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"and, just as the Lord had foretold through Moses, the king would not let the Israelites go. "
- 9 : 35, Good News Translation, see link below.
1 - 2 Summary:
.... "let my people go.... If you refuse ... "
3
"hinneh" (behold / lo / see) the hand of YHWH will be on "miqneh" (cattle / livestock) in the field... (a list of critters) ... a "deber" (pestilence / plague) "kabed" (heavy / burdensome / etc) "meod" (exceedingly / great).
Pharaoh has already been told by his own court staff that the "finger of God" had been involved with the bug problem from earlier. What's he thinking when he now hears that it will be the whole Hand of God?
4 - 5 Discussion:
Just as with the swarm of whatever they were, God will differentiate between the animals of Israel and the animals of Egypt, and the animals of His People won't die, tomorrow. Which means that He knows who owns which goat and horse, today.
Did you catch that name for the people? Here in verse four they are not 'the Hebrews', or the 'Children of the Sons of Israel', they are: Israel. This word is used again as a name for the group as a people in verse seven, and then later with the other terms interchangeably.
6 Summary:
So YHWH did this on the next day, and all the livestock of the Egyptians died, but not that of the Sons of Israel.
"Paging Hathor, Miss Hathor, please come to the service desk."
This one is the banner headline for this plague. The 'cow headed goddess' of Egypt is an icon of the ancient mythology of the kingdom. Besides cows.... she stood for the heavenly sky (the Milky Way), beauty, love, motherhood, and many other things, and had many other names, and was worshiped throughout northeastern Africa and into parts of Asia.
Astarte was a goddess imported from Asia during the period of the Exodus who was the patron of chariots, and the horses that pulled them, and paid special attention to the king when he was in his chariot leading his army into battle.
Hathor's earthly presence as a cow is called Hesat / Heset / Hesahet (etc), and is depicted as the full body of a cow with various attributes that let you know is isn't just a cow, but is instead the source of all nourishment. As such, she is seen as the 'wet nurse' for the other gods, and Pharaoh, and will be seen with a tray of food supported on her horns.
Making a curtain call as a god of a plague is Khnum, the potter god who made humans out of mud, is also associated with rams and goats.
Some sources also claim that Thoth has a special affinity for horses, but we were unable to confirm that in an objective reference.
Also in play is Apis, the bull of heaven, which is also an imported deity, but was known in Egypt even before in this period and became more important later in history. And there are commentators that maintain that the Hebrew's "golden calf" episode was based on the Apis Bull. Maybe, maybe not, that is hard to say.... we'll look at it when we get that far in the study.
end
7 Summary:
Pharoah sends somebody to check out the scene in Goshen, and 'not even one' of the livestock of Israel died. But he became hard in his heart and did not let the people go.
No time lapse is even implied, so this may be the next day....
8
"way yomer" (and said) YHWH to Moses and Aaron, take "chophen" (handful, 'the cup of the hand') of "piach" (soot / ashes) from a "kidshan" (furnace (specific for smelting metal)), and "zaraq" (throw / scatter) it Moses 'toward' "shamayim" (sky / heaven) in sight of Pharaoh.
9
And it will become "abaq" (dust / powder) in all the land of Egypt, "hayah" (become / happen / cause) on "adam" (man / humans) and "behemah" (animals / cattle), "shechin" (boil / sore / 'skin' ulcer) that "parach" (blossom / break out / sprout) "ababuah" (erupt) thoughout the land of Egypt.
10 Summary:
And they stood before the king and did that and they cause the sores on people and animals.
11
"way lo" (and not) could "chartom" (magicians) "amad" (stand) before Moses because of the boils, for the boils were on them and all of Egypt.
A focus on Staphylococcus
The term boil used to be applied to any of several skin lesions, but now is usually reserved for a bacterial infection of a hair follicle caused by several different organisms, including several types of common (and contagious) staph bacteria. If it is a group of them in a small area of the body, the somewhat obsolete term 'carbuncle' is used. You can think of it like this: you have a small pimple, or several (an impetigo rash), which is no big deal. It get worse and becomes a boil, you can still take care of that at home, most of the time. Then it evolves into a carbuncle, which will probably require some sort of medical attention to heal without scarring or the infection spreading into the rest of the body.
