78:43 when he performed his awesome deeds 1 in Egypt,
and his acts of judgment 2 in the region of Zoan.
78:44 He turned their rivers into blood,
and they could not drink from their streams.
78:45 He sent swarms of biting insects against them, 3
as well as frogs that overran their land. 4
78:46 He gave their crops to the grasshopper,
the fruit of their labor to the locust.
78:47 He destroyed their vines with hail,
and their sycamore-fig trees with driving rain.
78:48 He rained hail down on their cattle, 5
and hurled lightning bolts down on their livestock. 6
78:49 His raging anger lashed out against them, 7
He sent fury, rage, and trouble
as messengers who bring disaster. 8
78:50 He sent his anger in full force; 9
he did not spare them from death;
he handed their lives over to destruction. 10
78:51 He struck down all the firstborn in Egypt,
the firstfruits of their reproductive power 11 in the tents of Ham.
78:52 Yet he brought out his people like sheep;
he led them through the wilderness like a flock.
78:53 He guided them safely along,
while the sea covered their enemies.
78:54 He brought them to the border of his holy land,
to this mountainous land 12 which his right hand 13 acquired.
78:55 He drove the nations out from before them;
he assigned them their tribal allotments 14
and allowed the tribes of Israel to settle down. 15
78:56 Yet they challenged and defied 16 the sovereign God, 17
and did not obey 18 his commands. 19
78:57 They were unfaithful 20 and acted as treacherously as 21 their ancestors;
they were as unreliable as a malfunctioning bow. 22
78:58 They made him angry with their pagan shrines, 23
and made him jealous with their idols.
78:59 God heard and was angry;
he completely rejected Israel.
78:60 He abandoned 24 the sanctuary at Shiloh,
the tent where he lived among men.
78:61 He allowed the symbol of his strong presence to be captured; 25
he gave the symbol of his splendor 26 into the hand of the enemy. 27
78:62 He delivered his people over to the sword,
and was angry with his chosen nation. 28
78:63 Fire consumed their 29 young men,
and their 30 virgins remained unmarried. 31
78:64 Their 32 priests fell by the sword,
but their 33 widows did not weep. 34
78:65 But then the Lord awoke from his sleep; 35
he was like a warrior in a drunken rage. 36
78:66 He drove his enemies back;
he made them a permanent target for insults. 37
78:67 He rejected the tent of Joseph;
he did not choose the tribe of Ephraim.
78:68 He chose the tribe of Judah,
and Mount Zion, which he loves.
78:69 He made his sanctuary as enduring as the heavens above; 38
as secure as the earth, which he established permanently. 39
78:70 He chose David, his servant,
and took him from the sheepfolds.
78:71 He took him away from following the mother sheep, 40
and made him the shepherd of Jacob, his people,
and of Israel, his chosen nation. 41
78:72 David 42 cared for them with pure motives; 43
he led them with skill. 44
105:27 They executed his miraculous signs among them, 45
and his amazing deeds in the land of Ham.
105:28 He made it dark; 46
they did not disobey his orders. 47
105:29 He turned their water into blood,
and killed their fish.
105:30 Their land was overrun by frogs,
which even got into the rooms of their kings.
105:31 He ordered flies to come; 48
gnats invaded their whole territory.
105:32 He sent hail along with the rain; 49
there was lightning in their land. 50
105:33 He destroyed their vines and fig trees,
and broke the trees throughout their territory.
105:34 He ordered locusts to come, 51
innumerable grasshoppers.
105:35 They ate all the vegetation in their land,
and devoured the crops of their fields. 52
105:36 He struck down all the firstborn in their land,
the firstfruits of their reproductive power. 53
105:37 He brought his people 54 out enriched 55 with silver and gold;
none of his tribes stumbled.
105:38 Egypt was happy when they left,
for they were afraid of them. 56
105:39 He spread out a cloud for a cover, 57
and provided a fire to light up the night.
105:40 They asked for food, 58 and he sent quails;
he satisfied them with food from the sky. 59
105:41 He opened up a rock and water flowed out;
a river ran through dry regions.
105:42 Yes, 60 he remembered the sacred promise 61
he made to Abraham his servant.
