The Fallible · Synthetic · Study Bible
The Seventh Plague: Hail
Exodus 9:13–35 — The Seventh Plague: Hail. Each verse below carries the full apparatus: the Berean Standard Bible, the vocalized original (tap any word), and a parsed breakdown of every term transcribed from the interlinear. Synthesized commentary, canonical threads, and the reading of Christ gather at the end, over the whole unit.
13Then the LORD said to Moses, “Get up early in the morning, stand before Pharaoh, and tell him that this is what the LORD, the God of the Hebrews, says: ‘Let My people go, so that they may worship Me.
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Hebrew — tap a word ↓
Yah·weh way·yō·mer ’el- mō·šeh haš·kêm bab·bō·qer wə·hiṯ·yaṣ·ṣêḇ lip̄·nê p̄ar·‘ōh wə·’ā·mar·tā ’ê·lāw kōh- Yah·weh ’ĕ·lō·hê hā·‘iḇ·rîm ’ā·mar ‘am·mî šal·laḥ ’eṯ- wə·ya·‘aḇ·ḏu·nî
Literal — word-for-word from the original
“And-said YHWH to Moses: Rise-early in-the-morning and-station-yourself before Pharaoh, and-say to-him, Thus says YHWH God-of the-Hebrews, Send-away My-people that-they-may-serve-Me.”
Where the English smooths the original
The plagues fall into triads, or groups of three. This is the first plague of the third group
The same message is constantly repeated in the same words as a token of God's unchangingness.
thus had he line upon line, and precept upon precept, so that he was the more inexcusable
When God's justice threatens ruin, his mercy at the same time shows a way of escape from it.
14Otherwise, I will send all My plagues against you and your officials and your people, so you may know that there is no one like Me in all the earth.
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Hebrew — tap a word ↓
kî bap·pa·‘am haz·zōṯ ’ă·nî šō·lê·aḥ ’eṯ- kāl- mag·gê·p̄ō·ṯay ’el- lib·bə·ḵā ū·ḇa·‘ă·ḇā·ḏe·ḵā ū·ḇə·‘am·me·ḵā ba·‘ă·ḇūr tê·ḏa‘ kî ’ên kā·mō·nî bə·ḵāl hā·’ā·reṣ
Literal — word-for-word from the original
“For at-the-time the-this I-am-sending all My-plagues to your-heart, and-against-your-servants and-against-your-people, so-that you-may-know that there-is-none like-Me in-all the-earth.”
Where the English smooths the original
the strokes were to go to the king's heart
plagues ] Heb. maggçphâh , properly a severe stroke or blow
will give thee a wound that will pierce thy very heart; an irrecoverable and mortal wound.
The naturally obdurate heart of Pharaoh, which he had further indurated by his own voluntary action
15For by this time I could have stretched out My hand and struck you and your people with a plague to wipe you off the earth.
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Hebrew — tap a word ↓
kî ‘at·tāh šā·laḥ·tî ’eṯ- yā·ḏî wā·’aḵ ’ō·wṯ·ḵā wə·’eṯ- ‘am·mə·ḵā bad·dā·ḇer wat·tik·kā·ḥêḏ min- hā·’ā·reṣ
Literal — word-for-word from the original
“For now I-have-stretched-out My-hand and-I-struck you and-your-people with-the-pestilence, and-you-would-have-been-effaced from the-earth.”
Where the English smooths the original
And now I might have stretched out mine hand, and smitten both thee and thy people with pestilence; and then thou hadst been cut off from the earth
God does not here announce what he is going to do, but what he might have done, and would have done, but for certain considerations.
had I stretched forth my hand and smitten thee and thy people with the pestilence, then hadst thou been cut off from the earth.
16But I have raised you up for this very purpose, that I might display My power to you, and that My name might be proclaimed in all the earth.
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Hebrew — tap a word ↓
wə·’ū·lām he·‘ĕ·maḏ·tî·ḵā zōṯ ba·‘ă·ḇūr ba·‘ă·ḇūr har·’ō·ṯə·ḵā kō·ḥî ’eṯ- ū·lə·ma·‘an šə·mî sap·pêr bə·ḵāl hā·’ā·reṣ
Literal — word-for-word from the original
“But-truly for-this I-have-made-you-stand, for the-sake of-making-you-see My-power, and-so-that may-be-recounted My-name in-all the-earth.”
Where the English smooths the original
St Paul quotes this verse in Romans 9:17 , in his argument to prove the absolute sovereignty of God.
Raised thee up; so the Hebrew word is translated, Romans 9:17 .⚙ Context: Poole defends “raised up” from Paul’s Greek, but the Hebrew verb here (he‘ĕmaḏtîḵā, Hifil of ‘āmaḏ) means “made you stand / kept you alive,” not “brought into being.” Paul’s ἐξήγειρα (“raised up”) is the rendering the apostle uses for his argument; the Hebrew↔Greek seam is exactly what the flagged Romans 9:17 thread treats — read Poole alongside Ellicott’s “kept thee alive.”
kept thee alive, not for thy deserts, not even in pity, but only “for to show in thee My power.”
instead of smiting thee with the pestilence, and cutting thee off out of the land of the living, "I have raised thee up"; made thee to stand
17Still, you lord it over My people and do not allow them to go.
