How did the Israelites protect themselves from the tenth plague?

Answer 1

God protected them by telling them they were to kill a lamb or a kid, (Kid = Baby goat) take its blood and paint it around their door so it would protect them. They were to put the blood of the lamb/kid on their front door to show that the people inside were god fearing believers.

This became known as Passover; since the angel of death passed over the home that was protected by the blood on the door. Jesus came and died during the 14-day Passover celebration and the day before Passover. He was called the Passover Lamb as he came to take away the death curse placed on all mankind by the sin of Adam.

ADDITIONALLY:

Everyone in Egypt had undergone about a year of plagues, suffering and misery. Plagues that were directly aimed at all of Egypt's gods, to reveal to them the power of Moses' God over their deities.

Even the Israelites; who, while they hadn't been physically affected by the plagues [except visually, emotionally and through subsequent hardships placed on them by the Egyptians for each plague suffered by the Egyptians]... they had lived about ten generations in Egyptian bondage; fully versed in all of the gods of their masters. And they, right along with the rest of Egypt, witnessed the Power of Moses' God over the gods of their masters. And they, too, could only marvel and dread what they were seeing along with everyone else throughout the land. THEY WERE AS TERRIFIED AS ANYONE ELSE OVER WHAT WAS HAPPENING.

And what was happening was the "economic destruction of a world empire!" Their world was collapsing around their ears!

When the tenth plague was announced... everyone [still shaking in their boots 'or sandals' from all the plagues that had gone before] was desperately looking TO THEIR LEADERSHIP FOR PROTECTION! The Egyptians turned to Pharaoh, his armies and the gods they knew... and the Israelites turned to Moses and Aaron, their bold, brash brothers -- and the Powerful God whom they represented. The God whose Power they had all witnessed.

And it was Moses and Aaron who, in accordance with their God's instructions, directed them to do "the dumbest thing" imaginable: kill a bunch of lambs, splatter the lamb's blood over the entrances [the access points] to their homes [windows and doors]... shut themselves indoors for the night; fully clothed and shaking in their boot... sandals... and polishing off their lamb dinners.

And the Israelites DID IT! FOR THEIR OWN PROTECTION. Because, by that time following a long list of terrifying plagues... they were too frightened to do anything to the contrary to what they were told. It was PEOPLE who were going to die this time. They were instructed by Moses' God, to give it up; "trust Him" and "place their faith in the shed blood of the lamb" they slew... its body and its blood; so that the firstborn among them wouldn't die.

Moses' God orchestrated it all: the plagues, His show of Power over the gods of men, the demonstration of the destruction of the economic wealth and government empires... as well as the LIBERATION OF ABRAHAM'S CHILDREN FROM THEIR BONDAGE TO EGYPT, PHARAOH AND HIS ARMIES [which symbolizes Christ's freeing mankind from his bondage to sin, Satan and his demons].

It instituted the initiation of the Passover memorial... an annual reminder... that would point to the coming Messiah centuries into the future. It was a bitter bondage from which they were finally delivered from Egypt, Pharaoh and his armies, when Moses finally said:

"...'Fear ye not, stand still, and SEE THE SALVATION OF THE LORD, which He will shew to you to day: for the Egyptians [Satan and his demons] whom ye have seen to day, ye shall see them again no more for ever.'" (Ex.14:13)

The "spiritual illumination" of the details of the "Exodus account" would all be replayed and revealed in the course of time, as the God who orchestrated it all [the WORD; Jesus Christ - see John 1:1-3] would come to earth in the flesh and "begin to FULFILL THE PROPHECIES" that shall result in a "Second Exodus."

Not just another exodus of the scattered descendants of Faithful Abraham tribes of Judah [the Jews] and all the other "lost tribes" of Israel... but the gathering of "all the families [remnant nations] of the earth" that are left following the coming Great Tribulation [unprecedented global distress] Abraham's God promises is coming upon the people of the earth [Matt.24:21].