105:43 When he led his people out, they rejoiced;
his chosen ones shouted with joy. 62
105:44 He handed the territory of nations over to them,
and they took possession of what other peoples had produced, 63
105:45 so that they might keep his commands
and obey 64 his laws.
Praise the Lord!
7:1 So the Lord said to Moses, “See, I have made you like God 65 to Pharaoh, and your brother Aaron will be your prophet. 66 7:2 You are to speak 67 everything I command you, 68 and your brother Aaron is to tell Pharaoh that he must release 69 the Israelites from his land. 7:3 But I will harden 70 Pharaoh’s heart, and although I will multiply 71 my signs and my wonders in the land of Egypt, 7:4 Pharaoh will not listen to you. 72 I will reach into 73 Egypt and bring out my regiments, 74 my people the Israelites, from the land of Egypt with great acts of judgment. 7:5 Then 75 the Egyptians will know that I am the Lord, when I extend my hand 76 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 77 to Moses and Aaron, 78 7:9 “When Pharaoh says to you, ‘Do 79 a miracle,’ and you say to Aaron, ‘Take your staff and throw it down 80 before Pharaoh,’ it will become 81 a snake.” 7:10 When 82 Moses and Aaron went to Pharaoh, they did so, just as the Lord had commanded them – Aaron threw 83 down his staff before Pharaoh and his servants and it became a snake. 84 7:11 Then Pharaoh also summoned wise men and sorcerers, 85 and the magicians 86 of Egypt by their secret arts 87 did the same thing. 7:12 Each man 88 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, 89 and he did not listen to them, just as the Lord had predicted.
7:14 90 The Lord said to Moses, “Pharaoh’s heart is hard; 91 he refuses to release 92 the people. 7:15 Go to Pharaoh in the morning when 93 he goes out to the water. Position yourself 94 to meet him by the edge of the Nile, 95 and take 96 in your hand the staff 97 that was turned into a snake. 7:16 Tell him, ‘The Lord, the God of the Hebrews, has sent me to you to say, 98 “Release my people, that they may serve me 99 in the desert!” But until now 100 you have not listened. 101 7:17 Thus says the Lord: “By this you will know that I am the Lord: I am going to strike 102 the water of the Nile with the staff that is in my hand, and it will be turned into blood. 103 7:18 Fish 104 in the Nile will die, the Nile will stink, and the Egyptians will be unable 105 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, 106 over their ponds, and over all their reservoirs 107 – so that it becomes 108 blood.’ There will be blood everywhere in 109 the land of Egypt, even in wooden and stone containers.” 7:20 Moses and Aaron did so, 110 just as the Lord had commanded. Moses raised 111 the staff 112 and struck the water that was in the Nile right before the eyes 113 of Pharaoh and his servants, 114 and all the water that was in the Nile was turned to blood. 115 7:21 When the fish 116 that were in the Nile died, the Nile began 117 to stink, so that the Egyptians could not drink water from the Nile. There was blood 118 everywhere in the land of Egypt! 7:22 But the magicians of Egypt did the same 119 by their secret arts, and so 120 Pharaoh’s heart remained hard, 121 and he refused to listen to Moses and Aaron 122 – just as the Lord had predicted. 7:23 And Pharaoh turned and went into his house. He did not pay any attention to this. 123 7:24 All the Egyptians dug around the Nile for water to drink, 124 because they could not drink the water of the Nile.
7:25 125 Seven full days passed 126 after the Lord struck 127 the Nile. 8:1 (7:26) 128 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 129 all your territory with frogs. 130 8:3 The Nile will swarm 131 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. 132 8:4 Frogs 133 will come up against you, your people, and all your servants.”’” 134
8:5 The Lord spoke to Moses, “Tell Aaron, ‘Extend your hand with your staff 135 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 136 came up and covered the land of Egypt.
