THEOSISGregory of Nyssa
By the same divine power, at once and in a single location, evil was judged, while those who remained untouched were liberated from sin. Under Moses' command, all the water in Egypt was transformed into blood, resulting in the corruption of even the fish due to this conversion of water into fleshly indulgence; for the Hebrews who drank from it found that the blood was like water. Consequently, it became feasible for magicians to turn the water among the Hebrews to blood. Furthermore, when toads overran Egypt—an unexplainable phenomenon that would not have occurred naturally—the command to produce toads caused this species to proliferate. The Egyptians endured suffering, tormented in their homes by these creatures, while the Hebrew people were untroubled by such hardships.
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Similarly, the air remained unchanged for the Egyptians, enveloped in the same darkness, while the Hebrews experienced no alteration in their environment. All the other plagues—hail, fire, wild animals, gnats, swarms of flies, and clouds of locusts—brought customary anguish to the Egyptians, but the Hebrews, through word of mouth, were aware of the miseries surrounding them without being affected. The death of the firstborn further emphasized the stark difference between the Hebrews and the Egyptians; the Egyptians mourned deeply for their kin, while the Hebrews remained in complete silence and safety. Their protection was ensured by the blood sprinkled at every entrance, for they marked the doorposts and lintel with blood (Ex. 12: 7).