Exodus · Chapter 9

Verse 1. The LORD God of the Hebrews] It is very likely that the term Lord, hywy Yehovah, is used here to point out particularly his eternal power and Godhead; and that the term God, yhla Elohey, is intended to be understood in the sense of Supporter, Defender, Protector, &c. Thus saith the self-existent, omnipotent, and eternal Being, the Supporter and Defender of the Hebrews, “Let my people go, that they may worship me.” The FIFTH plague-the MURRAIN

V. 3. The hand of the Lord-Immediately, without the stretching out of Aaron’s hand, is upon the cattle, many of which, some of all kinds, shall die by a sort of pestilence. The hand of God is to be acknowledged even in the sickness and death of cattle, or other damage sustained in them; for a sparrow falls not to the ground without our father. And his providence is to be acknowledged with thankfulness in the life of the cattle, for he preserveth man and beast, Psalm 36:6.

Verse 3. The hand of the Lord] The power of God manifested in judgment.

Upon the horses] µysws susim. This is the first place the horse is mentioned; a creature for which Egypt and Arabia were always famous. ss sus is supposed to have the same meaning with cc sas, which signifies to be active, brisk, or lively, all which are proper appellatives of the horse, especially in Arabia and Egypt. Because of their activity and swiftness they were sacrificed and dedicated to the sun, and perhaps it was principally on this account that God prohibited the use of them among the Israelites. A very grievous murrain.] The murrain is a very contagious disease among cattle, the symptoms of which are a hanging down and swelling of the head, abundance of gum in the eyes, rattling in the throat, difficulty of breathing, palpitation of the heart, staggering, a hot breath, and a shining tongue; which symptoms prove that a general inflammation has taken place. The original word rbd deber is variously translated. The Septuagint have qanatov, death; the Vulgate has pestis, a plague or pestilence; the old Saxon version, [Anglo-Saxon], from [Anglo-Saxon], to die, any fatal disease. Our English word murrain comes either from the French mourir, to die, or from the Greek marainw maraino, to grow lean, waste away. The term mortality would be the nearest in sense to the original, as no particular disorder is specified by the Hebrew word.

Verse 3. The hand of the Lord — Immediately, without the stretching out of Aaron’s hand; is upon the cattle — Many of which, some of all kinds, should die by a sort of pestilence. The hand of God is to be acknowledged even in the sickness and death of cattle, or other damage sustained in them; for a sparrow falls not to the ground without our Father. And his providence is to be acknowledged with thankfulness in the life of the cattle, for he preserveth man and beast, Psalm 36:6.

3. The hand of the Lord is upon thy cattle which is in the field — This infliction seems to be limited to the cattle which were in the open air. All of the animals here mentioned are represented in the Egyptian monuments except the camel, which, though used in Egypt from the earliest times, yet for some reason never occurs in the hieroglyphic inscriptions, or in the pictured representations of the tombs. Stuart Poole supposes that the camel was unclean in the eyes of the Egyptians, as associated with the hated nomad tribes of the desert and the abominated Shepherd Dynasties. See Genesis 46:34, and note. In the populous cities and cultivated fields of the Nile valley the services of the camel would not be required; but to cross the sands which bounded the valley the “ship of the desert” was indispensable: yet perhaps the Egyptians generally employed the Arabs in this caravan service. The horses of Egypt were celebrated from early times: thence Solomon imported his into Palestine. They were greatly esteemed for chariot service and for war, but asses and cattle were generally employed for draught. The cheap, strong, patient ass was, and is, the peasant’s chief dependence for labour. Sheep were reared chiefly for their wool, mutton being rarely used. Large flocks were kept in the neighbourhood of Memphis, even to the number of two thousand.

Verse 4. The Lord shall sever] See Clarke on “Exodus 8:22”.

Verse 4. Shall nothing die of the children’s of Israel — This was the greater miracle, because the Israelites and the Egyptians were mingled together in the land of Goshen; so that their cattle breathed the same air, and drank the same water. By which it appeared that this pestilence was not natural, but proceeded from the immediate hand of God.

Verse 5. To-morrow the Lord shall do this] By thus foretelling the evil, he showed his prescience and power; and from this both the Egyptians and Hebrews must see that the mortality that ensued was no casualty, but the effect of a predetermined purpose in the Divine justice.

Verse 5. The Lord appointed a set time — This appointing of a set or particular time, both for bringing on the plagues and removing them, and that at as short a distance as the nature of the appointment would admit, and the leaving it once, at least, to Pharaoh himself to fix it, seems to have been intended to prevent the Egyptians, who were possessed with highly superstitious notions of the influence of the heavenly bodies at particular times, from thinking that Moses took advantage of his knowledge of those times to work his miracles.

V. 6. All the cattle died-All that were in the field. The creature is made subject to vanity by the sin of man, being liable, according to its capacity, both to serve his wickedness, and to share in his punishment. The Egyptians worshipped their cattle; it was among them that the Israelites learned to make a god of a calf; in that therefore this plague meets with them. But not one of the cattle of the Israelites died-Doth God take care for oxen? Yes, he doth, his providence extends itself to the meanest of his creatures.

Verse 6. All the cattle of Egypt died] That is, All the cattle that did die belonged to the Egyptians, but not one died that belonged to the Israelites, Exodus 9:4, 6. That the whole stock of cattle belonging to the Egyptians did not die we have the fullest proof, because there were cattle both to be killed and saved alive in the ensuing plague, Exodus 9:19-25. By this judgment the Egyptians must see the vanity of the whole of their national worship, when they found the animals which they not only held sacred but deified, slain without distinction among the common herd, by a pestilence sent from the hand of Jehovah. One might naturally suppose that after this the animal worship of the Egyptians could never more maintain its ground.

Verse 6. All the cattle of Egypt died — All that were in the field, verse 3; or a great number of every kind, so that the Egyptians saw that even the animals which they worshipped as gods could not save themselves. Bishop Warburton, in his Divine Legation of Moses, has given it as his opinion, that, in the early ages, the deities of Egypt were described by hieroglyphics or emblems, in which the pictures or images of beasts, birds, plants, reptiles, and every species of the animal or vegetable creation, were used as symbols or representations of their gods; and that, in process of time, the living animals, or real plants, thus represented, began to be deemed sacred, on account of this circumstance: and he thinks that the animals or plants themselves were not really worshipped till after the time of Moses. We know, however, that the Israelites learned in Egypt to make a god of a calf, from which it seems evident that that animal was worshipped there. But if the bishop’s opinion be right, and animals were not worshipped so early as the time of Moses, they certainly were held in great veneration, as symbols of their gods, and the subjecting them to a pestilence was, in effect, opposing and warring against the deities whom they represented. Not one of the cattle of the Israelites died — The gracious care of God is not only over the persons of those that fear him, but over all that belongs to them. Whatever the poorest Israelite possessed, the Lord was the protector of it, while all that belonged to the king and people of Egypt was exposed to the destructive ravages of those plagues with which divine justice saw fit to punish their idolatries and oppressions of his people. But doth God take care of oxen? Yes, he doth; his providence extends itself to the meanest of his creatures.

Verse 6. All the cattle of Egypt died; that is, all were smitten with the murrain, whose unbelieving owners did not take care to house them: so we read in the twentieth verse concerning the hail. This plague was not only great in itself, but it seemed to be a stroke against their gods. Their Jupiter Ammon was fashioned like a ram, their Anubis like a dog, and their Apis like a bull or an ox. The Jupiter Ammon of Egypt was at first no other than a representative of Jehovah, but they had now likened the Godhead to fourfooted beasts, and birds, and creeping things. Romans 1.

