Exodus 10:12

ESV Then the Lord said to Moses, "Stretch out your hand over the land of Egypt for the locusts, so that they may come upon the land of Egypt and eat every plant in the land, all that the hail has left."

NIV And the Lord said to Moses, "Stretch out your hand over Egypt so that locusts swarm over the land and devour everything growing in the fields, everything left by the hail."

NASB Then the Lord said to Moses, 'Reach out with your hand over the land of Egypt for the locusts, so that they may come up on the land of Egypt and eat every plant of the land, everything that the hail has left.'

CSB The Lord then said to Moses, "Stretch out your hand over the land of Egypt, and the locusts will come up over it and eat every plant in the land, everything that the hail left."

NLT Then the Lord said to Moses, 'Raise your hand over the land of Egypt to bring on the locusts. Let them cover the land and devour every plant that survived the hailstorm.'

KJV And the Lord said unto Moses, Stretch out thine hand over the land of Egypt for the locusts, that they may come up upon the land of Egypt, and eat every herb of the land, even all that the hail hath left.

NKJV Then the Lord said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand over the land of Egypt for the locusts, that they may come upon the land of Egypt, and eat every herb of the land—all that the hail has left.”

What does Exodus 10:12 mean?

Following Egypt's failed attempt to negotiate (Exodus 10:7–11), the Lord commands Moses to proceed with the plague of locusts (Exodus 10:4–6). God instructs Moses to use a gesture of reaching with his hand and staff (Exodus 10:13). Though Moses and Aaron have triggered plagues (Exodus 8:6; 9:33), the power belongs entirely to God (Exodus 3:20).

Locusts are created when grasshoppers experience certain conditions. The grasshoppers produce offspring which instinctively swarm together, breed quickly, and aggressively eat as they travel. These "locusts" even look distinct from their parents. Such insects have devastated crops for thousands of years. A large swarm can consume an entire region's worth of plants as it passes by. This plague of insects will remove everything that survived the plague of hail (Exodus 9:31–32; 10:5).

This verse specifically mentions "the land of Egypt" twice. Though not specifically stated as in other events (Exodus 8:22; 9:6, 26), Goshen likely escaped this plague as well. This was the region where Hebrew slaves lived (Genesis 47:6). Sparing them from the disasters falling on Egypt emphasized that there was a supernatural power behind them.

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