8:7 The magicians did the same 137 with their secret arts and brought up frogs on the land of Egypt too. 138
8:8 Then Pharaoh summoned 139 Moses and Aaron and said, “Pray 140 to the Lord that he may take the frogs away 141 from me and my people, and I will release 142 the people that they may sacrifice 143 to the Lord.” 8:9 Moses said to Pharaoh, “You may have the honor over me 144 – when shall I pray for you, your servants, and your people, for the frogs to be removed 145 from you and your houses, so that 146 they will be left 147 only in the Nile?” 8:10 He said, “Tomorrow.” And Moses said, 148 “It will be 149 as you say, 150 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 151 to the Lord because of 152 the frogs that he had brought on 153 Pharaoh. 8:13 The Lord did as Moses asked 154 – the 155 frogs died out of the houses, the villages, and the fields. 8:14 The Egyptians 156 piled them in countless heaps, 157 and the land stank. 8:15 But when Pharaoh saw that there was relief, 158 he hardened 159 his heart and did not listen to them, just as the Lord had predicted. 160
8:16 161 The Lord said to Moses, “Tell Aaron, ‘Extend your staff and strike the dust of the ground, and it will become 162 gnats 163 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 164 and on animals. All the dust of the ground became gnats throughout all the land of Egypt. 8:18 When 165 the magicians attempted 166 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 167 to Pharaoh, “It is the finger 168 of God!” But Pharaoh’s heart remained hard, 169 and he did not listen to them, just as the Lord had predicted.
8:20 170 The Lord 171 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 172 my people, then I am going to send 173 swarms of flies 174 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. 175 8:22 But on that day I will mark off 176 the land of Goshen, where my people are staying, 177 so that no swarms of flies will be there, that you may know that I am the Lord in the midst of this land. 178 8:23 I will put a division 179 between my people and your people. This sign will take place 180 tomorrow.”’” 8:24 The Lord did so; a 181 thick 182 swarm of flies came into 183 Pharaoh’s house and into the houses 184 of his servants, and throughout the whole land of Egypt the land was ruined 185 because of the swarms of flies.
8:25 Then Pharaoh summoned Moses and Aaron and said, “Go, sacrifice to your God within the land.” 186 8:26 But Moses said, “That would not be the right thing to do, 187 for the sacrifices we make 188 to the Lord our God would be an abomination 189 to the Egyptians. 190 If we make sacrifices that are an abomination to the Egyptians right before their eyes, 191 will they not stone us? 192 8:27 We must go 193 on a three-day journey 194 into the desert and sacrifice 195 to the Lord our God, just as he is telling us.” 196
8:28 Pharaoh said, “I will release you 197 so that you may sacrifice 198 to the Lord your God in the desert. Only you must not go very far. 199 Do 200 pray for me.”
8:29 Moses said, “I am going to go out 201 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 202 by not releasing 203 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 204 – he removed the swarms of flies from Pharaoh, from his servants, and from his people. Not one remained! 8:32 But Pharaoh hardened 205 his heart this time also and did not release the people.
9:1 206 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 207 and continue holding them, 208 9:3 then the hand of the Lord will surely bring 209 a very terrible plague 210 on your livestock in the field, on the horses, the donkeys, the camels, 211 the herds, and the flocks. 9:4 But the Lord will distinguish 212 between the livestock of Israel and the livestock of Egypt, and nothing 213 will die of all that the Israelites have.”’” 214
9:5 The Lord set 215 an appointed time, saying, “Tomorrow the Lord will do this 216 in the land.” 9:6 And the Lord did this 217 on the next day; 218 all 219 the livestock of the Egyptians 220 died, but of the Israelites’ livestock not one died. 9:7 Pharaoh sent representatives to investigate, 221 and indeed, not even one of the livestock of Israel had died. But Pharaoh’s heart remained hard, 222 and he did not release the people.
9:8 223 Then the Lord said to Moses and Aaron, “Take handfuls of soot 224 from a furnace, and have Moses throw it 225 into the air while Pharaoh is watching. 226 9:9 It will become fine dust over the whole land of Egypt and will cause boils to break out and fester 227 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 228 Pharaoh’s heart, and he did not listen to them, just as the Lord had predicted to Moses.