6. And all the cattle of Egypt died — Here the universal term all is not used in its absolute sense, as meaning each and every one, but it means simply very many. We find that there were other cattle left to be smitten by the boils, (verse 10,) and still others to be killed by the hail. Verse 25. A like usage is seen in the description of the plague of the locusts, (Exodus 10:12,) which are said to have eaten up all that the hail… left, and yet the hail smote every herb and brake every tree. Verse 25. The Hebrew idiom often thus uses universal terms in a general sense. See Acts 2:5; Colossians 1:23.

There are several instances on record of a similar murrain in Egypt. Lepsius and Poole describe such an infliction which they witnessed in 1842, and a similar one occurred in 1853, resembling the cattle disease which prevailed so extensively throughout America in 1872. But the occurrence of the plague according to definite prediction, and the sparing of the cattle of the Israelites, were the miraculous marks of this visitation. This was, as yet, the heaviest infliction; for as the Egyptian wealth largely consisted in cattle, their means of support were now in a great degree destroyed. Jehovah shows these idolaters that he holds their supplies of food and clothing in his hands. Yet their crops, and many of their cattle, were yet left.

Verse 7. And Pharaoh sent, &c.] Finding so many of his own cattle and those of his subjects slain, he sent to see whether the mortality had reached to the cattle of the Israelites, that he might know whether this were a judgment inflicted by their God, and probably designing to replace the lost cattle of the Egyptians with those of the Israelites.

The SIXTH plague-the BOILS and BLAINS

Verse 7. Pharaoh sent — It seems as if Pharaoh, notwithstanding all he had seen, could not conceive that such a distinction could be made between cattle feeding together in the same or similar pastures, that those of the Egyptians alone should be stricken, while those of the Israelites were not affected; and therefore he sent expressly to know the truth of it: when behold, (and well might it be said, behold! for it was worthy of both notice and admiration,) there was not one of the cattle of the Israelites dead — But, notwithstanding this most convincing evidence of the distinguishing favour of God toward his people, such was the unwillingness of Pharaoh to part with the advantage which the service of the Israelites was to him, that he could not bring himself to consent to their departure.

7. And Pharaoh sent… and the heart of Pharaoh was hardened — Here, as in Exodus 7:22, the grammatical construction implies cause and effect. This marked manifestation in behalf of Israel aroused the anger and obstinacy of Pharaoh the more. He does not melt or waver, and on this occasion is not awed even into temporary submission.

Verse 8. Handfuls of ashes of the furnace] As one part of the oppression of the Israelites consisted In their labour in the brick-kilns, some have observed a congruity between the crime and the punishment. The furnaces, in the labour of which they oppressed the Hebrews, now yielded the instruments of their punishment; for every particle of those ashes, formed by unjust and oppressive labour, seemed to be a boil or a blain on the tyrannic king and his cruel and hard-hearted people.

Verses 8-10. Take you handfuls of the ashes of the furnace — Sometimes God shows men their sin in their punishment. They had oppressed Israel in the furnaces, and now the ashes of the furnace are made as much a terror to them as ever their task masters had been to the Israelites. “The matter of this plague,” says Ainsworth, “is from the fire, which also being one of the elements they deified, is here made the instrument of evil to them, and reclaimed by Jehovah to his service, in punishment of its deluded votaries, who worshipped the creature more than the Creator.” A former miracle was from water, and the next from air, to show that God rules in all. It became a bile — A sore, angry swelling, or inflammation; breaking forth with blains — Or blisters, quickly raised; upon man and upon beast — Thus we see that the men themselves were smitten after the cattle, which is agreeable to the method of Providence in punishing, first sending previous afflictions to warn mankind, that they may shun greater evils by timely repentance. This bile is afterward called the botch of Egypt, (Deuteronomy 28:27,) as if it were some new disease, never heard of before, and known ever after by that name.

SIXTH PLAGUE — BOILS, 8-12.

8. Ashes of the furnace — Not the oven, but the smelting furnace, or the lime-kiln. — Kimchi. Sprinkle… toward… heaven in the sight of Pharaoh — The ashes of the great furnaces, or lime-kilns, where Israel had toiled so long, were solemnly spread out before Jehovah, and his judgment invoked upon the oppressor.

V. 9. A boil breaking forth with blains-A burning scab, which quickly raised blisters and blains.

Verse 9. Shall be a boil] שחינ shechin. This word is generally expounded, an inflammatory swelling, a burning boil; one of the most poignant afflictions, not immediately mortal, that can well affect the surface of the human body. If a single boil on any part of the body throws the whole system into a fever, what anguish must a multitude of them on the body at the same time occasion!

Breaking forth with blains] אבעבעת ababuoth, supposed to come from בעה baah, to swell, bulge out; any inflammatory swelling, node, or pustule, in any part of the body, but more especially in the more glandular parts, the neck, arm-pits, groin, &c. The Septuagint translate it thus: kai estai elkh fluktidev anazeousai\ And it shalt be an ulcer with burning pustules. It seems to have been a disorder of an uncommon kind, and hence it is called by way of distinction, the botch of Egypt, Deuteronomy 28:27, perhaps never known before in that or any other country. Orosius says that in the sixth plague “all the people were blistered, that the blisters burst with tormenting pain, and that worms issued out of them.” [Anglo-Saxon]—Alfred’s Oros., lib. i., c. vii.

Verses 8-10. Take you handfuls of the ashes of the furnace — Sometimes God shows men their sin in their punishment. They had oppressed Israel in the furnaces, and now the ashes of the furnace are made as much a terror to them as ever their task masters had been to the Israelites. “The matter of this plague,” says Ainsworth, “is from the fire, which also being one of the elements they deified, is here made the instrument of evil to them, and reclaimed by Jehovah to his service, in punishment of its deluded votaries, who worshipped the creature more than the Creator.” A former miracle was from water, and the next from air, to show that God rules in all. It became a bile — A sore, angry swelling, or inflammation; breaking forth with blains — Or blisters, quickly raised; upon man and upon beast — Thus we see that the men themselves were smitten after the cattle, which is agreeable to the method of Providence in punishing, first sending previous afflictions to warn mankind, that they may shun greater evils by timely repentance. This bile is afterward called the botch of Egypt, (Deuteronomy 28:27,) as if it were some new disease, never heard of before, and known ever after by that name.

Ver. 9. A boil breaking forth with blains, or burning ulcers. This was Job’s affliction. Job 2:7, 8.

9. And it shall become small dust — The ashes shall scatter in a fine powder, the grains of ashes being exceedingly small, and easily blown abroad. A boil breaking forth — Literally, a hot, burning sore, breaking forth into pustules. In previous plagues the water had been made their enemy, the dust of the earth had been changed to vermin, their wealth in the fields had been smitten, and now the strength and pride of their cities are cursed. The temples and treasure cities are cursed in the plague that is scattered from the ashes of the lime-kiln. It is the unrequited toil of Israel’s multitudes upon these vast public works that now burns and fevers man and beast through all Egypt.

