Finger of God (Vayera)

When Moses turned the dust into lice, the Egyptian magicians could not repeat this feat. Until now, they could duplicate the plagues, what with the snakes and blood, but lice were out of their reach. They said in explanation, "This is the finger of God."

It is well known that magicians were operating through demons. Since demons cannot control objects smaller than a barleycorn, they could not reproduce this feat. However, what led them to believe that God was involved and not, say, Moses's magic?

The answer lies in the name of God, אלהים. The possible permutations of the letters of God's name number 120. Like this:

אלהים

אלהמי

אלמיה

אלמהי

...

Since the first letter can be one of 5, the following letter one of 4, and so on, you end up with 5*4*3*2*1=120 permutations. The Gematria (numerical value) of "lice" (כנים) is 120. That is how the magicians knew.

Pharaoh's death also came through this. Even evil people are sustained by God, albeit unwillingly. Pharaoh's sustenance came from the last two letters of God's name. Pharaoh was drowned in the Red Sea (ים סופ). The Red Sea combined the last two letters of God's name (ים) with the word (סוף), meaning "end."

Art: Pharaoh and His Army Drowning in the Red Sea by David Colijns