He also fatally struck all the firstborn in their land, The first fruits of all their vigor.
Parallel translations
- WEB He struck also all the firstborn in their land, the first fruits of all their manhood.
- KJV He smote also all the firstborn in their land, the chief of all their strength.
- BSB Then He struck all the firstborn in their land, the firstfruits of all their vigor.
- NKJV He also destroyed all the firstborn in their land, The first of all their strength.
- NLT Then he killed the oldest son in each Egyptian home, the pride and joy of each family.
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 struck down all the firstborn of Egypt, the pride of their strength. It matters because this final plague broke Pharaoh's resistance.
Overview
The tenth and climactic plague was the death of every Egyptian firstborn (Exodus 12:29-30). The 'first fruits of their manhood' marked the nation's strength and future. This judgment, from which Israel was spared by the Passover lamb's blood, points forward to Christ our Passover, whose blood delivers His people from death.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 9
- Ps 136:10To him who struck down the Egyptian firstborn; for his loving kindness endures forever;
- Heb 11:28By faith, he kept the Passover, and the sprinkling of the blood, that the destroyer of the firstborn should not touch them.
- Gen 49:3“Reuben, you are my firstborn, my might, and the beginning of my strength; excelling in dignity, and excelling in power.
- Ps 78:51and struck all the firstborn in Egypt, the chief of their strength in the tents of Ham.
- Exod 11:4–5Moses said, “This is what Yahweh says: ‘About midnight I will go out into the middle of Egypt,
- Exod 4:23and I have said to you, “Let my son go, that he may serve me”; and you have refused to let him go. Behold, I will kill your son, your firstborn.’”
- Exod 12:29–30At midnight, Yahweh struck all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, from the firstborn of Pharaoh who sat on his throne to the firstborn of the captive who was in the dungeon; and all the firstborn of livestock.
- Exod 12:12For I will go through the land of Egypt in that night, and will strike all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and animal. Against all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgments: I am Yahweh.
- Ps 135:8Who struck the firstborn of Egypt, both of man and animal;
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Christ at the center
The Psalms are Christ's own prayer book and a gallery of his portraits — the suffering one of Psalm 22, the risen Lord of Psalm 16, the priest-king of Psalm 110, the Son to whom the nations are given.
How Psalms 105:36 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.