V. 10. Ashes of the furnace-Sometimes God shews men their sin in their punishment: they had oppressed Israel in the furnaces, and now the ashes of the furnace are made as much a terror to them as ever their task-masters had been to the Israelites. This is afterwards called the botch of Egypt, Deuteronomy 28:27, as if it were some new disease, never heard of before, and known ever after by that name.

Verses 8-10. Take you handfuls of the ashes of the furnace — Sometimes God shows men their sin in their punishment. They had oppressed Israel in the furnaces, and now the ashes of the furnace are made as much a terror to them as ever their task masters had been to the Israelites. “The matter of this plague,” says Ainsworth, “is from the fire, which also being one of the elements they deified, is here made the instrument of evil to them, and reclaimed by Jehovah to his service, in punishment of its deluded votaries, who worshipped the creature more than the Creator.” A former miracle was from water, and the next from air, to show that God rules in all. It became a bile — A sore, angry swelling, or inflammation; breaking forth with blains — Or blisters, quickly raised; upon man and upon beast — Thus we see that the men themselves were smitten after the cattle, which is agreeable to the method of Providence in punishing, first sending previous afflictions to warn mankind, that they may shun greater evils by timely repentance. This bile is afterward called the botch of Egypt, (Deuteronomy 28:27,) as if it were some new disease, never heard of before, and known ever after by that name.

SIXTH PLAGUE — BOILS, 8-12.

8. Ashes of the furnace — Not the oven, but the smelting furnace, or the lime-kiln. — Kimchi. Sprinkle… toward… heaven in the sight of Pharaoh — The ashes of the great furnaces, or lime-kilns, where Israel had toiled so long, were solemnly spread out before Jehovah, and his judgment invoked upon the oppressor.

V. 11. The magicians were forced to retreat, and could not stand before Moses-To which the apostle refers, 2 Timothy 3:9, when he saith, that their folly was manifested unto all men.

Verse 11. The boil was upon the magicians] They could not produce a similar malady by throwing ashes in the air; and they could neither remove the plague from the people, nor from their own tormented flesh. Whether they perished in this plague we know not, but they are no more mentioned. If they were not destroyed by this awful judgment, they at least left the field, and no longer contended with these messengers of God. The triumph of God’s power was now complete, and both the Hebrews and the Egyptians must see that there was neither might, nor wisdom, nor counsel against the Lord; and that, as universal nature acknowledged his power, devils and men must fail before him.

Verse 11. The magicians could not stand before Moses — We do not read of any attempt they made to vie with Moses in miracles since the plague of the lice. But it would seem from this passage that they still continued about Pharaoh, and endeavoured to settle him in his resolution not to let Israel go: persuading him, perhaps, that although Moses had the better of them for the present, yet they should at last be too hard for him. But now, being on a sudden smitten with these ulcers, in the sight of Pharaoh and his servants, they were rendered so contemptible, that they durst not again look either Moses or Pharaoh in the face; for we hear no more of them after this time. To this, it seems, the apostle refers, (2 Timothy 3:9,) when he says their folly was “manifested unto all men.”

11. And the magicians could not stand before Moses because of the boils — Thus had these supernatural inflictions advanced in severity, till now the idolatrous prophets were all stricken down, and we hear of them no more. After the third plague, or at the end of the first triad of these inflictions, they had been compelled to own a supernatural power, and said, This is the finger of the gods; and now, at the end of the second triad, they retire wholly discomfited. Probably this also, as well as the plague of lice, was one which incapacitated the priests for their service by making them unclean, so that the altars of the idols were deserted.

V. 12. Now the Lord hardened Pharaoh’s heart-Before he had hardened his own heart, and resisted the grace of God, and now God justly gave him up to his own heart’s lusts, to strong delusions, permitting Satan to blind and harden him. Wilful hardness is commonly punished with judicial hardness. Let us dread this as the sorest judgment a man can be under on this side hell.

Verse 12. And the Lord hardened Pharaoh’s heart — Before he had hardened his own heart, and resisted the grace of God; and now God justly gave him up to his own heart’s lusts, to strong delusions, permitting Satan to blind and harden him. Wilful hardness is generally punished with judicial hardness. Let us dread this as the sorest judgment a man can be under on this side hell.

12. And the Lord hardened the heart of Pharaoh — That is, by sending this manifestation of his anger he made his heart more hard. Punishment always hardens if it does not soften. It is worthy of remark that now, for the first time in the history, it is said that “the Lord hardened,” although this result of his sin had been predicted, Exodus 4:21. Exodus 7:13 is no exception; see the note. Here, then, is another marked stage in the history of these judgments. By persistent disobedience Pharaoh has now so blunted his moral sense that it is morally certain that he will not repent; that is, he has reached that state where punishment will only harden. Yet God punishes still. Since he will not honour him by obedience he must do it through punishment.

SEVENTH PLAGUE — THE HAIL, 13-35.

The third triad of judgments is introduced with unusual formality and solemnity. Pharaoh was now a “vessel of wrath,” fit only for destruction. See note on verse 12. He had resisted to that degree that repentance was now morally impossible; and he was preserved in life only to reveal God’s supremacy by punishment. It will be noticed that in these last judgments Aaron is not seen: it is Moses who lifts the rod that crushes Egypt to the dust.

V. 14. I will find all my plagues upon thy heart-Hitherto thou hast not felt my plagues on thy own person, the heart is put for the whole man.

Verses 14, 15. I will at this time send all my plagues — Either these verses relate to what was to happen some time afterward, namely, the slaying of the firstborn, or the latter verse is to be read as follows, a translation which is equally agreeable to the Hebrew: “For now I had stretched out my hand, to smite thee and thy people with pestilence, and thou hadst been cut off, &c., but that thou wast preserved” (as follows in the succeeding verse) “that it might be known that there is none like me in all the earth.” All my plagues upon thy heart — Hitherto thou hast not felt my plagues on thy own person; but I will shortly reach and wound it: will give thee a wound that will pierce thy very heart; an irrecoverable and mortal wound. Who can tell the greatness of his wrath, or what a fearful thing it is to fall under the righteous judgment of a holy and offended God?

14. For I will at this time send all my plagues — Only lighter strokes had fallen hitherto, but now more dreadful judgments impend.

Verse 15. For now I will stretch out my hand] In the Hebrew the verbs are in the past tense, and not in the future, as our translation improperly expresses them, by which means a contradiction appears in the text: for neither Pharaoh nor his people were smitten by a pestilence, nor was he by any kind of mortality cut off from the earth. It is true the first-born were slain by a destroying angel, and Pharaoh himself was drowned in the Red Sea; but these judgments do not appear to be referred to in this place. If the words be translated, as they ought, in the subjunctive mood, or in the past instead of the future, this seeming contradiction to facts, as well as all ambiguity, will be avoided: For if now I HAD STRETCHED OUT (ytjlv shalachti, had set forth) my hand, and had smitten thee (Ëtwa Ëaw vaach otheca) and thy people with the pestilence, thou SHOULDST HAVE BEEN cut off (djkt ticcached) from the earth.

Verses 14, 15. I will at this time send all my plagues — Either these verses relate to what was to happen some time afterward, namely, the slaying of the firstborn, or the latter verse is to be read as follows, a translation which is equally agreeable to the Hebrew: “For now I had stretched out my hand, to smite thee and thy people with pestilence, and thou hadst been cut off, &c., but that thou wast preserved” (as follows in the succeeding verse) “that it might be known that there is none like me in all the earth.” All my plagues upon thy heart — Hitherto thou hast not felt my plagues on thy own person; but I will shortly reach and wound it: will give thee a wound that will pierce thy very heart; an irrecoverable and mortal wound. Who can tell the greatness of his wrath, or what a fearful thing it is to fall under the righteous judgment of a holy and offended God?

