God’s Power Continues: The Sixth to Ninth Plagues (Exodus 9:8–10:29)
Sometimes, when people refuse to listen to warnings, the consequences get more serious.
In the story of the plagues in Egypt, Pharaoh kept ignoring God’s warnings. As a result, the plagues became even more painful. Let’s walk through what happened next.
The Sixth Plague: Boils
God told Moses and Aaron to take a handful of soot from a furnace and throw it into the air.
When they did, painful boils — like terrible sores — broke out on people and animals all over Egypt.
The Egyptian magicians, who had tried copying God’s miracles earlier, couldn’t even stand before Moses because they were covered in boils.
But even though everyone was suffering, Pharaoh’s heart stayed hard. He refused to listen to God.
The Seventh Plague: Hail
God sent Moses to warn Pharaoh again. Moses told him that if he didn’t let the Israelites go, a terrible hailstorm would hit the land.
Moses even told the Egyptians to bring their animals and servants inside to keep them safe. Some Egyptians believed Moses and did what he said!
When the hail came, it was like nothing Egypt had ever seen — huge chunks of ice mixed with fire fell from the sky. It destroyed crops, trees, and animals left outside.
Pharaoh called Moses and Aaron and said, “I have sinned. This time the Lord is right.”
He begged them to pray for the hail to stop. Moses prayed, and the hail ended.
But as soon as it was over, Pharaoh hardened his heart again and refused to let the Israelites go.
The Eighth Plague: Locusts
God sent Moses back to Pharaoh with another warning: if he didn’t listen, a swarm of locusts would come and eat everything the hail had left behind.
Pharaoh’s officials were getting desperate. They told him, “Let the people go!”
Pharaoh agreed to let only the men go worship, but that wasn’t enough. Moses said everyone needed to go.
Then God sent a strong east wind that brought millions of locusts.
They covered the ground, filled the houses, and ate every green thing left in the land.
Pharaoh quickly called Moses again, begging for forgiveness. Moses prayed, and God sent a strong west wind that blew the locusts into the Red Sea.
But — once again — Pharaoh hardened his heart and would not let the people go.
The Ninth Plague: Darkness
Without any warning this time, God caused deep darkness to cover Egypt for three days.
It was so dark that people couldn’t see each other and didn’t leave their homes.
But in the land of Goshen, where the Israelites lived, there was still light!
Pharaoh called Moses and said the people could go, but they had to leave their animals behind.
Moses said no — they needed their animals to worship God properly.
Pharaoh grew angry and told Moses to leave. He warned Moses that if he ever came back, he would be killed.
Moses agreed and said Pharaoh would not see him again — but trouble was still coming.
Key Lessons
Here are a few important things we can learn from these events:
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God’s Power Cannot Be Ignored: Again and again, God showed He was stronger than Egypt’s false gods and magic tricks.
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God’s Mercy Was Still Offered: Some Egyptians listened to Moses and saved their animals and servants. God gave chances for people to obey.
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A Stubborn Heart Brings Greater Suffering: Pharaoh’s stubbornness didn’t just hurt himself; it brought more pain to all of Egypt.
Final Thoughts
The plagues got worse because Pharaoh refused to listen.
Even when he saw God’s power clearly, he hardened his heart again and again.
Something to think about:
Are there times when we ignore what God is trying to tell us?
Let’s be people who listen early — before things get harder than they need to be.
Exodus 9:8-10:29 (WEB)
9:8 The LORD said to Moses and to Aaron, “Take handfuls of ashes of the furnace, and let Moses sprinkle it toward the sky in the sight of Pharaoh. 9 It shall become small dust over all the land of Egypt, and shall be boils and blisters breaking out on man and on animal, throughout all the land of Egypt.”10 They took ashes of the furnace, and stood before Pharaoh; and Moses sprinkled it up toward the sky; and it became boils and blisters breaking out on man and on animal. 11 The magicians couldn’t stand before Moses because of the boils; for the boils were on the magicians and on all the Egyptians. 12 The LORD hardened the heart of Pharaoh, and he didn’t listen to them, as the LORD had spoken to Moses.13 The LORD said to Moses, “Rise up early in the morning, and stand before Pharaoh, and tell him, ‘This is what the LORD, the God of the Hebrews, says: “Let my people go, that they may serve me. 14 For this time I will send all my plagues against your heart, against your officials, and against your people; that you may know that there is no one like me in all the earth. 15 For now I would have stretched out my hand, and struck you and your people with pestilence, and you would have been cut off from the earth; 16 but indeed for this cause I have made you stand: to show you my power, and that my name may be declared throughout all the earth, 17 because you still exalt yourself against my people, that you won’t let them go. 18 Behold, tomorrow about this time I will cause it to rain a very grievous hail, such as has not been in Egypt since the day it was founded even until now. 19 Now therefore command that all of your livestock and all that you have in the field be brought into shelter. The hail will come down on every man and animal that is found in the field, and isn’t brought home, and they will die.” ’ ”20 Those who feared the LORD’s word among the servants of Pharaoh made their servants and their livestock flee into the houses. 21 Whoever didn’t respect the LORD’s word left his servants and his livestock in the field.22 The LORD said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand toward the sky, that there may be hail in all the land of Egypt, on man, and on animal, and on every herb of the field, throughout the land of Egypt.”23 Moses stretched out his rod toward the heavens, and the LORD sent thunder and hail; and lightning flashed down to the earth. The LORD rained hail on the land of Egypt. 