9:13 229 The Lord said 230 to Moses, “Get up early in the morning, stand 231 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 232 on your very self 233 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 234 my hand and struck you and your people with plague, and you would have been destroyed 235 from the earth. 9:16 But 236 for this purpose I have caused you to stand: 237 to show you 238 my strength, and so that my name may be declared 239 in all the earth. 9:17 You are still exalting 240 yourself against my people by 241 not releasing them. 9:18 I am going to cause very severe hail to rain down 242 about this time tomorrow, such hail as has never occurred 243 in Egypt from the day it was founded 244 until now. 9:19 So now, send instructions 245 to gather 246 your livestock and all your possessions in the fields to a safe place. Every person 247 or animal caught 248 in the field and not brought into the house – the hail will come down on them, and they will die!”’”
9:20 Those 249 of Pharaoh’s servants who feared the word of the Lord hurried to bring their 250 servants and livestock into the houses, 9:21 but those 251 who did not take 252 the word of the Lord seriously left their servants and their cattle 253 in the field.
9:22 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Extend your hand toward the sky 254 that there may be 255 hail in all the land of Egypt, on people and on animals, 256 and on everything that grows 257 in the field in the land of Egypt.” 9:23 When Moses extended 258 his staff toward the sky, the Lord 259 sent thunder 260 and hail, and fire fell to the earth; 261 so the Lord caused hail to rain down on the land of Egypt. 9:24 Hail fell 262 and fire mingled 263 with the hail; the hail was so severe 264 that there had not been any like it 265 in all the land of Egypt since it had become a nation. 9:25 The hail struck everything in the open fields, both 266 people and animals, throughout all the land of Egypt. The hail struck everything that grows 267 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! 268 The Lord is righteous, and I and my people are guilty. 269 9:28 Pray to the Lord, for the mighty 270 thunderings and hail are too much! 271 I will release you and you will stay no longer.” 272
9:29 Moses said to him, “When I leave the city 273 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. 274 9:30 But as for you 275 and your servants, I know that you do not yet fear 276 the Lord God.”
9:31 (Now the 277 flax and the barley were struck 278 by the hail, 279 for the barley had ripened 280 and the flax 281 was in bud. 9:32 But the wheat and the spelt 282 were not struck, for they are later crops.) 283
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 284 that the rain and hail and thunder ceased, he sinned again: 285 both he and his servants hardened 286 their hearts. 9:35 So Pharaoh’s heart remained hard, 287 and he did not release the Israelites, as the Lord had predicted through Moses.
10:1 288 The Lord said 289 to Moses, “Go to Pharaoh, for I have hardened his heart and the heart of his servants, in order to display 290 these signs of mine before him, 291 10:2 and in order that in the hearing of your son and your grandson you may tell 292 how I made fools 293 of the Egyptians 294 and about 295 my signs that I displayed 296 among them, so that you may know 297 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 298 to humble yourself before me? 299 Release my people so that they may serve me! 10:4 But if you refuse to release my people, I am going to bring 300 locusts 301 into your territory 302 tomorrow. 10:5 They will cover 303 the surface 304 of the earth, so that you 305 will be unable to see the ground. They will eat the remainder of what escaped 306 – what is left over 307 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 308 neither 309 your fathers nor your grandfathers have seen since they have been 310 in the land until this day!’” Then Moses 311 turned and went out from Pharaoh.
10:7 Pharaoh’s servants said to him, “How long 312 will this man be a menace 313 to us? Release the people so that they may serve the Lord their God. Do you not know 314 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?” 315 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 316 a pilgrim feast for the Lord.”
10:10 He said to them, “The Lord will need to be with you 317 if I release you and your dependents! 318 Watch out! 319 Trouble is right in front of you! 320 10:11 No! 321 Go, you men 322 only, and serve the Lord, for that 323 is what you want.” 324 Then Moses and Aaron 325 were driven 326 out of Pharaoh’s presence.
10:12 The Lord said to Moses, “Extend your hand over the land of Egypt for 327 the locusts, that they may come up over the land of Egypt and eat everything that grows 328 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 329 brought 330 an east wind on the land all that day and all night. 331 The morning came, 332 and the east wind had brought up 333 the locusts! 10:14 The locusts went up over all the land of Egypt and settled down in all the territory 334 of Egypt. It was very severe; 335 there had been no locusts like them before, nor will there be such ever again. 336 10:15 They covered 337 the surface 338 of all the ground, so that the ground became dark with them, 339 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.
