4:1 ¹ 

Moses answered again, ²  “And if ³  they do not believe me or pay attention to me, ⁴  but say, ‘The Lord has not appeared to you’?” 4:2 The Lord said to him, “What is that in your hand?” He said, “A staff.” ⁵  4:3 The Lord ⁶  said, “Throw it to the ground.” So he threw it to the ground, and it became a snake, ⁷  and Moses ran from it. 4:4 But the Lord said to Moses, “Put out your hand and grab it by the tail” – so he put out his hand and caught it, and it became a staff in his hand ⁸  – 4:5 “that they may believe that the Lord, the God of their fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has appeared to you.”

4:6 The Lord also said to him, “Put your hand into your robe.” ⁹  So he put his hand into his robe, and when he brought it out – there was his hand, ¹⁰  leprous like snow! ¹¹  4:7 He said, “Put your hand back into your robe.” So he put his hand back into his robe, and when he brought it out from his robe – there it was, ¹²  restored ¹³  like the rest of his skin! ¹⁴  4:8 “If ¹⁵  they do not believe you or pay attention to ¹⁶  the former sign, then they may ¹⁷  believe the latter sign. ¹⁸  4:9 And if ¹⁹  they do not believe even these two signs or listen to you, ²⁰  then take ²¹  some water from the Nile and pour it out on the dry ground. The water you take out of the Nile will become blood on the dry ground.” ²² 

4:10 Then Moses said to the Lord, ²³  “O ²⁴  my Lord, ²⁵  I am not an eloquent man, ²⁶  neither in the past ²⁷  nor since you have spoken to your servant, for I am slow of speech and slow of tongue.” ²⁸ 

4:11 The Lord said to him, “Who gave ²⁹  a mouth to man, or who makes a person mute or deaf or seeing or blind? Is it not I, the Lord? ³⁰  4:12 So now go, and I will be with your mouth ³¹  and will teach you ³²  what you must say.” ³³ 

4:13 But Moses said, ³⁴  “O ³⁵  my Lord, please send anyone else whom you wish to send!” ³⁶ 

4:14 Then the Lord became angry with ³⁷  Moses, and he said, “What about ³⁸  your brother Aaron the Levite? ³⁹  I know that he can speak very well. ⁴⁰  Moreover, he is coming ⁴¹  to meet you, and when he sees you he will be glad in his heart. ⁴² 

4:15 “So you are to speak to him and put the words in his mouth. And as for me, I will be with your mouth ⁴³  and with his mouth, ⁴⁴  and I will teach you both ⁴⁵  what you must do. ⁴⁶  4:16 He ⁴⁷  will speak for you to the people, and it will be as if ⁴⁸  he ⁴⁹  were your mouth ⁵⁰  and as if you were his God. ⁵¹  4:17 You will also take in your hand this staff, with which you will do the signs.” ⁵² 

4:18 ⁵³ 

So Moses went back ⁵⁴  to his father-in-law Jethro and said to him, “Let me go, so that I may return ⁵⁵  to my relatives ⁵⁶  in Egypt and see ⁵⁷  if they are still alive.” Jethro said to Moses, “Go in peace.” 4:19 The Lord said to Moses in Midian, “Go back ⁵⁸  to Egypt, because all the men who were seeking your life are dead.” ⁵⁹  4:20 Then Moses took ⁶⁰  his wife and sons ⁶¹  and put them on a donkey and headed back ⁶²  to the land of Egypt, and Moses took the staff of God in his hand. 4:21 The Lord said ⁶³  to Moses, “When you go back to Egypt, ⁶⁴  see that you ⁶⁵  do before Pharaoh all the wonders I have put under your control. ⁶⁶  But I will harden ⁶⁷  his heart ⁶⁸  and ⁶⁹  he will not let the people go. 4:22 You must say ⁷⁰  to Pharaoh, ‘Thus says ⁷¹  the Lord, “Israel is my son, my firstborn, ⁷²  4:23 and I said to you, ‘Let my son go that he may serve ⁷³  me,’ but since you have refused to let him go, ⁷⁴  I will surely kill ⁷⁵  your son, your firstborn!”’”

4:24 Now on the way, at a place where they stopped for the night, ⁷⁶  the Lord met Moses and sought to kill him. ⁷⁷  4:25 But Zipporah took a flint knife, cut off the foreskin of her son and touched it to Moses’ feet, ⁷⁸  and said, “Surely you are a bridegroom of blood ⁷⁹  to me.” 4:26 So the Lord ⁸⁰  let him alone. (At that time ⁸¹  she said, “A bridegroom of blood,” referring to ⁸²  the circumcision.)

4:27 The Lord said ⁸³  to Aaron, “Go to the wilderness to meet Moses. So he went and met him at the mountain of God ⁸⁴  and greeted him with a kiss. ⁸⁵  4:28 Moses told Aaron all the words of the Lord who had ⁸⁶  sent him and all the signs that he had commanded him. 4:29 Then Moses and Aaron went and brought together all the Israelite elders. ⁸⁷  4:30 Aaron spoke ⁸⁸  all the words that the Lord had spoken to Moses and did the signs in the sight of the people, 4:31 and the people believed. When they heard ⁸⁹  that the Lord had attended to ⁹⁰  the Israelites and that he had seen their affliction, they bowed down close to the ground. ⁹¹ 

5:1 ⁹² 

Afterward Moses and Aaron went to Pharaoh and said, “Thus says the Lord, ⁹³  the God of Israel, ‘Release ⁹⁴  my people so that they may hold a pilgrim feast ⁹⁵  to me in the desert.’” 5:2 But Pharaoh said, “Who is the Lord ⁹⁶  that ⁹⁷  I should obey him ⁹⁸  by releasing ⁹⁹  Israel? I do not know the Lord, ¹⁰⁰  and I will not release Israel!” 5:3 And they said, “The God of the Hebrews has met with us. Let us go a three-day journey ¹⁰¹  into the desert so that we may sacrifice ¹⁰²  to the Lord our God, so that he does not strike us with plague or the sword.” ¹⁰³  5:4 The king of Egypt said to them, “Moses and Aaron, why do you cause the people to refrain from their work? ¹⁰⁴  Return to your labor!” 5:5 Pharaoh was thinking, ¹⁰⁵  “The people of the land are now many, and you are giving them rest from their labor.”

5:6 That same day Pharaoh commanded ¹⁰⁶  the slave masters and foremen ¹⁰⁷  who were ¹⁰⁸  over the people: ¹⁰⁹  5:7 “You must no longer ¹¹⁰  give straw to the people for making bricks ¹¹¹  as before. ¹¹²  Let them go ¹¹³  and collect straw for themselves. 5:8 But you must require ¹¹⁴  of them the same quota of bricks that they were making before. ¹¹⁵  Do not reduce it, for they are slackers. ¹¹⁶  That is why they are crying, ‘Let us go sacrifice to our God.’ 5:9 Make the work harder ¹¹⁷  for the men so they will keep at it ¹¹⁸  and pay no attention to lying words!” ¹¹⁹ 

5:10 So the slave masters of the people and their foremen went to the Israelites and said, ¹²⁰  “Thus says Pharaoh: ‘I am not giving ¹²¹  you straw. 5:11 You ¹²²  go get straw for yourselves wherever you can ¹²³  find it, because there will be no reduction at all in your workload.’” 5:12 So the people spread out ¹²⁴  through all the land of Egypt to collect stubble for straw. 5:13 The slave masters were pressuring ¹²⁵  them, saying, “Complete ¹²⁶  your work for each day, just like when there was straw!” 5:14 The Israelite foremen whom Pharaoh’s slave masters had set over them were beaten and were asked, ¹²⁷  “Why did you not complete your requirement for brickmaking as in the past – both yesterday and today?” ¹²⁸ 

5:15 ¹²⁹ 

The Israelite foremen went and cried out to Pharaoh, “Why are you treating ¹³⁰  your servants this way? 5:16 No straw is given to your servants, but we are told, ¹³¹  ‘Make bricks!’ Your servants are even ¹³²  being beaten, but the fault ¹³³  is with your people.”

