Let My People Go: Di Ten Plagues

Di big river of Egypt don turn red. Fish dey float on top di water. People dey dig sand for di riverside, dem dey find something, anything, wey dem fit drink. And inside im palace, di king of Egypt fold im arms and say no.

Di people of Israel don be slaves for Egypt for many generations, dem dey make bricks for Pharaoh cities. God don hear their cry, and e don send Moses, with im brother Aaron for im side, to stand before di king. Di message simple. Na wetin di Lord talk be dis: let my people go, make dem fit serve me. Pharaoh answer also simple. Who be di Lord, wey I go obey am? I no know di Lord. So Aaron throw down im stick, and e turn snake. Pharaoh magicians do di same with their own. But Aaron stick swallow their sticks. E no move Pharaoh at all. Im heart don hard.

For di side of di Nile, early for morning, Aaron stretch out di stick, and di water turn blood. For seven days di river dey smell. Then di frogs come. Frogs for di farm. Frogs for di houses. Frogs for di bedrooms, for di ovens, for di bowls wey dem dey use make bread. Pharaoh beg Moses make e pray make dem go, and e promise say e go let di people go. Di frogs die, dem gather for big heaps wey dey smell. And Pharaoh change im mind. Then di dust of di ground turn gnats, dem dey crawl on top people and animals together. Dis time di magicians try to copy am, and dem no fit. Dem go warn Pharaoh: Dis na di finger of God. E no gree listen.

Plenty flies full di houses of Egypt. But no be for Goshen, where di Israelites dey live. God dey draw line, so that everybody go see di difference. Sickness pass through Egypt horses, camels and cows, but Israel animals no catch am. Painful boils come out for people and animals body, and di magicians no even fit stand for Moses front. Every time, na di same pattern. Trouble come. Pharaoh bargain. Di trouble comot. Pharaoh harden im heart. Di book of Exodus talk say sometimes Pharaoh harden im own heart, and sometimes say na di Lord harden am. Readers don dey discuss for centuries how dat two dey go together. Anyhow e be, di answer still be no.

Then di sky turn against Egypt. Hailstone fall down with fire dey flash inside am, di worst storm wey di land don ever see. Some of Pharaoh own officials don learn to listen, and dem bring their servants and animals enter house on time. Next, east wind blow di whole day and di whole night, and for morning e bring locusts. Dem cover di ground until e turn black, and dem chop every green thing wey di hailstone leave. Pharaoh officials beg am. You never still know say Egypt don scatter? And then, darkness. Thick darkness, for three days. People no fit see each other. Nobody move. But for every Israelite house, light dey.

Vex full Pharaoh body. Comot for my front. No see my face again. Moses answer am quietly. You talk well. I no go see your face again. But before e go, e give one last warning. One more plague dey come, di heaviest of all. For midnight, di first son for every Egyptian house go die, and big cry go rise for di whole land, di kind wey never happen before and no go happen again. But among di Israelites, not even dog go bark. Then, Moses talk, your officials go bow down beg us make we go. And Moses waka comot from di palace, with hot vex. Pharaoh heart still hard.

To feel how heavy dis signs be, e go help to know wetin di Nile mean to Egypt. Di Greek historian Herodotus call Egypt di gift of di river. Rain almost no dey fall there. Every crop, every bread, every herd depend on di Nile and di flood wey dey come every year, wey Egyptians connect with their gods. Later for Exodus, God talk say e dey bring judgement on all di gods of Egypt. Di plagues strike di very things wey Egypt trust pass: di river, di land, di animals and di sun.

Di Ten Plagues. You go find dem for Exodus chapter seven to eleven. Again and again, God give Pharaoh chance to listen, and again and again e choose not to. So see one question wey you go carry dey go. When God continue to talk to you about something, you dey soft your heart, or you dey hold your own way tight?