Everything was in the control of the powerful Yahweh God who led Moses and Aaron to bring Israel out from the hands of Pharaoh. God knew that Pharoah was a wicked and uncompassionate king and God hardened his heart. God knew that Pharoah would not listen and would not let the people of God go. Pharaoh responded when told of Yahweh God, said, “Who is the Lord, that I should obey his voice to let Israel go? I know not the Lord, neither will I let Israel go” (Exodus 5:2). God knew that he would have to redeem his people by the outstretch of His mighty hands through aging Moses and Aaron, who were already eighty and eighty-three years old.

It is in chapter 7 that the narrative of the 10 plagues began, with the first plague starting from the important live line of Egypt, the river of Nile. God asked Moses to go to the bank of Nile to strike the water and it shall turn to blood. They obeyed God and did according to what the Lord told them. Verse 19 tells us that the river of Nile and all the waters of Egypt, over their rivers, canals, ponds and every pool of water became blood throughout the land of Egypt.

Why did God choose to exercise the plague on the river of Nile? In the same way, how did God decide on selection of the 10 plagues? God was challenging the power of the different so called gods in Egypt in order to let the Egyptians know that Yahweh God was the true powerful God. The Egyptians worshipped in a polytheistic culture and there were multiple gods who were in charge of the different arenas of their lives.

The first plague, turning the Nile to blood, was a challenge against Hapi, the god of the Nile. He was in charge of the annual flooding of the Nile river and the flood deposited rich silt which provides nutrients for fertile soil. Hapi determines the size of the crops which was critical for an agricultural society heavily dependent on their harvest. In some mythology, due to his fertile nature, he was sometimes considered the "father of the gods" who brings balance and order to the cosmos.

For seven days, the water throughout the land of Egypt became blood and the river, which formed the basis of daily life and the national economy, was devastated, as millions of fish died in the river and the water was unusable. It showcased the power of Yahweh God over the highly regarded Egyptian God and Pharaoh was told, “By this you will know that I am the LORD” (v17)

In the scientific and modern society we lived in, our idolatry are no longer the gods that we physically worship for food and water. However, there are other more subtle manifestations of these gods that we put our trust in above Yahweh God. Our relentless pursuit of success in our work and studies, our pride in the children we raised, our obsessions over the things we do with our phones or whatever that captures our imagination more than who God is, these becomes our idols. God wants us to be fascinated by Him alone, and he desires us to turn away from anything that take His place as first in our lives. God wants us to tear down these little so call gods of our lives and turn to Him and to be satisfied in Him.

John Piper says that “God is most glorified in you when you are most satisfied in him.” And our true happiness can be found when we know that Yahweh God is our Lord, when we worship Him as our one true living God.

Dear God, would you help us to stop pursuing our own definition of happiness that is apart to you. Help us to discard the idols of our lives, and turn to you and be contented in you alone. In Jesus’ mighty name, Amen.