The magicians did not really cause their rods to become serpents; but by magic, aided by the great deceiver, they were able to produce this appearance. It was beyond the power of Satan to change the rods to living serpents. The prince of evil, though possessing all the wisdom and might of an angel fallen, has not power to create, or to give life; this is the prerogative of God alone. But all that was in Satan's power to do, he did; he produced a counterfeit. To human sight the rods were changed to serpents. Such they were believed to be by Pharaoh and his court. There was nothing in their appearance to distinguish them from the serpent produced by Moses. Though the Lord caused the real serpent to swallow up the spurious ones, yet even this was regarded by Pharaoh, not as a work of God's power, but as the result of a kind of magic superior to that of his servants.

Troldmændene fik ikke deres stave til at blive til rigtige slanger, men ved magi og bistand fra den store bedrager fik de det til at se sådan ud. Satan havde ikke magt til at forvandle stavene til levende slanger. Skønt det ondes fyrste besidder hele en falden engels visdom og magt, formår han ikke at skabe eller give liv. Denne forret tilhører Gud alene. Men Satan udøvede sin magt så langt, som han kunne. Han frembragte en efterligning. I menneskers øjne så det ud, som om stavene blev forvandlet til slanger. Det antog Farao og hans hof dem for at være. Der var ikke noget i deres udseende, der adskilte dem fra den slange, Moses frembragte. Skønt Herren lod den rigtige slange opsluge de falske, betragtede Farao det ikke som et udslag af Guds kraft, men af en slags magi, der overgik hans tjeneres.