Lesson 037

The Ten Plagues

Exodus 7:14-11:10; 12:29,30

MEMORY VERSEDANIEL 6:27a“God delivers and rescues, and He works signs and wondersin heaven and on earth.”

WHAT YOU WILL NEED:A piece of paper with the memory verse printed in a sealedenvelope addressed to your class, masking tape, and prepared 3”x5” index cards. A table, plain cheerios, fruit loops, drinking straws,and a stopwatch or watch with a second hand.

Play-doh, red construction paper and small sandwich baggies.

ATTENTION GRABBER!

Please Mr. Postman!You will need a piece of paper with the memory verse printed on itand sealed in an envelope addressed to your class, masking tape,and prepared 3x5” index cards.

Tape two long parallel lines on your floor about 10 inches apartand nine feet long. Then tape every three inches or so from oneline to the next making approximately 25 spaces. Your floorshould look like a ladder. Then tape a square off at each end. Oneend is “start" and the other one is "finish." Make several 3x5” cardsahead of time and have them well shuffled. Make the majority ofthe cards say "advance 3 spaces," and one each of the cards say:"windstorm, back 1 space," "hailstorm, back 1 space," "lighteningstrikes, back 1 space," "tree fell, back 1 space," "bridge out, back 2spaces," "rainstorm, back 2 spaces," "snowstorm, back 2 spaces,""flood, back 3 spaces," "got sick, back 3 spaces." Be sure that themajority of cards will ensure that the letter will reach the finishline. Place the letter with the verse inside on the "start" square andlet the children take turns drawing a card and doing what it says

with the letter. When the letter gets to the finish, open the letterand read its’ contents. Remind your class that God is powerfuland able to deliver.

LESSON TIME!God wanted to bring the Israelites out of slavery in Egypt and intothe Promised Land; but Pharaoh, the Egyptian ruler, would not letthe Israelites go. In today’s lesson, we will learn how God dealt withPharaoh and the Egyptian nation to accomplish His purposes.

There was no Pharaoh or king, false god, or person who could stopGod from accomplishing His plan. God, in His mighty power,would deliver the children of Israel. As God’s children, we can beconfident our God is able to intervene in the most difficult andhopeless circumstances. God is powerful and able to deliver.

EXOD US 7:14-20S o the LORD said t o M oses : "Pharaoh 's hear t i s hard ;he re f u ses t o l e t the p eop le go .

"Go t o Pharaoh in the m orn ing, w hen he goes ou t t othe w ater , and you shal l s t and by the r i v er 's bank t om eet h im ; and the rod w h i c h w as tu rned to a s erp en tyou shal l t ake in you r hand .

"And you shal l s ay t o h im , 'The LORD God o f theHebrew s has s en t m e to you , s ay ing, "Let M y p eop lego , that they m ay serv e M e in the w i ldernes s " ; bu tindeed , u n t i l now you w ou ld not hear !

'Thu s says the LORD : "By th i s you shal l know that Iam the LORD . Beho ld , I w i l l s t r i ke the w ater s w h i c hare in the r i v er w i th the rod that i s i n m y hand , andthey shal l be tu rned to blood .

"And the f i sh that are in the r i v er shal l d i e , the r i v ershal l s t ink , and the Egyp t i ans w i l l l oathe t o d r inkthe w ater o f the r i v er ."

Then the LORD sp oke t o M oses , "S ay t o Aaron , 'Takeyou r rod and s t re t c h ou t you r hand ov er the w ater so f Egyp t , ov er the i r s t ream s , ov er the i r r i v er s , ov erthe i r p onds , and ov er al l t he i r p oo l s o f w at er , thatthey m ay bec om e blood . And there shal l be bloodthrou ghou t al l t he l and o f Egyp t , bo th in v es se l s o fw ood and v es se l s o f s t one . '

And M oses and Aaron d id so , j u s t as the LORDc om m anded . S o he l i f t ed u p the rod and s t ru c k thew ater s that w ere in the r i v er , i n the s i gh t o f Pharaohand in the s i gh t o f h i s s erv an t s . And al l t he w ater sthat w ere in the r i v er w ere tu rned to blood .

