Exodus 10:14

ESV The locusts came up over all the land of Egypt and settled on the whole country of Egypt, such a dense swarm of locusts as had never been before, nor ever will be again.

NIV they invaded all Egypt and settled down in every area of the country in great numbers. Never before had there been such a plague of locusts, nor will there ever be again.

NASB The locusts came up over all the land of Egypt and settled in all the territory of Egypt; they were very numerous. There had never been so many locusts, nor would there be so many again.

CSB The locusts went up over the entire land of Egypt and settled on the whole territory of Egypt. Never before had there been such a large number of locusts, and there never will be again.

NLT And the locusts swarmed over the whole land of Egypt, settling in dense swarms from one end of the country to the other. It was the worst locust plague in Egyptian history, and there has never been another one like it.

KJV And the locusts went up over all the land of Egypt, and rested in all the coasts of Egypt: very grievous were they; before them there were no such locusts as they, neither after them shall be such.

NKJV And the locusts went up over all the land of Egypt and rested on all the territory of Egypt. They were very severe; previously there had been no such locusts as they, nor shall there be such after them.

What does Exodus 10:14 mean?

Egypt is overrun with locusts: a hungry, swarming, aggressive version of common grasshoppers. Small clouds can be a nuisance. Large groups can severely damage crops and vegetation. Especially large swarms are typically referred to as "plagues," even outside the Bible, for their destructive power. Locust swarms can consume an entire region's plant matter in days or hours before moving on to the next area. What descends on Egypt is, as promised (Exodus 10:4–6), the worst locust infestation the nation has ever seen, or will ever see.

These insects will attack everything edible which survived the plague of hail (Exodus 9:31–32). The nation is already reeling from seven catastrophes (Exodus 7:21; 8:6, 17, 24; 9:6, 10, 24). The threat of locusts, with Egypt so fragile, frightened Pharaoh's advisors into begging their king to negotiate (Exodus 10:7). But Pharoah remained stubborn, and the swarms will scour Egyptian lands of every plant and fruit (Exodus 10:15).

Because they also occurred naturally, locust swarms are mentioned in other Old Testament contexts (Deuteronomy 28:38; 2 Chronicles 6:28; 7:13; Psalm 78:46; 105:34). They also feature in prophecies related to the end times (Joel 1—2; Amos 4:9; Revelation 9:3, 7).

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