Exodus 7:14-25
One great truth of our times we need to keep before us is this, there will be a time of judgment. God has promised and predicted a definite time of judgment. We must remember this as we see the events in our world today. Let me help you grasp this truth as we review an event in the life of the children of Israel. When they were in the land of Egypt many, many years ago, God was preparing to bring them out.
Let us turn to Exodus 7:14-25 to learn some valuable truths regarding the judgment of God when water turned to blood.
14. And the LORD said unto Moses, Pharaoh’s heart is hardened, he refuseth to let the people go.
15. Get thee unto Pharaoh in the morning; lo, he goeth out unto the water; and thou shalt stand by the river’s brink against he come; and the rod which was turned to a serpent shalt thou take in thine hand.
16. And thou shalt say unto him, The LORD God of the Hebrews hath sent me unto thee, saying, Let my people go, that they may serve me in the wilderness: and, behold, hitherto thou wouldest not hear.
17. Thus saith the LORD, In this thou shalt know that I am the LORD: behold, I will smite with the rod that is in mine hand upon the waters which are in the river, and they shall be turned to blood.
18. And the fish that is in the river shall die, and the river shall stink; and the Egyptians shall loathe to drink of the water of the river.
19. And the LORD spoke unto Moses, Say unto Aaron, Take thy rod, and stretch out thine hand upon the waters of Egypt, upon their streams, upon their rivers, and upon their ponds, and upon all their pools of water, that they may become blood throughout all the land of Egypt, both in vessels of wood, and in vessels of stone.
20. And Moses and Aaron did so, as the LORD commanded; and he lifted up the rod, and smote 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.
21. And the fish that was in the river died; and the river stank, and the Egyptians could not drink of the water of the river; and there was blood throughout all the land of Egypt.
22. And the magicians of Egypt did so with their enchantments: and Pharaoh’s heart was hardened, neither did he hearken unto them; as the LORD had said.
23. And Pharaoh turned and went into his house, neither did he set his heart to this also.
24. And all the Egyptians digged round a bout the river for water to drink; for they could not drink of the water of the river.
25. And seven days were fulfilled, after that the LORD had smitten the river.
This is a very interesting and informative Scripture. I want you to see that the Lord said that Pharaoh was to learn ‘who is God’ by what He was going to do. This account should teach us several valuable TRUTHS regarding the judgment of God when water turned to blood.
First there is,
The Prediction of Judgment.
When God gave us the Bible, He departed from what all other religions do. He spoke to us about impending judgment but also showed us the way to secure mercy. Because God is not willing that any should perish, He always gives a warning. In this case, He was very specific when He sent Moses to Pharaoh and told him exactly what would happen if he did not listen and obey Him. The Bible has many other passages in which this same truth is brought forth.
God sent Moses to Pharaoh to tell him precisely what He was going to do and why. In this way, God is just and also merciful because He does not pour out judgment without first warning people. Here you have the prediction of judgment. And notice the LORD always works toward the goal of all men knowing that He is God. The Bible tells us in other places that the world of nature around us is constantly witnessing to the fact of God. David, in Psalm 19, said that the heavens declare the glory of God and the firmament makes manifest (shows forth) His creativity. In other words, everywhere we look, there is evidence of God.
Here He is moving to bring Pharaoh to the point where he would confess that the LORD is God. That is the purpose of God in the revelation He has given us in nature and in His Word. That’s why the LORD sent Moses to Pharaoh with a word: a word which He gave him. It is the prediction of judgment. We can take comfort from this because God has told us also of other times of judgment yet to come. For example, “It is appointed unto man once to die; and after that the judgment.” But He has also told us how to escape that coming judgment.
There is another truth which we gather from this text:
The Execution of Judgment.
When God predicts that judgment will come, He carries it out. He does not waver or hesitate. He carries out what He has predicted and what He has assured men He will do. The LORD spoke to Moses and told him that Aaron was to take the rod in his hand and to stretch it out upon the waters of Egypt. God told him what the result would be, and it came to pass. All the waters that were in the river were turned to blood, so the fish that were in the river died, and the river stank. The Egyptians could not drink of the water because it was blood. That would have been an awful experience indeed.
The Nile River normally flows its peaceful way from the south to the north and empties into the Mediterranean Sea. The Nile River is vital to the life in Egypt today, just as it was in the time of Moses. Farmers irrigate their fields from the waters of the Nile, and ships transport their goods from place to place along its banks.
The Nile was likewise very important in ancient times. We are informed by historians that since the Egyptians in ancient times did not know the source of the Nile, they had felt it was sacred and made it a god. It overflowed its banks every spring. Every time the snows began to melt, and the heavy rains of the wintertime came, the overflow of the Nile provided food and sustenance for the people of Egypt as indeed it does today.
However, God executed judgment upon the people of Egypt, and He turned the water of the Nile into blood. The fish in the river died, and the river stank. The fish were a source of food for them, but God was executing a judgment upon that which they had placed above Him. They had made the Nile a god when only God has the right to occupy a sacred place in the thoughts and hearts of people.
Pharaoh’s response to the prediction of divine judgment forced God to carry it out. Pharaoh would not listen and, therefore, God must do what He said He would do. And He did.
There is a third truth we get from this tremendous experience:
The Imitation of Judgment.
It seems strange to us, perhaps, that the Lord would permit the magicians, the wisemen, the astrologers of Egypt to do with their enchantments exactly as Aaron had done with the rod of God. But sometimes God permits wicked men certain liberties to carry out His purposes. In this case, it was for the express purpose that the final end might be accomplished. In other words, by letting the magicians carry out the same kind of action and turn water into blood, God prepared the heart of Pharaoh even more for His divine judgment.
Notice in this text in verse 25 that the LORD continued this judgment upon the River Nile for seven days so that the people nearly died of thirst because they couldn’t drink the water of the Nile. So they began digging along the banks of the river to find some water fit to drink.
Let us remember the particular reason behind this judgment. God was about to deliver His people, the people of Israel, from Egypt though they had been there for four hundred years. He had promised to the patriarch Abraham that He would do this in due time, and He was now carrying it out.
As we reflect upon this experience in the life of the Children of Israel, we learn some valuable truths regarding the judgment of God. When God predicts judgment, it is a fair warning. Second, God must execute judgment. He must carry out what He has promised in accordance with man’s response to Him. Third, God may permit men to imitate His judgments so that their judgment may be just. Remember, since God has spoken absolutely in His Holy Word, it is of utmost importance that you turn in simple faith and trust to Him and escape His judgment.
Thanks, J. Mark, for teaching us more from Exodus, and thank you for being there. If you would like this teaching or if you have any questions, please feel free to reach out to us; I’ll give you our contact information shortly.
I love how Exodus teaches us that God is in control and He’s at work, He always has been, and He always will be. We can trust Him right now, no matter what we are experiencing. We won’t always understand Him, but we can trust Him. His timing might be different than ours; think about Moses. And He may not do what we think He should be doing; remember what happened to Joseph. However, we have the benefit of looking back at many years of history, and we can see God is Sovereign: His purposes will be accomplished. This is His story, and He is the author.
If you are interested, we have a study guide for Exodus available. It is a small booklet designed to help you learn more from each of these lessons. We call it the Hope Herald, and if you would like one, all you have to do is ask.
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Thanks again for joining us for today’s program. I encourage you to join us again next week as we continue our study in Exodus. We look forward to being with you then and will leave you with a verse from I Corinthians 10, “So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, Do it all for the glory of God!” Blessings to you as you glorify Him.
This episode is an exposition of Exodus 7:14-25 by J. Otis Yoder, re-recorded by J. Mark Horst, with an opening and closing by Arlin Horst.