15. For now I will stretch out my hand — The verb (ytjlv) is here to be rendered as conditional past, (Ewald, Lehrb., § 358, a.; Nordh., Gram., § 991, 3, a.,) thus, For now I would have stretched out my hand and smitten. For a similar construction see 1 Samuel 13:13. So the Arabic, Fagius, Adam Clarke, Kalisch, Keil, Knobel, Stier and Theil, Murphy. The verse is closely connected to the following, thus: “For now I would have stretched out my hand and smitten thee… but yet for this have I preserved thee, to show thee my power,” etc.

V. 16. For this cause have I raised thee up-A most dreadful message Moses is here ordered to deliver to him, whether he will hear, or whether he will forbear. He must tell him, that he is marked for ruin: that he now stands as the butt at which God would shoot all the arrows of his wrath. For this cause have I raised thee up to the throne at this time, and made thee to stand the shock of the plagues hitherto, to shew in thee my power-Providence so ordered it, that Moses should have a man of such a fierce and stubborn spirit to deal with, to make it a most signal and memorable instance of the power God has to bring down the proudest of his enemies; that my name, irresistable power, and my inflexible justice, might be declared throughout all the earth-Not only to all places, but through all ages while the earth remains. This will be the event. But it by no means follows, that this was the design of God. We have numberless instances in scripture of this manner of speaking, to denote not the design, but only the event.

Verse 16. But truly, on this very account, have I caused thee to SUBSIST, (Ëהעמדחי heemadticha,) that I MIGHT cause thee to see my power, (yjk ta Ëtarh harotheca eth cochi,) and that my name MIGHT be declared throughout all the earth, (or, xrah lkb becol haarets, in all THIS LAND.) See Ainsworth and Houbigant.

Thus God gave this impious king to know that it was in consequence of his especial providence that both he and his people had not been already destroyed by means of the past plagues; but God had preserved him for this very purpose, that he might have a farther opportunity of manifesting that he, Jehovah, was the only true God for the full conviction both of the Hebrews and Egyptians, that the former might follow and the latter fear before him. Judicious critics of almost all creeds have agreed to translate the original as above, a translation which it not only can bear but requires, and which is in strict conformity to both the Septuagint and Targum. Neither the Hebrew Ëהעמדחי heemadticha, I have caused thee to stand; nor the apostle’s translation of it, Romans 9:17, exhgeira se, I have raised thee; nor that of the Septuagint, eneken toutou diethrhqhv, on this account art thou preserved, viz., in the past plagues; can countenance that most exceptionable meaning put on the words by certain commentators, viz., “That God ordained or appointed Pharaoh from all eternity, by certain means, to this end; that he made him to exist in time; that he raised him to the throne; promoted him to that high honour and dignity; that he preserved him, and did not cut him off as yet; that he strengthened and hardened his heart; irritated, provoked, and stirred him up against his people Israel, and suffered him to go all the lengths he did go in his obstinacy and rebellion; all which was done to show in him his power in destroying him in the Red Sea. The sum of which is, that this man was raised up by God in every sense for God to show his power in his destruction.” So man speaks; thus GOD hath not spoken. See Henry on the place.

Verse 16. For this cause have I raised thee up — A most dreadful message Moses is here ordered to deliver to him, whether he will hear, or whether he will forbear. He must tell him that he is marked for ruin: that he now stands as the butt at which God would shoot all the arrows of his wrath. For this cause I raised thee up — To the throne, at this time; and made thee to stand — The shocks of the plagues hitherto; to show in thee my power — Providence so ordered it, that Moses should have a man of such a fierce and stubborn spirit to deal with, to make it a most signal and memorable instance of the power God has to bring down the proudest of his enemies. It must be observed, that the Hebrew word, here rendered raised up, never signifies to raise, or bring a person or thing into being; but to preserve, support, establish, or make to stand, as in the margin of our Bibles, and as may be seen, 1 Kings 15:4; Proverbs 29:4. And accordingly, the Septuagint translation, the Chaldee, Samaritan, Arabic, and Junius and Tremellius, all render this place, “For this cause thou hast hitherto been preserved,” eneken toutou diethrhqhv, Sept. The meaning therefore of this passage is, not that God brought Pharaoh into being, or made him on purpose, that he might be an example of his severity and vengeance, but that, though Pharaoh had long deserved to be destroyed, yet God had spared him, and made him subsist for a considerable time, to show his power, by the signs and wonders which he wrought in the land of Egypt, and by delivering his people at length, in spite of all the opposition of Pharaoh, with a strong hand and outstretched arm. That my name might be known — My being, and providence, and manifold perfections; my patience in bearing with thee so long, my justice in punishing thee, my power in conquering thee, my wisdom in overruling thy pride, tyranny, cruelty, to thy own destruction and the redemption of my oppressed people, and my faithfulness in accomplishing my promises to them, and my threatenings to thee. Throughout all the earth — Not only in all places, but throughout all ages, while the earth remains. This will infallibly be the event.

Ver. 16. For this cause have I raised thee up, for to show in thee my power. The margin of our bible reads, have I made thee to stand, or to subsist. The Vatican copy of the Septuagint, according to Dr. Wall, reads—hast thou been kept alive. And referring to this text, St. Paul says, What if God, willing to show his wrath, and make his power known, endured with much longsuffering the vessels of wrath fitted to destruction. Romans 9:22. Hence Pharaoh having long violated every dictate of conscience, and suppressed every sentiment of humanity; and having hardened his neck against the first miracles of heaven, evidently passed into a state of reprobation, or became a vessel of wrath fitted to destruction. But though God had raised him up to the throne, and preserved him from dying by the former plagues, when he might most justly have cut him off in his sins; yet he reserved him for the more exemplary punishment of overwhelming him in the sea; and thereby making him a fearful example of his vengeance to tyrannical princes, and the whole infidel world.

16. And in very deed for this cause have I raised thee up — Literally, made thee stand, kept thee standing, or preserved thee alive, after thy life was forfeited. So, substantially, the Septuagint, Targ. of Onkelos, and Palestinian, Arabic, and Syriac versions. The Palestinian Targum well paraphrases both verses thus: “Now could I send the plague of my strength by judgment to strike thee and thy people with death, and destroy thee from the earth, but verily I have spared thee alive, not that I may benefit thee, but that my power may be made manifest to thee,” etc.

V. 17. As yet exaltest thou thyself against my people-Wilt thou not yet submit?

Verse 17. As yet exaltest thou thyself against my people] So it appears that at this time he might have submitted, and thus prevented his own destruction.

The SEVENTH plague-the HAIL.

Verses 17, 18. As yet exaltest thou thyself against my people? — Against me, acting for my people. God takes what is done for or against his people as done for or against himself. Behold, tomorrow — The time is precisely marked, that it might not be said to have fallen out by chance. Besides, God hereby demonstrates, that there is no part of nature but he commands, — that the fire, hail, thunder, and storm obey his will. Since the foundation thereof — Since it was a kingdom.

V. 18. Since the foundation thereof-Since it was a kingdom.

Verse 18. To-morrow about this time] The time of this plague is marked thus circumstantially to show Pharaoh that Jehovah was Lord of heaven and earth, and that the water, the fire, the earth, and the air, which were all objects of Egyptian idolatry, were the creatures of his power; and subservient to his will; and that, far from being able to help them, they were now, in the hands of God, instruments of their destruction. To rain a very grievous hail] To rain hail may appear to some superficial observers as an unphilosophical mode of expression, but nothing can be more correct. “Drops of rain falling through a cold region of the atmosphere are frozen and converted into hail;” and thus the hail is produced by rain. When it begins to fall it is rain; when it is falling it is converted into hail; thus it is literally true that it rains hail. The farther a hail-stone falls the larger it generally is, because in its descent it meets with innumerable particles of water, which, becoming attached to it, are also frozen, and thus its bulk is continualy increasing till it reaches the earth. In the case in question, if natural means were at all used, we may suppose a highly electrified state of an atmosphere loaded with vapours, which, becoming condensed and frozen, and having a considerable space to fall through, were of an unusually large size. Though this was a supernatural storm, there have been many of a natural kind, that have been exceedingly dreadful. A storm of hail fell near Liverpool, in Lancashire, in the year 1795, which greatly damaged the vegetation, broke windows, &c., &c. Many of the stones measured five inches in circumference. Dr. Halley mentions a similar storm of hail in Lancashire, Cheshire, &c., in 1697, April 29, that for sixty miles in length and two miles in breadth did immense damage, by splitting trees, killing fowls and all small animals, knocking down men and horses, &c., &c. Mezeray, in his History of France, says “that in Italy, in 1510, there was for some time a horrible darkness, thicker than that of night, after which the clouds broke into thunder and lightning, and there fell a shower of hail-stones which destroyed all the beasts, birds, and even fish of the country. It was attended with a strong smell of sulphur, and the stones were of a bluish colour, some of them weighing one hundred pounds’ weight.” The Almighty says to Job: “Hast thou seen the treasures of the hail, which I have reserved against the time of trouble, against the day of battle and war?” Job 38:22, 23. While God has such artillery at his command, how soon may he desolate a country or a world! See the account of a remarkable hail-storm in Joshua 10:11.

Verses 17, 18. As yet exaltest thou thyself against my people? — Against me, acting for my people. God takes what is done for or against his people as done for or against himself. Behold, tomorrow — The time is precisely marked, that it might not be said to have fallen out by chance. Besides, God hereby demonstrates, that there is no part of nature but he commands, — that the fire, hail, thunder, and storm obey his will. Since the foundation thereof — Since it was a kingdom.

18. A very grievous hail — Hail is rare in Egypt, although it sometimes occurs. Thunderstorms are seldom experienced, and do no damage except washing away the mud walls of the poorer sort of dwellings.

Verse 19. Send-now, and gather thy cattle] So in the midst of judgment, God remembered mercy. The miracle should be wrought that they might know he was the Lord; but all the lives both of men and beasts might have been saved, had Pharaoh and his servants taken the warning so mercifully given them. While some regarded not the word of the Lord, others feared it, and their cattle and their servants were saved, See Exodus 9:20, 21.

Verse 19. Send now therefore and gather thy cattle — This warning God gives to mitigate the severity of the judgment, to show his justice in punishing so wicked and obstinate a people as would not hearken either to his words or former works, and especially to make a difference between the penitent and the incorrigible Egyptians, it being far from God to inflict the same punishment on those who mourn because of any national crime, and those who for their profit or pleasure will continue to do wickedly.

19. Send therefore now, and gather thy cattle — This is the only instance in which the Egyptians were advised how to escape the judgment after it had been announced. This plague not only destroyed the crops, trees, and cattle, but, like the last, fell upon the Egyptians themselves. Jehovah now reveals himself to Egypt as the Lord of the elements — of the forces of the air — as well as of the water and the land.

Verse 20. He that feared the word of the Lord among the servants of Pharaoh — By this time it appears that these terrible judgments had not been executed entirely in vain. A few, at least, were hereby brought to stand in awe of God and perhaps truly to turn to him. Such persons, believing the discoveries which he had given of his displeasure at the slavery and oppression of his people, and not concurring in this part of the national crimes, regarded the notice God had given, and saved their servants and the remnant of their cattle.

Verses 22, 23. Upon man — Upon those men that presumed to continue in the field after this admonition. The Lord rained hail upon the land of Egypt — This was the more extraordinary, as rain seldom falls in Egypt, and in some parts of the country is scarcely known at all. And snow and hail are still more rare, the climate not being so cold as to produce them. Sometimes, however, they do fall, as is implied in the next verse, and is attested by eye-witnesses.

Verse 23. The Lord sent thunder] tlq koloth, voices; but loud, repeated peals of thunder are meant.

And the fire ran along upon the ground] hxra va Ëlhtw vattihalac esh aretsah, and the fire walked upon the earth. It was not a sudden flash of lightning, but a devouring fire, walking through every part, destroying both animals and vegetables; and its progress was irresistible.

Verses 22, 23. Upon man — Upon those men that presumed to continue in the field after this admonition. The Lord rained hail upon the land of Egypt — This was the more extraordinary, as rain seldom falls in Egypt, and in some parts of the country is scarcely known at all. And snow and hail are still more rare, the climate not being so cold as to produce them. Sometimes, however, they do fall, as is implied in the next verse, and is attested by eye-witnesses.

Verse 24. Hail, and fire mingled with the hail] It is generally allowed that the electric fluid is essential to the formation of hail. On this occasion it was supplied in a supernatural abundance; for streams of fire seem to have accompanied the descending hail, so that herbs and trees, beasts and men, were all destroyed by them.

Verse 24. Fire mingled with hail — Which strange mixture much increased the miracle. The Hebrew is, fire infolding or catching itself among the hail; “One flash of lightning,” says Ainsworth, “taking hold on another, and so the flames, infolding themselves, increased and burned more terribly.” The same Hebrew word is used Ezekiel 1:4, and rendered, a fire infolding itself.

Ver. 24. Fire mingled with hail. In the year of Christ 824, there was in France, and in some parts of Germany, a storm which much resembled this. Tirinus. Wisdom 16:16. The hail was accompanied with tremendous thunder. The predominance of the electric fluid would contribute much towards the formation of the huge stones of hail.

Verse 25. Every herb of the field: every tree — That is, most of them, or herbs and trees of all sorts, as appears from Exodus 10:12, 15.

Verse 26. Only in the land of Goshen-was there no hail.] What a signal proof of a most particular providence! Surely both the Hebrews and Egyptians profited by this display of the goodness and severity of God.

Verse 26. In the land of Goshen there was no hail — It seems the Egyptians that dwelt there were spared for the sake of their neighbours the Israelites; which great obligation probably made them the more ready to give them their jewels, Exodus 12:35.

Verse 27. The Lord is righteous, and I and my people are wicked.] The original is very emphatic: The Lord is THE RIGHTEOUS ONE, (qydxh hatstaddik,) and I and my people are THE SINNERS, (הרשעים hareshaim;) i.e., He is alone righteous, and we alone are transgressors. Who could have imagined that after such an acknowledgment and confession, Pharaoh should have again hardened his heart?

Verse 27. Pharaoh said, I have sinned; the Lord is righteous — These, professions were only produced by his fears: his heart was still untouched with any true veneration for, or humiliation before, the God of Israel, or with compunction and sorrow for his own obstinacy.

