Exodus 7:1-25 The Plagues Being

Now, let's backtrack to Exodus and catch you up on the story. Although it's familiar to most of you, in Exodus we meet Moses. Moses was a man who was raised in Pharaoh's court. At forty years of age, he thinks he's got it all figured out; he's going to help his people get free again, but it doesn't go well. For the next 40 years, he ends up watching over the flocks of his father-in-law out in the desert until he has a burning bush experience. God says, "Moses, you are my guy. I'm going to set my people free." Moses, like most of us, begins to tell God all the reasons he's not qualified to help set the people of God free.

As we've moved forward, one of the things that God says is, "Here are some signs for you first of all, so your people will believe that I've sent you." You may remember one of those signs was that if he threw down his staff, it would turn into a serpent. Another sign was that he could put his hand inside his cloak, and it would come out leprous, and if he put it back, it would come out clean.

Moses is finally convinced and he goes to his people; they're finally sort of convinced. Then he goes to Pharaoh in chapter 5, with Aaron, his brother with him, and says, "Here's what God says: let my people go." Pharaoh says, "I'm going to make your people work harder." Things don't go well. So, last week we got to the point where Moses is still complaining to God: "Okay, that didn't go well. I don't speak well. Here are all the reasons I shouldn't be doing this." And that's going to bring us into chapter 7, where we're going today, and we're going to begin some plagues.

You're not as excited now, remember plagues, right? There we go, alright. So, chapter 7, verse 1, and I'm going to go ahead and read through the chapter. It's a little lengthy, bear with me, but we need to get the context of the story here.

"The Lord said to Moses, 'See, I have made you like God to Pharaoh, and your brother Aaron shall be your prophet. He shall speak all that I command you, and your brother Aaron shall tell Pharaoh to let the people of Israel go out of his land. But I will harden Pharaoh's heart, and though I multiply my signs and wonders in the land of Egypt, Pharaoh will not listen to you. Then I will lay my hand on Egypt and bring my host, my people the children of Israel, out of the land of Egypt by great acts of judgment. The Egyptians shall know that I am the Lord when I stretch out my hand against Egypt and bring out the people of Israel from among them.' Moses and Aaron did so; they did just as the Lord commanded them."

"Now Moses was eighty years old and Aaron eighty-three years old when they spoke to Pharaoh. Then the Lord said to Moses and Aaron, 'When Pharaoh says to you, "Prove yourselves by working a miracle," then you shall say to Aaron, "Take your staff and cast it down before Pharaoh," that it may become a serpent.' So Moses and Aaron went to Pharaoh and did just as the Lord commanded. Aaron cast down his staff before Pharaoh and his servants, and it became a serpent. Then Pharaoh summoned the wise men and the sorcerers, and they, the magicians of Egypt, also did the same by their secret arts; for each man cast down his staff, and they became serpents, but Aaron's staff swallowed up their staffs. Still, Pharaoh's heart was hardened, and he would not listen to them, as the Lord had said."

"Then the Lord said to Moses, 'Pharaoh's heart is hardened; he refuses to let the people go. Go to Pharaoh in the morning, as he is going out to the water. Stand on the bank of the Nile to meet him, and take in your hand the staff that turned into a serpent. You shall say to him, "The Lord, the God of the Hebrews, sent me to you, saying, 'Let my people go, that they may serve me in the wilderness,' but so far, you have not obeyed.' Thus says the Lord, 'By this you shall know that I am the Lord: behold, with the staff that is in my hand, I will strike the water that is the Nile, and it shall turn into blood. The fish in the Nile shall die, and the Nile will stink, and the Egyptians will grow weary of drinking water from the Nile.'

And the Lord said to Moses, 'Say to Aaron, take your staff and stretch out your hand over the waters of Egypt—over their rivers, their canals, and their ponds, and all their pools of water—so that they may become blood; and there shall be blood throughout all the land of Egypt, even in vessels of wood and in vessels of stone.' Moses and Aaron did as the LORD commanded. In the sight of Pharaoh and in the sight of his servants, he lifted up the staff and struck the water in the Nile, and all the water in the Nile turned into blood. The fish in the Nile died, and the Nile stank, so that the Egyptians could not drink water from the Nile. There was blood throughout all the land of Egypt. But the magicians of Egypt did the same by their secret arts; thus Pharaoh's heart remained hardened, and he would not listen to them, as the Lord had said. Pharaoh turned and went into his house, and he did not take even this to heart. And all the Egyptians dug along the Nile for water to drink, for they could not drink the water of the Nile. Seven full days passed after the Lord had struck the Nile.