Exodus 1–12

aThese are the names of the sons of Israel who came to Egypt with Jacob, each with his household: Reuben, Simeon, Levi, and Judah, Issachar, Zebulun, and Benjamin, Dan and Naphtali, Gad and Asher. All the descendants of Jacob were bseventy persons; Joseph was already in Egypt. Then cJoseph died, and all his brothers and all that generation. dBut the people of Israel were fruitful and increased greatly; they multiplied and grew exceedingly strong, so that the land was filled with them.

Now there arose a new king over Egypt, ewho did not know Joseph. And he said to his people, Behold, fthe people of Israel are too many and too mighty for us. 10 gCome, hlet us deal shrewdly with them, lest they multiply, and, if war breaks out, they join our enemies and fight against us and escape from the land. 11 Therefore they set taskmasters over them ito afflict them with heavy jburdens. They built for Pharaoh kstore cities, Pithom and lRaamses. 12 But the more they were oppressed, the more they multiplied and the more they spread abroad. And the Egyptians were in dread of the people of Israel. 13 So they ruthlessly made the people of Israel mwork as slaves 14 and nmade their lives bitter with hard service, in mortar and brick, and in all kinds of work in the field. In all their work they ruthlessly made them work as slaves.

15 Then the king of Egypt said to the Hebrew midwives, one of whom was named Shiphrah and the other Puah, 16 When you serve as midwife to the Hebrew women and see them on the birthstool, if it is a son, you shall kill him, but if it is a daughter, she shall live. 17 But the midwives ofeared God and did not do as the king of Egypt commanded them, but let the male children live. 18 So the king of Egypt called the midwives and said to them, Why have you done this, and let the male children live? 19 The midwives said to Pharaoh, Because the Hebrew women are not like the Egyptian women, for they are vigorous and give birth before the midwife comes to them. 20 pSo God dealt well with the midwives. And the people multiplied and grew very strong. 21 And because the midwives feared God, qhe gave them families. 22 Then Pharaoh commanded all his people, rEvery son that is born to the Hebrews1 you shall cast into sthe Nile, but you shall let every daughter live.

Now a tman from the house of Levi went and took as his wife a Levite woman. The woman conceived and bore a son, and uwhen she saw that he was a fine child, she hid him three months. When she could hide him no longer, she took for him a basket made of bulrushes2 and daubed it with bitumen and pitch. She put the child in it and placed it among the vreeds by the river bank. And whis sister stood at a distance to know what would be done to him. Now the daughter of Pharaoh came down to bathe at the river, while her young women walked beside the river. She saw the basket among the reeds and sent her servant woman, and she took it. When she opened it, she saw the child, and behold, the baby was crying. She took pity on him and said, This is one of the Hebrews’ children. Then his sister said to Pharaoh’s daughter, Shall I go and call you a nurse from the Hebrew women to nurse the child for you? And Pharaoh’s daughter said to her, Go. So the girl went and called the child’s mother. And Pharaoh’s daughter said to her, Take this child away and nurse him for me, and I will give you your wages. So the woman took the child and nursed him. 10 When the child grew older, she brought him to Pharaoh’s daughter, and he became xher son. She named him Moses, Because, she said, I ydrew him out of the water.3

11 One day, zwhen Moses had grown up, he went out to his people and looked on their aburdens, and he saw an Egyptian beating a Hebrew, one of his people.4 12 He looked this way and that, and seeing no one, he bstruck down the Egyptian and hid him in the sand. 13 When che went out the next day, behold, two Hebrews were struggling together. And he said to the man in the wrong, Why do you strike your companion? 14 He answered, dWho made you a prince and a judge over us? Do you mean to kill me as you killed the Egyptian? Then Moses was afraid, and thought, Surely the thing is known. 15 When Pharaoh heard of it, he sought to kill Moses. But eMoses fled from Pharaoh and stayed in the land of Midian. And he sat down by fa well.

16 Now the gpriest of Midian had seven daughters, and hthey came and drew water and filled the troughs to water their father’s flock. 17 The shepherds came and drove them away, but Moses stood up and saved them, and iwatered their flock. 18 When they came home to their father jReuel, he said, How is it that you have come home so soon today? 19 They said, An Egyptian delivered us out of the hand of the shepherds and even drew water for us and iwatered the flock. 20 He said to his daughters, Then where is he? Why have you left the man? Call him, that he may keat bread. 21 And Moses was content to dwell with the man, and he gave Moses his daughter lZipporah. 22 She gave birth to a son, and he called his name mGershom, for he said, I have been a nsojourner5 in a foreign land.

23 oDuring those many days the king of Egypt died, and the people of Israel pgroaned because of their slavery and cried out for help. qTheir cry for rescue from slavery came up to God. 24 And rGod heard their groaning, and God sremembered his covenant with tAbraham, with Isaac, and with Jacob. 25 God usaw the people of Israeland God vknew.