27. I have sinned this time — Now I see and own my sin. For the first time Pharaoh confesses sin, and attests the righteousness of Jehovah, but it is simply a lip acknowledgment. He owns the weight of God’s hand rather than the righteousness of his commandments. Pain can reveal that law is violated, but it cannot convert, cannot make penitent, the heart that chooses to rebel.

Verse 28. It is enough] There is no need of any farther plague; I submit to the authority of Jehovah and will rebel no more.

Mighty thunderings] אלהים כלת koloth Elohim, voices of God;-that is, superlatively loud thunder. So mountains of God (Psalm 36:6) means exceeding high mountains. So a prince of God (Genesis 23:6) means a mighty prince. See a description of thunder, Psalm 29:3-8: “The VOICE OF THE LORD is upon the waters: the God of glory thundereth; the Lord is upon many waters. The voice of the Lord is powerful; the voice of the Lord is full of majesty. The voice of the Lord breaketh the cedars. The voice of the Lord divideth the flames of fire. The voice of the Lord shaketh the wilderness,” &c. The production of rain by the electric spark is alluded to in a very beautiful manner, Jeremiah 10:13: When he uttereth his voice, there is a multitude of waters in the heavens. See Clarke’s note on “Genesis 7:11”, and See Clarke’s note on “Genesis 8:1”.

V. 29. The earth-The world, the heaven and the earth.

Verse 29. I will spread abroad my hands] That is, I will make supplication to God that he may remove this plague. This may not be an improper place to make some observations on the ancient manner of approaching the Divine Being in prayer. Kneeling down, stretching out the hands, and lifting them up to heaven, were in frequent use among the Hebrews in their religious worship. SOLOMON kneeled down on his knees, and spread forth his hands to heaven; 2 Chronicles 6:13. So DAVID, Psalm 143:6: I stretch forth my hands unto thee. So EZRA: I fell upon my knees, and spread out my hands unto the Lord my God; Ezra 9:5. See also JOB Job 11:13: If thou prepare thine heart, and stretch out thy hands towards him. Most nations who pretended to any kind of worship made use of the same means in approaching the objects of their adoration, viz., kneeling down and stretching out their hands; which custom it is very likely they borrowed from the people of God. Kneeling was ever considered to be the proper posture of supplication, as it expresses humility, contrition, and subjection. If the person to whom the supplication was addressed was within reach, the supplicant caught him by the knees; for as among the ancients the forehead was consecrated to genius, the ear to memory, and the right hand to faith, so the knees were consecrated to mercy. Hence those who entreated favour fell at and caught hold of the knees of the person whose kindness they supplicated. This mode of supplication is particularly referred to in the following passages in Homer:—

Twn nun min mnhsasa parezeo, kai labe gounwn.

Iliad i., ver. 407.

Now therefore, of these things reminding Jove,

Embrace his knees.

COWPER.

To which the following answer is made:—

Kai totJ epeita toi eimi diov poti calkobatev dw,

Kai min gounasomai, kai min peisesqai oiw.

Iliad i., ver. 426.

Then will I to Jove’s brazen-floor’d abode,

That I may clasp his knees; and much misdeem

Of my endeavour, or my prayer shall speed. Id.

See the issue of thus addressing Jove, Ibid., ver. 500-502, and ver. 511, &c.

In the same manner we find our Lord accosted, Matthew 17:14: There came to him a certain man, kneeling down to him gonupetwn auton, falling down at his knees.

As to the lifting up or stretching out of the hands, (often joined to kneeling,) of which we have seen already several instances, and of which we have a very remarkable one in this book, Exodus 17:11, where the lifting up or stretching out of the hands of Moses was the means of Israel’s prevailing over Amalek; we find many examples of both in ancient authors. Thus HOMER:—

Esqlon gar du ceirav anascemen, ai kJ elehsh.

Iliad xxiv., ver. 301.

For right it is to spread abroad the hands

To Jove for mercy.

Also VIRGIL:—

Corripio e stratis corpus, TENDOQUE SUPINAS

AD CŒLUM cum voce MANUS, et munera libo

Æneid iii., ver. 176.

I started from my bed, and raised on high

My hands and voice in rapture to the sky;

And pour libations.

PITT.

Dixerat: et GENUA AMPLEXUS, genibusque volutans

Hærebat.

Ibid., ver. 607.

Then kneel’d the wretch, and suppliant clung around

My knees with tears, and grovell’d on the ground.

Id.

——————media inter numina divum

Multa Jovem MANIBUS SUPPLEX orasse SUPINIS.

Ibid. iv., ver. 204.

Amidst the statues of the gods he stands,

And spreading forth to Jove his lifted hands.

Id.

Et DUPLICES cum voce MANUS ad sidera TENDIT.

Ibid. x., ver. 667.

And lifted both his hands and voice to heaven.

In some cases the person petitioning came forward, and either sat in the dust or kneeled on the ground, placing his left hand on the knee of him from whom he expected the favour, while he touched the person’s chin with his right. We have an instance of this also in HOMER:— Kai ra paroiqJ autoio kaqezeto, kai labe gounwn

Skaih\ dexiterh dJ arJ upJ anqerewnov elousa.

Iliad i., ver. 500.

Suppliant the goddess stood: one hand she placed

Beneath his chin, and one his knee embraced.

POPE.

When the supplicant could not approach the person to whom he prayed, as where a deity was the object of the prayer, he washed his hands, made an offering, and kneeling down, either stretched out both his hands to heaven, or laid them upon the offering or sacrifice, or upon the altar. Thus Homer represents the priest of Apollo praying:—

Cerniyanto dJ epeita, kai oulocutav anelonto,

Toisin de crushv megalJ euceto, ceirav anascwn.

Iliad i., ver. 449.

With water purify their hands, and take

The sacred offering of the salted cake,

While thus, with arms devoutly raised in air,

And solemn voice, the priest directs his prayer.

POPE.

How necessary ablutions of the whole body, and of the hands particularly, accompanied with offerings and sacrifices were, under the law, every reader of the Bible knows: see especially Exodus 29:1-4, where Aaron and his sons were commanded to be washed, previously to their performing the priest’s office; and Exodus 30:19-21, where it is said: “Aaron and his sons shall wash their hands-that they die not.” See also Leviticus 17:15. When the high priest among the Jews blessed the people, he lifted up his hands, Leviticus 9:22. And the Israelites, when they presented a sacrifice to God, lifted up their hands and placed them on the head of the victim: “If any man of you bring an offering unto the Lord-of the cattle of the herd, and of the flock-he shall put his hand upon the head of the burnt-offering, and it shall be accepted for him, to make atonement for him;” Leviticus 1:2-4. To these circumstances the apostle alludes, 1 Timothy 2:8: “I will therefore that men pray everywhere, lifting up holy hands, without wrath and doubting.” In the apostle’s word epairontav, lifting up, there is a manifest reference to stretching out the hands to place them either on the altar or on the head of the victim. Four things were signified by this lifting up of the hands. 1. It was the posture of supplication, and expressed a strong invitation-Come to my help; 2. It expressed the earnest desire of the person to lay hold on the help he required, by bringing him who was the object of his prayer to his assistance; 3. It showed the ardour of the person to receive the blessings he expected; and 4. By this act he designated and consecrated his offering or sacrifice to his God.

