The Plagues of Egypt
Exodus CHAPTER 7 Moses is appointed to give the word of the Lord to Pharaoh—The Lord will multiply signs and wonders in Egypt—Aaron’s rod becomes a serpent—The river is turned into blood—The magicians imitate the miracles of Moses and Aaron.
Exodus CHAPTER 8 The Lord sends plagues of frogs, lice, and flies upon Egypt—Pharaoh hardens his heart.
Exodus CHAPTER 9 The Lord destroys the cattle of the Egyptians, but not of the Israelites—Boils and blains are sent upon the Egyptians—The Lord sends hail and fire upon the people of Pharaoh, but not upon the people of Israel.
Exodus CHAPTER 10 The Lord sends a plague of locusts—This is followed by thick darkness in all Egypt for three days—Moses is cast out from the presence of Pharaoh.
Exodus CHAPTER 11 The departing Israelites are authorized to ask for jewels and gold from their neighbors—The Lord promises to slay the firstborn in every Egyptian home—He puts a difference between the Egyptians and the Israelites.
The Lord Has Power Over All Things.
Come, Follow Me—For Primary: Old Testament 2022 “Exodus 7–13” The Israelites were in captivity and could not free themselves, but the Lord showed His power and delivered them.
Come, Follow Me—For Home and Church: Old Testament 2026
The plagues described in Exodus 7–11 showed the Egyptians and the Israelites that the Lord has great power. The Lord will help your children throughout their lives when they have faith in His power. To help them learn from this story, you could give each child a paper divided into 10 sections, and invite them to draw pictures of the plagues described in these verses: Exodus 7:17–18; 8:1–4; 8:16–17; 8:20–22; 9:1–6; 9:8–9; 9:22–23; 10:4–5; 10:21–22; 11:4–7 (You could also give one scripture reference to each child and have them draw pictures of the plague that they read about. They could then show the picture to the class as they tell about the plague.)
See also “The Plagues of Egypt” in Old Testament Stories, 67–69. Read together Exodus 7:5 and 9:14 to explain why the Lord sent the plagues.
Old Testament Stories “The Plagues of Egypt” Illustrations and video
Old Testament Coloring Book “Plagues of Egypt”
- Share with your children how the Lord has shown you “that there is none like [Him] in all the earth” (Exodus 9:14). Let them share how they know that the Lord is powerful. What do the plagues teach us about God’s power? Why is it important to know about His power?
The Lord Has Power to Deliver Me.
Come, Follow Me—For Primary: Old Testament 2022 “Exodus 7–13” Children face challenges and need the Lord to help them. The story of the ten plagues the Lord sent to free the Israelites can help the children understand that He also has the power to help them.
- Ask the children about times when they felt they needed the Lord’s help. How can He help us in these situations? Encourage them to talk about times when they or their family have experienced the Lord’s power in their lives. Bear your testimony that the Lord has the power to help us.
Friend July 1988 “Power of Prayer” A pioneer father is inspired that something was wrong at home. When he arrives he finds that his daughter has fallen into the fireplace. He gives her a blessing and every promise is fulfilled.
The Lord Can Help Me Have a Soft Heart.
Come, Follow Me—For Home and Church: Old Testament 2026
- Show the children the bowl of water, rock, and sponge. Ask (or show) what would happen if you poured water onto the sponge, and then ask (or show) what would happen if you poured water onto the rock in the water. Just like the hard rock will not absorb water, a hard heart will not let direction from the Lord or others in. Just like a soft sponge will absorb water, a soft heart is open to the Lord’s direction and receives the word of the Lord. A soft heart is humble and teachable. You could then read together a few verses describing how Pharaoh responded to the plagues sent by the Lord (see Exodus 8:28–32; 9:7). Which of the objects best represents Pharaoh’s heart or attitude?(see Mosiah 3:19). Elder Christopher H. Kim’s message “Harden Not Your Heart” could also help your children understand the difference between a hard heart and a soft one (Liahona, May 2025, 118–20, especially the fifth paragraph).
- You and your children could make a list of some actions that might show when we have a hard heart (for example, using unkind words or being unwilling to share). How can we show the Lord we want to have soft hearts? (The below hearts could be printed and put on the board and the children could write the lists next to the correct heart.)
Latter Day Kids “A Soft Heart” Lesson ideas
The Passover
Exodus CHAPTER 12 The Lord institutes the Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread—Lambs without blemish are slain—Israel is saved by their blood—The firstborn of all Egyptians are slain—Israel is thrust out of Egypt after 430 years—No bones of the paschal lambs are to be broken.
Exodus CHAPTER 13 The firstborn of man and of beasts are to be sanctified unto the Lord—The Feast of Unleavened Bread is to be kept in the land of Canaan—Moses takes Joseph’s bones out of Egypt—The Lord attends Israel in a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night.
The Sacrament Helps Me Remember My Deliverance Through Jesus Christ.
Ask some of the children to read Exodus 11:5–6 to learn about the final plague the Lord sent upon the Egyptians. Ask the other children to read Exodus 12:3, 5–7, 13 to learn about how the children of Israel were saved from that plague.