Now Moses was keeping the flock of his father-in-law, Jethro, the priest of Midian, and he led his flock to the west side of the wilderness and came to Horeb, the wmountain of God. xAnd ythe angel of the Lord appeared to him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush. He looked, and behold, the bush was burning, yet it was not consumed. And Moses said, I will turn aside to see this great sight, why the bush is not burned. When the Lord saw that he turned aside to see, zGod called to him aout of the bush, Moses, Moses! And he said, Here I am. Then he said, Do not come near; btake your sandals off your feet, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground. And he said, cI am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. And Moses hid his face, for dhe was afraid to look at God.

Then the Lord said, eI have surely seen the affliction of my people who are in Egypt and have heard their cry because of their ftaskmasters. I know their sufferings, and gI have come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians and hto bring them up out of that land to a igood and broad land, a land jflowing with milk and honey, to the place of kthe Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites. And now, behold, lthe cry of the people of Israel has come to me, and I have also seen the moppression with which the Egyptians oppress them. 10 nCome, I will send you to Pharaoh that you may bring my people, the children of Israel, out of Egypt. 11 But Moses said to God, oWho am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the children of Israel out of Egypt? 12 He said, pBut I will be with you, and this shall be the sign for you, that I have sent you: when you have brought the people out of Egypt, qyou shall serve God on this mountain.

13 Then Moses said to God, If I come to the people of Israel and say to them, The God of your fathers has sent me to you, and they ask me, What is his name? what shall I say to them? 14 God said to Moses, I am who I am.6 And he said, Say this to the people of Israel: rI am has sent me to you. 15 God also said to Moses, Say this to the people of Israel: The Lord,7 the sGod of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you. This is tmy name forever, and thus I am to be remembered throughout all generations. 16 Go and ugather the elders of Israel together and say to them, The Lord, the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob, has appeared to me, saying, vI have observed you and what has been done to you in Egypt, 17 and I promise that wI will bring you up out of the affliction of Egypt to the land of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites, a land wflowing with milk and honey. 18 And xthey will listen to your voice, and you and the elders of Israel yshall go to the king of Egypt and say to him, The Lord, the God of the Hebrews, has zmet with us; and now, please let us go a three days’ journey into the wilderness, that we may sacrifice to the Lord our God. 19 But I know that the king of Egypt awill not let you go unless compelled bby a mighty hand.8 20 So cI will stretch out my hand and strike Egypt with dall the wonders that I will do in it; eafter that he will let you go. 21 And fI will give this people favor in the sight of the Egyptians; and when you go, you shall not go empty, 22 but each woman shall ask of her neighbor, and any woman who lives in her house, for gsilver and gold jewelry, and for clothing. You shall put them on your sons and on your daughters. So hyou shall plunder the Egyptians.

Then Moses answered, But behold, they will not believe me or listen to my voice, for they will say, The Lord did not appear to you. The Lord said to him, What is that in your hand? He said, iA staff. And he said, Throw it on the ground. So he threw it on the ground, and it became a serpent, and Moses ran from it. But the Lord said to Moses, Put out your hand and catch it by the tailso he put out his hand and caught it, and it became a staff in his hand that they may jbelieve that the Lord, kthe God of their fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has appeared to you. Again, the Lord said to him, Put your hand inside your cloak.9 And he put his hand inside his cloak, and when he took it out, behold, his hand was lleprous10 like snow. Then God said, Put your hand back inside your cloak. So he put his hand back inside his cloak, and when he took it out, behold, mit was restored like the rest of his flesh. If they will not believe you, God said, or listen to the first sign, they may believe the latter sign. If they will not believe even these two signs or listen to your voice, you shall take some water from the Nile and pour it on the dry ground, and the water that you shall take from the Nile nwill become blood on the dry ground.

10 But Moses said to the Lord, Oh, my Lord, I am not eloquent, either in the past or since you have spoken to your servant, but oI am slow of speech and of tongue. 11 Then the Lord said to him, Who has made man’s mouth? Who makes him mute, or deaf, or seeing, or blind? Is it not I, the Lord? 12 Now therefore go, and pI will be with your mouth and teach you what you shall speak. 13 But he said, Oh, my Lord, please send someone else. 14 Then the anger of the Lord was kindled against Moses and he said, Is there not Aaron, your brother, the Levite? I know that he can speak well. Behold, qhe is coming out to meet you, and when he sees you, he will be glad in his heart. 15 rYou shall speak to him and sput the words in his mouth, and pI will be with your mouth and with his mouth and will teach you both what to do. 16 tHe shall speak for you to the people, and he shall be your mouth, and uyou shall be as God to him. 17 And take in your hand vthis staff, with which you shall do the signs.

18 Moses went back to wJethro his father-in-law and said to him, Please let me go back to my brothers in Egypt to see whether they are still alive. And Jethro said to Moses, Go in peace. 19 And the Lord said to Moses in Midian, Go back to Egypt, for xall the men who were seeking your life are dead. 20 So Moses took yhis wife and his sons and had them ride on a donkey, and went back to the land of Egypt. And Moses took zthe staff of God in his hand.

