[And He Walks With Me] Exodus 9
1-7 It could be reasoned that all the Egyptian livestock died because of disease (possibly anthrax) spread by the frogs, gnats, and/or flies,[42] thereby connecting this event to the previous plague. However, that does not explain how not a single one of the Israelite livestock was dead. While there may have been a natural cause, there was also clearly a supernatural element in the timing, which was again predicted in advance with remarkable accuracy, and the distinction. See note on 8:20-32 re: distinction.
The Hebrew word translated plague (3 CSB) is not the same as the term in 8:2. The term used here, deḇer (דֶּבֶר – H1698), means disease.
See notes on 8:15, 20-32 for discussion re: Pharaoh’s heart was hard.
There is a fine line between tenacious faithfulness and prideful stubbornness. On the one hand, Moses demonstrated the former by going yet again to Pharaoh and demanding the release of his people despite the Pharaoh’s refusal to do so. On the other, Pharaoh demonstrated the latter by persisting even after this catastrophic fifth plague. On the surface, these two states are virtually indistinguishable, but the underlying motivations are diametrically opposed to each other: the desire to obey and glorify God versus the desire to glorify self. The prideful need to preserve one’s reputation can compel a person to continue on a course long after it is clearly against God’s will. After five plagues, each of which was clearly supernatural and profoundly destructive, one would think Pharaoh would realize God was against him and allow Israel to go. Yet, his pride dictated that his reputation must be upheld. Therefore, he did not let the people go. Do not be like Pharaoh.
8-12 The sixth plague was festering boils on people and animals throughout the land of Egypt. Again, some scholars have speculated that there may be a causal connection between the previous plagues: if the flies and/or gnats carried anthrax, which killed the livestock, it may also manifest in humans as large, black abscesses which cause a severe burning sensation.[43] This may be the case, but the use of furnace soot which became festering boils would suggest a more supernatural cause.
The use of furnace soot was highly symbolic. The furnaces referenced were most likely kilns used to bake the bricks used by Israelite slaves in Egyptian building projects. Thus, the use of soot from the furnace represented Israel’s bondage.[44] It should also be noted that the same term for furnace, kiḇšān (כִּבְשָׁן – H3536) was used in Genesis 19:28 to describe the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah.
It should be noted that this was the first plague to directly affect humans. Certainly, humans suffered indirectly as a result of the first five, but now, for the first time, the Egyptians realized God could affect them directly and their lives may be in danger.[45]
In Deuteronomy 28:27, Moses warned that, if Israel disobeyed God, he would afflict [them] with the boils of Egypt, which were described in vs 35 as painful and incurable bois on your knees and thighs – from the sole of your foot to the top of your head. While the boils certainly affected the whole body, it would seem there was a special focus to the legs. This may explain why the magicians could not stand before Moses in vs 11: the boils on the soles of their feet, knees, and thighs made it literally impossible for them to stand. Of course, this represented a significant escalation in the confrontation between the Egyptian occultic leaders and God. The magicians were never able to fix any of the plagues, though they did manage to reproduce the bloody water and the frogs. They were unable to match the gnats, flies, or livestock. Now, they were personally affected so that they were unable even to stand.
For the first time, the Lord hardened Pharaoh’s heart. Though God did not initiate this hardening, he would now encourage the condition. This would seem consistent with Romans 1:18-32. In this way, the situation is less like God is pushing Pharaoh off the cliff than it is God releasing the rope because Pharaoh was already off the cliff and actively resisting his own rescue. The escalating plagues were the rope designed to help Pharaoh climb back to safety, but instead of availing himself of the opportunity for salvation, Pharaoh refused to climb up and instead tried to pull God off the cliff. Thus, God released the rope so Pharaoh would receive the full consequences for his decisions. This strategy will end in one of two ways: either the destruction of the flesh would prompt repentance which would save the spirit (1 Corinthians 5:4-5) or the searing of the conscience whereby the person no longer knows right from wrong or cares about at all about the consequences of their actions (1 Timothy 4:1-2).
