Exodus / Chapter 10

Exodus 10

29 verses • Westminster Leningrad Codex 1 tradition available

Translator's Introduction

What This Chapter Is About

Locusts devour everything the hail spared, then a darkness so thick it can be felt covers Egypt for three days while Israel has light. Pharaoh's own servants urge him to relent. After the darkness, Pharaoh threatens Moses with death if he returns.

What Makes This Chapter Remarkable

The exodus is explicitly designed for intergenerational testimony: 'that you may recount in the hearing of your son and grandson' (v2). The verb sapper is the origin of the Passover Haggadah — the story is not merely record but ongoing encounter. The darkness plague (choshekh, v21) inverts creation itself: Genesis 1:3-4 separated light from darkness, but now darkness returns as judgment. Pharaoh's servants break ranks before he does (v7), exposing the isolation of tyranny.

Translation Friction

The phrase choshekh afeilah ('thick darkness,' v22) we rendered as 'darkness that could be felt,' preserving the tactile quality the Hebrew seems to intend. The root anah in le'anot mipanai ('to humble yourself before Me,' v3) is the same root that describes Israel's affliction under Egypt — we noted this bitter wordplay in our translator notes. The phrase 'How long will you refuse to humble yourself?' names Pharaoh's core sin: the oppressor who humiliated a nation will not humble himself before God.

Connections

The darkness reverses Genesis 1:3-4. The intergenerational telling (v2) grounds the Passover Haggadah tradition. Pharaoh's advisors breaking ranks (v7) parallels Nebuchadnezzar's advisors in Daniel 2:2-12. The three days of darkness anticipate the three days of preparation at Sinai (19:11). **Tradition comparisons:** The Samaritan Pentateuch shows 1 moderate variant(s) in this chapter. See the [Samaritan Pentateuch](/samaritan-pentateuch/exodus).

Exodus 10:1

וַיֹּ֤אמֶר יְהֹוָה֙ אֶל־מֹשֶׁ֔ה בֹּ֖א אֶל־פַּרְעֹ֑ה כִּֽי־אֲנִ֞י הִכְבַּ֤דְתִּי אֶת־לִבּוֹ֙ וְאֶת־לֵ֣ב עֲבָדָ֔יו לְמַ֗עַן שִׁתִ֛י אֹתֹתַ֥י אֵ֖לֶּה בְּקִרְבּֽוֹ׃

Then the LORD said to Moses, "Go in to Pharaoh, for I have hardened his heart and the heart of his servants, so that I may place these signs of Mine among them,

KJV 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:

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. God explicitly claims the hardening as His own action: 'I have hardened' (ani hikhbadti). The purpose is stated: 'so that I may place these signs.' The plagues are divine pedagogy — each one a lesson placed (shiti, 'set, placed') before Pharaoh and Israel alike.

Samaritan Pentateuch (4th c. BCE divergence)moderate

"(Expanded with Moses delivering the message to Pharaoh)"

The locust plague receives harmonistic expansion consistent with SP's treatment of all plagues.

Exodus 10:2

וּלְמַ֡עַן תְּסַפֵּר֩ בְּאׇזְנֵ֨י בִנְךָ֜ וּבֶן־בִּנְךָ֗ אֵ֣ת אֲשֶׁ֤ר הִתְעַלַּ֙לְתִּי֙ בְּמִצְרַ֔יִם וְאֶת־אֹתֹתַ֖י אֲשֶׁר־שַׂ֣מְתִּי בָ֑ם וִֽידַעְתֶּ֖ם כִּי־אֲנִ֥י יְהֹוָֽה׃

and so that you may recount in the hearing of your son and grandson how I dealt severely with Egypt and what signs I placed among them — that you may know that I am the LORD."

KJV 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.

Notes & Key Terms 1 term

Key Terms

וּלְמַעַן תְּסַפֵּר ulema'an tesapper
"that you may recount" — tell, recount, narrate, declare

The exodus is designed as story — meant to be told across generations. The verb sapper is the origin of the Passover Haggadah (haggadah, 'telling'). Memory sustained by narration is how Israel knows God.