Pharaoh had a hard heart. He would not listen to God and chose todisobey Him. So God brought the first of 10 plagues on Egypt. Godturned the Nile River into blood. The Egyptians worshipped a rivergod. When God turned the Nile into blood, He was proving that Hewas the only real God and that He was powerful.

Pharaoh experienced the sad consequences of pride and rebellionto God. Because he thought he knew more than God, he brought alot of pain upon himself and others in his nation. If he had justhumbled himself before God, he could have been spared so much.If we refuse to humble ourselves before God and acknowledge Him,we will bring pain upon ourselves and those we love.

EXOD US 8:1-3And the LORD sp oke t o M oses , "Go t o Pharaoh andsay t o h im , 'Thu s says the LORD : "Let M y p eop le go ,that they m ay serv e M e .

"Bu t i f you re f u se t o l e t them go , beho ld , I w i l l sm i t eal l you r t er r i t ory w i th f rogs .

"S o the r i v er shal l br ing f or th f rogs abu ndant ly ,w h i c h shal l go u p and c om e in to you r hou se , i n toyou r bedc ham ber , on you r bed , in to the hou ses o fyou r s erv an t s , on you r p eop le , i n to you r ov ens , andin to you r knead ing bow l s .”

After the plague of blood was over, Pharaoh's heart grew harderand God sent a plague of frogs to cover the land. By this, Godshowed that He was real and the Egyptians' frog goddess was a falsegod. Moses prayed that the Egyptians would be rid of the frogs,and God took them away. "But when Pharaoh saw that there wasrelief, he hardened his heart and did not heed them, as the Lordhad said." (Exodus 8:15).

EXOD US 8:16-19S o the LORD said t o M oses , "S ay t o Aaron , 'S t re t c hou t you r rod , and s t r i ke the du s t o f the l and , so thati t m ay bec om e l i c e th rou ghou t al l t he l and o f Egyp t . '

And they d id so . For Aaron s t re t c hed ou t h i s handw i th h i s rod and s t ru c k the du s t o f the ear th , and i tbec am e l i c e on m an and beas t . Al l the du s t o f thel and bec am e l i c e th rou ghou t al l t he l and o f Egyp t .

N ow the m agi c i ans so w orked w i th the i renc han tm ent s t o br ing f or th l i c e , bu t they c ou ld not .S o there w ere l i c e on m an and beas t .

Then the m agi c i ans said t o Pharaoh , "Th i s i s thef inger o f God ." Bu t Pharaoh 's hear t grew hard , and hed id not heed them , j u s t as the LORD had said .

Next, God brought lice on the land of Egypt. Pharaoh’s magicians,using sorcery, had sought to copy the other two plagues; but, theywere powerless to copy this one. Even the magicians realized thatthis was from God. God proved that the god of the desert was afalse god. Yet, Pharaoh's heart grew harder.

Sometimes, false prophets try to imitate God’s truth. BecausePharaoh’s magicians, in touch with demonic powers, could copythe plagues, Pharaoh felt like he was just as powerful. Now, Godhad done something that cannot be copied. God was showing thatHe was more powerful than their idols as well as more powerfulthan their magicians and false religions. Even after blood in theirwater supply, frogs everywhere, and lice everywhere, Pharaoh stillrefused to let God’s people go.

EXOD US 8:20-22And the LORD said t o M oses , "R i s e ear ly in them orn ing and s t and bef ore Pharaoh as he c om es ou tto the w ater . Then say t o h im , 'Thu s says the LORD :"Let M y p eop le go , that they m ay serv e M e .

"Or e l s e , i f you w i l l no t l e t M y p eop le go , beho ld , Iw i l l s end sw arm s o f f l i es on you and you r s erv an t s ,on you r p eop le and in to you r hou ses . The hou ses o fthe Egyp t i ans shal l be f u l l o f sw arm s o f f l i es , andal so the grou nd on w h i c h they s t and .

