Exodus 8

¹ Yahweh said to Moses, ‘Say this to Aaron, “Stretch out your hand, with your staff, over the rivers, the canals, the marshland, and make frogs swarm all over the land of Egypt”‘.

² So Aaron stretched out his hand over the waters of Egypt, and the frogs came up and covered the land of Egypt.

³ But the magicians did the same with their witchcraft, and made frogs swarm all over the land of Egypt.

⁴ Pharaoh summoned Moses and Aaron, ‘Entreat Yahweh’ he said ‘to rid me and my subjects of the frogs, and I promise to let the people go and offer sacrifice to Yahweh.’

⁵ Moses answered Pharaoh, ‘Take this chance to get the better of me! When I pray on your account and for your courtiers, and for your subjects, what time am I to fix for the frogs to leave you and your subjects and your houses, and stay in the river?’

⁶ ‘Tomorrow’ Pharaoh said. ‘It shall be as you say’ answered Moses. ‘By this you shall learn that Yahweh our God has no equal.

⁷ The frogs will go from you and your palaces, your courtiers and your subjects; they will stay in the river.’

⁸ When Moses and Aaron had gone from Pharaoh’s presence, Moses pleaded with Yahweh about the frogs with which he had afflicted Pharaoh.

⁹ And Yahweh granted Moses’ prayer: in house and courtyard and field the frogs died.

¹⁰ They piled them up in heaps and the land reeked of them.

¹¹ But as soon as he saw that relief had been granted, Pharaoh became adamant again and, as Yahweh had foretold, he refused to listen to Moses and Aaron. The third plague: the mosquitoes

¹² Then Yahweh said to Moses, ‘Say this to Aaron, “Stretch out your rod and strike the dust on the ground: throughout the land of Egypt it will turn into mosquitoes”‘.

¹³ Aaron stretched out his hand, with his staff, and struck the dust on the ground. The mosquitoes attacked men and beasts; throughout the land of Egypt the dust on the ground turned into mosquitoes.

¹⁴ The magicians with their witchcraft tried to produce mosquitoes and failed. The mosquitoes attacked men and beasts.

¹⁵ So the magicians said to Pharaoh, ‘This is the finger of God’. But Pharaoh’s heart was stubborn and, as Yahweh had foretold, he refused to listen to Moses and Aaron. The fourth plague: the gadflies

¹⁶ Then Yahweh said to Moses, ‘Get up early in the morning and wait for Pharaoh as he makes his way to the water. Say to him, “This is Yahweh’s message: Let my people go to offer me worship.

¹⁷ But if you do not let my people go, I shall send gadflies on you, on your courtiers and your palaces. The houses of the Egyptians will be infested with them, and even the very ground they stand on.

¹⁸ But I shall set apart the land of Goshen, where my people live, on that day; there will be no gadflies there, and so you may know that I, Yahweh, am in the midst of the land.

¹⁹ I shall make a distinction between my people and yours. This sign shall take place tomorrow.”‘

²⁰ Yahweh did this, and great swarms of gadflies found their way into Pharaoh’s palace, into the houses of his courtiers, and into all the land of Egypt, and ruined the country.

²¹ Pharaoh summoned Moses and Aaron. ‘Go’ he said ‘and offer sacrifice to your God, but in this country!’

²² ‘That would not be right’ Moses answered. ‘We sacrifice to Yahweh our God animals which Egyptians count it sacrilege to slaughter. If we offer in front of the Egyptians sacrifices that outrage them, will they not stone us?[*a]

²³ We must make a three days’ journey into the wilderness to offer sacrifice to Yahweh our God, as he has commanded us.

²⁴ Pharaoh replied, ‘I will let you go to offer sacrifice to Yahweh your God in the wilderness, provided you do not go far. And intercede for me.’

²⁵ ‘The moment I leave you,’ said Moses ‘I will pray to Yahweh. Tomorrow morning the gadflies will leave Pharaoh and his courtiers and his subjects. Only, Pharaoh must not play false again, and refuse to let the people go to offer sacrifice to Yahweh.’

²⁶ So Moses went out of Pharaoh’s presence and prayed to Yahweh.

²⁷ And Yahweh did as Moses asked; the gadflies left Pharaoh and his courtiers and his subjects; not one remained.

²⁸ But Pharaoh was adamant this time too and did not let the people go.