18. The fish will die, and the river will stink so much that the Egyptians will not be able to drink from it.’ ”
19. The Lord said to Moses, “Tell Aaron to take his stick and hold it out over all the rivers, canals, and pools in Egypt. The water will become blood, and all over the land there will be blood, even in the wooden tubs and stone jars.”
20. Then Moses and Aaron did as the Lord commanded. In the presence of the king and his officers, Aaron raised his stick and struck the surface of the river, and all the water in it was turned into blood.
21. The fish in the river died, and it smelt so bad that the Egyptians could not drink from it. There was blood everywhere in Egypt.
22. Then the king's magicians did the same thing by means of their magic, and the king was as stubborn as ever. Just as the Lord had said, the king refused to listen to Moses and Aaron.
23. Instead, he turned and went back to his palace without paying any attention even to this.
24. All the Egyptians dug along the bank of the river for drinking water, because they were not able to drink water from the river.
25. Seven days passed after the Lord struck the river.