"And in that day I w i l l s e t ap ar t the l and o f Goshen ,in w h i c h M y p eop le dw el l , t hat no sw arm s o f f l i esshal l be there , i n order that you m ay know that I amthe LORD in the m ids t o f the l and ."

This time God not only brought a plague of flies, but He showedPharaoh that He could keep the flies away from the land where theIsraelites dwelled; this proved the Egyptian fly god was false.

Pharaoh agreed to let the Israelites go into the wilderness tosacrifice, but when the plague was over he changed his mind andwould not let them go. Pharaoh did not keep his promise; but, Godis still in control. God is powerful and able to deliver.

EXOD US 9:1-7Then the LORD said t o M oses , "Go in t o Pharaoh andte l l h im , 'Thu s says the LORD God o f the Hebrew s :"Let M y p eop le go , that they m ay serv e M e .

"For i f you re f u se t o l e t them go , and s t i l l ho ld them ,"beho ld , the hand o f the LORD w i l l be on you r c at t l ein the f i e ld , on the horses , on the donkeys , on thec am el s , on the oxen , and on the sheep . There w i l l bea v ery s ev ere p es t i l enc e .

"And the LORD w i l l m ake a d i f f erenc e betw een thel i v es toc k o f I s rae l and the l i v es toc k o f Egyp t . S onoth ing shal l d i e o f al l t hat be longs t o the c h i ld renof I s rae l ." ' "

Then the LORD ap p o in t ed a s e t t im e , s ay ing,"Tom orrow the LORD w i l l do th i s th ing in the l and ."

S o the LORD d id th i s th ing on the next day , and al lthe l i v es toc k o f Egyp t d i ed ; bu t o f the l i v es toc k o fthe c h i ld ren o f I s rae l , no one d i ed .

Then Pharaoh sen t , and indeed , not ev en one o f thel i v es toc k o f the I s rae l i t es w as dead . Bu t the hear t o fPharaoh bec am e hard , and he d id not l e t the p eop lego .

Next God sent a plague of disease upon all of the Egyptians'livestock. Once again God proved that the Egyptian livestock godswere false. All of the Israelites’ livestock was spared. Yet, Pharaohcontinued to harden his heart and would not let Israel go.

Cheerio RodeoYou will need a table, plain cheerios, fruit loops, drinking straws,and a stopwatch or watch with a second hand.

Divide your class into teams of three or four and give each child astraw. Place one cup of cheerios and one cup of fruit loops on atabletop and mix them up. Have one team play at a time. Whenyou say, "GO!" the chosen team will try to separate the cheeriosfrom the fruit loops. Time each team and write it on thechalkboard. The team with the shortest time wins. You will needto wipe the table and start with new cereal each time.

Remind your class that throughout all the plagues, God made adistinction between His people and the Egyptians; He never madeany mistakes. In the same way, we are a separate people in theworld today. The Bible says that we are to be in the world, but notof it. God’s hand of protection is upon His people despite thecircumstances and condition of the world around them. Howimportant that, as a separate people, we not adopt the ways andideas of the world.

EXOD US 9:8S o the LORD said t o M oses and Aaron , "Take f oryou rse l v es hand f u l s o f ashes f rom a f u rnac e , and l e tM oses s c at t er i t t ow ard the heav ens in the s i gh t o f

Pharaoh . And i t w i l l bec om e f ine du s t in al l t he l andof Egyp t , and i t w i l l c au se bo i l s that break ou t insores on m an and beas t th rou ghou t al l t he l and o fEgyp t ."

Then God sent boils and sores on all of the Egyptians. Here Godproved Himself mighty over the Egyptian goddess of disease. TheBible says that God hardened Pharaoh's heart because He saw thatPharaoh was intent on disobedience.