5:17 But Pharaoh replied, ¹³⁴  “You are slackers! Slackers! ¹³⁵  That is why you are saying, ‘Let us go sacrifice to the Lord.’ 5:18 So now, get back to work! ¹³⁶  You will not be given straw, but you must still produce ¹³⁷  your quota ¹³⁸  of bricks!” 5:19 The Israelite foremen saw ¹³⁹  that they ¹⁴⁰  were in trouble when they were told, ¹⁴¹  “You must not reduce the daily quota of your bricks.”

5:20 When they went out from Pharaoh, they encountered Moses and Aaron standing there to meet them, ¹⁴²  5:21 and they said to them, “May the Lord look on you and judge, ¹⁴³  because you have made us stink ¹⁴⁴  in the opinion of ¹⁴⁵  Pharaoh and his servants, ¹⁴⁶  so that you have given them an excuse to kill us!” ¹⁴⁷ 

5:22 ¹⁴⁸ 

Moses returned ¹⁴⁹  to the Lord, and said, “Lord, ¹⁵⁰  why have you caused trouble for this people? ¹⁵¹  Why did you ever ¹⁵²  send me? 5:23 From the time I went to speak to Pharaoh in your name, he has caused trouble ¹⁵³  for this people, and you have certainly not rescued ¹⁵⁴  them!” ¹⁵⁵ 

6:1 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Now you will see what I will do to Pharaoh, ¹⁵⁶  for compelled by my strong hand ¹⁵⁷  he will release them, and by my strong hand he will drive them out of his land.” ¹⁵⁸ 

6:2 God spoke ¹⁵⁹  to Moses and said to him, “I am the Lord. ¹⁶⁰  6:3 I appeared to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob as ¹⁶¹  God Almighty, ¹⁶²  but by ¹⁶³  my name ‘the Lord’ ¹⁶⁴  I was not known to them. ¹⁶⁵  6:4 I also established my covenant with them ¹⁶⁶  to give them the land of Canaan, where they were living as resident foreigners. ¹⁶⁷  6:5 I ¹⁶⁸  have also heard ¹⁶⁹  the groaning of the Israelites, whom the Egyptians are enslaving, ¹⁷⁰  and I have remembered my covenant. ¹⁷¹  6:6 Therefore, tell the Israelites, ‘I am the Lord. I will bring you out ¹⁷²  from your enslavement to ¹⁷³  the Egyptians, I will rescue you from the hard labor they impose, ¹⁷⁴  and I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with great judgments. 6:7 I will take you to myself for a people, and I will be your God. ¹⁷⁵  Then you will know that I am the Lord your God, who brought you out from your enslavement to ¹⁷⁶  the Egyptians. 6:8 I will bring you to the land I swore to give ¹⁷⁷  to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob – and I will give it to you ¹⁷⁸  as a possession. I am the Lord!’”

6:9 ¹⁷⁹ 

Moses told this ¹⁸⁰  to the Israelites, but they did not listen to him ¹⁸¹  because of their discouragement ¹⁸²  and hard labor. 6:10 Then the Lord said to Moses, 6:11 “Go, tell Pharaoh king of Egypt that he must release ¹⁸³  the Israelites from his land.” 6:12 But Moses replied to ¹⁸⁴  the Lord, “If the Israelites did not listen to me, then ¹⁸⁵  how will Pharaoh listen to me, since ¹⁸⁶  I speak with difficulty?” ¹⁸⁷ 

6:13 The Lord spoke ¹⁸⁸  to Moses and Aaron and gave them a charge ¹⁸⁹  for the Israelites and Pharaoh king of Egypt to bring the Israelites out of the land of Egypt.

6:14 ¹⁹⁰ 

These are the heads of their fathers’ households: ¹⁹¹ 

The sons ¹⁹²  of Reuben, the firstborn son of Israel, were Hanoch and Pallu, Hezron and Carmi. These were the clans ¹⁹³  of Reuben.

6:15 The sons of Simeon were Jemuel, Jamin, Ohad, Jakin, Zohar, and Shaul, the son of a Canaanite woman. These were the clans of Simeon.

6:16 Now these are the names of the sons of Levi, according to their records: ¹⁹⁴  Gershon, Kohath, and Merari. (The length of Levi’s life was 137 years.)

6:17 The sons of Gershon, by their families, were Libni and Shimei.

6:18 The sons of Kohath were Amram, Izhar, Hebron, and Uzziel. (The length of Kohath’s life was 133 years.)

6:19 The sons of Merari were Mahli and Mushi. These were the clans of Levi, according to their records.

6:20 Amram married ¹⁹⁵  his father’s sister Jochebed, and she bore him Aaron and Moses. (The length of Amram’s life was 137 years.)

6:21 The sons of Izhar were Korah, Nepheg, and Zikri.

6:22 The sons of Uzziel were Mishael, Elzaphan, and Sithri.

6:23 Aaron married Elisheba, the daughter of Amminadab and sister of Nahshon, and she bore him Nadab and Abihu, Eleazar and Ithamar.

6:24 The sons of Korah were Assir, Elkanah, and Abiasaph. These were the Korahite clans.

6:25 Now Eleazar son of Aaron married one of the daughters of Putiel and she bore him Phinehas.

These are the heads of the fathers’ households ¹⁹⁶  of Levi according to their clans.

6:26 It was the same Aaron and Moses to whom the Lord said, “Bring the Israelites out of the land of Egypt by their regiments.” ¹⁹⁷  6:27 They were the men who were speaking to Pharaoh king of Egypt, in order to bring the Israelites out of Egypt. It was the same Moses and Aaron.

6:28 ¹⁹⁸ 

When ¹⁹⁹  the Lord spoke to Moses in the land of Egypt, 6:29 he said to him, ²⁰⁰  “I am the Lord. Tell ²⁰¹  Pharaoh king of Egypt all that ²⁰²  I am telling ²⁰³  you.” 6:30 But Moses said before the Lord, “Since I speak with difficulty, ²⁰⁴  why should Pharaoh listen to me?”

7:1 So the Lord said to Moses, “See, I have made you like God ²⁰⁵  to Pharaoh, and your brother Aaron will be your prophet. ²⁰⁶  7:2 You are to speak ²⁰⁷  everything I command you, ²⁰⁸  and your brother Aaron is to tell Pharaoh that he must release ²⁰⁹  the Israelites from his land. 7:3 But I will harden ²¹⁰  Pharaoh’s heart, and although I will multiply ²¹¹  my signs and my wonders in the land of Egypt, 7:4 Pharaoh will not listen to you. ²¹²  I will reach into ²¹³  Egypt and bring out my regiments, ²¹⁴  my people the Israelites, from the land of Egypt with great acts of judgment. 7:5 Then ²¹⁵  the Egyptians will know that I am the Lord, when I extend my hand ²¹⁶  over Egypt and bring the Israelites out from among them.

