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Having succeeded this one in the same rule of the kingdom, he was at the same time his successor in wickedness; for he subjected the Jews to the same evils. And as great lamentation surrounded them, God, taking pity on them, sent Moses to Egypt, commanding Pharaoh to release the nation of the Jews into the desert, so that they might worship him. Indeed, Pharaoh, angered by such a statement from Moses, commanded him to be thrown into prison immediately; and during the night the whole earth was shaken by an earthquake, so that some of the guards died from fear, while others surrendered their limbs to a deep sleep; and the very gates of the prison were opened, and Moses went out and came by night to the palace; for its doors also stood open as the earth was shaken; and as all the bodyguards were sleeping, he awakened Pharaoh, saying: “God sent me, commanding you to release the people of the Jews.” And he, astonished, asked who this was, and what was the name of the God who sent him; but Moses, leaning in to his hearing, made clear to him the name of God; and Pharaoh, not enduring the hearing, fell voiceless to the ground. And Moses, approaching, raised him up, and having engraved the all-holy name on a tablet, sealed it; and one of the priests among the Egyptians, daring to belittle this name, immediately ended his life in a convulsion. And Pharaoh allowed Moses to perform some sign; and Moses, dropping the staff he held on the ground, changed it into a snake; and touching it again, restored it to its former state. 788 But when he did not yield to this to release the people, and Moses prayed to God, a great earthquake with hail broke out, so that he who fled the earthquake from the houses was destroyed by the hail, and those again who hastened to avoid the hail were ruined by the earthquake. And when he remained unyielding to this also, he struck the water of the Nile with his staff, and the river, flooding Egypt, almost inundated all of it, so that from that time until now it makes its recession. So Pharaoh, having summoned the priests from beyond Memphis, threatened to destroy both them and all the shrines of the idols, if they did not perform wonders like Moses. And they, using their accustomed sorceries, made serpents crawl forth, and by appearance changed the color of the river, so that from this Pharaoh, being deluded, subjected the Jews to the greatest punishment. And Moses, striking the earth with his staff, caused a certain flying creature to crawl out of it, which, settling on the bodies of the Egyptians, caused them grievous sores, so that no medical art could render them any aid. And when Pharaoh was hardened by this plague also, he finally subjected the firstborn of all Egypt to death. And as immeasurable grief for this seized Egypt, Pharaoh sent all the Jews out of the country with all their families; and having traversed a long road, and crossed the rivers of Arabia, they arrived on the third day at the Red Sea. But when God hardened Pharaoh's heart, the Egyptians again, forgetting the preceding evils, pursued the Israelites along with Pharaoh. But let no one suppose that Pharaoh was forced by God to proceed to a senselessness of his actions; for such a person perhaps votes against God for injustice, saying: If he himself hardens the heart, why does he blame the one who is hardened? But let him know that a reprieve from the plagues became the cause of his hardening; for whenever he brought the plagues upon him, he promised to release the people; but whenever he let him up from the torments, he was hardened; for Scripture also signifies this literally, saying:

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τούτου τὴν αὐτὴν ἀρχὴν τῆς βασιλείας διαδεξάμενος, ὁμοῦ καὶ τῆς πονηρίας αὐτοῦ ἦν διάδοχος· τοῖς γὰρ αὐτοῖς κακοῖς τοὺς Ἰουδαίους ὑπέβαλλε. Καὶ θρήνου πολλοῦ περιέχοντος αὐτοὺς, ὁ Θεὸς οἶκτον λαβὼν αὐτῶν, τὸν Μωϋσῆν ἐξέπεμψεν εἰς τὴν Αἴγυπτον, προστάττων τῷ Φαραὼ ἀπολῦσαι τῶν Ἰουδαίων τὸ ἔθνος εἰς τὴν ἔρημον, ὥστε λατρεῦσαι αὐτῷ. Ἐπὶ γοῦν τῇ τοιαύτῃ ῥήσει τοῦ Μωϋσέως χαλεπήνας ὁ Φαραὼ, εἰς εἰρκτὴν παραχρῆμα ἐμβληθῆναι αὐτὸν προσέταξε· καὶ διὰ τῆς νυκτὸς σεισμῷ διεσείσθη πᾶσα ἡ γῆ, ὡς τινὰς τῶν φυλάκων ἐκ τοῦ δέους ψυχοῤῥαγῆσαι, τινὰς δὲ ὕπνῳ βαθεῖ παραθεῖναι τὰ μέλη· αὐτὰς δὲ τὰς πύλας τῆς εἱρκτῆς ἀναπετασθῆναι, καὶ ἐξελθεῖν τὸν Μωϋσῆν, καὶ παραγενέσθαι νυκτὸς εἰς τὰ βασίλεια· καὶ γὰρ κἀκείνου αἱ θύραι κλονουμένης τῆς γῆς διέστησαν· καὶ πάντων τῶν σωματοφυλάκων καθευδόντων, διύπνησε τὸν Φαραὼ λέγων· «Ὁ Θεὸς ἐξαπέστειλέ με ἀπολῦσαι προστάττων σοι τὸν τῶν Ἰουδαίων λαόν.» Ὁ δὲ καταπλαγεὶς ἠρώτα καὶ ποῖος οὗτός ἐστι, καὶ τί τὸ ὄνομα τοῦ ἀποστείλαντος αὐτὸν Θεοῦ· ὁ δὲ Μωϋσῆς, προκύψας εἰς τὴν ἀκοὴν αὐτοῦ, τοῦ Θεοῦ τὸ ὄνομα αὐτῷ διεσάφησε· καὶ μὴ καρτερήσας τὴν ἀκοὴν ὁ Φαραὼ, ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς ἔπεσεν ἄφωνος. Καὶ προσελθὼν ἤγειρεν αὐτὸν ὁ Μωϋσῆς, καὶ εἰς δέλτον τὸ πανάγιον ὄνομα ἐγχαράξας, ἐσφράγισε· καί τις τῶν παρ' Αἰγυπτίοις ἱερέων, φαυλίσαι τοῦτο τολμήσας τὸ ὄνομα, σπασμονῇ εὐθέως τὸν βίον κατέλυσε. Ὁ δὲ Φαραὼ ποιῆσαί τι σημεῖον τὸν Μωϋσῆν ἐπέτρεπε· καὶ ὁ Μωϋσῆς, ἣν κατεῖχε ῥάβδον ἀφεὶς ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς, εἰς ὄφιν αὐτὴν μετέβαλε· καὶ πάλιν αὐτῆς ἁψάμενος, εἰς τὸ ἀρχαῖον ἀποκατέστησε. 788 Τούτου δὲ ἐπὶ τοῦτο μὴ εἴξαντος ἀπολῦσαι τὸν λαὸν, εὐξαμένου τοῦ Μωϋσέως πρὸς τὸν Θεὸν, σεισμὸς μέγας μετὰ χαλάζης ἐνέσκηψεν, ὡς τὸν φεύγοντα ἐκ τῶν δωμάτων τὸν σεισμὸν ὑπὸ τῆς χαλάζης ἀπόλλυσθαι, τοὺς δ' αὖ πάλιν τὴν χάλαζαν ἐκκλίνειν σπεύδοντας ὑπὸ τοῦ σεισμοῦ καταφθείρεσθαι. Ὡς δὲ καὶ ἐπὶ τοῦτο ἔμεινεν ἀδυσώπητος, τῇ ῥᾴβδῳ τὸ Νειλώϊον ὕδωρ ἐπάταξε, καὶ τὴν Αἴγυπτον πλημμυρήσας ὁ ποταμὸς, μικροῦ δεῖν πᾶσαν ἐπέκλυσεν, ὡς ἔκτοτε ἄχρι τοῦ νῦν ποιεῖσθαι αὐτὸν τὴν κατάβασιν. Ὁ γοῦν Φαραὼ, τοὺς ὑπὲρ Μέμφιν ἱερεῖς προσκαλεσάμενος, ἠπείλησεν αὐτούς τε καὶ πάντας τοὺς τῶν εἰδώλων ἐξαφανίσαι σηκοὺς, εἰ μὴ τῷ Μωϋσῇ παραπλησίως τερατουργήσειαν. Οἱ δὲ, ταῖς εἰωθυίαις γοητείαις χρησάμενοι, δράκοντας ἐξέρπειν ἐποίησαν, καὶ τὸν ποταμὸν δοκήσει μετέχρωσαν, ὡς ἐκ τούτου τυφωθέντα τὸν Φαραὼ τιμωρίᾳ μεγίστῃ τοὺς Ἰουδαίους ὑποβαλεῖν. Καὶ ὁ Μωϋσῆς, τῇ ῥάβδῳ παίσας τὴν γῆν, πτηνόν τι ζῶον ἐξερπύσαι αὐτὴν παρεσκεύασεν, ὅπερ τοῖς σώμασιν ἐφιζάνον τῶν Αἰγυπτίων ἑλκώσεις ἀνιαρὰς αὐτοῖς παρείχετο, ὡς μηδεμίαν τὴν ἰατρικὴν ποιῆσαι τούτοις ἐπικουρίαν δύνασθαι. Ὡς δὲ καὶ ἐπὶ τῆς μάστιγος ταύτης ἐσκληρύνθη Φαραὼ, τελευταῖον θανάτῳ τὰ πρωτότοκα τῆς Αἰγύπτου πάσης ὑπέβαλε. Καὶ πένθους ἐπὶ τοῦτο ἀμέτρου καταλαβόντος τὴν Αἴγυπτον, ἀπὸ τῆς χώρας παγγενῆ πάντας ὁ Φαραὼ τοὺς Ἰουδαίους ἐξέπεμψε· καὶ πολλὴν οὗτοι ὁδὸν διανύσαντες, καὶ τοὺς Ἀραβίας διαβάντες ποταμοὺς, τριταῖοι ἐπὶ τὴν Ἐρυθρὰν θάλασσαν παρεγένοντο. Τοῦ δὲ Θεοῦ τὴν καρδίαν σκληρύναντος τοῦ Φαραὼ, πάλιν οἱ Αἰγύπτιοι ἐπιλησθέντες τῶν προλαβόντων κακῶν, τοὺς Ἰσραηλίτας ἅμα τῷ Φαραὼ ἐπεδίωκον. Μηδεὶς δὲ ὑπολάβῃ τὸν Φαραὼ ὑπὸ τοῦ Θεοῦ εἰς ἀναισθησίαν τῶν πραττομένων χωρεῖν ἐκβιάζεσθαι· ἀδικίας γὰρ ἵσως τοῦ Θεοῦ ὁ τοιοῦτος καταψηφίζεται φάσκων· Εἰ αὐτὸς σκληρύνει τὴν καρδίαν, τί μέμφεται τῷ σκληρυνομένῳ; Ἀλλὰ γινωσκέτω, ὅτι ἀνοχὴ τῶν μαστίγων αἰτία τῆς πωρώσεως αὐτῷ ἐγίνετο· ἡνίκα γὰρ ἐπῆγεν ἐπ' αὐτὸν τὰς πληγὰς, ἀπολύειν τὸν λαὸν ἐπηγγείλατο· ἡνίκα δὲ ἠφίει τῶν βασάνων αὐτὸν, ἐσκληρύνετο· τοῦτο γὰρ ἐπὶ λέξεως σημαίνει καὶ ἡ Γραφὴ λέγουσα·