Exodus 11:1 - Printer Friendly

ESV: The Lord said to Moses, "Yet one plague more I will bring upon Pharaoh and upon Egypt. Afterward he will let you go from here. When he lets you go, he will drive you away completely.

NIV: Now the Lord had said to Moses, "I will bring one more plague on Pharaoh and on Egypt. After that, he will let you go from here, and when he does, he will drive you out completely.

NASB: Now the Lord said to Moses, 'One more plague I will bring on Pharaoh and on Egypt; after that he will let you go from here. When he lets you go, he will assuredly drive you out from here completely.

CSB: The Lord said to Moses, "I will bring one more plague on Pharaoh and on Egypt. After that, he will let you go from here. When he lets you go, he will drive you out of here.

NLT: Then the Lord said to Moses, 'I will strike Pharaoh and the land of Egypt with one more blow. After that, Pharaoh will let you leave this country. In fact, he will be so eager to get rid of you that he will force you all to leave.

KJV: And the Lord said unto Moses, Yet will I bring one plague more upon Pharaoh, and upon Egypt; afterwards he will let you go hence: when he shall let you go, he shall surely thrust you out hence altogether.

NKJV: And the Lord said to Moses, “I will bring one more plague on Pharaoh and on Egypt. Afterward he will let you go from here. When he lets you go, he will surely drive you out of here altogether.

This message seems to come to Moses as he stands in front of Pharaoh. Moses had rejected another attempt to negotiate partial freedom for his people. He refused to take only men (Exodus 10:8–11) and he refused to take the people but leave their livestock (Exodus 10:24–26). Pharaoh has responded with a death threat: that Moses will die if the two ever see each other again (Exodus 10:27–28). Moses seems to take this in stride (Exodus 10:29).

Now, the Lord tells Moses that there will be one final plague. This disaster will finally make Pharaoh release the people. In fact, he and the other Egyptians will demand that the Hebrews leave. When he leaves, Moses is to tell the people to ask Egyptians for jewelry (Exodus 11:2–3). The fearsome plagues have deeply affected the Egyptians, who will gladly give their treasures to the Israelites (Exodus 12:35–36).

The first three verses of this chapter focus on the message Moses is to give to the Israelite people. But he is not yet done speaking to Pharaoh (Exodus 11:4).

Exodus 11:1–3 describes what Moses is to do once he leaves Pharaoh to speak with the Israelite people. There will be one final supernatural disaster against Egypt. This will do more than convince Pharaoh to release the people: the Egyptians will demand that the Hebrews leave. The Israelites are also to ask Egyptians for jewelry. They will do so with great success (Exodus 12:35–36). Moses' growing reputation partly explains the Egyptian response.

Immediately after being threatened by Pharaoh (Exodus 10:28–29), Moses is given more instructions from the Lord. He is to instruct the Israelites to ask Egyptians for jewelry. Recent events will have intimidated them enough to be generous. God also tells Moses to predict the last and worst plague: the death off all Egyptian firstborn. This will be the most terrible disaster of Egypt's entire history. It will also lead directly to Israelite freedom. Moses expresses this grim promise in furious anger but is reassured by God that this is all part of an expected plan.

Since the Lord sent Moses back into Egypt (Exodus 3—4), Pharoah has refused multiple commands to release the Hebrew slaves. This has brought nine epic disasters to his nation (Exodus 5—10). Most recently, Pharaoh has threatened to kill Moses if these discussions continue (Exodus 10:28–29). Moses hears instructions from the Lord which include a prediction about the last, and worst, of the plagues of Egypt. In the following chapter, God will establish the Passover and free the Israelites as Egypt mourns catastrophic losses (Exodus 12).

The book of Exodus establishes God's covenant relationship with the full-fledged nation of Israel. The descendants of Abraham prosper after settling in Egypt, only to be enslaved by a fearful, hateful Egyptian Pharaoh. God appoints Moses to lead the people out of this bondage. Moses serves as God's spokesman, as the Lord brings plagues and judgments on Egypt, leading to the release of Israel.