Translator Notes

  1. The exodus is designed for intergenerational testimony: 'that you may recount in the hearing of your son and grandson.' The story is not merely historical record but ongoing pedagogical event. Each generation is expected to retell what God did — and through telling, to encounter the God who acts.

Samaritan Pentateuch (4th c. BCE divergence)moderate

"(Expanded with Moses delivering the message to Pharaoh)"

The locust plague receives harmonistic expansion consistent with SP's treatment of all plagues.

Exodus 10:3

וַיָּבֹ֨א מֹשֶׁ֣ה וְאַהֲרֹן֮ אֶל־פַּרְעֹה֒ וַיֹּאמְר֣וּ אֵלָ֗יו כֹּֽה־אָמַ֤ר יְהֹוָה֙ אֱלֹהֵ֣י הָֽעִבְרִ֔ים עַד־מָתַ֣י מֵאַ֔נְתָּ לֵעָנֹ֖ת מִפָּנָ֑י שַׁלַּ֥ח עַמִּ֖י וְיַֽעַבְדֻֽנִי׃

So Moses and Aaron went in to Pharaoh and said to him, "Thus says the LORD, the God of the Hebrews: How long will you refuse to humble yourself before Me? Let My people go, so that they may serve Me.

KJV 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.

Notes & Key Terms 1 term

Key Terms

לֵעָנֹת מִפָּנָי le'anot mipanai
"to humble yourself before Me" — to humble, to afflict, to submit, to bow low

Pharaoh's core sin named: refusal to humble himself. The root anah describes both humbling and affliction — the oppressor who will not bow before God has forced an entire nation to bow under his yoke.

Translator Notes

  1. 'How long will you refuse to humble yourself before Me?' (ad-matai me'anta le'anot mipanai) — God names Pharaoh's core sin: refusal to humble himself (le'anot, from anah). The same root describes Israel's affliction (inui) under Egyptian oppression. The oppressor who refuses to humble himself has humiliated an entire nation.
Exodus 10:4

כִּ֛י אִם־מָאֵ֥ן אַתָּ֖ה לְשַׁלֵּ֣חַ אֶת־עַמִּ֑י הִנְנִ֨י מֵבִ֥יא מָחָ֛ר אַרְבֶּ֖ה בִּגְבֻלֶֽךָ׃

For if you refuse to let My people go, tomorrow I will bring locusts into your territory.

KJV Else, if thou refuse to let my people go, behold, to morrow will I bring the locusts into thy coast:

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. Locusts (arbeh) represent agricultural apocalypse — a plague that consumes what the hail spared. The progression is strategic: each plague targets what survived the previous one.
Exodus 10:5

וְכִסָּה֙ אֶת־עֵ֣ין הָאָ֔רֶץ וְלֹ֥א יוּכַ֖ל לִרְאֹ֣ת אֶת־הָאָ֑רֶץ וְאָכַ֣ל ׀ אֶת־יֶ֣תֶר הַפְּלֵטָ֗ה הַנִּשְׁאֶ֤רֶת לָכֶם֙ מִן־הַבָּרָ֔ד וְאָכַל֙ אֶת־כׇּל־הָעֵ֔ץ הַצֹּמֵ֥חַ לָכֶ֖ם מִן־הַשָּׂדֶֽה׃

They shall cover the surface of the ground so that no one will be able to see the ground. They shall eat what remains to you after the hail, and they shall eat every tree of yours that grows in the field.

KJV 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:

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. 'Cover the surface of the ground so that no one can see the ground' — the locusts create a living carpet. The verb kasah ('cover') will be used of the sea covering the Egyptian army (14:28). What covers the land now previews what will cover the oppressor later.
Exodus 10:6

וּמָלְא֨וּ בָתֶּ֜יךָ וּבָתֵּ֣י כׇל־עֲבָדֶ֘יךָ֮ וּבָתֵּ֣י כׇל־מִצְרַ֒יִם֒ אֲשֶׁ֨ר לֹֽא־רָא֤וּ אֲבֹתֶ֙יךָ֙ וַאֲב֣וֹת אֲבֹתֶ֔יךָ מִיּ֗וֹם הֱיוֹתָם֙ עַל־הָ֣אֲדָמָ֔ה עַ֖ד הַיּ֣וֹם הַזֶּ֑ה וַיִּ֥פֶן וַיֵּצֵ֖א מֵעִ֥ם פַּרְעֹֽה׃

They shall fill your houses and the houses of all your servants and the houses of all the Egyptians — something that neither your fathers nor your grandfathers have seen, from the day they came to be on the earth until this day." Then Moses turned and went out from Pharaoh.

