22 God said to Moses: "Stretch your hands to the skies. Signal the hail to fall all over Egypt on people and animals and crops exposed in the fields of Egypt." 23 Moses lifted his staff to the skies and God sent peals of thunder and hail shot through with lightning strikes. God rained hail down on the land of Egypt. 24 The hail came, hail and lightning - a fierce hailstorm. There had been nothing like it in Egypt in its entire history. 25 The hail hit hard all over Egypt. Everything exposed out in the fields, people and animals and crops, was smashed. Even the trees in the fields were shattered. 26 Except for Goshen where the Israelites lived; there was no hail in Goshen. 27 Pharaoh summoned Moses and Aaron. He said, "I've sinned for sure this time - God is in the right and I and my people are in the wrong. 28 Pray to God. We've had enough of God's thunder and hail. I'll let you go. The sooner you're out of here the better." 29 Moses said, "As soon as I'm out of the city, I'll stretch out my arms to God. The thunder will stop and the hail end so you'll know that the land is God's land. 30 Still, I know that you and your servants have no respect for God." 31 (The flax and the barley were ruined, for they were just ripening, 32 but the wheat and spelt weren't hurt - they ripen later.) 33 Moses left Pharaoh and the city and stretched out his arms to God. The thunder and hail stopped; the storm cleared. 34 But when Pharaoh saw that the rain and hail and thunder had stopped, he kept right on sinning, stubborn as ever, both he and his servants. 35 Pharaoh's heart turned rock-hard. He refused to release the Israelites, as God had ordered through Moses.
Matthew Henry's Commentary on Exodus 9:22-35
Commentary on Exodus 9:22-35
(Read Exodus 9:22-35)
Woful havoc this hail made: it killed both men and cattle; the corn above ground was destroyed, and that only preserved which as yet was not come up. The land of Goshen was preserved. God causes rain or hail on one city and not on another, either in mercy or in judgment. Pharaoh humbled himself to Moses. No man could have spoken better: he owns himself wrong; he owns that the Lord is righteous; and God must be justified when he speaks, though he speaks in thunder and lightning. Yet his heart was hardened all this while. Moses pleads with God: though he had reason to think Pharaoh would repent of his repentance, and he told him so, yet he promises to be his friend. Moses went out of the city, notwithstanding the hail and lightning which kept Pharaoh and his servants within doors. Peace with God makes men thunder-proof. Pharaoh was frightened by the tremendous judgment; but when that was over, his fair promises were forgotten. Those that are not bettered by judgments and mercies, commonly become worse.