness in all the land of Egypt for three days.

They didn’t see one another, and nobody rose from his place for three days; but all the children of Israel had light in their dwellings.

Pharaoh called to Moses, and said, “Go, serve the LORD. Only let your flocks and your herds stay behind. Let your little ones also go with you.”

Moses said, “You must also give into our hand sacrifices and burnt offerings, that we may sacrifice to the LORD our God.

Our livestock also shall go with us. Not a hoof shall be left behind, for of it we must take to serve the LORD our God; and we don’t know with what we must serve the LORD, until we come there.”

But the LORD hardened Pharaoh’s heart, and he wouldn’t let them go.

Pharaoh said to him, “Get away from me! Be careful to see my face no more; for in the day you see my face you shall die!”

Moses said, “You have spoken well. I will see your face again no more.”

Footnotes

(a)10:19 “Red Sea” is the translation for the Hebrew “Yam Suf”, which could be more literally translated “Sea of Reeds” or “Sea of Cattails”. It refers to the body of water currently known as the Red Sea, or possibly to one of the bodies of water connected to it or near it.