Exo 7:15-25 | KingComments | STEP | Before looking at the individual plagues, first a general introduction to the plagues. The first nine plagues can be divided into three groups of three plagues. The tenth plague stands alone. At the first, fourth, and seventh plague, Moses must go to Pharaoh early in the morning ( ). This refers every time to a new beginning. The third, sixth and ninth plagues come each without prior warning. The plagues 1-3 come all three from the earth and happen by the staff of Aaron. The plague is affecting the Egyptians as well as the people of Israel. In these first three plagues the Egyptian magicians play a role. They try to imitate the plagues of God. As said, because of the mention of these magicians in 2 Timothy 3, especially these plagues have a special message for us, who live in the last days of Christianity. The plagues 4-6 happen without mentioning the staff of Moses or the staff of Aaron. Also their origin – from heaven or from earth – is not mentioned. It simply says that the LORD does it ( ). With the sixth plague, Moses is the executor. He scatters ash from the oven into the air. Israel remains free from these plagues ( ). Egyptian magicians cannot imitate these plagues. The plagues 7-9 do not affect Israel either. They come directly from heaven over Egypt and are executed by the staff of Moses. Almost all of the plagues we find here we find in Revelation also. We find therein “the hour of testing, that [hour] which is about to come upon the whole world” ( ), not only upon Israel ( ). In Revelation 16 it says that these are the plagues of God and especially also about professing Christianity ( ). In the seven bowls in Revelation 16, many of the plagues that stroke Egypt are found. We now continue to follow the reports of the plagues. Moses is given the task to go to Pharaoh in the morning with the message to let God’s people go to serve Him in the wilderness ( ). God now claims the right to His people. He wants them to serve Him and not Pharaoh. Pharaoh wants it the other way around: he wants the people to serve him and not God. The LORD lets Moses announce the first plague because of the unrelenting heart of Pharaoh. Therefore Moses must take the staff of Aaron, the staff that has been turned into a serpent, and strike the water of the Nile with it. The water of the Nile will then turn into blood and become undrinkable (cf. ). The Nile is the idol of the Egyptians. From it they derive all their wealth. The fish of the Nile serves as food ( ). The plague will kill the fish and turn their source of wealth into a stinking river. If God is kept out of the blessing we enjoy, it can just happen that the blessing turns into a curse and that life (water) turns into death (blood). It is God’s purpose by this that man should acknowledge that He speaks, just as Pharaoh will know from this judgment of the LORD that He is the LORD.

‏ Exodus 7:15-25

Announcement of the First Plague

Before looking at the individual plagues, first a general introduction to the plagues. The first nine plagues can be divided into three groups of three plagues. The tenth plague stands alone. At the first, fourth, and seventh plague, Moses must go to Pharaoh early in the morning (Exo 7:15 ; Exo 8:20 ; Exo 9:13). This refers every time to a new beginning. The third, sixth and ninth plagues come each without prior warning.

The plagues 1-3 come all three from the earth and happen by the staff of Aaron. The plague is affecting the Egyptians as well as the people of Israel. In these first three plagues the Egyptian magicians play a role. They try to imitate the plagues of God. As said, because of the mention of these magicians in 2 Timothy 3, especially these plagues have a special message for us, who live in the last days of Christianity.

The plagues 4-6 happen without mentioning the staff of Moses or the staff of Aaron. Also their origin – from heaven or from earth – is not mentioned. It simply says that the LORD does it (Exo 8:24 ; Exo 9:6). With the sixth plague, Moses is the executor. He scatters ash from the oven into the air. Israel remains free from these plagues (Exo 8:22). Egyptian magicians cannot imitate these plagues.

The plagues 7-9 do not affect Israel either. They come directly from heaven over Egypt and are executed by the staff of Moses.

Almost all of the plagues we find here we find in Revelation also. We find therein “the hour of testing, that [hour] which is about to come upon the whole world” (Rev 3:10), not only upon Israel (Jer 30:7). In Revelation 16 it says that these are the plagues of God and especially also about professing Christianity (Rev 16:9). In the seven bowls in Revelation 16, many of the plagues that stroke Egypt are found.

We now continue to follow the reports of the plagues. Moses is given the task to go to Pharaoh in the morning with the message to let God’s people go to serve Him in the wilderness (Exo 7:16). God now claims the right to His people. He wants them to serve Him and not Pharaoh. Pharaoh wants it the other way around: he wants the people to serve him and not God.

The LORD lets Moses announce the first plague because of the unrelenting heart of Pharaoh. Therefore Moses must take the staff of Aaron, the staff that has been turned into a serpent, and strike the water of the Nile with it. The water of the Nile will then turn into blood and become undrinkable (cf. Rev 16:3-4).

The Nile is the idol of the Egyptians. From it they derive all their wealth. The fish of the Nile serves as food (Num 11:5a). The plague will kill the fish and turn their source of wealth into a stinking river. If God is kept out of the blessing we enjoy, it can just happen that the blessing turns into a curse and that life (water) turns into death (blood). It is God’s purpose by this that man should acknowledge that He speaks, just as Pharaoh will know from this judgment of the LORD that He is the LORD.

The First Plague: Water Becomes Blood

Moses and Aaron do just as God has said. Aaron stretches his staff not only over the Nile, but over the waters of Egypt. The Nile is mentioned separately from the waters as a target of the plague. The Nile is worshiped by the Egyptians under a wide variety of names. It represents all that is good. God destroys this great power on which the Egyptians rely. He strikes them in what gives them pleasure and prosperity. The fish die, the Nile starts to stink, and the water is no longer drinkable.

Water speaks of what invigorates and gives life. Blood that has been shed speaks of death. In God’s Word, the Nile stands for earthly blessings that are enjoyed without thanks to God in any way. Enjoying all kinds of blessings in this way can only lead to death, because everything that is apart from God is dead and works death.

Life on earth can give opportunity “to enjoy the passing pleasures of sin” (Heb 11:25), but its end is death. Its stench fills the air. In today’s society, we are increasingly observing its forerunners. Man wallows in prosperity and perishes in it. The depravity of his thinking is taking on ever coarser proportions. What man thinks up is becoming more and more repulsive.

The magicians can imitate what Moses did, but they cannot take away the ailment. They only make the plague worse. It can be seen in politics and in society where excuses are always sought for the follies that man commits. The solutions that are offered only make the ailment worse. For example, pregnancy is a blessing from God, but it is not considered that way in the corrupt thinking of man who wants to be independent of God. Man wants to be able to intervene, both in the ‘making’ of life through, for example, test tube fertilization and in the removal of what is not desired through abortion. The result is repulsive to all who love God.

The plague lasts for “seven days”, which means a fullness of time determined by God. Of any reaction of Pharaoh, we read nothing.