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Exodus 8:21

in Exodus 8

But if you will not let My people go, I will send swarms of flies upon you and your officials and your people and your houses. The houses of the Egyptians and even the ground where they stand will be full of flies.

BSB

The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾

ASV

Else, if thou wilt not let my people go, behold, I will send swarms of flies upon thee, and upon thy servants, and upon thy people, and into thy houses: and the houses of the Egyptians shall be full of swarms of flies, and also the ground whereon they are.

KJV

Else, if thou wilt not let my people go, behold, I will send swarms of flies upon thee, and upon thy servants, and upon thy people, and into thy houses: and the houses of the Egyptians shall be full of swarms of flies, and also the ground whereon they are.

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This verse in Exodus 8

Commentary

9 notes on this verse

A commentator

Jerome

LETTER 106.86 · Written before 420.

Kynomyia does not represent "dog fly," as the Latins translated it, with the Greek letter upsilon; according to the sense of the Hebrew the diphthong oi should be written so that the word is koinomyia, that is, "every genus of flies."

This site's exposition

Rise up early in the morning

on Exodus 8:20-21

The fourth plague opens the second set of three with the same staging as the first, at the water in the morning, where 7:15 sent Moses to meet Pharaoh going out to the river. The purpose clause returns word for word, let my people go, that they may serve me. Swarms fill the houses and the ground under them, and the King James italics show that the Hebrew names only swarms, with the word flies supplied by the translators.

This site's exposition

I will send swarms of flies upon you

The fourth plague is announced at the water's edge, as the first was. The swarms will fill the houses of the Egyptians and even the ground where they stand. Jerome took the Hebrew word to mean every kind of fly, while Albert Barnes reports the view that it was the dog fly and the rival view that it was a beetle the Egyptians held sacred.

The record, by era

The Medieval Church1 voice

A commentator

Isidore of Seville

QUESTIONS ON THE OLD TESTAMENT, EX 14:8-9 · Written before 636.

proposed

In the fourth place, Egypt is struck with flies. The fly is an insolent and restless animal. What does it stand for except the arrogant concerns of carnal desires? Egypt is struck with flies because the hearts of those who love this world are battered …

The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices

A commentator

John Wesley

1703–1791

Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament (1765)

proposed

and told that the land of Goshen should be exempt from this plague, ver. 22, 23. The plague is brought, ver. 24. Pharaoh treats with Moses, and humbles himself, ver. 25-29.

quarantine:anchor,debris (2026-07-29) — starts-lowercase; cites-ver-24/25-anchored-21-21

Else, if thou wilt not let my people go,....

The Nineteenth Century2 voices

Swarms of flies - Generally, supposed to be the dog-fly, which at certain seasons is described as a plague far worse than mosquitos. Others, however, adopt the opinion that the insects were a species of beetle, which was reverenced by the Egyptians as a symbol of life, of reproductive or creative power. The sun-god, as creator, bore the name Chepera, and is represented in the form, or with the head, of a beetle.

A commentator

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown

1802–1910

Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)

proposed

The worship of flies, particularly of the beetle, was a prominent part of the religion of the ancient Egyptians. The employment of these winged deities to chastise them must have been painful and humiliating to the Egyptians while it must at the same time have strengthened the faith of the Israelites in the God of their fathers as the only object of worship.
1 more voice on this verse

The Nineteenth Century1 voice

A commentator

Adam Clarke

1762–1832

Commentary on the Bible · Written before 1832.

proposed

Swarms of flies upon thee - It is not easy to ascertain the precise meaning of the original word הערב hearob; as the word comes from ערב arab, he mingled, it may be supposed to express a multitude of various sorts of insects. And if the conjecture be admitted that the putrid frogs became the occasion of this plague, (different insects laying their eggs in the bodies of those dead animals, which would soon be hatched, see on Exo 8:14 (note)), then the supposition that a multitude of different hinds of insects is meant, will seem the more probable. Though the plague of the locusts was miraculous, yet God both brought it and removed it by natural means; see Exo 10:13-19. Bochart, who has treated this subject with his usual learning and ability, follows the Septuagint, explaining the original by κυνομυια, the dog-fly; which must be particularly hateful to the Egyptians, because they held dogs in the highest veneration, and worshipped Anubis under the form of a dog. In a case of this kind the authority of the Septuagint is very high, as they translated the Pentateuch in the very place where these plagues happened. But as the Egyptians are well known to have paid religious veneration to all kinds of animals and monsters, whence the poet: - Omnigenumque deum monstra, et latrator Anubis, I am inclined to favor the literal construction of the word: for as ערב ereb, Exo 12:38, expresses that mixed multitude of different kinds of people who accompanied the Israelites in their departure from Egypt; so here the same term being used, it may have been designed to express a multitude of different kinds of insects, such as flies, wasps, hornets, etc., etc. The ancient Jewish interpreters suppose that all kinds of beasts and reptiles are intended, such as wolves, lions, bears, serpents, etc. Mr. […]

The words behind it

24 Hebrew words

Every Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.

