Exodus, 9

1. Yahweh then said to Moses, 'Go to Pharaoh and say to him, "Yahweh, God of the Hebrews, says this: Let my people go and worship me.

1. Then the LORD said to Moses, "Go in to Pharaoh, and say to him, `Thus says the LORD, the God of the Hebrews, "Let my people go, that they may serve me.

2. If you refuse to let them go and detain them any longer,

2. For if you refuse to let them go and still hold them,

3. look, the hand of Yahweh will strike your livestock in the fields, horses, donkeys, camels, oxen and flocks with a deadly plague.

3. behold, the hand of the LORD will fall with a very severe plague upon your cattle which are in the field, the horses, the asses, the camels, the herds, and the flocks.

4. Yahweh will discriminate between the livestock of Israel and the livestock of Egypt: nothing of what belongs to the Israelites will die.

4. But the LORD will make a distinction between the cattle of Israel and the cattle of Egypt, so that nothing shall die of all that belongs to the people of Israel."'"

5. Yahweh has fixed the time. Tomorrow, he has said, Yahweh will do this in the country." '

5. And the LORD set a time, saying, "Tomorrow the LORD will do this thing in the land."

6. Next day Yahweh did this: all the Egyptians' livestock died, but nothing of the livestock owned by the Israelites died.

6. And on the morrow the LORD did this thing; all the cattle of the Egyptians died, but of the cattle of the people of Israel not one died.

7. Pharaoh had enquiries made, and found that of the livestock owned by the Israelites not a single beast had died. But Pharaoh was obstinate and did not let the people go.

7. And Pharaoh sent, and behold, not one of the cattle of the Israelites was dead. But the heart of Pharaoh was hardened, and he did not let the people go.

8. Yahweh then said to Moses and Aaron, 'Take handfuls of soot from the kiln, and before Pharaoh's eyes let Moses throw it in the air.

8. And the LORD said to Moses and Aaron, "Take handfuls of ashes from the kiln, and let Moses throw them toward heaven in the sight of Pharaoh.

9. It will turn into fine dust over the whole of Egypt and produce boils breaking into sores on man and beast throughout the whole of Egypt.'

9. And it shall become fine dust over all the land of Egypt, and become boils breaking out in sores on man and beast throughout all the land of Egypt."

10. So they took soot from the kiln and stood in front of Pharaoh, and Moses threw it in the air, and on man and beast it brought out boils breaking into sores.

10. So they took ashes from the kiln, and stood before Pharaoh, and Moses threw them toward heaven, and it became boils breaking out in sores on man and beast.

11. And the magicians could not compete with Moses in the matter of the boils, for the magicians were covered with boils like all the other Egyptians.

11. And the magicians could not stand before Moses because of the boils, for the boils were upon the magicians and upon all the Egyptians.

12. But Yahweh made Pharaoh stubborn and, as Yahweh had foretold to Moses, he did not listen to them.

12. But the LORD hardened the heart of Pharaoh, and he did not listen to them; as the LORD had spoken to Moses.

13. Yahweh then said to Moses, 'Get up early in the morning and confront Pharaoh. Say to him, "Yahweh, God of the Hebrews, says this: Let my people go and worship me.

13. Then the LORD said to Moses, "Rise up early in the morning and stand before Pharaoh, and say to him, `Thus says the LORD, the God of the Hebrews, "Let my people go, that they may serve me.

14. For this time I am going to inflict all my plagues on you, on your officials and on your subjects, so that you will know that there is no one like me in the whole world.

14. For this time I will send all my plagues upon your heart, and upon your servants and your people, that you may know that there is none like me in all the earth.

15. Had I stretched out my hand to strike you and your subjects with pestilence, you would have been swept from the earth.

15. For by now I could have put forth my hand and struck you and your people with pestilence, and you would have been cut off from the earth;

16. But I have let you survive for this reason: to display my power to you and to have my name talked of throughout the world.

16. but for this purpose have I let you live, to show you my power, so that my name may be declared throughout all the earth.

17. Since you take a high hand with my people, refusing to let them go,

17. You are still exalting yourself against my people, and will not let them go.

18. very well, at about this time tomorrow, I shall cause so severe a hail to fall as was never known in Egypt from the day of its foundation until now.

