What were the ten plagues of Egypt?

In the book of Exodus, we read about how the Israelite people became slaves in Egypt. Egypt’s leader was Pharaoh, a cruel and stubborn man. God had chosen Moses to lead the people out of Egypt to the promised land of Canaan.

But Pharaoh wouldn’t let the people go. The Bible records a pattern between Moses and Pharaoh: Moses would warn that God would send a plague – something that would cause trouble or distress – if Pharaoh didn't let the people go. All of the plagues could have been avoided had Pharaoh listened to Moses, God's representative, and freed the Israelites from slavery.

In the first plague, the water in the land became blood. The fish died and the water smelled bad. The Bible says there was blood throughout the land and the Egyptians could not drink from the Nile River or wash in it. (see Exodus 7:21)

The second plague was frogs. Frogs are pretty neat, but THIS many were really annoying – they were everywhere, even inside houses!

The third plague was lice, although some translations say gnats or sand flies. Such insects bite victims and feed on their blood…not a pleasant thought!

The fourth plague was thick swarms of flies throughout Egypt. Imagine going outside and having that many buzzing all around you.

For the fifth plague, the cattle belonging to the Egyptians became diseased and died. Like today, the people depended on livestock for food and other things, so this plague was a real hardship.

The sixth plague brought boils – painful sores – on the animals' and people's bodies.

For the seventh plague, hail rained down from the sky upon all of the Egyptians. Hail is like large pieces of frozen rain. Through Moses, God said that any person or animal left outside would die under the hail.

The eighth plague brought locusts, an insect that always seems to be hungry. They ate all the plants in the land and all the fruit on the trees. There were so many that the ground looked black.

The ninth plague was three days of thick darkness. Imagine nighttime ALL the time. Since the Egyptians couldn’t see anything, it was hard to go anywhere.

The tenth plague was the most serious of all – the firstborn of each Egyptian household died – both human and livestock. Exodus (12:30, CEV) says, “In every Egyptian home, someone was dead.”

So, what were the Ten Plagues of Egypt? A series of ten devastating and difficult consequences due to Pharaoh refusing to free the Israelites from slavery in Egypt.

This video is from Christian Questions Podcast. For more information please go to https://christianquestions.com