Texts in Conversation
Jewish interpreters explained the singular word “frog” in Exodus 8:5 in different ways. The Aramaic translation in Targum Onkelos uses a plural, describing many frogs. Tractate Sanhedrin in the Babylonian Talmud imagines one giant frog that multiplied.
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Exodus 8:5
Hebrew Bible
4 Frogs will come up against you, your people, and all your servants.”’” 5 The Lord spoke to Moses, “Tell Aaron, ‘Extend your hand with your staff over the rivers, over the canals, and over the ponds, and bring the frog* up over the land of Egypt.’” 6 So Aaron extended his hand over the waters of Egypt, and frogs came up and covered the land of Egypt.
Date: 5th Century B.C.E. (Final composition) (based on scholarly estimates)
Source
Onkelos Exodus 8:1
Targum
1 And the Lord said to Mosheh, Say to Aharon, lift your hand with your staff upon the streams, upon the rivulets, and upon the lakes; and the frogs shall come up on the land of Mizraim. 2 And Aharon lifted up his hand over the waters of the Mizraee, and the frogs came up and covered the land of Mizraim. 3 And the magicians did so with their enchantments, and made frogs to come up on the land of Mizraim.
Date: 100-200 C.E. (based on scholarly estimates)
Source
Sanhedrin 67b
Babylonian Talmud
Rabbinic
It is stated with regard to the plagues of Egypt: “And the frog came up and covered the land of Egypt” (Exodus 8:2). Noting that the term “the frog” is written in the singular, Rabbi Elazar says: At first it was one frog; it spawned and filled the entire land of Egypt with frogs.
Date: 450-550 C.E. (based on scholarly estimates)
Source
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Notes and References
"... 'Frogs' ... The biblical reading is 'bring up the frog' (in the singular), suggesting that one frog covered the entire land. Indeed, Rashi cites an opinion found in the Babylonian Talmud (Sanhedrin 67b) and the Midrash (Exodus Rabbah 104) that a single frog came, split into other frogs and swarmed over Egypt. Our targumist prefers to interpret the biblical singular as 'frogs,' which is closer to the intended meaning. Rashi also states that the singular form represents a swarm of frogs, just as the word kinam in verses 13 and 14, in the singular, refers to many lice. Our targumist translates kinam in the plural in keeping with his understanding of the intended meaning of the word ..."
Drazin, Israel, and Stanley M. Wagner
Onkelos on the Torah, Exodus: Understanding the Bible Text
(p. 43) Gefen, 2006
* The use of references are not endorsements of their contents. Please read the entirety of the provided reference(s) to understand the author's full intentions regarding the use of these texts.
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