Exodus 7
1THEN the Lord spoke to Moses saying, Behold I have made thee a god to Pharao, and Aaron thy brother shall be thy prophet,
2and thou shalt deliver to him all that I command thee. And Aaron thy brother shall speak to Pharao, to send the Israelites out of his land.
3But I will let Pharao’s heart be stubborn, and I will multiply My signs and wonders in the land of Egypt.
4And when Pharao will not hearken to you, I will lay My hand upon Egypt and bring out My people, the children of Israel with My host out of the land of Egypt with great vengeance.
5And all the Egyptians shall know that I am the Lord when I lay My hand on Egypt and bring the children of Israel out from among them.
6So Moses acted in conjunction with Aaron; and as the Lord commanded so they did.
7Now Moses was eighty years old and his brother Aaron was eighty-three years old, when he spoke to Pharao.
8And the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron saying,
9If Pharao shall speak to you and say, Give us a sign or a miracle, then thou shalt say to thy brother Aaron, Take this staff and throw it on the ground in the presence of Pharao and before his attendants and it shall be a dragon.
10So Moses went in with Aaron before Pharao and his attendants and they did as the Lord commanded them. But when Aaron threw down the staff before Pharao and before his attendants and it became a dragon,
11Pharao called together the wise men of Egypt and the sorcerers. And the Egyptian enchanters by their sorceries did in like manner.
12They cast down each his staff, which became dragons. Though Aaron’s staff devoured their staves,
13yet Pharao’s heart was stubborn and he hearkened not to them to do as the Lord commanded them.
14Then the Lord said to Moses, Pharao’s heart is obstinately bent not to let the people go.
15Go in the morning to Pharao. Behold he is going out to the water and thou wilt meet him at the border of the river. And thou shalt take in thy hand the staff which was turned into a serpent,
16and say to him, The Lord the God of the Hebrews hath sent to thee saying, Send away My people that they may serve Me in the wilderness, and behold thou hast not hearkened hitherto.
17Thus saith the Lord, By this thou shalt know that I am the Lord, Behold with this staff which is in My hand I smite upon the water in the river and it shall turn into blood.
18And the fishes which are in the river shall die. And the river shall stink. And the Egyptians shall not be able to drink the water of the river.
19Moreover the Lord said to Moses, Say to thy brother Aaron, Take thy staff in thy hand and stretch forth thy hand against the waters of Egypt, against the rivers and against the canals and against their ponds and against all their reservoirs of water; and they shall become blood, and there shall be blood throughout all the land of Egypt both in the cisterns of wood and in those of stone.
20So Moses and Aaron did as the Lord commanded them. And lifting up his staff he smote the water in the river in the presence of Pharao and before all his attendants and changed all the water of the river into blood.
21And the fishes which were in the river died. And the river stunk so that the Egyptians could not drink the water of the river. And there was blood in all the land of Egypt.
22But when the magicians of Egypt did in like manner by their enchantments, Pharao’s heart became inflexible so that he hearkened not to them as the Lord had said.
23So Pharao returned and went to his house and paid no attention to this.
24And all the Egyptians dug round about the river for water to drink for they could not drink the water of the river.
25And when the seven days were fulfilled after the Lord had smitten the river, the Lord said to Moses, Go to Pharao and say to him: