The Plague of Hail
Exodus 9:22-26 (NIV)
INTRODUCTION
Then, the LORD said to Moses, "Stretch out your hand toward the sky so that hail will fall all over Egypt—on people and animals and on everything growing in the fields of Egypt." 23When Moses stretched out his staff toward the sky, the LORD sent thunder and hail, and lightning flashed down to the ground. So the LORD rained hail on the land of Egypt; 24hail fell, and lightning flashed back and forth. It was the worst storm in all the land of Egypt since it had become a nation. 25Throughout Egypt h IV. PHARAOH'S CAPITULATION (vers. 27, 28). The supernatural concomitants of this appalling visitation so unnerved the king that he was induced again to send for Moses. He did not yield till the plague was on the land, only then because he could not help it. The terms in which he makes his submission show,
1. His undisguised terror.
2. His thorough conviction that he was in the hands of the God of the whole earth. Pharaoh had by this time had a course of instruction in the "evidence," which left no room for further doubt. The most striking feature in his submission, however, is,
3. His confession of sin. "I have sinned this time; the Lord is righteous, and my people and I are wicked" (ver. 27). It was good that Pharaoh should be brought to see that it was a righteous demand he was resisting and that he was inexcusable in resisting it. At least the plagues had forced him to acknowledge this much, and it gave his hardening a graver character when he retracted his word. Nevertheless, the superficiality of repentance is very obvious. "I have sinned this time;" there is no good sense of the sin he had been guilty of here. False repentances have their root in superficial views of sin. They may be produced by terror, under compulsion, but no real change of heart accompanies them; renewed hardening is their only possible outcome. "As for thee and thy servants, I know that ye will not yet fear the Lord God"(ver. 30).
JUDGMENT TEMPERED WITH MERCY.
1. God's mercy in connection with this plague is conspicuous.
2. Sparing the wheat and rye (vers. 31, 32).
3. In removing the plague at the request of Pharaoh, presented through Moses (vers. 28, 29). The hail struck everything in the fields—both people and animals; it beat down everything growing in the fields and stripped every tree. 26The only place it did not hail was the land of Goshen, where the Israelites were. What woeful havoc this hail made! It killed both men and cattle; the corn above ground was destroyed, and only the seed below ground was preserved; however, the land of Goshen was spared. God causes rain or hail on one city, not another, in mercy or judgment.
Pharaoh humbled himself before Moses. No man could have spoken better: he admits he is wrong and confesses that the Lord is righteous and that God must be right when He speaks, though he speaks in thunder and lightning. However, his heart was hardened all this while. Moses pleads with God: though he had reason to think Pharaoh would repent of his repentance and told him so, he promises to be his friend. Moses went out of the city, notwithstanding the hail and lightning which kept Pharaoh and his servants within doors. Peace with God makes men thunder-proof. Pharaoh was frightened by the tremendous judgment, but his promises were forgotten when that was over. Those that are not bettered by judgments and mercies commonly become worse.
COMMENTARY
22. Then, the LORD said to Moses, "Stretch out your hand toward the sky so that hail will fall all over Egypt—on people and animals and on everything growing in the fields of Egypt."
Which as yet had not come upon people and animals —upon those men presumed to continue in the field after this admonition. The Lord rained hail upon the land of Egypt [23] — This was more extraordinary because rain seldom falls in Egypt and some parts of the country. Furthermore, snow and hail are rare, the climate not being so cold as to produce them. Sometimes, however, they do fall, as is implied in the next verse and is attested by eye-witnesses.
Moses stretched forth his rod. In the last set of three plagues, the earthly agent was Moses (Exodus 9:10; Exodus 10:13, 22), whose timidity seems to have worn off as time went on, and he became accustomed to putting himself forward.
Thunder and hail. Thunder had not been predicted, but it is a common accompaniment of a hailstorm, the change of temperature produced by the discharge of electricity was no doubt conducive to the formation of hailstones. Some very peculiar electrical display seems to be intended - something corresponding to the phenomena called "fireballs," where the electric fluid does not merely flash momentarily but remains for several seconds or even minutes before it disappears. The lightning (here called fire) ran along upon the ground.
23. When Moses stretched out his staff toward the sky, the LORD sent thunder and hail, and lightning flashed down to the ground. So the LORD rained hail on the land of Egypt;
Though Pharaoh feared the word of the Lord, he had no regard for it. Due forewarning, it appears, had been publicly given of the impending tempest—the cattle seem to have been sent out to graze, which is from January to April when pasturage can be obtained. Accordingly, the cattle were in the fields. This storm struck universal terror in the people's minds but occasioned the destruction of people and cattle which, in neglect of the warning, had been left in the fields with all vegetation [Ex 9:25]. It was more appalling because hailstones in Egypt are small and of little force; lightning is scarcely ever known to produce fatal effects and to enhance the wonder, no trace of any storm was found in Goshen [Ex 9:26].
