How did Aaron bring about the plague of gnats or lice in Egypt?

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Aaron Aaron, detail of a 3rd-century fresco from the synagogue at Doura-Europus, Syria; in the National Museum, Damascus

In the biblical narrative of the Book of Exodus, the third plague was brought about when Aaron, acting with divine intervention, struck the dust of the land with his staff. This action transformed the dust into gnats—or, according to some translations, lice—which then covered both humans and animals throughout Egypt. Unlike the first two plagues, this act was beyond the ability of Pharaoh’s magicians to replicate.1