7:6 And Moses and Aaron did so; they did just as the Lord commanded them. 7:7 Now Moses was eighty years old and Aaron was eighty-three years old when they spoke to Pharaoh.

7:8 The Lord said ²¹⁷  to Moses and Aaron, ²¹⁸  7:9 “When Pharaoh says to you, ‘Do ²¹⁹  a miracle,’ and you say to Aaron, ‘Take your staff and throw it down ²²⁰  before Pharaoh,’ it will become ²²¹  a snake.” 7:10 When ²²²  Moses and Aaron went to Pharaoh, they did so, just as the Lord had commanded them – Aaron threw ²²³  down his staff before Pharaoh and his servants and it became a snake. ²²⁴  7:11 Then Pharaoh also summoned wise men and sorcerers, ²²⁵  and the magicians ²²⁶  of Egypt by their secret arts ²²⁷  did the same thing. 7:12 Each man ²²⁸  threw down his staff, and the staffs became snakes. But Aaron’s staff swallowed up their staffs. 7:13 Yet Pharaoh’s heart became hard, ²²⁹  and he did not listen to them, just as the Lord had predicted.

7:14 ²³⁰ 

The Lord said to Moses, “Pharaoh’s heart is hard; ²³¹  he refuses to release ²³²  the people. 7:15 Go to Pharaoh in the morning when ²³³  he goes out to the water. Position yourself ²³⁴  to meet him by the edge of the Nile, ²³⁵  and take ²³⁶  in your hand the staff ²³⁷  that was turned into a snake. 7:16 Tell him, ‘The Lord, the God of the Hebrews, has sent me to you to say, ²³⁸  “Release my people, that they may serve me ²³⁹  in the desert!” But until now ²⁴⁰  you have not listened. ²⁴¹  7:17 Thus says the Lord: “By this you will know that I am the Lord: I am going to strike ²⁴²  the water of the Nile with the staff that is in my hand, and it will be turned into blood. ²⁴³  7:18 Fish ²⁴⁴  in the Nile will die, the Nile will stink, and the Egyptians will be unable ²⁴⁵  to drink water from the Nile.”’” 7:19 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Tell Aaron, ‘Take your staff and stretch out your hand over Egypt’s waters – over their rivers, over their canals, ²⁴⁶  over their ponds, and over all their reservoirs ²⁴⁷  – so that it becomes ²⁴⁸  blood.’ There will be blood everywhere in ²⁴⁹  the land of Egypt, even in wooden and stone containers.” 7:20 Moses and Aaron did so, ²⁵⁰  just as the Lord had commanded. Moses raised ²⁵¹  the staff ²⁵²  and struck the water that was in the Nile right before the eyes ²⁵³  of Pharaoh and his servants, ²⁵⁴  and all the water that was in the Nile was turned to blood. ²⁵⁵  7:21 When the fish ²⁵⁶  that were in the Nile died, the Nile began ²⁵⁷  to stink, so that the Egyptians could not drink water from the Nile. There was blood ²⁵⁸  everywhere in the land of Egypt! 7:22 But the magicians of Egypt did the same ²⁵⁹  by their secret arts, and so ²⁶⁰  Pharaoh’s heart remained hard, ²⁶¹  and he refused to listen to Moses and Aaron ²⁶²  – just as the Lord had predicted. 7:23 And Pharaoh turned and went into his house. He did not pay any attention to this. ²⁶³  7:24 All the Egyptians dug around the Nile for water to drink, ²⁶⁴  because they could not drink the water of the Nile.

7:25 ²⁶⁵ 

Seven full days passed ²⁶⁶  after the Lord struck ²⁶⁷  the Nile. 8:1 ²⁶⁸  Then the Lord said to Moses, “Go to Pharaoh and tell him, ‘Thus says the Lord: “Release my people in order that they may serve me! 8:2 But if you refuse to release them, then I am going to plague ²⁶⁹  all your territory with frogs. ²⁷⁰  8:3 The Nile will swarm ²⁷¹  with frogs, and they will come up and go into your house, in your bedroom, and on your bed, and into the houses of your servants and your people, and into your ovens and your kneading troughs. ²⁷²  8:4 Frogs ²⁷³  will come up against you, your people, and all your servants.”’” ²⁷⁴ 

8:5 The Lord spoke to Moses, “Tell Aaron, ‘Extend your hand with your staff ²⁷⁵  over the rivers, over the canals, and over the ponds, and bring the frogs up over the land of Egypt.’” 8:6 So Aaron extended his hand over the waters of Egypt, and frogs ²⁷⁶  came up and covered the land of Egypt.

8:7 The magicians did the same ²⁷⁷  with their secret arts and brought up frogs on the land of Egypt too. ²⁷⁸ 

8:8 Then Pharaoh summoned ²⁷⁹  Moses and Aaron and said, “Pray ²⁸⁰  to the Lord that he may take the frogs away ²⁸¹  from me and my people, and I will release ²⁸²  the people that they may sacrifice ²⁸³  to the Lord.” 8:9 Moses said to Pharaoh, “You may have the honor over me ²⁸⁴  – when shall I pray for you, your servants, and your people, for the frogs to be removed ²⁸⁵  from you and your houses, so that ²⁸⁶  they will be left ²⁸⁷  only in the Nile?” 8:10 He said, “Tomorrow.” And Moses said, ²⁸⁸  “It will be ²⁸⁹  as you say, ²⁹⁰  so that you may know that there is no one like the Lord our God. 8:11 The frogs will depart from you, your houses, your servants, and your people; they will be left only in the Nile.”

8:12 Then Moses and Aaron went out from Pharaoh, and Moses cried ²⁹¹  to the Lord because of ²⁹²  the frogs that he had brought on ²⁹³  Pharaoh. 8:13 The Lord did as Moses asked ²⁹⁴  – the ²⁹⁵  frogs died out of the houses, the villages, and the fields. 8:14 The Egyptians ²⁹⁶  piled them in countless heaps, ²⁹⁷  and the land stank. 8:15 But when Pharaoh saw that there was relief, ²⁹⁸  he hardened ²⁹⁹  his heart and did not listen to them, just as the Lord had predicted. ³⁰⁰ 

8:16 ³⁰¹ 

The Lord said to Moses, “Tell Aaron, ‘Extend your staff and strike the dust of the ground, and it will become ³⁰²  gnats ³⁰³  throughout all the land of Egypt.’” 8:17 They did so; Aaron extended his hand with his staff, he struck the dust of the ground, and it became gnats on people ³⁰⁴  and on animals. All the dust of the ground became gnats throughout all the land of Egypt. 8:18 When ³⁰⁵  the magicians attempted ³⁰⁶  to bring forth gnats by their secret arts, they could not. So there were gnats on people and on animals. 8:19 The magicians said ³⁰⁷  to Pharaoh, “It is the finger ³⁰⁸  of God!” But Pharaoh’s heart remained hard, ³⁰⁹  and he did not listen to them, just as the Lord had predicted.

