Plagues of Egypt

Scenes from the Book of Exodus: The death of the firstborns (including the Pharaoh's son), and the Israelites leaving Egypt (Haggadah shel Pesaḥ, 1325–1374 CE, Barcelona via British Library)

In the Book of Exodus, the Plagues of Egypt (Hebrew: מכות מצרים) are ten disasters that Yahweh inflicts on the Egyptians to convince the Pharaoh to emancipate the enslaved Israelites, each of them confronting the Pharaoh and one of his Egyptian gods;[1] they serve as "signs and marvels" given by Yahweh in response to the Pharaoh's taunt that he does not know Yahweh: "The Egyptians shall know that I am the LORD".[2]: 117  These Plagues are recited by Jews during the Passover Seder.[3]

The consensus of modern scholars is that the Torah does not give an accurate account of the origins of the Israelites and that, while a small group of proto-Israelites may have originated from Egypt, it did not happen in the massive way that the Tanakh describes.[4][5]: 81 [6]: 6–7  Some scholars have suggested that the story of the Plagues of Egypt might have been inspired by natural phenomena like epidemics, although these theories are considered uncertain.[7][8]

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference Greifenhagen was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ Tigay, Jeffrey H. (2004). "Exodus". In Berlin, Adele; Brettler, Marc Zvi (eds.). The Jewish Study Bible. Oxford University Press.
  3. ^ "08. The Meaning of the Ten Plagues – Peninei Halakha". Retrieved April 1, 2024.
  4. ^ Faust 2015, p. 476.
  5. ^ Moore, Megan Bishop; Kelle, Brad E. (2011). Biblical History and Israel's Past. Eerdmans. ISBN 9780802862600.
  6. ^ Cite error: The named reference Meyers was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  7. ^ Collins 2005, p. 45.
  8. ^ Davies 2020, p. 491–493.