Each of the ten plagues brought upon Egypt by God showed God’s power over one or more Egyptian gods and/or goddesses. He was showing the Egyptians that their gods and goddesses were no match for the true God who is the Creator of the universe including their false gods which all have a devil behind them. God is the God of gods. We are told this six times in scripture. (Deuteronomy 10:17 For the LORD your God is God of gods, and Lord of lords, a great God, a mighty, and a terrible, which regardeth not persons, nor taketh reward:) God showed he is more powerful than all of Egypt’s false gods. (Note that many of the plagues had additional minor gods. Some are mentioned, but not all of them. The gods are called by various names and have various spellings depending on the source.) Pharaoh was warned by God speaking through Moses that Israel was God’s firstborn and if he did not let Israel go, God would kill all of the firstborn of Egypt. Pharaoh did not believe God and hardened his heart after each plague. This led to his eternal death in the lake of fire along with his son. Let us not make the same mistake. (Exodus 4:22-23 And thou shalt say unto Pharaoh, Thus saith the LORD, Israel is my son, even my firstborn:
23 And I say unto thee, Let my son go, that he may serve me: and if thou refuse to let him go, behold, I will slay thy son, even thy firstborn.) (Exodus 12:12 For I will pass through the land of Egypt this night, and will smite all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and against all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgment: I am the LORD.) God showed his power by controlling how some of the plagues only affected the Egyptians and not the Israelites. The gods and goddesses had no control over the Goshen part of Egypt. These plagues would be remembered by all generations throughout the world continuing to be a reminder of the one true God and his power over the false gods. God had the plagues so his name may be declared throughout all the earth. (Exodus 9:16 And in very deed for this cause have I raised thee up, for to shew in thee my power; and that my name may be declared throughout all the earth.)
In some of the plagues we will look at, we will see how Pharaoh’s magicians were able to duplicate some of the plagues. The difference is that they were never able to get rid of the plague and were not able to duplicate all of them. They were only able to do this because God allowed them to do this. It was not by their false gods and goddesses. God will let Satan do certain things to give people a choice on who is the true living God. This will be very apparent in the tribulation when Satan is allowed much freedom. Satan only can do what God allows him to do. Satan is not God. Jesus is God.
The first plague was the plague of blood and lasted a week. (Exodus 7:14-25) All of the water in Egypt was turned to blood from the life giving Nile river to all their streams, rivers, ponds, and pools of water. (Exodus 7:19 ¶ And the LORD spake unto Moses, Say unto Aaron, Take thy rod, and stretch out thine hand upon the waters of Egypt, upon their streams, upon their rivers, and upon their ponds, and upon all their pools of water, that they may become blood; and that there may be blood throughout all the land of Egypt, both in vessels of wood, and in vessels of stone.) (Exodus 7:25 And seven days were fulfilled, after that the LORD had smitten the river.) The people had to dig around for water and all of the fish died leaving a stink upon the land. We all know we need water to live. The Egyptians rejected the living water of Jesus. This plaque was judgment against the Egyptian god Hapi who was the god of the Nile, Khnum the guardian god of river’s source, and Osiris. The Nile was the bloodstream of Osiris, so his bloodstream became polluted in this plague. Hapi had no control over his river. Hapi was a water bearer who could not provide water or the life it brings. Pharaoh’s magicians were able to duplicate turning water into blood, but only Moses through the power of God was able to change it back.
The second plague was the plague of frogs. (Exodus 8:1-15) The frogs covered all thy borders of Egypt. They were even in their houses, beds, and ovens. (Exodus 8:2-4 And if thou refuse to let them go, behold, I will smite all thy borders with frogs:
3 And the river shall bring forth frogs abundantly, which shall go up and come into thine house, and into thy bedchamber, and upon thy bed, and into the house of thy servants, and upon thy people, and into thine ovens, and into thy kneadingtroughs:
4 And the frogs shall come up both on thee, and upon thy people, and upon all thy servants.) Moses gave Pharaoh the choice when this plague would end. He chose the next day. (Exodus 8:10 And he said, To morrow. And he said, Be it according to thy word: that thou mayest know that there is none like unto the LORD our God.) All of the dead frogs were gathered into heaps and once again the land of Egypt stank. Sin always stinks. (Exodus 8:14 And they gathered them together upon heaps: and the land stank.) This plague was judgment again against the Egyptian god Hapi the god of the Nile as this is where the frogs came from and he was unable to contain them to the river, but mostly against the Egyptian goddess Heket (Heqt [Heqet]) who was the goddess of fertility, water, and renewal. The head of Heket was a frog. Heket had no control over her frogs. Pharaoh’s magicians duplicated the feat of bringing frogs upon the land of Egypt, but only Moses through the power of God was able to remove the frogs. Frogs will be seen again in Revelation during the tribulation connected with evil spirits. (Revelation 16:13 And I saw three unclean spirits like frogs come out of the mouth of the dragon, and out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet.)
