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The LORD said to Moses, “Go in to Pharaoh and speak to him: ‘Thus says the LORD, the God of the Hebrews: Let my people go, that they may serve me.
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For if you refuse to let them go and still hold them back,
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then your livestock that are in the field—horses, donkeys, camels, cattle, and sheep—shall be struck by the LORD with a very severe plague.
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But the LORD will make a distinction between the livestock of Israel and the livestock of Egypt, so that nothing at all shall die of all that belongs to the Israelites.’”
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And the LORD set a time, saying, “Tomorrow the LORD will do this thing in the land.”
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And the LORD did this thing on the next day; all the livestock of Egypt died, but of the livestock of Israel not one died.
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Then Pharaoh sent, and indeed not one of the livestock of Israel had died. But Pharaoh’s heart remained hard, and he would not let the people go.
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The LORD said to Moses and Aaron, “Take handfuls of soot from a furnace, and Moses shall toss it toward the sky in the sight of Pharaoh.
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It shall become fine dust over all the land of Egypt, and it shall cause boils breaking out in sores on humans and animals throughout the land of Egypt.”
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So they took soot from the furnace and stood before Pharaoh, and Moses tossed it toward the sky, and it became boils breaking out in sores on humans and animals,
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so that the magicians could not stand before Moses because of the boils; for the magicians also were afflicted with boils, like all the Egyptians.
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But the LORD hardened Pharaoh’s heart, and he did not listen to them, just as the LORD had spoken to Moses.
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The LORD said to Moses, “Rise up early in the morning and stand before Pharaoh and say to him: ‘Thus says the LORD, the God of the Hebrews: Let my people go, that they may serve me.
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For this time I will send all my plagues on you yourself, on your servants, and on your people, so that you may know that there is none like me in all the earth.
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For by now I could have stretched out my hand and struck you and your people with plague, and you would have been cut off from the earth;
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but for this reason I have let you live, to show you my power, and so that my name may be proclaimed in all the earth.
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You are still hindering My people, so that you do not let them go.
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Behold, about this time tomorrow I will cause a very severe hail to fall, such as has never been in Egypt from the day Egypt was founded until now.
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Therefore, send word to bring your livestock and all that you have in the field to a place of safety; every man and every animal that is in the field and has not been brought home will be struck by the hail and die.”
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Then among Pharaoh’s officials, whoever feared the word of the LORD made his servants and his livestock flee into the houses,
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but whoever did not regard the word of the LORD left his servants and his livestock in the field.
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The LORD said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand toward the sky, so that hail may fall over all the land of Egypt, on man and beast and on every plant of the field in the land of Egypt.”
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Then Moses stretched out his staff toward the sky, and the LORD sent thunder and hail, and fire flashed to the earth; and the LORD rained hail upon the land of Egypt.
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So there was hail, and fire flashing continually in the midst of the hail, very severe, such as had never been in all the land of Egypt since it became a nation.
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The hail struck down everything that was in the field throughout all the land of Egypt, from man to beast; the hail also struck down every plant of the field and shattered every tree of the field.
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Only in the land of Goshen, where the Israelites lived, was there no hail.
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Then Pharaoh sent for Moses and Aaron and said to them, “I have sinned this time; the LORD is righteous, but I and my people are in the wrong.
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Pray to the LORD; there has been enough of this terrible thunder and hail. Then I will let you go; you need not stay any longer.”
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Moses said to him, “As soon as I go out of the city, I will spread out my hands to the LORD; the thunder will cease, and there will be no more hail, so that you may know that the earth belongs to the LORD.
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But as for you and your officials, I know that you still do not fear the LORD God.”
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— The flax and the barley were struck down, for the barley was in the ear and the flax was in bloom.
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But the wheat and the spelt were not struck down, for they were not yet grown. —
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Then Moses went out of the city from Pharaoh and spread out his hands to the LORD; and the thunder and the hail ceased, and rain no longer poured down on the earth.
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But when Pharaoh saw that the rain, the hail, and the thunder had ceased, he sinned again; he hardened his heart, he and his servants.
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So Pharaoh’s heart was hardened, and he did not let the Israelites go — just as the LORD had spoken through Moses.
🐄🔥❄️ Summary of Exodus 9
Exodus 9 continues the account of God’s ten plagues on Egypt, covering the fifth through seventh plagues: the plague on livestock, boils, and the severe hailstorm. God shows that no one can match His power, and He actively makes a distinction between His people and His enemies.
1. The Fifth Plague: A Disease among the Livestock (verses 1–7)
- The LORD gave warning: if Pharaoh would not let the people of Israel go, then the livestock of Egypt would be struck with a deadly disease.
- The livestock of Israel in the land of Goshen was not harmed at all.
- After this, Pharaoh remained hard of heart.
2. The Sixth Plague: Boils (verses 8–12)
- Moses and Aaron threw ashes into the air, and the ashes caused painful boils on the people and animals of Egypt.
- The magicians could not stand before Moses because of the boils.
- Yet the LORD hardened Pharaoh’s heart, so that he would not listen to them.
3. The Seventh Plague: Hail and Fire (verses 13–35)
- The LORD warned again and declared:
“For this time I will send all My plagues upon you… so that you may know that there is none like Me in all the earth.” (v. 14)
- Hail mixed with fire fell with great force, destroying people, animals, and the plants in the field.
- The LORD told Moses to warn the people of Egypt to bring their livestock and servants under shelter, as an act of His mercy.
- In the land of Goshen, where the Israelites lived, there was no hail.
- Pharaoh confessed:
“This time I have sinned… the LORD is the righteous one.”
But after the hail stopped, he hardened his heart again.
📖 Main Lessons
- The Lord is sovereign over the universe and all living creatures.
- The Lord gives sinners an opportunity to repent before bringing judgment.
- No human power can match the power of the Lord.
- The Lord protects His people in the midst of the wrath He is pouring out.
- False repentance will be revealed when the trouble has passed.
✨ Spiritual Meaning
- The separation between God’s people and Egypt is a picture of divine protection for those who live in obedience.
- The boils and the hail show that God can punish through nature, the body, and possessions—a sign that every part of life is subject to Him.
- Pharaoh’s confession that the Lord is righteous shows that even an enemy will one day acknowledge God’s glory, though not all of it bears the fruit of true repentance.
- The terror of this plague is a warning of the consequences of a heart that keeps rebelling against God.
