Hail

Hail (frozen rain-drops) appears in Scripture as both a natural phenomenon and an instrument of divine judgment. The most memorable biblical hailstorm was the seventh plague of Egypt (Ex. 9:22–26), in which devastating hail, mingled with fire, struck down people, livestock, and crops throughout Egypt while Goshen was supernaturally spared. Joshua's battle at Gibeon saw God send great stones of hail upon the fleeing Amorites, killing more than the Israelites had slain by sword (Josh. 10:11). Prophetic literature employs hail as a symbol of coming divine wrath (Isa. 28:2; Ezek. 13:11; Rev. 8:7; 16:21).

The greeting Hail! (from the Hebrew and Greek words for peace and rejoice) is the salutation used by the angel Gabriel to Mary at the Annunciation (Luke 1:28) and by the soldiers who mocked Jesus during his passion (Matt. 27:29), setting a striking contrast between genuine reverence and contemptuous irony in the Gospel narrative.