The third plague was the plague of lice. This covered all of the dust of the land throughout Egypt. The magicians could not duplicate this plague. They said it had to be the finger of God, recognizing God was more powerful than their god. Scripture does not say, but most likely the lice was removed the next day prior to the plague of flies. (Exodus 8:16-19 ¶ And the LORD said unto Moses, Say unto Aaron, Stretch out thy rod, and smite the dust of the land, that it may become lice throughout all the land of Egypt.
17 And they did so; for Aaron stretched out his hand with his rod, and smote the dust of the earth, and it became lice in man, and in beast; all the dust of the land became lice throughout all the land of Egypt.
18 And the magicians did so with their enchantments to bring forth lice, but they could not: so there were lice upon man, and upon beast.
19 Then the magicians said unto Pharaoh, This is the finger of God: and Pharaoh’s heart was hardened, and he hearkened not unto them; as the LORD had said.) The same dust that was used to create man was now used to plague man and remind him of his sin and death. This plague was judgment against the Egyptian god Geb (Seb) who was the god of the earth.
The fourth plague was the plague of flies. (Exodus 8:20-32) This plague only affected the Egyptians. It did not affect Goshen where the Israelites lived. The flies were in the houses of the Egyptians and upon the ground. The land was corrupted by reason of the flies. The flies were removed the next day. (Exodus 8:24 And the LORD did so; and there came a grievous swarm of flies into the house of Pharaoh, and into his servants’ houses, and into all the land of Egypt: the land was corrupted by reason of the swarm of flies.) This plague was judgment against the Egyptian god Khepri (Uatchit) who was the god of creation, movement of the sun, and rebirth. The head of Khepri was a fly.
The fifth plague was the plague of murrain against the cattle. (Exodus 9:1-7) This murrain (infectious fatal disease that affects cattle) did not affect the Israelite’s cattle, only the Egyptians. (Exodus 9:3-4 Behold, the hand of the LORD is upon thy cattle which is in the field, upon the horses, upon the asses, upon the camels, upon the oxen, and upon the sheep: there shall be a very grievous murrain.
4 And the LORD shall sever between the cattle of Israel and the cattle of Egypt: and there shall nothing die of all that is the children’s of Israel.) With the death of these animals it would affect horses used by the military, animals for work and to eat. Only animals in the field were affected. That is why the Egyptians still had some horses, et cetera after this plague. This plague was judgment against the Egyptian goddess Hathor who was the goddess of love and protection. She failed to protect the cattle. The head of Hathor was a cow. Judgment was also against Ptah, the god of creation.
The sixth plague was the plague of boils. (Exodus 9:8-12) Moses sprinkled ashes of the furnace toward heaven and boils breaking forth with blains (blisters) broke out upon both man and beast. This plague affected the Egyptians directly and even the magicians were unable to come before Pharaoh. This plague did not affect the Israelites. (Exodus 9:10 And they took ashes of the furnace, and stood before Pharaoh; and Moses sprinkled it up toward heaven; and it became a boil breaking forth with blains upon man, and upon beast.) This plague was judgment against the Egyptian goddess Isis who was the goddess of medicine and peace [some say she was the goddess of agriculture]. Isis was unable to cure the Egyptians. Only Moses and Aaron were able to stand before Pharaoh, as they served the true God. Cleanliness was very important to the Egyptians. This plague made them unclean and even the magicians were unclean and unable to perform their ceremonial duties before their gods and goddesses. Judgment was also against Sekhmet, the Egyptian goddess of healing. She was unable to heal.
