Here read about the eighth plague, locusts. Again this was judgment against the Egyptian gods, ‘Nut’, ‘Osiris’, and ‘Set’. God here tells us two reasons why He hardened Pharaoh’s heart.
1. He chose Pharaoh so that He might show the signs of the plagues to him.
2. God wanted Israel and all mankind to have a record of this great work of God, Psalm 78 / Psalm 105.
The later crops, wheat and rye, which had survived the hail, were now devoured by the swarms of locusts which would ultimately result in there being no harvest in Egypt that year.
It’s interesting to note that it was Pharaoh’s servants who informed him about what was happening, this suggests that Pharaoh didn’t go out much except for his early morning walks to worship, Exodus 7:14.
Because they knew exactly what was going on in Egypt and the devastation the plagues had caused, they were the ones pleading with Pharaoh.
Coffman, in his commentary says the following.
‘Just as this mighty locust plague was the harbinger of the ultimate judgment and destruction of Pharaoh, ‘it is also a type of the plagues which will precede the last judgment.’ The prophet Joel, Joel 1-2, thus interpreted a severe locust plague that struck Judah.’
Keil, in his commentary says the following.
‘The locust plague forms the groundwork for the description in Revelation 9:3-10, just as Joel discerned it as the day of the Lord, i.e., of the Great Day of Judgment, which is advancing step by step in all the great judgments of history, or rather of the conflict between the kingdom of God and the powers of this world and will be finally accomplished in the last general judgment.’
Pharaoh again, appears to soften his heart and gives in to the request of Moses and Aaron to take the Israelites and on a journey for three days in the wilderness to worship God.
However, once again Pharaoh puts terms and conditions before them, he wants Moses to leave families and flocks in Egypt whilst they go to worship. This was obviously some kind of insurance policy to ensure the Israelites would return. Moses and Aaron were not willing to compromise with Pharaoh.
Something which is often overlooked is that God made the ‘east wind’ blow to bring the locusts into Egypt and He also made the wind blow to remove the locusts.
There’s nothing new about locusts entering a place and destroying everything in their path but here the real miracle is seen in that happened at the very time God said to Moses it would happen.
Don’t miss the fact that the locusts didn’t go into Goshen either, but they covered the whole of Egypt. The impact on Egypt would had been devastating as the locusts would have eaten all the food in Egypt which forced the Egyptians to buy food from God’s people.
Here we read about the ninth plague, darkness. This was aimed at the sun god, ‘Re’, who was symbolized by Pharaoh himself. For three days, the land of Egypt was smothered with an unearthly darkness, but the homes of the Israelites had light.
The Israelites must be utterly shell shocked by what’s happening. They must have be in awe as they enjoyed the light but the rest of Egypt is in total darkness. They must have been thinking to themselves, ‘is there anything that this God cannot control or do?’
I can imagine them saying to themselves, ‘no wonder our ancestors, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob worshipped this God.’
It was God who created light in the beginning, Genesis 1:3, and it’s God who removes the light, Luke 23:44. This would have included the sun, moon and stars, which He also created, Genesis 1:14-19.
Notice that it was so dark no one could see anyone else, it’s no wonder no one moved around for three days. Pharaoh once again, softens his heart and tells Moses that they can go and worship God, only if they leave their flocks and heard behind.
Moses once again isn’t willing to compromise with Pharaoh, because he knows everything belongs to God, Psalm 5 / Psalm 10.
Notice that Pharaoh basically says, if Moses turns up in front of him again, he’s as good as dead. Also notice that Moses replied that he wouldn’t appear in front of Pharaoh again. On the surface this reads as though the two would never meet face to face again, but they will, as we shall see in Exodus 11:4-10.
Coffman, in his commentary says the following.
‘Moses accepted Pharaoh’s words without fear, calmly waited until the final plague was announced, and told Pharaoh Plainly. ‘After just one more plague, Pharaoh’s servants would come to him, bow down, and plead with the Israelites to leave.’ As it turned out, even Pharaoh himself did this, Exodus 12:30-31.
"For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord."