22. Disaster Strikes Egypt

But the Pharaoh didn't Relieve a word of Moses and Aron. And he made the Israelites suffer more.

God sent Moses and Aaron again to warn Pharaoh that he must let the people of Israel go free. Aaron threw down the long stick which Moses had brought with him and it turned into a snake. The king ordered his sorcerers to throw down their rods as well. All the rods turned into snakes, but Aaron's snake swallowed them.

The miracle only made the king more stubborn. He refused again to let the Israelites leave. Again God spoke to Moses: "Tell Aaron to wave his rod over the rivers of Egypt." He did, and the rivers turned to blood.

The king's sorcerers could do nothing to change the water back. Then the Lord sent frogs jumping out of the nasty water. They covered the city. Pharaoh called for Moses and Aaron and promised to do as they asked if they would get rid of the frogs. The next day all the frogs were dead. When Pharaoh saw that he refused to let the people go.

This time God commanded Aaron to wave the stick over the earth. Tiny lice began to crawl out of the ground and onto the people. Then God sent biting flies to swarm the city. Disease killed all the cattle. Ashes fell from the sky onto the people's skin and caused terrible sores to break out all over them. Hailstones and giant storms destroyed all the crops.

Before each plague, God sent Moses and Aaron to the king. But after each plague, the king still refused to free the Israelites. He would not believe God's power.

The Lord sent a mighty wind from the east over the country of Egypt. It carried thousands of locusts that fed on every plant that lived. Next, he made a terrible darkness come over the land. For three days, it was so dark no one could see anything.

The king called to Moses once more. "You may go but leave all your herds and flocks behind," he told him.

"When we go, we will take all that is ours with us," Moses told him.

"No," yelled Pharaoh. "Go and do not ever see me again."

Moses knew that the Lord was going to deliver one last punishment.

God said to Moses, "At midnight I will go out into the land of Egypt and every firstborn son in all the homes will die. Even the Pharaoh's firstborn son will not be spared. There will be a great sorrow throughout Egypt."

"The Israelites will be kept safe from all of this and will not be harmed," Moses said to Pharaoh. "Then you will see how the Lord looks after his people."

Pharaoh was as stubborn as ever, so Aaron and Moses left him to go out and do what God had told them.

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