EXOD US 9:13-18Then the LORD said t o M oses , "R i s e ear ly in them orn ing and s t and bef ore Pharaoh , and say t o h im ,'Thu s says the LORD God o f the Hebrew s : "Let M yp eop le go , that they m ay serv e M e ,

" f or at th i s t im e I w i l l s end al l M y p l agu es t o you rv ery hear t , and on you r s erv an t s and on you r p eop le ,that you m ay know that there i s none l i k e M e in al lthe ear th .

"N ow i f I had s t re t c hed ou t M y hand and s t ru c k youand you r p eop le w i th p es t i l enc e , then you w ou ldhav e been c u t o f f f rom the ear th .

"Bu t indeed f or th i s p u rp ose I hav e rai s ed you u p ,that I m ay show M y p ow er in you , and that M y nam em ay be dec l ared in al l t he ear th .

"As yet you exal t you rse l f again s t M y p eop le in thatyou w i l l no t l e t them go .

"Beho ld , t om orrow abou t th i s t im e I w i l l c au se v eryheav y hai l t o rain dow n , su c h as has not been inEgyp t s inc e i t s f ou nd ing u n t i l now .”

Next, God sent a plague of hail to destroy the Egyptian crops. Heproved Himself more powerful than their gods of crops andstorms. This time Pharaoh pleaded for relief.

Again, its too bad that many people suffered because of Pharaoh’spride. We need to remember that our disobedience not onlyaffects ourselves, it affects others.

EXOD US 9:27-34And Pharaoh sen t and c al l ed f or M oses and Aaron ,and said t o them , " I hav e s inned th i s t im e . The LORDi s r i gh t eou s , and m y p eop le and I are w i c ked .

"En t reat the LORD , that there m ay be no m ore m igh tythu nder ing and hai l , f o r i t i s enou gh . I w i l l l e t yougo , and you shal l s t ay no l onger ."

And M oses s aid t o h im , "As soon as I hav e gone ou t o fthe c i t y , I w i l l sp read ou t m y hands t o the LORD ; thethu nder w i l l c ease , and there w i l l be no m ore hai l ,t hat you m ay know that the ear th i s the Lord 's .

"Bu t as f or you and you r s erv an t s , I know that youw i l l no t yet f ear the LORD God ."

N ow the f l ax and the bar l ey w ere s t ru c k , f or thebar l ey w as in the head and the f l ax w as in bu d . Bu tthe w heat and the sp e l t w ere not s t ru c k , f or they arel at e c rop s .

S o M oses w en t ou t o f the c i t y f rom Pharaoh andsp read ou t h i s hands t o the LORD ; then the thu nderand the hai l c eased , and the rain w as not p ou red onthe ear th .

And w hen Pharaoh saw that the rain , the hai l , andthe thu nder had c eased , he s inned yet m ore ; and hehardened h i s hear t , he and h i s s erv an t s .

Pharaoh sinned again by hardening his heart to the voice of theLord. Pharaoh was willing to acknowledge God when he neededhelp, but not when all was well. Sadly, there are many like that.They turn to God for help in time of crisis only; they may makepromises to serve Him. When the crisis is over, they resume theirformer life style. As Pharaoh, they did not genuinely repent.

EXOD US 10:1-6N ow the LORD said t o M oses , "Go in t o Pharaoh ; f or Ihav e hardened h i s hear t and the hear t s o f h i ss erv an t s , that I m ay show these s i gns o f M ine bef oreh im ,

"and that you m ay t e l l i n the hear ing o f you r sonand you r son 's son the m igh ty th ings I hav e done inEgyp t , and M y s i gns w h i c h I hav e done am ong them ,that you m ay know that I am the LORD ."

S o M oses and Aaron c am e in t o Pharaoh and said t oh im , "Thu s says the LORD God o f the Hebrew s : 'Howlong w i l l you re f u se t o hu m ble you rse l f bef ore M e?Let M y p eop le go , that they m ay serv e M e .

'Or e l s e , i f you re f u se t o l e t M y p eop le go , beho ld ,t om orrow I w i l l br ing l oc u s t s in to you r t er r i t ory .