From a great number of evidences and coincidences it is not unreasonable to conclude that the heathens borrowed all that was pure and rational, even in their mode of worship, from the ancient people of God; and that the preceding quotations are proofs of this.

Verse 29. That the earth is the Lord’s — That is, the whole world, the heavens and the earth. This is one great point that the Scriptures are intended to establish, that the whole universe, and all creatures therein, belong to the Lord, and are under his government. This truth, the foundation of all religion, ought to be established in our hearts, that we may put our trust in him, and be resigned to his will, whatever the dispensations of his adorable providence may be; however mysterious and unsearchable, as to the reasons of them, persuaded that they are as wise as they are powerful, and as gracious as they are just and holy, and will assuredly all work for good to those that love him.

Ver. 29. I will spread abroad my hands, in the usual form of earnest and supplicating prayer.

V. 30. Bolled-Grown up into a stalk.

Verse 31. The flax and the barley was smitten] The word htvp pishtah, flax, Mr. Parkhurst thinks, is derived from the root cvp pashat, to strip, because the substance which we term flax is properly the bark or rind of the vegetable, pilled or stripped off the stalks. From time immemorial Egypt was celebrated for the production and manufacture of flax: hence the linen and fine linen of Egypt, so often spoken of in ancient authors.

Barley] hr[c seorah, from r[c saar, to stand on end, to be rough, bristly, &c.; hence r[c sear, the hair of the head, and ry[c sair, a he-goat, because of its shaggy hair; and hence also barley, because of the rough and prickly beard with which the ears are covered and defended. Dr. Pocock has observed that there is a double seed-time and harvest in Egypt: Rice, India wheat, and a grain called the corn of Damascus, and in Italian surgo rosso, are sown and reaped at a very different time from wheat, barley and flax. The first are sown in March, before the overflowing of the Nile, and reaped about October; whereas the wheat and barley are sown in November and December, as soon as the Nile is gone off, and are reaped before May.

Pliny observes, Hist. Nat., lib. xviii., cap. 10, that in Egypt the barley is ready for reaping in six months after it is sown, and wheat in seven. In Ægypto HORDEUM sexto a satu mense, FEUMENTA septimo metuntur. The flax was bolled.] Meaning, I suppose, was grown up into a stalk: the original is גבעל gibol, podded or was in the pod.

The word well expresses that globous pod on the top of the stalk of flax which succeeds the flower and contains the seed, very properly expressed by the Septuagint, to de linon spermatizon, but the flax was in seed or was seeding.

Verse 31. The flax and barley were smitten — Which were not so necessary for human life as the wheat and rye. Thus God sends smaller judgments before the greater. The flax was bolled — Grown into a stalk.

Ver. 31. Bolled; that is, was shot, or in the ear.

31, 32. And the flax and the barley was smitten — Flax was a most important crop in Egypt, as great quantities of linen were required for clothing and for the bandages of mummies, as well as for exportation. The barley was in the ear and the flax was bolled — These verses give us the first decisive indication of the time of the year when these events took place. The barley was in the ear and the flax was in the flower or blossom. In Egypt flax flowers at the end of January, and flax and barley are both ripe at the end of February or the first of March; but wheat and doora do not ripen till April. This plague, then, took place in the last of January or the first of February. From January to April is also the very time when cattle there are in pasture. The author thus shows a minute acquaintance with the agriculture and natural history of Egypt. The wheat and the rye — Rather, wheat and spelt, a grain closely resembling wheat, the common food of the ancient Egyptians, and now well known and much used under the name of doora. All the processes of cultivating and gathering these grains, and the operations of watering the flax, beating the stalks when gathered, and of manufacturing them into twine and cloth, are fully represented in the paintings of the Egyptian tombs. Wilkinson states that the Egyptian linen was remarkably fine in texture, equal in quality to the best now made, and superior to the modern article in the evenness of its threads. Zoan or Tanis was famous for its flax fields. The storm that would destroy barley in the ear, and flax in the blossom, would be too early in the season to cut off the wheat and spelt, which were not yet high enough to be broken by the hail, and consequently escaped destruction.

Verse 32. But the wheat and the rye were not smitten] Wheat, hcj chittah, which Mr. Parkhurst thinks should be derived from the Chaldee and Samaritan ycj chati, which signifies tender, delicious, delicate, because of the superiority of its flavour, &c., to every other kind of grain. But this term in Scripture appears to mean any kind of bread-corn. Rye, tmsk cussemeth, from µsk casam, to have long hair; and hence, though the particular species is not known, the word must mean some bearded grain. The Septuagint call it olura, the Vulgate for, and Aquila zea, which signify the grain called spelt; and some suppose that rice is meant. Mr. Harmer, referring to the double harvest in Egypt mentioned by Dr. Pocock, says that the circumstance of the wheat and the rye being tlypa aphiloth, dark or hidden, as the margin renders it, (i.e., they were sown, but not grown up,) shows that it was the Indian wheat or surgo rosso mentioned Exodus 9:31, which, with the rye, escaped, while the barley and flax were smitten because they were at or nearly at a state of maturity. See Harmer’s Obs., vol. iv., p. 11, edit 1808. But what is intended by the words in the Hebrew text we cannot positively say, as there is a great variety of opinions on this subject, both among the versions and the commentators. The Anglo-Saxon translator, probably from not knowing the meaning of the words, omits the whole verse.

Verse 32. They were not grown up — Were hidden, or dark, as the margin reads it; or late, as many interpreters render the expression. This kind of corn, coming later up, was now tender, and hidden, either under ground, or in the herb, whereby it was secured both from the fire, by its greenness and moisture, and from the hail, by its pliableness and yielding to it: whereas the stalks of barley were more dry and stiff, and therefore more liable to be injured and destroyed by the fire and hail.

Ver. 32. The wheat—not grown. The barley is but four months in the ground. There the barley harvest is at Easter, and wheat six weeks later. The river Nile begins to rise in June: the lowest elevation is 16 feet, and the highest 24 feet. If the rise be high, a rich harvest follows the next year, because the country is enriched by a wider spread of the waters. As the waters retire, the sower wades in, and casts his wheat upon the water, to procure an early vegetation. See on Isaiah 19.

31, 32. And the flax and the barley was smitten — Flax was a most important crop in Egypt, as great quantities of linen were required for clothing and for the bandages of mummies, as well as for exportation. The barley was in the ear and the flax was bolled — These verses give us the first decisive indication of the time of the year when these events took place. The barley was in the ear and the flax was in the flower or blossom. In Egypt flax flowers at the end of January, and flax and barley are both ripe at the end of February or the first of March; but wheat and doora do not ripen till April. This plague, then, took place in the last of January or the first of February. From January to April is also the very time when cattle there are in pasture. The author thus shows a minute acquaintance with the agriculture and natural history of Egypt. The wheat and the rye — Rather, wheat and spelt, a grain closely resembling wheat, the common food of the ancient Egyptians, and now well known and much used under the name of doora. All the processes of cultivating and gathering these grains, and the operations of watering the flax, beating the stalks when gathered, and of manufacturing them into twine and cloth, are fully represented in the paintings of the Egyptian tombs. Wilkinson states that the Egyptian linen was remarkably fine in texture, equal in quality to the best now made, and superior to the modern article in the evenness of its threads. Zoan or Tanis was famous for its flax fields. The storm that would destroy barley in the ear, and flax in the blossom, would be too early in the season to cut off the wheat and spelt, which were not yet high enough to be broken by the hail, and consequently escaped destruction.