21 And the Lord said to Moses, When you go back to Egypt, see that you do before Pharaoh all the amiracles that I have put in your power. But bI will harden his heart, so that he will not let the people go. 22 Then you shall say to Pharaoh, Thus says the Lord, cIsrael is my dfirstborn son, 23 and I say to you, Let my son go that he may serve me. If you refuse to let him go, behold, I ewill kill your firstborn son.

24 At a lodging place on the way fthe Lord met him and gsought to put him to death. 25 Then hZipporah took a iflint and cut off her son’s foreskin and touched Moses’11 feet with it and said, Surely you are a bridegroom of blood to me! 26 So he let him alone. It was then that she said, A bridegroom of blood, because of the circumcision.

27 The Lord said to Aaron, Go into the wilderness jto meet Moses. So he went and met him at the kmountain of God and kissed him. 28 And Moses ltold Aaron all the words of the Lord with which he had sent him to speak, and all mthe signs that he had commanded him to do. 29 Then Moses and Aaron nwent and gathered together all the elders of the people of Israel. 30 oAaron spoke all the words that the Lord had spoken to Moses and did the signs in the sight of the people. 31 And the people pbelieved; and when they heard that the Lord had qvisited the people of Israel and that he had rseen their affliction, sthey bowed their heads and worshiped.

Afterward Moses and Aaron went and said to Pharaoh, Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, Let my people go, that they may hold ta feast to me in the wilderness. But Pharaoh said, uWho is the Lord, that I should obey his voice and let Israel go? I do not know the Lord, and moreover, vI will not let Israel go. Then they said, The wGod of the Hebrews has met with us. Please let us go a three days’ journey into the wilderness that we may sacrifice to the Lord our God, lest he fall upon us with pestilence or with the sword. But the king of Egypt said to them, Moses and Aaron, why do you take the people away from their work? Get back to your xburdens. And Pharaoh said, Behold, ythe people of the land are now many,12 and you make them rest from their burdens! The same day Pharaoh commanded the ztaskmasters of the people and their aforemen, You shall no longer give the people straw to make bricks, as in the past; let them go and gather straw for themselves. But the number of bricks that they made in the past you shall impose on them, you shall by no means reduce it, for they are idle. Therefore they cry, Let us go and offer sacrifice to our God. Let heavier work be laid on the men that they may labor at it and pay no regard to lying words.

10 So the btaskmasters and the foremen of the people went out and said to the people, Thus says Pharaoh, I will not give you straw. 11 Go and get your straw yourselves wherever you can find it, but your work will not be reduced in the least. 12 So the people were scattered throughout all the land of Egypt to gather stubble for straw. 13 The ctaskmasters were urgent, saying, Complete your work, your daily task each day, as when there was straw. 14 And the foremen of the people of Israel, whom Pharaoh’s ctaskmasters had set over them, were beaten and were asked, Why have you not done all your task of making bricks today and yesterday, as in the past?

15 Then the foremen of the people of Israel came and cried to Pharaoh, Why do you treat your servants like this? 16 No straw is given to your servants, yet they say to us, Make bricks! And behold, your servants are beaten; but the fault is in your own people. 17 But he said, You are idle, you are idle; that is why you say, Let us go and sacrifice to the Lord. 18 Go now and work. No straw will be given you, but you must still deliver the same number of bricks. 19 The foremen of the people of Israel saw that they were in trouble when they said, You shall by no means reduce your number of bricks, your daily task each day. 20 They met Moses and Aaron, who were waiting for them, as they came out from Pharaoh; 21 and dthey said to them, The Lord look on you and judge, because you have made us stink in the sight of Pharaoh and his servants, and have put a sword in their hand to kill us.

22 Then Moses turned to the Lord and said, O Lord, why have you done evil to this people? Why did you ever send me? 23 For since I came to Pharaoh to speak in your name, he has done evil to this people, and you have not delivered your people at all.

But the Lord said to Moses, Now you shall see what I will do to Pharaoh; for with a strong hand he will send them out, and with ea strong hand he will fdrive them out of his land.

God spoke to Moses and said to him, gI am the Lord. I appeared to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, as hGod Almighty,13 but by my name the iLord I did not make myself known to them. jI also established my covenant with them kto give them the land of Canaan, the land in which they lived as sojourners. Moreover, lI have heard the groaning of the people of Israel whom the Egyptians hold as slaves, and I have remembered my covenant. Say therefore to the people of Israel, mI am the Lord, and nI will bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians, and I will deliver you from slavery to them, and oI will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with great acts of judgment. I pwill take you to be my people, and qI will be your God, and you shall know that mI am the Lord your God, who has brought you out nfrom under the burdens of the Egyptians. I will bring you into rthe land that I sswore to give to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob. I will give it to you for a possession. mI am the Lord. Moses spoke thus to the people of Israel, but they tdid not listen to Moses, because of their broken spirit and harsh slavery.

10 So the Lord said to Moses, 11 Go in, tell Pharaoh king of Egypt to let the people of Israel go out of his land. 12 But Moses said to the Lord, Behold, the people of Israel have tnot listened to me. How then shall Pharaoh listen to me, for uI am of uncircumcised lips? 13 But the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron and gave them a charge about the people of Israel and about Pharaoh king of Egypt: to bring the people of Israel out of the land of Egypt.

