River of Blood

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Opening Prayer

Gracious Lord, day by day I am embraced and sustained by Your grace. I offer my grateful thanks.

Read Exodus 7:14-24

^[14] Then the LORD said to Moses, “Pharaoh’s heart is unyielding; he refuses to let the people go. ^[15] Go to Pharaoh in the morning as he goes out to the river. Confront him on the bank of the Nile, and take in your hand the staff that was changed into a snake. ^[16] Then say to him, ‘The LORD, the God of the Hebrews, has sent me to say to you: Let my people go, so that they may worship me in the wilderness. But until now you have not listened. ^[17] This is what the LORD says: By this you will know that I am the LORD: With the staff that is in my hand I will strike the water of the Nile, and it will be changed into blood. ^[18] The fish in the Nile will die, and the river will stink; the Egyptians will not be able to drink its water.'” ^[19] The LORD said to Moses, “Tell Aaron, ‘Take your staff and stretch out your hand over the waters of Egypt-over the streams and canals, over the ponds and all the reservoirs-and they will turn to blood.’ Blood will be everywhere in Egypt, even in vessels of wood and stone.” ^[20] Moses and Aaron did just as the LORD had commanded. He raised his staff in the presence of Pharaoh and his officials and struck the water of the Nile, and all the water was changed into blood. ^[21] The fish in the Nile died, and the river smelled so bad that the Egyptians could not drink its water. Blood was everywhere in Egypt. ^[22] But the Egyptian magicians did the same things by their secret arts, and Pharaoh’s heart became hard; he would not listen to Moses and Aaron, just as the LORD had said. ^[23] Instead, he turned and went into his palace, and did not take even this to heart. ^[24] And all the Egyptians dug along the Nile to get drinking water, because they could not drink the water of the river.

Meditate

“…and (Pharaoh) did not take even this to heart” (23). These are cautionary words: when the Lord speaks, either in dramatic or quiet ways, we need to be listening and obedient!

Think Further

It is fascinating to study how the signs are presented (in three groups of three plus the tenth sign), what exactly they were, whether and when a warning was given, what instructions Moses and/or Aaron were given, who took the lead, and issues of timing. The magicians gradually drop away. Do I notice any change in Moses’ behavior? Three verbs of “hardening” are used 20 times in chapters 4 to 14. Ten times the Lord is the subject, notably at the beginning (4:21 and 7:3) and at the end (14:4,8,17); and ten times Pharaoh self-hardens. We cannot enter into all these details here. In the recording of these huge events, only seven signs are listed. This suggests that the story has a teaching aspect.

How is this story “written to teach us” (Rom. 15:4)? It is the horrifying story of a man who, sliding down the slope of arrogance and contempt, finally lost his handhold, fell over a cliff and drowned. Egypt was the superpower of the day, but sign 1 and sign 10 bring to uselessness two of the greatest gods in the Egyptian pantheon, the Nile god (Hapi) and the sun god (Re). Egypt considered itself lord of the world. Surely the future lay with them as well? But the Lord of their despised slaves was about to demonstrate that he was the only God and the future of the world lay with them and not with Egypt. Only at the cross was there a greater conflict, a deeper deliverance, a broader outcome. The slaughtering of the firstborn son has made it possible for Israel, and for us, to become God’s special possession and heirs.

I read this story with trepidation and sensitivity. What signs from God do I turn away from and “not take even this to heart” (23)?

Apply

Given the eyes of faith, what mighty acts or gentle touches, have you perceived in your life? Have there been any “heaven-sent plagues”? What lessons have you learned?

Closing prayer

Patient Father, I ask for a soft heart, open to You and Your direction. Deal with any heart-hardness I may have and fill me with Your fullness.

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