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Exodus 7

KJV · Chapter 7/40

1And the Lord said unto Moses, See, I have made thee a god to Pharaoh: and Aaron thy brother shall be thy prophet.

2Thou shalt speak all that I command thee: and Aaron thy brother shall speak unto Pharaoh, that he send the children of Israel out of his land.

3And I will harden Pharaoh’s heart, and multiply my signs and my wonders in the land of Egypt.

4But Pharaoh shall not hearken unto you, that I may lay my hand upon Egypt, and bring forth mine armies, and my people the children of Israel, out of the land of Egypt by great judgments.

5And the Egyptians shall know that I am the Lord, when I stretch forth mine hand upon Egypt, and bring out the children of Israel from among them.

6And Moses and Aaron did as the Lord commanded them, so did they.

7And Moses was fourscore years old, and Aaron fourscore and three years old, when they spake unto Pharaoh.

8And the Lord spake unto Moses and unto Aaron, saying,

9When Pharaoh shall speak unto you, saying, Shew a miracle for you: then thou shalt say unto Aaron, Take thy rod, and cast it before Pharaoh, and it shall become a serpent.

10And Moses and Aaron went in unto Pharaoh, and they did so as the Lord had commanded: and Aaron cast down his rod before Pharaoh, and before his servants, and it became a serpent.

11Then Pharaoh also called the wise men and the sorcerers: now the magicians of Egypt, they also did in like manner with their enchantments.

12For they cast down every man his rod, and they became serpents: but Aaron’s rod swallowed up their rods.

13And he hardened Pharaoh’s heart, that he hearkened not unto them; as the Lord had said.

14And the Lord said unto Moses, Pharaoh’s heart is hardened, he refuseth to let the people go.

15Get thee unto Pharaoh in the morning; lo, he goeth out unto the water; and thou shalt stand by the river’s brink against he come; and the rod which was turned to a serpent shalt thou take in thine hand.

16And thou shalt say unto him, The Lord God of the Hebrews hath sent me unto thee, saying, Let my people go, that they may serve me in the wilderness: and, behold, hitherto thou wouldest not hear.

17Thus saith the Lord, In this thou shalt know that I am the Lord: behold, I will smite with the rod that is in mine hand upon the waters which are in the river, and they shall be turned to blood.

18And the fish that is in the river shall die, and the river shall stink; and the Egyptians shall lothe to drink of the water of the river.

19And the Lord spake unto Moses, Say unto Aaron, Take thy rod, and stretch out thine hand upon the waters of Egypt, upon their streams, upon their rivers, and upon their ponds, and upon all their pools of water, that they may become blood; and that there may be blood throughout all the land of Egypt, both in vessels of wood, and in vessels of stone.

20And Moses and Aaron did so, as the Lord commanded; and he lifted up the rod, and smote the waters that were in the river, in the sight of Pharaoh, and in the sight of his servants; and all the waters that were in the river were turned to blood.

21And the fish that was in the river died; and the river stank, and the Egyptians could not drink of the water of the river; and there was blood throughout all the land of Egypt.

22And the magicians of Egypt did so with their enchantments: and Pharaoh’s heart was hardened, neither did he hearken unto them; as the Lord had said.

23And Pharaoh turned and went into his house, neither did he set his heart to this also.

24And all the Egyptians digged round about the river for water to drink; for they could not drink of the water of the river.

25And seven days were fulfilled, after that the Lord had smitten the river.

📖 Chapter study

Summary

God prepares Moses and Aaron to confront Pharaoh again; Aaron's staff turns into a serpent before Pharaoh, and the first plague begins: the waters of the Nile River turn to blood.

Explanation

This chapter marks the formal beginning of the direct confrontation between the power of God and the power of Pharaoh, who was regarded by the Egyptians as a living god. Each plague that follows is not merely a random punishment but a direct, symbolic strike against specific deities of the Egyptian pantheon — the Nile, for example, was associated with the god Hapi and considered sacred, making its transformation into blood a theological blow against the whole Egyptian worldview, not just a practical problem. The fact that the Egyptian magicians managed to imitate this first sign with 'their enchantments' shows that the confrontation would not be resolved immediately, setting the stage for an increasingly clear demonstration of God's exclusive supremacy. The repeated mention that 'Pharaoh's heart hardened' introduces a complex theological theme about the relationship between stubborn human resistance and God's sovereignty over that very resistance.

Fun facts

  • Each of the ten plagues of Egypt is interpreted by biblical scholars as a direct confrontation against a specific Egyptian deity — the plague of blood on the Nile, for example, directly challenged Hapi (god of the floods) and Osiris (associated with the river), showing that the battle was, at its core, between the God of Israel and the entire Egyptian religious system.
  • The age of Moses (80 years) and Aaron (83 years) at the beginning of this confrontation with Pharaoh (v. 7) shows that Israel's great mission of deliverance began at an advanced stage of life, challenging the idea that great callings only happen in youth.