8:20 ³¹⁰ 

The Lord ³¹¹  said to Moses, “Get up early in the morning and position yourself before Pharaoh as he goes out to the water, and tell him, ‘Thus says the Lord, “Release my people that they may serve me! 8:21 If you do not release ³¹²  my people, then I am going to send ³¹³  swarms of flies ³¹⁴  on you and on your servants and on your people and in your houses. The houses of the Egyptians will be full of flies, and even the ground they stand on. ³¹⁵  8:22 But on that day I will mark off ³¹⁶  the land of Goshen, where my people are staying, ³¹⁷  so that no swarms of flies will be there, that you may know that I am the Lord in the midst of this land. ³¹⁸  8:23 I will put a division ³¹⁹  between my people and your people. This sign will take place ³²⁰  tomorrow.”’” 8:24 The Lord did so; a ³²¹  thick ³²²  swarm of flies came into ³²³  Pharaoh’s house and into the houses ³²⁴  of his servants, and throughout the whole land of Egypt the land was ruined ³²⁵  because of the swarms of flies.

8:25 Then Pharaoh summoned Moses and Aaron and said, “Go, sacrifice to your God within the land.” ³²⁶  8:26 But Moses said, “That would not be the right thing to do, ³²⁷  for the sacrifices we make ³²⁸  to the Lord our God would be an abomination ³²⁹  to the Egyptians. ³³⁰  If we make sacrifices that are an abomination to the Egyptians right before their eyes, ³³¹  will they not stone us? ³³²  8:27 We must go ³³³  on a three-day journey ³³⁴  into the desert and sacrifice ³³⁵  to the Lord our God, just as he is telling us.” ³³⁶ 

8:28 Pharaoh said, “I will release you ³³⁷  so that you may sacrifice ³³⁸  to the Lord your God in the desert. Only you must not go very far. ³³⁹  Do ³⁴⁰  pray for me.”

8:29 Moses said, “I am going to go out ³⁴¹  from you and pray to the Lord, and the swarms of flies will go away from Pharaoh, from his servants, and from his people tomorrow. Only do not let Pharaoh deal falsely again ³⁴²  by not releasing ³⁴³  the people to sacrifice to the Lord.” 8:30 So Moses went out from Pharaoh and prayed to the Lord, 8:31 and the Lord did as Moses asked ³⁴⁴  – he removed the swarms of flies from Pharaoh, from his servants, and from his people. Not one remained! 8:32 But Pharaoh hardened ³⁴⁵  his heart this time also and did not release the people.

9:1 ³⁴⁶ 

Then the Lord said to Moses, “Go to Pharaoh and tell him, ‘Thus says the Lord, the God of the Hebrews, “Release my people that they may serve me! 9:2 For if you refuse to release them ³⁴⁷  and continue holding them, ³⁴⁸  9:3 then the hand of the Lord will surely bring ³⁴⁹  a very terrible plague ³⁵⁰  on your livestock in the field, on the horses, the donkeys, the camels, ³⁵¹  the herds, and the flocks. 9:4 But the Lord will distinguish ³⁵²  between the livestock of Israel and the livestock of Egypt, and nothing ³⁵³  will die of all that the Israelites have.”’” ³⁵⁴ 

9:5 The Lord set ³⁵⁵  an appointed time, saying, “Tomorrow the Lord will do this ³⁵⁶  in the land.” 9:6 And the Lord did this ³⁵⁷  on the next day; ³⁵⁸  all ³⁵⁹  the livestock of the Egyptians ³⁶⁰  died, but of the Israelites’ livestock not one died. 9:7 Pharaoh sent representatives to investigate, ³⁶¹  and indeed, not even one of the livestock of Israel had died. But Pharaoh’s heart remained hard, ³⁶²  and he did not release the people.

9:8 ³⁶³ 

Then the Lord said to Moses and Aaron, “Take handfuls of soot ³⁶⁴  from a furnace, and have Moses throw it ³⁶⁵  into the air while Pharaoh is watching. ³⁶⁶  9:9 It will become fine dust over the whole land of Egypt and will cause boils to break out and fester ³⁶⁷  on both people and animals in all the land of Egypt.” 9:10 So they took soot from a furnace and stood before Pharaoh, Moses threw it into the air, and it caused festering boils to break out on both people and animals.

9:11 The magicians could not stand before Moses because of the boils, for boils were on the magicians and on all the Egyptians. 9:12 But the Lord hardened ³⁶⁸  Pharaoh’s heart, and he did not listen to them, just as the Lord had predicted to Moses.

9:13 ³⁶⁹ 

The Lord said ³⁷⁰  to Moses, “Get up early in the morning, stand ³⁷¹  before Pharaoh, and tell him, ‘Thus says the Lord, the God of the Hebrews: “Release my people so that they may serve me! 9:14 For this time I will send all my plagues ³⁷²  on your very self ³⁷³  and on your servants and your people, so that you may know that there is no one like me in all the earth. 9:15 For by now I could have stretched out ³⁷⁴  my hand and struck you and your people with plague, and you would have been destroyed ³⁷⁵  from the earth. 9:16 But ³⁷⁶  for this purpose I have caused you to stand: ³⁷⁷  to show you ³⁷⁸  my strength, and so that my name may be declared ³⁷⁹  in all the earth. 9:17 You are still exalting ³⁸⁰  yourself against my people by ³⁸¹  not releasing them. 9:18 I am going to cause very severe hail to rain down ³⁸²  about this time tomorrow, such hail as has never occurred ³⁸³  in Egypt from the day it was founded ³⁸⁴  until now. 9:19 So now, send instructions ³⁸⁵  to gather ³⁸⁶  your livestock and all your possessions in the fields to a safe place. Every person ³⁸⁷  or animal caught ³⁸⁸  in the field and not brought into the house – the hail will come down on them, and they will die!”’”

9:20 Those ³⁸⁹  of Pharaoh’s servants who feared the word of the Lord hurried to bring their ³⁹⁰  servants and livestock into the houses, 9:21 but those ³⁹¹  who did not take ³⁹²  the word of the Lord seriously left their servants and their cattle ³⁹³  in the field.

9:22 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Extend your hand toward the sky ³⁹⁴  that there may be ³⁹⁵  hail in all the land of Egypt, on people and on animals, ³⁹⁶  and on everything that grows ³⁹⁷  in the field in the land of Egypt.” 9:23 When Moses extended ³⁹⁸  his staff toward the sky, the Lord ³⁹⁹  sent thunder ⁴⁰⁰  and hail, and fire fell to the earth; ⁴⁰¹  so the Lord caused hail to rain down on the land of Egypt. 9:24 Hail fell ⁴⁰²  and fire mingled ⁴⁰³  with the hail; the hail was so severe ⁴⁰⁴  that there had not been any like it ⁴⁰⁵  in all the land of Egypt since it had become a nation. 9:25 The hail struck everything in the open fields, both ⁴⁰⁶  people and animals, throughout all the land of Egypt. The hail struck everything that grows ⁴⁰⁷  in the field, and it broke all the trees of the field to pieces. 9:26 Only in the land of Goshen, where the Israelites lived, was there no hail.

