One Year Pray for the Persecuted Bible - Flipbook - Page 110
January 29
listen to Moses and Aaron, just as the Lord had
predicted.
16 So the Lord said to Moses, “Tell Aaron,
‘Raise your staff and strike the ground. The
dust will turn into swarms of gnats throughout the land of Egypt.’” 17 So Moses and A
aron
did just as the Lord had commanded them.
When Aaron raised his hand and struck the
ground with his staff, gnats infested the entire
land, covering the Egyptians and their animals. All the dust in the land of Egypt turned
into gnats. 18 Pharaoh’s magicians tried to do
the same thing with their secret arts, but this
time they failed. And the gnats covered every
one, people and animals alike.
19 “This is the finger of God!” the magicians
exclaimed to Pharaoh. But Pharaoh’s heart remained hard. He w
ouldn’t listen to them, just
as the Lord had predicted.
20 Then the Lord told M
oses, “Get up early
in the morning and stand in Pharaoh’s way as
he goes down to the river. Say to him, ‘This is
what the Lord says: Let my people go, so they
can worship me. 21 If you refuse, then I will
send swarms of flies on you, your officials,
your people, and all the houses. The Egyptian
homes will be filled with flies, and the ground
will be covered with them. 22 But this time I
will spare the region of Goshen, where my
people live. No flies will be found there. Then
you will know that I am the Lord and that I am
present even in the heart of your land. 23 I will
make a clear distinction between* my people
and your people. This miraculous sign will
happen tomorrow.’”
24 And the Lord did just as he had said. A
thick swarm of flies filled Pharaoh’s palace
and the houses of his officials. The whole land
of Egypt was thrown into chaos by the flies.
25 Pharaoh called for M
oses and A
aron. “All
right! Go ahead and offer sacrifices to your
God,” he said. “But do it here in this land.”
26 But M
oses replied, “That w
ouldn’t be
right. The Egyptians detest the sacrifices that
we offer to the Lord our God. Look, if we offer
our sacrifices here where the Egyptians can
see us, they will stone us. 27 We must take a
three-day trip into the wilderness to offer
sacrifices to the Lord our God, just as he has
commanded us.”
28 “All right, go ahead,” Pharaoh replied. “I
will let you go into the wilderness to offer sacrifices to the Lord your God. But d
on’t go too
far away. Now hurry and pray for me.”
29 Moses answered, “As soon as I leave you,
I will pray to the Lord, and tomorrow the
swarms of flies will disappear from you and
your officials and all your people. But I am
90
warning you, Pharaoh, don’t lie to us again
and refuse to let the people go to sacrifice to
the Lord.”
30 So
Moses left Pha
raoh’s palace and
pleaded with the Lord to remove all the flies.
31 And the Lord did as Moses asked and caused
the swarms of flies to disappear from Pha
raoh, his officials, and his people. Not a single
fly remained. 32 But Pharaoh again became
stubborn and refused to let the people go.
9:1 “Go back to Pharaoh,” the Lord commanded
oses. “Tell him, ‘This is what the Lord, the
M
God of the Hebrews, says: Let my people go, so
they can worship me. 2 If you continue to hold
them and refuse to let them go, 3 the hand of
the Lord will strike all your livestock—your
horses, donkeys, camels, cattle, sheep, and
goats—with a deadly plague. 4 But the Lord
will again make a distinction between the
livestock of the I sraelites and that of the Egyptians. Not a single one of Israel’s animals will
die! 5 The Lord has already set the time for the
plague to begin. He has declared that he will
strike the land tomorrow.’”
6 And the Lord did just as he had said. The
next morning all the livestock of the Egyptians died, but the Israelites didn’t lose a single
animal. 7 Pharaoh sent his officials to investigate, and they discovered that the Israelites
had not lost a single animal! But even so, Pha
raoh’s heart remained stubborn,* and he still
refused to let the people go.
8 Then the Lord said to M
oses and A
aron,
“Take handfuls of soot from a brick kiln, and
have Moses toss it into the air while Pharaoh
watches. 9 The ashes will spread like fine dust
over the whole land of Egypt, causing festering boils to break out on people and animals
throughout the land.”
10 So they took soot from a brick kiln and
went and stood before Pharaoh. As Pharaoh
watched, M
oses threw the soot into the air,
and boils broke out on people and animals
alike. 11 Even the magicians were unable to
stand before Moses, because the boils had
broken out on them and all the Egyptians.
12 But the Lord hardened Pharaoh’s heart, and
just as the Lord had predicted to Moses, Pha
raoh refused to listen.
13 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Get up early
in the morning and stand before Pharaoh.
Tell him, ‘This is what the Lord, the God of
the Hebrews, says: Let my people go, so they
on’t, I will send
can worship me. 14 If you d
more plagues on you* and your officials and
your people. Then you will know that there
is no one like me in all the earth. 15 By now I
