Then the LORD said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand toward heaven, so that darkness may spread over the land of Egypt—a palpable darkness.”
Parallel translations
- WEB Yahweh said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand toward the sky, that there may be darkness over the land of Egypt, even darkness which may be felt.”
- KJV And the LORD said unto Moses, Stretch out thine hand toward heaven, that there may be darkness over the land of Egypt, even darkness which may be felt.
- NKJV Then the Lord said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand toward heaven, that there may be darkness over the land of Egypt, darkness which may even be felt.”
- NASB Then the Lord said to Moses, “Reach out with your hand toward the sky, so that there may be darkness over the land of Egypt, even a darkness which may be felt.”
- NLT Then the Lord said to Moses, “Lift your hand toward heaven, and the land of Egypt will be covered with a darkness so thick you can feel it.”
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
God commands Moses to bring a darkness that can be felt over Egypt. The ninth plague strikes at the sun itself.
Overview
The 'darkness which may be felt' conveys a thick, oppressive supernatural gloom. This plague directly confronts Egypt's prominent sun-deity, exposing its impotence. Darkness in Scripture often signals judgment and the absence of God's favor. The plague sets the stage for the final, decisive judgment to come.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 17
- Rev 16:10–11And the fifth angel poured out his bowl on the throne of the beast, and its kingdom was plunged into darkness, and men began to gnaw their tongues in anguish
- 2 Pet 2:4For if God did not spare the angels when they sinned, but cast them deep into hell, placing them in chains of darkness to be held for judgment;
- Luke 23:44It was now about the sixth hour, and darkness came over all the land until the ninth hour.
- Jude 1:6And the angels who did not stay within their own domain but abandoned their proper dwelling—these He has kept in eternal chains under darkness, bound for judgment on that great day.
- 2 Pet 2:17These men are springs without water and mists driven by a storm. Blackest darkness is reserved for them.
- Isa 8:21–22They will roam the land, dejected and hungry. When they are famished, they will become enraged; and looking upward, they will curse their king and their God.
- Exod 9:22Then the LORD said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand toward heaven, so that hail may fall on all the land of Egypt—on man and beast and every plant of the field throughout the land of Egypt.”
- Deut 28:29and at noon you will grope about like a blind man in the darkness. You will not prosper in your ways. Day after day you will be oppressed and plundered, with no one to save you.
- Prov 4:19But the way of the wicked is like the darkest gloom; they do not know what makes them stumble.
- Ps 105:28He sent darkness, and it became dark—yet they defied His words.
- Matt 27:45From the sixth hour until the ninth hour darkness came over all the land.
- Mark 15:33From the sixth hour until the ninth hour darkness came over all the land.
- Eccl 2:14The wise man has eyes in his head, but the fool walks in darkness. Yet I also came to realize that one fate overcomes them both.
- Jude 1:13They are wild waves of the sea, foaming up their own shame; wandering stars, for whom blackest darkness has been reserved forever.
- Eccl 6:4For a stillborn child enters in futility and departs in darkness, and his name is shrouded in obscurity.
- Ps 78:49He unleashed His fury against them, wrath, indignation, and calamity—a band of destroying angels.
- Ps 35:6May their path be dark and slick, as the angel of the LORD pursues.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
The Passover lamb whose blood turns away death, the exodus through the sea, the manna, the rock, and the tabernacle where God dwells with his people all foreshadow Jesus — our Passover, our redemption, the bread from heaven, and God-with-us in the flesh.
How Exodus 10:21 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.