The Plague of Flies is the fourth of the ten plagues that God inflicted upon Egypt as described in the Book of Exodus. This particular plague is a significant event in the narrative of the Israelites' liberation from Egyptian bondage, demonstrating God's power and His ability to protect His people while executing judgment on their oppressors.

Biblical Account

The account of the Plague of Flies is found in Exodus 8:20-32. The Lord instructed Moses to rise early in the morning and confront Pharaoh as he went to the water. Moses was to deliver God's command: "Let My people go, so that they may worship Me" (Exodus 8:20). If Pharaoh refused, God warned that He would send swarms of flies upon Pharaoh, his officials, his people, and their houses. The land of Egypt would be filled with flies, and the ground would be covered with them.

In a demonstration of divine distinction, God declared that He would set apart the land of Goshen, where His people, the Israelites, lived, so that no swarms of flies would be found there. This separation was to show that the Lord was present in the land and to make a distinction between His people and the Egyptians (Exodus 8:22-23).

Impact and Pharaoh's Response

As promised, dense swarms of flies invaded the houses of Pharaoh and his officials, and the entire land of Egypt was ruined by the flies (Exodus 8:24). The presence of the flies was not only a nuisance but also a symbol of chaos and disorder, disrupting daily life and religious practices in Egypt.

Pharaoh summoned Moses and Aaron and offered a compromise, allowing the Israelites to sacrifice to their God within the land of Egypt. However, Moses insisted that they must go a three-day journey into the wilderness to offer sacrifices, as the Egyptians would detest their offerings (Exodus 8:25-27).

Pharaoh relented and agreed to let the Israelites go into the wilderness, but he asked Moses to pray to the Lord to remove the flies. Moses agreed but warned Pharaoh not to act deceitfully again by refusing to let the people go (Exodus 8:28-29).

Divine Intervention and Pharaoh's Hardened Heart

Moses prayed to the Lord, and the Lord did as Moses asked. The flies departed from Pharaoh, his officials, and his people; not a single fly remained (Exodus 8:31). Despite this miraculous intervention, Pharaoh hardened his heart once more and did not let the people go (Exodus 8:32).

Theological Significance

The Plague of Flies serves as a powerful testament to God's sovereignty and His ability to control nature. It highlights the distinction between the Israelites and the Egyptians, underscoring God's covenant relationship with His chosen people. The plague also illustrates the futility of resisting God's will, as Pharaoh's repeated hardening of his heart only led to further plagues and suffering for Egypt.

This event is a reminder of the consequences of disobedience and the importance of heeding God's commands. It also foreshadows the ultimate deliverance of the Israelites from slavery, a central theme in the narrative of Exodus and a foundational event in the history of Israel.Exodus 8:21-31
Else, if you will not let my people go, behold, I will send swarms of flies on you, and on your servants, and on your people, and into your houses: and the houses of the Egyptians shall be full of swarms of flies, and also the ground where on they are.
Nave's Topical Index

Psalm 78:45
He sent divers sorts of flies among them, which devoured them; and frogs, which destroyed them.
Nave's Topical Index

Psalm 105:31
He spoke, and there came divers sorts of flies, and lice in all their coasts.
Nave's Topical Index

On the Holy Ghost and his Descent Upon the Apostles
... Egyptians. The fourth plague was flies that filled the land and covered
everything, to the great disgust of the people. The fifth ...
/.../kinkead/baltimore catechism no 4/lesson 9 on the holy.htm

On his Father'S Silence, Because of the Plague of Hail.
... drunk in Egypt from the wells and rivers and all reservoirs of water [3111] in the
first plague: I passed over the next scourges, the frogs, lice, and flies. ...
/.../cyril/lectures of s cyril of jerusalem/oration xvi on his fathers.htm

Little Sins
... sins. The plague of lice, or the plague of flies in Egypt, was perhaps
the most terrible that the Egyptians ever felt. Take care ...
/.../christianbookshelf.org/spurgeon/spurgeons sermons volume 5 1859/little sins.htm

The Rod that Troubled Egypt.
... another plague was brought upon the Egyptians. The dust of the land was changed
to lice that covered man and beast, and this was followed by swarms of flies ...
/.../lathbury/childs story of the bible/chapter xi the rod that.htm

One must Show Fortitude in Fighting against all vices...
... give a greeting. It cares not for money, and flies from avarice as from
a plague that destroys all virtue. [295] For nothing is ...
/.../ambrose/works and letters of st ambrose/chapter xxxix one must show.htm

Great Miracles Wrought by Magic Arts.
... For the lice, by which third plague the proud people of Egypt were smitten, are
very short-lived little flies; yet there certainly the magicians failed, saying ...
/.../augustine/on the holy trinity/chapter 7 great miracles wrought by.htm

The Cost of Being Cruel and Stubborn
... I will go out and will pray to Jehovah that the swarms of flies may depart from ... and
pray to Jehovah your God to take away from me this deadly plague." So Moses ...
/...//christianbookshelf.org/sherman/the childrens bible/the cost of being cruel.htm

What Carey did for Science --Founder of the Agricultural and ...
... and mosquitoes (or gnats) are abundant, and the latter so tormenting as to make
one conclude that if the flies in Egypt were mosquitoes, the plague must be ...
/.../smith/the life of william carey/chapter xii what carey did.htm

Moses, the Mighty Intercessor
... of the frogs which God had brought against the land of Egypt, and the Lord did
according to the word of Moses." When the grievous plague of flies had corrupted ...
/.../bounds/prayer and praying men/iv moses the mighty intercessor.htm

That Our Lawful Occupations do not Hinder us from Practicising ...
... He ever flies the court and legal strife. ... God helps him, and heavenly sweetness is
as an epithem on his heart, to preserve him from the plague which reigns in ...
/.../francis/treatise on the love of god/chapter iv that our lawful.htm

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