24 So there was very severe hail, and lightning mixed with the hail, such as had not been in all the land of Egypt since it became a nation. 25 The hail struck throughout all the land of Egypt all that was in the field, both man and animal; and the hail struck every herb of the field, and broke every tree of the field. 26 Only in the land of Goshen, where the children of Israel were, there was no hail.27 Pharaoh sent and called for Moses and Aaron, and said to them, “I have sinned this time. The LORD is righteous, and I and my people are wicked. 28 Pray to the LORD; for there has been enough of mighty thunderings and hail. I will let you go, and you shall stay no longer.”29 Moses said to him, “As soon as I have gone out of the city, I will spread out my hands to the LORD. The thunders shall cease, and there will not be any more hail; that you may know that the earth is the LORD’s. 30 But as for you and your servants, I know that you don’t yet fear the LORD God.”31 The flax and the barley were struck, for the barley had ripened and the flax was blooming. 32 But the wheat and the spelt were not struck, for they had not grown up. 33 Moses went out of the city from Pharaoh, and spread out his hands to the LORD; and the thunders and hail ceased, and the rain was not poured on the earth. 34 When Pharaoh saw that the rain and the hail and the thunders had ceased, he sinned yet more, and hardened his heart, he and his servants. 35 The heart of Pharaoh was hardened, and he didn’t let the children of Israel go, just as the LORD had spoken through Moses.10:1 The LORD said to Moses, “Go in to Pharaoh, for I have hardened his heart and the heart of his servants, that I may show these my signs among them; 2 and that you may tell in the hearing of your son, and of your son’s son, what things I have done to Egypt, and my signs which I have done among them; that you may know that I am the LORD.”3 Moses and Aaron went in to Pharaoh, and said to him, “This is what the LORD, the God of the Hebrews, says: ‘How long will you refuse to humble yourself before me? Let my people go, that they may serve me. 4 Or else, if you refuse to let my people go, behold, tomorrow I will bring locusts into your country, 5 and they shall cover the surface of the earth, so that one won’t be able to see the earth. They shall eat the residue of that which has escaped, which remains to you from the hail, and shall eat every tree which grows for you out of the field. 6 Your houses shall be filled, and the houses of all your servants, and the houses of all the Egyptians, as neither your fathers nor your fathers’ fathers have seen, since the day that they were on the earth to this day.’ ” He turned, and went out from Pharaoh.7 Pharaoh’s servants said to him, “How long will this man be a snare to us? Let the men go, that they may serve the LORD, their God. Don’t you yet know that Egypt is destroyed?”8 Moses and Aaron were brought again to Pharaoh, and he said to them, “Go, serve the LORD your God; but who are those who will go?”9 Moses said, “We will go with our young and with our old. We will go with our sons and with our daughters, with our flocks and with our herds; for we must hold a feast to the LORD.”10 He said to them, “The LORD be with you if I let you go with your little ones! See, evil is clearly before your faces. 11 Not so! Go now you who are men, and serve the LORD; for that is what you desire!” Then they were driven out from Pharaoh’s presence.12 The LORD said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand over the land of Egypt for the locusts, that they may come up on the land of Egypt, and eat every herb of the land, even all that the hail has left.” 13 Moses stretched out his rod over the land of Egypt, and the LORD brought an east wind on the land all that day, and all night; and when it was morning, the east wind brought the locusts. 14 The locusts went up over all the land of Egypt, and rested in all the borders of Egypt. They were very grievous. Before them there were no such locusts as they, nor will there ever be again. 15 For they covered the surface of the whole earth, so that the land was darkened, and they ate every herb of the land, and all the fruit of the trees which the hail had left. There remained nothing green, either tree or herb of the field, through all the land of Egypt. 16 Then Pharaoh called for Moses and Aaron in haste, and he said, “I have sinned against the LORD your God, and against you. 17 Now therefore please forgive my sin again, and pray to the LORD your God, that he may also take away from me this death.”18 Moses went out from Pharaoh, and prayed to the LORD. 19 The LORD sent an exceedingly strong west wind, which took up the locusts, and drove them into the Red Sea. There remained not one locust in all the borders of Egypt. 20 But the LORD hardened Pharaoh’s heart, and he didn’t let the children of Israel go.21 The LORD said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand toward the sky, that there may be darkness over the land of Egypt, even darkness which may be felt.” 22 Moses stretched out his hand toward the sky, and there was a thick darkness in all the land of Egypt for three days. 23 They didn’t see one another, and nobody rose from his place for three days; but all the children of Israel had light in their dwellings.24 Pharaoh called to Moses, and said, “Go, serve the LORD. Only let your flocks and your herds stay behind. Let your little ones also go with you.”25 Moses said, “You must also give into our hand sacrifices and burnt offerings, that we may sacrifice to the LORD our God. 26 Our livestock also shall go with us. Not a hoof shall be left behind, for of it we must take to serve the LORD our God; and we don’t know with what we must serve the LORD, until we come there.”27 But the LORD hardened Pharaoh’s heart, and he wouldn’t let them go. 28 Pharaoh said to him, “Get away from me! Be careful to see my face no more; for in the day you see my face you shall die!”29 Moses said, “You have spoken well. I will see your face again no more.”