1   The Lord said to Moses, ‘Go into Pharaoh's presence and say to him, “These are the words of the Lord the God of the Hebrews: ‘Let my people go in order to worship me.’ 2   If you refuse to let them go and still keep your hold on them, 3   the Lord will strike your grazing herds, your horses and asses, your camels, cattle, and sheep with a terrible pestilence. 4   But the Lord will make a distinction between Israel's herds and those of the Egyptians. Of all that belong to Israel not a single one shall die.”’ 5   The Lord fixed a time and said, ‘Tomorrow I will do this throughout the land.’ 6   The next day the Lord struck. All the herds of Egypt died, but from the herds of the Israelites not one single beast died. 7   Pharaoh inquired and was told that not a beast from the herds of Israel had died; and yet he remained obdurate and did not let the people go.

8   The Lord said to Moses and Aaron, ‘Take handfuls of soot from a kiln. 9   Moses shall toss it into the air in Pharaoh's sight, and it will turn into a fine dust over the whole of Egypt. All over Egypt it will become festering boils on man and beast.’ 10   They took the soot from the kiln and stood before Pharaoh. Moses tossed it into the air and it produced festering boils on man and beast. 11   The magicians were no match for Moses because of the boils, which attacked them and all the Egyptians. 12   But the Lord made Pharaoh obstinate; as the Lord had foretold to Moses, he did not listen to Moses and Aaron.

13   The Lord then told Moses to rise early in the morning, present himself before Pharaoh, and say to him, ‘These are the words of the Lord the God of the Hebrews: “Let my people go in order to worship me. 14   This time I will strike home with all my plagues against you, your courtiers, and your people, so that you may know that there is none like me in all the earth. 15   By now I could have stretched out my hand, and struck you and your people with pestilence, and you would have vanished from the earth. 16   I have let you live only to show you my power and to spread my fame throughout the land. 17   Since you still obstruct my

Israel enslaved in Egypt people and will not let them go, tomorrow at this time. 18   I will send a violent hailstorm, such as has never been in Egypt from its first beginnings until now. 19   Send now and bring your herds under cover, and everything you have out in the open field. If anything, whether man or beast, which happens to be in the open, is not brought in, the hail will fall on it, and it will die.”’ 20   Those of Pharaoh's subjects who feared the word of the Lord hurried their slaves and cattle into their houses. 21   But those who did not take to heart the word of the Lord left their slaves and cattle in the open.

22   The Lord said to Moses, ‘Stretch out your hand towards the sky to bring down hail on the whole land of Egypt, on man and beast and every growing thing throughout the land.’ 23   Moses stretched out his staff towards the sky, and the Lord sent thunder and hail, with fire flashing down to the ground. The Lord rained down hail on the land of Egypt, hail and fiery flashes through the hail, 24   so heavy that there had been nothing like it in all Egypt from the time that Egypt became a nation. 25   Throughout Egypt the hail struck everything in the fields, both man and beast; it beat down every growing thing and shattered every tree. 26   Only in the land of Goshen, where the Israelites lived, was there no hail.

27   Pharaoh sent and summoned Moses and Aaron. ‘This time I have sinned,’ he said; ‘the Lord is in the right; I and my people are in the wrong. 28   Intercede with the Lord, for we can bear no more of this thunder and hail. ^note 29   I will let you go; you need wait no longer.’ Moses said, ‘When I leave the city I will spread out my hands in prayer to the Lord. The thunder shall cease, and there shall be no more hail, so that you may know that the earth is the Lord's. 30   But you and your subjects—I know that you do not yet fear the Lord God.’ 31   (The flax and barley were destroyed because the barley was in the ear and the flax in bud, 32   but the wheat and spelt were not destroyed because they come later.) 33   Moses left Pharaoh's presence, went out of the city and lifted up his hands to the Lord in prayer: the thunder and hail ceased, and no more rain fell. 34   When Pharaoh saw that the downpour, the hail, and the thunder had ceased, he sinned again, he and his courtiers, and became obdurate. 35   So Pharaoh remained obstinate; as the Lord had foretold through Moses, he did not let the people go.

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