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Hebrew — tap a word ↓
‘ō·wḏ·ḵā mis·tō·w·lêl bə·‘am·mî lə·ḇil·tî šal·lə·ḥām
Literal — word-for-word from the original
“Still you-are-raising-yourself-as-a-rampart against My-people, so-as-not to-send-them-away.”
Where the English smooths the original
exaltest thyself ] A peculiar word, found only here.
thou still dammest thyself up against My people." הסתּולל: to set one's self as a dam
The gracious God takes what is done to or against his people as done to or against himself.
for what is done to them he takes as done to himself
18Behold, at this time tomorrow I will rain down the worst hail that has ever fallen on Egypt, from the day it was founded until now.
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Hebrew — tap a word ↓
hin·nî kā·‘êṯ mā·ḥār mam·ṭîr kā·ḇêḏ mə·’ōḏ bā·rāḏ ’ă·šer lō- hā·yāh ḵā·mō·hū bə·miṣ·ra·yim lə·min- hay·yō·wm hiw·wā·sə·ḏāh wə·‘aḏ- ‘āt·tāh
Literal — word-for-word from the original
“Behold-Me raining-down about-the-time tomorrow hail very heavy, such-as has-not been like-it in-Egypt from the-day of-its-being-founded and-until now.”
Where the English smooths the original
Rain, and even hail, are not unknown at the present day in Lower Egypt, though they are, comparatively speaking, rare phenomena.
The seventh plague which Pharaoh's hardened heart provoked was that of hail
The time is precisely marked, that it might not be said to have fallen out by chance.
19So give orders now to shelter your livestock and everything you have in the field. Every man or beast that remains in the field and is not brought inside will die when the hail comes down upon them.’”
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Hebrew — tap a word ↓
wə·‘at·tāh šə·laḥ hā·‘êz ’eṯ- miq·nə·ḵā wə·’êṯ kāl- ’ă·šer lə·ḵā baś·śā·ḏeh kāl- hā·’ā·ḏām wə·hab·bə·hê·māh ’ă·šer- yim·mā·ṣê ḇaś·śā·ḏeh wə·lō yê·’ā·sêp̄ hab·bay·ṯāh wā·mê·ṯū hab·bā·rāḏ wə·yā·raḏ ‘ă·lê·hem
Literal — word-for-word from the original
“And-now send, bring-to-safety your-livestock and-all that is-to-you in-the-field; every man and-beast that is-found in-the-field and-is-not gathered the-house-ward, then-the-hail shall-come-down on-them and-they-shall-die.”
Where the English smooths the original
Human life was now for the first time threatened.
to make a difference between the penitent and the incorrigible Egyptians
in the midst of wrath and judgment God remembers mercy
Here we see though God's wrath is kindled yet there is a certain mercy shown even to his enemies.
20Those among Pharaoh’s officials who feared the word of the LORD hurried to bring their servants and livestock to shelter,
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Hebrew — tap a word ↓
par·‘ōh mê·‘aḇ·ḏê hay·yā·rê ’eṯ- də·ḇar Yah·weh hê·nîs ‘ă·ḇā·ḏāw wə·’eṯ- miq·nê·hū ’eṯ- ’el- hab·bāt·tîm
Literal — word-for-word from the original
“The-one-fearing the-word of-YHWH among-the-servants of-Pharaoh made-flee his-servants and-his-livestock into the-houses.”
Where the English smooths the original
It is a new fact that any of the Egyptians had been brought to "fear the word of Jehovah."
“Some believed the things which were spoken, and some believed not”
A few, at least, were hereby brought to stand in awe of God and perhaps truly to turn to him.
This gives the first indication that the warnings had a salutary effect upon the Egyptians.
21but those who disregarded the word of the LORD left their servants and livestock in the field.
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Hebrew — tap a word ↓
wa·’ă·šer lō- śām də·ḇar lib·bōw Yah·weh ’el- way·ya·‘ă·zōḇ ’eṯ- ‘ă·ḇā·ḏāw wə·’eṯ- miq·nê·hū baś·śā·ḏeh
Literal — word-for-word from the original
“And-the-one-who did-not set his-heart to the-word of-YHWH, he-left his-servants and-his-livestock in-the-field.”
Where the English smooths the original
22Then the LORD said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand toward heaven, so that hail may fall on all the land of Egypt—on man and beast and every plant of the field throughout the land of Egypt.”
