GOD MAKES A DISTINCTION

Passage: Exodus 8:20-9:12

Key verse: 8:22

NIV

The Plague of Flies

20 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Get up early in the morning(A) and confront Pharaoh as he goes to the river and say to him, ‘This is what the Lord says: Let my people go, so that they may worship(B) me. 21 If you do not let my people go, I will send swarms of flies on you and your officials, on your people and into your houses. The houses of the Egyptians will be full of flies; even the ground will be covered with them.

22 “‘But on that day I will deal differently with the land of Goshen,(C) where my people live;(D) no swarms of flies will be there, so that you will know(E) that I, the Lord, am in this land. 23 I will make a distinction[a] between my people and your people.(F) This sign will occur tomorrow.’”

24 And the Lord did this. Dense swarms of flies poured into Pharaoh’s palace and into the houses of his officials; throughout Egypt the land was ruined by the flies.(G)

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

26 But Moses said, “That would not be right. The sacrifices we offer the Lord our God would be detestable to the Egyptians.(I) And if we offer sacrifices that are detestable in their eyes, will they not stone us? 27 We must take a three-day journey(J) into the wilderness to offer sacrifices(K) to the Lord our God, as he commands us.”

28 Pharaoh said, “I will let you go to offer sacrifices to the Lord your God in the wilderness, but you must not go very far. Now pray(L) for me.”

29 Moses answered, “As soon as I leave you, I will pray to the Lord, and tomorrow the flies will leave Pharaoh and his officials and his people. Only let Pharaoh be sure that he does not act deceitfully(M) again by not letting the people go to offer sacrifices to the Lord.”

30 Then Moses left Pharaoh and prayed to the Lord,(N) 31 and the Lord did what Moses asked. The flies left Pharaoh and his officials and his people; not a fly remained. 32 But this time also Pharaoh hardened his heart(O) and would not let the people go.

The Plague on Livestock

9 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Go to Pharaoh and say to him, ‘This is what the Lord, the God of the Hebrews, says: “Let my people go, so that they may worship(P) me.” 2 If you refuse to let them go and continue to hold them back, 3 the hand(Q) of the Lord will bring a terrible plague(R) on your livestock in the field—on your horses, donkeys and camels and on your cattle, sheep and goats. 4 But the Lord will make a distinction between the livestock of Israel and that of Egypt,(S) so that no animal belonging to the Israelites will die.’”

5 The Lord set a time and said, “Tomorrow the Lord will do this in the land.” 6 And the next day the Lord did it: All the livestock(T) of the Egyptians died,(U) but not one animal belonging to the Israelites died. 7 Pharaoh investigated and found that not even one of the animals of the Israelites had died. Yet his heart(V) was unyielding and he would not let the people go.(W)

The Plague of Boils

8 Then the Lord said to Moses and Aaron, “Take handfuls of soot from a furnace and have Moses toss it into the air in the presence of Pharaoh. 9 It will become fine dust over the whole land of Egypt, and festering boils(X) will break out on people and animals throughout the land.”

10 So they took soot from a furnace and stood before Pharaoh. Moses tossed it into the air, and festering boils broke out on people and animals. 11 The magicians(Y) could not stand before Moses because of the boils that were on them and on all the Egyptians. 12 But the Lord hardened Pharaoh’s heart(Z) and he would not listen(AA) to Moses and Aaron, just as the Lord had said to Moses.

Footnotes
  1. Exodus 8:23 Septuagint and Vulgate; Hebrew will put a deliverance
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Source: BibleGateway

ESV

The Fourth Plague: Flies

20 Then the Lord said to Moses, (A)“Rise up early in the morning and present yourself to Pharaoh, as he goes out to the water, and say to him, ‘Thus says the Lord, (B)“Let my people go, that they may serve me. 21 Or else, if you will not let my people go, behold, I will send swarms of flies on you and your servants and your people, and into your houses. And the houses of the Egyptians shall be filled with swarms of flies, and also the ground on which they stand. 22 But on that day (C)I will set apart the land of Goshen, where my people dwell, so that no swarms of flies shall be there, (D)that you may know that I am the Lord in the midst of the earth.[a] 23 Thus I will put a division[b] between my people and your people. Tomorrow this sign shall happen.”’” 24 And the Lord did so. (E)There came great swarms of flies into the house of Pharaoh and into his servants' houses. Throughout all the land of Egypt the land was ruined by the swarms of flies.

