God Relents and Pharaoh Sins

We have noted that in the plagues, which are judgments on Pharaoh, Egypt, and Egypt’s gods, God also shows mercy. In the case of the seventh plague, the plague of hail, this is evident in that the hail did not destroy all Egyptian people and animals but only those out in the field. Moses warned the Egyptians to shelter man and beast so that they would survive, and many Egyptians did so because they feared the word of the Lord (Ex. 9:13–21). God did not have to provide this warning, but in His grace and mercy, He provided a way for the Egyptians to escape the worst of His judgment.

Another indication of God’s mercy in the plague of hail can be found in the extent of the damage done by the hail. The Lord did not destroy all of Egypt’s food or its economy when He rained hail on them. Exodus 9:31 reports that of the crops grown in Egypt, only the flax and barley were destroyed. Flax was used to make linen and barley was used for bread, and both were sown in November and harvested in March in ancient Egypt. Verse 31 reports that the flax and the barley were eliminated by the hail because they were nearly full grown and ready for harvest, meaning that the plague likely took place in January. Yet the wheat and emmer (or spelt, another grain) survived because they were harvested later and had not yet ripened to the point to which they could suffer extensive damage from the hail (v. 32). God showed mercy, preserving some of Egypt’s grain stores so that not all the Egyptians would die.

Finally, we see God’s mercy in the seventh plague in that the Lord relents even though Pharaoh’s professed change of heart does not yield actual repentance. As Moses said he would, he goes out into the city and prays for God to cease the hailstorm. The text tells us that Moses “stretched out his hands to the LORD” (v. 32), which refers to the customary posture of prayer in which the praying person opens his hands with his palms facing upward in a motion that seeks to receive something from the Lord (see 1 Kings 8:22; Ezra 9:5; Ps. 44:20). Here Moses seeks and receives the end of the hail. Importantly, Moses goes out into the storm to make this prayer while the hail still falls. He shows that he trusts God to protect him just as the Lord has already protected His people in Goshen (see Ex. 9:26). Pharaoh does not show any such trust in the Lord, for as soon as the hail stops, he hardens his heart once more (vv. 34–35).