14 These are the heads of their fathers’ houses: the vsons of Reuben, the firstborn of Israel: Hanoch, Pallu, Hezron, and Carmi; these are the clans of Reuben. 15 The wsons of Simeon: Jemuel, Jamin, Ohad, Jachin, Zohar, and Shaul, the son of a Canaanite woman; these are the clans of Simeon. 16 These are the names of the xsons of Levi according to their generations: Gershon, Kohath, and Merari, the years of the life of Levi being 137 years. 17 The ysons of Gershon: Libni and Shimei, by their clans. 18 The zsons of Kohath: Amram, Izhar, Hebron, and Uzziel, the years of the life of Kohath being 133 years. 19 The asons of Merari: Mahli and Mushi. These are the clans of the Levites according to their generations. 20 bAmram took as his wife Jochebed his father’s sister, and she bore him Aaron and Moses, the years of the life of Amram being 137 years. 21 cThe sons of Izhar: Korah, Nepheg, and Zichri. 22 The dsons of Uzziel: Mishael, Elzaphan, and Sithri. 23 Aaron took as his wife Elisheba, the daughter of eAmminadab and the sister of fNahshon, and she bore him gNadab, Abihu, Eleazar, and Ithamar. 24 The hsons of Korah: Assir, Elkanah, and Abiasaph; these are the clans of the Korahites. 25 Eleazar, Aaron’s son, took as his wife one of the daughters of Putiel, and ishe bore him Phinehas. These are the heads of the fathers’ houses of the Levites by their clans.

26 These are the Aaron and Moses jto whom the Lord said: Bring out the people of Israel from the land of Egypt kby their hosts. 27 It was they who spoke to Pharaoh king of Egypt about bringing out the people of Israel from Egypt, this Moses and this Aaron.

28 On the day when the Lord spoke to Moses in the land of Egypt, 29 the Lord said to Moses, lI am the Lord; mtell Pharaoh king of Egypt all that I say to you. 30 But Moses said to the Lord, Behold, nI am of uncircumcised lips. How will Pharaoh listen to me?

And the Lord said to Moses, See, I have made you like oGod to Pharaoh, and your brother Aaron shall be your pprophet. qYou shall speak all that I command you, and your brother Aaron shall tell Pharaoh to let the people of Israel go out of his land. But rI will harden Pharaoh’s heart, and though I smultiply my signs and wonders in the land of Egypt, Pharaoh will not listen to you. Then I will lay my hand on Egypt and bring my hosts, my people the children of Israel, out of the land of Egypt by great acts of judgment. The Egyptians tshall know that I am the Lord, when I stretch out my hand against Egypt and bring out the people of Israel from among them. Moses and Aaron did so; they did just as the Lord commanded them. Now Moses was ueighty years old, and Aaron eighty-three years old, when they spoke to Pharaoh.

Then the Lord said to Moses and Aaron, When Pharaoh says to you, vProve yourselves by working a miracle, then you shall say to Aaron, Take your staff and cast it down before Pharaoh, that it may become a serpent. 10 So Moses and Aaron went to Pharaoh and did just as the Lord commanded. Aaron cast down his staff before Pharaoh and his servants, and it became a serpent. 11 Then Pharaoh summoned the wise men and the sorcerers, and they, the wmagicians of Egypt, also xdid the same by their secret arts. 12 For each man cast down his staff, and they became serpents. But Aaron’s staff swallowed up their staffs. 13 Still rPharaoh’s heart was hardened, and he would not listen to them, ras the Lord had said.

14 Then the Lord said to Moses, Pharaoh’s heart is hardened; he refuses to let the people go. 15 yGo to Pharaoh in the morning, as he is going out to the water, and stand on the bank of the Nile to meet him. Take in your hand zthe staff that turned into a aserpent. 16 And you shall say to him, The bLord, the God of the Hebrews, sent me to you, saying, Let my people go, cthat they may serve me in the wilderness. But so far, you have not obeyed. 17 Thus says the Lord, By this dyou shall know that I am the Lord: behold, with the staff that is in my hand I will strike the water that is in the Nile, and eit shall turn into blood. 18 The fish in the Nile shall die, and the Nile will stink, and the Egyptians will fgrow weary of drinking water from the Nile. 19 And the Lord said to Moses, Say to Aaron, Take your staff and gstretch out your hand over the waters of Egypt, over their rivers, their canals, and their ponds, and all their pools of water, so that they may become blood, and there shall be blood throughout all the land of Egypt, even in vessels of wood and in vessels of stone.

