When God gave Moses the instructions for his next meeting with Pharaoh, He added another reason for the great display of His wonders in the plagues: that the Jews might be able to tell the generations to come about the awesome power of their great God.
This purpose was also written into the Passover Feast (12:26–27; 13:8, 14–15). Whether in the family or the local church, it’s good for each new generation to learn and appreciate the way God has worked on behalf of previous generations. Recalling and giving thanks for God’s wonderful deeds is one of the basic themes of the book of Deuteronomy, including what the Lord did to Pharaoh (Deut. 4:34; 7:18–19; 26:5–8; 29:1–3).
Interrogation (Ex. 10:3–11). Three questions summarize this confrontation with Pharaoh. First, Moses and Aaron asked Pharaoh how long he was going to persist in his pride and refuse to humble himself before God. It took a great deal of courage to tell any ancient ruler that he was proud, but especially the king of Egypt who was honored as a god. However, Moses and Aaron knew that the Lord would protect them and fulfill His word. They warned Pharaoh that if he failed to obey, vast swarms of locusts would come into the land and destroy everything that hadn’t already been destroyed by the hailstorm. Moses and Aaron didn’t wait for an answer or another false promise; they delivered their message and walked out of the palace.
The second question came from Pharaoh’s officers, “How long shall this man be a snare to us?” (v. 7) They suggested that Pharaoh had been wrong in not letting the Jews go, and they even dared to remind him that his anti-Jewish policy had ruined the land of Egypt. The officers certainly were brave to talk this boldly to Pharaoh, but the nation was in desperate straits and somebody had to do something. What harm could come from the Jewish people temporarily leaving their work and going on their journey?
Pharaoh summoned Moses and Aaron back to the palace and asked the third question: “Who are the ones that are going?” (v. 8 nasb) Moses made it clear that God wanted everybody to take this three-day journey. This included all the men, women, and children, the young and the old, and also the flocks and herds that would be needed to provide sacrifices for the Lord. Pharaoh offered to let only the men go on the journey, knowing that he could hold their families hostage and guarantee their return to Egypt, but it was a compromise that Moses and Aaron rejected.
In his angry response (vv. 10–11), Pharaoh blasphemed the name of God. Literally, he said, “May the Lord be with you if I ever let you and your children go!” The Living Bible paraphrases it, “In the name of God I will not let you take your little ones!” Pharaoh interpreted their request as an evil plot to secure their freedom from Egyptian bondage. If all the Jewish men left with their families and livestock, they’d never have to return!
That was the end of the interview, and Pharaoh commanded his officers to drive Moses and Aaron out of the palace. As far as he was concerned, he was finished with Moses and Aaron and would never again listen to their messages from the Lord. However, God had other plans, and before long, Pharaoh would again be appealing for deliverance and relief.
Invasion (vv. 12–15). God had seen and heard the entire interview and was prepared to respond to Pharaoh’s blasphemy and disobedience. When Moses lifted his rod toward heaven, God sent an east wind that blew for the rest of that day and all through the night. It brought vast swarms of locusts into the land, and they began to devour all the vegetation that had survived the previous plague (9:32). Since the creatures attacked “all the Egyptians” (10:6), the inference is that Israel escaped this devastating plague.
If vocabulary is any indication of significance, then the locust was a significant creature in the Old Testament world, for there are at least eleven different Hebrew words in Scripture referring to it. The Jews were permitted to eat certain species of locusts (Lev. 11:20–23; Deut. 14:19–20; see Matt. 3:1–4), but for the most part, they hated the creatures because of their ability to strip the vegetation from an area with incredible speed. The Israelites used the locust swarm to describe anything that quickly invaded and devastated their land (Judg. 6:5; 7:12; Isa. 33:4; Jer. 46:23; 51:14, 27), and the prophet Joel compared the locusts to an invading army (Joel 1–2; see Amos 7:1–3).
Intercession (vv. 16–19). If Pharaoh’s officers thought that Egypt was already ruined (v. 7), then what was their opinion of the situation after the locusts arrived? Within a brief time, no vegetation was left anywhere in the land, and the creatures were invading the houses as well as the fields (v. 6). It was the most devastating natural calamity to hit the land of Egypt in all Egyptian history. In destroying the vegetation, God not only left the land bankrupt, but He triumphed over Osiris, the Egyptian god of fertility and crops. He also proved that He had control over the wind.
Once again Pharaoh sought for relief without repentance, and God mercifully granted his request. God proved His greatness by reversing the winds and carrying all the locusts into the Red Sea. Within a short time, He would put Pharaoh’s army into the Red Sea, and then the Israelites would be free to march to their Promised Land.