The seventh plague was the plague of hail. (Exodus 9:13-35) The Egyptians were given a choice whether they were affected by this plague or not. If the people kept themselves and their cattle inside, they would be unharmed. Those who willingly disobeyed God and remained outside, both they and any cattle outside would die. God gives people the same choice today. They can obey God by admitting they are a sinner and call upon his Son Jesus and be saved or reject his Son Jesus and die a second death and spend eternity in the lake of fire. Christians today should make their houses a refuge from the sinful world. (Exodus 9:19 Send therefore now, and gather thy cattle, and all that thou hast in the field; for upon every man and beast which shall be found in the field, and shall not be brought home, the hail shall come down upon them, and they shall die.) The cattle mentioned in this plague were not killed in the earlier plague of the murrain since they had not been in the field. This plague did not affect the Israelites. This plague of hail had fire mixed in with it, similar to what would be seen later in Sodom. The hail was the worst ever seen in Egypt. (Exodus 9:23 And Moses stretched forth his rod toward heaven: and the LORD sent thunder and hail, and the fire ran along upon the ground; and the LORD rained hail upon the land of Egypt.) The hail not only affected people and beast in the field, but also the herbs of the field and brake every tree of the field. (Exodus 9:25 And the hail smote throughout all the land of Egypt all that was in the field, both man and beast; and the hail smote every herb of the field, and brake every tree of the field.) The Egyptians would lose much great lumber and crops (flax and barley) used for clothing and some food. Their main food of wheat and rie was preserved by God, again giving them another chance to choose the real God of the universe. Hail will be used again in the tribulation weighing up to about 90 pounds. (Revelation 16:21 And there fell upon men a great hail out of heaven, every stone about the weight of a talent: and men blasphemed God because of the plague of the hail; for the plague thereof was exceeding great.) This plague was judgment against the Egyptian goddess Nut who was the goddess of the sky. Nut had no control over the heaven and the hail that came from it.
The eighth plague was the plague of locusts. (Exodus 10:1-20) This plague was meant so that the Israelites could tell in his son and son’s son’s ears what things God had wrought in Egypt and that “I am the LORD. (Exodus 10:2 And that thou mayest tell in the ears of thy son, and of thy son’s son, what things I have wrought in Egypt, and my signs which I have done among them; that ye may know how that I am the LORD.) An east wind blew all day and all night and brought in the locusts the next day. (Exodus 10:13 And Moses stretched forth his rod over the land of Egypt, and the LORD brought an east wind upon the land all that day, and all that night; and when it was morning, the east wind brought the locusts.) This plague would eat all herbs of the field that the hail did not eat. (Exodus 10:12 ¶ And the LORD said unto Moses, Stretch out thine hand over the land of Egypt for the locusts, that they may come up upon the land of Egypt, and eat every herb of the land, even all that the hail hath left.) (Exodus 10:14-15 And the locusts went up over all the land of Egypt, and rested in all the coasts of Egypt: very grievous were they; before them there were no such locusts as they, neither after them shall be such.
15 For they covered the face of the whole earth, so that the land was darkened; and they did eat every herb of the land, and all the fruit of the trees which the hail had left: and there remained not any green thing in the trees, or in the herbs of the field, through all the land of Egypt.) The locusts most likely now ate the wheat and rie destroying the food source of the Egyptians and putting them in danger of starving to death. Yet Pharaoh would not repent and cared not for his people. Even his servants said to let them go as Egypt was destroyed. (Exodus 10:7 And Pharaoh’s servants said unto him, How long shall this man be a snare unto us? let the men go, that they may serve the LORD their God: knowest thou not yet that Egypt is destroyed?) This plague was judgment against the Egyptian god Seth who was the god of storms and disorder. Seth maintained no order.
