Exodus 9

This chapter continues the account of the ten plagues in the Book of Exodus. Following Exodus 8, which covers the plagues of frogs, lice, and flies, it records the fifth through seventh plagues; the remaining plagues follow in chapters 10–12.

Outline

• Verses 1–7: The fifth plague. On the next day, the time the LORD had appointed, a grievous murrain (a pestilence) strikes the livestock of Egypt, and they die. Not one of the livestock of Israel dies. Pharaoh confirms this, yet still does not let the people go.
• Verses 8–12: The sixth plague. Moses sprinkles ashes of the furnace toward heaven, and boils (malignant sores) break out on man and beast. Even the magicians cannot stand before Moses because of the boils. The LORD hardens Pharaoh's heart.
• Verses 13–21: The seventh plague is announced. The LORD declares that He will send hail such as has never been seen and warns that people and livestock in the field should be brought in. Only the servants who fear the word of the LORD heed the warning.
• Verses 22–26: Moses stretches forth his rod, and thunder, hail, and fire come down, striking man and beast, herbs and trees. There is no hail in the land of Goshen.
• Verses 27–35: Pharaoh says, "I have sinned this time," asks that the hail be stopped, and promises to let the people go. By this point the flax and the barley had been smitten, but the wheat and the rye had not. Moses goes out of the city and spreads abroad his hands, and the hail ceases. Pharaoh, however, hardens his heart once more.

Key Verses

• Exodus 9:12 "And the LORD hardened the heart of Pharaoh" — This verse is the starting point for theological discussion of Pharaoh's hardness of heart.
• Exodus 9:16 "that my name may be declared throughout all the earth" — This verse states the purpose of the plagues. Paul quotes it in Romans 9.

People and Places

• Moses and Aaron: They deliver the word of the LORD to Pharaoh and bring about the plagues.
• Pharaoh: The king of Egypt. He confesses his wrongdoing and makes a promise, but then goes back on it.
• The magicians: The sorcerers of the Egyptian court. In earlier chapters they imitated the plagues, but in this chapter they cannot even stand before Moses.
• Egypt: The land upon which the plagues fall.
• Goshen: The region of Egypt where the children of Israel lived; it is spared from the hail.

Points for Reflection

• Earlier chapters state that Pharaoh's heart was hardened or that Pharaoh hardened his own heart. Verse 12 of this chapter is the first place in the plague narrative where the LORD is named as the subject. The Reformed (Calvinist) tradition reads this as God's sovereign decree and connects it with Romans 9:17–18. The Arminian and Wesleyan traditions read it as Pharaoh first hardening himself, with God then confirming that condition as judgment. For further discussion, see the article Predestination and Free Will.
• Verse 6 says that "all the cattle of Egypt" died, yet livestock appear again in verses 19–25. Many interpreters limit the scope to the cattle "which is in the field" mentioned in verse 3.
• Exodus does not name the magicians. The names Jannes and Jambres in 2 Timothy 3:8 are understood to come from Jewish tradition.
• The "noisome and grievous sore" (verse 2) and the "great hail" (verse 21) of the bowl judgments in Revelation 16 recall the plagues of this chapter.