20 Moses and Aaron did as the Lord commanded. In the sight of Pharaoh and in the sight of his servants he hlifted up the staff and struck the water in the Nile, and all the iwater in the Nile turned into blood. 21 And the fish in the Nile died, and the Nile stank, so that the Egyptians jcould not drink water from the Nile. There was blood throughout all the land of Egypt. 22 But kthe magicians of Egypt did the same by their secret arts. So lPharaoh’s heart remained hardened, and he would not listen to them, as mthe Lord had said. 23 Pharaoh turned and went into his house, and he did not take even this to heart. 24 And all the Egyptians dug along the Nile for water to drink, for they could not drink the water of the Nile.

25 Seven full days passed after the Lord had struck the Nile.

14 Then the Lord said to Moses, Go in to Pharaoh and say to him, Thus says the Lord, Let my people go, that nthey may serve me. But if you orefuse to let them go, behold, I will plague all your country with pfrogs. The Nile shall swarm with frogs that shall come up into your house and into qyour bedroom and on your bed and into the houses of your servants and your people,15 and into your ovens and your kneading bowls. The frogs shall come up on you and on your people and on all your servants. 16 And the Lord said to Moses, Say to Aaron, rStretch out your hand with your staff over the rivers, over the canals and over the pools, and make frogs come up on the land of Egypt! So Aaron stretched out his hand over the waters of Egypt, and sthe frogs came up and covered the land of Egypt. But tthe magicians did the same by their secret arts and made frogs come up on the land of Egypt.

Then Pharaoh called Moses and Aaron and said, uPlead with the Lord to take away the frogs from me and from my people, and vI will let the people go to sacrifice to the Lord. Moses said to Pharaoh, Be pleased to command me when uI am to plead for you and for your servants and for your people, that the frogs be cut off from you and your houses and be left only in the Nile. 10 And he said, Tomorrow. Moses said, Be it as you say, so wthat you may know that xthere is no one like the Lord our God. 11 The frogs shall go away from you and your houses and your servants and your people. They shall be left only in the Nile. 12 So Moses and Aaron went out from Pharaoh, and Moses cried to the Lord about the frogs, as he had agreed with Pharaoh.17 13 And the Lord did according to the word of Moses. The frogs died out in the houses, the courtyards, and the fields. 14 And they gathered them together in heaps, and the land stank. 15 But when Pharaoh saw that there was a yrespite, he zhardened his heart and would not listen to them, as the Lord had said.

16 Then the Lord said to Moses, Say to Aaron, aStretch out your staff and strike the dust of the earth, so that it may become gnats in all the land of Egypt. 17 And they did so. Aaron stretched out his hand with his staff and struck the dust of the earth, and bthere were gnats on man and beast. All the dust of the earth became gnats in all the land of Egypt. 18 The cmagicians tried by their secret arts to produce gnats, but they could not. So there were gnats on man and beast. 19 Then the magicians said to Pharaoh, This is dthe finger of God. But Pharaoh’s heart was hardened, and he would not listen to them, as the Lord had said.

20 Then the Lord said to Moses, eRise up early in the morning and present yourself to Pharaoh, as he goes out to the water, and say to him, Thus says the Lord, fLet my people go, that they may serve me. 21 Or else, if you will not let my people go, behold, I will send swarms of flies on you and your servants and your people, and into your houses. And the houses of the Egyptians shall be filled with swarms of flies, and also the ground on which they stand. 22 But on that day gI will set apart the land of Goshen, where my people dwell, so that no swarms of flies shall be there, hthat you may know that I am the Lord in the midst of the earth.18 23 Thus I will put a division19 between my people and your people. Tomorrow this sign shall happen. 24 And the Lord did so. iThere came great swarms of flies into the house of Pharaoh and into his servants’ houses. Throughout all the land of Egypt the land was ruined by the swarms of flies.

25 Then Pharaoh called Moses and Aaron and said, Go, sacrifice to your God within the land. 26 But Moses said, It would not be right to do so, for the offerings we shall sacrifice to the Lord our God are an jabomination to the Egyptians. If we sacrifice offerings jabominable to the Egyptians before their eyes, will they not stone us? 27 We must go kthree days’ journey into the wilderness and sacrifice to the Lord our God las he tells us. 28 So Pharaoh said, I will let you go to sacrifice to the Lord your God in the wilderness; only you must not go very far away. mPlead for me. 29 Then Moses said, Behold, I am going out from you and I will plead with the Lord that the swarms of flies may depart from Pharaoh, from his servants, and from his people, tomorrow. Only let not Pharaoh ncheat again by not letting the people go to sacrifice to the Lord. 30 So Moses went out from Pharaoh and prayed to the Lord. 31 And the Lord did as Moses asked, and removed the swarms of flies from Pharaoh, from his servants, and from his people; not one remained. 32 But Pharaoh ohardened his heart this time also, and did not let the people go.

Then the Lord said to Moses, pGo in to Pharaoh and say to him, Thus says qthe Lord, the God of the Hebrews, Let my people go, that they may serve me. For if you refuse to let them go and still hold them, behold, rthe hand of the Lord will fall with a very severe plague upon your livestock that are in the field, the horses, the donkeys, the camels, the herds, and the flocks. sBut the Lord will make a distinction between the livestock of Israel and the livestock of Egypt, so that nothing of all that belongs to the people of Israel shall die. And the Lord set a time, saying, Tomorrow the Lord will do this thing in the land. And the next day the Lord did this thing. tAll the livestock of the Egyptians died, but not one of the livestock of the people of Israel died. And Pharaoh sent, and behold, not one of the livestock of Israel was dead. But uthe heart of Pharaoh was hardened, and he did not let the people go.

