Plague(murrain)
“Deber: destruction; Maggephah: a smiting; Nega: a stroke or blow”
Summary
The term 'plague' in Scripture refers to sudden, severe divine visitations of disease or judgment, most famously the ten plagues upon Egypt that demonstrated God's power over Pharaoh and Egypt's gods.
☩Hebrew Terms
Several Hebrew words are translated 'plague.' Deber (דֶּבֶר) means destruction or death, applied to pestilence (Leviticus 26:25; Deuteronomy 28:21). Maggephah (מַגֵּפָה) derives from 'to smite' and refers to plagues sent actively from God (Exodus 9:14; Numbers 14:37). Nega (נֶגַע) means a stroke or mark, used throughout Leviticus 13-14 for skin afflictions. Negeph (נֶגֶף) also means a striking, indicating divine judgment (Exodus 12:13).
☩The Plagues on Egypt
The ten plagues demonstrated God's absolute power over Pharaoh and the gods of Egypt. Blood, frogs, lice, flies, murrain on livestock, boils, hail, locusts, darkness, and death of the firstborn—each plague targeted aspects of Egyptian worship and daily life. A close connection exists between the ordinary phenomena of Egypt and these extraordinary judgments, showing that God rules 'in the midst of the earth' (Exodus 8:22), bringing on with unusual intensity and withdrawing at will the scourges that superstition attributed to false gods. The supernatural united with the natural to prove Jehovah's supremacy.
☩Later Biblical Plagues
Beyond Egypt, plagues served as divine judgments throughout Israel's history. After Korah's rebellion, a plague killed 14,700 until Aaron's intercession stopped it (Numbers 16:46-50). David's census brought a plague killing 70,000 (2 Samuel 24:15). In the Gospels, the Greek mastix ('scourge') describes distressing diseases that Jesus healed (Mark 3:10; 5:29). Revelation uses plege ('stroke') for catastrophic end-times judgments greater than those in Egypt, when divine punishment falls on those who dishonor God and oppose His kingdom.
Related Verses124 mentions
See Also
References
- 1.John McClintock and James Strong, "Plague," in Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological and Ecclesiastical Literature, vol. VIII (Harper & Brothers, 1867–1887).
- 2.James Orr (ed.), "Plague," in International Standard Bible Encyclopedia, vol. IV (Howard-Severance Company, 1915).
- 3.Andrew Robert Fausset, "Plague," in The Englishman's Critical and Expository Bible Cyclopædia (Hodder & Stoughton, 1878).
- 4.James Hastings (ed.), "Plague," in Dictionary of the Apostolic Church, vol. II (T. & T. Clark, 1915–1918).