God has logic in everything he does. When it comes to the plagues on the Egyptians they are divided into a pattern of three sets of three and then the Judgement which is the only one in the fourth set.
In the first set Pharaoh was warned of the first two plagues which were the Water to Blood, and next the Frogs. Pharaoh was not warned about the third plague in the first set of three which was the Lice. In the second set Pharaoh was warned about the first two, but not the third. The second set containing three plagues began with the fourth plague of insects everywhere. In the third set of threes he was warned once again, about the first two plagues but not the third. And he certainly wasn’t warned about the one in the fourth set which was the judgement. Some people think the forth plague of insects were flies. But not just any fly, flies that bore into the skin and lay eggs under the skin.
If the fourth plague is interpreted as flies, it fits within a speculative framework of the Ten Plagues of Egypt being linked to scientific climate change. There is a theory which promotes a climate in warming that says, “Biting flies, having hatched in soil heavily polluted with animal urine and feces, would have become abundant with warming weather, and the flies would have easily bred in a land strewn with frog corpses.”
But if we are going to believe the plagues were all natural forces of climate and climate change, we have to take power away from God. Actually, that theory would only make God nothing more than a fortune teller. But we know God is all powerful and He is capable of making and moving nature to use for His needs. God actually brought the plagues, for his purpose of freeing His people.
The fifth plague, the second in the second set of three’s, was the killing of the livestock owned by the Egyptians. We start Chapter nine of Exodus the same way we did so many times before. God once again laid it on the line: Pharaoh must let God’s people go, submission to God he must show. If Pharaoh refuses to submit, it won’t be pretty Moses admits. God will strike Egyptian livestock in the fields. No harm to Israelites livestock he will yield. This plague was laid out completely. It will include horses, asses, camels, cattle, and sheep. They will be struck with a very severe pestilence.
We remember the Egyptians worshipped almost everything, and had a god for everything. Remember, we know God was not attacking the Egyptian people, He was proving the impotence of the Egyptian gods. He is reaffirming only the God of the Israelites is divine and nothing else in nature is, even if they call them gods. Then He did what He did prior to the last plague. God made it known that there is a difference between the livestock of the Egyptians and the livestock of the Israelites when He said, “nothing shall die of all that belongs to the Israelites”.
It seems this is a first between the Egyptians and God. But this time, for the first time, He tells them even more. This time he tells them the plague will be tomorrow. And God being true to his word struck all the livestock the very next day. All the livestock of the Egyptians died but not one of the livestock of the Israelites died – NOT ONE BEAST. Pharaoh at least had a curiosity about God. He inquired if any of the livestock of the Israelites had died. And even though none had Pharaoh remained stubborn against God and the Israelites.
But now for the sixth plague, the third in the second set of threes, God told Moses and Aaron to go to the kiln and take out handfuls of soot. They were to throw those handfuls of soot in the air, in front of Pharaoh. They were told, It shall become a fine dust all over the land of Egypt. Moses threw it toward the sky and it caused an inflammation breaking out in boils on both man and beast. The magicians didn’t even try to duplicate or to dispel this plague as they were also covered with inflammation, and hurting, the same as all the Egyptians. We are not told this time that Pharaoh hardened his heart against God and the Israelites. Pharaoh didn’t have that chance. God stiffened Pharaoh’s heart first.
And now Pharaoh has time to decide what he wants to do with the Israelites. Their fate, at this time, is directly in the hands of Pharaoh. Pharaoh had much opposition to his decision. The magicians were particularly eager to change Pharaoh’s mind. They evidently realized this God had far greater power than they did with their illusions, and it was obvious God had far more power than Pharaoh did.
The Lord said to Moses, “Early in the morning, present yourself to Pharaoh and say to him, “Thus says the Lord, the God of the Hebrews; Let my people go to worship me. For this time I will send all my plagues upon your person, and your courtiers, and your people. In order that you may know THERE IS NONE LIKE ME IN ALL THE LAND.”
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