Discovery BoxExodus 8:7-8 
Context8:7 The magicians did the same 1 with their secret arts and brought up frogs on the land of Egypt too. 2
8:8 Then Pharaoh summoned 3 Moses and Aaron and said, “Pray 4 to the Lord that he may take the frogs away 5 from me and my people, and I will release 6 the people that they may sacrifice 7 to the Lord.”
1 tn Heb “thus, so.”
2 sn In these first two plagues the fact that the Egyptians could and did duplicate them is ironic. By duplicating the experience, they added to the misery of Egypt. One wonders why they did not use their skills to rid the land of the pests instead, and the implication of course is that they could not.
3 tn The verb קָרָא (qara’) followed by the lamed (ל) preposition has the meaning “to summon.”
4 tn The verb הַעְתִּירוּ (ha’tiru) is the Hiphil imperative of the verb עָתַר (’atar). It means “to pray, supplicate,” or “make supplication” – always addressed to God. It is often translated “entreat” to reflect that it is a more urgent praying.
5 tn This form is the jussive with a sequential vav that provides the purpose of the prayer: pray…that he may turn away the frogs.
sn This is the first time in the conflict that Pharaoh even acknowledged that Yahweh existed. Now he is asking for prayer to remove the frogs and is promising to release Israel. This result of the plague must have been an encouragement to Moses.
6 tn The form is the Piel cohortative וַאֲשַׁלְּחָה (va’ashallÿkhah) with the vav (ו) continuing the sequence from the request and its purpose. The cohortative here stresses the resolve of the king: “and (then) I will release.”
7 tn Here also the imperfect tense with the vav (ו) shows the purpose of the release: “that they may sacrifice.”