25 Then Pharaoh called Moses and Aaron and said, “Go, sacrifice to your God within the land.” 26 But Moses said, “It would not be right to do so, for the offerings we shall sacrifice to the Lord our God are an (F)abomination to the Egyptians. If we sacrifice offerings (G)abominable to the Egyptians before their eyes, will they not stone us? 27 We must go (H)three days' journey into the wilderness and sacrifice to the Lord our God (I)as he tells us.” 28 So Pharaoh said, “I will let you go to sacrifice to the Lord your God in the wilderness; only you must not go very far away. (J)Plead for me.” 29 Then Moses said, “Behold, I am going out from you and I will plead with the Lord that the swarms of flies may depart from Pharaoh, from his servants, and from his people, tomorrow. Only let not Pharaoh (K)cheat again by not letting the people go to sacrifice to the Lord.” 30 So Moses went out from Pharaoh and prayed to the Lord. 31 And the Lord did as Moses asked, and removed the swarms of flies from Pharaoh, from his servants, and from his people; not one remained. 32 But Pharaoh (L)hardened his heart this time also, and did not let the people go.

The Fifth Plague: Egyptian Livestock Die

9 Then the Lord said to Moses, (M)“Go in to Pharaoh and say to him, ‘Thus says (N)the Lord, the God of the Hebrews, “Let my people go, that they may serve me. 2 For if you refuse to let them go and still hold them, 3 behold, (O)the hand of the Lord will fall with a very severe plague upon your livestock that are in the field, the horses, the donkeys, the camels, the herds, and the flocks. 4 (P)But the Lord will make a distinction between the livestock of Israel and the livestock of Egypt, so that nothing of all that belongs to the people of Israel shall die.”’” 5 And the Lord set a time, saying, “Tomorrow the Lord will do this thing in the land.” 6 And the next day the Lord did this thing. (Q)All the livestock of the Egyptians died, but not one of the livestock of the people of Israel died. 7 And Pharaoh sent, and behold, not one of the livestock of Israel was dead. But (R)the heart of Pharaoh was hardened, and he did not let the people go.

The Sixth Plague: Boils

8 And the Lord said to Moses and Aaron, “Take handfuls of soot from the kiln, and let Moses throw them in the air in the sight of Pharaoh. 9 It shall become fine dust over all the land of Egypt, and become (S)boils breaking out in sores on man and beast throughout all the land of Egypt.” 10 So they took soot from the kiln and stood before Pharaoh. And Moses threw it in the air, and it became boils breaking out in sores on man and beast. 11 And (T)the magicians could not stand before Moses because of the boils, for the boils came upon the magicians and upon all the Egyptians. 12 (U)But the Lord hardened the heart of Pharaoh, and he did not listen to them, as (V)the Lord had spoken to Moses.

Footnotes
  1. Exodus 8:22 Or that I the Lord am in the land
  2. Exodus 8:23 Septuagint, Vulgate; Hebrew set redemption
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.
Source: BibleGateway

1. Flies everywhere but Goshen (8:2

-32)

God wanted Pharaoh, Egypt and Israel to know that the plagues were not just unfortunate natural disasters; they were God's hand of judgment on Egypt. He made this clear when he sent swarms of flies to plague Egypt, but protected his people. Egypt was ruined; Pharaoh said, 'Go, just to worship...and pray for me.' So Moses prayed, and the flies left. But Pharaoh reneged.

2. The Lord's hand on animals and men (9:1-12)

Moses spoke God's word to Pharaoh again (1). He warned that the fifth act of judgment would strike the livestock of Egypt. The Egyptian livestock died, but not even one cow of Israel got sick. God keeps his word, even though Pharaoh is a liar. The sixth act of judgment fell on the bodies of men. All the Egyptians, including the presumptuous magicians, broke out with painful boils. But Pharaoh's hard heart became harder.

Prayer: Lord, help me to hear and obey your word with awesome respect and a repentant heart.

One Word: The Lord is in this land