Exodus 10:4

10:4 But if you refuse to release my people, I am going to bring ¹  locusts ²  into your territory ³  tomorrow.

Exodus 10:14

10:14 The locusts went up over all the land of Egypt and settled down in all the territory ⁴  of Egypt. It was very severe; ⁵  there had been no locusts like them before, nor will there be such ever again. ⁶ 

Exodus 10:19

10:19 and the Lord turned a very strong west wind, ⁷  and it picked up the locusts and blew them into the Red Sea. ⁸  Not one locust remained in all the territory of Egypt.

[10:4]  ¹ tn הִנְנִי (hinni) before the active participle מֵבִיא (mevi’) is the imminent future construction: “I am about to bring” or “I am going to bring” – precisely, “here I am bringing.”

[10:4]  ² tn One of the words for “locusts” in the Bible is אַרְבֶּה (’arbeh), which comes from רָבָה (ravah, “to be much, many”). It was used for locusts because of their immense numbers.

[10:4]  ³ tn Heb “within your border.”

[10:14]  ⁴ tn Heb “border.”

[10:14]  ⁵ tn This is an interpretive translation. The clause simply has כָּבֵד מְאֹד (kaved mÿ’od), the stative verb with the adverb – “it was very heavy.” The description prepares for the following statement about the uniqueness of this locust infestation.

[10:14]  ⁶ tn Heb “after them.”

[10:19]  ⁷ tn Or perhaps “sea wind,” i.e., a wind off the Mediterranean.

[10:19]  ⁸ tn The Hebrew name here is יַם־סוּף (Yam Suf), sometimes rendered “Reed Sea” or “Sea of Reeds.” The word סוּף is a collective noun that may have derived from an Egyptian name for papyrus reeds. Many English versions have used “Red Sea,” which translates the name that ancient Greeks used: ejruqrav qalavssa (eruqra qalassa).