V. 33. Moses went out of the city-Not only for privacy in his communion with God, but to shew that he durst venture abroad into the field, notwithstanding the hail and lightning, knowing that every hail-stone had its direction from God. Peace with God makes men thunder-proof, for it is the voice of their father. And spread abroad his hands unto the Lord-An outward expression of earnest desire, and humble expectation. He prevailed with God; but he could not prevail with Pharaoh; he sinned yet more, and hardened his heart-The prayer of Moses opened and shut heaven, like Elijah’s. And such is the power of God’s two witnesses, Revelation 11:6. Yet neither Moses nor Elijah, nor those two witnesses, could subdue the hard hearts of men. Pharaoh was frighted into compliance by the judgment, but, when it was over, his convictions vanished.

Verse 33. Spread abroad his hands] Probably with the rod of God in them. See what has been said on the spreading out of the hands in prayer, Exodus 9:29. See Clarke on “Exodus 9:29”.

Verses 33, 34. Moses went out of the city — Not only for privacy in his communication with God, but to show that he durst venture abroad into the field, notwithstanding the hail and lightning, knowing that every hail-stone had its direction from God. And spread abroad his hands unto the Lord — An outward expression of earnest desire, and humble expectation. He prevailed with God; but he could not prevail with Pharaoh: he sinned yet more, and hardened his heart — The prayer of Moses opened and shut heaven, like Elijah’s. And such is the power of God’s two witnesses, Revelation 11:6. Yet neither Moses nor Elijah, nor those two witnesses, could subdue the hard hearts of men. Pharaoh was frighted into compliance by the judgment, but, when it was over, his convictions vanished.

33. Went out of the city — This shows that Pharaoh then resided in a city, probably Zoan. See on Exodus 1:8.

Verse 34. He sinned yet more, and hardened his heart] These were merely acts of his own; “for who can deny,” says Mr. Psalmanazar, “that what God did on Pharaoh was much more proper to soften than to harden his heart; especially when it is observable that it was not till after seeing each miracle, and after the ceasing of each plague, that his heart is said to have been hardened? The verbs here used are in the conjugations pihel and hiphil, and often signify a bare permission, from which it is plain that the words should have been read, God suffered the heart of Pharaoh to be hardened.”-Universal Hist., vol. i., p. 494. Note D.

Verses 33, 34. Moses went out of the city — Not only for privacy in his communication with God, but to show that he durst venture abroad into the field, notwithstanding the hail and lightning, knowing that every hail-stone had its direction from God. And spread abroad his hands unto the Lord — An outward expression of earnest desire, and humble expectation. He prevailed with God; but he could not prevail with Pharaoh: he sinned yet more, and hardened his heart — The prayer of Moses opened and shut heaven, like Elijah’s. And such is the power of God’s two witnesses, Revelation 11:6. Yet neither Moses nor Elijah, nor those two witnesses, could subdue the hard hearts of men. Pharaoh was frighted into compliance by the judgment, but, when it was over, his convictions vanished.

Verse 35. And the heart of Pharaoh was hardened] In consequence of his sinning yet more, and hardening his own heart against both the judgments and mercies of God, we need not be surprised that, after God had given him the means of softening and repentance, and he had in every instance resisted and abused them, he should at last have been left to the hardness and darkness of his own obstinate heart, so as to fill up the measure of his iniquity, and rush headlong to his own destruction. IN the fifth, sixth, and seventh plagues described in this chapter, we have additional proofs of the justice and mercy of God, as well as of the stupidity, rebellion, and wickedness of Pharaoh and his courtiers. As these continued to contradict and resist, it was just that God should continue to inflict those punishments which their iniquities deserved. Yet in the midst of judgment he remembers mercy; and therefore Moses and Aaron are sent to inform the Egyptians that such plagues would come if they continued obstinate. Here is mercy; the cattle only are destroyed, and the people saved! Is it not evident from all these messages, and the repeated expostulations of Moses and Aaron in the name and on the authority of God, that Pharaoh was bound by no fatal necessity to continue his obstinacy; that he might have humbled himself before God, and thus prevented the disasters that fell on the land, and saved himself and his people from destruction? But he would sin, and therefore he must be punished.

In the sixth plague Pharaoh had advantages which he had not before. The magicians, by their successful imitations of the miracles wrought by Moses, made it doubtful to the Egyptians whether Moses himself was not a magician acting without any Divine authority; but the plague of the boils, which they could not imitate, by which they were themselves afflicted, and which they confessed to be the finger of God, decided the business. Pharaoh had no longer any excuse, and must know that he had now to contend, not with Moses and Aaron, mortals like himself, but with the living God. How strange, then, that he should continue to resist! Many affect to be astonished at this, and think it must be attributed only to a sovereign controlling influence of God, which rendered it impossible for him to repent or take warning. But the whole conduct of God shows the improbability of this opinion: and is not the conduct of Pharaoh and his courtiers copied and reacted by thousands who are never suspected to be under any such necessitating decree? Every sinner under heaven, who has the Bible in his hand, is acting the same part. God says to the swearer and the profane, Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain; and yet common swearing and profaneness are most scandalously common among multitudes who bear the Christian name, and who presume on the mercy of God to get at last to the kingdom of heaven! He says also, Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy; thou shalt not kill; thou shalt not commit adultery; thou shalt not steal; thou shalt not bear false witness; thou shalt not covet; and sanctions all these commandments with the most awful penalties: and yet, with all these things before them, and the professed belief that they came from God, Sabbath-breakers, men-slayers, adulterers, fornicators, thieves, dishonest men, false witnesses, liars, slanderers, backbiters, covetous men, lovers of the world more than lovers of God, are found by hundreds and thousands! What were the crimes of the poor half-blind Egyptian king when compared with these! He sinned against a comparatively unknown God; these sin against the God of their fathers-against the God and Father of Him whom they call their Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ! They sin with the Bible in their hand, and a conviction of its Divine authority in their hearts. They sin against light and knowledge; against the checks of their consciences, the reproofs of their friends, the admonitions of the messengers of God; against Moses and Aaron in the law; against the testimony of all the prophets; against the evangelists, the apostles, the Maker of heaven and earth, the Judge of all men, and the Saviour of the world! What were Pharaoh’s crimes to the crimes of these? On comparison, his atom of moral turpitude is lost in their world of iniquity. And yet who supposes these to be under any necessitating decree to sin on, and go to perdition? Nor are they; nor was Pharaoh. In all things God has proved both his justice and mercy to be clear in this point. Pharaoh, through a principle of covetousness, refused to dismiss the Israelites, whose services he found profitable to the state: these are absorbed in the love of the world, the love of pleasure, and the love of gain; nor will they let one lust go, even in the presence of the thunders of Sinai, or in sight of the agony, bloody sweat, crucifixion, and death of Jesus Christ! Alas! how many are in the habit of considering Pharaoh the worst of human beings, inevitably cut off from the possibility of being saved because of his iniquities, who outdo him so far in the viciousness of their lives, that Pharaoh, hardening his heart against ten plagues, appears a saint when compared with those who are hardening their hearts against ten millions of mercies. Reader, art thou of this number? Proceed no farther! God’s judgments linger not. Desperate as thy state is, thou mayest return; and thou, even thou, find mercy through the blood of the Lamb. See the observations at the conclusion of the next chapter. See Clarke at “Exodus 10:29”.

EXODUS