Exodus 8

1 Then the Lord told Moses, “Go and see Pharaoh and say to him, ‘This is what the Lord says: Let my people go, so that they can worship me.

And the Lord said to Moses: Go in to Pharao, and thou shalt say to him: Thus saith the Lord: Let my people go to sacrifice to me.

2 If you refuse to let them leave, I will send a plague of frogs all over your country.

But if thou wilt not let them go behold I will strike all thy coasts with frogs.

3 They will swarm out of the Nile, and they will enter your palace and get into your bedroom and jump onto your bed. They will get into the houses of your officials and jump around your people—even into your ovens and breadmaking bowls.

And the river shall bring forth an abundance of frogs: which shall come up, and enter into thy house, and thy bedchamber, and upon thy bed, and in the houses of thy servants, and to thy people, and into thy ovens, and into the remains of thy meats;

4 Frogs will jump all over you, your people, and all your officials.’”

And the frogs shall come in to thee and to thy people, and to all thy servants.

5 The Lord said to Moses, “Tell Aaron, ‘Hold out your walking stick in your hand over the rivers and canals and ponds, and make frogs spread over Egypt.’”

And the Lord said to Moses: Say to Aaron, Stretch forth thy hand upon the streams and upon the rivers and the pools, and bring forth frogs upon the land of Egypt.

6 So Aaron held out his hand over the waters of Egypt, and frogs came up and covered the land.

And Aaron stretched forth his hand upon the waters of Egypt, and the frogs came up, and covered the land of Egypt.

7 But the Egyptian magicians did the same thing using their magic arts. They brought up frogs in Egypt.

And the magicians also by their enchantments did in like manner, and the brought forth frogs upon all the land of Egypt.

8 Pharaoh called for Moses and Aaron and pleaded with them, “Pray to the Lord, and ask him to take away the frogs from me and my people. Then I will let your people go so they can offer sacrifices to the Lord.”

But Pharao called Moses and Aaron and said to them: Pray ye to the Lord to take away the frogs from me and from my people; and I will let the people go to sacrifice to the Lord.

9 “You may have the honor of deciding when I'll pray for you, your officials, and your people that the frogs will be removed from you and your houses. They will remain only in the Nile.”

And Moses said to Pharao: Set me a time when I shall pray for thee, and for thy servants, and for thy people, that the frogs may be driven away from thee and from thy house, and from thy servants, and from thy people: and may remain only in the river.

10 “Do it tomorrow,” Pharaoh replied. Moses said, “It will happen as you have requested so you will know that there is no one like the Lord our God.

And he answered: Tomorrow. But he said: I will do according to thy word; that thou mayst know that there is none like to the Lord our God.

11 The frogs will leave you and your houses, your officials and your people, and they will remain only in the Nile.”

And the frogs shall depart from thee, and from thy house, and from thy servants, and from thy people; and shall remain only in the river.

12 Moses and Aaron left Pharaoh, and Moses pleaded with the Lord about the frogs he had sent against Pharaoh.

And Moses and Aaron went forth from Pharao: and Moses cried to the Lord for the promise, which he had made to Pharao concerning the frogs.

13 The Lord did as Moses asked. The frogs in the houses, the courtyards, and the fields died.

And the Lord did according to the word of Moses: and the frogs died out of the houses, and out of the villages, and out of the fields:

14 The people collected them in pile upon pile, and the whole country smelled terrible.

And they gathered them together into immense heaps, and the land was corrupted.

15 But when Pharaoh realized the plague had passed he chose to become hard and stubborn again, wouldn't listen to Moses and Aaron, just as the Lord had predicted.

And Pharao seeing that rest was given, hardened his own heart, and did not hear them, as the Lord had commanded.

16 The Lord said to Moses, “Tell Aaron, ‘Pick up your walking stick and hit the dust of the ground. The dust will become gnats swarming all over Egypt.’”

And the Lord said to Moses: Say to Aaron, Stretch forth thy rod, and strike the dust of the earth: and may there be sciniphs in all the land of Egypt.

17 They did what the Lord said. When Aaron lifted up his walking stick and hit the dust of the earth, gnats swarmed over both people and animals. The dust in the whole of Egypt turned into gnats.

