Chapter XXXII.
THE TEN PLAGUES OF EGYPT.
[Ex. 5—10.]
MOSES and Aaron went to Pharao (Fig. 21) and demanded, in the name of God, that he should allow the people of Israel to go out into the desert to offer sacrifice to the Lord. Pharao proudly answered: “Who is the Lord [1] that I should hear His voice, and let the people go? I know not the Lord, neither will I let Israel go.” And from that day forth, he ordered the overseers and taskmasters to oppress the Israelites more and more, by putting them to still harder work.
The Lord told Moses and Aaron to appear again before Pharao. They did as the Lord commanded, and Aaron cast his rod before Pharao , and it was changed into a serpent. Pharao called the magicians[2], and they, by enchantments and certain secrets, also turned their rods into serpents; but Aaron’s rod devoured their rods. Yet the heart of Pharao remained hardened [3], and he would not let the people go. Then the Lord began to send ten plagues[4] upon the Egyptians.
Next morning, by the command of God, Aaron went to the bank of the Nile, and struck the river with his rod, and instantly
- ↑ Who is the Lord. i. e. I do not know your God, and will not be commanded by Him. Pharao, in his pride, would not acknowledge God to be the Lord. Therefore God sent the ten plagues, to compel Pharao and his people to admit that He is Lord over the whole earth.
- ↑ The magicians . They worked apparent miracles by arts known only to themselves, and by the help of the devil.
- ↑ Hardened. He was stubborn like the firmly rooted trunk or stump of a tree.
- ↑ Ten plagues. The plagues were sent through the medium of Moses and Aaron, who, in God's name, commanded the very elements and powers of nature, and they obeyed.
