Exodus 9

NEW JERUSALEM	NEW AMERICAN BIBLE
1 Yahweh then said to Moses, 'Go to Pharaoh and say to him, "Yahweh, God of the Hebrews, says this:Let my people go and worship me.	1 Then the LORD said to Moses, "Go to Pharaoh and tell him: Thus says the LORD, the God of the Hebrews: Let my people go to worship me.
2 If you refuse to let them go and detain them any longer,	2 If you refuse to let them go and persist in holding them,
3 look, the hand of Yahweh wil strike your livestock in the fields, horses, donkeys, camels, oxen andflocks with a deadly plague.	3 I warn you, the LORD will afflict all your livestock in the field--your horses, asses, camels, herds and flocks--with a very severe pestilence.
4 Yahweh wil discriminate between the livestock of Israel and the livestock of Egypt: nothing of whatbelongs to the Israelites will die.	4 But the LORD will distinguish between the livestock of Israel and that of Egypt, so that none belonging to the Israelites will die."
5 Yahweh has fixed the time. Tomorrow, he has said, Yahweh will do this in the country." '	5 And setting a definite time, the LORD added, "Tomorrow the LORD shall do this in the land."
6 Next day Yahweh did this: al the Egyptians' livestock died, but nothing of the livestock owned by theIsraelites died.	6 And on the next day the LORD did so. All the livestock of the Egyptians died, but not one beast belonging to the Israelites.
7 Pharaoh had enquiries made, and found that of the livestock owned by the Israelites not a single beasthad died. But Pharaoh was obstinate and did not let the people go.	7 But though Pharaoh's messengers informed him that not even one beast belonging to the Israelites had died, he still remained obdurate and would not let the people go.
8 Yahweh then said to Moses and Aaron, 'Take handfuls of soot from the kiln, and before Pharaoh's eyeslet Moses throw it in the air.	8 Then the LORD said to Moses and Aaron, "Take a double handful of soot from a furnace, and in the presence of Pharaoh let Moses scatter it toward the sky.
9 It will turn into fine dust over the whole of Egypt and produce boils breaking into sores on man andbeast throughout the whole of Egypt.'	9 It will then turn into fine dust over the whole land of Egypt and cause festering boils on man and beast throughout the land."
10 So they took soot from the kiln and stood in front of Pharaoh, and Moses threw it in the air, and onman and beast it brought out boils breaking into sores.	10 So they took soot from a furnace and stood in the presence of Pharaoh. Moses scattered it toward the sky, and it caused festering boils on man and beast.
11 And the magicians could not compete with Moses in the matter of the boils, for the magicians werecovered with boils like al the other Egyptians.	11 The magicians could not stand in Moses' presence, for there were boils on the magicians no less than on the rest of the Egyptians.
12 But Yahweh made Pharaoh stubborn and, as Yahweh had foretold to Moses, he did not listen to them.	12 But the LORD made Pharaoh obstinate, and he would not listen to them, just as the LORD had foretold to Moses.
13 Yahweh then said to Moses, 'Get up early in the morning and confront Pharaoh. Say to him, "Yahweh,God of the Hebrews, says this: Let my people go and worship me.	13 Then the LORD told Moses, "Early tomorrow morning present yourself to Pharaoh and say to him: Thus says the LORD, the God of the Hebrews: Let my people go to worship me,
14 For this time I am going to inflict al my plagues on you, on your officials and on your subjects, so thatyou wil know that there is no one like me in the whole world.	14 or this time I will hurl all my blows upon you and your servants and your subjects, that you may know that there is none like me anywhere on earth.
15 Had I stretched out my hand to strike you and your subjects with pestilence, you would have beenswept from the earth.	15 For by now I would have stretched out my hand and struck you and your subjects with such pestilence as would wipe you from the earth.
16 But I have let you survive for this reason: to display my power to you and to have my name talked ofthroughout the world.	16 But this is why I have spared you: to show you my power and to make my name resound throughout the earth!
17 Since you take a high hand with my people, refusing to let them go,	17 Will you still block the way for my people by refusing to let them go?