KJV 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.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The plague exceeds ancestral memory: 'neither your fathers nor your grandfathers have seen.' The historical superlative underscores uniqueness — this is not a natural cycle but a divine act without precedent.
Exodus 10:7

וַיֹּאמְרוּ֩ עַבְדֵ֨י פַרְעֹ֜ה אֵלָ֗יו עַד־מָתַי֙ יִהְיֶ֨ה זֶ֥ה לָ֙נוּ֙ לְמוֹקֵ֔שׁ שַׁלַּח֙ אֶת־הָ֣אֲנָשִׁ֔ים וְיַֽעַבְד֖וּ אֶת־יְהֹוָ֣ה אֱלֹהֵיהֶ֑ם הֲטֶ֣רֶם תֵּדַ֔ע כִּ֥י אָבְדָ֖ה מִצְרָֽיִם׃

Pharaoh's servants said to him, "How long will this man be a snare to us? Let the men go so that they may serve the LORD their God. Do you not yet realize that Egypt is ruined?"

KJV 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?

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. Pharaoh's own servants now advocate release — 'Do you not yet realize that Egypt is ruined?' (haterem teda ki avdah Mitsrayim). The verb yada ('know/realize') echoes the knowledge theme throughout: Egypt is being forced to 'know' the LORD, and even the court recognizes the catastrophe before the king does.
Exodus 10:8

וַיּוּשַׁ֞ב אֶת־מֹשֶׁ֤ה וְאֶֽת־אַהֲרֹן֙ אֶל־פַּרְעֹ֔ה וַיֹּ֣אמֶר אֲלֵהֶ֔ם לְכ֥וּ עִבְד֖וּ אֶת־יְהֹוָ֣ה אֱלֹהֵיכֶ֑ם מִ֥י וָמִ֖י הַהֹלְכִֽים׃

So Moses and Aaron were brought back to Pharaoh, and he said to them, "Go, serve the LORD your God. But exactly who will be going?"

KJV 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?

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. Pharaoh negotiates: 'Exactly who will be going?' (mi vami haholkhim). He attempts to limit the departure to adult males, retaining women, children, and livestock as hostages ensuring return.
Exodus 10:9

וַיֹּ֣אמֶר מֹשֶׁ֔ה בִּנְעָרֵ֥ינוּ וּבִזְקֵנֵ֖ינוּ נֵלֵ֑ךְ בְּבָנֵ֨ינוּ וּבִבְנוֹתֵ֜נוּ בְּצֹאנֵ֤נוּ וּבִבְקָרֵ֙נוּ֙ נֵלֵ֔ךְ כִּ֥י חַג־יְהֹוָ֖ה לָֽנוּ׃

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

KJV 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.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. Moses insists on totality: 'young and old, sons and daughters, flocks and herds.' Covenant worship involves the whole community — no one and nothing is left behind. The word chag ('feast') requires communal, comprehensive participation.
Exodus 10:10

וַיֹּ֣אמֶר אֲלֵהֶ֗ם יְהִ֨י כֵ֤ן יְהֹוָה֙ עִמָּכֶ֔ם כַּאֲשֶׁ֛ר אֲשַׁלַּ֥ח אֶתְכֶ֖ם וְאֶֽת־טַפְּכֶ֑ם רְא֕וּ כִּ֥י רָעָ֖ה נֶ֥גֶד פְּנֵיכֶֽם׃

Pharaoh said to them, "The LORD had better be with you if I ever let you and your little ones go! Clearly, you have evil in mind.