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Hebrew — tap a word ↓
Yah·weh way·yō·mer ’el- mō·šeh nə·ṭêh ’eṯ- yā·ḏə·ḵā ‘al- haš·šā·ma·yim ḇā·rāḏ wî·hî bə·ḵāl ’e·reṣ miṣ·rā·yim ‘al- hā·’ā·ḏām wə·‘al- hab·bə·hê·māh wə·‘al kāl- ‘ê·śeḇ haś·śā·ḏeh bə·’e·reṣ miṣ·rā·yim
Literal — word-for-word from the original
“And-said YHWH to Moses: Stretch-out your-hand over the-heavens, that-there-may-be hail in-all the-land of-Egypt, on man and-on beast and-on every herb of-the-field in-the-land of-Egypt.”
Where the English smooths the original
23So Moses stretched out his staff toward heaven, and the LORD sent thunder and hail, and lightning struck the earth. So the LORD rained down hail upon the land of Egypt.
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Hebrew — tap a word ↓
mō·šeh ’eṯ- way·yêṭ maṭ·ṭê·hū ‘al- haš·šā·ma·yim Yah·weh nā·ṯan qō·lōṯ ū·ḇā·rāḏ ’êš wat·ti·hă·laḵ ’ā·rə·ṣāh Yah·weh way·yam·ṭêr bā·rāḏ ‘al- ’e·reṣ miṣ·rā·yim
Literal — word-for-word from the original
“And-stretched-out Moses his-staff over the-heavens, and-YHWH gave thunders and-hail, and-fire walked earthward; and-YHWH rained-down hail on the-land of-Egypt.”
Where the English smooths the original
Heb., fire walked earthwards.
"Jehovah gave voices" (קלת); called "voices of God" in Exodus 9:28 .
The fire ran along upon the ground, devouring both herbs and cattle which were upon it, Psalm 78:47 ,48 105:32,33
Some very peculiar electrical display seems to be intended
24The hail fell and the lightning continued flashing through it. The hail was so severe that nothing like it had ever been seen in all the land of Egypt from the time it became a nation.
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Hebrew — tap a word ↓
ḇā·rāḏ way·hî wə·’êš miṯ·laq·qa·ḥaṯ bə·ṯō·wḵ hab·bā·rāḏ mə·’ōḏ kā·ḇêḏ ’ă·šer lō- ḵā·mō·hū hā·yāh bə·ḵāl ’e·reṣ miṣ·ra·yim mê·’āz hā·yə·ṯāh lə·ḡō·w
Literal — word-for-word from the original
“And-there-was hail, and-fire taking-hold-of-itself in-the-midst-of the-hail, very heavy, such-as had-not been like-it in-all the-land of-Egypt since it-became a-nation.”
Where the English smooths the original
25Throughout the land of Egypt, the hail struck down everything in the field, both man and beast; it beat down every plant of the field and stripped every tree.
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Hebrew — tap a word ↓
bə·ḵāl ’e·reṣ miṣ·ra·yim ’êṯ hab·bā·rāḏ way·yaḵ kāl- ’ă·šer baś·śā·ḏeh mê·’ā·ḏām wə·‘aḏ- bə·hê·māh wə·’êṯ hab·bā·rāḏ wə·’eṯ- hik·kāh kāl- ‘ê·śeḇ haś·śā·ḏeh šib·bêr kāl- ‘êṣ haś·śā·ḏeh
Literal — word-for-word from the original
“And-struck the-hail in-all the-land of-Egypt all that was in-the-field, from man and-unto beast; and-every herb of-the-field the-hail struck, and-every tree of-the-field it-shattered.”
Where the English smooths the original
it broke off the small boughs and twigs, so damaging the trees
It is to the hail and not to the lightning that the great destruction of men and beasts is attributed.
The expressions, "every herb," and "every tree," are not to be taken absolutely
That is, most of them, or herbs and trees of all sorts, as appears from Exodus 10:12
26The only place where it did not hail was in the land of Goshen, where the Israelites lived.
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Hebrew — tap a word ↓
raq lō bā·rāḏ hā·yāh bə·’e·reṣ gō·šen ’ă·šer- bə·nê yiś·rā·’êl šām
Literal — word-for-word from the original
“Only in-the-land of-Goshen, where the-sons of-Israel were, was-there no hail.”
Where the English smooths the original
27Then Pharaoh summoned Moses and Aaron. “This time I have sinned,” he said. “The LORD is righteous, and I and my people are wicked.
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Hebrew — tap a word ↓
par·‘ōh way·yiš·laḥ way·yiq·rā lə·mō·šeh ū·lə·’a·hă·rōn hap·pā·‘am ḥā·ṭā·ṯî way·yō·mer ’ă·lê·hem Yah·weh haṣ·ṣad·dîq wa·’ă·nî wə·‘am·mî hā·rə·šā·‘îm
Literal — word-for-word from the original
“And-sent Pharaoh and-called for-Moses and-for-Aaron, and-said to-them: I-have-sinned this-time; YHWH is-the-righteous-one, and-I and-my-people are-the-wicked.”
Where the English smooths the original
Heb., Jehovah is the Just One —a form of speech implying that Jehovah, and He alone, was just.
the very limitation "this time" showed that his repentance did not go very deep
this confession of sin did not arise from a true sense of it, from hatred of it, and sorrow for it
These, professions were only produced by his fears
28Pray to the LORD, for there has been enough of God’s thunder and hail. I will let you go; you do not need to stay any longer.”
