Exodus 7:22

Summary

The verse reports that the Egyptian magicians replicated the sign performed by Moses and Aaron through their own enchantments, that Pharaoh's heart remained strong (unyielding), and that he did not listen to them, in accordance with what Yehovah had previously stated.

Key words

• va-ya'asu ("and they did", H6213A) — qal narrative verb, third person masculine plural, continuing the story's sequence of events with "and then they did."
• chartummei ("magicians of", H2748) — masculine plural construct noun, grammatically bound to the following word "Egypt," forming the phrase "magicians of Egypt."
• be-latei-hem ("by their enchantments", H3909 + H9028) — masculine plural construct noun with preposition and third person masculine plural suffix, meaning "by/with their enchantments."
• va-yechezaq ("and it was strong", H2388G) — qal narrative verb, third person masculine singular, describing the heart's condition as becoming/remaining "strong."
• ka'asher dibber ("as he had said", H0834D + H1696G) — relative particle with piel perfect verb, marking a completed prior statement ("had said") referenced back to as the standard of comparison.

What the text says

The Hebrew sentence is built as a chain of narrative clauses linked by the va- ("and") prefix, a structural feature common in Biblical Hebrew narrative that moves the story forward chronologically: "and they did," "and it was strong," "and he did not listen." The subject of the first clause is chartummei mitzrayim ("the magicians of Egypt", H2748 + H4714G), who perform an action described as ken ("thus", H3651C) — meaning they replicated the prior action — using latei-hem ("their enchantments", H3909 + H9028).

The second clause states that lev-par'oh ("the heart of Pharaoh", H3820A + H6547J) "was strong" (yechezaq, H2388G). The construct form lev- ties "heart" directly to "Pharaoh" as its possessor. The verb H2388G here appears in the qal narrative form, describing a state change or continuation of a state, rendered in English as "hardened" or "strong" — the Hebrew term itself denotes strength or firmness, not corruption or moral fault.

The third clause introduces a shift to negation with ve-lo' ("and not", H9002 + H3808) followed by shama' ("he listened", H8085G), a qal perfect verb indicating a completed action of non-listening directed 'alehem ("to them", H0413 + H9038). The final clause, introduced by the relative particle ka'asher ("as", H0834D), references a previous divine statement using the piel perfect verb dibber ("he had said", H1696G), attributed to YHWH (H3068G).

Differences between versions

The LXX renders chartummei mitzrayim ("magicians of Egypt") as "οἱ ἐπαοιδοὶ τῶν Αἰγυπτίων" (the enchanters of the Egyptians) and latei-hem ("their enchantments") as "ταῖς Φαρμακίαις αὐτῶν" ("their pharmaka/drugs"), a term with connotations of drugs or potions rather than the Hebrew's more general "enchantments." The Vulgate uses "malefici" ("evildoers" or "sorcerers") for the magicians and "incantationibus" ("incantations") for their methods, introducing a morally negative connotation ("malefici") not present in the Hebrew term chartummim, which is a neutral professional designation. The Hebrew 'alehem ("to them", referring back to chartummei/context) is rendered in some English translations (BSB) as "to Moses and Aaron," specifying referents not explicitly named in this verse's Hebrew text.