Abraham's and Moses' God replayed that Passover FOR REAL on that fateful Passover day in 31a.d., when He personally BECAME THE LAMB OF GOD whose body and blood would become the Perfect Source of mankind's liberation from the "sin" [disobedience] and its wages [death] that the god mankind has worshiped since the beginning, Satan the Devil, has led them and deceived them into committing.

A Second Exodus is coming on the world [Isa.11:11 & Jer.23:5-8]... to LIBERATE THE WORLD from sin [disobedience to God's Laws - see I John 3:4] and its false gods. Its coming with a whole new set of similar "plagues" that will be administered by the Two Witnesses [like Moses and Aaron witnessed and administered in their day - read of the wind-blown "seven Trumpet plagues" throughout Revelation 8 thru 11 and the final "seven vial plagues" of Rev.16 poured out on the earth]. And it will be completed with the removal of all of man's Satan-owned and misguided governments from the earth [see Luke 4:5-6 & Rev.19 & Daniel chapters 2 and 7]; when the God of Abraham and Moses returns with His angelic armies with undeniable POWER and GLORY, which all the military, economic and political power of the nations of the earth will not be able to resist.

The "DEATH" that the firstborn faced in the Exodus account was negated by the visible blood of slain lambs struck on the doors and windows of the homes of those who believed and did what Moses and Aaron told them to do.

The "SECOND DEATH" [Rev.20:14] that ALL OF MANKIND FACES is negated by the Faith in the hearts and minds of those who TRUST in the Blood and Body of the Lamb that God has provided for his liberation from his bondage to his god and master, Satan... and from the disobedience to His Laws He gave man for his own Joy, Happiness and Well-Being [Deut.5:29].

The Israelites protected themselves from the tenth plague [through their own terrifying dread and fear] by begrudgingly "OBEYING THE INSTRUCTIONS OF MOSES' GOD."

Which would later be the foundation of their covenant with Him: "Now therefore, IF YE WILL OBEY MY VOICE INDEED, and keep My covenant, then ye shall be a peculiar treasure UNTO ME ABOVE ALL PEOPLE: for all the earth is Mine: and ye shall be a Kingdom of Priests, and and Holy Nation..." (Ex.19:5-6).

All of mankind can protect themselves in the same way in the coming Second Global Exodus. Through obedience to Abraham's and Moses' God:

"If ye keep My Commandments, ye shall abide in My Love; even as I have kept My Father's Commandments, and abide in His Love... This is My Commandment, That ye Love one another, AS I HAVE LOVED YOU [hint: HE SELFLESSLY DIED FOR HIS CREATION!]. Greater Love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends. Ye are My Friends, IF YE DO WHATSOEVER I COMMAND YOU." (John 15:10-14)

Answer 2

In The Bible account at Exodus 7-12, only the first three plagues effected the Israelites at all(Exodus 8:21-24). The rest effected ONLY the Egyptians, aimed specifically at the God's of Egypt(Isaiah 19:1), to discredit them and demonstrate who the true God is.(Psalm 78:44-51)

1. Nile God, Hapi (Moses turned the Nile River into blood) (Exodus 7:19-21)

2. Frog Goddess, Heqt (Frogs appeared everywhere-uncontrollably)

3. Gnats humiliated the God of moon and magic,Thoth, who had no power here

4. Gad flies all over Egypt, but not in Goshen with Israelites. No Egyptian god could prevent this.

5. Death of livestock humiliated Hathor, Apis, and Nut

6. Sores discredited Thoth, Isis, and Ptah, as healing gods in Egypt

7. Hail showed Reshpu and Thoth incapable of protecting

8. Locusts humiliated Min, protector of crops

9. Darkness discredited the sungods, Ra and Horus, and also Thoth

10.Pharaoh, believed to be 'the son of Ra', could not prevent death of his first born(Exodus 12:12-13)

The only way the Israelites remained safe, was through their obedience to God, and God's power in their behalf (Exodus 14:31; Psalm 136:10-15.)