It does not follow that God would not have preferred to use Pharaoh for his glory in another way than destroying him. This strong image of God's purpose was designed to influence the king for good and appealed to the spark of sense that remained in him; it would have wrought an immediate change in his decisions. In that case, God's method would have undergone a corresponding alteration. For God wills not the death of any sinner (Ezra 18:28-32), and threatenings of this kind, as shown by the situation of the Ninevites, are always conditional (Jonah 4.). At the same time, God's sovereignty is seen in the way in which he utilizes the wicked man whose persistence in his wickedness is foreseen by him. "God might have caused Pharaoh to be born in a cabin, where his proud obstinacy would have been displayed with no less self-will, but without any historical consequence; on the other hand, he might have placed on the throne of Egypt at that time a weak, easy-going man, who would have yielded at the first shock. What would have happened? Pharaoh would not have been less arrogant and perverse in his high position, but Israel would have gone forth from Egypt without exuberance. God did not, therefore, create the stubborn pride of Pharaoh as it were to gain a point of resistance and reflect his glory; he was content to use it for this purpose."
Verse 15 should probably be translated, "For now indeed had I stretched forth my hand, and smitten thee and thy people with the pestilence, thou hadst then been cut off from the earth;" and then ver. 16 will give why God had not cut Pharaoh off but had "made him stand" that he might show forth in him his power.
The excellent advice given by Moses to the king, to secure the men and cattle that were in the field, i.e., to put them under shelter, which was followed by the God-fearing Egyptians (Exodus 9:21), was a sign of divine mercy, which would still rescue the hardened man and save him from destruction. Even in Pharaoh's case, the possibility still existed of submission to the will of God; the hardening was not yet complete. However, as he paid no heed to the word of the Lord, the predicted judgment was fulfilled (Exodus 9:22-26). "Jehovah gave voices"; called "voices of God" in Exodus 9:28. This term is applied to the thunder (cf. Exodus 19:16; Exodus 20:18; Psalm 29:3-9) as being the mightiest manifestation of the omnipotence of God, which speaks therein to men (Revelation 10:3-4), and warns them of the terrors of judgment. These terrors were heightened by masses of fire (lightning), which came down from the sky, and the hail that smote man and beast in the field destroyed the vegetables and shattered the trees. " The fire ran along upon the ground—fire walked earthwards. Kalisch and Knobel understand this as mere ordinary lightning, but Aben-Ezra, Canon Cook, and others think that the phenomenon was such as our Version well expresses. There is no doubt that the electric fluid occasionally takes a form that has something of permanency, continuing for several seconds, or even minutes, either stationary or in slow motion. Appearances of this kind have been called "fireballs" and indicate an excessive electrical disturbance involving great peril to life and property. If the expression "fire walked earthwards" does not imply anything of this kind, the peculiar phrase of Exodus 9:24 would seem to do so.
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24. hail fell, and lightning flashed back and forth. It was the worst storm in all the land of Egypt since it had become a nation.
Fire mingled with the hail; lit., collected together, i.e., formed into balls (cf. Ezekiel 1:4). "The lightning took the form of balls of fire, which came down like burning torches." A fire enveloping itself amid the hail. Which strange mixture much increased the miracle. The Hebrew is fire infolding or catching itself among the hail; "One flash of lightning, "taking hold on another, and so the flames, infolding themselves, increased and burned more terribly."
Hail fell, and lightning flashed back and forth. It was the worst storm in all the land of Egypt since it had become a nation. It was the more extraordinary, as rain seldom falls in Egypt, and some parts of the country are scarcely known. Furthermore, snow and hail are still rare, the climate not being so cold as to produce them. Sometimes, however, they do fall, as is implied in the next verse and is attested by eye-witnesses. That God places wicked men in positions in which their true character is manifested, and his power and righteousness are glorified in their judgment.
That this is not the primary desire of God concerning any wicked man, he would prefer his conversion. Suppose it is urged that the situations in which men are placed are not always those most favorable to their conversion. In that case, this may be conceded. However, they are not placed in these positions arbitrarily but under a system of administration that regards each individual not simply as an end in himself but as a means to a higher end, the carrying forward of the world's purpose as a whole. God cannot deal with the individual as if there were no such thing as history, if that individual constituted the total of humanity, or if his salvation were the only and the all-ruling consideration in the arrangement of the world. God disposes of the evil of the world, decrees the lines and directions of its developments, the persons in whom, and the situations under which it will be permitted to reveal and concentrate, but he neither creates the evil nor delights in it and is all the while working for its final and effectual overthrow. No situation in which God places man necessitates him to be evil.
The sinner's evil is his own, and his ruin is self-wrought. This is shown - notably in the case of Pharaoh - by the fact that God's dealings with him are tailored to change him if he is changed (Matthew 23:37).
A PLAGUE WITH APPALLING ATTENDANT CIRCUMSTANCES (verse 18:23-26). Like many of its predecessors, this plague was severe (ver. 24), destructive in its effects (ver. 25), and Distinguished in its range. It spared the land of Goshen (ver. 26). But the peculiar circumstance connected with it - that which marked it as the first of a new order of plagues – was Its combination.
25. Throughout Egypt, the hail struck everything in the fields—both people and animals; it beat down everything growing in the fields and stripped every tree.
The Lord rained hail upon the land of Egypt — The damage that hail can do to crops is well known and has given us a particular form of protection. Such a storm, as described here, would necessarily have destroyed all vegetation more than a few inches high and must have significantly injured shrubs and fruit trees. (See Exodus 9:25; Exodus 9:31.). The hail brake every tree of the field.—What is meant is not that the hail "brake the mightiest trees to fragments," but that it broke off the slight boughs and twigs, so damaging the trees and, if they were fruit-trees, destroying the prospect of fruit.
The great destruction of men and beasts is attributed to the hail and not to the lightning. Such lightning, however, as is spoken of, would probably kill some. According to the warning (ver. 19), the herders and cattle left in the open air and not brought into the sheds were killed. The hail smote every herb of the field. Even in our temperate climate, which is free from all atmospheric extremes, hailstorms occasionally do so much damage to crops that it has been found desirable to organize special insurance against loss from this cause. As described in the text, such hail would significantly injure every crop many inches above the soil and entirely destroy such as had gone to ear, i.e., everything growing in the fields.
The expressions "every herb" and "every tree" are not to be taken, just as in Exodus 9:6, as we may see from Exodus 10:5. Storms are not common in Lower or Middle Egypt, but they occur most frequently between December and April. Hail sometimes accompanies them, though not with great severity. In themselves, therefore, thunder, lightning, and hail were not unheard of. They also came at the time of year when they usually occur, namely, when the cattle were in the field, i.e., between January and April, the only period in which cattle are turned out for pasture. The supernatural character of this plague was manifested, not only in its being predicted by Moses and in the exemption of the land of Goshen, but more especially in the terrible fury of the hailstorm, which made a stronger impression upon Pharaoh than all the previous plagues. For he sent for Moses and Aaron and confessed to them, "I have sinned this time: Jehovah is righteous; my people and I are the sinners" (Exodus 9:27.). But the very limitation "this time" showed that his repentance did not go very deep and that his confession was far more the effect of terror caused by the majesty of God, which was manifested in the fearful thunder and lightning, than a genuine acknowledgment of his guilt. This is apparent also from the words which follow: "Pray to Jehovah for me, and let it be enough, as in Genesis 45:28, of the being of the voices of God and the hail;" i.e., there has been enough thunder and hail, they may cease now.
26. The only place it did not hail was the land of Goshen, where the Israelites were.
In the land of Goshen, there was no hail — It seems the Egyptians that dwelt there were spared for the sake of their neighbors, the Israelites, which significant obligation probably made them more ready to give them their jewels (Exodus 12:35).
Only in the land of Goshen, where the children of Israel were, was there no hail. So that such Egyptians as might dwell among them, they, their servants, cattle, and fruits, escaped this plague; often, wicked men fare better for the people of God among them.
PHARAOH'S CAPITULATION (vers. 27, 28).
The supernatural accompaniments of this appalling visitation so unnerved the king that he was induced again to send for Moses. He did not yield till the plague was on the land, only then because he could not help it. The terms in which he makes his submission show,
1. His undisguised terror.
2. His thorough conviction that he was in the hands of the God of the whole earth. Pharaoh had by this time had a course of instruction in the "evidence," which left no room for further doubt. The most striking feature in his submission, however, is,
3. His confession of sin. "I have sinned this time; the Lord is righteous, and my people and I are wicked" (ver. 27). It was good that Pharaoh should be brought to see that it was a righteous demand he was resisting, and that he was inexcusable in resisting it. At least the plagues had forced him to acknowledge this much, and it gave his hardening a graver character when he retracted his word. However, the superficiality of repentance is very obvious. "I have sinned this time;" there is no good sense of the sin he had been guilty of here. False repentances have their root in superficial views of sin. They may be produced by terror, under compulsion; but no real change of heart accompanies them; and renewed hardening is their only possible outcome. "As for thee and thy servants, I know that ye will not yet fear the Lord God"(ver. 30).
JUDGMENT TEMPERED WITH MERCY.
• God's mercy in connection with this plague is conspicuous.
• In sparing the wheat and rye (vers. 31, 32).
• In removing the plague at the request of Pharaoh, they are presented through Moses (vers. 28, 29).