'And they shal l c ov er the f ac e o f the ear th , so thatno one w i l l be abl e t o s ee the ear th ; and they shal leat the res idu e o f w hat i s l e f t , w h i c h rem ains t o youf rom the hai l , and they shal l eat ev ery t ree w h i c hgrow s u p f or you ou t o f the f i e ld .

'They shal l f i l l you r hou ses , the hou ses o f al l you rserv an t s , and the hou ses o f al l t he Egyp t i ans --w h i c hnei ther you r f athers nor you r f athers ' f athers hav eseen , s inc e the day that they w ere on the ear th t oth i s day . '" And he tu rned and w en t ou t f rom Pharaoh .

God used this time when it was necessary to punish Pharaoh’sdisobedience to demonstrate His mighty power. Note that Godtells the Israelites they are to pass these stories down from onegeneration to another so they and their children would neverforget what God had done for them.

Imagine the stories that Moses had for his grandchildren! May weremember all the great things God has done for us. May we passthem on to our own children and others.

The eighth plague God brought upon Egypt was a plague of locusts.Locusts were insects like grasshoppers, and they came and coveredthe land. The Egyptians also had a god of crops and God provedhim powerless by destroying their crops.

Again Pharaoh pleaded for relief and admitted his sin, but whenGod removed the locusts Pharaoh would not release the Israelites.

EXOD US 10:20-29Bu t the LORD hardened Pharaoh 's hear t , and he d idnot l e t the c h i ld ren o f I s rae l go .

Then the LORD said t o M oses , "S t re t c h ou t you r handtow ard heav en , that there m ay be darknes s ov er thel and o f Egyp t , darknes s w h i c h m ay ev en be f e l t ."

S o M oses s t re t c hed ou t h i s hand tow ard heav en , andthere w as th i c k darknes s in al l t he l and o f Egyp tthree days .

They d id not s ee one another ; nor d id anyone r i s ef rom h i s p l ac e f or th ree days . Bu t al l t he c h i ld ren o fI s rae l had l i gh t in the i r dw el l ings .

Then Pharaoh c al l ed t o M oses and said , "Go , s erv ethe LORD ; on ly l e t you r f l oc k s and you r herds bekep t bac k . Le t you r l i t t l e ones al so go w i th you ."

Bu t M oses s aid , "You m u s t al so gi v e u s s ac r i f i c es andbu rn t o f f er ings , that w e m ay sac r i f i c e t o the LORDou r God .

"Ou r l i v es toc k al so shal l go w i th u s ; no t a hoof shal lbe l e f t beh ind . For w e m u s t t ake som e o f them toserv e the LORD ou r God , and ev en w e do not knoww i th w hat w e m u s t s erv e the LORD u n t i l w e ar r i v ethere ."

Bu t the LORD hardened Pharaoh 's hear t , and hew ou ld not l e t them go .

Then Pharaoh said t o h im , "Get aw ay f rom m e! Takeheed to you rse l f and see m y f ac e no m ore ! For in theday you see m y f ac e you shal l d i e !"

And M oses s aid , "You hav e sp oken w el l . I w i l l nev ersee you r f ac e again ."

The ninth plague God brought was a darkness that covered Egyptfor three days. There was no light except in the Israelites’ homes.Here God challenged the Egyptian sun god; but Pharaoh's heart washard, and he would not let them go.

Pharaoh remained unwilling to submit to God. Even though Godproved Himself to Pharaoh again and again, Pharaoh chose not tolisten to God. Pharaoh hardened his heart so many times that hewas callous and unable to believe in God. That is a sad condition!For those with hardened hearts, unable to believe, will face God’sjudgment. May we be careful to maintain our own hearts—may ourhearts remain soft and willing to obey God’s voice.

EXOD US 11:1-10And the LORD said t o M oses , " I w i l l br ing yet onem ore p l agu e on Pharaoh and on Egyp t . Af t erw ard hew i l l l e t you go f rom here . When he l e t s you go , hew i l l su re ly d r i v e you ou t o f here al t ogether .