Old Testament Scripture Stories “The Passover”
The sacrament can help me remember Jesus.
Come, Follow Me—For Home and Church: Old Testament 2026 & Come, Follow Me—For Primary: Old Testament 2022 “Exodus 7–13”
- The Passover taught the children of Israel that the Lord delivered them from Egypt. The Passover also taught the Israelites about the Savior and the sacrifice He would one day make for us. The Passover is symbolic of the atoning sacrifice of Jesus Christ, which delivers us from sin and death. The Passover taught the Israelites to look forward to the Savior and His sacrifice for us. As you explore Exodus 12:1–13 together, help your children see connections between the details of the Passover and Jesus Christ’s Atonement (see also “The Passover” in Old Testament Stories, 70–74). For example, how is Jesus like the lamb described in verse 5?
Old Testament Seminary Student Material & Old Testament Seminary Teacher Material
Lamb (Jesus Christ)
Blood (Atonement of Jesus Christ)
Bitter herbs (bondage, sin)
Unleavened bread (repentance, removal of sin)
Lamb without blemish (Exodus 12:4–6, 46) Jesus Christ, “the Lamb of God” (John 1:36), was perfect and was slain for the sins of the world.
Blood of the lamb on the lintel and door posts (Exodus 12:6–7, 12–13) The lamb’s blood needed to be placed around the doors to protect the people inside from the destroying angel.. The Atonement of Jesus Christ can protect us from the power of Satan as we apply the conditions of repentance in our lives.
Unleavened bread (Exodus 12:8, 15) Leaven, or yeast, causes bread to become moldy. As part of our repentance, we are to rid our lives of anything that can corrupt our spirits.
Bitter herbs (Exodus 12:8) The bitter herbs reminded the Israelites of their years of bitter bondage in Egypt. The bitter bondage is like the bitterness of our sins.
Scripture Helps: Old Testament “Exodus 7-13” On the evening before Jesus Christ was crucified, He and His disciples shared a Passover meal together. At the end of this meal, Jesus introduced the ordinance of the sacrament, which He told His disciples to repeat in remembrance of Him. The following day, in similitude of the lamb that was sacrificed as part of the Passover, the Lamb of God was sacrificed on the cross for the sins of the world. His sacrifice ended the need for animal sacrifices.
Come, Follow Me—For Home and Church: Old Testament 2026
- Today, we take the sacrament to remember Jesus’s sacrifice. You could show your children a picture of the sacrament and talk about how this ordinance helps us remember Jesus Christ. You might help your children find the word “remember” in the sacrament prayers (see Moroni 4–5).
Friend June 2023 “A Tiny Piece of Bread” Anahí was excited to take the sacrament at the church building again after Covid was over, but by the time the tray got to her there was only a small crumb left. She picked it up and put it in her mouth, but all day long she worried that it didn’t count because it was only a crumb. But her mom said, “I saw you looking at the little picture of Jesus. What were you thinking about?” Anahi said, “I was thinking about how Jesus loves me. And about the nail prints in His hands and feet. And all He did for us.” Her mom explained, “That’s why we take the bread and water. To remember the sacrifice Jesus made for us.” So the size of the bread doesn’t matter, what matters is how you feel as you remember the Savior.
- Sing together “The Sacrament” (Children’s Songbook, 72). Or sing together a favorite hymn about the sacrament, and help your children notice the peaceful feeling they have when they think about the Savior. How can we seek that feeling when we take the sacrament?
After reading Exodus 12:1–42 together, you could write on pieces of paper things you can do as a family to remember Jesus Christ’s Atonement. Because the lamb’s blood on the door posts (see verse 23) represented the Savior, you could place these papers around a doorway in your home. You could also eat some of the foods from the Passover, such as unleavened bread (crackers or tortillas) or bitter herbs (parsley or horseradish), and discuss how the Passover helps us remember how God delivered His people. For example, the unleavened bread reminded them that there was not time for their bread to rise before they fled from captivity. The bitter herbs reminded them of the bitterness of captivity. (Come, Follow Me—For Individuals and Families: Old Testament 2022 “Exodus 7–13”)
Additional Resources
See Old Testament Stories & Lesson Ideas & Old Testament: Activities & Games for additional lesson resources.
Lesson 19: Moses Delivers the Israelites from Bondage,” Primary 6: Old Testament
Scripture Helps: Old Testament “Exodus 7-13”
How were Pharaoh’s magicians able to imitate some of the miracles performed by Moses and Aaron?
President Dallin H. Oaks remarked: “You will remember that the magicians in Pharaoh’s court duplicated some of the miracles Moses produced through the power of God [see Exodus 7–8]. Perhaps these magicians were servants of the devil, using his power, but I think it more likely that they were simply skilled practitioners of magic tricks that they used to reinforce their position in Pharaoh’s court.”
Although the magicians of Egypt were able to perform some imitations, they were never able to prevent or overcome the plagues the Lord sent. In fact, their imitations of the first two plagues likely made circumstances worse for the people of Egypt. The contrast between the Lord’s priesthood power exercised by Moses and the imitations wrought by the magicians of Egypt illustrates that God’s power is superior to all other forms of power.
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