9:27 So Pharaoh sent and summoned Moses and Aaron and said to them, “I have sinned this time! ⁴⁰⁸  The Lord is righteous, and I and my people are guilty. ⁴⁰⁹  9:28 Pray to the Lord, for the mighty ⁴¹⁰  thunderings and hail are too much! ⁴¹¹  I will release you and you will stay no longer.” ⁴¹² 

9:29 Moses said to him, “When I leave the city ⁴¹³  I will spread my hands to the Lord, the thunder will cease, and there will be no more hail, so that you may know that the earth belongs to the Lord. ⁴¹⁴  9:30 But as for you ⁴¹⁵  and your servants, I know that you do not yet fear ⁴¹⁶  the Lord God.”

9:31 (Now the ⁴¹⁷  flax and the barley were struck ⁴¹⁸  by the hail, ⁴¹⁹  for the barley had ripened ⁴²⁰  and the flax ⁴²¹  was in bud. 9:32 But the wheat and the spelt ⁴²²  were not struck, for they are later crops.) ⁴²³ 

9:33 So Moses left Pharaoh, went out of the city, and spread out his hands to the Lord, and the thunder and the hail ceased, and the rain stopped pouring on the earth. 9:34 When Pharaoh saw ⁴²⁴  that the rain and hail and thunder ceased, he sinned again: ⁴²⁵  both he and his servants hardened ⁴²⁶  their hearts. 9:35 So Pharaoh’s heart remained hard, ⁴²⁷  and he did not release the Israelites, as the Lord had predicted through Moses.

10:1 ⁴²⁸ 

The Lord said ⁴²⁹  to Moses, “Go to Pharaoh, for I have hardened his heart and the heart of his servants, in order to display ⁴³⁰  these signs of mine before him, ⁴³¹  10:2 and in order that in the hearing of your son and your grandson you may tell ⁴³²  how I made fools ⁴³³  of the Egyptians ⁴³⁴  and about ⁴³⁵  my signs that I displayed ⁴³⁶  among them, so that you may know ⁴³⁷  that I am the Lord.”

10:3 So Moses and Aaron came to Pharaoh and told him, “Thus says the Lord, the God of the Hebrews: ‘How long do you refuse ⁴³⁸  to humble yourself before me? ⁴³⁹  Release my people so that they may serve me! 10:4 But if you refuse to release my people, I am going to bring ⁴⁴⁰  locusts ⁴⁴¹  into your territory ⁴⁴²  tomorrow. 10:5 They will cover ⁴⁴³  the surface ⁴⁴⁴  of the earth, so that you ⁴⁴⁵  will be unable to see the ground. They will eat the remainder of what escaped ⁴⁴⁶  – what is left over ⁴⁴⁷  for you – from the hail, and they will eat every tree that grows for you from the field. 10:6 They will fill your houses, the houses of your servants, and all the houses of Egypt, such as ⁴⁴⁸  neither ⁴⁴⁹  your fathers nor your grandfathers have seen since they have been ⁴⁵⁰  in the land until this day!’” Then Moses ⁴⁵¹  turned and went out from Pharaoh.

10:7 Pharaoh’s servants said to him, “How long ⁴⁵²  will this man be a menace ⁴⁵³  to us? Release the people so that they may serve the Lord their God. Do you not know ⁴⁵⁴  that Egypt is destroyed?”

10:8 So Moses and Aaron were brought back to Pharaoh, and he said to them, “Go, serve the Lord your God. Exactly who is going with you?” ⁴⁵⁵  10:9 Moses said, “We will go with our young and our old, with our sons and our daughters, and with our sheep and our cattle we will go, because we are to hold ⁴⁵⁶  a pilgrim feast for the Lord.”

10:10 He said to them, “The Lord will need to be with you ⁴⁵⁷  if I release you and your dependents! ⁴⁵⁸  Watch out! ⁴⁵⁹  Trouble is right in front of you! ⁴⁶⁰  10:11 No! ⁴⁶¹  Go, you men ⁴⁶²  only, and serve the Lord, for that ⁴⁶³  is what you want.” ⁴⁶⁴  Then Moses and Aaron ⁴⁶⁵  were driven ⁴⁶⁶  out of Pharaoh’s presence.

10:12 The Lord said to Moses, “Extend your hand over the land of Egypt for ⁴⁶⁷  the locusts, that they may come up over the land of Egypt and eat everything that grows ⁴⁶⁸  in the ground, everything that the hail has left.” 10:13 So Moses extended his staff over the land of Egypt, and then the Lord ⁴⁶⁹  brought ⁴⁷⁰  an east wind on the land all that day and all night. ⁴⁷¹  The morning came, ⁴⁷²  and the east wind had brought up ⁴⁷³  the locusts! 10:14 The locusts went up over all the land of Egypt and settled down in all the territory ⁴⁷⁴  of Egypt. It was very severe; ⁴⁷⁵  there had been no locusts like them before, nor will there be such ever again. ⁴⁷⁶  10:15 They covered ⁴⁷⁷  the surface ⁴⁷⁸  of all the ground, so that the ground became dark with them, ⁴⁷⁹  and they ate all the vegetation of the ground and all the fruit of the trees that the hail had left. Nothing green remained on the trees or on anything that grew in the fields throughout the whole land of Egypt.

10:16 ⁴⁸⁰ 

Then Pharaoh quickly ⁴⁸¹  summoned Moses and Aaron and said, “I have sinned ⁴⁸²  against the Lord your God and against you! 10:17 So now, forgive my sin this time only, and pray to the Lord your God that he would only ⁴⁸³  take this death ⁴⁸⁴  away from me.” 10:18 Moses ⁴⁸⁵  went out ⁴⁸⁶  from Pharaoh and prayed to the Lord, 10:19 and the Lord turned a very strong west wind, ⁴⁸⁷  and it picked up the locusts and blew them into the Red Sea. ⁴⁸⁸  Not one locust remained in all the territory of Egypt. 10:20 But the Lord hardened Pharaoh’s heart, and he did not release the Israelites.

10:21 ⁴⁸⁹ 

The Lord said to Moses, “Extend your hand toward heaven ⁴⁹⁰  so that there may be ⁴⁹¹  darkness over the land of Egypt, a darkness so thick it can be felt.” ⁴⁹² 

10:22 So Moses extended his hand toward heaven, and there was absolute darkness ⁴⁹³  throughout the land of Egypt for three days. ⁴⁹⁴  10:23 No one ⁴⁹⁵  could see ⁴⁹⁶  another person, and no one could rise from his place for three days. But the Israelites had light in the places where they lived.

10:24 Then Pharaoh summoned Moses and said, “Go, serve the Lord – only your flocks and herds will be detained. Even your families ⁴⁹⁷  may go with you.”

