Exodus 8:24

ESV And the Lord did so. There came great swarms of flies into the house of Pharaoh and into his servants ' houses. Throughout all the land of Egypt the land was ruined by the swarms of flies.

NIV And the Lord did this. Dense swarms of flies poured into Pharaoh’s palace and into the houses of his officials; throughout Egypt the land was ruined by the flies.

NASB Then the Lord did so. And thick swarms of flies entered the house of Pharaoh and the houses of his servants, and the land was laid waste because of the swarms of flies in all the land of Egypt.

CSB And the Lord did this. Thick swarms of flies went into Pharaoh’s palace and his officials’ houses. Throughout Egypt the land was ruined because of the swarms of flies.

NLT And the Lord did just as he had said. A thick swarm of flies filled Pharaoh’s palace and the houses of his officials. The whole land of Egypt was thrown into chaos by the flies.

KJV And the Lord did so; and there came a grievous swarm of flies into the house of Pharaoh, and into his servants' houses, and into all the land of Egypt: the land was corrupted by reason of the swarm of flies.

NKJV And the Lord did so. Thick swarms of flies came into the house of Pharaoh, into his servants’ houses, and into all the land of Egypt. The land was corrupted because of the swarms of flies.

What does Exodus 8:24 mean?

A recurring theme in the book of Exodus is that God always fulfills His promises. Whatever He says will happen, does happen. When Moses and Aaron connect a plague of judgment to a specific time, from a specific animal, with a specific intensity, it is meant to prove that they speak on behalf of the One True God. Egyptian idols who supposedly have power over these elements are shown to be worthless. As promised (Exodus 8:20–23), Egypt is engulfed in flies. As with the plague of frogs (Exodus 8:12–15), Pharaoh will attempt to negotiate peace only to break his promises once the immediate danger is gone (Exodus 8:31–32).

Two psalms mention this plague specifically. In Psalm 78:45 we are told the flies "devoured [the Egyptians]." Psalm 105:31 states when God spoke "there came swarms of flies." Even generations later, this plague was noted as an important part of God's work to free His people. The nature of this and other catastrophes was so severe that the Lord used them to motivate Israel to obey God's laws (Deuteronomy 7:12–16; 28:58–63). God's judgment was not exclusive to Egypt. When the Jews made a golden calf and worshiped it under the leadership of Aaron, God sent a plague upon them as well (Exodus 32:35).

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