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Exodus 8:16

in Exodus 8

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.’”

BSB

The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾

ASV

And Jehovah said unto Moses, Say unto Aaron, Stretch out thy rod, and smite the dust of the earth, that it may become lice throughout all the land of Egypt.

KJV

And the Lord said unto Moses, Say unto Aaron, Stretch out thy rod, and smite the dust of the land, that it may become lice throughout all the land of Egypt.

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This verse in Exodus 8

Commentary

6 notes on this verse

A commentator

Adam Clarke

1762–1832

Commentary on the Bible · Written before 1832.

Smite the dust of the land, that it may become lice - If the vermin commonly designated by this name be intended, it must have been a very dreadful and afflicting plague to the Egyptians, and especially to their priests, who were obliged to shave the hair off every part of their bodies, and to wear a single tunic, that no vermin of this kind might be permitted to harbor about them. See Herod. in Euterp., c. xxxvii., p. 104, edit. Gale.

This site's exposition

Stretch out your staff and strike the dust

on Exodus 8:16-17

The third plague comes with no warning, closing the first set of three. The dust of the earth becomes gnats on man and beast, and dust is what the Nile leaves when the water goes down.

The record, by era

The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices

And the Lord said unto Moses,....

A commentator

Matthew Henry

1662–1714

Commentary on the Whole Bible (1710)

proposed

These lice, no doubt, were extremely vexatious, as well as scandalous, to the Egyptians. Though they had respite, they had respite but awhile, Rev. xi. The second woe was past, but behold the third woe came very quickly.

The Nineteenth Century2 voices

A commentator

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown

1802–1910

Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)

proposed

smite the dust of the land, &c.--Aaron's rod, by the direction of Moses, who was commanded by God, was again raised, and the land was filled with gnats, mosquitoes--that is the proper meaning of the original term.

quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — starts-lowercase

It is observed by Hebrew commentators that the nine plagues are divided into three groups: distinct warnings are given of the first two plagues in each group; the third in each is inflicted without any previous notice; namely, the third, lice, the sixth, boils, the ninth, darkness. The dust of the land - The two preceding plagues fell upon the Nile. This fell on the earth, which was worshipped in Egypt as the father of the gods. An special sacredness was attached to the black fertile soil of the basin of the Nile, called Chemi, from which the ancient name of Egypt is supposed to be derived. Lice - The Hebrew word occurs only in connection with this plague. These insects are generally identified with mosquitos, a plague nowhere greater than in Egypt. They are most troublesome toward October, i. e. soon after the plague of frogs, and are dreaded not only for the pain and annoyance which they cause, but also because they are said to penetrate into the body through the nostrils and ears.

The words behind it

19 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.

  • וַיֹּ֣אמֶרand he said

    vaiyomerH559 →5305 times

  • יְהוָה֮Yahweh

    yahwehH3068 →6520 times

  • אֶל־to

    ʾel-H413 →5510 times

  • מֹשֶׁה֒Moses

    moshehH4872 →765 times

  • אֱמֹר֙say

    ʾemorH559 →5305 times

  • אֶֽל־to

    ʾel-H413 →5510 times

  • אַהֲרֹ֔ןAaron

    ʾaharonH175 →347 times

  • נְטֵ֣הstretch out

    netehH5186 →214 times

  • אֶֽת־<obj.>

    ʾet-H853 →10935 times

  • מַטְּךָ֔staff your

    matekhaH4294 →252 times

  • וְהַ֖ךְand strike

    vehakhH5221 →499 times

  • אֶת־<obj.>

    ʾet-H853 →10935 times

  • עֲפַ֣ר[the] dust of

    ʾafarH6083 →110 times

  • הָאָ֑רֶץthe earth

    haaretzH776 →2504 times

  • וְהָיָ֥הand it will become

    vehayahH1961 →3559 times

  • לְכִנִּ֖ם<into> gnats

    lekhinimH3654 →7 times

  • בְּכָל־in all

    bekholH3605 →5413 times

  • אֶ֥רֶץ[the] land of

    ʾeretzH776 →2504 times

  • מִצְרָֽיִם׃Egypt

    mitzrayimH4714 →641 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 7:19And the LORD said to Moses, “Tell Aaron, ‘Take your staff and stretch out your hand over the waters of Egypt—over their rivers and canals and ponds and reservoirs—that they may become blood.’ There will be blood throughout the land of Egypt, even in the vessels of wood and stone.”5 worksExodus 8:5And the LORD said to Moses, “Tell Aaron, ‘Stretch out your hand with your staff over the rivers and canals and ponds, and cause the frogs to come up onto the land of Egypt.’”4 worksExodus 8:17This they did, and when Aaron stretched out his hand with his staff and struck the dust of the earth, gnats came upon man and beast. All the dust of the earth turned into gnats throughout the land of Egypt.3 worksExodus 9:8Then the LORD said to Moses and Aaron, “Take handfuls of soot from the furnace; in the sight of Pharaoh, Moses is to toss it into the air.3 worksExodus 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.”2 works

The walk

4 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

    Exodus 8:17

    This they did, and when Aaron stretched out his hand with his staff and struck the dust of the earth, gnats came upon man and beast. All the dust of the earth turned into…

    it leads to

    • Psalms 105:31

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

    • Isaiah 23:9

      The LORD of Hosts planned it, to defile all its glorious beauty, to disgrace all the renowned of the earth.

    • Acts 12:23

      Immediately, because Herod did not give glory to God, an angel of the Lord struck him down, and he was eaten by worms and died.

  • Through

    Exodus 8:5

    And the LORD said to Moses, “Tell Aaron, ‘Stretch out your hand with your staff over the rivers and canals and ponds, and cause the frogs to come up onto the land of Egypt.’”

    it leads to

    • Exodus 7:19

      And the LORD said to Moses, “Tell Aaron, ‘Take your staff and stretch out your hand over the waters of Egypt—over their rivers and canals and ponds and reservoirs—that they may become blood.’ There…

Where this verse is studied

About Exodus

The Israelites Leaving Egypt, David Roberts, 1829. Public domain.
The Israelites Leaving Egypt, David Roberts, 1829. Public domain.
Exodus: the study guide →Read Exodus 8 →

This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); Keil and Delitzsch, Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament: The Pentateuch and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.

Read on in Exodus 8 →