And they did so. And Aaron stretched forth his hand, holding the rod: and he struck the dust of the earth, and there came sciniphs on men and on beasts: all the dust of the earth was turned into sciniphs through all the land of Egypt.

18 The magicians also tried to make gnats using their magic arts, but they couldn't. The gnats stayed on both people and animals.

And the magicians with their enchantments practiced in like manner, to bring forth sciniphs, and they could not and there were sciniphs as well on men as on beasts.

19 “This is an act of God,” the magicians told Pharaoh. But Pharaoh chose to be stubbornly hard-hearted, and he wouldn't listen to Moses and Aaron, just as the Lord had predicted.

And the magicians said to Pharao This is the finger of God. And Pharao heart was hardened, and he hearkened not unto them, as the Lord had commanded.

20 The Lord told Moses, “Tomorrow morning get up early and block Pharaoh's way as he walks down to the river. Tell him, ‘This is what the Lord says: Let my people go, so that they can worship me.

The Lord also said to Moses: Arise early, and stand before Pharao: for he will go forth to the waters: and thou shalt say to him: Thus saith the Lord: Let my people go to sacrifice to me.

21 If you don't let my people leave, I will send swarms of flies on you and your officials, and on your people and your houses. Every Egyptian house and even the ground on which they stand will be filled with swarms of flies.

But if thou wilt not let them go, behold I will send in upon thee, and upon thy servants, and upon thy houses all kind of flies: and the houses of the Egyptians shall be filled with flies of divers kinds, and the whole land wherein they shall be.

22 However, on this occasion I will treat the land of Goshen differently—that's where my people live—there won't be any swarms of flies there. This is how you will know that I, the Lord, am here in your country.

And I will make the land of Gessen wherein my people is, wonderful in that lay, so that flies shall not be there: and thou shalt know that I am the Lord in the midst of the earth.

23 I will distinguish my people from your people. You will see this sign that confirms it tomorrow.”

And I will put a division between my people and thy people: tomorrow shall this sign be.

24 The Lord did what he had said. Huge swarms of flies swept into Pharaoh's palace and into the houses of his officials. The whole of Egypt was devastated because of these swarms of flies.

And the Lord did so. And there came a very grievous swarm of flies into he houses of Pharao and of his servants, and into all the land of Egypt: and the land was corrupted by this kind of flies.

25 Pharaoh called for Moses and Aaron and told them, “Go and offer sacrifices to your God here in this country.”

And Pharao called Moses and Aaron, and said to them: Go, and sacrifice to your God in this land.

26 “No, that wouldn't be the right thing to do,” Moses replied. “The sacrifices we offer to the Lord our God would be offensive to Egyptians. If we went ahead and offered sacrifices offensive to Egyptians, they'd stone us!

And Moses said: It cannot be so: for we shall sacrifice the abominations of the Egyptians to the Lord our God: now if we kill those things which the Egyptians worship, in their presence, they will stone us.

27 We must make a three-day journey into the wilderness and offer sacrifices there to the Lord our God as he has told us.”

We will go three days’ journey into the wilderness: and we will sacrifice to the Lord our God, as he hath commanded us.

28 “I'll let you go and offer sacrifices to the Lord your God in the desert, but don't go very far,” Pharaoh answered. “Now pray for me that this plague ends.”

And Pharao said: I will let you go to sacrifice to the Lord your God in the wilderness: but go no farther: pray for me.

29 “As soon as I leave you, I will pray to the Lord,” Moses replied, “and tomorrow the flies will leave Pharaoh and his officials and his people. But Pharaoh should be sure not to be deceitful again and refuse to let the people go and offer sacrifices to the Lord.”

And Moses said: I will go out from thee, and will pray to the Lord: and the flies shall depart from Pharao, and from his servants, and from his people tomorrow: but do not deceive any more, in not letting the people go to sacrifice to the Lord.

30 Moses left Pharaoh and prayed to the Lord,

So Moses went out from Pharao, and prayed to the Lord.

31 and the Lord did as Moses asked, and removed the swarms of flies from Pharaoh and his officials and his people. Not a single fly remained.

And he did according to his word: and he took away the flies from Pharao, and from his servants, and from his people: there was not left so much as one.

32 But once again Pharaoh chose to be stubbornly hard-hearted and would not let the people leave.

And Pharao’s heart was hardened, so that neither this time would he let the people go.