And the Lord said to Moses and Aaron, Take handfuls of soot from the kiln, and let Moses throw them in the air in the sight of Pharaoh. It shall become fine dust over all the land of Egypt, and become vboils breaking out in sores on man and beast throughout all the land of Egypt. 10 So they took soot from the kiln and stood before Pharaoh. And Moses threw it in the air, and it became boils breaking out in sores on man and beast. 11 And wthe magicians could not stand before Moses because of the boils, for the boils came upon the magicians and upon all the Egyptians. 12 xBut the Lord hardened the heart of Pharaoh, and he did not listen to them, as ythe Lord had spoken to Moses.

13 Then the Lord said to Moses, zRise up early in the morning and present yourself before Pharaoh and say to him, Thus says the Lord, the God of the Hebrews, Let my people go, that they may serve me. 14 For this time I will send all my plagues on you yourself,20 and on your servants and your people, so athat you may know that there is none like me in all the earth. 15 For by now I could have put out my hand and struck you and your people with pestilence, and you would have been cut off from the earth. 16 bBut for this purpose I have raised you up, to show you my power, so cthat my name may be proclaimed in all the earth. 17 dYou are still exalting yourself against my people and will not let them go. 18 Behold, about this time tomorrow I will cause very heavy hail to fall, such as never has been in Egypt from the day it was founded until now. 19 Now therefore send, eget your livestock and all that you have in the field into safe shelter, for every man and beast that is in the field and is not brought home will die when the hail falls on them. 20 Then whoever feared the word of the Lord among the servants of Pharaoh hurried his slaves and his livestock into the houses, 21 but whoever did not pay attention to the word of the Lord left his slaves and his livestock in the field.

22 Then the Lord said to Moses, Stretch out your hand toward heaven, so that there may be fhail in all the land of Egypt, on man and beast and every plant of the field, in the land of Egypt. 23 Then Moses stretched out his staff toward heaven, and the gLord sent thunder and hail, and fire ran down to the earth. And the Lord rained hail upon the land of Egypt. 24 There was hail and fire flashing continually in the midst of the hail, very heavy hail, such as had never been in all the land of Egypt since it became a nation. 25 The hail struck down everything that was in the field in all the land of Egypt, both man and beast. And the hail hstruck down every plant of the field and broke every tree of the field. 26 iOnly in the land of Goshen, where the people of Israel were, was there no hail.

27 Then Pharaoh sent and called Moses and Aaron and said to them, This time jI have sinned; the kLord is in the right, and I and my people are in the wrong. 28 lPlead with the Lord, for there has been enough of God’s thunder and hail. I will let you go, and you shall stay no longer. 29 Moses said to him, As soon as I have gone out of the city, mI will stretch out my hands to the Lord. The thunder will cease, and there will be no more hail, so that you may know that nthe earth is the Lord’s. 30 But as for you and your servants, oI know that you do not yet fear the Lord God. 31 (The flax and the barley were struck down, for the barley was in the ear and the flax was in bud. 32 But the wheat and the emmer21 were not struck down, for they are late in coming up.) 33 So Moses went out of the city from Pharaoh and mstretched out his hands to the Lord, and the thunder and the hail ceased, and the rain no longer poured upon the earth. 34 But when Pharaoh saw that the rain and the hail and the thunder had ceased, he sinned yet again and phardened his heart, qhe and his servants. 35 So rthe heart of Pharaoh was hardened, and he did not let the people of Israel go, just as the Lord had spoken through Moses.

Then the Lord said to Moses, Go in to Pharaoh, for I have hardened his heart and the heart of his servants, that I may show these signs of mine among them, and sthat you may tell in the hearing of your son and of your grandson how I have dealt harshly with the Egyptians and what signs I have done among them, tthat you may know that I am the Lord.

So Moses and Aaron went in to Pharaoh and said to him, Thus says the Lord, the God of the Hebrews, How long will you refuse to uhumble yourself before me? Let my people go, that they may serve me. For if you refuse to let my people go, behold, tomorrow I will bring vlocusts into your country, and they shall cover the face of the land, so that no one can see the land. And they shall weat what is left to you after the hail, and they shall eat every tree of yours that grows in the field, and they shall fill xyour houses and the houses of all your servants and of all the Egyptians, as neither your fathers nor your grandfathers have seen, from the day they came on earth to this day. Then he turned and went out from Pharaoh.

