Dual Panel1The LORD then told Moses to go to Pharaoh and say, “These are the words of the LORD: Let my people go in order to worship me.
2If you refuse, I shall bring a plague of frogs over the whole of your territory.
3The Nile will swarm with them. They will come up from the river into your palace, into your bedroom and onto your bed, into the houses of your courtiers and your people, into your ovens and your kneading troughs.
4The frogs will clamber over you, your people, and all your courtiers.”
5The LORD told Moses to say to Aaron, “Take your staff in your hand and stretch it out over the rivers, canals, and pools, to bring up frogs on the land of Egypt.”
6When Aaron stretched his hand over the waters of Egypt, the frogs came up and covered the land.
7But the magicians did the same thing by their spells: they too brought up frogs on the land of Egypt.
8Pharaoh summoned Moses and Aaron. “Pray to the LORD”, he said, “to remove the frogs from me and my people, and I shall let the people go to sacrifice to the LORD.”
9Moses said, “I give your majesty the choice of a time for me to intercede for you, your courtiers, and your people, to rid you and your houses of the frogs; none will be left except in the Nile.”
10“Tomorrow,” said Pharaoh. “It will be as you say,” replied Moses, “so that you may know there is no one like our God, the LORD.
11The frogs will leave you, your houses, courtiers, and people: none will be left except in the Nile.”
12Moses and Aaron left Pharaoh's presence, and Moses asked the LORD to remove the frogs which he had brought on Pharaoh.
13The LORD granted the request, and in house, farmyard, and field all the frogs perished.
14They were piled into countless heaps and the land stank.
15But when Pharaoh found that he was given relief he became obdurate; as the LORD had foretold, he would not listen to Moses and Aaron.
16The LORD told Moses to say to Aaron, “Stretch out your staff and strike the dust on the ground, and it will turn into maggots throughout the whole of Egypt.”
17They obeyed, and when Aaron stretched out his hand with his staff in it and struck the dust, it turned into maggots on man and beast. Throughout Egypt all the dust turned into maggots.
18The magicians tried to produce maggots in the same way by their spells, but they failed. The maggots were everywhere, on man and beast.
19“It is the hand of God,” said the magicians to Pharaoh, but Pharaoh remained obstinate; as the LORD had foretold, he would not listen.
20The LORD told Moses to rise early in the morning and stand in Pharaoh's path as he went out to the river, and to say to him, “These are the words of the LORD: Let my people go in order to worship me.
21If you refuse, I shall send swarms of flies on you, your courtiers, your people, and your houses; the houses of the Egyptians will be filled with the swarms and so will all the land they live in.
22But on that day I shall make an exception of Goshen, the land where my people live: there will be no swarms there. Thus you will know that I, the LORD, am here in the land.
23I shall make a distinction between my people and yours. Tomorrow this sign will appear.”
24The LORD did this; dense swarms of flies infested Pharaoh's palace and the houses of his courtiers; throughout Egypt the land was threatened with ruin by the swarms.
25Pharaoh summoned Moses and Aaron and said to them, “Go and sacrifice to your God, but in this country.”
26“That is impossible,” replied Moses, “because the victim we are to sacrifice to the LORD our God is an abomination to the Egyptians. If the Egyptians see us offer such an animal, they will surely stone us to death.
27We must go a three days' journey into the wilderness to sacrifice to the LORD our God, as he commands us.”
28“I shall let you go,” said Pharaoh, “and you may sacrifice to your God in the wilderness; only do not go far. Now intercede for me.”
29Moses answered, “As soon as I leave you I shall intercede with the LORD. Tomorrow the swarms will depart from Pharaoh, his courtiers, and his people. Only your majesty must not trifle any more with the people by preventing them from going to sacrifice to the LORD.”
30Then Moses left Pharaoh and interceded with the LORD.
31The LORD did as Moses had promised; he removed the swarms from Pharaoh, his courtiers, and his people; not one was left.
32But once again Pharaoh became obdurate and would not let the people go.