KJV 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.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. Pharaoh's response is sarcastic and threatening: 'The LORD had better be with you if I ever let your little ones go!' He reads the request as a cover for flight and accuses Moses of evil intent (ra'ah). Pharaoh attributes to Israel the very malice he himself practices.
Exodus 10:11

לֹ֣א כֵ֗ן לְכֽוּ־נָ֤א הַגְּבָרִים֙ וְעִבְד֣וּ אֶת־יְהֹוָ֔ה כִּ֥י אֹתָ֖הּ אַתֶּ֣ם מְבַקְשִׁ֑ים וַיְגָ֣רֶשׁ אֹתָ֔ם מֵאֵ֖ת פְּנֵ֥י פַרְעֹֽה׃ {ס}

No! Go now, you men, and serve the LORD, for that is what you are asking." And they were driven out from Pharaoh's presence.

KJV 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.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. 'Go now, you men' (lekhu-na haggevarim) — Pharaoh's counter-offer restricts worship to adult males, stripping it of familial and communal dimensions. This is worship on Pharaoh's terms, which is not worship at all. Moses and Aaron are 'driven out' (vayegaresh) — the verb used for expulsion, not departure.
Exodus 10:12

וַיֹּ֨אמֶר יְהֹוָ֜ה אֶל־מֹשֶׁ֗ה נְטֵ֨ה יָדְךָ֜ עַל־אֶ֤רֶץ מִצְרַ֙יִם֙ בָּֽאַרְבֶּ֔ה וְיַ֖עַל עַל־אֶ֣רֶץ מִצְרָ֑יִם וְיֹאכַל֙ אֶת־כׇּל־עֵ֣שֶׂב הָאָ֔רֶץ אֵ֛ת כׇּל־אֲשֶׁ֥ר הִשְׁאִ֖יר הַבָּרָֽד׃

Then the LORD said to Moses, "Stretch out your hand over the land of Egypt for the locusts, so that they may come upon the land of Egypt and eat every plant in the land — all that the hail has left."

KJV 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.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. God commands the eighth plague. The locusts will eat 'all that the hail has left' — the judgment is cumulative. Each plague builds on the destruction of the last.
Exodus 10:13

וַיֵּ֨ט מֹשֶׁ֣ה אֶת־מַטֵּ֘הוּ֮ עַל־אֶ֣רֶץ מִצְרַ֒יִם֒ וַֽיהֹוָ֗ה נִהַ֤ג רֽוּחַ־קָדִים֙ בָּאָ֔רֶץ כׇּל־הַיּ֥וֹם הַה֖וּא וְכׇל־הַלָּ֑יְלָה הַבֹּ֣קֶר הָיָ֔ה וְר֙וּחַ֙ הַקָּדִ֔ים נָשָׂ֖א אֶת־הָאַרְבֶּֽה׃

So Moses stretched out his staff over the land of Egypt, and the LORD brought an east wind over the land all that day and all that night. When morning came, the east wind had brought the locusts.

KJV 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.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The east wind (ruach qadim) carries the locusts — natural meteorology serves divine purpose. The same ruach ('wind/spirit') that hovered over creation waters (Genesis 1:2) now drives judgment across Egypt. An east wind will later part the sea (14:21).
Exodus 10:14

וַיַּ֣עַל הָֽאַרְבֶּ֗ה עַ֚ל כׇּל־אֶ֣רֶץ מִצְרַ֔יִם וַיָּ֕נַח בְּכֹ֖ל גְּב֣וּל מִצְרָ֑יִם כָּבֵ֣ד מְאֹ֔ד לְ֠פָנָ֠יו לֹא־הָ֨יָה כֵ֤ן אַרְבֶּה֙ כָּמֹ֔הוּ וְאַחֲרָ֖יו לֹ֥א יִֽהְיֶה־כֵּֽן׃

The locusts came up over all the land of Egypt and settled on the entire territory of Egypt — a very dense swarm. Never before had there been so many locusts, and never again would there be.