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Hebrew — tap a word ↓
ha‘·tî·rū ’el- Yah·weh mih·yōṯ wə·raḇ ’ĕ·lō·hîm qō·lōṯ ū·ḇā·rāḏ wa·’ă·šal·lə·ḥāh ’eṯ·ḵem wə·lō la·‘ă·mōḏ ṯō·si·p̄ūn
Literal — word-for-word from the original
“Entreat YHWH — and-much! — that-there-be no-more voices of-God and-hail, and-I-will-send-you-away, and-you-shall-not stay any-longer.”
Where the English smooths the original
mighty thunderings ] Heb. voices ( v. 23) of God .
Thunder was regarded by many nations of antiquity as the actual voice of a god.
let it be enough , (let God content himself that he hath punished me so long, and that I have confessed my sin, and promised amendment,)
pray, and pray much, pray earnestly and without intermission until the plague ceases
29Moses said to him, “When I have left the city, I will spread out my hands to the LORD. The thunder will cease, and there will be no more hail, so that you may know that the earth is the LORD’s.
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Hebrew — tap a word ↓
mō·šeh way·yō·mer ’ê·lāw kə·ṣê·ṯî ’eṯ- hā·‘îr ’ep̄·rōś ’eṯ- kap·pay ’el- Yah·weh haq·qō·lō·wṯ yeḥ·dā·lūn yih·yeh- lō ‘ō·wḏ wə·hab·bā·rāḏ lə·ma·‘an tê·ḏa‘ kî hā·’ā·reṣ Yah·weh
Literal — word-for-word from the original
“And-said to-him Moses: As-my-going-out of the-city I-will-spread-out my-palms to YHWH; the-voices will-cease and-the-hail will-be no-more, so-that you-may-know that to-YHWH belongs the-earth.”
Where the English smooths the original
this, which came from the open heaven that surrounds and embraces the whole world, indicated that the entire earth was his.
God desired to have it generally acknowledged that He was the God of the whole earth.
Each god was held to have special power within a given district
he went out also to show that he was not frightened at the storm
30But as for you and your officials, I know that you still do not fear the LORD our God.”
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Hebrew — tap a word ↓
wə·’at·tāh wa·‘ă·ḇā·ḏe·ḵā yā·ḏa‘·tî kî ṭe·rem tî·rə·’ūn mip·pə·nê Yah·weh ’ĕ·lō·hîm
Literal — word-for-word from the original
“But-as-for-you and-your-servants, I-know that not-yet will-you-fear before YHWH God.”
Where the English smooths the original
31(Now the flax and barley were destroyed, since the barley was ripe and the flax was in bloom;
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Hebrew — tap a word ↓
wə·hap·piš·tāh wə·haś·śə·‘ō·rāh nuk·kā·ṯāh kî haś·śə·‘ō·rāh ’ā·ḇîḇ wə·hap·piš·tāh giḇ·‘ōl
Literal — word-for-word from the original
“And-the-flax and-the-barley were-struck, for the-barley was in-ear and-the-flax was in-bud;”
Where the English smooths the original
These facts fix the date of this plague
In the north of Egypt the barley ripens and flax blossoms about the middle of February
Thus God sends smaller judgments before the greater.
to show how much had been lost, and how much there was still to lose through continued refusal.
32but the wheat and spelt were not destroyed, because they are late crops.)
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Hebrew — tap a word ↓
wə·ha·ḥiṭ·ṭāh wə·hak·kus·se·meṯ lō nuk·kū kî hên·nāh ’ă·p̄î·lōṯ
Literal — word-for-word from the original
“but-the-wheat and-the-spelt were-not struck, because late-crops they-are.”
Where the English smooths the original
“Rie,” or rye, is a wrong translation. It is a grain which has never been grown in Egypt.
‘Spelt’ ( Isaiah 28:25 , Ezekiel 4:9 †) is a cereal closely allied to wheat
Rather, "spelt," the common food of the ancient Egyptians
This kind of corn, coming later up, was now tender, and hidden
33Then Moses departed from Pharaoh, went out of the city, and spread out his hands to the LORD. The thunder and hail ceased, and the rain no longer poured down on the land.
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Hebrew — tap a word ↓
mō·šeh way·yê·ṣê mê·‘im par·‘ōh ’eṯ- hā·‘îr way·yip̄·rōś kap·pāw ’el- Yah·weh haq·qō·lō·wṯ wə·hab·bā·rāḏ way·yaḥ·də·lū ū·mā·ṭār lō- nit·taḵ ’ā·rə·ṣāh
Literal — word-for-word from the original
“And-went-out Moses from-with Pharaoh, out-of the-city, and-spread-out his-palms to YHWH; and-the-voices and-the-hail ceased, and-rain was-not-poured earthward.”
Where the English smooths the original
Moses knew that he was safe, though all around might be destroyed; the very hairs of his head were all numbered
The touch is one which no later writer would have introduced.
