The Plague on the Cattle

91 And Jehovah saith unto Moses, 'Go in unto Pharaoh, and thou hast spoken unto him, Thus said Jehovah, God of the Hebrews, Send My people away, and they serve me, 2 for, if thou art refusing to send away, and art still keeping hold upon them, 3 lo, the hand of Jehovah is on thy cattle which 'are' in the field, on horses, on asses, on camels, on herd, and on flock—a pestilence very grievous. 4 'And Jehovah hath separated between the cattle of Israel and the cattle of Egypt, and there doth not die a thing of all the sons of Israel's; 5 and Jehovah setteth an appointed time, saying, To-morrow doth Jehovah do this thing in the land.' 6 And Jehovah doth this thing on the morrow, and all the cattle of Egypt die, and of the cattle of the sons of Israel not one hath died; 7 and Pharaoh sendeth, and lo, not even one of the cattle of Israel hath died, and the heart of Pharaoh is hard, and he hath not sent the people away.

The Plague of Boils

8 And Jehovah saith unto Moses and unto Aaron, 'Take to you the fulness of your hands 'of' soot of a furnace, and Moses hath sprinkled it towards the heavens, before the eyes of Pharaoh, 9 and it hath become small dust over all the land of Egypt, and it hath become on man and on cattle a boil breaking forth 'with' blains, in all the land of Egypt.' 10 And they take the soot of the furnace, and stand before Pharaoh, and Moses sprinkleth it towards the heavens, and it is a boil 'with' blains, breaking forth, on man and on beast; 11 and the scribes have not been able to stand before Moses, because of the boil, for the boil hath been on the scribes, and on all the Egyptians. 12 And Jehovah strengtheneth the heart of Pharaoh, and he hath not hearkened unto them, as Jehovah hath spoken unto Moses.

The Plague of Hail

13 And Jehovah saith unto Moses, 'Rise early in the morning, and station thyself before Pharaoh, and thou hast said unto him, Thus said Jehovah, God of the Hebrews, Send My people away, and they serve Me, 14 for, at this time I am sending all My plagues unto thy heart, and on thy servants, and on thy people, so that thou knowest that there is none like Me in all the earth, 15 for now I have put forth My hand, and I smite thee, and thy people, with pestilence, and thou art hidden from the earth. 16 'And yet for this I have caused thee to stand, so as to show thee My power, and for the sake of declaring My Name in all the earth; 17 still thou art exalting thyself against My people—so as not to send them away; 18 lo, I am raining about 'this' time to-morrow hail very grievous, such as hath not been in Egypt, even from the day of its being founded, even until now. 19 'And, now, send, strengthen thy cattle and all that thou hast in the field; every man and beast which is found in the field, and is not gathered into the house—come down on them hath the hail, and they have died.' 20 He who is fearing the word of Jehovah among the servants of Pharaoh hath caused his servants and his cattle to flee unto the houses; 21 and he who hath not set his heart unto the word of Jehovah leaveth his servants and his cattle in the field.

22 And Jehovah saith unto Moses, 'Stretch forth thy hand towards the heavens, and there is hail in all the land of Egypt, on man, and on beast, and on every herb of the field in the land of Egypt.' 23 And Moses stretcheth out his rod towards the heavens, and Jehovah hath given voices and hail, and fire goeth towards the earth, and Jehovah raineth hail on the land of Egypt, 24 and there is hail, and fire catching itself in the midst of the hail, very grievous, such as hath not been in all the land of Egypt since it hath become a nation. 25 And the hail smiteth in all the land of Egypt all that 'is' in the field, from man even unto beast, and every herb of the field hath the hail smitten, and every tree of the field it hath broken; 26 only in the land of Goshen, where the sons of Israel 'are', there hath been no hail. 27 And Pharaoh sendeth, and calleth for Moses and for Aaron, and saith unto them, 'I have sinned this time, Jehovah 'is' the Righteous, and I and my people 'are' the Wicked, 28 make ye supplication unto Jehovah, and plead that there be no voices of God and hail, and I send you away, and ye add not to remain.' 29 And Moses saith unto him, 'At my going out of the city, I spread my palms unto Jehovah—the voices cease, and the hail is not any more, so that thou knowest that the earth 'is' Jehovah's; 30 but thou and thy servants—I have known that ye are not yet afraid of the face of Jehovah God.' 31 And the flax and the barley have been smitten, for the barley 'is' budding, and the flax forming flowers, 32 and the wheat and the rye have not been smitten, for they are late. 33 And Moses goeth out from Pharaoh, 'from' the city, and spreadeth his hands unto Jehovah, and the voices and the hail cease, and rain hath not been poured out to the earth; 34 and Pharaoh seeth that the rain hath ceased, and the hail and the voices, and he continueth to sin, and hardeneth his heart, he and his servants; 35 and the heart of Pharaoh is strong, and he hath not sent the sons of Israel away, as Jehovah hath spoken by the hand of Moses.