KJV 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.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. 'Never before and never again' — the double superlative marks this as an unrepeatable event, a unique divine act within history.
Exodus 10:15

וַיְכַ֞ס אֶת־עֵ֣ין כׇּל־הָאָ֘רֶץ֮ וַתֶּחְשַׁ֣ךְ הָאָ֒רֶץ֒ וַיֹּ֜אכַל אֶת־כׇּל־עֵ֣שֶׂב הָאָ֗רֶץ וְאֵת֙ כׇּל־פְּרִ֣י הָעֵ֔ץ אֲשֶׁ֥ר הוֹתִ֖יר הַבָּרָ֑ד וְלֹא־נוֹתַ֨ר כׇּל־יֶ֧רֶק בָּעֵ֛ץ וּבְעֵ֥שֶׂב הַשָּׂדֶ֖ה בְּכׇל־אֶ֥רֶץ מִצְרָֽיִם׃

They covered the surface of the whole land so that the land was darkened. They ate every plant in the land and every fruit of the trees that the hail had left. Not a green thing remained, neither tree nor plant of the field, throughout all the land of Egypt.

KJV 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.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. Total coverage, total darkness of the land, total consumption of vegetation. The threefold totality mirrors the three-day darkness that follows. Egypt's agricultural wealth, already battered by hail, is now entirely consumed.
Exodus 10:16

וַיְמַהֵ֣ר פַּרְעֹ֔ה לִקְרֹ֖א לְמֹשֶׁ֣ה וּֽלְאַהֲרֹ֑ן וַיֹּ֗אמֶר חָטָ֛אתִי לַיהֹוָ֥ה אֱלֹֽהֵיכֶ֖ם וְלָכֶֽם׃

Then Pharaoh hastily called Moses and Aaron and said, "I have sinned against the LORD your God and against you.

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

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. Pharaoh's second confession of sin (cf. 9:27): 'I have sinned against the LORD your God and against you.' The confession acknowledges both divine and human dimensions of his offense. But as before, the words are crisis-driven.
Exodus 10:17

וְעַתָּ֗ה שָׂ֣א נָ֤א חַטָּאתִי֙ אַ֣ךְ הַפַּ֔עַם וְהַעְתִּ֖ירוּ לַיהֹוָ֣ה אֱלֹהֵיכֶ֑ם וְיָסֵר֙ מֵֽעָלַ֔י רַ֖ק אֶת־הַמָּ֥וֶת הַזֶּֽה׃

Now please forgive my sin just this once, and plead with the LORD your God to remove this death from me."

KJV 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.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. 'Remove this death from me' (veyaser me'alai raq et-hammavet hazzeh) — Pharaoh calls the locusts 'this death.' The economic destruction is existential; without crops, Egypt faces famine. His request uses the word raq ('only, just'), minimizing his plea to immediate relief rather than genuine repentance.
Exodus 10:18

וַיֵּצֵ֖א מֵעִ֣ם פַּרְעֹ֑ה וַיֶּעְתַּ֖ר אֶל־יְהֹוָֽה׃

Moses went out from Pharaoh and pleaded with the LORD.

KJV And he went out from Pharaoh, and intreated the LORD.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. Moses intercedes without conditions or commentary. The prophet prays; God acts.
Exodus 10:19

וַיַּהֲפֹ֨ךְ יְהֹוָ֤ה רֽוּחַ־יָם֙ חָזָ֣ק מְאֹ֔ד וַיִּשָּׂא֙ אֶת־הָ֣אַרְבֶּ֔ה וַיִּתְקָעֵ֖הוּ יָ֣מָּה סּ֑וּף לֹ֤א נִשְׁאַר֙ אַרְבֶּ֣ה אֶחָ֔ד בְּכֹ֖ל גְּב֥וּל מִצְרָֽיִם׃

The LORD turned a very strong west wind that picked up the locusts and drove them into the Sea of Reeds. Not a single locust remained in all the territory of Egypt.

KJV 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.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The LORD sends a west wind (ruach-yam, literally 'sea wind') that sweeps every locust into the Sea of Reeds (yam-suf). The Sea of Reeds receives the locusts here; it will receive the Egyptian army later. The geographic detail foreshadows the climax of the exodus.
Exodus 10:20

וַיְחַזֵּ֥ק יְהֹוָ֖ה אֶת־לֵ֣ב פַּרְעֹ֑ה וְלֹ֥א שִׁלַּ֖ח אֶת־בְּנֵ֥י יִשְׂרָאֵֽל׃ {פ}

But the LORD hardened Pharaoh's heart, and he did not let the sons of Israel go.