10:16 340 Then Pharaoh quickly 341 summoned Moses and Aaron and said, “I have sinned 342 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 343 take this death 344 away from me.” 10:18 Moses 345 went out 346 from Pharaoh and prayed to the Lord, 10:19 and the Lord turned a very strong west wind, 347 and it picked up the locusts and blew them into the Red Sea. 348 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.
10:21 349 The Lord said to Moses, “Extend your hand toward heaven 350 so that there may be 351 darkness over the land of Egypt, a darkness so thick it can be felt.” 352
10:22 So Moses extended his hand toward heaven, and there was absolute darkness 353 throughout the land of Egypt for three days. 354 10:23 No one 355 could see 356 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 357 may go with you.”
10:25 But Moses said, “Will you also 358 provide us 359 with sacrifices and burnt offerings that we may present them 360 to the Lord our God? 10:26 Our livestock must 361 also go with us! Not a hoof is to be left behind! For we must take 362 these animals 363 to serve the Lord our God. Until we arrive there, we do not know what we must use to serve the Lord.” 364
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! 365 Watch out for yourself! Do not appear before me again, 366 for when 367 you see my face you will die!” 10:29 Moses said, “As you wish! 368 I will not see your face again.” 369
11:1 370 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, 371 he will drive you out completely 372 from this place. 11:2 Instruct 373 the people that each man and each woman is to request 374 from his or her neighbor 375 items of silver and gold.” 376
11:3 (Now the Lord granted the people favor with 377 the Egyptians. Moreover, the man Moses was very great in the land of Egypt, respected by Pharaoh’s servants and by the Egyptian people.) 378
11:4 Moses said, “Thus says the Lord: ‘About midnight 379 I will go throughout Egypt, 380 11:5 and all the firstborn in the land of Egypt will die, from the firstborn son of Pharaoh 381 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, 382 nor ever will be again. 383 11:7 But against any of the Israelites not even a dog will bark 384 against either people or animals, 385 so that you may know that the Lord distinguishes 386 between Egypt and Israel.’ 11:8 All these your servants will come down to me and bow down 387 to me, saying, ‘Go, you and all the people who follow 388 you,’ and after that I will go out.” Then Moses 389 went out from Pharaoh in great anger.
11:9 The Lord said to Moses, “Pharaoh will not listen to you, so that my wonders 390 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.
12:1 391 The Lord said 392 to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt, 393 12:2 “This month is to be your beginning of months; it will be your first month of the year. 394 12:3 Tell the whole community of Israel, ‘In the tenth day of this month they each 395 must take a lamb 396 for themselves according to their families 397 – a lamb for each household. 398 12:4 If any household is too small 399 for a lamb, 400 the man 401 and his next-door neighbor 402 are to take 403 a lamb according to the number of people – you will make your count for the lamb according to how much each one can eat. 404 12:5 Your lamb must be 405 perfect, 406 a male, one year old; 407 you may take 408 it from the sheep or from the goats. 12:6 You must care for it 409 until the fourteenth day of this month, and then the whole community 410 of Israel will kill it around sundown. 411 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; 412 they will eat it roasted over the fire with bread made without yeast 413 and with bitter herbs. 12:9 Do not eat it raw 414 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, 415 your sandals on your feet, and your staff in your hand. You are to eat it in haste. It is the Lord’s Passover. 416
12:12 I will pass through 417 the land of Egypt in the same 418 night, and I will attack 419 all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both of humans and of animals, 420 and on all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgment. 421 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 422 the blood I will pass over you, 423 and this plague 424 will not fall on you to destroy you 425 when I attack 426 the land of Egypt. 427
12:14 This day will become 428 a memorial 429 for you, and you will celebrate it as a festival 430 to the Lord – you will celebrate it perpetually as a lasting ordinance. 431 12:15 For seven days 432 you must eat 433 bread made without yeast. 434 Surely 435 on the first day you must put away yeast from your houses because anyone who eats bread made with yeast 436 from the first day to the seventh day will be cut off 437 from Israel.