The prayer of Moses opened and shut heaven, like Elijah’s.
see the power and prevalence of prayer
34When Pharaoh saw that the rain and hail and thunder had ceased, he sinned again and hardened his heart—he and his officials.
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Hebrew — tap a word ↓
par·‘ōh way·yar kî- ham·mā·ṭār wə·hab·bā·rāḏ wə·haq·qō·lōṯ ḥā·ḏal la·ḥă·ṭō way·yō·sep̄ way·yaḵ·bêḏ lib·bōw hū wa·‘ă·ḇā·ḏāw
Literal — word-for-word from the original
“And-saw Pharaoh that had-ceased the-rain and-the-hail and-the-voices, and-he-added to-sin, and-he-made-heavy his-heart, he and-his-servants.”
Where the English smooths the original
it now required a greater effort of his will to “harden his heart” than it had ever done before
But the third has the most intensive sense, implying fixed and stubborn resolution.
Those that are not bettered by judgments and mercies, commonly become worse.
As soon as it had ceased on the intercession of Moses, he and his servants continued sinning and hardening their hearts.
35So Pharaoh’s heart was hardened, and he would not let the Israelites go, just as the LORD had said through Moses.
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Hebrew — tap a word ↓
par·‘ōh lêḇ way·ye·ḥĕ·zaq wə·lō bə·nê yiś·rā·’êl šil·laḥ ’eṯ- ka·’ă·šer Yah·weh dib·ber bə·yaḏ- mō·šeh
Literal — word-for-word from the original
“And-was-strengthened the-heart of-Pharaoh, and-not did-he-send-away the-sons of-Israel, just-as YHWH had-spoken by-the-hand of-Moses.”
Where the English smooths the original
The verse-by-verse work is done. What follows gathers the whole unit. All three layers below are machine-generated (⚙). Weigh them; they have no authority.
AI synthesis — woven from the public-domain voices above and the original text; generated and fallible.
The seventh plague opens not with a blow but with a speech — the longest and most solemn warning in the whole cycle. Ellicott counts the plagues in triads and marks this as “the first plague of the third group”; the Pulpit Commentary calls its message “without any previous parallel.” And what God announces is not the hail first but His intent: “I am sending all My plagues to your heart” (v. 14). Keil presses the Hebrew — the strokes “were to go to the king’s heart,” past the body to the will; Benson hears “a wound that will pierce thy very heart.” Verse 15 then opens a window onto restraint: rendered as an unrealized condition, it says God could have wiped Pharaoh out with pestilence long ago — the verb wattikkāḥēḏ means total effacement — “but,” v. 16 turns, “for this I have made you stand.” The Hebrew he‘ĕmaḏtîḵā means kept you alive; this is the verse Paul will quote, and the place where the Hebrew (“made to stand”) and the Greek of Romans 9:17 (“raised up”) visibly part company. Ellicott names the purpose without flinching: Pharaoh was spared “only ‘for to show in thee My power’” and that the name of YHWH “might be recounted in all the earth.”
One word in v. 17 carries the indictment: mistōlēl, a verb found nowhere else in the Hebrew Bible. The Cambridge editors flag it — “a peculiar word, found only here” — and trace its root to the heaping of a siege-mound; Keil renders the image, “thou still dammest thyself up against My people.” Pharaoh is not merely proud; he has made himself an earthwork blocking God’s people. Against that, mercy: the warning of v. 18–19, dated to a fixed hour (“that it might not be said to have fallen out by chance,” Benson), gives Egypt time to bring its livestock to safety — the verb hā‘ēz means precisely get them to refuge. For the first time, the Pulpit notes, “human life was now for the first time threatened” — and yet, as Gill puts it, “in the midst of wrath and judgment God remembers mercy.”
The plague has begun to convert. Verse 20 records the first Egyptians ever said to fear the word of YHWH — “a new fact,” the Pulpit observes. Ellicott reaches for the Gospel-era parallel: “Some believed the things which were spoken, and some believed not.” The dividing line is no longer Egypt against Israel but, inside Egypt, the man who “set his heart to the word” against the man who would not. The believers act fast — hēnîs, “made [their cattle] flee” indoors; the careless, in Gill’s words, “took no notice of it, but treated it with the utmost contempt,” and Henry’s verdict falls on them: “obstinate unbelief is deaf to the fairest warnings.” Note the Geneva gloss that names the stakes: “the word of the minister is called the word of God.”
The hail falls exactly as foretold, and the language turns strange and grand. At Moses’ stretched-out hand, “YHWH gave voices” (v. 23) — the Hebrew for thunder is literally qōlōṯ, “voices,” heard as the speech of God (so Psalm 29). And fire “walked earthward” (Ellicott’s literal rendering), a self-feeding flame “taking hold of itself in the midst of the hail” (v. 24) — the same uncanny phrase as Ezekiel’s vision. Gill marvels at the paradox the old expositors loved: “the hail did not quench the fire, nor the fire melt the hail.” The destruction is total “from man even to beast,” every herb struck, every tree šibbēr — “shattered,” though Ellicott narrows it to broken boughs and twigs. And then the signature of design: raq, “only” — “only in the land of Goshen… was there no hail.” Henry draws the doctrine: “God causes rain or hail on one city and not on another, either in mercy or in judgment.”
