Exodus 11
1 Then the LORD said to Moses, “ I will bring upon Pharaoh and Egypt one more plague. After that, he will allow you to leave this place. And when he lets you go, he will drive you out completely. 2 Now announce to the people that men and women alike should ask their neighbors for articles of silver and gold.” 3 And the LORD gave the people favor in the sight of the Egyptians. Moreover, Moses himself was highly regarded in Egypt by Pharaoh ’s officials and by the people. 4 So Moses declared, “ This is what the LORD says: ‘ About midnight I will go throughout Egypt, 5 and every firstborn son in the land of Egypt will die, from the firstborn of Pharaoh who sits on his throne, to the firstborn of the servant girl behind the hand mill, as well as the firstborn of all the cattle. 6 Then a great cry will go out over all the land of Egypt. Such an outcry has never been heard before and will never be heard again. 7 But among all the Israelites, not even a dog will snarl at man or beast.’ Then you will know that the LORD makes a distinction between Egypt and Israel. 8 And all these officials of yours will come and bow before me, saying, ‘ Go, you and all the people who follow you!’ After that, I will depart.” And hot with anger, Moses left Pharaoh ’s presence. 9 The LORD said to Moses, “ Pharaoh will not listen to you, so that My wonders may be multiplied in the land of Egypt.” 10 Moses and Aaron did all these wonders before Pharaoh, but the LORD hardened Pharaoh ’s heart so that he would not let the Israelites go out of his land.
✦ What the text says
## Summary
Exodus 11 records Yahweh's final warning to Moses about a last plague — the death of Egypt's firstborn — before Pharaoh's obstinacy is broken. The chapter includes instructions for the Israelites to request silver and gold from their Egyptian neighbors, Moses' angry departure from Pharaoh, and a closing note that Yahweh hardened Pharaoh's heart so that he did not release the people.
## Key words
- *yegaresh* ("he will drive out", H1644G) — piel imperfect, preceded in v.1 by the infinitive absolute *garesh* of the same root, a construction expressing certainty/emphasis: "he will completely drive you out."
- *yotze'* ("about to go out", H3318G) — qal participle in v.4, expressing an action already in motion at the moment of speaking, not a simple future.
- *yaphleh* ("he separates/makes distinction", H6395) — hiphil imperfect in v.7, a causative form: Yahweh actively "makes" a distinction between Egypt and Israel, rather than a distinction simply existing.
- *vayechazzeq* ("he made strong", H2388G) — piel narrative form in v.10, describing Yahweh's action on Pharaoh's *lev* ("heart of", H3820A) as an intensified, deliberate strengthening, not a passive state.
## What the text says
The chapter opens with a narrative sequence of *vayyomer* forms ("and he said," H0559) linking Yahweh's speech to Moses, Moses' speech to the people, and finally Moses' report of Yahweh
This explanation describes the text using linguistic data; it adds no doctrine or confessional interpretation.