they also did the same things (see also 7:22; 8:7): This could be an example of demonic power, but these men could have used tricks too.
When they failed to reproduce the plague of gnats, they said it was “the finger of God” (8:19). This showed their actions were not from divine power. Although the Egyptian magicians are unnamed here, tradition calls them Jannes and Jambres (see 2 Timothy 3:8).