The Pulpit Commentary — Exodus — Volume 1 — Section 234

had been hitherto free from the ~conrge. Re household, not "little ones." See Ex. i. I.) turned himaelf and went out. Moses did not Look to it; for evil is before you. Or, "Look wait to learn what effect his announcement to it; for you have evil in view." Beware, would have. He " knew " the.t Pharaoh would i.e., of what you are about. You entertain not fear the Lord. (Sec eh. ix. 30.) the evil design of robbing me of mv slnvcs- Ver. 7.-And Pharaoh'& servants said unto n design which I shall not allow you to carry him. This marks quite e. new ph88e in the out. There is no direct threat, only an in- 1iroceedings. Hitherto the courtiers generally direct one, implied in "Look to it." had been dumb. Once the magicians had Ver. 11.-Go now ye that are men. Or, Yentured to sa:,--" This is the finger of God" "ye that are adult males." The word is ( eh. ,·iii. 19): but otherwise the entire court different from that used in ver. 7, which in- had been passive, and left the king to himself. cludes women and children. And serve the The,· are even said to h1ive "hardened their Lord ; for that ye did desire. Pharaoh seems h~" like him (eh. ix. 34). But now at to argue that the request to "serve the Lord " la..st thev break their silence and interfere. implied the departure of the men only, as if Ra '<'ing iost most of their cattle, and a large women and children could not offer an accep- part of the year's crops, the great men became table service. Bnt he must have known that alarmed-they were 1arge landed' proprietors, women and children attended his own national and the destruction of the wheat and doora festivals. (See the comment on ver. 9.) crops would seriously impoverish, if not Proba.bly, he knew that his argument was actW!.lly ruin them. Moreover, it is to be sophistical. And they were driven out, noted that they interfere before the plague Literally, "One drove them out." Pharaoh's has begun, when it is simply threatened, manifest displeasure W88 an indication to the which shows that they had come to believe in court officials that he wished the interview the power of Moses. Snch a belief on the ended, and as the brothers did not at once part of some had appeared., when the plague voluntarily quit the presence, an officer thrust of hail W88 threatened ( eh. ix. 20); now it them out. This W88 an insult not previously would seem t.o have become general. A snare offered them, and shows how Pharaoh's rage to 118-i.e. "a peril"-" a source of dll.nger," increOBed as he saw more and more clearly the species being pnt for the genus. that he would have to yield and allow the Ver. 6.-llrloses &nd Aa.ron were brought departure of the entire nation. again 'lllLto Pharaoh. Pharaoh did not con- Ver. 13.-The Lord brought an east wind, descend so far as t.o send for them, but he Locusts generally come with a wind; and, allowed his courtiers t.o bring them to him. indeed, cannot fly far without one. An eOBt And he so far t.ook the advice of his courtiers, wind would in this case have brought them that he began by a general permission to t.he from northern Arabia, which is a tract where Israelites to take their departure. This con- they are often bred in large numbers. Denon, cession, however, he almost immediately re- the French traveller, notes that an enormous tracted by a question, which implied that all cloud of locusts which invaded Egypt during were not to depart. Who a.re they that shall his stay, came from the east. All that day, go 1 It seems somewhat strange that the king The rest of the day on which Moses and Aaron had not yet clearly nnderstood what the had had their interview with the Pharaoh. demand ma.de of him was. But perhaps he Ver. 14.-The loc11Sts went up over all the had not cared to know, since he had had no land of Egypt, and rested in all the coasts of intention of granting it. Egypt. This statement is very emphatic, and Ver. 9.-.A.nd l[oses said, We will go with seems to imply that the plague was more our yomig, &nd with our old. .This irt.ate- widely extended than any that had preceded ment W88 at any rate unambiguous, and no it. Egypt extends about 520 miles from north doubt could henceforth be even pretended as to south, bnt except in the Delta. is not more to what the demand W88. The whole nation, than about 20 miles wide. Columns of locusts wit.h its flocks and herds, was to take its of the length of 500 miles have been noticed departure, since a feast was to be held in by travellers (Moor in Kirby on EntomoT,ogy, which all the nation ought to participate, letter vi. ), and 20 miles is not an nn usual The Egyptians were accnst.omed to the atten- width for them. But such a length and such dJl.nce of children at national festivals (Herod. a breadth are not elsewhere recorded in com- ii. 60). o~tion. 'lhus the v:sita.tion was, in its Ver. 10.-And he 118.id, etc. Phamoh's extent as well as in its circumBtances, plainly reply to the plain statement of Moses ill full of abnormal. scorn and anger, as if he would say-" When Ver. 15.-The land wu ds.rkened. It is was ever so extravagant and outrageous a not quite clear whether the darkness here demand made? How can it be suppOBCd that spoken of was caused by the locusts when I would listen to it? So may Jehovah help they were still on the wing or after they had you, as I will help you in this-to let you go, settled. It ill a fact that the insects come in with your families." (Taph is "family," or such dense clouds that while on the wing they ~a. x. 1-20.] THE llOOK OF EXODUS.