After Pha'raoh had refused to take the advice of his magicians concerning the plague of lice, the LORD directed Mo'ses to tell the king that a further refusal would be punished by a great plague of flies. The proud king still refused to heed the warnings of Mo'ses and Aa'ron, and the whole land swarmed with insects whose sharp bites caused bitter suffering.
These four plagues were increasingly severe; each one worse than the one that had come before. With his house swarming with these insects, and his own body and those of his servants bitten all over by them, Pha'raoh could endure the torture no longer. He called for Mo'ses and Aa'ron, and offered a partial agreement to their request. They were told that the children of Is'ra-el might sacrifice unto their God, provided they would do so in E'gypt.
This offer was promptly declined by Mo'ses, for it was no time to make a compromise. He explained to Pha'raoh that if the Is'ra-el-ites made their sacrifices according to their own customs the E'gyp-tians would be offended, and would think it their duty to punish the Is'ra-el-ites for killing animals which they regarded as sacred. God's claims upon Is'ra-el were Supreme, and as obedient and loyal children, they could not accept any policy which would compromise His honor, or the dignity of the services to be rendered.
Pha'raoh probably offered to Mo'ses the use of the magnificent temples of E'gypt for the worship which the Is'ra-el-ites wished to render unto their God. The use of these buildings, however, which were dedicated to false gods, would have been a compromise with idolatry. Mo'ses preferred to go out into the wilderness to find a place where Is'ra-el could worship the LORD in the manner which He had ordered.
Then Pha'raoh said, "Very well, if you will only entreat the LORD that these troublesome flies be removed from the land, then you may take Is'ra-el a little way into the wilderness for worship; but do not go very far." Mo'ses prayed to the LORD, and the flies were removed, every one of them. Once again Pha'raoh's repentance was false, and as soon as the flies had been removed, he gave orders that the children of Is'ra-el should not be permitted to leave the land. He had repeatedly hardened his heart, and rejected God's will, until it was now impossible for him to yield.