10:25 But Moses said, “Will you also ⁴⁹⁸  provide us ⁴⁹⁹  with sacrifices and burnt offerings that we may present them ⁵⁰⁰  to the Lord our God? 10:26 Our livestock must ⁵⁰¹  also go with us! Not a hoof is to be left behind! For we must take ⁵⁰²  these animals ⁵⁰³  to serve the Lord our God. Until we arrive there, we do not know what we must use to serve the Lord.” ⁵⁰⁴ 

10:27 But the Lord hardened Pharaoh’s heart, and he was not willing to release them. 10:28 Pharaoh said to him, “Go from me! ⁵⁰⁵  Watch out for yourself! Do not appear before me again, ⁵⁰⁶  for when ⁵⁰⁷  you see my face you will die!” 10:29 Moses said, “As you wish! ⁵⁰⁸  I will not see your face again.” ⁵⁰⁹ 

11:1 ⁵¹⁰ 

The Lord said to Moses, “I will bring one more plague on Pharaoh and on Egypt; after that he will release you from this place. When he releases you, ⁵¹¹  he will drive you out completely ⁵¹²  from this place. 11:2 Instruct ⁵¹³  the people that each man and each woman is to request ⁵¹⁴  from his or her neighbor ⁵¹⁵  items of silver and gold.” ⁵¹⁶ 

11:3 (Now the Lord granted the people favor with ⁵¹⁷  the Egyptians. Moreover, the man Moses was very great in the land of Egypt, respected by Pharaoh’s servants and by the Egyptian people.) ⁵¹⁸ 

11:4 Moses said, “Thus says the Lord: ‘About midnight ⁵¹⁹  I will go throughout Egypt, ⁵²⁰  11:5 and all the firstborn in the land of Egypt will die, from the firstborn son of Pharaoh ⁵²¹  who sits on his throne, to the firstborn son of the slave girl who is at her hand mill, and all the firstborn of the cattle. 11:6 There will be a great cry throughout the whole land of Egypt, such as there has never been, ⁵²²  nor ever will be again. ⁵²³  11:7 But against any of the Israelites not even a dog will bark ⁵²⁴  against either people or animals, ⁵²⁵  so that you may know that the Lord distinguishes ⁵²⁶  between Egypt and Israel.’ 11:8 All these your servants will come down to me and bow down ⁵²⁷  to me, saying, ‘Go, you and all the people who follow ⁵²⁸  you,’ and after that I will go out.” Then Moses ⁵²⁹  went out from Pharaoh in great anger.

11:9 The Lord said to Moses, “Pharaoh will not listen to you, so that my wonders ⁵³⁰  may be multiplied in the land of Egypt.”

11:10 So Moses and Aaron did all these wonders before Pharaoh, but the Lord hardened Pharaoh’s heart, and he did not release the Israelites from his land.

12:1 ⁵³¹ 

The Lord said ⁵³²  to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt, ⁵³³  12:2 “This month is to be your beginning of months; it will be your first month of the year. ⁵³⁴  12:3 Tell the whole community of Israel, ‘In the tenth day of this month they each ⁵³⁵  must take a lamb ⁵³⁶  for themselves according to their families ⁵³⁷  – a lamb for each household. ⁵³⁸  12:4 If any household is too small ⁵³⁹  for a lamb, ⁵⁴⁰  the man ⁵⁴¹  and his next-door neighbor ⁵⁴²  are to take ⁵⁴³  a lamb according to the number of people – you will make your count for the lamb according to how much each one can eat. ⁵⁴⁴  12:5 Your lamb must be ⁵⁴⁵  perfect, ⁵⁴⁶  a male, one year old; ⁵⁴⁷  you may take ⁵⁴⁸  it from the sheep or from the goats. 12:6 You must care for it ⁵⁴⁹  until the fourteenth day of this month, and then the whole community ⁵⁵⁰  of Israel will kill it around sundown. ⁵⁵¹  12:7 They will take some of the blood and put it on the two side posts and top of the doorframe of the houses where they will eat it. 12:8 They will eat the meat the same night; ⁵⁵²  they will eat it roasted over the fire with bread made without yeast ⁵⁵³  and with bitter herbs. 12:9 Do not eat it raw ⁵⁵⁴  or boiled in water, but roast it over the fire with its head, its legs, and its entrails. 12:10 You must leave nothing until morning, but you must burn with fire whatever remains of it until morning. 12:11 This is how you are to eat it – dressed to travel, ⁵⁵⁵  your sandals on your feet, and your staff in your hand. You are to eat it in haste. It is the Lord’s Passover. ⁵⁵⁶ 

12:12 I will pass through ⁵⁵⁷  the land of Egypt in the same ⁵⁵⁸  night, and I will attack ⁵⁵⁹  all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both of humans and of animals, ⁵⁶⁰  and on all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgment. ⁵⁶¹  I am the Lord. 12:13 The blood will be a sign for you on the houses where you are, so that when I see ⁵⁶²  the blood I will pass over you, ⁵⁶³  and this plague ⁵⁶⁴  will not fall on you to destroy you ⁵⁶⁵  when I attack ⁵⁶⁶  the land of Egypt. ⁵⁶⁷ 

12:14 This day will become ⁵⁶⁸  a memorial ⁵⁶⁹  for you, and you will celebrate it as a festival ⁵⁷⁰  to the Lord – you will celebrate it perpetually as a lasting ordinance. ⁵⁷¹  12:15 For seven days ⁵⁷²  you must eat ⁵⁷³  bread made without yeast. ⁵⁷⁴  Surely ⁵⁷⁵  on the first day you must put away yeast from your houses because anyone who eats bread made with yeast ⁵⁷⁶  from the first day to the seventh day will be cut off ⁵⁷⁷  from Israel.

12:16 On the first day there will be a holy convocation, ⁵⁷⁸  and on the seventh day there will be a holy convocation for you. You must do no work of any kind ⁵⁷⁹  on them, only what every person will eat – that alone may be prepared for you. 12:17 So you will keep the Feast of Unleavened Bread, because on this very ⁵⁸⁰  day I brought your regiments ⁵⁸¹  out from the land of Egypt, and so you must keep this day perpetually as a lasting ordinance. ⁵⁸²  12:18 In the first month, ⁵⁸³  from the fourteenth day of the month, in the evening, you will eat bread made without yeast until the twenty-first day of the month in the evening. 12:19 For seven days ⁵⁸⁴  yeast must not be found in your houses, for whoever eats what is made with yeast – that person ⁵⁸⁵  will be cut off from the community of Israel, whether a foreigner ⁵⁸⁶  or one born in the land. 12:20 You will not eat anything made with yeast; in all the places where you live you must eat bread made without yeast.’”

12:21 Then Moses summoned all the elders of Israel, and told them, “Go and select ⁵⁸⁷  for yourselves a lamb or young goat ⁵⁸⁸  for your families, and kill the Passover animals. ⁵⁸⁹  12:22 Take a branch of hyssop, ⁵⁹⁰  dip it in the blood that is in the basin, ⁵⁹¹  and apply to the top of the doorframe and the two side posts some of the blood that is in the basin. Not one of you is to go out ⁵⁹²  the door of his house until morning. 12:23 For the Lord will pass through to strike Egypt, and when he sees ⁵⁹³  the blood on the top of the doorframe and the two side posts, then the Lord will pass over the door, and he will not permit the destroyer ⁵⁹⁴  to enter your houses to strike you. ⁵⁹⁵  12:24 You must observe this event as an ordinance for you and for your children forever. 12:25 When you enter the land that the Lord will give to you, just as he said, you must observe ⁵⁹⁶  this ceremony. 12:26 When your children ask you, ‘What does this ceremony mean to you?’ ⁵⁹⁷  – 12:27 then you will say, ‘It is the sacrifice ⁵⁹⁸  of the Lord’s Passover, when he passed over the houses of the Israelites in Egypt, when he struck ⁵⁹⁹  Egypt and delivered our households.’” The people bowed down low ⁶⁰⁰  to the ground, 12:28 and the Israelites went away and did exactly as the Lord had commanded Moses and Aaron. ⁶⁰¹ 

