Matthew Poole and continuators on Exodus 7

1 AND the LORD said unto Moses, See I have made thee a god to Pharaoh , and Aaron thy brother shall be thy Prophet .

To represent my person, to act like God, by requiring his obedience to thy commands, and by punishing his disobedience with such punishments as none but God can inflict, to which end thou shalt have my omnipotent assistance.

(i. e.) Thy Interpreter, or spokesman, as chap. 4. 16. to deliver thy commands to Pharaoh.

2 Thou shalt speak all that I command thee, and Aaron thy brother shall speak unto Pharaoh, that he send the children out of his land.

Heb. and he will send or dismiss, to wit, at last, being forced to it. Success shall attend your endeavours.

6 And Moses and Aaron did as the LORD commanded them, so did they .

An emphatical repetition to shew their courage in attempting to say and do such things to so great a Monarch in his own dominions, and their fidelity in the execution of all Gods commands.

7 And Moses was fourscore years old, and Aaron fourscore and three years old, when they spoke unto Pharaoh .

The ages of Moses and Aaron here, as of Levi and Kohath chap. 6. 16, 18. and before them of Iacob and Ioseph, are so exactly set down, that thence we may understand the accomplishment of Gods prediction, Gen. 15. 13. and the time of Israels being in Egypt.

9 When Pharaoh shall speak unto you, saying, Shew a miracle for you: then thou shalt say unto Aaron , Take thy rod , and cast it before Pharaoh, and it shall become a serpent .

By whose hands this and other miracles were to be done, and not by Moses immediately, partly to take off the suspition that these miracles were wrought by some magical artifice of Moses; and partly for the greater honour of Moses, that he might be, what God had said, ver. 1. a God to Pharaoh, who not onely could work wonders himself, but also give power to others to do so.

The same rod is called the rod of God, and of Moses, and of Aaron, here and ver. 12. because it was appointed and as it were consecrated by God, and used both by Moses and Aaron in their great works. And this rod Moses ordinarily held in his hand, and delivered it to Aaron upon occasion, for the execution of his commands.

Heb. A dragon, which is a great serpent: Others, a Crocodile, to whose jaws he had exposed the Israelitish Infants.

Marginal references: chap. 4. 2, 17.

11 Then Pharaoh also called the wisemen , and the sorcerers: now the Magicians of Egypt, they also did in like manner with their inchantments.

Under which general title he seems to comprehend all who were most eminent in any sort of wisdom either natural, or civil, or divine who were all called to give their opinion and advice in these matters.

The same now called sorcerers, who acted by the power of the Devil, whom by certain rites and ceremonies they engaged to their assistance. Of these the two chief were Iannes and Iambres, 2 Tim. 3. 8.

In shew and appearance, which was not difficult for the devil to do either by altering the air and the spectatours sight, and by causing their rods both to look and move like serpents: or by a sudden and secret conveyance of real serpents thither, and removing the rods. Nor is it strange that God permitted those delusions, partly because it was a just punishment upon the Egyptians for their horrid and manifold Idolatry, and barbarous cruelty towards the Israelites, and their other wickedness; and partly because there was a sufficient difference made between their impostures, and the real miracles wrought by Moses and Aaron, as appears from the next verse and from chap. 8. 18. and from other passages. And this is a great evidence of the truth of Scripture-story, and that it was not written by fiction and design. For if Moses had written these books to deceive the world and to advance his own reputation, (as some have impudently said) it is ridiculous to think that he would have put in this and many other passages, which might seem so much to eclipse his honour and the glory of his works.

12 For they cast down every man his rod, and they became serpents : but Aarons rod swallowed up their rods .

Either 1. in appearance. For the Scripture oft speaks of things otherwise then they are, because they seem to be so. And therefore as the Devil appearing to Saul in the likeness of Samuel is called Samuel, so may these rods upon the same account be called Serpents, because through Diabolical illusion they seemed to be so. Or 2. really, in manner expressed, ver. 11.

By which it was evident, either that Aarons rod was turned into a real serpent, because it had the real properties and effects of a serpent, viz. to devour; or, at least, that the God of Israel was infinitely more powerful then the Egyptian Idols or Devils.

13 And he hardened Pharaohs heart that he hearkened not unto them, as the LORD had said.

The Lord, to whom this act of hardening is frequently ascribed both in this book and elsewhere.

Marginal references: chap. 4. 21.

14 And the LORD said unto Moses, Pharaohs heart is hardened : he refuseth to let the people go.

Is obstinate and resolved in his way, so as neither my word nor works can make any impression upon him.

Marginal references: chap. 8. 15. & [illegible: 1 word]. 1, 20, 27.

15 Get thee unto Pharaoh in the morning, lo he goeth out unto the water , and thou shalt stand by the rivers brink, against he come: and the rod which was turned to a serpent, shalt thou take into thine hand.

