שמות, פרק ז׳, פסוק כ״ב

As the waters of Egypt transform into blood, the local magicians step forward to defend their honor and attempt to replicate the plague. Their actions provide Pharaoh with the perfect excuse to ignore the divine message and maintain his stubbornness. A central question arises regarding where the magicians found fresh water to turn into blood, given that Moses and Aaron had already struck all the waters of the land. The primary approach among commentators is that the initial decree only affected visible surface water. Consequently, the magicians had to dig to extract hidden, unaffected underground water to perform their act [אבן עזרא, אור החיים, רבנו בחיי, רלב״ג, תולדות יצחק, דעת זקנים, הדר זקנים, ביאור יש״ר, אבן עזרא הקצר]. Other perspectives suggest they purchased pure water from the Israelites, whose supply remained untouched [אור החיים, הטור הארוך, ריב״א]. Additional views propose that the magicians used undrinkable saltwater [מלבי״ם], or drew from the Nile, which had briefly returned to its natural state after the initial blow [שד״ל, הטור הארוך]. It is also possible that their feat was merely a trick, hastily performed as an optical illusion in areas the plague had not yet reached [רבנו בחיי].

The magicians operated through secretive whispers and hidden arts [רש״י, מזרחי, שפתי חכמים, חזקוני, אבן עזרא, ביאור יש״ר]. Commentators note a distinct shift in the nature of their magic compared to their earlier attempt with the staffs. Previously, they utilized powerful sorcery driven by destructive angels of flaming fire. Now, however, they relied on demonic forces, which are invisible creatures operating quietly in the air [רש״י, העמק דבר, מזרחי, שפתי חכמים, גור אריה]. Some explain that during the miracle of the staffs, higher forces of sorcery were permitted to participate to magnify the glory of God, but during the plague of blood, the magicians were forced to draw upon lower, earthly demons [משכיל לדוד].

Ultimately, there was a vast difference between the divine act and the magicians' imitation. While Aaron instantly turned wide, flowing rivers into blood that remained for seven days, the magicians only managed to alter a tiny amount of stagnant water in a vessel for a fleeting moment, or perhaps only created an illusion [אבן עזרא, רלב״ג, תולדות יצחק, ביאור יש״ר, מלבי״ם]. Furthermore, rather than healing the plague to relieve their people, the magicians' efforts only added more blood to the suffering nation [קאסוטו].

Despite the massive disparity in scale, Pharaoh's resolve strengthened. Seeing that his own men could also produce blood, he dismissed the actions of Moses and Aaron as ordinary magic. He mocked them for bringing sorcery to Egypt, a country already overflowing with it [רש״י, גור אריה]. Unlike the earlier encounter with the staffs, where Pharaoh remained stubborn without a logical reason, the plague of blood caused real, physical suffering. He desperately needed the excuse of sorcery to avoid breaking down and surrendering [מזרחי, גור אריה, דברי דוד, משכיל לדוד]. His strengthened resolve was a calculated, intellectual decision to project strength and maintain his policy [קונטרס חיבה יתירה]. As a result, he refused to listen to Moses and Aaron [ברכת אשר על התורה] and entirely ignored the clear evidence that their power stemmed from God rather than demonic tricks [העמק דבר].