Exodus 10:1-20
Summary for Exod 10:1-20: 10:1-20 a The eighth plague was the plague of locusts (10:4 b). Evidently enough time had elapsed between this plague and the previous one that the wheat and emmer wheat had sprouted (see 9:32 c). The Egyptian god Osiris was especially revered as the god who descended into the underworld and brought plant life back in the spring. This second, climactic attack on the plant life demonstrated that even Osiris was helpless before the Lord. There is no eternal life in sprouting plants.10:2 d The plagues were sent so that Israel will know that I am the Lord (similarly, with respect to Egypt, see 9:14-16 e).
10:4 f These locusts were not the insects called locusts in North America, but a form of migratory grasshopper. Swarming out of desert regions, they could devastate large areas of land, devouring all the plant life before them.
Summary for Exod 10:7-11: 10:7-11 g The officials, with no royal prestige on the line, were willing to learn the lessons of God’s sovereignty and let the men go. Pharaoh again resisted, in an effort to save face somehow. He would let them go only if they left their families behind and were thus bound to return, but Moses had never said they would return. While the purpose for going into the wilderness was to worship God, it was unthinkable that oppressed slaves would willingly return to their oppressors once they were free, and Pharaoh knew it.
Summary for Exod 10:13-15: 10:13-15 h The miraculous nature of the locust plague was indicated by its timing (when Moses raised his staff) and by its extent and intensity (from one end of the country to the other, and there has never been another one like it). 10:13 i an east wind: The grasshopper swarms came from the Arabian Desert, across the Red Sea to the east.
10:17 j Forgive my sin: Pharaoh’s recognition grew deeper; he admitted that his pride and refusal to keep his word were sins, and he recognized that sin cannot be ignored but must be forgiven. Unfortunately, his correct theological understanding did not in itself change his heart.
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