The ninth plague was the plague of darkness. (Exodus 10:21-29) The land was so dark, it could be felt. (Darkness represents evil as it is the absence of light of which Jesus is light. Without Jesus, there is no light. Evil can be felt. This type of darkness will be seen again in the tribulation. (Revelation 16:10 And the fifth angel poured out his vial upon the seat of the beast; and his kingdom was full of darkness; and they gnawed their tongues for pain,) (Exodus 10:21 ¶ And the LORD said unto Moses, Stretch out thine hand toward heaven, that there may be darkness over the land of Egypt, even darkness which may be felt.) This darkness lasted three days. (Exodus 10:22 And Moses stretched forth his hand toward heaven; and there was a thick darkness in all the land of Egypt three days:) The Israelites were not affected by the darkness, but had light as they had the light of the true God Jehovah. Hell will be a place of outer darkness. May all choose the light of Jesus and never have darkness. Pharaoh told Moses never to come before him again or he would kill him. Pharaoh foretold his own son’s death in the last plague without even realizing it. (Exodus 10:28 And Pharaoh said unto him, Get thee from me, take heed to thyself, see my face no more; for in that day thou seest my face thou shalt die.) He chose darkness. Most people do as well as they love darkness. (John 3:19 And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.) This plague was judgment against the Egyptian god Ra [Re] the god of the sun. Obviously God showed that he alone has power over the sun, not Ra. God told man not to worship the sun. (Deuteronomy 17:3 And hath gone and served other gods, and worshipped them, either the sun, or moon, or any of the host of heaven, which I have not commanded;) Judgment was also against the Egyptian god Thoth who was the god of the moon. He also could not reflect any light.
The tenth and final plague was the plague of the death of the firstborn. (Exodus 11:1-12:36) This plague took the life of the firstborn of both man and beast including the son of Pharaoh. (Exodus 11:5 And all the firstborn in the land of Egypt shall die, from the firstborn of Pharaoh that sitteth upon his throne, even unto the firstborn of the maidservant that is behind the mill; and all the firstborn of beasts.) The Israelites were only exempt from this plague if they obeyed God by placing blood on their doorposts and eating the unblemished first year lamb. They had to actively choose to obey God in this plague in order to be exempt. They had to show sacrifice and the gospel in their ritual in order to live, the same that is done for spiritual life. This was the start of the feast of passover and the feast of unleavened bread as the destroyer would pass over the doorposts covered in blood. (Exodus 12:23 For the LORD will pass through to smite the Egyptians; and when he seeth the blood upon the lintel, and on the two side posts, the LORD will pass over the door, and will not suffer the destroyer to come in unto your houses to smite you.) This represented the blood of Jesus we as Christians have been covered in and all those who call upon his name. If we are covered in the blood of Jesus, we shall never see spiritual death or the second death. We will only have one death unless we go in the rapture. A Christian is born twice and dies once. The unsaved are born once and die twice. May we all be born twice. Jesus became our passover. (I Corinthians 5:7 Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened. For even Christ our passover is sacrificed for us:) The unleavened bread was because the Israelites had to leave in a hurry and did not have time to let the bread rise. (Leaven also represents sin.) This plague was judgment against the god of Pharaoh. Pharaoh was worshipped by the Egyptians as the greatest god of all. It was believed he was the son of Ra, manifest in the flesh. Satan always copies the real thing. God showed Pharaoh who was God. Pharaoh could not even save his own son. God warned Pharaoh prior to the start of the plagues to let his firstborn son Israel go or he would take his firstborn. Pharaoh like many of us did not listen. God always does what he says he will do. (See Exodus 4:22-23 above) This plague was judgment against not only the god Pharaoh, but all of the gods of Egypt. (Exodus 12:12 For I will pass through the land of Egypt this night, and will smite all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and against all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgment: I am the LORD.) Many of these same plagues will be seen on a greater scale during the tribulation.
As a result of these plagues, the Egyptians gave “such things as they required”. This included jewels of silver, gold, and raiment. (Exodus 12:35-36) God brought 600,000 men, not including women or children and their cattle out of Egypt on the selfsame day that the 430 years God said they would be in Egypt came to pass. (Exodus 12:37, 41) God would destroy Pharaoh and his army in the Red sea. (Exodus 14:28) (Psalm 136:15 But overthrew Pharaoh and his host in the Red sea: for his mercy endureth for ever.) God showed that he is the God of gods and that all of Egypt’s gods were no match for the one true God who created them. The ten plagues showed the complete judgment of God on Egypt and on their gods and goddesses. (Numbers 33:4 For the Egyptians buried all their firstborn, which the LORD had smitten among them: upon their gods also the LORD executed judgments.) These plagues not only showed judgment against Egypt, but showed the power of God to the Israelites so that they might serve him and call upon him for salvation. May we all serve God and call upon him for salvation.
