1 The Lord told Moses, “Go and speak to Pharaoh. Tell him, ‘This is what the Lord says: Let my people go, so that they can worship me. 2 If you refuse to let them go and keep holding onto them, 3 I will punish you by bringing a very severe plague on your livestock—on your horses, donkeys, camels, herds, and flocks. 4 But the Lord will distinguish between the livestock of the Israelites and the Egyptians, so that none of those belonging to the Israelites will die.’ 5 The Lord has set a time, saying, ‘Tomorrow this is what is going to happen here in the country.’ ”

6 The following day the Lord did what he had said. All the Egyptians' livestock died, but not a single animal belonging to the Israelites died. 7 Pharaoh sent out officials and discovered that not a single one of the Israelites' livestock had died. But Pharaoh was stubborn, and he would not let the people leave.

8 The Lord told Moses and Aaron, “Go and get some handfuls of soot from a furnace. Then have Moses throw it into the air in front of Pharaoh. 9 It will spread like fine dust over the whole country of Egypt, and open sores will break out on people and animals throughout the land.” 10 They got soot from a furnace, and went to see Pharaoh. Moses threw it into the air, and open sores broke out on people and animals. 11 The magicians were unable to come and appear before Moses, because they and all the other Egyptians were covered in sores. 12 But the Lord gave Pharaoh a stubborn attitude, and he would not listen to them, just as the Lord had told Moses.

13 The Lord told Moses, “Tomorrow morning get up early and go to Pharaoh, and tell him that this is what the Lord, the God of the Hebrews, says: ‘Let my people go, so that they can worship me. 14 This time I will direct all my plagues against you and your officials and your people, so you will realize that there is no one like me in all the earth. 15 By now I could have reached out to strike you and your people with a plague that would have completely destroyed you.*“Completely destroyed you”: literally, “you would have perished from the earth.” 16 However, I have let you live so you can see my power, and that my reputation may be spread throughout the earth. 17 But in your pride you are still tyrannizing my people, and refuse to let them leave. 18 So watch out! About this time tomorrow I will send down the worst hailstorm that has ever fallen on Egypt, from the beginning of its history until now. 19 So order your livestock and everything you have in the field to be brought inside. Every person and every animal that stays outside and is not brought inside will die when the hail falls on them.’ ”

20 Those of Pharaoh's officials who took seriously what the Lord said rushed to bring their servants and livestock inside. 21 But those who didn't care what the Lord said left their servants and livestock outside.

22 The Lord told Moses, “Lift your hand towards the sky so that a hailstorm will fall over the whole of Egypt, on people and on animals, and on everything growing in the fields of Egypt.”

23 Moses held up his staff toward heaven, and the Lord sent thunder and hail, and made lightning hit the ground. This is how the Lord rained hail down on Egypt. 24 As the hail fell it was accompanied by lightning flashing back and forth. The hail that fell was so severe that nothing like it had ever been seen in the whole of Egypt since the beginning of its history. 25 All across Egypt hail hit everything in the fields, both people and animals. It knocked down everything growing in the fields, and stripped every tree bare. 26 Only in the land of Goshen where the Israelites lived was there no hail.

27 Pharaoh called for Moses and Aaron and told them, “I admit that I sinned this time! The Lord is right, and I and my people are wrong! 28 Pray to the Lord for us, because there's been more than enough of God's thunder and hail. I will let you leave. You don't need to stay here any longer.”

29 “Once I've left the city, I will pray to the Lord for you,” Moses told him. “The thunder will stop, and there'll be no more hail, so that you will realize that the earth belongs to the Lord. 30 But I know you and your officials still do not really respect the Lord our God.”

31 (The flax and barley were destroyed, because the barley was ripe and the flax was flowering. 32 However, the wheat and the spelt were not destroyed because they grow later.)

33 Moses left Pharaoh and went out of the city, and prayed to the Lord. The thunder and hail stopped, and the rainstorm finished. 34 When Pharaoh saw that the rain and hail and thunder had stopped, he sinned again, and he chose to become stubborn again, along with his officials. 35 Because of his stubborn attitude, Pharaoh would not let the Israelites leave, just as the Lord had predicted through Moses.