For the first time Pharaoh sends for Moses and confesses: “I have sinned this time; YHWH is the righteous one, and I and my people are the wicked” (v. 27). It is, on its face, a model confession — the pagan king justifying God and condemning himself. But two Hebrew words undo it. The qualifier happa‘am, “this time,” limits it to the moment; Keil reads the whole sentence by it — “his repentance did not go very deep.” And Gill traces it to its true source: it “did not arise from a true sense of it… but from the fright he was in.” Moses promises the storm’s end the instant he spreads his palms outside the city — “that you may know that the earth is the LORD’s” (v. 29), a claim, the Pulpit notes, that the open-heaven plague made about “the entire earth,” not Egypt only. Then Moses says the quiet part aloud: ṭerem, “not yet” — “I know that you will not yet fear the LORD” (v. 30). He foresees v. 34 before it happens.
A parenthesis on the crops (vv. 31–32) does double duty: it dates the plague (flax in bud, barley in ear — late January or February) and it preaches. Flax and barley were struck; wheat and spelt — kussemeṯ, a word in only three verses of the whole Bible — were spared because they were “late,” still hidden beneath the hail’s reach. Benson hears the lesson: “God sends smaller judgments before the greater.” Then the calm: Moses goes out into the open storm — “Peace with God makes men thunder-proof” (Henry) — spreads his palms, and the thunder and hail cease at his bidding; the eyewitness even recalls the rain, a touch the Pulpit says “no later writer would have introduced.” And the storm’s end hardens the man it terrified. Verse 34 uses kāḇaḏ — Pharaoh “made heavy” his own heart; verse 35 uses ḥāzaq — his heart “was made strong/firm,” the stronger word (Barnes). Gill: “Instead of being softened… it became harder and harder.” The plague closes exactly where it opened — at the unmet command — “just as YHWH had spoken by the hand of Moses.”
Read under the rule that Scripture alone is the final authority, the seventh plague turns on a single, dangerous sentence — Romans 9:17, where Paul takes up Exodus 9:16 to argue God’s sovereign freedom. Offered as a reading to be tested, not a verdict to be trusted, three things stand out.
The Word divides before the hail does. The plague is announced, dated, and explained before a single stone falls. Egyptians are split not by nationality but by whether they “feared the word of the LORD” (v. 20) or would not “set the heart” to it (v. 21). The judgment is preached before it is poured; faith comes by hearing the word, and so does deliverance. Even a pagan can be saved by trusting the spoken promise — and a king can be destroyed by despising it.
God’s restraint is as revealing as His power. Verse 15 says He could have effaced Pharaoh long ago; verse 16 says He did not, “that My power might be shown and My name recounted in all the earth.” The plagues are not God losing patience but God displaying Himself — patience and judgment together, “a warning to impenitent sinners, and a support to the faith of the godly,” as Keil puts it.
A hardened heart can survive any miracle. Pharaoh sees the fire walk in the hail, confesses sin, begs for prayer, watches the storm stop on command — and hardens again. Terror is not repentance; relief is not gratitude. The same sun that melts wax bakes clay. The text refuses the optimism that a big enough sign will save a heart set against the word.
The hail could break every tree in Egypt and not the heart of one man who would not set it toward the word of the LORD.
AI-generated connections. Each carries a verification badge with a recorded basis; contested links are flagged.
The command of v. 22 — “stretch out your hand… that there may be hail on man and beast and every herb of the field in the land of Egypt” — is echoed almost clause-for-clause at the eighth plague: “stretch out your hand… for the locusts… and let them eat every herb of the field” (Exodus 10:12), and the locusts finish what the hail began, eating “every herb of the land and all the fruit of the trees which the hail had left” (10:15). The Verifier records the shared lexemes: bārāḏ (hail, H1259, the rarest at 26 vv), ‘ēśeḇ (herb, H6212, 32 vv), ‘ēṣ (tree, H6086, 288 vv), śāḏeh (field, H7704, 309 vv) and nāṭāh (stretch out, H5186, 207 vv). This is one author composing a matched pair within the same book, not a quotation of one text by another — so we tier it structural, not verbal. (The Verifier’s raw call is “verbal” because two-plus content words coincide; but the same tool independently tiers the bârâd links to Joshua and the Psalms as merely structural, and the more common field/stretch-out words here do most of the matching. Better to under-claim: a deliberate compositional echo, not a citation.)
