Exodus 7:17–24

¹⁷This is what the Lord says: By this you will know that I am the Lord:ⁱ With the staff that is in my hand I will strike the water of the Nile, and it will be changed into blood.^{j 18}The fish in the Nile will die, and the river will stink;^k the Egyptians will not be able to drink its water.’ ”^l

¹⁹The Lord said to Moses, “Tell Aaron, ‘Take your staff^m and stretch out your handⁿ over the waters of Egypt—over the streams and canals, over the ponds and all the reservoirs—and they will turn to blood.’ Blood will be everywhere in Egypt, even in vessels^a of wood and stone.”

²⁰Moses and Aaron did just as the Lord had commanded.^o He raised his staff in the presence of Pharaoh and his officials and struck the water of the Nile,^p and all the water was changed into blood.^{q 21}The fish in the Nile died, and the river smelled so bad that the Egyptians could not drink its water. Blood was everywhere in Egypt.

²²But the Egyptian magicians^r did the same things by their secret arts,^s and Pharaoh’s heart^t became hard; he would not listen to Moses and Aaron, just as the Lord had said. ²³Instead, he turned and went into his palace, and did not take even this to heart. ²⁴And all the Egyptians dug along the Nile to get drinking water^u, because they could not drink the water of the river.