13-35 The seventh plague marks another significant escalation by God. The first five plagues did not directly harm people. The sixth caused people to develop agonizing boils, but no one died. Also, all of the first six plagues could be causally connected to the bloody Nile River. The hail of this plague, however, would be something entirely different, and people were going to die. Nevertheless, it must be noticed that, despite Pharaoh’s obstinance, God mercifully sent Moses to warn him (13-19). In his mercy, God does not unleash the full spectrum of his judgment until after he has given ample opportunity to repent.
It is important to remember that ancient Egyptians lacked all but the most rudimentary understanding of weather patterns and forecasting. Indeed, even with modern atmospheric modeling, which has made great strides over the last century, the supernatural nature of this plague is made clear by the fact that God enabled Moses to predict both its nature and timing with such specificity.
After the first six plagues, the fragmentation of Egypt’s resolve is seen in vss 20-21. Apparently, some of Pharaoh’s officials… feared the word of the Lord and heeded Moses’ warning. The significance of this decision must not be overlooked. In ordering their servants and livestock [to] flee to shelters, they were declaring that they believed Moses’ God was real and capable of doing as Moses predicted. At the same time, their actions demonstrated a lack of faith in Pharaoh’s ability to maintain order and protect them (see note on 7:14-24) and a stunning reversal of his claim to divinity (see note on 5:2). In short, the officials who once believed Israel’s God was impotent in Egypt were now declaring with their actions that they believed Pharaoh, as representative of their entire panoply of gods, was impotent. This recognition, however, should not be confused with authentic repentance. Instead of actually repenting, which would have meant truly releasing Israel, they merely sheltered their servants and livestock to mitigate the damage. Indeed, even after this plague was ended, Pharaoh hardened his heart again and still did not let the Israelites go. Some people simply do not know when to stop.
The fact that the flax and the barley were destroyed because the barley was ripe and the flax was budding is a good indicator of the timing of this plague, but it must be interpreted with knowledge of the Egyptian agricultural calendar. In North America, barley and flax are typically planted in the spring and harvested in late summer or early fall. In the ANE, however, they are planted in the fall to take advantage of the seasonal rains that come in the winter. Even within the ANE, however, there were differences. Barley planted in Palestine, for example, is generally harvested in April, but in Egypt, the barley harvest typically occurs in late February or early March. This suggests that the hailstorm occurred in early February.[46] In comparison, the wheat and the spelt were typically harvest between late March and early May.
The timing of this hail represents another significant demonstration of God’s mercy. Barley was a staple of the Egyptian diet, used primarily for bread and beer. At the time of the exodus, dozens of types of bread were typically produced in public bakeries, varying by form, content, and preparation method.[47] So also, beer was “the beverage of choice of the masses.”[48] Egyptian women produced beer by partially baking barley loaves to activate but not kill the yeast. They then crumbled the loaves; mixed them with malted barley, water, and allowed the mixture to ferment.[49] Consequently, Egyptian beer was relatively low in alcohol content (e.g., 3-4%) and relatively high in nutritional value.[50] Flax was only a minor source of grain. Instead, its fibrous stems were spun into lightweight, breathable linen which was ideally suited for clothing in the hot climate and sails. Losing these crops would have been disastrous, but the fact that the wheat and the spelt were not destroyed meant that people would still be able to eat.
[42] Keener and Zondervan 2016, Exodus 7:14-11:10
[43] Keener and Zondervan 2016, Exodus 7:14-11:10; Barker et al. 2020, Exodus 9:9
[44] Barker et al. 2020, Exodus 9:8
[45] Zondervan 2025, Exodus 9:8-12
[46] Keener and Zondervan 2016, Exodus 9:31
[47] Vos 1999, 167-168
[48] Vos 1999, 168
[49] Vos 1999, 168
[50] “Beer in Ancient Egypt” 2021