What does Exodus 9:32 mean?

This is part of a brief sidenote (Exodus 9:31) explaining which crops were lost in the recent plague of hail (Exodus 9:24–25). This also gives some clues as to when the hailstorm occurred, and a vague timing for the ten plagues overall (Exodus 3:20). The final plague (Exodus 12:29–30) established the celebration of Passover (Exodus 12:11, 14–19). This occurs near early April. This hailstorm destroyed crops near harvests in January or February. Between now and the last plague would therefore be several months. Most likely, the first plague was around September of the prior year; Pharaoh's stubbornness had lasted quite some time.

Wheat is a key ingredient for bread products. This was one of the most important crops of the ancient world. Egypt was renowned for skill in agriculture. As late as the era of the Roman Empire, Egypt produced massive amounts of grain. The plant called "emmer" is also known as "spelt" (Isaiah 28:25; Ezekiel 4:9). Certain translations incorrectly call it "rye," which is a completely different plant.

Crops eradicated by the storm included flax and barley. Those were nearing harvest, and the hail completely ruined them. Wheat and emmer would have been small buds or not yet sprouted at this time. This would allow them to survive or quickly regrow after the hailstorm. Those are the crops destroyed by locusts in the upcoming plague (Exodus 10:4–5, 15).

God progressively released judgment on Egypt (Exodus 1:11–14). He offered them many opportunities to repent and obey His command (Exodus 5:2; 7:13–14, 22; 8:15, 19, 32). A similar series of judgments is predicted throughout the tribulation period in the end times. Some of those disasters involve locusts (Revelation 9:3, 7) or hail (Revelation 8:7; 11:19; 16:21).