In Egypt in the time of our drama, there were several gods involved with healing, led by the warrior goddess Sekhmet. A daughter of the earth and the sky gods, Geb and Nut, with the head of a lioness, she was the patron of physicians and healers, and who, supposedly, could avert plagues. In one of her forms she was the common house cat, and is the reason many cats were mummified and kept in homes, or later represented as a cat statue.
Another symbol of healing was Isis who was also the goddess of mothers, who was the first medical expert most children see. Her worship began in the delta region of Egypt and eventually spread throughout the ancient world, including to Europe where some would say it was incorporated into the adoration of the Virgin Mary, which may be seen in prayers to Isis for the healing of ordinary people, as well as similarities in the statuary representing them. She was also a member of the Ennead centered at Heliopolis.
Another involved individual was a real person. Or at least he used to be a few centuries before this period, and would have been very symbolic in the palace. Imhotep, the royal architect and physician, had been deified, only one of two known commoners to be so honored. The center of his worship was at Saqqara where people came to make offerings in hopes of being cured. Imhotep is known to have successfully treated over two hundred different illnesses and conditions, and wrote a papyrus, which still exists, documenting his work.
Another god involved might have been Heka (Hekaf), who oversaw both magic and medicine.
end focus
12 Summary:
YHWH hardened Pharaoh's heart....
Again, there is no implied pause in the action other than 'the next day'. We don't know how long it took the boils to erupt on the people, or how long they had them before the next event.
13
And said YHWH to Moses, "shakam" (start early / rise early / etc) "boqer" (morning) "yatsab" (present oneself / stand) before Pharaoh, and say, "koh" (so / thus) says YHWH 'Elohim (LORD GOD) of the "Ibri" (Hebrews) 'let go my people that they may serve Me.'...
Remember, Pharaoh said he didn't know their god. And he still doesn't want to admit that HE is real.
14
For "paam" (time) "zoth" (this) I will send "kal" (all) my "maggephah" (plague / calamity (the word includes the idea of 'a defeat')) to your "leb" (heart / mind), and on your "ebed" (slave / servant), and on your "am" (people / nation) - that you will "yada" (know / understand) that there is "ayin" (none / nothing) "kemo / kamo" (like / compares / such as) Me in all "erets" (earth / land).
15 - 16 Summary and discussion:
If I had stretched out my hand and "nakah" (to strike with intent to cause harm / death (again)) you and your people with "deber" (pestilence / plague (includes idea of 'destroying / destruction')) - then you and your people "kachad" (destroyed / annihilated) from "erets" (earth (as a planet)). "ulam" (however / indeed) for this I "amad" (raised/stood) you up, that "raah" (see / be seen / etc) in you My "koach" (power / strength / ability) be "saphar" (declare / shown forth) My "shem" (name) in all "erets" (earth (as a planet)).
The question had been asked in the study group as to why would God do this to Egypt? Well, this speech is the answer. In Genesis, after the Flood, except for the episode with Sodom and Gomorrah, most of His dealings with humanity were on the very small scale, often, with a single individual or family. Here, His Power is on display to an entire gentile nation, and by extension through Egypt's trade routes that reached well into Africa, across the Mediterranean, and into India and possibly further, the rest of the civilized world.
And we know the news did travel because of the episode where we hear from Rahab about how word of Israel had reached town. See Joshua 2.
17 Word for word.
"od" (yet / still) you "salal" (lift up / exalt) yourself "be" (over / against) "'am mi" (people Mine), as you "bilti" (not) let "shalach" (send 'out').
Discussion: And this verse explains the rest of the 'why'. Pharaoh was making himself more than he was. Which holds with the idea that many Pharaohs believed that they were a divine being, or at least descended from one, and remember, no where in the text since we met him in chapter five, and all the drama since, has there been mention in the royal court of a priest of any of the local gods. So either Pharaoh was disregarding his own people's faith, or he thought he Was his own people's faith.
