What are the implications of the description "Kaved Me'od"?
Oznayim la'Torah (citing Midrash ha'Gadol): Not only was the plague in itself heavy; 1 but the locusts also blinded the Egyptians, cut down trees and destroyed clothes and vessels.
As the next Pasuk (10:15) describes.
How can we reconcile this Pasuk, with the Pasuk in Yoel 2:2, which describes the plague of locusts in his days as the worst ever?
Rashi: The plague there consisted of a variety of species of locusts (Arbeh, Yelek, Chasil and Gazam - Yoel 2:25), whereas the one here was confined to Arbeh. 1
Ramban #1: The description of the severity of the plague is connected to the phrase, "in all the borders of Egypt," mentioned earlier in the Pasuk. 2
Ramban #2: The fact that locusts are fairly common, and that they came via the east wind, gave the impression that their arrival was a natural phenomenon. Therefore the Pasuk stresses (both here and in Yo'el) that the vast size of the swarm indicated that it was a plague sent from Hashem.
Hadar Zekenim #1, Riva #1 (citing the Chizkuni), Da'as Zekenim #1, Moshav Zekenim #1 (citing R. Chaim): There were different species of locusts also in Egypt 3 all at once; there were never as many all together at one time as in Egypt, whereas in the days of Yo'el, one species came after the other, and there were never as many of one species at a time as then.
Hadar Zekenim #2, Da'as Zekenim #2 and Moshav Zekenim #2: There were more species in the days of Yo'el, therefore it was more severe, but of the species in Egypt, there will never be so many.
Riva #2 (citing R. Elyakim) and Moshav Zekenim #3 (citing R. Yechiel): In Egypt, one species came after the other. There were never as much as one species at a time as then, whereas in the days of Yo'el the species overlapped; the next species came before the previous one departed, therefore there were more at any one time than there were in Egypt.
Moshav Zekenim #4: Of the species of Arbeh, there were never as many as in Egypt.
Moshav Zekenim #5: In the days of Yo'el they were bigger than those in Egypt, but fewer.
Ramban, Hadar Zekenim: This is difficult, because the Pesukim in Tehilim (78:46,47 and Tehilim 105:34) list different species of Arbeh in Egypt as well! See Sifsei Chachamim and Gur Aryeh; refer to 10:14:1.2.
Ramban: And the description is confined to Egypt, because, due to the constant state of wetness caused by the Nile, it was unaccustomed to large plagues of locusts - which generally appear following a drought (as the Pasuk states in Yoel 1:20). Hadar Zekenim, Riva and Moshav Zekenim - In the days of Moshe was the worst ever in Egypt. In the days of Yo'el was the worst ever in Eretz Yisrael.
As the Pasuk records in Tehilim 78:46,47 and Tehilim 105:34.
Why did Hashem bring upon the Egyptians the plague of locusts?
Tana de'Bei Eliyahu, 9:7: Because they had forced Yisrael to plant wheat, barley, and various species of legumes. So Hashem sent the locusts to devour all that Yisrael had planted. 1
Why, in this Makah specifically, does the Torah emphasize that such a thing had never happened before?
Gur Aryeh (to 9:14): The final set of Makos - Be'achav - came to teach Hashem's uniqueness; that "there is none like Hashem in all the earth" (9:14). These were Makos that were unprecedented in scope. 1
Also refer to 9:14:1.1:3. For a discussion of the progression of the Makos, their division as De'tzach A'dash Be'achav, and what lesson Pharaoh was supposed to learn from each of these groups, see 7:14:8:1.
Ramban and others mention Tehilim 78, which describes most of the Makos. But why does that Perek omit the plagues of lice, boils and darkness?
Moshav Zekenim (citing the Chasid): Because it only discusses the plagues about which Moshe warned Pharaoh. 1
Moshav Zekenim: The Chasid explains "la'Reshafim" (Tehilim 78:48) to be Dever. If you will not say so, you must say that the next Pasuk ("Yeshalach Bam Charon Apo, Evrah va'Za'am v'Tzarah") is referring to the four Makos not mentioned.
QUESTIONS ON RASHI
Rashi writes: "The plague [of locusts] in the days of Yoel ... was worse than the plague in the days of Moshe, for that of Yoel was comprised of many species... but Moshe's was of one species...." What practical difference does it make if there were various species; didn't they wreak the same damage?
Gur Aryeh: In fact, there is no practical difference, and the damage they cause is the same. 1 Rather, the verses in each Sefer tell us what was so wonderous about that particular plague. In the days of Moshe, the Arbeh species reached proportions that would never be repeated; and in the days of Yoel, the confluence of different species was unique. 2
Rashi writes: "... But Moshe's plague was of one species, and none will compare." Ramban asks - But when Sefer Tehilim describes the plagues in Egypt, it does mention other species (see Tehilim 78:46, and Tehilim 105:34)!
Gur Aryeh #1: In the Arbeh in Egypt, although other species were present, they were [in small quantities,] subsumed under the general plague of Arbeh.
Gur Aryeh #2: Even so, the plague in the days of Yoel had more species. 1