  • כִּ֣יthat

    kiH3588 →4482 times

  • אִם־except

    ʾim-H518 →1069 times

  • אֵינְךָ֮not you

    ʾeinekhaH369 →789 times

  • מְשַׁלֵּ֣חַ[are] letting go

    meshaleachH7971 →845 times

  • אֶת־<obj.>

    ʾet-H853 →10935 times

  • עַמִּי֒people my

    ʾamiH5971 →1873 times

  • הִנְנִי֩here I

    hiniH2005 →316 times

  • מַשְׁלִ֨יחַ[am] about to send

    mashliachH7971 →845 times

  • בְּךָ֜on you

    bekha

  • וּבַעֲבָדֶ֧יךָand on servants your

    uvaavadeikhaH5650 →799 times

  • וּֽבְעַמְּךָ֛and on people your

    uveamekhaH5971 →1873 times

  • וּבְבָתֶּ֖יךָand on houses your

    uvevateikhaH1004 →2046 times

  • אֶת־<obj.>

    ʾet-H853 →10935 times

  • הֶעָרֹ֑בthe swarm

    hearoH6157 →9 times

  • וּמָ֨לְא֜וּand they will be full

    umaluH4390 →249 times

  • בָּתֵּ֤י[the] houses of

    bateiH1004 →2046 times

  • מִצְרַ֙יִם֙Egypt

    mitzrayimH4713 →70 times

  • אֶת־<obj.>

    ʾet-H853 →10935 times

  • הֶ֣עָרֹ֔בthe swarm

    hearoH6157 →9 times

  • וְגַ֥םand also

    vegamH1571 →769 times

  • הָאֲדָמָ֖הthe ground

    haadamahH127 →225 times

  • אֲשֶׁר־which

    ʾasher-H834 →5497 times

  • הֵ֥םthey

    hemH1992 →553 times

  • עָלֶֽיהָ׃[are] on it

    ʾaleihaH5921 →5755 times

A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.

Related verses

5 in all, six open

The number beside each verse is how many compiled reference works tie it to this one. The strongest six stand open.

Exodus 10:6They will fill your houses and the houses of all your officials and every Egyptian—something neither your fathers nor your grandfathers have seen since the day they came into this land.’” Then Moses turned and left Pharaoh’s presence.4 worksPsalms 78:45He sent swarms of flies that devoured them, and frogs that devastated them.2 worksPsalms 105:31He spoke, and insects swarmed— gnats throughout their country.2 worksIsaiah 7:18On that day the LORD will whistle to the flies at the farthest streams of the Nile and to the bees in the land of Assyria.2 worksExodus 8:24And the LORD did so. Thick swarms of flies poured into Pharaoh’s palace and into the houses of his officials. Throughout Egypt the land was ruined by swarms of flies.2 works

The walk

8 stops

Each card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.

  • Through

    Psalms 78:45

    He sent swarms of flies that devoured them, and frogs that devastated them.

    it leads to

    • Exodus 8:21–24

      But if you will not let My people go, I will send swarms of flies upon you and your officials and your people and your houses. The houses of the Egyptians and even the…

      Reached by 2 separate paths from here.

    • Exodus 8:2–15

      But if you refuse to let them go, I will plague your whole country with frogs.

    • Psalms 105:30–31

      Their land teemed with frogs, even in their royal chambers.

  • Through

    Isaiah 7:18

    On that day the LORD will whistle to the flies at the farthest streams of the Nile and to the bees in the land of Assyria.

    it leads to

    • Isaiah 5:26

      He lifts a banner for the distant nations and whistles for those at the ends of the earth. Behold—how speedily and swiftly they come!

    • Joshua 24:12

      I sent the hornet ahead of you, and it drove out the two Amorite kings before you, but not by your own sword or bow.

    • Deuteronomy 7:20

      Moreover, the LORD your God will send the hornet against them until even the survivors hiding from you have perished.

  • Through

    Psalms 105:31

    He spoke, and insects swarmed— gnats throughout their country.

    it leads to

    • Isaiah 7:18

      On that day the LORD will whistle to the flies at the farthest streams of the Nile and to the bees in the land of Assyria.

    • Exodus 8:16–18

      Then the LORD said to Moses, “Tell Aaron, ‘Stretch out your staff and strike the dust of the earth, that it may turn into swarms of gnats throughout the land of Egypt.’”

About Exodus

The Giving of the Law on Mount Sinai, Gustave Doré, 1866. Public domain.
The Giving of the Law on Mount Sinai, Gustave Doré, 1866. Public domain.
Exodus: the study guide →Read Exodus 8 →
This page draws on 11 works. Open the list of works

This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Isidore of Seville, QUESTIONS ON THE OLD TESTAMENT, EX 14:8-9; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; Jerome, LETTER 106.86; Jerome, Letter 106; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament and Keil and Delitzsch, Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament: The Pentateuch.

Read on in Exodus 8 →