Verse-by-verse explanation

  1. Exodus 7:1God is not saying Moses has become a deity — the expression means that, before Pharaoh, Moses will speak with the full authority of God, and Aaron will be his “prophet” in the sense of spokesman, repeating the words Moses passes on to him. It is the same arrangement already agreed on in chapter 4.
  2. Exodus 7:2It repeats the same division of tasks agreed on in chapter 4: Moses receives God’s instructions, and Aaron passes them on to Pharaoh as his spokesman.
  3. Exodus 7:3Here the text repeats the idea that God will harden Pharaoh’s heart, which puzzles many people, since it seems God is stopping the king himself from giving in. Scholars read this in different ways: some see God reinforcing a stubbornness that was already Pharaoh’s own choice, others see it as part of a plan for the Egyptians to see more signs.
  4. Exodus 7:4God already warns that Pharaoh will not listen, even before any plague happens — the text makes clear from the start that the confrontation will be a long one.
  5. Exodus 7:5The purpose of the plagues is not only to free the people, but also to make the Egyptians themselves recognize the power of the God of Israel.
  6. Exodus 7:6It notes that Moses and Aaron carry out exactly what God had commanded, a phrase repeated several times throughout the book to confirm obedience.
  7. Exodus 7:7The advanced ages of Moses (eighty years) and Aaron (eighty-three) show that the confrontation with Pharaoh only begins after decades of waiting for both of them.
  8. Exodus 7:8Before the first public sign before Pharaoh, God gives Moses and Aaron specific instructions on what to do, told in the next verse.
  9. Exodus 7:9God prepares Moses for Pharaoh’s expected request for proof: the same staff that turned into a snake before him in chapter 4 will now be used before the king.
  10. Exodus 7:10Aaron performs before Pharaoh the sign Moses had already seen at the bush: the staff thrown to the ground turns into a serpent.
  11. Exodus 7:11The “wise men and the sorcerers” were the magicians of Pharaoh’s court, priests who knew tricks and some form of illusion used in Egyptian religious rituals. They manage to imitate the staff turning into a snake, but the detail that counts is that Aaron’s snake devours theirs, showing that the power behind it is greater even when the effects look similar.
  12. Exodus 7:12The Egyptian magicians manage to imitate the trick with their own staffs, but Aaron’s serpent swallows theirs — a sign that the power behind it is greater.
  13. Exodus 7:13Despite the clear sign, Pharaoh remains unyielding, exactly fulfilling what God had already warned Moses about his resistance.
  14. Exodus 7:14God confirms to Moses that Pharaoh’s heart remains unyielding, kicking off the sequence of plagues that begins in the next verse.
  15. Exodus 7:15God directs Moses to approach Pharaoh in the morning, at a time when he used to go down to the river — probably part of some ritual tied to the worship of the Nile.
  16. Exodus 7:16It repeats the request already made before, to release the people for worship in the wilderness, putting on record that Pharaoh had already been warned and still refused.
  17. Exodus 7:17The Nile was literally Egypt’s source of life — drinking water, irrigation, fishing, transport — and also had gods associated with it. Turning its waters into blood is not just one more plague: it is a direct blow to the foundation of the Egyptian economy and, at the same time, a challenge to the river deities the Egyptians worshiped.
  18. Exodus 7:18It anticipates the effect of the plague: the dead fish and the foul smell would make the river water, Egypt’s basic source of survival, unfit even to drink.
  19. Exodus 7:19God’s command is sweeping: not just the main river, but every canal, pool, and reservoir in Egypt, including water already stored in vessels.
  20. Exodus 7:20Aaron strikes with the staff right before Pharaoh himself, and the transformation into blood happens in plain sight of everyone, leaving no doubt about its source.
  21. Exodus 7:21The plague strikes exactly as announced: the fish die, the river reeks, and the water becomes unfit to drink throughout all of Egypt.
  22. Exodus 7:22Even in the face of the plague’s severity, the Egyptian magicians manage to reproduce the effect on a small scale, which gives Pharaoh an excuse to resist.
  23. Exodus 7:23Pharaoh simply ignores what happened and goes back home, unshaken by the plague, a reaction that repeats itself at several points in the confrontation with Moses.
  24. Exodus 7:24While the river remained undrinkable, the Egyptians have to dig wells along its banks in search of water filtered through the ground, an emergency solution.
  25. Exodus 7:25It marks the passing of seven days between this first plague and what comes next, one of the few time markers given in the sequence of plagues.

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