Charles Ellicott Commentary Exodus 12:29-30

"And it came to pass at midnight, that Jehovah smote all the first-born in the land of Egypt, from the first-born of Pharaoh that sat on his throne unto the first-born of the captive that was in the dungeon; and all the first-born of cattle. And Pharaoh rose up in the night, he, and all his servants, and all the Egyptians; and there was a great cry in Egypt, for there was not a house where there was not one dead." — Exodus 12:29-30 (ASV)

THE TENTH PLAGUE.

The nature of the tenth plague is undoubted, though different views may exist regarding the exact agency that was employed. In every family where the firstborn child was a male, that child was struck with death. Pharaoh’s firstborn son—the erpa suten sa—the heir to his throne, was taken, and so it was in all other families.

Nobles, priests, tradesmen, artisans, peasants, and fishermen all suffered alike. In the hyperbolic language of the narrator, there was not a house where there was not one dead. The deaths took place at midnight, in the eeriest hour, at the most silent time, and in the deepest darkness.

Thus it had been prophesied (Exodus 11:4), but the particular night had not been announced. Since several days had elapsed since the announcement, the Egyptians may have been lulled into a false sense of security.

Suddenly, the calamity fell upon them, and there was a great cry. Death did not come, as it did upon the host of Sennacherib, noiselessly and unperceived, but with observation. Those who were seized woke up and aroused their relatives; there was a cry for help, a general alarm, a short, sharp struggle, and then death.

The visitation is commonly ascribed to God Himself (Exodus 4:23; Exodus 11:4; Exodus 12:12, 27, 29; Exodus 13:15, and others), but in Exodus 12:23 to the destroyer. It has already been shown that this expression points to angelic agency.

That agency, however, does not exclude a further natural cause. Just as in 2 Samuel 24, where the seventy thousand whom the destroying angel killed (2 Samuel 24:16) are said to have been slain by a pestilence (2 Samuel 24:15), so it may also have been in this case.

Pestilence often rages in Egypt in the spring and carries off thousands in a very short time. As with so many of the other plagues, God may here too have employed a natural agency. Nevertheless, the plague would have been miraculous in several respects:

1. In its intensity.
2. In its coming at the time prophesied, namely, midnight.
3. In its selection of victims, namely, the firstborn males only, and all of them.
4. In its avoidance of the Israelites.
5. In its extension, as prophesied, to the firstborn of animals.