KJV But the LORD hardened Pharaoh’s heart, so that he would not let the children of Israel go.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. 'The LORD hardened Pharaoh's heart' — by this point the hardening formula has become a refrain. The pattern is fixed: plague, confession, relief, re-hardening.
Exodus 10:21

וַיֹּ֨אמֶר יְהֹוָ֜ה אֶל־מֹשֶׁ֗ה נְטֵ֤ה יָֽדְךָ֙ עַל־הַשָּׁמַ֔יִם וִ֥יהִי חֹ֖שֶׁךְ עַל־אֶ֣רֶץ מִצְרָ֑יִם וְיָמֵ֖שׁ חֹֽשֶׁךְ׃

Then the LORD said to Moses, "Stretch out your hand toward the sky so that there may be darkness over the land of Egypt — a darkness that can be felt."

KJV 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.

Notes & Key Terms 1 term

Key Terms

חֹשֶׁךְ ... וְיָמֵשׁ חֹשֶׁךְ choshekh ... veyamesh choshekh
"darkness ... a darkness that can be felt" — darkness, deep darkness, palpable darkness

The ninth plague reverses creation's first act: 'Let there be light' (Genesis 1:3). Egypt returns to the primordial void. Ra, Egypt's supreme deity, is eclipsed. YHWH demonstrates sovereignty over light itself.

Translator Notes

  1. 'A darkness that can be felt' (choshekh va'yamesh choshekh) — the darkness is tangible, palpable. This is not merely the absence of light but a presence in itself. The language echoes the primordial darkness of Genesis 1:2 — Egypt is being un-created, returned to the formless void that preceded God's ordering work.
Exodus 10:22

וַיֵּ֥ט מֹשֶׁ֛ה אֶת־יָד֖וֹ עַל־הַשָּׁמָ֑יִם וַיְהִ֧י חֹֽשֶׁךְ־אֲפֵלָ֛ה בְּכׇל־אֶ֥רֶץ מִצְרַ֖יִם שְׁלֹ֥שֶׁת יָמִֽים׃

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

KJV And Moses stretched forth his hand toward heaven; and there was a thick darkness in all the land of Egypt three days:

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. Three days of impenetrable darkness — Egypt's supreme deity, Ra the sun god, is rendered powerless. The plague directly confronts Egypt's highest theological claim: the sun god is sovereign. For three days, Ra does not rise. YHWH has eclipsed Egypt's god.
Exodus 10:23

לֹֽא־רָא֞וּ אִ֣ישׁ אֶת־אָחִ֗יו וְלֹא־קָ֛מוּ אִ֥ישׁ מִתַּחְתָּ֖יו שְׁלֹ֣שֶׁת יָמִ֑ים וּֽלְכׇל־בְּנֵ֧י יִשְׂרָאֵ֛ל הָ֥יָה א֖וֹר בְּמוֹשְׁבֹתָֽם׃

They could not see one another, and no one rose from his place for three days. But all the sons of Israel had light in their dwellings.

KJV 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.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. 'All the sons of Israel had light in their dwellings' — the Goshen distinction reaches its most vivid expression. Light and darkness coexist in the same land, divided by covenant. Israel's light is not natural but providential.
Exodus 10:24

וַיִּקְרָ֨א פַרְעֹ֜ה אֶל־מֹשֶׁ֗ה וַיֹּ֙אמֶר֙ לְכוּ֙ עִבְד֣וּ אֶת־יְהֹוָ֔ה רַ֛ק צֹאנְכֶ֥ם וּבְקַרְכֶ֖ם יֻצָּ֑ג גַּֽם־טַפְּכֶ֖ם יֵלֵ֥ךְ עִמָּכֶֽם׃

Then Pharaoh called Moses and said, "Go, serve the LORD. Only your flocks and your herds shall remain behind. Even your little ones may go with you."