12:16 On the first day there will be a holy convocation, 438 and on the seventh day there will be a holy convocation for you. You must do no work of any kind 439 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 440 day I brought your regiments 441 out from the land of Egypt, and so you must keep this day perpetually as a lasting ordinance. 442 12:18 In the first month, 443 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 444 yeast must not be found in your houses, for whoever eats what is made with yeast – that person 445 will be cut off from the community of Israel, whether a foreigner 446 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 447 for yourselves a lamb or young goat 448 for your families, and kill the Passover animals. 449 12:22 Take a branch of hyssop, 450 dip it in the blood that is in the basin, 451 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 452 the door of his house until morning. 12:23 For the Lord will pass through to strike Egypt, and when he sees 453 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 454 to enter your houses to strike you. 455 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 456 this ceremony. 12:26 When your children ask you, ‘What does this ceremony mean to you?’ 457 – 12:27 then you will say, ‘It is the sacrifice 458 of the Lord’s Passover, when he passed over the houses of the Israelites in Egypt, when he struck 459 Egypt and delivered our households.’” The people bowed down low 460 to the ground, 12:28 and the Israelites went away and did exactly as the Lord had commanded Moses and Aaron. 461
12:29 462 It happened 463 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 464 in the night, 465 along with all his servants and all Egypt, and there was a great cry in Egypt, for there was no house 466 in which there was not someone dead. 12:31 Pharaoh 467 summoned Moses and Aaron in the night and said, “Get up, get out 468 from among my people, both you and the Israelites! Go, serve the Lord as you have requested! 469 12:32 Also, take your flocks and your herds, just as you have requested, and leave. But bless me also.” 470
12:33 The Egyptians were urging 471 the people on, in order to send them out of the land quickly, 472 for they were saying, “We are all dead!” 12:34 So the people took their dough before the yeast was added, 473 with their kneading troughs bound up in their clothing on their shoulders. 12:35 Now the Israelites had done 474 as Moses told them – they had requested from the Egyptians 475 silver and gold items and clothing. 12:36 The Lord 476 gave the people favor 477 in the sight of the Egyptians, and they gave them whatever they wanted, 478 and so they plundered Egypt. 479
12:37 The Israelites journeyed 480 from Rameses 481 to Sukkoth. There were about 600,000 men 482 on foot, plus their dependants. 483 12:38 A mixed multitude 484 also went up with them, and flocks and herds – a very large number of cattle. 485 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 486 of Egypt and were not able to delay, they 487 could not prepare 488 food for themselves either.
12:40 Now the length of time the Israelites lived in Egypt was 430 years. 489 12:41 At the end of the 430 years, on the very day, all the regiments 490 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, 491 and so 492 on this night all Israel is to keep the vigil 493 to the Lord for generations to come.
12:43 494 The Lord said to Moses and Aaron, “This is the ordinance of the Passover. No foreigner may 495 share in eating it. 496 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 497 with you and wants to observe the Passover to the Lord, all his males must be circumcised, 498 and then he may approach and observe it, and he will be like one who is born in the land 499 – but no uncircumcised person may eat of it. 12:49 The same law will apply 500 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. 501 12:51 And on this very day the Lord brought the Israelites out of the land of Egypt by their regiments.
13:1 502 The Lord spoke 503 to Moses: 13:2 “Set apart 504 to me every firstborn male – the first offspring of every womb 505 among the Israelites, whether human or animal; it is mine.” 506
13:3 Moses said to the people, “Remember 507 this day on which you came out from Egypt, from the place where you were enslaved, 508 for the Lord brought you out of there 509 with a mighty hand – and no bread made with yeast may be eaten. 510 13:4 On this day, 511 in the month of Abib, 512 you are going out. 513
13:5 When 514 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, 515 then you will keep 516 this ceremony 517 in this month. 13:6 For seven days 518 you must eat 519 bread made without yeast, and on the seventh day there is to be 520 a festival to the Lord. 13:7 Bread made without yeast must be eaten 521 for seven days; 522 no bread made with yeast shall be seen 523 among you, and you must have no yeast among you within any of your borders.
