Exodus 9:34

9:22-35 Woful havoc this hail made: it killed both men and cattle; the corn above ground was destroyed, and that only preserved which as yet was not come up. The land of Goshen was preserved. God causes rain or hail on one city and not on another, either in mercy or in judgment. Pharaoh humbled himself to Moses. No man could have spoken better: he owns himself wrong; he owns that the Lord is righteous; and God must be justified when he speaks, though he speaks in thunder and lightning. Yet his heart was hardened all this while. Moses pleads with God: though he had reason to think Pharaoh would repent of his repentance, and he told him so, yet 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 when that was over, his fair promises were forgotten. Those that are not bettered by judgments and mercies, commonly become worse.

And when Pharaoh saw that the rain, and the hail, and the thunders were ceased,.... And there was a clear sky and a fine serene heaven, the black clouds were dispersed and gone, and he heard no more the clattering of the hailstones, and the terrible claps of thunder, and saw no more the flashes of lightning, but all was calm and composed: he sinned yet more, and hardened his heart, he and his servants; instead of giving glory to God, who had heard the prayers of Moses and Aaron for them, and had delivered them from their frights and fears, and the terror and horror they were in, and of letting the people of Israel go, see Revelation 16:21.

(34) Pharaoh . . . sinned yet more, and hardened his heart. —As Pharaoh had never been so much moved previously, so it now required a greater effort of his will to “harden his heart” than it had ever done before; and thus he now “sinned yet more” than he had as yet sinned. It seems strange that the mercy of God should still have allowed him one other chance ( Exodus 10:3-6 ).

Verse 34. - He sinned yet more, and hardened his heart . Altogether there are three different Hebrew verbs, which our translators have rendered by "harden," or "hardened" - kabad , qashah , and khazaq. The first of these, which occurs in Exodus 7:14 ; Exodus 8:15, 32 ; Exodus 9:7 and 34, is the weakest of the three, and means to be "dull" or "heavy," rather than "to be hard." The second, which appears in Exodus 7:3 , and Exodus 13:15, is a stronger term, and means "to be hard," or, in the Hiphil, "to make hard." But the third has the most intensive sense, implying fixed and stubborn resolution. It occurs in Exodus 4:21 ; Exodus 7:22 ; Exodus 8:19 ; Exodus 9:35 ; and elsewhere. He and his servants. Pharaoh's "servants," i.e. the officers of his court, still, it would seem, upheld the king in his impious and mad course, either out of complaisance, or because they were really not yet convinced of the resistless might of Jehovah. After the eighth plague, we shall find their tone change ( Exodus 10:7 ). Ver 35. - As the Lord had spoken by Moses . Compare Exodus 3:19 ; Exodus 4:21 ; and Exodus 7:3, 4 Exodus 9:34

34 . hardened his heart ] made his heart stubborn (lit. heavy ), J’s regular word: see on Exodus 7:13 . 35 (E). was hardened ] waxed strong (or firm ), the word used by E: cf. Exodus 10:20 ; Exodus 10:27 , Exodus 4:21 b. as Jehovah had spoken ] This is P’s formula ( Exodus 7:13 ; Exodus 7:22 , Exodus 8:15 ; Exodus 8:19 , Exodus 9:12 ): the clause was probably added here, on the basis of the passages quoted, by the compiler who combined JE with P. by the hand of Moses . Moses is never said to have foretold what is here referred to him: in Exodus 9:12 ‘ unto Moses’ is said, which agrees with Exodus 7:3 f. Perhaps the words are intended as a reference to v. 30. Thunder and hail are not common in Egypt: nevertheless they occur occasionally. Different travellers (see Di., or DB. iii. 891) speak of storms of heavy rain, hail, or thunder in Egypt occurring during the winter months; and Sayce ( EHH. 169) states that in the spring of 1895 a violent storm of thunder and hail swept along the valley of the Nile and desolated 3000 acres of cultivated land. Vv. 31 f. shew that the plague took place in Jan., or thereabouts; and with this date agrees the statement in v. 19 that the cattle were at the time in the fields, for the cattle in Egypt are from Jan. to April on their pastures, while from May to Dec. they are commonly kept in their stalls.