18 very wel , at about this time tomorrow, I shal cause so severe a hail to fal as was never known inEgypt from the day of its foundation until now.	18 I warn you, then, tomorrow at this hour I will rain down such fierce hail as there has never been in Egypt from the day the nation was founded up to the present.
19 So now send word to have your livestock and everything else you own in the fields put under cover.On man or beast, al that happen to be in the fields and are not brought indoors, the hail will fal and they wildie." '	19 Therefore, order all your livestock and whatever else you have in the open fields to be brought to a place of safety. Whatever man or beast remains in the fields and is not brought to shelter shall die when the hail comes upon them."
20 Those of Pharaoh's officials who respected what Yahweh said, brought their slaves and livestockindoors,	20 Some of Pharaoh's servants feared the warning of the LORD and hurried their servants and livestock off to shelter.
21 but those who did not take to heart what Yahweh said left their slaves and livestock in the fields.	21 Others, however, did not take the warning of the LORD to heart and left their servants and livestock in the fields.
22 Yahweh then said to Moses, 'Stretch out your hand towards heaven so that it hails throughout thewhole of Egypt, on man and beast and on everything growing anywhere in Egypt.'	22 The LORD then said to Moses, "Stretch out your hand toward the sky, that hail may fall upon the entire land of Egypt, on man and beast and every growing thing in the land of Egypt."
23 Moses stretched out his staff towards heaven, and Yahweh thundered and rained down hail. Lightningstruck the earth and Yahweh rained down hail on Egypt.	23 But Pharaoh, seeing that the rain and hail and thunder had ceased, sinned again: he with his servants became obdurate,
24 And so there was hail, and lightning accompanied the hail, very severe, such as had never beenknown anywhere in Egypt since it first became a nation.	24 and lightning constantly flashed through the hail, such fierce hail as had never been seen in the land since Egypt became a nation.
25 Al over Egypt the hail struck down everything in the fields, man and beast, and the hail beat downeverything growing in the fields and shattered al the trees in the fields.	25 It struck down every man and beast that was in the open throughout the land of Egypt; it beat down every growing thing and splintered every tree in the fields.
26 The only place where there was no hail was in the Goshen region, where the Israelites lived.	26 Only in the land of Goshen, where the Israelites dwelt, was there no hail.
27 Pharaoh then sent for Moses and Aaron and said, 'This time, I have sinned. Yahweh is in the right; Iand my subjects are in the wrong.	27 Then Pharaoh summoned Moses and Aaron and said to them, "I have sinned again! The LORD is just; it is I and my subjects who are at fault.
28 Pray to Yahweh, for we cannot bear any more of this thunder and hail. I promise to let you go. Youneed stay no longer.'	28 Pray to the LORD, for we have had enough of God's thunder and hail. Then I will let you go; you need stay no longer."
29 Moses said to him, 'The moment I leave the city I shal stretch out my hands to Yahweh. The thunderwil stop, and there wil be no more hail, so that you may know that the earth belongs to Yahweh.	29 Moses replied, "As soon as I leave the city I will extend my hands to the LORD; the thunder will cease, and there will be no more hail. Thus you shall learn that the earth is the LORD'S.
30 But as for you and your officials, I know very wel that you stil have no respect for Yahweh God.'	30 But you and your servants, I know, do not yet fear the LORD God."
31 The flax and the barley were ruined, since the barley was in the ear and the flax in bud,	31 Now the flax and the barley were ruined, because the barley was in ear and the flax in bud.
32 but the wheat and spelt were not destroyed, being late crops.	32 But the wheat and the spelt were not ruined, for they grow later.
33 Moses left Pharaoh and went out of the city. He stretched out his hands to Yahweh and the thunderand hail ceased and the rain stopped pouring down on the earth.	33 When Moses had left Pharaoh's presence and had gone out of the city, he extended his hands to the LORD. Then the thunder and the hail ceased, and the rain no longer poured down upon the earth.
34 When Pharaoh saw that rain and hail and thunder had stopped, he relapsed into sin,
35 and he and his officials became obstinate again. Pharaoh was stubborn and, as Yahweh had foretoldthrough Moses, refused to let the Israelites go.	35 and in his obstinacy he would not let the Israelites go, as the LORD had foretold through Moses.