Exodus 7:25 - Printer Friendly

ESV: Seven full days passed after the Lord had struck the Nile.

NIV: Seven days passed after the Lord struck the Nile.

NASB: Seven days passed after the Lord had struck the Nile.

CSB: Seven days passed after the Lord struck the Nile.

NLT: Seven days passed from the time the Lord struck the Nile.

KJV: And seven days were fulfilled, after that the Lord had smitten the river.

NKJV: And seven days passed after the Lord had struck the river.

Coming Soon!Of the ten plagues (Exodus 3:19–20), only three are described with an explicit length of time. Water into blood lasts for a week; the number seven is associated with completeness and also with God. Darkness will last for three days (Exodus 10:21–22), and the death of the firstborn will happen in a single night (Exodus 11:4–5). Tradition typically assumes that the various disasters happened in a one-at-a-time sequence. However, Scripture does not say if, or how much, any of these catastrophes overlapped. It's possible that the corruption of the Nile drove frogs (Exodus 8:2–3) and small insects (Exodus 8:16) ashore, and that flies (Exodus 8:21), dead livestock (Exodus 9:3), and skin disease (Exodus 9:8–9) ran rampant as all these elements rotted.

Regardless of other problems, surface waters in Egypt will be unusable for drinking, bathing, or watering crops for a week. The Egyptians will be forced to scavenge for clean water so they don't die of thirst. Soon, they will face new challenges as their king remains obstinate (Exodus 8:15, 19, 32; 9:7) and uncaring (Exodus 7:23).

The Israelites lived in Goshen (Genesis 45:10; Exodus 8:22; 9:26), so likely did not suffer the effects of this plague. What effect this had on their slave work of brickmaking (Exodus 1:11–14) is not stated.

Exodus 7:14–25 records the first of the ten great plagues on Egypt (Exodus 3:19–20). Because Pharaoh has refused to free Israel (Exodus 1:11–14), the Lord turns all the water in Egypt—including the Nile, ponds, and artificial pools—into blood. This creates an unsanitary, foul situation. The Egyptians are forced to dig for water. When Egyptian magicians are able to turn water into blood, Pharaoh remains resistant. This terrible plague lasts for an entire week.

God again repeats (Exodus 3:19–20; 4:19–23; 6:6) the basic outline of how Israel will be freed from Egyptian slavery (Exodus 1:11–14). He then commands Moses and Aaron to show Pharaoh one of the miraculous signs given for that purpose (Exodus 4:2–5). Egyptian magicians seem to duplicate the feat, so Pharaoh still refuses to hear Mo-ses' message. This results in the first plague: all water in Egypt, including the Nile river, becomes blood. This lasts seven days. The Lord then tells Moses to repeat the demand for Israel's release.

God commissioned Moses (Exodus 3:10) and commanded him to confront Egypt's ruler, the pharaoh (Exodus 4:19–23). When Moses obeyed (Exodus 5:1–3), the immediate result was even worse oppression for Israel (Exodus 5:19–21). This inspired Moses to doubt (Exodus 5:22–23). The Lord responded with reassurances (Exodus 6:1–8). Chapter 7 completes this declaration and begins the cycle of plagues (Exodus 3:19–20), starting with turning the Nile river into blood. These catastrophes will continue (Exodus 8—11) until Pharaoh finally releases the Israelites (Exodus 12:41).

The book of Exodus establishes God's covenant relationship with the full-fledged nation of Israel. The descendants of Abraham prosper after settling in Egypt, only to be enslaved by a fearful, hateful Egyptian Pharaoh. God appoints Moses to lead the people out of this bondage. Moses serves as God's spokesman, as the Lord brings plagues and judgments on Egypt, leading to the release of Israel.