The Ten Plagues–News to Me!

Today I want to share a gigantic “aha moment” that I had this week. Will it change your life? Probably not. But based on my informal poll of fellow Bible readers, I learned that about 50% of those asked said that they already knew this information.

What is this astounding information that I’m going to share? Here it is.

You probably already know that the ten plagues showed God’s superiority over Pharaoh and all other gods. The plagues were also intended to bring Pharaoh to the negotiating table. But did you know that each plague targeted a specific deity of Egypt?

If you answered “yes” to that question, you can stop reading now. But if this is news to you, as it was to me, then read on!

• the plague of blood: The Nile was the lifeline of Egypt, and Hapi was the god of the Nile. By turning the Nile into blood, God showed His superiority over Hapi.
• the plague of frogs: Hemet, the Egyptian goddess of fertility, water, and renewal had the head of a frog. Frogs became an annoyance rather than something to worship. Even when the plague ended and the frogs died, they (and the goddess Hemet) were a stench to the Egyptians.
• plague of gnats: When Aaron struck the dust of the ground with his staff, swarms of gnats covered both people and animals. God used the Egyptians’ worship of Geb, the god over the dust of the earth, to show His superiority.
• the plague flies: Swarms of flies covered every surface in Egypt, except for those occupied by the Hebrews. God displayed His power over the Egyptian god of life Khepri, who had the head of a fly.
• the plague on livestock: Hathor was the Goddess of love and protection and she had the head of a cow. When every horse, donkey, camel, sheep, goat, and cow in Egypt died, none of the Hebrews’ animals were harmed. God made it plain that Hathor was a powerless deity.
• the plague of boils: God again revealed His omnipotence when festering sores broke out on all Egyptians and their animals. Isis, the Egyptian goddess of medicine, could not provide protection.
• the plague of hail: Nut, the Egyptian goddess of the sky, was powerless against God when He sent hail on people, animals, and everything growing in Egypt. The only place where it did not hail was the land of Goshen where the Israelites were.
• the plague of locusts: After hail destroyed crops, swarms of locusts destroyed what was left. The Egyptian god of storms and disorder was Seth, whose head was a locust. Seth was no match for God.
• the plague of darkness: Ra, the Egyptian sun god, was powerless before God when He sent three days of total darkness over Egypt.
• the plague of the death of the firstborn: Pharaoh himself was considered to be the greatest of the Egyptian gods, but he, too, was powerless to prevent the death of his firstborn son. 

God effectively destroyed the pantheon of Egyptian gods. Not only did every single Egyptian suffer, but simultaneously, the Hebrews were unaffected.

How is it that I didn’t know this information, even after decades of church services, Sunday school lessons, Bible studies, and Vacation Bible School? The scales have been removed from my eyes!

“Thou shalt have no other gods before Me.” (Exodus 20:3)

If you enjoyed this article, then please REPOST or SHARE with others; encourage them to follow AFNN. If you’d like to become a citizen contributor for AFNN, contact us at managingeditor@afnn.us Help keep us ad-free by donating here.