(i. e.) Nilus, whither he went at that time, either for his recreation: or to pay his morning-worship to that river, which the Egyptians had in great veneration, as Plutarch testifies.

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 my hand, upon the waters which are in the river , and they shall be turned to blood .

Because th[illegible: 1+ letters] saidst, [illegible: 1 word] is the Lord? and, I know not the lord, chap. 5. 2. thou [illegible: 1 word] know him experimentally and to thy cost.

viz. by Aarons hand, who shall do it by my command and direction. Thus Pilate is said to give Christs body to Ioseph, Mark 15. 45. because he commanded it to be delivered by others to him. The same action is ascribed to the principal and instrumental cause.

Nilus, which was one of their principal Gods; and therefore it was inexcusable in them, that they would not renounce those [illegible: 1+ letters]eeble Gods which were unable to help not onely their worshippers, but even themselves, nor embrace the service and commands of that God whose almighty power they saw and felt.

Which was a very grievous Plague to them; both because it was an eternal dishonour to their Religion, and because from hence they had both their drink, Deut. 11. 10, 11. Ier. 2. 18. and their meat, Numb. 11. 5. for greater and lesser cattel they would not eat, Exod. 8. 26. And it was a very proper punishment for them, who had made that river an instrument for the execution of their bloody design against the Israelitish infants, Exod. 1. 22.

Marginal references: chap. 4. 9.; Rev. 16. 6.

18 And the fish that is in the river shall die, and the river shall stink, and the Egyptians shall loath to drink of the water of the river.

Therefore the Israelites were free from this plague, and those branches of Nilus which they used were uncorrupted, when all others were turned into bloud.

Or, shall weary themselves, in running hither and thither in hopes of finding water in some parts or branches of the river.

19 And the LORD spake 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 pooles of water , that they may become blood, and that there may be blood throughout all the land of Egypt, both in vessels of wood, and in vessels of stone.

Not that he was to go to every pool to use this ceremony there, but he stretched his hand and rod over some of them in the name of all the rest, which he might signifie either by his words, or by the various motions of his rod several ways.

Marginal references: Heb. gathering of their waters.

22 And the Magicians of Egypt did so with their inchantments : and Pharaohs heart was hardened: neither did he hearken unto them, as the LORD had said.

It was not difficult for the Devil to convey bloud speedily and unperceivably and that in great quantity: which might suffice to infect with a bloody colour those small parcels of water which were left for them to shew their art in. Qu. Whence could they have water, when all their waters were turned into blood? Ans. 1. It might be had, either 1. by rain, which at that time God was pleased to send down either for this purpose, or to mitigate the extremity of the plague, or for other reasons known to him though not to us. For that rain sometimes falls in Egypt, though not much, nor often, is affirmed by antient writers, and late travellers. Or 2. from Goshen, which was not far from the Court, or from some houses of the Israelites, who dwelt amongst the Egyptians, as appears from many places of this history, and who were free from these Plagues. See Exod. 8. 22. and 9. 26. and 10. 23. and 12. 13. &c. Or 3. from the pits which they digged. ver. 24. Or 4. from some branch of Nilus, or some vessels in their houses, whose waters were not yet changed: For this change might be wrought not suddenly (which is not affirmed in this relation) but by degrees, which God might so order for this very end, that the Magicians might have matter for the trial of their experiment.

Marginal references: Wisd. 17. [illegible: 1+ letters].

23 And Pharaoh turned, and went into his house, neither did he set his heart to this also.

He did not seriously consider it, nor the causes or cure of this plague, and was not much affected with it, because he saw this fact exceeded not the power of his Magitians.

24 And all the Egyptians digged round about the river for water to drink : for they could not drink of the water of the river.

It is not much material to us, whether they lost their labour, and found onely blood there, as Iosephus affirms; or whether they succeeded and found water there, which seems more probable, because these come not within the compass of Moses his commission, ver. 17, 19, 20. or whether they found the water something purified and less bloody, though mixed with blood. But it is observable, that though the Devil could do something which might increase the plague, or imitate it, yet he could do nothing to remove it.

25 And seven dayes were fulfilled after that the LORD had smitten the river.

Ere all the waters of Egypt were perfectly free from this infection. Quest. How could the Egyptians subsist so long without water! Ans. 1. Philo tells us, that many of them died of this plague. 2. As the plague might come on, so it might go off by degrees, and so the water, though mixed with blood, might give them some relief. 3. The juyces of herbs, and other liquors, which were untouched with this plague, might refresh them. 4. They might have some water, either from their pits, or by rain from heaven, as was said before; or from Goshen: for though it be said, that the blood was in all their vessels, ver. 19. yet it is not said, that all that should afterwards be put into them, should be turned into blood.