Exodus 9:26
ESV
Only in the land of Goshen, where the people of Israel were, was there no hail.
NIV
The only place it did not hail was the land of Goshen, where the Israelites were.
NASB
Only in the land of Goshen, where the sons of Israel were, was there no hail.
CSB
The only place it didn’t hail was in the land of Goshen, where the Israelites were.
NLT
The only place without hail was the region of Goshen, where the people of Israel lived.
KJV
Only in the land of Goshen, where the children of Israel were, was there no hail.
NKJV
Only in the land of Goshen, where the children of Israel were, there was no hail.
What does Exodus 9:26 mean?
Egyptians have now seen several supernatural disasters which affected them but didn't touch the lands of the Hebrew slaves (Exodus 8:22; 9:4, 7). The most recent is a horrific hailstorm that pummels every living thing in Egypt (Exodus 9:24–25). However, the Goshen territory is spared from destruction.The man God named Israel—Jacob (Genesis 32:28)—and his sons went to Egypt escape a massive famine (Genesis 46:26–27). Goshen was the region where Joseph's family settled when they first moved in (Genesis 47:1, 11). Over time, their warm welcome turned into fear, oppression, and then brutal slavery (Exodus 1:8–14). The fact that Goshen—the Hebrew territory—is spared emphasizes that these are judgments from the God of Israel against the nation of Egypt. Further, it shows that there is no power in Egyptian idols; only the Hebrew God is real.
Another clear separation of God's people will come during the ninth plague (Exodus 10:22–23). The last disaster, involving the death of the firstborn (Exodus 11:4–7), will strike anyone who fails to follow God's instructions (Exodus 12:27).
Exodus 9:13–26 explains the seventh plague on Egypt (Exodus 3:20). Because Pharaoh has stubbornly resisted the Lord (Exodus 5:2; 7:13–14, 22; 8:15, 19, 32; 9:7), God has begun to harden Pharaoh's heart as a means of judgment (Exodus 9:12). Moses offers a warning for Egyptians to take shelter against a coming storm. Some listen, others do not. God sends a terrifying, brutal storm of hail and lightning that kills everything and everyone in the open fields. Only the Hebrew land of Goshen is spared.
After four devastating plagues, Pharaoh continues to resist God's command to free the Hebrew slaves. Through Moses, the Lord sends two more: death of Egyptian livestock and an epidemic of skin lesions. Pharoah refuses to respond to the first, and God makes him stubborn after the second. This leads to the most terrifying sign yet: the seventh plague of hail and fire. Pharoah claims to repent. Yet as soon as the hail stops, he again chooses obstinance. After this, the Lord will use Pharaoh as a tool to demonstrate divine judgment.