12:29 ⁶⁰² 

It happened ⁶⁰³  at midnight – the Lord attacked all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, from the firstborn of Pharaoh who sat on his throne to the firstborn of the captive who was in the prison, and all the firstborn of the cattle. 12:30 Pharaoh got up ⁶⁰⁴  in the night, ⁶⁰⁵  along with all his servants and all Egypt, and there was a great cry in Egypt, for there was no house ⁶⁰⁶  in which there was not someone dead. 12:31 Pharaoh ⁶⁰⁷  summoned Moses and Aaron in the night and said, “Get up, get out ⁶⁰⁸  from among my people, both you and the Israelites! Go, serve the Lord as you have requested! ⁶⁰⁹  12:32 Also, take your flocks and your herds, just as you have requested, and leave. But bless me also.” ⁶¹⁰ 

12:33 The Egyptians were urging ⁶¹¹  the people on, in order to send them out of the land quickly, ⁶¹²  for they were saying, “We are all dead!” 12:34 So the people took their dough before the yeast was added, ⁶¹³  with their kneading troughs bound up in their clothing on their shoulders. 12:35 Now the Israelites had done ⁶¹⁴  as Moses told them – they had requested from the Egyptians ⁶¹⁵  silver and gold items and clothing. 12:36 The Lord ⁶¹⁶  gave the people favor ⁶¹⁷  in the sight of the Egyptians, and they gave them whatever they wanted, ⁶¹⁸  and so they plundered Egypt. ⁶¹⁹ 

12:37 The Israelites journeyed ⁶²⁰  from Rameses ⁶²¹  to Sukkoth. There were about 600,000 men ⁶²²  on foot, plus their dependants. ⁶²³  12:38 A mixed multitude ⁶²⁴  also went up with them, and flocks and herds – a very large number of cattle. ⁶²⁵  12:39 They baked cakes of bread without yeast using the dough they had brought from Egypt, for it was made without yeast – because they were thrust out ⁶²⁶  of Egypt and were not able to delay, they ⁶²⁷  could not prepare ⁶²⁸  food for themselves either.

12:40 Now the length of time the Israelites lived in Egypt was 430 years. ⁶²⁹  12:41 At the end of the 430 years, on the very day, all the regiments ⁶³⁰  of the Lord went out of the land of Egypt. 12:42 It was a night of vigil for the Lord to bring them out from the land of Egypt, ⁶³¹  and so ⁶³²  on this night all Israel is to keep the vigil ⁶³³  to the Lord for generations to come.

12:43 ⁶³⁴ 

The Lord said to Moses and Aaron, “This is the ordinance of the Passover. No foreigner may ⁶³⁵  share in eating it. ⁶³⁶  12:44 But everyone’s servant who is bought for money, after you have circumcised him, may eat it. 12:45 A foreigner and a hired worker must not eat it. 12:46 It must be eaten in one house; you must not bring any of the meat outside the house, and you must not break a bone of it. 12:47 The whole community of Israel must observe it.

12:48 “When a foreigner lives ⁶³⁷  with you and wants to observe the Passover to the Lord, all his males must be circumcised, ⁶³⁸  and then he may approach and observe it, and he will be like one who is born in the land ⁶³⁹  – but no uncircumcised person may eat of it. 12:49 The same law will apply ⁶⁴⁰  to the person who is native-born and to the foreigner who lives among you.”

12:50 So all the Israelites did exactly as the Lord commanded Moses and Aaron. ⁶⁴¹  12:51 And on this very day the Lord brought the Israelites out of the land of Egypt by their regiments.

13:1 ⁶⁴² 

The Lord spoke ⁶⁴³  to Moses: 13:2 “Set apart ⁶⁴⁴  to me every firstborn male – the first offspring of every womb ⁶⁴⁵  among the Israelites, whether human or animal; it is mine.” ⁶⁴⁶ 

13:3 Moses said to the people, “Remember ⁶⁴⁷  this day on which you came out from Egypt, from the place where you were enslaved, ⁶⁴⁸  for the Lord brought you out of there ⁶⁴⁹  with a mighty hand – and no bread made with yeast may be eaten. ⁶⁵⁰  13:4 On this day, ⁶⁵¹  in the month of Abib, ⁶⁵²  you are going out. ⁶⁵³ 

13:5 When ⁶⁵⁴  the Lord brings you to the land of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Hivites, and Jebusites, which he swore to your fathers to give you, a land flowing with milk and honey, ⁶⁵⁵  then you will keep ⁶⁵⁶  this ceremony ⁶⁵⁷  in this month. 13:6 For seven days ⁶⁵⁸  you must eat ⁶⁵⁹  bread made without yeast, and on the seventh day there is to be ⁶⁶⁰  a festival to the Lord. 13:7 Bread made without yeast must be eaten ⁶⁶¹  for seven days; ⁶⁶²  no bread made with yeast shall be seen ⁶⁶³  among you, and you must have no yeast among you within any of your borders.

13:8 You are to tell your son ⁶⁶⁴  on that day, ⁶⁶⁵  ‘It is ⁶⁶⁶  because of what ⁶⁶⁷  the Lord did for me when I came out of Egypt.’ 13:9 ⁶⁶⁸  It ⁶⁶⁹  will be a sign ⁶⁷⁰  for you on your hand and a memorial ⁶⁷¹  on your forehead, ⁶⁷²  so that the law of the Lord may be ⁶⁷³  in your mouth, ⁶⁷⁴  for ⁶⁷⁵  with a mighty hand the Lord brought you out of Egypt. 13:10 So you must keep ⁶⁷⁶  this ordinance at its appointed time from year to year. ⁶⁷⁷ 

13:11 When the Lord brings you ⁶⁷⁸  into the land of the Canaanites, ⁶⁷⁹  as he swore to you and to your fathers, and gives it ⁶⁸⁰  to you, 13:12 then you must give over ⁶⁸¹  to the Lord the first offspring of every womb. ⁶⁸²  Every firstling ⁶⁸³  of a beast that you have ⁶⁸⁴  – the males will be the Lord’s. ⁶⁸⁵  13:13 Every firstling ⁶⁸⁶  of a donkey you must redeem ⁶⁸⁷  with a lamb, and if you do not redeem it, then you must break its neck. ⁶⁸⁸  Every firstborn of ⁶⁸⁹  your sons you must redeem.

13:14 ⁶⁹⁰ 

In the future, ⁶⁹¹  when your son asks you ⁶⁹²  ‘What is this?’ ⁶⁹³  you are to tell him, ‘With a mighty hand ⁶⁹⁴  the Lord brought us out from Egypt, from the land of slavery. ⁶⁹⁵  13:15 When Pharaoh stubbornly refused ⁶⁹⁶  to release us, the Lord killed all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, from the firstborn of people to the firstborn of animals. ⁶⁹⁷  That is why I am sacrificing ⁶⁹⁸  to the Lord the first male offspring of every womb, but all my firstborn sons I redeem.’ 13:16 It will be for a sign on your hand and for frontlets ⁶⁹⁹  on your forehead, for with a mighty hand the Lord brought us out of Egypt.” ⁷⁰⁰ 

13:17 ⁷⁰¹ 

When Pharaoh released ⁷⁰²  the people, God did not lead them ⁷⁰³  by the way to the land ⁷⁰⁴  of the Philistines, ⁷⁰⁵  although ⁷⁰⁶  that was nearby, for God said, ⁷⁰⁷  “Lest ⁷⁰⁸  the people change their minds ⁷⁰⁹  and return to Egypt when they experience ⁷¹⁰  war.” 13:18 So God brought the people around by the way of the desert to the Red Sea, ⁷¹¹  and the Israelites went up from the land of Egypt prepared for battle. ⁷¹² 

13:19 Moses took the bones of Joseph with him, for Joseph ⁷¹³  had made the Israelites solemnly swear, ⁷¹⁴  “God will surely attend ⁷¹⁵  to you, and you will carry ⁷¹⁶  my bones up from this place with you.”

