Exodus 8

1Then Yahweh said to Moses, “Go to Pharaoh and say to him, ‘This is what Yahweh says: Let my people go, so that they may worship me.

2If you refuse to let them go, I will plague your whole territory with frogs.

3The Nile will swarm with frogs. They will come up and go into your palace, into your bedroom and onto your bed, into the houses of your officials and among your people, and into your ovens and your kneading bowls.

4The frogs will come up on you, on your people, and on all your officials.’”

5Yahweh said to Moses, “Say to Aaron, ‘Stretch out your hand with your staff over the rivers, the canals, and the ponds, and make the frogs come up on the land of Egypt.’”

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

7But the magicians did the same thing by their secret arts and made frogs come up on the land of Egypt.

8Then Pharaoh summoned Moses and Aaron and said, “Pray to Yahweh to take the frogs away from me and my people, and I will let the people go to sacrifice to Yahweh.”

9Moses said to Pharaoh, “You may have the honor of telling me when I should pray for you, your officials, and your people, that the frogs be removed from you and your houses and remain only in the Nile.”

10He said, “Tomorrow.” Moses said, “It will be as you say, so that you may know that there is no one like Yahweh our God.

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

12After Moses and Aaron left Pharaoh, Moses cried out to Yahweh about the frogs he had brought on Pharaoh.

13Yahweh did what Moses asked, and the frogs died in the houses, the courtyards, and the fields.

14They piled them up in heaps, and the land stank.

15But when Pharaoh saw that there was relief, he made his heart stubborn and did not listen to them, just as Yahweh had said.

16Then Yahweh said to Moses, “Say to Aaron, ‘Stretch out your staff and strike the dust of the ground, so that it becomes gnats throughout the land of Egypt.’”

17They did so. Aaron stretched out his hand with his staff and struck the dust of the ground, and gnats came on people and animals. All the dust of the ground became gnats throughout the land of Egypt.

18The magicians tried to produce gnats by their secret arts, but they could not. The gnats were on people and animals.

19The magicians said to Pharaoh, “This is the finger of God.” But Pharaoh’s heart was hard, and he did not listen to them, just as Yahweh had said.

20Then Yahweh said to Moses, “Get up early in the morning and present yourself to Pharaoh as he goes out to the water. Say to him, ‘This is what Yahweh says: Let my people go, so that they may worship me.

21If you do not let my people go, I will send swarms of flies on you, your officials, your people, and your houses. The houses of the Egyptians will be full of flies, and so will the ground they stand on.

22But on that day I will set apart the land of Goshen, where my people live, so that no swarms of flies will be there. Then you will know that I, Yahweh, am in the midst of the land.

23I will make a distinction between my people and your people. This sign will happen tomorrow.’”

24Yahweh did so. Dense swarms of flies came into Pharaoh’s palace and into the houses of his officials. Throughout the land of Egypt the land was ruined by the flies.

25Then Pharaoh summoned Moses and Aaron and said, “Go, sacrifice to your God here in the land.”

26But Moses said, “It would not be right to do that, for the sacrifices we offer to Yahweh our God are detestable to the Egyptians. If we offer sacrifices that are detestable to the Egyptians right before their eyes, will they not stone us?

27We must go a three days’ journey into the wilderness and sacrifice to Yahweh our God, as he tells us.”

28Pharaoh said, “I will let you go to sacrifice to Yahweh your God in the wilderness; only do not go very far. Pray for me.”

29Moses said, “As soon as I leave you, I will pray to Yahweh, and tomorrow the flies will leave Pharaoh, his officials, and his people. Only Pharaoh must not deceive us again by refusing to let the people go to sacrifice to Yahweh.”

30So Moses left Pharaoh and prayed to Yahweh.

31Yahweh did what Moses asked. He removed the flies from Pharaoh, his officials, and his people; not one remained.

32But this time too Pharaoh made his heart stubborn and did not let the people go.