Moses is Being Equipped

Exodus 7

The instructions from God to Moses continue.  And now that Moses has gotten his way about including Aaron, it looks like he's finally going to shut up and listen to God.

God outlines two major tasks in which Moses and Aaron will be involved:  Freeing the people from Egypt and leading the people from Egypt into freedom.

The Lord said to Moses, “See how important I have made you? In speaking to Pharaoh, you will be like God, and your brother Aaron will be your prophet. You will tell Aaron everything that I command you. Then he will tell the king what I say. And Pharaoh will let the Israelites leave this country. But I will make Pharaoh stubborn so that he will not do what you tell him. Then I will do many miracles in Egypt to prove who I am.  But he will still refuse to listen. So then I will punish Egypt very much. And I will lead my army, my people, out of that land.  I will punish the people of Egypt, and they will learn that I am the Lord. Then I will lead my people out of their country.”

That's the game plan.  Any questions?

Moses and Aaron did what the Lord told them. 

Wow!   That's Miracle Number One in this list of tasks.

Moses was 80 years old at the time, and Aaron was 83.

The Lord said to Moses and Aaron, “Pharaoh will ask you to prove your power. He will ask you to do a miracle. Tell Aaron to throw his walking stick on the ground. While Pharaoh is watching, the stick will become a monster.”

So Moses and Aaron went to Pharaoh and obeyed the Lord. 

There's atta-boy number 2.

Aaron threw his walking stick down. 

Is this where the term, "throw down" originated?

While Pharaoh and his officers watched, the stick became a monster.

So Pharaoh called for his wise men and magicians. These men used their magic, and they were able to do the same thing as Aaron.  They threw their walking sticks on the ground, and their sticks became monsters. But then Aaron’s walking stick ate theirs. 

Interesting.  Note the shift. We've been reading about monsters, but after everyone throws down, it's a stick eating other sticks.

If you've looked at Egyptian headdresses and  crowns, you might have noticed a snake perched on the front. That represents Wadjet - the protector of Upper Egypt: the animals, the people, and the river Nile.  That vulture-looking thing on the other side is named Nebket: the protector of Lower Egypt.

So God has shown Pharaoh that He controls the animals, not Wadjet. And God demonstrated it in as ironic a manner as possible - by showing His superiority over the animal representation of Wadjet.

Pharaoh still refused to let the people go, just as the Lord had said. Pharaoh refused to listen to Moses and Aaron.

Maybe Pharaoh thinks he still has a couple of aces to play -- belief in his gods and their power over the river and the people.

Then the Lord said to Moses, “Pharaoh is being stubborn. He refuses to let the people go. In the morning Pharaoh will go out to the river. Go to him by the edge of the Nile River. Take the walking stick that became a snake. Tell him this: ‘The Lord, the God of the Hebrews, sent me to you. He told me to tell you to let his people go worship him in the desert. Until now you have not listened to the Lord. 

So the Lord says that he will do something to show you that he is the Lord. I will hit the water of the Nile River with this walking stick in my hand, and the river will turn into blood.  The fish in the river will die, and the river will begin to stink. Then the Egyptians will not be able to drink the water from the river.’”

Control over the water of the Nile is is now being demonstrated.  God vs Wadjet.   Place your bets, please.

The Lord said to Moses: “Tell Aaron to hold the walking stick in his hand over the rivers, canals, lakes, and every place where they store water. When he does this, all the water will turn into blood.  All the water, even the water stored in wood and stone jars, will turn into blood.”

Some people have tried to explain this miracle as a "red tide" flowing into the Nile.  But red tide can't find water stored in jars.

So Moses and Aaron did what the Lord commanded. 

The tally of atta-boys just keeps building.

Aaron raised the walking stick and hit the water in the Nile River. He did this in front of Pharaoh and his officials. So all the water in the river changed into blood.  The fish in the river died, and the river began to stink. So the Egyptians could not drink water from the river. The blood was everywhere in Egypt.

Changing the waters is the first (of ten) plagues that God will send.

The magicians used their magic to do the same thing. 

Another puzzler to me.  How did the magicians do the same thing if all the water was already blood?  I assume they dug some wells to get uncontaminated water.  It's also interesting to note that the names of the magicians are referenced by Paul in his letter to Timothy.

So Pharaoh refused to listen to Moses and Aaron. 

Pharaoh views this as a draw; that both God and Wadjet have control over the water.

This happened just as the Lord said.  Pharaoh ignored what Moses and Aaron had done. He turned and went into his house.

The Egyptians could not drink the water from the river, so they dug wells around the river for water to drink.

Seven days passed after the Lord changed the Nile River.

And God's challenge to Pharaoh continues in the next chapter of Exodus.

So far, Moses and Aaron have been faithful ambassadors of God to Pharaoh, but the signs God is displaying have been duplicated by the Egyptian magicians.  Even if they are not operating supernaturally, they are able to duplicate the effects; so Pharaoh sees no need to be overly awed by God.

Note that nothing the magicians did was able to overcome or un-do what God had done - but Pharaoh is counting the duel as a draw to this point.

Next - Frogs.