The Plague of Locusts

101 And Jehovah saith unto Moses, 'Go in unto Pharaoh, for I have declared hard his heart, and the heart of his servants, so that I set these My signs in their midst, 2 and so that thou recountest in the ears of thy son, and of thy son's son, that which I have done in Egypt, and My signs which I have set among them, and ye have known that I 'am' Jehovah.' 3 And Moses cometh in—Aaron also—unto Pharaoh, and they say unto him, 'Thus said Jehovah, God of the Hebrews, Until when hast thou refused to be humbled at My presence? send My people away, and they serve Me, 4 for if thou art refusing to send My people away, lo, I am bringing in to-morrow the locust into thy border, 5 and it hath covered the eye of the land, and none is able to see the land, and it hath eaten the remnant of that which is escaped, which is left to you from the hail, and it hath eaten every tree which is springing for you out of the field; 6 and they have filled thy houses, and the houses of all thy servants, and the houses of all the Egyptians, which neither thy fathers nor thy father's fathers have seen, since the day of their being on the ground unto this day,'—and he turneth and goeth out from Pharaoh. 7 And the servants of Pharaoh say unto him, 'Until when doth this 'one' become a snare to us? send the men away, and they serve Jehovah their God; knowest thou not yet that Egypt hath perished?' 8 And Moses is brought back—Aaron also—unto Pharaoh, and he saith unto them, 'Go, serve Jehovah your God;—who and who 'are' those going?' 9 And Moses saith, 'With our young ones, and with our aged ones, we go, with our sons, and with our daughters, with our flock, and our herd, we go, for we have a festival to Jehovah.' 10 And he saith unto them, 'Be it so, Jehovah 'be' with you when I send you and your infants away; see—for evil 'is' before your faces; 11 not so! go now, ye who 'are' men, and serve Jehovah, for that ye are seeking;' and 'one' casteth them out from the presence of Pharaoh.

12 And Jehovah saith unto Moses, 'Stretch out thy hand against the land of Egypt for the locust, and it goeth up against the land of Egypt, and doth eat every herb of the land—all that the hail hath left.' 13 And Moses stretcheth out his rod against the land of Egypt, and Jehovah hath led an east wind over the land all that day, and all the night; the morning hath been, and the east wind hath lifted up the locust. 14 And the locust goeth up against all the land of Egypt, and resteth in all the border of Egypt—very grievous: before it there hath not been such a locust as it, and after it there is none such; 15 and it covereth the eye of all the land, and the land is darkened; and it eateth every herb of the land, and all the fruit of the trees which the hail hath left, and there hath not been left any green thing in the trees, or in the herb of the field, in all the land of Egypt.' 16 And Pharaoh hasteth to call for Moses and for Aaron, and saith, 'I have sinned against Jehovah your God, and against you, 17 and now, bear with, I pray you, my sin, only this time, and make ye supplication to Jehovah your God, that He turn aside from off me only this death.' 18 And he goeth out from Pharaoh, and maketh supplication unto Jehovah, 19 and Jehovah turneth a very strong sea wind, and it lifteth up the locust, and bloweth it into the Red Sea—there hath not been left one locust in all the border of Egypt; 20 and Jehovah strengtheneth the heart of Pharaoh, and he hath not sent the sons of Israel away.

The Plague of Darkness

21 And Jehovah saith unto Moses, 'Stretch out thy hand towards the heavens, and there is darkness over the land of Egypt, and the darkness is felt.' 22 And Moses stretcheth out his hand towards the heavens, and there is darkness—thick darkness in all the land of Egypt three days; 23 they have not seen one another, and none hath risen from his place three days; and to all the sons of Israel there hath been light in their dwellings.' 24 And Pharaoh calleth unto Moses and saith, 'Go ye, serve Jehovah, only your flock and your herd are stayed, your infants also go with you;' 25 and Moses saith, 'Thou also dost give in our hand sacrifices and burnt-offerings, and we have prepared for Jehovah our God; 26 and also our cattle doth go with us, there is not left a hoof, for from it we do take to serve Jehovah our God; and we—we know not how we do serve Jehovah till our going thither.' 27 And Jehovah strengtheneth the heart of Pharaoh, and he hath not been willing to send them away; 28 and Pharaoh saith to him, 'Go from me, take heed to thyself, add not to see my face, for in the day thou seest my face thou diest;' 29 and Moses saith, 'Rightly hast thou spoken, I add not any more to see thy face.'

The Death of the Firstborn Foretold

111 And Jehovah saith unto Moses, 'One plague more I do bring in on Pharaoh, and on Egypt, afterwards he doth send you away from this; when he is sending you away, he surely casteth you out altogether from this 'place'; 2 speak, I pray thee, in the ears of the people, and they ask—each man from his neighbour, and each woman from her neighbour, vessels of silver, and vessels of gold.' 3 And Jehovah giveth the grace of the people in the eyes of the Egyptians; also the man Moses 'is' very great in the land of Egypt, in the eyes of the servants of Pharaoh, and in the eyes of the people.

4 And Moses saith, 'Thus said Jehovah, About midnight I am going out into the midst of Egypt, 5 and every first-born in the land of Egypt hath died, from the first-born of Pharaoh who is sitting on his throne, unto the first-born of the maid-servant who 'is' behind the millstones, and all the first-born of beasts; 6 and there hath been a great cry in all the land of Egypt, such as there hath not been, and such as there is not again. 7 'And against all the sons of Israel a dog sharpeneth not its tongue, from man even unto beast, so that ye know that Jehovah doth make a separation between the Egyptians and Israel; 8 and all these thy servants have come down unto me, and bowed themselves to me, saying, Go out, thou and all the people who 'are' at thy feet; and afterwards I do go out;'—and he goeth out from Pharaoh in the heat of anger. 9 And Jehovah saith unto Moses, 'Pharaoh doth not hearken unto you, so as to multiply My wonders in the land of Egypt;' 10 and Moses and Aaron have done all these wonders before Pharaoh, and Jehovah strengtheneth Pharaoh's heart, and he hath not sent the sons of Israel out of his land.

The Canaanite Woman's Faith

21 And Jesus having come forth thence, withdrew to the parts of Tyre and Sidon, 22 and lo, a woman, a Canaanitess, from those borders having come forth, did call to him, saying, 'Deal kindly with me, Sir—Son of David; my daughter is miserably demonized.' 23 And he did not answer her a word; and his disciples having come to him, were asking him, saying—'Let her away, because she crieth after us;' 24 and he answering said, 'I was not sent except to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.' 25 And having come, she was bowing to him, saying, 'Sir, help me;' 26 and he answering said, 'It is not good to take the children's bread, and to cast to the little dogs.' 27 And she said, 'Yes, sir, for even the little dogs do eat of the crumbs that are falling from their lords' table;' 28 then answering, Jesus said to her, 'O woman, great 'is' thy faith, let it be to thee as thou wilt;' and her daughter was healed from that hour.

