Exodus 9:20 Commentary: The Fear of the Word Among Pharaoh's Servants

The seventh plague, a catastrophic hailstorm, struck Egypt at a time when livestock were out to graze, likely January to April (Jamieson-Fausset-Brown). Hail in Egypt is normally small and harmless; this storm was unprecedented in severity, with thunder ('the voices of Yahweh') and lightning that ran along the ground (Lange, Keil & Delitzsch). God instructed Moses to warn Pharaoh to bring all people and animals into shelter (Exod 9:19). Those who heeded the warning fled into the 'houses', the Egyptian stone or mud-brick homes that could withstand the storm.

The 'servants of Pharaoh' were his courtiers and officials, men of standing who had witnessed the previous plagues. By this point in the narrative, some of them had begun to take Moses seriously. Calvin notes that experience had taught them that Moses was 'the herald of divine judgment.' Yet their fear was not a full conversion to Yahweh; it remained a reaction to the immediate threat. The verse appears as a parenthetic aside between the giving of the warning (vv. 18, 19) and its execution (vv. 22, 26), highlighting the division among the Egyptians themselves. This internal split, between those who feared God's word and those who despised it, mirrors the broader contest between Pharaoh's hardened heart and God's sovereign power. The land of Goshen, where Israel dwelt, was entirely spared (v. 26), underlining that deliverance comes through heeding God's word, not through ethnic identity.

The consulted sources note no significant textual variants for Exodus 9:20. The verse is consistent across Hebrew manuscripts and ancient versions (Greek Septuagint, Latin Vulgate, Syriac Peshitta). The Masoretic Text is clear, and the grammar presents no major difficulties. The variation in English translations (e.g., 'feared' vs. 'respected' in the BSB) reflects lexical choices, not textual uncertainty.

In the early church, this verse was read as an example of the fear of the Lord that leads to wisdom (cf. Prov 1:7). The Glossa Ordinaria (medieval standard commentary) interpreted the officials' flight as a type of those who flee from the wrath to come. Reformers like Calvin used it to illustrate the distinction between servile and filial fear, a distinction later echoed in Puritan literature. Anglican commentators (Cambridge Bible) focused on the literary structure and the historical reality of the hailstorm. Modern evangelical preachers often pair this verse with Proverbs 22:3 to teach practical wisdom: heeding God's warnings, even when they come through human messengers, is the path to safety. Catholic moral theology has referenced the verse in discussions of attrition (imperfect contrition) versus contrition (perfect sorrow). The verse thus stands as a perennial reminder that fear of judgment can produce right action but is not identical to love.

Three-point outline

1. God warns before he strikes. The command to bring livestock into shelter (v. 19) is a picture of mercy: judgment is announced so that people may escape it. God does not desire the death of the wicked but that they turn and live.
2. Fear of the word produces action. These officials 'made their servants and their livestock flee into the houses.' Their fear was not an inner feeling but a practical, costly obedience, they hurried to round up animals and dependents. Proverbs 22:3 calls this prudence: 'A prudent man sees danger and hides himself.'
3. Partial fear spares from judgment but does not save the soul. The same men who ran to shelter did not repent of their sin or worship Yahweh. They escaped the hail, but Calvin reminds us they 'ever remain under condemnation to eternal death.' Their story urges hearers to move from fear of punishment to a trusting love of God.

Five-point outline

1. The mercy of a clear warning. God sends Moses with a specific, time-bound command (tomorrow, the hail will come).
2. The varieties of human response. Some fear the word and act; others 'regarded not the word' and leave everything in the field (v. 21).
3. The nature of this fear. Servile fear, dread of consequences, is not saving faith, but it is better than hardened indifference.
4. The practical benefit of heeding God. Even self-interested obedience spares life and property in the temporal realm.
5. The insufficiency of fear alone. The story presses us to ask whether we obey God only to avoid trouble, or because we trust and love him.

Illustration hooks

• Storm warnings. When a severe weather alert goes out, prudent people board up windows and move to shelter. The person who ignores the warning does not doubt the storm, they simply refuse to act on what they know. Their inattention costs them.
• Health scares. A patient told they have a dangerous condition may immediately change diet and schedule tests. That fear may be self-preservation, not a transformed life, but it still saves them from immediate harm.
• Financial warnings. A market crash is predicted; some investors sell early and preserve capital. Others dismiss the advice and lose everything. In each case, the issue is not the accuracy of the warning but the willingness to act on it.

Questions your congregation is asking

• 'I know I should obey God, but I often do it out of guilt or fear, does that count?'
• 'What is the difference between a healthy fear of God and a fear that is just about avoiding punishment?'
• 'If I obey God only when I see immediate danger, am I really a believer?'

This short verse sits in the middle of the hail narrative, but it opens a window into the human heart. The Egyptian officials heard the same warning from Moses, yet some responded with action and others with neglect. Their fear of God's word, whatever its depth, moved them to protect what was under their care. As you discuss this passage, consider the pressures that shape your own response to Scripture. Are you driven by dread of consequences, by a desire for safety, or by trust in the God who speaks?

Discussion questions

1. What does this verse reveal about the range of responses to God's word among the same group of people (Pharaoh's servants)?
2. Why do you think the verse specifies that these officials 'feared Yahweh's word' rather than 'feared Yahweh himself'? What might that distinction imply?
3. Calvin writes that these men were 'impelled by immediate and momentary terror.' Can fear of consequences ever be a legitimate step toward genuine faith? Why or why not?
4. How does the response of these Egyptian officials compare to the response of the people of Nineveh in Jonah 3:5, 6? What is similar and what is different?
5. In your own life, have you ever obeyed God primarily to avoid a negative outcome? How did that experience affect your relationship with him over time?
6. The verse says they brought 'their servants and their livestock' into shelter. What does their concern for others say about the nature of even an imperfect fear of God?
7. How can a small group help one another move from mere fear of judgment toward the love that casts out fear (1 John 4:18)?