Exodus 7
1 Yahweh said to Moses, “Behold, I have made you as God to Pharaoh; and Aaron your brother shall be your prophet.
The Lord told Moses, “Look, I will make you seem like God to Pharaoh, and your brother Aaron will be your prophet.
2 You shall speak all that I command you; and Aaron your brother shall speak to Pharaoh, that he let the children of Israel go out of his land.
You are to repeat everything that I tell you to say, and your brother Aaron must repeat it to Pharaoh so that he will let the Israelites leave his country.
3 I will harden Pharaoh’s heart, and multiply my signs and my wonders in the land of Egypt.
But I will give Pharaoh a stubborn attitude, and though I will perform many signs and wonders in Egypt, he won't listen to you.
4 But Pharaoh will not listen to you, so I will lay my hand on Egypt, and bring out my armies, my people the children of Israel, out of the land of Egypt by great judgments.
Then I will attack Egypt, imposing heavy punishments on them, and I will lead out by their tribes my people the Israelites.
5 The Egyptians shall know that I am Yahweh when I stretch out my hand on Egypt, and bring the children of Israel out from among them.”
In this way the Egyptians will know that I am the Lord—when I take action against Egypt and lead the Israelites out of the country.”
6 Moses and Aaron did so. As Yahweh commanded them, so they did.
Moses and Aaron did exactly as the Lord had ordered.
7 Moses was eighty years old, and Aaron eighty-three years old, when they spoke to Pharaoh.
Moses was eighty and Aaron was eighty-three when they went and spoke to Pharaoh.
8 Yahweh spoke to Moses and to Aaron, saying,
The Lord told Moses and Aaron,
9 “When Pharaoh speaks to you, saying, ‘Perform a miracle!’ then you shall tell Aaron, ‘Take your rod, and cast it down before Pharaoh, and it will become a serpent.’”
“When Pharaoh asks you, ‘Why don't you perform a miracle, then?’ tell Aaron, ‘Take your walking stick and throw it down in front of Pharaoh,’ and it will turn into a snake.”
10 Moses and Aaron went in to Pharaoh, and they did so, as Yahweh had commanded. Aaron cast down his rod before Pharaoh and before his servants, and it became a serpent.
Moses and Aaron went to Pharaoh and did what the Lord had ordered. Aaron threw down his staff in front of Pharaoh and his officials, and it turned into a snake.
11 Then Pharaoh also called for the wise men and the sorcerers. They also, the magicians of Egypt, did the same thing with their enchantments.
But Pharaoh called in wise men and sorcerers, and these Egyptian magicians did the same thing using their magic arts.
12 For they each cast down their rods, and they became serpents; but Aaron’s rod swallowed up their rods.
Each of them threw down their walking sticks and they also turned into snakes, but Aaron's walking stick swallowed up all their walking sticks.
13 Pharaoh’s heart was hardened, and he didn’t listen to them, as Yahweh had spoken.
But Pharaoh had a hard, stubborn attitude, and he wouldn't listen to them, as the Lord had predicted.
14 Yahweh said to Moses, “Pharaoh’s heart is stubborn. He refuses to let the people go.
The Lord said to Moses, “Pharaoh has a stubborn attitude—he's refusing to let the people go.
15 Go to Pharaoh in the morning. Behold, he is going out to the water. You shall stand by the river’s bank to meet him. You shall take the rod which was turned to a serpent in your hand.
So tomorrow morning go to Pharaoh as he walks down to the river. Wait to meet him on the bank of the Nile. Take with you the walking stick that turned into a snake.
16 You shall tell him, ‘Yahweh, the God of the Hebrews, has sent me to you, saying, “Let my people go, that they may serve me in the wilderness. Behold, until now you haven’t listened.”
Tell him: The Lord, the God of the Hebrews, has sent me to say to you, ‘Let my people go, so that they can worship me in the desert. But you have not listened up until now.
17 Yahweh says, “In this you shall know that I am Yahweh. Behold: I will strike with the rod that is in my hand on the waters which are in the river, and they shall be turned to blood.
This is what the Lord is now telling you: This is how you will know that I am the Lord.’” “Watch! Using the walking stick I'm holding, I'm going to hit the water of the Nile, and it will turn to blood.
18 The fish that are in the river will die and the river will become foul. The Egyptians will loathe to drink water from the river.”’”
The fish in the Nile will die, the river will smell, and the Egyptians won't be able to drink any of its water.”
19 Yahweh said to Moses, “Tell Aaron, ‘Take your rod, and stretch out your hand over the waters of Egypt, over their rivers, over their streams, and over their pools, and over all their ponds of water, that they may become blood. There will be blood throughout all the land of Egypt, both in vessels of wood and in vessels of stone.’”
The Lord said to Moses, “Tell Aaron, ‘Take your walking stick in your hand and hold it out over the waters of Egypt, over their rivers and canals and ponds and pools, so that they will turn to blood. There will be blood through all of Egypt, even in containers made of wood and stone.’”
20 Moses and Aaron did so, as Yahweh commanded; and he lifted up the rod, and struck 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.
Moses and Aaron did exactly as the Lord had ordered. While Pharaoh and all his officials watched, Aaron lifted up his walking stick and hit the water of the Nile. Immediately the whole river turned to blood!
21 The fish that were in the river died. The river became foul. The Egyptians couldn’t drink water from the river. The blood was throughout all the land of Egypt.
The fish in the Nile died, and the river smelled so awful that the Egyptians could not drink its water. There was blood through all of Egypt!
22 The magicians of Egypt did the same thing with their enchantments. So Pharaoh’s heart was hardened, and he didn’t listen to them, as Yahweh had spoken.
But the Egyptian magicians did the same thing using their magic arts. Pharaoh maintained his stubborn attitude and he wouldn't listen to Moses and Aaron, just as the Lord had predicted.
23 Pharaoh turned and went into his house, and he didn’t even take this to heart.
Pharaoh went back to his palace and didn't pay any attention to what had happened.
24 All the Egyptians dug around the river for water to drink; for they couldn’t drink the river water.
All the Egyptians dug alongside the Nile because they couldn't drink its water.
25 Seven days were fulfilled, after Yahweh had struck the river.
Seven days went by after the Lord hit the Nile.