13 . was hardened ] Heb. was strong . One of the three synonyms used in Ex. to express the idea of hardening of the heart: the three being (1) ḥâzaḳ, ḥizzçḳ , lit. to be and to make strong (i.e. firm, hard, unyielding , cf. Ezekiel 3:7-9 Heb.), used by P ( Exodus 7:13 ; Exodus 7:22 , Exodus 8:19 , Exodus 9:12 , Exodus 11:10 , Exodus 14:4 ; Exodus 14:8 ; Exodus 14:17 ), and E ( Exodus 4:21 , Exodus 9:35 , Exodus 10:20 ; Exodus 10:27 ); (2) kâbçd, hikbîd , lit. to be and to make heavy (i.e. slow to move or be affected, unimpressionable , cf. of the tongue, Exodus 4:10 ), used by J ( Exodus 7:14 , Exodus 8:15 ; Exodus 8:32 , Exodus 9:7 ; Exodus 9:34 , Exodus 10:1 ); and (3) hiḳshâh , which is properly rendered, to harden (cf. the cognate adj. of the neck, Exodus 32:9 al. ), only Exodus 7:3 (P). (1) and (2) are always distinguished in RV. of Ex. by a marg. In these passages, Pharaoh’s heart is itself said to be hard in Exodus 7:13-14 ; Exodus 7:22 , Exodus 8:19 , Exodus 9:7 ; Exodus 9:35 ; Pharaoh is said to harden it himself in Exodus 8:15 ; Exodus 8:32 , Exodus 9:34 ; and God is said to harden it in Exodus 4:21 , Exodus 7:3 , Exodus 9:12 , Exodus 10:1 ; Exodus 10:20 ; Exodus 10:27 , Exodus 11:10 , Exodus 14:4 ; Exodus 14:8 (cf. 17). See further the detached note below. and he hearkened not to them, as Jehovah had spoken ] P’s closing formula (p. 55), as v. 22, Exodus 8:15 b, 19, Exodus 9:12 . Had spoken , see v. 4a.

31, 32. the flax and the barley was smitten, &c.—The peculiarities that are mentioned in these cereal products arise from the climate and physical constitution of Egypt. In that country flax and barley are almost ripe when wheat and rye (spelt) are green. And hence the flax must have been "bolled"—that is, risen in stalk or podded in February, thus fixing the particular month when the event took place. Barley ripens about a month earlier than wheat. Flax and barley are generally ripe in March, wheat and rye (properly, spelt) in April.

CHAPTER 34 Ex 34:1-35. The Tables Are Renewed. 1. the like unto the first—God having been reconciled to repentant Israel, through the earnest intercession, the successful mediation of Moses, means were to be taken for the restoration of the broken covenant. Intimation was given, however, in a most intelligible and expressive manner, that the favor was to be restored with some memento of the rupture; for at the former time God Himself had provided the materials, as well as written upon them. Now, Moses was to prepare the stone tables, and God was only to retrace the characters originally inscribed for the use and guidance of the people.God commands Moses to hew two tables of stone like the former, wherein he promises to write, Exodus 34:1. Moses goes with these tables up to the mount, Exodus 34:4. God descends in a cloud, Exodus 24:5. He proclaims his name, Exodus 34:6,7. Moses worships, Exodus 34:8,9. God making a covenant with the people, commands them not to make a covenant with their enemies, Exodus 34:10-12; bids them beware of molten gods, Exodus 34:13-17. The feast of unleavened bread, Exodus 34:18. To rest on the sabbath day, Exodus 34:21. Other laws, Exodus 34:22-26. Moses wrote these words, Exodus 34:27. The time of Moses’s abode on the mount. Exodus 34:28. Moses’s face shining, Exodus 34:29, is covered, Exodus 34:33-35. He acquaints the people with what the Lord told him, Exodus 34:31,32.