Exodus 9:11

Exo 9:11 And the magicians could not stand before Moses because of the boils; for the boil was upon the magicians, and upon all the Egyptians.

Ver. 11. For the boil was upon the magicians.] Who were convicted, but not converted. {Exo 8:19} They stood still to withstand Moses: as Balaam, against the light of his own conscience, was resolved to curse, howsoever; and therefore went not aside as at other times to speak with God, but set his face toward the wilderness; like a headstrong horse that gets the bit in his teeth, and runs away with his rider.

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Exo 9:11. The magicians could not stand before Moses — We do not read of any attempt they made to vie with Moses in miracles since the plague of the lice. But it would seem from this passage that they still continued about Pharaoh, and endeavoured to settle him in his resolution not to let Israel go: persuading him, perhaps, that although Moses had the better of them for the present, yet they should at last be too hard for him. But now, being on a sudden smitten with these ulcers, in the sight of Pharaoh and his servants, they were rendered so contemptible, that they durst not again look either Moses or Pharaoh in the face; for we hear no more of them after this time. To this, it seems, the apostle refers, (2Ti 3:9,) when he says their folly was “manifested unto all men.”

Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Verse 11. The boil was upon the magicians] They could not produce a similar malady by throwing ashes in the air; and they could neither remove the plague from the people, nor from their own tormented flesh. Whether they perished in this plague we know not, but they are no more mentioned. If they were not destroyed by this awful judgment, they at least left the field, and no longer contended with these messengers of God. The triumph of God's power was now complete, and both the Hebrews and the Egyptians must see that there was neither might, nor wisdom, nor counsel against the Lord; and that, as universal nature acknowledged his power, devils and men must fail before him.

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

(11) The magicians could not stand before Moses.—It is uncertain whether the magicians were present accidentally, or had come for the express purpose of “withstanding Moses” (2Ti_3:8). The latter may be suspected, as the plague was made to fall with special violence upon them.

A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

11. The magicians (Exo_7:11; Exo_7:22, Exo_8:7; Exo_8:18-19) this time are not only not able to imitate the plague, but are themselves attacked by it.

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

And the magicians could not stand before Moses, because of the boils,.... Which were on them as on others, and which with all their art and skill they could not keep off; and which were so sore upon them, and painful to them, that they were obliged to withdraw, and could not stand their ground, confronting Moses, contesting and litigating with him; for it seems, though they had not acted, nor attempted to act in imitation of Moses and Aaron, since the plague of the lice, yet they still continued about Pharaoh, lessening as much as in them lay the miracles wrought by them, and suggesting that they had done the most and the worst they could, and so contributing to harden the heart of Pharaoh against the people of Israel; wherefore they were righteously punished with boils for so doing, and for their contempt of the messengers and miracles of God, and for their imposition upon men, and their deception of them:

for the boil was upon the magicians, and upon all the Egyptians; but not upon Moses and Aaron, nor upon any of the Israelites, and was afterwards called peculiarly the botch of Egypt, Deu 28:27.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

This verse seems to imply that the magicians now formally gave way and confessed their defeat.

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

Stand before to oppose Moses. They could not screen themselves. (Haydock)

George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).

Could not stand before Moses, as they hitherto had done, both as spies and as adversaries; for though their understandings were convinced of God’s hand and infinite power, yet their hearts were not changed; but for their worldly interest they persisted to rebel against their light., and therefore are justly plagued. It was no favour to Pharaoh that the plague was not upon him, but only a reservation to a greater mischief, as it follows.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

11. And the magicians could not stand before Moses because of the boils — Thus had these supernatural inflictions advanced in severity, till now the idolatrous prophets were all stricken down, and we hear of them no more. After the third plague, or at the end of the first triad of these inflictions, they had been compelled to own a supernatural power, and said, This is the finger of the gods; and now, at the end of the second triad, they retire wholly discomfited. Probably this also, as well as the plague of lice, was one which incapacitated the priests for their service by making them unclean, so that the altars of the idols were deserted.

Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

The magicians could not stand. It is gathered from this that the magicians had, up to this time, been always in attendance when the miracles were wrought, though they had now for some time failed to produce any counterfeits of them. On this occasion their persistency was punished by the sudden falling of the pestilence upon themselves with such severity that they were forced to quit the royal presence and hasten to their homes to be nursed.

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

The magicians were forced to retreat, and could not stand before Moses - To which the apostle refers, 2 Tim. iii, 9, when he saith, that their folly was manifested unto all men.

John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.

Yahweh hardened Pharaoh's heart

Here "heart" refers to Pharaoh. His stubborn attitude is spoken of as if his heart was hard. See how you translated a similar phrase in Exodus 7:13. AT: "Yahweh caused Pharaoh to became more defiant"(See: Synecdoche and Metaphor)

translationWords

magic

Moses

Yahweh

Pharaoh

heart

Aaron

unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.

AND THE MAGICIANS COULD NOT STAND BEFORE MOSES. They were ashamed, and confounded, and covered their heads since they were full of boils and could not rescue themselves. Therefore they made no appearance in the royal palace, nor did they appear before Moses in the streets. And so they were imprisoned in their homes.

Ramban (Nachmanides) on the Tanakh — English translation: “Commentary on the Torah by Ramban (Nachmanides). Translated and annotated by Charles B. Chavel. New York, Shilo Pub. House, 1971-1976” (CC BY 4.0). Text via Sefaria.