Exo 8:5-7 | NETfull | STEP | The Lord spoke to Moses, “Tell Aaron, ‘Extend your hand with your staff over the rivers, over the canals, and over the ponds, and bring the frogs up over the land of Egypt.’”

Exodus 8:5-7

5 The Lord spoke to Moses, “Tell Aaron, ‘Extend your hand with your staff ^{▼▼ After the instructions for Pharaoh (7:25–8:4), the plague now is brought on by the staff in Aaron’s hand (8:5–7). This will lead to the confrontation (vv. 8–11) and the hardening (vv. 12–15).} over the rivers, over the canals, and over the ponds, and bring the frogs up over the land of Egypt.’” 6 So Aaron extended his hand over the waters of Egypt, and frogs ^{▼▼ The noun is singular, a collective. B. Jacob notes that this would be the more natural way to refer to the frogs (Exodus, 260).} came up and covered the land of Egypt.

7 The magicians did the same ^{▼▼ Heb “thus, so.”} with their secret arts and brought up frogs on the land of Egypt too. ^{▼▼ In these first two plagues the fact that the Egyptians could and did duplicate them is ironic. By duplicating the experience, they added to the misery of Egypt. One wonders why they did not use their skills to rid the land of the pests instead, and the implication of course is that they could not.}