Jesus Heals Many People

29 And Jesus having passed thence, came nigh unto the sea of Galilee, and having gone up to the mountain, he was sitting there, 30 and there came to him great multitudes, having with them lame, blind, dumb, maimed, and many others, and they did cast them at the feet of Jesus, and he healed them, 31 so that the multitudes did wonder, seeing dumb ones speaking, maimed whole, lame walking, and blind seeing; and they glorified the God of Israel.

The Feeding of the Four Thousand

32 And Jesus having called near his disciples, said, 'I have compassion upon the multitude, because now three days they continue with me, and they have not what they may eat; and to let them away fasting I will not, lest they faint in the way.' 33 And his disciples say to him, 'Whence to us, in a wilderness, so many loaves, as to fill so great a multitude?' 34 And Jesus saith to them, 'How many loaves have ye?' and they said, 'Seven, and a few little fishes.' 35 And he commanded the multitudes to sit down upon the ground, 36 and having taken the seven loaves and the fishes, having given thanks, he did break, and gave to his disciples, and the disciples to the multitude. 37 And they did all eat, and were filled, and they took up what was over of the broken pieces seven baskets full, 38 and those eating were four thousand men, apart from women and children. 39 And having let away the multitudes, he went into the boat, and did come to the borders of Magdala.

Matthew Henry's Commentary on Matthew 15:21-39

Commentary on Matthew 15:21-28

(Read Matthew 15:21-28)

The dark corners of the country, the most remote, shall share Christ's influences; afterwards the ends of the earth shall see his salvation. The distress and trouble of her family brought a woman to Christ; and though it is need that drives us to Christ, yet we shall not therefore be driven from him. She did not limit Christ to any particular instance of mercy, but mercy, mercy, is what she begged for: she pleads not merit, but depends upon mercy. It is the duty of parents to pray for their children, and to be earnest in prayer for them, especially for their souls. Have you a son, a daughter, grievously vexed with a proud devil, an unclean devil, a malicious devil, led captive by him at his will? this is a case more deplorable than that of bodily possession, and you must bring them by faith and prayer to Christ, who alone is able to heal them. Many methods of Christ's providence, especially of his grace, in dealing with his people, which are dark and perplexing, may be explained by this story, which teaches that there may be love in Christ's heart while there are frowns in his face; and it encourages us, though he seems ready to slay us, yet to trust in him. Those whom Christ intends most to honour, he humbles to feel their own unworthiness. A proud, unhumbled heart would not have borne this; but she turned it into an argument to support her request. The state of this woman is an emblem of the state of a sinner, deeply conscious of the misery of his soul. The least of Christ is precious to a believer, even the very crumbs of the Bread of life. Of all graces, faith honours Christ most; therefore of all graces Christ honours faith most. He cured her daughter. He spake, and it was done. From hence let such as seek help from the Lord, and receive no gracious answer, learn to turn even their unworthiness and discouragements into pleas for mercy.

Commentary on Matthew 15:29-39

(Read Matthew 15:29-39)

Whatever our case is, the only way to find ease and relief, is to lay it at Christ's feet, to submit it to him, and refer it to his disposal. Those who would have spiritual healing from Christ, must be ruled as he pleases. See what work sin has made; what various diseases human bodies are subject to. Here were such diseases as fancy could neither guess the cause nor the cure of, yet these were subject to the command of Christ. The spiritual cures that Christ works are wonderful. When blind souls are made to see by faith, the dumb to speak in prayer, the maimed and the lame to walk in holy obedience, it is to be wondered at. His power was also shown to the multitude, in the plentiful provision he made for them: the manner is much the same as before. All did eat, and were filled. Those whom Christ feeds, he fills. With Christ there is bread enough, and to spare; supplies of grace for more than seek it, and for those that seek for more. Christ sent away the people. Though he had fed them twice, they must not look for miracles to find their daily bread. Let them go home to their callings and their own tables. Lord, increase our faith, and pardon our unbelief, teaching us to live upon thy fulness and bounty, for all things pertaining to this life, and that which is to come.