In Exodus 8:20-21, we read about the Fourth Plague that fell upon Egypt before the First Passover, after which the Israelites were sent out of Egypt. In the King James Version we read:

Exodus 8:20  And the LORD said unto Moses, Rise up early in the morning, and stand before Pharaoh; lo, he cometh forth to the water; and say unto him, Thus saith the LORD, Let my people go, that they may serve me. 

Exo 8:21  Or else, if thou wilt not let my people go, behold, I will send swarms of flies upon thee, and upon thy servants, and upon thy people, and into thy houses: and the houses of the Egyptians shall be full of swarms of flies, and also the ground whereon they are.

Therefore, according to the King James Version of the Bible, as well as most Christian translations, the Fourth Plague was (עָרֹב) swarms of flies. Occasionally, when translating from one language to another, the translator is virtually forced to add words that were not in the original in order to make sense of the original. This often works out well.

The KJV translation is kind enough to put these added words in italics to let you know that these words were not in the original Hebrew text. In this case, the KJV put of flies into the English translation. Flies are not mentioned in the Hebrew text at all. If flies were intended, the author (Moses) could have used the word זְבוּב (zvuv) which means “flies.”

You might be familiar with the word “Baalzebub,” which is translated in English literature as “Lord of the Flies,” as it is written in William Golding’s novel, Lord of the Flies. Baalzebub is a somewhat accurate transliteration into English. A more accurate transliteration would be “Ba’al zvuv.” Each of the plagues was actually an assault on things which were part of Egyptian religion. There is no record of Egyptians worshipping or incorporating flies into their worship. Therefore, I believe that “swarms of flies” is a very poor translation.

There are no perfect translations of the Bible. Some Hebrew words have no English equivalent. And many Hebrew words can be translated differently depending on context. I happen to like the New American Standard, which incorrectly translates this plague as “swarms of insects.” There are a few different words of insects, none of which are in Exodus chapter 8.

Jewish translations tend to translate the Fourth Plague as “wild beasts.” Again, extra words are added to try to explain what this plague was. However, “wild beasts” also seems to be very incorrect.

Many years ago, Chuck Missler wrote an article about the Fourth Plague, which I remember reading, but no longer have. He believed that the Fourth Plague was composed of swarms of dung beetles. I totally agree. These are rather large insects that are great environmental engineers. They gather dung (“poop”) that is laying on the ground. Then they lay their eggs into the dung and push the dung around, rolling it up into nearly perfect round balls, much bigger than the bug itself. When the eggs hatch, they have lots of food, as they eat their way through the dung. It’s not a meal that I would like, but this is the ‘food’ that dung beetles are designed to eat.

The ancient Egyptians worshipped the dung beetles, in part because there was lots of dungs on the roads from all the animals they had. Today, we struggle with pollution, but ancient Egypt had another type of pollution. You don’t want to step on it, and you are happy that there are bugs to eat it up. There are many species of dung beetles (also called scarabs) worldwide, some of which fly.

Scarab Jewelry: Sacred Symbol of Ancient Egyptian Culture

· The Egyptian name for the scarab beetle was Kheper, which also means “to come into being” or “to transform.” This dual meaning reinforced its significance as a symbol of creation and renewal.

· Archaeological evidence dates the first scarab amulets to Egypt’s First Dynasty (c. 3150 BCE), with the earliest examples found in tombs at Abydos, crafted from simple carved steatite.

· Ancient Egyptians believed the scarab beetle emerged spontaneously from dung, making it a symbol of self-creation and linking it to their creation myths about the god Khepri.

· Scarab workshops have been discovered in ancient Egyptian cities like Memphis and Thebes, revealing sophisticated production techniques including stone carving, glazing, and metalworking.

· The practice of creating scarab jewelry spread beyond Egypt through trade routes, with examples found in ancient Nubia, Greece, and the Levant, dating from as early as 2000 BCE.

The enduring legacy of scarab jewelry in ancient Egypt wasn’t merely decorative; it represented a complex interweaving of religious beliefs, natural observation, and artistic expression that would influence jewelry design for millennia to come. This legacy continues to inspire modern interpretations while maintaining its connection to ancient symbolic meanings.