Exodus 10:3
And Moses and Aaron came in unto Pharaoh, and said unto him, Thus saith the Lord God of the Hebrews, How long wilt thou refuse to humble thyself before me? let my people go, that they may serve me.
Study Note
Study Note
Moses and Aaron's question to Pharaoh — 'how long wilt thou refuse to humble thyself before me?' — frames the plagues not merely as natural disasters but as a divine demand for royal submission. The verb 'humble yourself' (anah — bow down, be afflicted) makes the plague narrative a contest about whether Pharaoh will acknowledge a superior Lord. The refusal to humble himself despite each plague confirms the hardening narrative of Exodus 4-14, where Pharaoh's pride progressively disqualifies him from the role of covenant partner. Paul cites Exodus 9:16 ('for this purpose I have raised you up') in Romans 9:17 to argue that even Pharaoh's stubbornness served a divine purpose of displaying God's power — a reading that subordinates imperial pride to divine sovereignty.
Other Translations
And Moses and Aaron went in unto Pharaoh, and said unto him, Thus saith Jehovah, the God of the Hebrews, How long wilt thou refuse to humble thyself before me? let my people go, that they may serve me.
And Moses cometh in--Aaron also--unto Pharaoh, and they say unto him, `Thus said Jehovah, God of the Hebrews, Until when hast thou refused to be humbled at My presence? send My people away, and they serve Me,
Then Moses and Aaron went in to Pharaoh, and said to him, This is what the Lord, the God of the Hebrews, says: How long will you be lifted up in your pride before me? let my people go so that they may give me worship.
Cross References
Why should ye be stricken any more? ye will revolt more and more: the whole head is sick, and the …
The lofty looks of man shall be humbled, and the haughtiness of men shall be bowed down, and the Lord …
Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time:
This evil people, which refuse to hear my words, which walk in the imagination of their heart, and walk after …
Say unto the king and to the queen, Humble yourselves, sit down: for your principalities shall come down, even the …
See that ye refuse not him that speaketh. For if they escaped not who refused him that spake on earth, …
Wherefore I abhor myself, and repent in dust and ashes.
And she hath changed my judgments into wickedness more than the nations, and my statutes more than the countries that …
Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up.
How long, ye simple ones, will ye love simplicity? and the scorners delight in their scorning, and fools hate knowledge?