Some may say we are reading too much into the information presented about the king. That is a possibility, except we know that priests of other gods are mentioned in the text. As well as priests of YHWH 'Elohim, such as Melchizedek, Genesis 14. We already mentioned the court priest of the Egyptian sun god when Joseph was on the scene. And earlier in Exodus we saw where Moses's father in law was some sort of priest, but it doesn't say of who or what. While it is possible because of the name that he was an 'estranged' priest of God from the line of Esau, we don't know. But with all of the action in the court, and the magicians realizing they were outgunned, if there was a priest amongst the 'wise men', you would expect it to be mentioned.
Back to the action. You may wish to raise your umbrella.
18
"hen" (behold), I will "matar" (cause to rain) this time "machar" (tomorrow) "barad" (hailstones / hail) "kabed" (heavy / weighty) "meod" (very / great / exceedingly / etc), "asher" (which / that) "lo" (not) "hayah" (happened / existed) in Egypt "min / minne" (from / since) its "yasad" (established / founded) until now.
At this point in its history, the nation of Egypt could be two thousand years old, and probably more.
19 Paraphrased summary:
Moses tells Pharaoh to send messages out to his herdsmen to gather whatever livestock survived the other plagues, and all their field hands, everything, to get them home, because whatever is outside will die from the hail.
20 - 21 Summary:
He that "yare'" (feared / revered) the "debar" (word) of YHWH among the servants of Pharaoh "nus" (took flight / 'ran') 'to' his servants and his livestock to the houses. But he who did not listen to the word of YHWH left his servants and livestock in the field.
These verses make it clear that there were those in the household of Pharaoh who believed in what they had seen and heard from Moses and took the Word of God as Gospel. (all puns at no extra charge)
22 Summary:
Then YHWH told Moses to stretch out his hand toward heaven and the hail will come down on everybody and everything.
23 Summary:
Moses does so and YHWH "nathan" (gave / applied / etc) "qol" (noise / thunder) and "barad" (hailstones / hail), and "halak" (proceeded / came) "esh" (fire) "erets" (earth / land) - and "matar" (rained) YHWH "barad" (hail...) on the land of Egypt.
This is a reasonable description of a massive supercell thunderstorm with an extensive hail core. And it is a proven fact that large hail can kill people and animals, see links below, one of which is from when hail changed the course of a war.
24 - 25 Summary:
So there was hail and fire, and the hail was so heavy there was nothing like it in all the history of Egypt. And it struck the whole land, everything in the fields, and "broke every tree".
26 Summary:
Only in the land of Goshen, where the Sons of Israel were, there was no hail.
This is the only time we see a 'hail exemption' for the Hebrews.
An Egyptian look up.
The most obvious Egyptian gods involved with this plague could be Osiris, whom among other duties oversaw the growth of crops, and the goddess Bastet, who protected the plants in the fields, but we're going to focus on them in the next chapter, and the next plague, so we'll move on to others for now.
Many studies focus on Nut, and rightly so, and we'll begin with her. She embodied the arch of the heavens, especially the band of the Milky Way, which, without the light pollution of modern times, would have been a bright band across the sky. She was also seen as the mother of several of the gods including some mentioned in other plagues such as Isis, and Set, who we'll talk about in a moment, and Ra, the sun, whose own event is coming in the next chapter. See links below for more.
Set (Seth) is an interesting character in Egyptian mythology. Besides being a storm god, he is also the embodiment of confusion and chaos, and 'non-Egyptian' people. One aspect of Set is that he was powerful but unpredictable. And another factor with him, we have no idea what sort of animal he was supposed to be in his depictions in paintings and sculptures from the time which are very consistent in his form. Some call it the Seth-animal, others say he looks like a cross between a donkey and an aardvark. He looks like Set, and that's good enough.
Another Egyptian goddess involved with this sort of thing would be Tefnut. A member of the nine god panel called the Ennead worshiped in Heliopolis. She also had the head of a female lion and represented the moisture that kept everything alive in the desert. And there is more about her and the others at the links below.
end look
27
And Pharaoh calls for Moses and Aaron and said, I "chata" (sin / wrong / guilt) "paam" (time / 'this time') - YHWH is "tsaddiq" (righteous / just / lawful), and I and my people are "rasha" (evil / wicked / bad).
28
"athar" (pray / supplicate) YHWH "rab" (abound / many) no "hayah" (happen / became) "qol" (thunder) mighty and hail. And I will let you go and "lo" (no) "yasaph" (more / longer) stay.
