Why are the seven plagues called plagues?
When we think of the seven last plagues, we remember the plagues of Egypt. The word is translated from the Greek, plague, (pronounced, play-gay) which also means wound or blow or disaster. Here, for example, is Moses’ account of the first plague to fall on Egypt. It compares to the second plague of Revelation. “Get thee unto Pharaoh in the morning; lo, he goeth out unto the water [apparently to worship]; and thou shalt stand by the river’s brink. . . . And thou shalt say unto him, The LORD God of the Hebrews hath sent me unto thee, saying, Let my people go, that they may serve me in the wilderness: and, behold, hitherto thou wouldest not hear. Thus saith the LORD, In this thou shalt know that I am the LORD: behold, I will smite with the rod that is in mine hand upon the waters which are in the river, and they shall be turned to blood. And the fish that is in the river shall die, and the river shall stink; and the Egyptians shall lothe to drink of the water of the river.” (Ex. 7:15-18)
