The Plague of Pestilence: Pharaoh’s Hardened Heart and Divine Justice

The Egyptians had not yet recovered from the terrible trauma brought upon them by the plague of wild beasts. They were still mourning their loved ones who had died in strange and frightening ways. Yet on that very day, as soon as the plague ended, Moshe arrived at Pharaoh’s palace at midday and warned him that if he did not send the people of Israel free, God would strike Egypt with the plague of pestilence.

This time Moshe spoke with even greater firmness and harshness, because Pharaoh already knew that God’s word was fulfilled completely, yet he continued to harden his heart. Still, Pharaoh refused. The warning was repeated for three weeks. On the final day, Moshe declared:

“Behold, the hand of God will be upon your livestock that are in the field — upon the horses, donkeys, camels, cattle, and sheep — a very severe pestilence. And God will distinguish between the livestock of Israel and the livestock of Egypt, and nothing belonging to the children of Israel shall die.”

Sudden Death

The next day, God struck Egypt with pestilence. This plague caused sudden death among the animals. All livestock that were outside died at once — not from illness or any natural cause, but instantly and without warning.

Imagine what happened at that moment. An Egyptian riding proudly on his horse suddenly found the animal collapsing beneath him, throwing him violently to the ground. A farmer standing beside his ox was struck by its falling carcass when it died suddenly. A donkey driver was crushed when his donkey collapsed. A child standing near a lamb was trampled beneath the idol he worshiped as it fell lifeless.

Another Egyptian sat in his house and suddenly heard loud thuds coming from his courtyard. He rushed to the window and saw that all his animals were dead. The financial loss was enormous. Looking out at the street, he saw countless dead animals lying everywhere, and not a single living beast remained. He wondered what could have caused such sudden death, until he remembered Moshe’s warning about the plague of pestilence.

“You stole the cattle and flocks of Israel — now your own livestock are taken from you.”

Fear gripped him: how would he plow his fields now? Not long ago, he had forced Israelites to pull his plow like animals in order to spare his livestock from exhaustion. Recently he had returned to using his animals, but now they were gone. “You spared your animals and harnessed Israel to the plow — now your animals have died, and there is no one left to harness!”

At the very beginning of the plague, all animals that were outdoors died in a single instant. During the seven days of the plague, any animal whose owner later brought it outside to see whether the disease had passed, also died. Likewise, any animal that was not properly guarded and wandered outdoors perished.

Not a single animal belonging to Israel died, even if it stood right next to an Egyptian animal. Even weak, thin, or sickly animals that appeared close to death survived. Animals jointly owned by an Egyptian and an Israelite lived. Even an Egyptian animal leased to an Israelite — from which the Israelite benefited through wool or milk, remained alive.

Pharaoh Hardens His Heart

Pharaoh saw all this and still hardened his heart. He somewhat lightened the burden of slavery, yet he refused to release the Israelites. God said: “Wicked one! Do you think I cannot wipe you out from the world? Learn from the plague of pestilence — had I sent it directly against you and your people, you would have been destroyed from the earth. But I restrained it, in order to show you My greatness and to make My power known throughout the land.”

When God saw that Pharaoh did not repent after the first five plagues, He declared that from that point forward, even if Pharaoh wished to return, He would strengthen Pharaoh’s heart so that full justice would be carried out upon him.