Exodus 9:22 · Exodus 9:25 · Exodus 10:12 · Exodus 10:15
basis: shared lexemes computed by the Verifier: H1259 bârâd (26 vv, the only rare one), with the common H6212 ʻeseb (32 vv), H6086 ʻêts (288 vv), H7704 sâdeh (309 vv), H5186 nâṭâh (207 vv). No quotation claim: this is the same author repeating the plague-formula across the seventh and eighth plagues — a compositional/structural echo within Exodus, downgraded from the Verifier’s default verbal tier because the match rests largely on common words and is patterning, not citation
Verse 32 spares “the wheat and the spelt” — and kussemeṯ (spelt, H3698) is one of the rarest words in the Hebrew Bible, appearing in only three verses: here, Isaiah 28:25, and Ezekiel 4:9, where the prophet is told to make bread from “wheat and barley… and spelt.” Because the lexeme is so rare (3 vv) and is paired with chiṭṭâh (wheat, H2406, 30 vv), the Verifier scores the Exodus–Ezekiel link as a confirmed verbal connection. This is a link of shared vocabulary, not of quotation: Ezekiel is not citing Exodus, but the two passages draw on the same narrow stock of grain-words, which is what lets the Verifier flag the pair at all.
Exodus 9:31 · Exodus 9:32 · Isaiah 28:25 · Ezekiel 4:9
basis: shared lexeme H3698 kuççemeth (spelt) — in only 3 vv canon-wide (one of the rarest words in the OT), plus H2406 chiṭṭâh (wheat, 30 vv) and H8184 sᵉʻôrâh (barley, 32 vv); rarity ≤12 triggers the verbal tier per the Verifier, though this is shared vocabulary, not citation
The two great historical psalms rehearse this very plague. Asaph: “He gave their cattle over to the hail… He destroyed their vines with hail” (Psalm 78:47–48); and Psalm 105: “He gave them hail for rain, and flaming fire in their land… and shattered the trees” (105:32–33). Poole’s note on v. 23 points straight to these texts. The shared lexeme is bārāḏ (hail, H1259, 26 vv), joined in Psalm 105 by ’ēš (fire) and nāṯan (gave) — the same trio (gave / voices-fire / hail) of Exodus 9:23. The plague’s purpose, “that My name might be recounted in all the earth” (v. 16, root sāp̄ar), is literally fulfilled when Israel recounts it in worship.
Exodus 9:23 · Exodus 9:24 · Psalm 78:47 · Psalm 78:48 · Psalm 105:32
basis: shared lexeme H1259 bârâd (hail, in 26 vv), with H784 ʼêsh (fire) and H5414 nâthan (gave) in Psalm 105:32 — a single rare content word plus the same motif-cluster; the psalms rehearse, not quote, the plague
The hail that fights for God against His enemies recurs at Beth-horon: “the LORD cast down great stones from heaven… and they died; more died from the hailstones than the sons of Israel killed with the sword” (Joshua 10:11) — a connection Gill draws explicitly at v. 19. Job presses it to a doctrine: God keeps “the treasuries of the hail, which I have reserved… for the day of battle and war” (Job 38:22–23). All three share bārāḏ (H1259), and Joshua adds šāmayim (heaven, the source). The hail of Egypt is one instance of a weapon God keeps in store.
Exodus 9:23 · Joshua 10:11 · Job 38:22
basis: shared lexeme H1259 bârâd (hail, in 26 vv), with H8064 shâmayim (heaven) shared with Joshua 10:11; one rare content word + common motif — the recurring image of hail as God’s war-weapon, argued thematically not by quotation
Paul quotes this verse by name: “For the Scripture says to Pharaoh, ‘For this very purpose I raised you up, that I might display My power in you, and that My name might be proclaimed in all the earth’” (Romans 9:17). The link is undisputed and load-bearing for Paul’s argument — yet it is left flagged, and honestly so. First, it is a cross-Testament link (Greek New Testament ↔ Hebrew Old Testament): the Verifier finds no shared original-language lexeme, because the index cannot match Greek Strong’s numbers to Hebrew ones — so it cannot, by rule, be tiered “verbal.” Second, the wording itself diverges: the Hebrew he‘ĕmaḏtîḵā means “I made you stand / kept you alive,” while Paul’s exḗgeira means “I raised you up” onto the stage of history. The Cambridge editor lays this out plainly — Paul “(disregarding the LXX.) expresses the verb by ἐξήγειρά σε , raised thee up” — and adds the candid concession that “The difference between raised up and kept alive does not, however, affect the Apostle’s argument.” Keil agrees the apostle “has rendered it ἐξήγειρα in Romans 9:17 , in accordance with the purport of his argument.” The connection is real, ancient, and apostolic; the exact verbal provenance is debated. Left flagged on purpose.
Exodus 9:16 · Romans 9:17
basis: cross-Testament (Greek NT ↔ Hebrew OT): the Verifier finds no shared original-language lexeme — a Greek↔Hebrew link cannot be tiered verbal; Paul’s exḗgeira (“raised up”) also diverges from Hebrew he‘ĕmaḏtîḵā (“made to stand”). An explicit, undisputed NT citation whose exact verbal provenance is debated
The motif of God’s hail spreads across the canon. Psalm 18 pictures the theophany: “from the brightness before Him… hailstones and coals of fire” (18:12–13). Psalm 148 calls it to obedience: “fire and hail, snow and mist, stormy wind fulfilling His word” (148:8) — precisely the lesson of Exodus 9, where the hail does exactly what God said, to the hour. Isaiah turns it to judgment on the proud: “the LORD has one who is mighty… like a storm of hail” (28:2), and “hail will sweep away the refuge of lies” (28:17; cf. 30:30); Haggai reaches back to the plague-language of blight and hail (2:17). Each shares bārāḏ (H1259) with this unit. The seventh plague becomes Scripture’s standing emblem of the obedient creation armed against human pride.
