Exodus 8:6

8:1-15 Pharaoh is plagued with frogs; their vast numbers made them sore plagues to the Egyptians. God could have plagued Egypt with lions, or bears, or wolves, or with birds of prey, but he chose to do it by these despicable creatures. God, when he pleases, can arm the smallest parts of the creation against us. He thereby humbled Pharaoh. They should neither eat, nor drink, nor sleep in quiet; but wherever they were, they should be troubled by the frogs. God's curse upon a man will pursue him wherever he goes, and lie heavy upon him whatever he does. Pharaoh gave way under this plague. He promises that he will let the people go. Those who bid defiance to God and prayer, first or last, will be made to see their need of both. But when Pharaoh saw there was respite, he hardened his heart. Till the heart is renewed by the grace of God, the thoughts made by affliction do not abide; the convictions wear off, and the promises that were given are forgotten. Till the state of the air is changed, what thaws in the sun will freeze again in the shade.

And Aaron stretched out his hand over the waters of Egypt,.... That is, towards the waters of the Nile, and towards all places where any water was; for it was not possible he could stretch out his hand over all the waters that were in every place: and the frogs came and covered the land of Egypt: they came up at once, and in such multitudes everywhere, that the whole land was full of them; this was done on the twenty fifth of Adar, or February, the same day the former plague ceased; so Artapanus (s), the Heathen historian says, that Moses by his rod produced frogs, locusts, and lice. And the story which Heraclides Lembus (t) tells seems to be hammered out of this account of Moses, that in Paeonia and Dardania such a number of frogs fell from heaven, as filled the public roads and private houses; at first the inhabitants killed them, and keeping their houses shut, bore it patiently some time; but when it signified nothing, and their household goods were covered with them, and they found them boiled and roasted with their food, and lay in such heaps that they could not tread for them, and were so distressed with the smell of the dead ones, they forsook their country. (s) Apud Euseb. ut supra. (Praepar. Evangel. l. 9. c. 27. p. 425.) (t) Apud Athenaei Deipnosophist. l. 8. c. 2.

(20) His sons. —Only one had been mentioned previously, viz., Gershom ( Exodus 2:22 ), unless we accept the Vulgate addition to that place. But another had been recently born to him. Set them upon an ass.—Heb., upon the ass, i.e., cither “upon his ass,” or, according to some, “upon asses.” The singular of a substantive with the article is sometimes used for the genus (Genesis 15:11). He returned.—Rather, set out to return (ἐπέστρεψεν, LXX.). The rod of God.—An emphatic phrase. God’s endowment of the rod with miraculous power had made it “the rod of God.” It was the instrument by means of which most of the plagues and the other miracles were wrought (Exodus 7:20; Exodus 8:6; Exodus 8:17; Exodus 9:23; Exodus 10:13; Exodus 14:16; Exodus 17:5; Numbers 20:9; &c).

CHAPTER 8 Ex 8:1-15. Plague of Frogs. 1. the Lord spake unto Moses, Go unto Pharaoh—The duration of the first plague for a whole week must have satisfied all that it was produced not by any accidental causes, but by the agency of omnipotent power. As a judgment of God, however, it produced no good effect, and Moses was commanded to wait on the king and threaten him, in the event of his continued obstinacy, with the infliction of a new and different plague. As Pharaoh's answer is not given, it may be inferred to have been unfavorable, for the rod was again raised.God sends Moses to Pharaoh that he might let the people go, Exodus 8:1. He threatens his denial with a judgment of frogs, Exodus 8:2-4. Aaron stretching forth his rod, Egypt is covered with frogs, Exodus 8:6. The magicians do so, Exodus 8:7. Pharaoh calls Moses and Aaron to entreat the Lord to remove the frogs, and promises them to let them go, Exodus 8:8. Moses and Aaron cry to the Lord to take away the frogs, Exodus 8:12; which he did, Exodus 8:13. Pharaoh’s heart still hardened, Exodus 8:15. Aaron stretching forth his rod smites the dust, which becomes lice, Exodus 8:17. The magicians attempt the same, but could not, Exodus 8:18; which extorted a confession from them that this is the finger of God, yet Pharaoh is hardened, Exodus 8:19. Swarms of flies threatened, Exodus 8:20-23. God fulfills his word, Exodus 8:24. Pharaoh sends for Moses and Aaron, and permits a sacrifice in Egypt, Exodus 8:25.

The plague of Frogs, or the second plague, also proceeded from the Nile, and had its natural origin in the putridity of the slimy Nile water, whereby the marsh waters especially became filled with thousands of frogs. צפרדּע is the small Nile frog, the Dofda of the Egyptians, called rana Mosaica or Nilotica by Seetzen, which appears in large numbers as soon as the waters recede. These frogs (הצּפרדּע in Exodus 8:6 , used collectively) became a penal miracle from the fact that they came out of the water in unparalleled numbers, in consequence of the stretching out of Aaron's staff over the waters of the Nile, as had been foretold to the king, and that they not only penetrated into the houses and inner rooms ("bed-chamber"), and crept into the domestic utensils, the beds (מטּה), the ovens, and the kneading-troughs (not the "dough" as Luther renders it), but even got upon the men themselves.

[Bible] 7:24. And all the Egyptians dug round about the river for water to drink; for they could not drink of the water of the river. 7:25. And seven days were fully ended, after that the Lord struck the river. Exodus Chapter 8 The second plague is of frogs: Pharao promiseth to let the Israelites go, but breaketh his promise. The third plague is of sciniphs. The fourth is of flies. Pharao again promiseth to dismiss the people, but doth it not. 8:1. And the Lord said to Moses: Go in to Pharao, and thou shalt say to him: Thus saith the Lord: Let my people go to sacrifice to me. 8:2. But if thou wilt not let them go, behold I will strike all thy coasts with frogs. 8:3. And the river shall bring forth an abundance of frogs; which shall come up and enter into thy house, and thy bedchamber, and upon thy bed, and into the houses of thy servants, and to thy people, and into thy ovens, and into the remains of thy meats: 8:4. And the frogs shall come in to thee, and to thy people, and to all thy servants. 8:5. And the Lord said to Moses: Say to Aaron: Stretch forth thy hand upon the streams, and upon the rivers and the pools, and bring forth frogs upon the land of Egypt. 8:6. And Aaron stretched forth his hand upon the waters of Egypt, and the frogs came up, and covered the land of Egypt. 8:7. And the magicians also, by their enchantments, did in like manner, and they brought forth frogs upon the land of Egypt. 8:8. But Pharao called Moses and Aaron, and said to them: Pray ye to the Lord to take away the frogs from me and from my people; and I will let the people go to sacrifice to the Lord. Pray ye to the Lord, etc... By this it appears, that though the magicians, by the help of the devil, could bring frogs, yet they could not take them away: God being pleased to abridge in this the power of Satan. So we see they could not afterwards produce the lesser insects; and in this restraint of the power of the devil, were forced to acknowledge the finger of God.