18. Behold, tomorrow about this time I will cause very heavy hail to fall, such as never has been in Egypt from the day it was founded until now.

19. So now send word to have your livestock and everything else you own in the fields put under cover. On man or beast, all that happen to be in the fields and are not brought indoors, the hail will fall and they will die." '

19. Now therefore send, get your cattle and all that you have in the field into safe shelter; for the hail shall come down upon every man and beast that is in the field and is not brought home, and they shall die."'"

20. Those of Pharaoh's officials who respected what Yahweh said, brought their slaves and livestock indoors,

20. Then he who feared the word of the LORD among the servants of Pharaoh made his slaves and his cattle flee into the houses;

21. but those who did not take to heart what Yahweh said left their slaves and livestock in the fields.

21. but he who did not regard the word of the LORD left his slaves and his cattle in the field.

22. Yahweh then said to Moses, 'Stretch out your hand towards heaven so that it hails throughout the whole of Egypt, on man and beast and on everything growing anywhere in Egypt.'

22. And the LORD said to Moses, "Stretch forth your hand toward heaven, that there may be hail in all the land of Egypt, upon man and beast and every plant of the field, throughout the land of Egypt."

23. Moses stretched out his staff towards heaven, and Yahweh thundered and rained down hail. Lightning struck the earth and Yahweh rained down hail on Egypt.

23. Then Moses stretched forth his rod toward heaven; and the LORD sent thunder and hail, and fire ran down to the earth. And the LORD rained hail upon the land of Egypt;

24. And so there was hail, and lightning accompanied the hail, very severe, such as had never been known anywhere in Egypt since it first became a nation.

24. there was hail, and fire flashing continually in the midst of the hail, very heavy hail, such as had never been in all the land of Egypt since it became a nation.

25. All over Egypt the hail struck down everything in the fields, man and beast, and the hail beat down everything growing in the fields and shattered all the trees in the fields.

25. The hail struck down everything that was in the field throughout all the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and the hail struck down every plant of the field, and shattered every tree of the field.

26. The only place where there was no hail was in the Goshen region, where the Israelites lived.

26. Only in the land of Goshen, where the people of Israel were, there was no hail.

27. Pharaoh then sent for Moses and Aaron and said, 'This time, I have sinned. Yahweh is in the right; I and my subjects are in the wrong.

27. Then Pharaoh sent, and called Moses and Aaron, and said to them, "I have sinned this time; the LORD is in the right, and I and my people are in the wrong.

28. Pray to Yahweh, for we cannot bear any more of this thunder and hail. I promise to let you go. You need stay no longer.'

28. Entreat the LORD; for there has been enough of this thunder and hail; I will let you go, and you shall stay no longer."

29. Moses said to him, 'The moment I leave the city I shall stretch out my hands to Yahweh. The thunder will stop, and there will be no more hail, so that you may know that the earth belongs to Yahweh.

29. Moses said to him, "As soon as I have gone out of the city, I will stretch out my hands to the LORD; the thunder will cease, and there will be no more hail, that you may know that the earth is the LORD's.

30. But as for you and your officials, I know very well that you still have no respect for Yahweh God.'

30. But as for you and your servants, I know that you do not yet fear the LORD God."

31. The flax and the barley were ruined, since the barley was in the ear and the flax in bud,

31. (The flax and the barley were ruined, for the barley was in the ear and the flax was in bud.

32. but the wheat and spelt were not destroyed, being late crops.

32. But the wheat and the spelt were not ruined, for they are late in coming up.)

33. Moses left Pharaoh and went out of the city. He stretched out his hands to Yahweh and the thunder and hail ceased and the rain stopped pouring down on the earth.

33. So Moses went out of the city from Pharaoh, and stretched out his hands to the LORD; and the thunder and the hail ceased, and the rain no longer poured upon the earth.

34. When Pharaoh saw that rain and hail and thunder had stopped, he relapsed into sin,

34. But when Pharaoh saw that the rain and the hail and the thunder had ceased, he sinned yet again, and hardened his heart, he and his servants.

35. and he and his officials became obstinate again. Pharaoh was stubborn and, as Yahweh had foretold through Moses, refused to let the Israelites go.

35. So the heart of Pharaoh was hardened, and he did not let the people of Israel go; as the LORD had spoken through Moses.