13:8 You are to tell your son 524 on that day, 525 ‘It is 526 because of what 527 the Lord did for me when I came out of Egypt.’ 13:9 528 It 529 will be a sign 530 for you on your hand and a memorial 531 on your forehead, 532 so that the law of the Lord may be 533 in your mouth, 534 for 535 with a mighty hand the Lord brought you out of Egypt. 13:10 So you must keep 536 this ordinance at its appointed time from year to year. 537
13:11 When the Lord brings you 538 into the land of the Canaanites, 539 as he swore to you and to your fathers, and gives it 540 to you, 13:12 then you must give over 541 to the Lord the first offspring of every womb. 542 Every firstling 543 of a beast that you have 544 – the males will be the Lord’s. 545 13:13 Every firstling 546 of a donkey you must redeem 547 with a lamb, and if you do not redeem it, then you must break its neck. 548 Every firstborn of 549 your sons you must redeem.
13:14 550 In the future, 551 when your son asks you 552 ‘What is this?’ 553 you are to tell him, ‘With a mighty hand 554 the Lord brought us out from Egypt, from the land of slavery. 555 13:15 When Pharaoh stubbornly refused 556 to release us, the Lord killed all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, from the firstborn of people to the firstborn of animals. 557 That is why I am sacrificing 558 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 559 on your forehead, for with a mighty hand the Lord brought us out of Egypt.” 560
13:17 561 When Pharaoh released 562 the people, God did not lead them 563 by the way to the land 564 of the Philistines, 565 although 566 that was nearby, for God said, 567 “Lest 568 the people change their minds 569 and return to Egypt when they experience 570 war.” 13:18 So God brought the people around by the way of the desert to the Red Sea, 571 and the Israelites went up from the land of Egypt prepared for battle. 572
13:19 Moses took the bones of Joseph with him, for Joseph 573 had made the Israelites solemnly swear, 574 “God will surely attend 575 to you, and you will carry 576 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, 577 so that they could 578 travel day or night. 579 13:22 He did not remove the pillar of cloud by day nor the pillar of fire by night from before the people. 580
14:1 581 The Lord spoke to Moses: 14:2 “Tell the Israelites that they must turn and camp 582 before Pi-hahiroth, between Migdol and the sea; you are to camp by the sea before Baal Zephon opposite it. 583 14:3 Pharaoh will think 584 regarding the Israelites, ‘They are wandering around confused 585 in the land – the desert has closed in on them.’ 586 14:4 I will harden 587 Pharaoh’s heart, and he will chase after them. I will gain honor 588 because of Pharaoh and because of all his army, and the Egyptians will know 589 that I am the Lord.” So this is what they did. 590
14:5 When it was reported 591 to the king of Egypt that the people had fled, 592 the heart of Pharaoh and his servants was turned against the people, and the king and his servants said, 593 “What in the world have we done? 594 For we have released the people of Israel 595 from serving us!” 14:6 Then he prepared 596 his chariots and took his army 597 with him. 14:7 He took six hundred select 598 chariots, and all the rest of the chariots of Egypt, 599 and officers 600 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. 601 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 602 Pharaoh got closer, 603 the Israelites looked up, 604 and there were the Egyptians marching after them, 605 and they were terrified. 606 The Israelites cried out to the Lord, 607 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? 608 What in the world 609 have you done to us by bringing 610 us out of Egypt? 14:12 Isn’t this what we told you 611 in Egypt, ‘Leave us alone so that we can serve the Egyptians, 612 because it is better for us to serve 613 the Egyptians than to die in the desert!’” 614
14:13 Moses said to the people, “Do not fear! 615 Stand firm 616 and see 617 the salvation 618 of the Lord that he will provide 619 for you today; for the Egyptians that you see today you will never, ever see again. 620 14:14 The Lord 621 will fight for you, and you can be still.” 622
14:15 The Lord said to Moses, “Why do you cry out to me? Tell the Israelites to move on. 623 14:16 And as for you, 624 lift up your staff and extend your hand toward the sea and divide it, so that 625 the Israelites may go through the middle of the sea on dry ground. 14:17 And as for me, I am going to harden 626 the hearts of the Egyptians so that 627 they will come after them, that I may be honored 628 because 629 of Pharaoh and his army and his chariots and his horsemen. 14:18 And the Egyptians will know 630 that I am the Lord when I have gained my honor 631 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 632 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 633 and it lit up the night so that one camp did not come near the other 634 the whole night. 635 14:21 Moses stretched out his hand toward the sea, and the Lord drove the sea apart 636 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 637 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 638 the Lord looked down 639 on the Egyptian army 640 through the pillar of fire and cloud, and he threw the Egyptian army 641 into a panic. 642 14:25 He jammed 643 the wheels of their chariots so that they had difficulty driving, 644 and the Egyptians said, “Let’s flee 645 from Israel, for the Lord fights 646 for them against Egypt!”