13:20 They journeyed from Sukkoth and camped in Etham, on the edge of the desert. 13:21 Now the Lord was going before them by day in a pillar of cloud to lead them in the way, and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light, ⁷¹⁷  so that they could ⁷¹⁸  travel day or night. ⁷¹⁹  13:22 He did not remove the pillar of cloud by day nor the pillar of fire by night from before the people. ⁷²⁰ 

14:1 ⁷²¹ 

The Lord spoke to Moses: 14:2 “Tell the Israelites that they must turn and camp ⁷²²  before Pi-hahiroth, between Migdol and the sea; you are to camp by the sea before Baal Zephon opposite it. ⁷²³  14:3 Pharaoh will think ⁷²⁴  regarding the Israelites, ‘They are wandering around confused ⁷²⁵  in the land – the desert has closed in on them.’ ⁷²⁶  14:4 I will harden ⁷²⁷  Pharaoh’s heart, and he will chase after them. I will gain honor ⁷²⁸  because of Pharaoh and because of all his army, and the Egyptians will know ⁷²⁹  that I am the Lord.” So this is what they did. ⁷³⁰ 

14:5 When it was reported ⁷³¹  to the king of Egypt that the people had fled, ⁷³²  the heart of Pharaoh and his servants was turned against the people, and the king and his servants said, ⁷³³  “What in the world have we done? ⁷³⁴  For we have released the people of Israel ⁷³⁵  from serving us!” 14:6 Then he prepared ⁷³⁶  his chariots and took his army ⁷³⁷  with him. 14:7 He took six hundred select ⁷³⁸  chariots, and all the rest of the chariots of Egypt, ⁷³⁹  and officers ⁷⁴⁰  on all of them.

14:8 But the Lord hardened the heart of Pharaoh king of Egypt, and he chased after the Israelites. Now the Israelites were going out defiantly. ⁷⁴¹  14:9 The Egyptians chased after them, and all the horses and chariots of Pharaoh and his horsemen and his army overtook them camping by the sea, beside Pi-hahiroth, before Baal-Zephon. 14:10 When ⁷⁴²  Pharaoh got closer, ⁷⁴³  the Israelites looked up, ⁷⁴⁴  and there were the Egyptians marching after them, ⁷⁴⁵  and they were terrified. ⁷⁴⁶  The Israelites cried out to the Lord, ⁷⁴⁷  14:11 and they said to Moses, “Is it because there are no graves in Egypt that you have taken us away to die in the desert? ⁷⁴⁸  What in the world ⁷⁴⁹  have you done to us by bringing ⁷⁵⁰  us out of Egypt? 14:12 Isn’t this what we told you ⁷⁵¹  in Egypt, ‘Leave us alone so that we can serve the Egyptians, ⁷⁵²  because it is better for us to serve ⁷⁵³  the Egyptians than to die in the desert!’” ⁷⁵⁴ 

14:13 Moses said to the people, “Do not fear! ⁷⁵⁵  Stand firm ⁷⁵⁶  and see ⁷⁵⁷  the salvation ⁷⁵⁸  of the Lord that he will provide ⁷⁵⁹  for you today; for the Egyptians that you see today you will never, ever see again. ⁷⁶⁰  14:14 The Lord ⁷⁶¹  will fight for you, and you can be still.” ⁷⁶² 

14:15 The Lord said to Moses, “Why do you cry out to me? Tell the Israelites to move on. ⁷⁶³  14:16 And as for you, ⁷⁶⁴  lift up your staff and extend your hand toward the sea and divide it, so that ⁷⁶⁵  the Israelites may go through the middle of the sea on dry ground. 14:17 And as for me, I am going to harden ⁷⁶⁶  the hearts of the Egyptians so that ⁷⁶⁷  they will come after them, that I may be honored ⁷⁶⁸  because ⁷⁶⁹  of Pharaoh and his army and his chariots and his horsemen. 14:18 And the Egyptians will know ⁷⁷⁰  that I am the Lord when I have gained my honor ⁷⁷¹  because of Pharaoh, his chariots, and his horsemen.”

14:19 The angel of God, who was going before the camp of Israel, moved and went behind them, and the pillar ⁷⁷²  of cloud moved from before them and stood behind them. 14:20 It came between the Egyptian camp and the Israelite camp; it was a dark cloud ⁷⁷³  and it lit up the night so that one camp did not come near the other ⁷⁷⁴  the whole night. ⁷⁷⁵  14:21 Moses stretched out his hand toward the sea, and the Lord drove the sea apart ⁷⁷⁶  by a strong east wind all that night, and he made the sea into dry land, and the water was divided. 14:22 So the Israelites went through the middle of the sea on dry ground, the water forming a wall ⁷⁷⁷  for them on their right and on their left.

14:23 The Egyptians chased them and followed them into the middle of the sea – all the horses of Pharaoh, his chariots, and his horsemen. 14:24 In the morning watch ⁷⁷⁸  the Lord looked down ⁷⁷⁹  on the Egyptian army ⁷⁸⁰  through the pillar of fire and cloud, and he threw the Egyptian army ⁷⁸¹  into a panic. ⁷⁸²  14:25 He jammed ⁷⁸³  the wheels of their chariots so that they had difficulty driving, ⁷⁸⁴  and the Egyptians said, “Let’s flee ⁷⁸⁵  from Israel, for the Lord fights ⁷⁸⁶  for them against Egypt!”

14:26 The Lord said to Moses, “Extend your hand toward the sea, so that the waters may flow ⁷⁸⁷  back on the Egyptians, on their chariots, and on their horsemen!” 14:27 So Moses extended his hand toward the sea, and the sea returned to its normal state ⁷⁸⁸  when the sun began to rise. ⁷⁸⁹  Now the Egyptians were fleeing ⁷⁹⁰  before it, but the Lord overthrew ⁷⁹¹  the Egyptians in the middle of the sea. 14:28 The water returned and covered the chariots and the horsemen and all the army of Pharaoh that was coming after the Israelites into the sea ⁷⁹²  – not so much as one of them survived! ⁷⁹³  14:29 But the Israelites walked on dry ground in the middle of the sea, the water forming a wall for them on their right and on their left. 14:30 So the Lord saved ⁷⁹⁴  Israel on that day from the power ⁷⁹⁵  of the Egyptians, and Israel saw the Egyptians dead ⁷⁹⁶  on the shore of the sea. 14:31 When Israel saw ⁷⁹⁷  the great power ⁷⁹⁸  that the Lord had exercised ⁷⁹⁹  over the Egyptians, they ⁸⁰⁰  feared the Lord, and they believed in ⁸⁰¹  the Lord and in his servant Moses. ⁸⁰²