Exodus 9:18 · Psalm 18:13 · Psalm 148:8 · Isaiah 28:17 · Isaiah 30:30 · Haggai 2:17
basis: shared lexeme H1259 bârâd (hail, in 26 vv) across all refs (computed by the Verifier); a single rare content word carrying a shared motif — hail as creation fulfilling God’s word and judging pride — argued thematically, not as quotation
AI-generated reading; weigh it against the text.
Moses goes out from the city into the open hail, spreads his palms, and the thunder ceases at his intercession (vv. 29, 33). Benson hears Elijah behind him — “The prayer of Moses opened and shut heaven, like Elijah’s” — and Henry draws the principle, “Peace with God makes men thunder-proof.” The figure points past Moses to the one Mediator “who always lives to make intercession” (Hebrews 7:25), who stilled an actual storm with a word (Mark 4:39) and who stands between the wrath of God and His people. Moses can hold the hail off Egypt for a day; Christ bears the storm of judgment Himself.
Exodus 9:29 · Exodus 9:33 · Hebrews 7:25 · Mark 4:39
“Only in the land of Goshen… was there no hail” (v. 26). The believing Egyptians who took refuge in the houses lived; those left in the open field died (vv. 19–21). Henry: “God causes rain or hail on one city and not on another.” The pattern — a sheltering place provided, a word of warning that must be trusted, a judgment that passes over those inside — runs forward to the ark, the Passover blood on the doorposts (the very next chapters), and at last to the one in whom “there is now no condemnation” (Romans 8:1). The hail falls; the question Scripture keeps asking is whether you are in the refuge the word appointed.
Exodus 9:26 · Romans 8:1
God spares Pharaoh, v. 16 says, so that His name might be recounted (root sāp̄ar) “in all the earth.” Keil traces the fulfilment: the report “travelled… eventually with the Gospel of Christ to all the nations of the earth.” The aim declared in the seventh plague — the glory of the divine name made known to the ends of the earth — is the same aim that closes the Gospels: “make disciples of all nations… and lo, I am with you always” (Matthew 28:19–20), and that fills the new song, “all nations will come and worship before You, for Your righteous acts have been revealed” (Revelation 15:4). The hardening of one king serves the proclamation of the Name to the world.
Exodus 9:16 · Matthew 28:19 · Revelation 15:4
The biblical text is the Berean Standard Bible (BSB), public domain (CC0). Hebrew/Greek text, transliteration, morphology and Strong’s are transcribed from the Berean interlinear (CC0) + Strong’s lexicons (PD); the literal renderings, divergence notes, word notes and all synthesis are this tool’s own work (⚙) — fallible; verify them.
Named voices, quoted verbatim from public-domain works:
This unit (Exodus 9:13–35) is the seventh plague — the hail — the first plague of the third triad and the first to threaten human life. Three honesty notes specific to it:
One verse, two languages, one famous quotation. Exodus 9:16 is taken up by Paul in Romans 9:17. Because the Verifier indexes original-language lexemes, it cannot match Greek to Hebrew and so cannot tier a cross-Testament link as “verbal”; and the wording itself shifts (Hebrew “made you stand” / Greek “raised you up”). The thread is therefore left flagged — the connection is apostolic and undisputed, but its exact verbal provenance is debated, and the tool shows that rather than overclaiming.
Some biblehub voices are filed under neighbouring verses. The public-domain commentaries are scraped per verse, and a few blocks sit under the wrong number (e.g. a Jamieson-Fausset-Brown note on the brick-kiln of v. 10 appears under vv. 13–17; Barnes’ “word of the Lord” and “spelt” notes repeat across several verses). Every excerpt quoted here is the verbatim wording of the named author, drawn from this unit; where the source mis-filed a comment, the excerpt is placed against the verse its content actually treats.
The hail is dated by its grain. Verses 31–32 — flax in bud, barley in ear, wheat and spelt still “late” — let the old commentators (Ellicott, Keil, Cambridge) fix the plague to roughly late January or February. That botanical detail, and the rare word kussemeṯ (spelt, 3 vv), are this unit’s strongest verbal threads — and a reminder that the literal renderings, divergence notes, and word-notes here are the tool’s own fallible work (⚙); check them against a lexicon.
✦ = human, public-domain source, quoted and named. ⚙ = machine synthesis, to be verified. Flagged cross-references are left visible on purpose — the verifier working in the open. “Search the Scriptures daily, whether those things were so.” (Acts 17:11)