What is “behold, I will smite [nogef]”? The Holy One blessed be He said: Behold, I am forcing all the plagues upon you, as it is written: “If the ox of one man hurts [yigof]3The term nogef, translated generally “hurts,” means more specifically pushing or shoving. [another’s]” (Exodus 21:35). Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi said: Each and every plague that would come upon the Egyptians in Egypt, pestilence would accompany it, as it is stated: “Behold, I will smite.”
Behold, this is the pestilence, as it is stated: “Behold, the hand of the Lord is upon your cattle” (Exodus 9:3).4According to Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi nogef is in the sense of magefa, meaning plague. “[I will smite] all your borders with frogs.” Our Rabbis, of blessed memory, said: The plagues that the Holy One blessed be He brought upon the Egyptians caused them to make peace between them. How so?
There was a dispute between the Kushites and the Egyptians. The Egyptians claimed: Our borders are until here, and the Kushites claimed: Our borders are until here. Once the frogs came they made peace between them. The border within which the frogs would enter, it was known that the field was not his,5It did not belong to the Kushites. as it is stated: “All your borders”; “your borders,” but not those of others.
“The Nile will swarm with frogs that will ascend and come into your house, and into your bedchamber, and onto your bed, and into the house of your servants, and upon your people, and into your ovens, and into your kneading bowls” (Exodus 7:28). “Will ascend and come into your house” – Rabbi Yehuda bar Shalom said: The most outstanding among them will be in your house. The way of the world is that when a king of flesh and blood enters a city, each one6Each member of the king’s party is given a residence according his status, with the higher-ranking officials residing in a more elevated residence. is given a residence in accordance with his status.
However, the king resides in his palace on a flat area. If so, why is it stated: “Will ascend [ve’alu] and come into your house”?7Presumably Pharaoh’s residence was not on the top of a hill, which would have made it difficult to enter. Consequently, the term “ascend” seems out of place. It is because the most outstanding [hame’ulot] among them will be in Pharaoh’s house.
“And into your ovens, and into your kneading bowls” – when an Egyptian woman would knead dough and ignite the oven, the frogs would come, descend into the dough, eat the dough, descend into the oven, cool it, and adhere to the bread, as it is stated: “And into your ovens, and into your kneading bowls.” When is the time for the dough to be stuck to the oven [to bake]? When it is ignited. Ḥananya, Mishael, and Azarya drew an a fortiori inference for themselves from the frogs and descended into the fiery furnace.8Rather than worship idols; see Daniel, chap. 3.
What is “The Nile will swarm with frogs”? The Holy One blessed be He said to him [Pharaoh]: ‘You said: “My river is mine” (Ezekiel 29:3). I will show you whether it is mine or yours, as its plague will come from Me upon it, and when I decree it will produce frogs. Just as I have decreed regarding the water: At the outset, I said: “Let the water swarm” (Genesis 1:20), and it performed My command; so, too, the Nile will perform My decree.’