Exodus 7:14-24 - The First Mighty Sign - Water to Blood
Notes
Transcript
The Word Read
The Word Read
Please remain standing for the reading of the Holy Scripture. Hear the Word of the Lord from Exodus 7:20-24:
20 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. 21 And 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. 22 But the magicians of Egypt did the same by their secret arts. So Pharaoh’s heart remained hardened, and he would not listen to them, as the Lord had said. 23 Pharaoh turned and went into his house, and he did not take even this to heart. 24 And all the Egyptians dug along the Nile for water to drink, for they could not drink the water of the Nile.
Behold, brothers and sisters, this is the Word of the Lord. Please be seated.
Exordium
Exordium
Dear Church,
I invite you to open Holy Scripture to Exodus 7:14-24 this morning. Today, we begin our journey through, what we call, the 10 plagues. The word for “plagues” can also be “blows” or “strikes.” This is indicative of what will come upon Pharaoh and Egypt. There will be strikes and blows, from the hand of Yahweh, that will decimate Pharaoh, his army, and the nation of Egypt. These are mighty acts of judgment.
Have you ever thought about what the world would look like without judgment? Later this afternoon, some of you will probably watch a football game or two. Imagine if a quarterback threw the ball, then 3 seconds pass, and then a linebacker crashes into the quarterback and there is no flag thrown. Fans would become irate. Or imagine, you sit in a courtroom because someone has stolen money from you. The evidence is clear that the person has stolen your money, but the judge dismisses the case. You would become furious as there was no proper judgment. Judgment is beautiful because we long for true justice. The people of Israel have been oppressed for a very, very long time. So, in one sense, we can read these passages and long for the Egyptians to get what they deserve - true, divine justice.
Though it is true that justice will be served, the story of the Exodus is not about God issuing judgment upon the Egyptians because they treated the people of Israel unjustly. The purpose of the Exodus is God redeems His people for His glory keeping the covenant He made with the patriarchs. If we simply view the Exodus as the Egyptians getting what they are due, we’ve moralized the entire story. The Exodus then has no real applications for us today if this is the case. Since, the Exodus is redemptive, the book has incredible applications for us in 2025.
The sermon title this morning is, “The First Mighty Sign - Water to Blood.” The sermon will have two sections, 1) Exodus 7:14-29 - The First Plague Promised, and 2) Exodus 7:20-24 - The Blood Red Nile.
Exodus 7:14-19 - The First Plague Promised
Exodus 7:14-19 - The First Plague Promised
14 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Pharaoh’s heart is hardened; he refuses to let the people go. 15 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. 16 And 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. 17 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 in the Nile, and it shall turn into blood. 18 The fish in the Nile shall die, and the Nile will stink, and the Egyptians will grow weary of drinking water from the Nile.” ’ ” 19 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.’ ”
When we read these few verses we see 4 characters - Yahweh, Pharaoh, Moses, and Aaron. Pharaoh’s heart is still hardened and refuses to the let the people of Israel go to worship Yahweh. Over the course of the next few chapters, we will see the promise of Exodus 7:3-4 become a reality - God will surely multiply the signs and wonders in Egypt. He will get the glory over Pharaoh and the nation. Do you see what Moses is to tell Pharaoh in Exodus 7:16, “The Lord, the God of the Hebrews, sent me to you.” Do you remember the first conversation between Moses and Pharaoh. Pharoah said, “Who is the Lord that I should listen to Him?” Pharaoh is going to come face to face with the mighty acts of God. He will know who Yahweh is when the Israelites leave Egypt.
Moses is instructed to come to Pharaoh, staff in hand, and remind Pharaoh of what has occured thus far. The Lord has told Pharaoh to let His people go, but Pharaoh has disobeyed. Moses is commanded to say to Pharaoh, “Thus says the Lord.” This is a prophetic formula revealing divine or special revelation. The Lord is speaking and revealing something about Himself and His redemptive plan. So, Pharaoh should take special note to listen. However, as we have seen, he hardens His heart.
I want to give two quick points of application here. First, God is not negotiating with Pharaoh. God does not say, “Thus says the Lord, let my people go,” and Pharaoh can respond, “maybe.” This is not a situation where parents give in to their children and bribe them to get chores done. The Lord has spoken and His Word is final. The same is true in salvation. God has declared that salvation can only be found in Christ Jesus. John 14:6 “6 Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” The path of eternal life is through the sacrifice of the Son. This is how we know that all other religions are false. It is impossible for all religions to lead to the same God. We do not worship Allah, Buddha, Confucius, or any other “god.” So, first, “thus says the Lord” brings divine revelation whereby God reveals something about Himself and the plan of salvation.
Second, what do we say after I read the Scripture each week? “This the Word of the Lord.” When we read any portion of Scripture we are coming into contact with the Word of God. So, when you have your devotional time each day you can start your ready by saying, “Thus says the Lord.” Hebrews 4:12–13 “12 For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart. 13 And no creature is hidden from his sight, but all are naked and exposed to the eyes of him to whom we must give account.” The Word of God pierces us when we read it. The Holy Spirit causes us to see our sin as we peer into the pages of Holy Scripture. He also provides encouragement to our weary souls as the Word causes us to see our sin. He doesn’t impress upon us to “try harder” for that would be foolish moralism. Instead, He causes us to see our great need for Christ. We press further into Jesus’s bosom and sometimes with great tears because “Thus says the Lord” has revealed areas in our lives that we’d like to keep hidden. “Thus says the Lord” is a great comfort to the believer! It’s a reminder that we need God to reveal Himself and His redemptive plan to us, or else we’d be utterly lost.
Moses and Aaron are told that the rivers, canals, ponds, pools of water, vessels of wood and vessels of stone would all become blood. Fish will die and the Nile will stink. The first confrontation between Moses, Aaron, and Pharaoh occured in private. The staffs were turned into serpents, and Aaron’s swallowed up the staffs of Pharaoh’s magicians. Now, the confrontation is going to go public, very public. Egypt will now that they are a war against Yahweh, the God of the Hebrews.
Both Pharaoh and the Nile were considered gods. Pharaoh, and his magicians, were to have control over the Nile. They would perform rituals ensuring the Nile would stay clean as it was their source of life. Yahweh will prove that He is greater than Pharaoh and greater than the false god of the Nile by humiliating both. Today this would be like God bringing low America by causing the stock market to crash or causing our military to lose war after war after war. The Lord has a way of brining nations to their knees so that His glory alone shines brightly. Furthermore, God humiliated His spiritual enemies in the death of Christ. Colossians 2:15 “15 He disarmed the rulers and authorities and put them to open shame, by triumphing over them in him.” There were many blows and strikes in these plagues, but the greatest strike to the enemy was the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ! It is here where sins are paid and sinners are set free!
Exodus 7:20-24 - The Blood Red Nile
Exodus 7:20-24 - The Blood Red Nile
20 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. 21 And 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. 22 But the magicians of Egypt did the same by their secret arts. So Pharaoh’s heart remained hardened, and he would not listen to them, as the Lord had said. 23 Pharaoh turned and went into his house, and he did not take even this to heart. 24 And all the Egyptians dug along the Nile for water to drink, for they could not drink the water of the Nile.
Pharaoh arrives at the Nile in the morning exactly as Yahweh has said. He could be bathing, or engaging in some type of religious activity. We aren’t sure exactly why Pharaoh comes to the Nile this morning. However, we can be sure it was all predicated upon God’s sovereignty. God has orchestrated this exact moment in time. Just as Yahweh had told Moses, the Nile is turned to blood throughout all the land of Egypt. A quick note, there are some that believe that the Lord caused more dirt particles in the Nile. This is why the Nile had the appearance of blood. However, I think this is an incorrect view. This is a supernatural mighty sign revealing that Yahweh is the true God of gods and Lord of lords.
Do you see who re-enters they story - the magicians. And by their secret arts they are able to change water to blood. There was most likely water in jugs and they were able to make them turn into blood using their dark arts. However, do you see what they were unable to do? They were unable to change the blood-filled Nile back to water. Recently, the paranormal has gained a rather large audience. The last time I went to Barnes and Noble, new age spirituality had almost as large of section as Christianity. Unfortunately, the paranormal study has become commonplace. How many new movies or TV shows do we see that center on the paranormal?
Yet in Scripture, there are clear commands to stay away from this activity. Sorcery was forbidden and punishable by death in Exodus 22:18. Yet, at various times Israel gave herself to sorcery which provoked God’s wrath (Isaiah 57:3). In the New Testament, sorcery is listed as a work of the flesh in Galatians 5:20. Furthermore, Revelation 21:8 states that those who practice sorcery will be condemned to hell. We may think of psychics, Ouija boards, reiki healings, and tarot cards as harmless, but scripture indicates there is something sinister behind these.
In Acts 13, Paul comes into contact with a magician on a mission trip. Let’s pick up the story in Acts 13:4:
So, being sent out by the Holy Spirit, they went down to Seleucia, and from there they sailed to Cyprus. When they arrived at Salamis, they proclaimed the word of God in the synagogues of the Jews. And they had John to assist them. When they had gone through the whole island as far as Paphos, they came upon a certain magician, a Jewish false prophet named Bar-Jesus. He was with the proconsul, Sergius Paulus, a man of intelligence, who summoned Barnabas and Saul and sought to hear the word of God. But Elymas the magician (for that is the meaning of his name) opposed them, seeking to turn the proconsul away from the faith. But Saul, who was also called Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, looked intently at him and said, “You son of the devil, you enemy of all righteousness, full of all deceit and villainy, will you not stop making crooked the straight paths of the Lord? And now, behold, the hand of the Lord is upon you, and you will be blind and unable to see the sun for a time.” Immediately mist and darkness fell upon him, and he went about seeking people to lead him by the hand. Then the proconsul believed, when he saw what had occurred, for he was astonished at the teaching of the Lord.
Pharaoh watching all this returns to his home without changing his heart.
Notice the difference between Moses and Aaron and Pharaoh. Moses and Aaron are obedient to Yahweh. They did as the Lord commanded them. However, Pharaoh’s heart is hardened and he disobeys. The heart of those who belong to the Lord are obedient, but those who are in rebellion are disobedient. As Romans 6:17 “17 But thanks be to God, that you who were once slaves of sin have become obedient from the heart to the standard of teaching (or doctrine) to which you were committed.” Those who have been freed from the slavery of sin by Christ have become obedient from the heart. This is where we sit if we are in Christ. Our hearts have gone from stone to flesh because of the miraculous and supernatural power of the Lord. As a result of our salvation, we are enabled to walk in newness of life. Works do not save us in anyway, but our good works reveal that we have been saved. Ephesians 2:8–10“8 For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, 9 not a result of works, so that no one may boast. 10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.” Our hearts have been captured by the grace of Christ, and we’ve been saved, set free from the power of sin, so that we would walk in the good works prepared for us beforehand. Those who belong to Christ, have hearts like Moses and Aaron, seeking to be obedient to our great God. Those who are under the slavery of sin are like Pharaoh setting their hearts against the God of Heaven.
Conclusion
Conclusion
We close with a vivid imagine - the Nile River, which is approximately 600 miles in Egypt, is full of blood. You can just imagine the thoughts of the Egyptians as they come to the source of life only to find death. What was once water used for drinking is now polluted as dead fish float down the river. The smell of blood and death fill the air as families come looking for water. Confusion, and maybe even wonder fill their hearts. They cannot believe what they see.
One might also think of the Jesus on the cross. Blood dripping from his head because of the crown of thorns. Blood running down his wrists and hands from the nails. Blood flowing from his feet where the spikes went in. His entire back flayed open from the 39 lashes He received. The precious blood of Christ covering the cross and pooling on the ground. The battered, bruised, and beaten Lord Jesus hung on the cross. Men, women, and children passed by starring and even mocking Him. The king of glory crucified for all to see, blood ran down his body, and He drank from the cup of God’s wrath making propitiation possible for you and for me. 1 Peter 1:18–19“18 knowing that you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your forefathers, not with perishable things such as silver or gold, 19 but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without blemish or spot.” The Nile was turned to blood revealing the awesome power of the Lord over the gods of the Pharaoh and the Nile. The atoning blood of Christ revealing the sacrifice necessary for sinners to be made right with God.
