Chapter 11 Plague

Then, disaster struck again. Swarms of flies buzzed over the country, spreading disease, spoiling the food of the Egyptians, and killing many. Pharaoh compromised, and he suggested to Moses that the Jews could live in the desert for a few days and sacrifice to God in their own way.If they can come back immediately after the sacrifice, they can be given a few days off. Moses exterminated the flies, and Pharaoh rejoiced to be rid of this nightmare, but once the last fly was exterminated, Pharaoh stopped talking about his promise. Disaster strikes again. All the cattle in Egypt got a strange disease and died one after another. There was no fresh beef on the market, and Pharaoh still refused.

Then came a plague, and the men and women of Egypt were so full of festering boils that the doctors could do nothing. Then another disaster, hailstorm wiped out the crops in the fields. Another calamity struck when lightning struck the storehouse, consuming all the flax and seeds for the coming year. The disaster came again, and the locusts suddenly appeared, and in just one day, they ate up all the leaves and bushes in the country.Not a single leaf remains. Plague Pharaoh was now frightened, and he summoned Moses, agreeing to let the Jews go, but to keep the children hostage. Moses refused, saying that his people must go with their children or they would not go.

Disaster struck again. A sandstorm came from the desert, flying sand and rocks, and the whole of Egypt was in darkness for three days. Pharaoh hurriedly invited Moses and swore: "I will let your people go, but the sheep will stay." Moses said, "We will take the children, the sheep, and all the possessions," and he went away. The disaster came again, and all the firstborn sons of the Egyptians died. The Jews were warned and escaped the catastrophe.They all put a mark on the door of their house with the blood of a lamb, and when the angel of death descended upon this unfortunate nation by the command of the Lord, whenever he found the mark of the blood of the lamb, he went "across" the house of the sons of Abraham. .

Pharaoh finally realized that he faced an irresistible opponent.He no longer detains the Jews, instead, he wants Moses to take his people away quickly so that this disaster can end. That evening the tribes of Reuben, Levi, Judah, Simeon, Issachar, Zebulun, Naphtali, Gad, Aaron, Ephraim, and Manasseh ate the last of their a dinner.Then they took the flock back to their hometown on the banks of the Jordan River. Angered by the death of their eldest son, Pharaoh broke his promise once again and personally led an army in pursuit of these fugitives. He wanted to capture them all and avenge the innocent people who had died violently.

After chasing to the Red Sea, they saw the Jewish procession.But a thick fog (which Moses believed to be Yahweh himself) blocked the Egyptian soldiers from seeing where the Jews were going.In the early morning, Moses ordered the waters to part ways, and all the tribes passed through the sea without leaving a single person behind. When the cloud and mist cleared, Pharaoh saw the Jewish team climbing up the steep slope on the opposite bank, and he jumped into the sea first.However, the sea suddenly recovered.Under the impact of the huge waves, Pharaoh and his army were all swallowed up by the sea.

No one came out alive to report. The Jews went into the desert and they were free.But they still have to wander in the desert for a full forty years.