One has to wonder if Pharaoh expects Moses and Aaron to believe him this time.
29 Paraphrase:
Moses says to him, as soon as I am out of the city I'll raise my hands to YHWH - the thunder and hail will stop, that you will know that YHWH is the Earth.
That's how it is worded, that Moses is going to wait until he's out of the capital before he prays this time. Perhaps he's caught wind that Pharaoh is planning something else for him. We don't know.
30 Summary:
But as for you and your servants I know you don't fear God.
31 - 32 Discussion:
A farm report.
The flax was nearly mature, which happens in March or April in Egypt, and the barley was forming heads which comes in February or March. But the wheat and spelt ('dinkle wheat' is an ancient type of wheat, see link below)
33 Summary:
Moses goes out and prays and the storm stops.
34 - 35 Summary:
Pharaoh sees the hail and all has stopped, and he "chata" (sinned) more, and hardened his heart, and his servants (which is the first time we have seen that mentioned).
And his heart was hard and he did not let them go, as had spoken YHWH by Moses.
We know that some of the Pharaoh's servants believed Moses and went out and put their animals and field slaves up before the storm. However, this implies that there were many in the palace that agreed with the king and probably played Yes Man to him and agreed that keeping the Hebrews was a good idea.... ... .... "oh, well."
End Chapter 9
Selected Resources:
All links will open in a new tab/window, all were working as of original date of posting:
Interlinear English / Hebrew: Chapter 9 https://biblehub.com/interlinear/exodus/9.htm
https://www.kingjamesbibleonline.org/1611_Exodus-Chapter-9/
The Good News Translation https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Exodus%209&version=GNT
Hathor https://ancientegyptonline.co.uk/hathor/
Astarte https://www.globalegyptianmuseum.org/glossary.aspx?id=75
Encyclopedia article about Apis, the bull deity: "The cult of Apis originated at least as early as the 1st dynasty (c. 2925 c. 2775 bce)." https://www.britannica.com/topic/Apis-Egyptian-deity
Informative article about boils and related skin conditions and treatments:
https://www.webmd.com/skin-problems-and-treatments/ss/slideshow-boils
The Rosicrucian Egyptian Museum:
Sekhmet https://egyptianmuseum.org/deities-sekhmet
-and-
Isis
https://egyptianmuseum.org/deities-isis
(they also have pages about several other Egyptian deities, and other subjects)
Statue of Isis holding infant Horus https://egyptianmuseumcairo.eg/artefacts/greywacke-seated-statue-of-isis/
Imhotep, the first physician https://www.pastmedicalhistory.co.uk/imhotep-the-first-physician/
Hail... and other storms
"A supercell is an often-dangerous thunderstorm with a very organized internal structure including a rotating updraft that allows it to keep going for up to several hours. Supercells are capable of producing severe weather including high winds, large hail, and strong tornadoes."From 2024:
https://www.nssl.noaa.gov/education/svrwx101/thunderstorms/faq/
"In May 2017, the World Meteorological Organization announced highest reported historical death tolls from hailstorms. It found that a severe hailstorm occurring near Moradabad, Uttar Pradesh, India, on 30 April 1888 killed 246 people with hailstones as large as 'goose eggs and oranges and cricket balls.'""On so-called 'Black Monday' in 1360, a hail storm kills an estimated 1,000 English soldiers in Chartres, France. The storm and the devastation it caused also played a part in the Hundred Years War between England and France."
https://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/world-records/worst-hailstorm-disaster-death-toll
The sky goddess Nut https://www.ancient-egypt-online.com/nut.html
A page about the 'storm god' "Seth, a Dynamic and Enigmatic God" https://web.sas.upenn.edu/discentes/2023/04/23/seth-a-dynamic-and-enigmatic-god/
https://www.ebsco.com/research-starters/social-sciences-and-humanities/seth-deity
Tefnet - goddess of moisture and rain https://historycooperative.org/tefnut-goddess-of-moisture-and-rain/
The Ancient Grain: Spelt https://bartonspringsmill.com/products/oberkulmer-spelt
NOTE: The Bible Study Lesson presented above is posted as a reference document to begin a conversation of the topic. And that's it. Please accept it at such.
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