Then Pharaoh’s servants said to him, How long shall this man be a snare to us? Let the men go, that they may serve the Lord their God. Do you not yet understand that Egypt is ruined? So Moses and Aaron were brought back to Pharaoh. And he said to them, yGo, serve the Lord your God. But which ones are to go? Moses said, We will go with our young and our old. We will go with our sons and daughters and with our flocks and herds, for zwe must hold a feast to the Lord. 10 But he said to them, The Lord be with you, if ever I let you and your alittle ones go! Look, you have some evil purpose in mind.22 11 No! Go, the men among you, and serve the Lord, for that is what you are asking. And they were driven out from Pharaoh’s presence.

12 Then the Lord said to Moses, bStretch out your hand over the land of Egypt for the locusts, so that they may come upon the land of Egypt and ceat every plant in the land, all that the hail has left. 13 So Moses stretched out his staff over the land of Egypt, and the Lord brought an east wind upon the land all that day and all that night. When it was morning, the east wind had brought the locusts. 14 dThe locusts came up over all the land of Egypt and settled on the whole country of Egypt, esuch a dense swarm of locusts as had never been before, nor ever will be again. 15 They covered the face of the whole land, so that the land was darkened, and fthey ate all the plants in the land and all the fruit of the trees that the hail had left. Not a green thing remained, neither tree nor plant of the field, through all the land of Egypt. 16 Then Pharaoh hastily called Moses and Aaron and said, gI have sinned against the Lord your God, and against you. 17 Now therefore, forgive my sin, please, only this once, and hplead with the Lord your God only to remove this death from me. 18 So ihe went out from Pharaoh and pleaded with the Lord. 19 And the Lord turned the wind into a very strong west wind, which lifted the locusts and drove them jinto the Red Sea. Not a single locust was left in all the country of Egypt. 20 But the Lord khardened Pharaoh’s heart, and he did not let the people of Israel go.

21 Then the Lord said to Moses, lStretch out your hand toward heaven, that there may be mdarkness over the land of Egypt, a darkness to be felt. 22 So Moses stretched out his hand toward heaven, and there was pitch darkness in all the land of Egypt three days. 23 They did not see one another, nor did anyone rise from his place for three days, but nall the people of Israel had light where they lived. 24 Then Pharaoh called Moses and said, oGo, serve the Lord; pyour little ones also may go with you; only let your flocks and your herds remain behind. 25 But Moses said, You must also let us have sacrifices and burnt offerings, that we may sacrifice to the Lord our God. 26 Our livestock also must go with us; not a hoof shall be left behind, for we must take of them to serve the Lord our God, and we do not know with what we must serve the Lord until we arrive there. 27 But the Lord qhardened Pharaoh’s heart, and he would not let them go. 28 Then Pharaoh said to him, Get away from me; take care never to see my face again, for on the day you see my face you shall die. 29 Moses said, As you say! rI will not see your face again.

The Lord said to Moses, Yet sone plague more I will bring upon Pharaoh and upon Egypt. Afterward he will let you go from here. tWhen he lets you go, he will drive you away completely. Speak now in the hearing of the people, that uthey ask, every man of his neighbor and every woman of her neighbor, for silver and gold jewelry. vAnd the Lord gave the people favor in the sight of the Egyptians. Moreover, the man Moses was very great in the land of Egypt, in the sight of Pharaoh’s servants and in the sight of the people.

So Moses said, Thus says the Lord: wAbout midnight I will go out in the midst of Egypt, and every firstborn in the land of Egypt shall die, from the firstborn of Pharaoh who sits on his throne, even to the firstborn of the slave girl who is xbehind the handmill, and all the firstborn of the cattle. yThere shall be a great cry throughout all the land of Egypt, such as there has never been, nor ever will be again. But not a dog shall growl zagainst any of the people of Israel, either man or beast, that you may know that the Lord amakes a distinction between Egypt and Israel. And ball these your servants shall come down to me and bow down to me, saying, Get out, you and all the people who follow you. And after that I will go out. And he went out from Pharaoh in hot anger. Then the Lord said to Moses, cPharaoh will not listen to you, that dmy wonders may be multiplied in the land of Egypt.

10 Moses and Aaron did all these wonders before Pharaoh, and the Lord ehardened Pharaoh’s heart, and he did not let the people of Israel go out of his land.

The Lord said to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt, fThis month shall be for you the beginning of months. It shall be the first month of the year for you. Tell all the congregation of Israel that on the tenth day of this month every man shall take a lamb gaccording to their fathers’ houses, a lamb for a household. And if the household is too small for a lamb, then he and his nearest neighbor shall take according to the number of persons; according to what each can eat you shall make your count for the lamb. Your lamb shall be hwithout blemish, a male a year old. You may take it from the sheep or from the goats, and you shall keep it until the ifourteenth day of this month, when the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel shall kill their lambs at twilight.23

Then they shall take some of the blood and put it on the jtwo doorposts and the lintel of the houses in which they eat it. They shall eat the flesh that night, roasted on the fire; with kunleavened bread and bitter herbs they shall eat it. Do not eat any of it raw or boiled in water, but lroasted, its head with its legs and its inner parts. 10 And myou shall let none of it remain until the morning; anything that remains until the morning you shall burn. 11 In this manner you shall eat it: with nyour belt fastened, your sandals on your feet, and your staff in your hand. And you shall eat it in haste. oIt is the Lord’s Passover. 12 For pI will pass through the land of Egypt that night, and I will strike all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and on qall the gods of Egypt I will execute judgments: rI am the Lord. 13 sThe blood shall be a sign for you, on the houses where you are. And when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and no plague will befall you to destroy you, when I strike the land of Egypt.

