Exodus 8

1The LORD said to Moses: Go to Pharaoh and say: The LORD says, Let my people go, so they can worship me.

2If you, Pharaoh, refuse to let them go, I will punish your whole country with frogs.

3The Nile River will swarm with frogs. Frogs will hop into your palace, bedroom, and bed. They will fill your officials' homes and your people's homes. Frogs will even jump into your ovens and bread pans!

4The frogs will jump on you, on your people, and on all your officials.

5The LORD told Moses: Tell Aaron to raise his stick. Hold it over the rivers, streams, and ponds. Make frogs cover the land of Egypt!

6Aaron stretched out his hand over the waters of Egypt, and the frogs came up and covered the whole land.

7The magicians used their secret magic to copy Aaron. More frogs climbed up all over Egypt!

8Then Pharaoh called for Moses and Aaron. He said: Beg the LORD to take the frogs away from me and my people. Then I will let your people go to offer sacrifices to the LORD.

9Moses said to Pharaoh: You may set the time. Tell me when you want me to pray for you, your officials, and your people, so that the frogs will leave you and your houses, and stay only in the river.

10Pharaoh said: Tomorrow. Moses said: It will happen just as you say. Then you will know that there is no one like the LORD our God.

11The frogs will leave you, your houses, your officials, and your people. They will stay only in the river.

12Moses and Aaron left Pharaoh, and Moses cried out to the LORD about the frogs He had brought against Pharaoh.

13The LORD did what Moses asked. The frogs in the houses, the yards, and the fields all died.

14The Egyptians shoveled the rotting frogs into giant piles, and the whole land smelled terrible.

15But when Pharaoh saw that the trouble was over, he made his own heart stubborn again. He would not listen to Moses and Aaron, just as the LORD had said.

16Then the LORD said to Moses: Tell Aaron to stretch out his walking stick and strike the dust on the ground. The dust will turn into gnats through the whole land of Egypt.

17Aaron and Moses did this. Aaron stretched out his hand with his walking stick and struck the dust of the earth. The dust became gnats on people and on animals. All the dust in Egypt turned into gnats.

18The magicians tried to copy Aaron with their secret magic, but they could not make gnats. Gnats covered people and animals everywhere!

19The magicians said to Pharaoh: This is the finger of God! But Pharaoh's heart stayed stubborn. He would not listen to Moses and Aaron, just as the LORD had said.

20The LORD said to Moses: Get up early in the morning and stand in front of Pharaoh when he goes out to the water. Say to him: The LORD says, Let my people go, so they can worship me.

21If you will not let my people go, I will send large swarms of flies on you, your officials, your people, and your houses. The houses of the Egyptians will be full of flies, and even the ground will be covered with them.

22But that day I will treat the land of Goshen differently. My people live there, and no flies will be found in that land. Then you will know that I, the LORD, am here in the middle of the land.

23I will make a clear difference between my people and your people. This sign will happen tomorrow.

24The LORD did this. Thick swarms of flies poured into Pharaoh's palace, into the houses of his officials, and into all the land of Egypt. The whole land was ruined because of the flies.

25Pharaoh called for Moses and Aaron. He said: Go and offer sacrifices to your God here in this land.

26Moses said: That would not be right. The Egyptian people worship cattle as sacred gods. If we sacrifice bulls in front of their eyes, the Egyptians will become furious and throw heavy stones to kill us!

27We must travel three days into the desert and offer sacrifices to the LORD our God, just as He commands us.

28Pharaoh said: I will let you go and offer sacrifices to the LORD your God in the desert. But do not go too far away. Now pray for me.

29Moses said: As soon as I leave you, I will pray to the LORD. Tomorrow the flies will leave Pharaoh, his officials, and his people. But Pharaoh must not trick us again by refusing to let the people go and offer sacrifices to the LORD.

30Moses left Pharaoh and prayed to the LORD.

31The LORD did what Moses asked. He took away the swarms of flies from Pharaoh, his officials, and his people. Not one fly was left.

32But Pharaoh made his heart stubborn again this time too, and he would not let the people go.