My Notes
What Does Psalms 135:8 Mean?
Psalm 135 rehearses God's actions in Egypt: He smote the firstborn — both human and animal. The plague that finally broke Pharaoh's resistance is stated as a divine act: God struck. Not the angel of death operating independently. God Himself, striking the firstborn of an entire nation.
The phrase "both of man and beast" emphasizes the comprehensiveness: the judgment wasn't selective within categories. Human and animal firstborn both died. The scope matched the target: Egypt as a whole. Every household. Every species. The judgment was as comprehensive as the slavery it punished.
In the context of Psalm 135 (a praise psalm), the firstborn plague is listed as a reason for worship. The most devastating night in Egyptian history is Israel's reason for praise. The same event carries opposite emotional weight depending on which side of the blood you're on.
Reflection Questions
- 1.Does the firstborn plague — devastating for Egypt, liberating for Israel — feel like justice or cruelty?
- 2.How does the blood on the doorpost determine which side of the same event you experience?
- 3.Can you praise God for the same act that devastated someone else — and is that appropriate?
- 4.Does the comprehensiveness ('both man and beast') make the judgment feel proportional to the slavery it punished?
Devotional
He struck the firstborn of Egypt. Man and beast. Every one.
The final plague. The one that broke Pharaoh. The one that sent Israel out with Egyptian gold and a clear road. And the psalmist lists it as a reason to praise God.
The firstborn of man — every Egyptian family's eldest. The child who represented the future. The heir. The hope. Every house. One night. Gone.
The firstborn of beast — every flock's first offspring. The economic future. The breeding stock. The animal wealth of a nation. One night. Dead.
The comprehensiveness is the theology: "both of man and beast." The judgment didn't distinguish between social classes or species. The firstborn of the richest house and the firstborn of the poorest pen died together. The plague was as democratic as the slavery it punished: you enslaved all of Israel. I strike all of Egypt.
The same event is Israel's liberation and Egypt's devastation. Passover night: the blood on the doorpost saves one family while the angel passes through the next. Inches between life and death. The same night. The same city. Opposite experiences.
The psalmist praises the plague because the psalmist is on the blood side of the doorpost. If you're Israel — if the lamb's blood covers your house — the firstborn plague is the night God set you free. If you're Egypt — if no blood marks your door — it's the night everything died.
The blood determines the experience. Then and now. The same divine act that liberates one destroys another. And the only variable is the blood.
Commentary
Trusted original commentary from respected historical Bible scholars and theologians.
Who smote the firstborn of Egypt, both of man and beast. Which was the last of the plagues inflicted on the Egyptians;…
Who smote the firstborn of Egypt - As the last and the greatest of the plagues brought upon the Egyptians; the chief and…
The psalmist had suggested to us the goodness of God, as the proper matter of our cheerful praises; here he suggests to…
Jehovah's sovereignty exhibited in the deliverance of His people from Egypt and their establishment in the land of…
Cross References
Related passages throughout Scripture