14 This day shall be tfor you a memorial day, and you shall keep it as a feast to the Lord; throughout your generations, as a ustatute forever, you shall keep it as a feast. 15 vSeven days you shall eat unleavened bread. On the first day you shall remove leaven out of your houses, for if anyone eats what is leavened, from the first day until the seventh day, wthat person shall be cut off from Israel. 16 On the first day you shall hold a xholy assembly, and on the seventh day a holy assembly. No work shall be done on those days. But what everyone needs to eat, that alone may be prepared by you. 17 And you shall observe the Feast of Unleavened Bread, for yon this very day I brought your zhosts out of the land of Egypt. Therefore you shall observe this day, throughout your generations, as a statute forever. 18 aIn the first month, from the fourteenth day of the month at evening, you shall eat unleavened bread until the twenty-first day of the month at evening. 19 bFor seven days no leaven is to be found in your houses. If anyone eats what is leavened, bthat person will be cut off from the congregation of Israel, cwhether he is a sojourner or a native of the land. 20 You shall eat nothing leavened; in all your dwelling places you shall eat unleavened bread.

21 Then Moses called all the elders of Israel and said to them, Go and select lambs for yourselves daccording to your clans, and kill the Passover lamb. 22 Take a bunch of ehyssop and fdip it in the blood that is in the basin, and touch gthe lintel and the two doorposts with the blood that is in the basin. hNone of you shall go out of the door of his house until the morning. 23 iFor the Lord will pass through to strike the Egyptians, and when he sees the blood on gthe lintel and on the two doorposts, the Lord will pass over the door and jwill not allow the destroyer to enter your houses to strike you. 24 You shall observe this rite as a statute for you and for your sons forever. 25 And when you come to the land that the Lord will give you, kas he has promised, you shall keep this service. 26 And lwhen your children say to you, What do you mean by this service? 27 you shall say, mIt is the sacrifice of the Lord’s Passover, for he passed over the houses of the people of Israel in Egypt, when he struck the Egyptians but spared our houses. And the people nbowed their heads and worshiped.

28 Then the people of Israel went and did so; as the Lord had commanded Moses and Aaron, so they did.

29 oAt midnight the pLord struck down all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, qfrom the firstborn of Pharaoh who sat on his throne to the firstborn of the captive who was in the dungeon, and all the firstborn of the livestock. 30 And Pharaoh rose up in the night, he and all his servants and all the Egyptians. And there was ra great cry in Egypt, for there was not a house where someone was not dead. 31 Then he summoned Moses and Aaron by night and said, Up, go out from among my people, sboth you and the people of Israel; and go, serve the Lord, as you have said. 32 tTake your flocks and your herds, as you have said, and be gone, and bless me also!

33 uThe Egyptians were urgent with the people to send them out of the land in haste. For they said, We shall all be dead. 34 So the people took their dough before it was leavened, their kneading bowls being bound up in their cloaks on their shoulders. 35 The people of Israel had also done as Moses told them, for they had vasked the Egyptians for silver and gold jewelry and for clothing. 36 wAnd the Lord had given the people favor in the sight of the Egyptians, so that xthey let them have what they asked. Thus they plundered the Egyptians.

37 And the ypeople of Israel journeyed from zRameses to Succoth, aabout six hundred thousand men on foot, besides women and children. 38 A bmixed multitude also went up with them, and very much livestock, both flocks and herds. 39 And they baked unleavened cakes of the dough that they had brought out of Egypt, for it was not leavened, because uthey were thrust out of Egypt and ccould not wait, nor had they prepared any provisions for themselves.

40 The time that the people of Israel lived in Egypt was 430 years. 41 At the end of d430 years, on that very day, all the hosts of the Lord went out from the land of Egypt. 42 It was a night of watching by the Lord, to bring them out of the land of Egypt; so this same night is a enight of watching kept to the Lord by all the people of Israel throughout their generations.

43 And the Lord said to Moses and Aaron, This is the statute of the Passover: no foreigner shall eat of it, 44 but every slave24 that is fbought for money may eat of it after you have circumcised him. 45 gNo foreigner or hired worker may eat of it. 46 It shall be eaten in one house; you shall not take any of the flesh outside the house, and hyou shall not break any of its bones. 47 iAll the congregation of Israel shall keep it. 48 jIf a stranger shall sojourn with you and would keep the Passover to the Lord, let all his males be circumcised. Then he may come near and keep it; he kshall be as a native of the land. But no uncircumcised person shall eat of it. 49 There shall be lone law for the native and for the jstranger who sojourns among you.

50 All the people of Israel did just as the Lord commanded Moses and Aaron. 51 And on that very day the mLord brought the people of Israel out of the land of Egypt by their nhosts.

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