KJV 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.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. Pharaoh's final compromise: go and worship, leave your livestock. Each negotiation has conceded more: first location (8:21), then distance (8:24), then participants (10:11), now livestock. But each concession still falls short of total release.
Exodus 10:25

וַיֹּ֣אמֶר מֹשֶׁ֔ה גַּם־אַתָּ֛ה תִּתֵּ֥ן בְּיָדֵ֖נוּ זְבָחִ֣ים וְעֹלֹ֑ת וְעָשִׂ֖ינוּ לַיהֹוָ֥ה אֱלֹהֵֽינוּ׃

But Moses said, "You yourself must give us sacrifices and burnt offerings so that we may sacrifice to the LORD our God.

KJV And Moses said, Thou must give us also sacrifices and burnt offerings, that we may sacrifice unto the LORD our God.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. Moses refuses any compromise: 'You yourself must give us sacrifices.' The demand escalates — not only will Israel take its own animals, but Pharaoh must contribute to the worship of YHWH. The oppressor will fund the worship of the God who judges him.
Exodus 10:26

וְגַם־מִקְנֵ֜נוּ יֵלֵ֣ךְ עִמָּ֗נוּ לֹ֤א תִשָּׁאֵר֙ פַּרְסָ֔ה כִּ֚י מִמֶּ֣נּוּ נִקַּ֔ח לַעֲבֹ֖ד אֶת־יְהֹוָ֣ה אֱלֹהֵ֑ינוּ וַאֲנַ֣חְנוּ לֹֽא־נֵדַ֗ע מַֽה־נַּעֲבֹד֙ אֶת־יְהֹוָ֔ה עַד־בֹּאֵ֖נוּ שָֽׁמָּה׃

Our livestock also must go with us — not a hoof shall be left behind. For we must take from them to serve the LORD our God, and we ourselves do not know with what we must serve the LORD until we arrive there."

KJV 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.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. 'Not a hoof shall be left behind' (parsah lo tishsha'er) — absolute language that refuses every form of partial compliance. Moses's certainty about the non-negotiable nature of total departure contrasts with his confession of uncertainty about details: 'we do not know with what we must serve the LORD until we arrive there.'
Exodus 10:27

וַיְחַזֵּ֥ק יְהֹוָ֖ה אֶת־לֵ֣ב פַּרְעֹ֑ה וְלֹ֥א אָבָ֖ה לְשַׁלְּחָֽם׃

But the LORD hardened Pharaoh's heart, and he was not willing to let them go.

KJV But the LORD hardened Pharaoh’s heart, and he would not let them go.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The hardening formula recurs. God's judicial confirmation of Pharaoh's resistance continues to its conclusion.
Exodus 10:28

וַיֹּֽאמֶר־ל֥וֹ פַרְעֹ֖ה לֵ֣ךְ מֵעָלָ֑י הִשָּׁ֣מֶר לְךָ֗ אַל־תֹּ֙סֶף֙ רְא֣וֹת פָּנַ֔י כִּ֗י בְּי֛וֹם רְאֹתְךָ֥ פָנַ֖י תָּמֽוּת׃

Pharaoh said to him, "Get away from me! Be careful never to see my face again, for on the day you see my face you shall die."

KJV 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.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. 'On the day you see my face you shall die' — Pharaoh issues a death threat. The face-to-face confrontation has reached its limit. Pharaoh banishes Moses permanently from his presence.
Exodus 10:29

וַיֹּ֥אמֶר מֹשֶׁ֖ה כֵּ֣ן דִּבַּ֑רְתָּ לֹא־אֹסִ֥ף ע֖וֹד רְא֥וֹת פָּנֶֽיךָ׃ {פ}

Moses said, "You have spoken rightly. I will not see your face again."

KJV And Moses said, Thou hast spoken well, I will see thy face again no more.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. 'You have spoken rightly' (ken dibbarta) — Moses accepts the finality without protest. He will not see Pharaoh's face again — but Pharaoh will see God's hand one more time, in the death of the firstborn.
Chapter 9 Report an error Exodus index Chapter 11