Take your flocks and your herds, as you have said, and be gone, and bless me also!”
English Standard Version (ESV)
Pharaoh’s desperate plea to "bless me also" reveals a stunning reversal: he’s not just letting them go, he's begging for the favor of those he’d oppressed. This isn't just a political concession, but a profound admission of his own powerlessness against God's might.
Take your flocks and your herds, as you have said, and be gone, and bless me also!”
English Standard Version (ESV)
After the devastating final plague—the death of every firstborn Egyptian—Pharaoh finally yields, commanding Moses and Aaron to leave Egypt with all the Israelites, their livestock, and their possessions. This verse captures Pharaoh's desperate plea, urging them to depart quickly and even asking them to bless him, a stark contrast to his former arrogance. The Egyptians themselves are so terrified that they push the Israelites out, eager to be rid of them.
Imagine the most powerful ruler in the land, utterly broken and begging for a favor. That's exactly what happens here.
Pharaoh, who had relentlessly opposed Moses and God's people, is now completely undone. The tenth plague—the death of every firstborn Egyptian—has shattered his authority and pride.
A Desperate Plea
He doesn't just let Israel go; he urges them to leave. He tells them to take their flocks and herds, reversing his earlier demands. But the most astonishing part is his plea: 'and bless me also!'
This isn't the language of a king; it's the cry of a desperate man. He's seen God's power firsthand and knows his own priests and gods are useless. He fears for his own life and desperately wants the favor of the God of Israel through Moses and Aaron.
It wasn't just about freedom; it was about what they owned. Why was taking their livestock so important?
Pharaoh's instruction to take their flocks and herds isn't just a detail—it's a significant concession.
More Than Just Property
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Understand the original words
barak · Hebrew Verb
To invoke God's favor, protection, or prosperity upon someone; in this context, it reflects Pharaoh's recognition of the power of the God of Israel.
c. 1446 BC
Israelites Enslaved in Egypt
Generations after Jacob and his family settled in Egypt, their descendants became a vast population. Fearing their numbers, Pharaoh reduced them to harsh servitude, forcing them into grueling labor and oppression.
c. 1446 BC
Moses Confronts Pharaoh
God appoints Moses to confront Pharaoh, demanding the release of His people. This marks the beginning of the ten plagues, a series of devastating divine judgments upon Egypt to break Pharaoh's stubborn will.
c. 1446 BC
The Ten Plagues
A sequence of increasingly severe judgments falls upon Egypt: water turned to blood, frogs, gnats, flies, livestock disease, boils, hail, locusts, darkness, and finally, the death of the firstborn.
c. 1446 BC— this verse
Death of Egyptian Firstborn
The tenth and final plague strikes: every firstborn son in Egypt, from Pharaoh's palace to the humblest home, dies. This devastating blow finally breaks the Egyptian will, leading to Pharaoh's urgent command for the Israelites to leave.
c. 1446 BC
Israelites Depart Egypt
Under immense pressure from the devastated Egyptians, Pharaoh not only allows but urges the Israelites to leave. They take their flocks, herds, and possessions, embarking on their exodus from Egypt after 430 years of sojourning.
This passage speaks to God's promise to Abraham regarding the immense multiplication of his descendants, a promise that is being powerfully realized in the Exodus event. Pharaoh’s reluctant release of Israel, with their vast flocks and herds, directly fulfills this promise of an abundant posterity.
Deuteronomy 8:17-18This passage warns Israel against forgetting that their prosperity and ability to gain wealth comes from the Lord. Pharaoh’s desperate plea to be blessed, after being stripped of his nation's firstborn and livestock, underscores this truth that true abundance flows from God's hand.
Psalm 105:37This Psalm directly recounts the Exodus, noting that Israel 'came forth with gold and silver, and there was not a weak one among their tribes.' This echoes Pharaoh’s instruction for them to take their flocks and herds, and highlights the unexpected material blessing that accompanied their liberation.
John 15:5Jesus' teaching that apart from Him, we can do nothing, resonates here. Pharaoh, despite his power, is utterly helpless before God's judgment, and finally recognizes that true blessing and release comes from the divine power he has been resisting.
cambridgeExodus 12:32: "Also take your flocks and your herds, as ye have said, and be gone; and bless me also."
32 . as ye have said ] See Exodus 10:9 ; Exodus 10:26 (J). and bless me also ] viz. at the festival which you are about to hold: include me as well as yourselves in the blessings which you will then invoke.
calvinExodus 12:29-39: "And it came to pass, that at midnight the LORD smote all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, from the firstborn of Pharaoh that sat on his throne unto the firstborn of the captive that was in the dungeon; and all the firstborn of cattle."
- And it came to pass, that at midnight the Lord smote all the first-born in the land of Egypt, from the first-born of Pharaoh that sat on his throne, unto the first-born of the captive that was in the dungeon; and all the first-born of cat…
Pharaoh’s desperate plea to "bless me also" reveals a stunning reversal: he’s not just letting them go, he's begging for the favor of those he’d oppressed. This isn't just a political concession, but a profound admission of his own powerlessness against God's might.
After the devastating final plague—the death of every firstborn Egyptian—Pharaoh finally yields, commanding Moses and Aaron to leave Egypt with all the Israelites, their livestock, and their possessions. This verse captures Pharaoh's desperate plea, urging them to depart quickly and even asking them to bless him, a stark contrast to his former arrogance. The Egyptians themselves are so terrified that they push the Israelites out, eager to be rid of them.
After the devastating final plague—the death of every firstborn Egyptian—Pharaoh finally yields, commanding Moses and Aaron to leave Egypt with all the Israelites, their livestock, and their possessions. This verse captures Pharaoh's desperate plea, urging them to depart quickly and even asking them to bless him, a stark contrast to his former arrogance. The Egyptians themselves are so terrified that they push the Israelites out, eager to be rid of them.
"Take your flocks and your herds, as you have said, and be gone, and bless me also!”" — Pharaoh’s desperate plea to "bless me also" reveals a stunning reversal: he’s not just letting them go, he's begging for the favor of those he’d oppressed. This isn't just a political concession, but…
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Last reviewed October 2026