Chapter 10
1Then AO said to Moses, “Go to Pharaoh for I have hardened his heart and the hearts of his officials that I may perform these miraculous signs of Mine among them
2and that you may tell your children and grandchildren how severely I dealt with the Egyptians when I performed miraculous signs among them so that all of you may know that I am AO.”
3So Moses and Aaron went to Pharaoh and [Aaron] told him, “This is what AO the God of the Hebrews says: ‘How long will you refuse to humble yourself before Me? Let My people go so that they may worship Me.
4But if you refuse to let My people go, tomorrow I will bring locusts into your territory.
5They will cover the face of the land so that no one can see [it]. They will devour whatever is left after the hail and eat every tree that grows in your fields.
6They will fill your houses and the houses of all your officials and every Egyptian—something neither your fathers nor your grandfathers have seen since the day they came into this land.’” Then [Moses] turned and left Pharaoh’s presence.
7Pharaoh’s officials asked him, “How long will this man be a snare to us? Let the people go so that they may worship AO their God. Do you not yet realize that Egypt is in ruins?”
8So Moses and Aaron were brought back to Pharaoh; [he] said, “Go worship AO your God. But who exactly will be going?”
9Moses [Aaron] replied, “We will go with our young and old, with our sons and daughters and with our flocks and herds. We will go for [we must hold] a feast to AO.”
10Then [Pharaoh] told them, “May AO be with you. Clearly if I ever let you go with your little ones you are bent on evil.
11No, only the men may go and worship AO since that is what you have been requesting.” And [Moses and Aaron] were driven from Pharaoh’s presence.
12Then AO said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand over the land of Egypt so that the locusts may swarm over it and devour every plant in the land—everything that the hail has left behind.”
13So Moses stretched out his staff over the land of Egypt and throughout that day and night, AO sent an east wind across the land. By morning the east wind had brought the locusts.
14The locusts swarmed across the land and settled over the entire territory of Egypt. Never before had there been so many locusts and never again will there be.
15They covered the face of all the land until [it] was black and they consumed all the plants on the ground and all the fruit on the trees that the hail had left behind. Nothing green was left on any tree or plant in all the land of Egypt.
16Pharaoh quickly summoned Moses and Aaron and said, “I have sinned against AO your God and against you.
17Now please forgive my sin once more and appeal to AO your God that He may remove this death from me.”
18So Moses [and Aaron] left Pharaoh’s presence and [Moses] appealed to AO.
19And AO changed the wind to a very strong west wind that carried off the locusts and blew them into the Red Sea. Not a single locust remained anywhere in Egypt.
20But AO hardened Pharaoh’s heart and he would not let the Israelites go.
21Then AO said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand toward heaven so that darkness may spread over the land of Egypt—a palpable darkness.”
22So Moses stretched out his hand toward heaven and total darkness covered all the land of Egypt for three days.
23No one could see anyone else and for three days no one left his place. Yet all the Israelites had light in their dwellings.
24Then Pharaoh summoned Moses [Aaron] and said, “Go worship AO, even your little ones may go with you, only your flocks and herds must stay behind.”
25But Moses [Aaron] replied, “You must also provide us sacrifices and burnt offerings to present to AO our God.
26Even our livestock must go with us, not a hoof will be left behind, for we will need some of them to worship AO our God and we will not know how we are to worship AO until we arrive.”
27But AO hardened Pharaoh’s heart and he was unwilling to let them go.
28Pharaoh said to [Moses] [Aaron], “Depart from me! Make sure you never see my face again for on the day you see my face you will die.”
29Moses [Aaron] replied, “As you say. I will never see your face again.”