"S p eak now in the hear ing o f the p eop le , and l e tev ery m an ask f rom h i s ne i ghbor and ev ery w om anf rom her ne i ghbor , ar t i c l es o f s i l v er and ar t i c l es o fgo ld ."

And the LORD gav e the p eop le f av or in the s i gh t o fthe Egyp t i ans . M oreov er the m an M oses w as v erygreat in the l and o f Egyp t , i n the s i gh t o f Pharaoh 'sserv an t s and in the s i gh t o f the p eop le .

Then M oses s aid , "Thu s says the LORD : 'Abou tm idn igh t I w i l l go ou t in to the m ids t o f Egyp t ;

'and al l t he f i r s tborn in the l and o f Egyp t shal l d i e ,f rom the f i r s tborn o f Pharaoh w ho s i t s on h i s th rone ,ev en t o the f i r s tborn o f the m aid serv an t w ho i sbeh ind the handm i l l , and al l t he f i r s tborn o f thebeas t s .

'Then there shal l be a great c ry th rou ghou t al l t hel and o f Egyp t , su c h as w as not l i k e i t be f ore , norshal l be l i k e i t again .

'Bu t again s t none o f the c h i ld ren o f I s rae l shal l a dogm ov e i t s t ongu e , again s t m an or beas t , t hat you m ayknow that the LORD does m ake a d i f f erenc e betw eenthe Egyp t i ans and I s rae l . '

"And al l t hese you r s erv an t s shal l c om e dow n to m eand bow dow n to m e, s ay ing, 'Get ou t , and al l t hep eop le w ho f o l l ow you !' Af t er that I w i l l go ou t ."Then he w en t ou t f rom Pharaoh in great anger .

Bu t the LORD said t o M oses , "Pharaoh w i l l no t heedyou , so that M y w onders m ay be m u l t ip l i ed in thel and o f Egyp t ."

S o M oses and Aaron d id al l t hese w onders bef orePharaoh ; and the LORD hardened Pharaoh 's hear t ,and he d id not l e t the c h i ld ren o f I s rae l go ou t o f h i sl and .

The final plague God brought was one that killed the firstbornchild of every Egyptian including Pharaoh and their livestock's firstborn also. Only after this severe plague did Pharaoh becomewilling to let the Israelites go.

In all of the plagues, God proved that He was the true God. Hecould foretell the future and His promises would come to pass.God proved Himself to be all-powerful, above all His creation. Justas God exercised His great power to deliver the children of Israel,God can use His great power to rescue us from our circumstances.God is powerful and able to deliver

God, also, demonstrated His care and protection for His people,those who love and serve Him. Not one of the plagues harmed theIsraelites. God promises to protect those who believe in Him. Wewill not face the judgments that He has prepared for non-Christians. As a Christian, we have been forgiven our sin and savedfrom the consequences of sin. In John 5:24 Jesus states, “Mostassuredly, I say to you, he who hears My word and believes in Himwho sent Me has everlasting life, and shall not come into judgment,but has passed from death into life.”

Pass Over My Play-dohYou will need play-doh and red paper.

Give each child a piece of play-doh or home-made clay and aquarter of a sheet of red paper. Let them work on their owncreations. Appoint one child (or teacher) to be the "angel of theLord” who can go around taking away play-doh creations unless thechild holds the red paper over the play-doh. The “angel” maywander around while the kids work and probably shouldn't be themost aggressive kid in class. But explain to the children that aslong as they hold up the red paper than the angel will “pass over”them.

Use this as an illustration of how the Angel of the Lord passed overthe Israelites who had the blood applied over their doorposts. Alsoexplain how that this is a picture of the blood of Jesus that protectsus from God’s judgment and allows us to have a relationship withGod. Supply small baggies at the end of class for the children totake their play-doh creations home.

PRAYERLead the children in a prayer of thanksgiving for God’s amazingpower to save us. If there are any children who have not yetresponded to the Gospel, give them opportunity to do so.