14:26 The Lord said to Moses, “Extend your hand toward the sea, so that the waters may flow 647 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 648 when the sun began to rise. 649 Now the Egyptians were fleeing 650 before it, but the Lord overthrew 651 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 652 – not so much as one of them survived! 653 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 654 Israel on that day from the power 655 of the Egyptians, and Israel saw the Egyptians dead 656 on the shore of the sea. 14:31 When Israel saw 657 the great power 658 that the Lord had exercised 659 over the Egyptians, they 660 feared the Lord, and they believed in 661 the Lord and in his servant Moses. 662
15:1 663 Then Moses and the Israelites sang 664 this song to the Lord. They said, 665
“I will sing 666 to the Lord, for he has triumphed gloriously, 667
the horse and its rider 668 he has thrown into the sea.
15:2 The Lord 669 is my strength and my song, 670
and he has become my salvation.
This is my God, and I will praise him, 671
my father’s God, and I will exalt him.
15:3 The Lord is a warrior, 672
the Lord is his name. 673
15:4 The chariots of Pharaoh 674 and his army he has thrown into the sea,
and his chosen 675 officers were drowned 676 in the Red Sea.
15:5 The depths have covered them, 677
they went down to the bottom 678 like a stone.
15:6 Your right hand, O Lord, was majestic 679 in power,
your right hand, O Lord, shattered the enemy.
15:7 In the abundance of your majesty 680 you have overthrown 681
those who rise up against you. 682
You sent forth 683 your wrath; 684
it consumed them 685 like stubble.
15:8 By the blast of your nostrils 686 the waters were piled up,
the flowing water stood upright like a heap, 687
and the deep waters were solidified in the heart of the sea.
15:9 The enemy said, ‘I will chase, 688 I will overtake,
I will divide the spoil;
my desire 689 will be satisfied on them.
I will draw 690 my sword, my hand will destroy them.’ 691
15:10 But 692 you blew with your breath, and 693 the sea covered them.
They sank 694 like lead in the mighty waters.
15:11 Who is like you, 695 O Lord, among the gods? 696
Who is like you? – majestic in holiness, fearful in praises, 697 working wonders?
15:12 You stretched out your right hand,
the earth swallowed them. 698
15:13 By your loyal love you will lead 699 the people whom 700 you have redeemed;
you will guide 701 them by your strength to your holy dwelling place.
15:14 The nations will hear 702 and tremble;
anguish 703 will seize 704 the inhabitants of Philistia.
15:15 Then the chiefs of Edom will be terrified, 705
trembling will seize 706 the leaders of Moab,
and the inhabitants of Canaan will shake.
15:16 Fear and dread 707 will fall 708 on them;
by the greatness 709 of your arm they will be as still as stone 710
until 711 your people pass by, O Lord,
until the people whom you have bought 712 pass by.
15:17 You will bring them in 713 and plant them in the mountain 714 of your inheritance,
in the place you made 715 for your residence, O Lord,
the sanctuary, O Lord, that your hands have established.
15:18 The Lord will reign forever and ever!
15:19 For the horses of Pharaoh came with his chariots and his footmen into the sea,
and the Lord brought back the waters of the sea on them,
but the Israelites walked on dry land in the middle of the sea.”
15:20 Miriam the prophetess, the sister of Aaron, took a hand-drum in her hand, and all the women went out after her with hand-drums and with dances. 716 15:21 Miriam sang in response 717 to them, “Sing to the Lord, for he has triumphed gloriously; the horse and its rider he has thrown into the sea.” 718
15:22 719 Then Moses led Israel to journey 720 away from the Red Sea. They went out to the Desert of Shur, walked for three days 721 into the desert, and found no water. 15:23 Then they came to Marah, 722 but they were not able to drink 723 the waters of Marah, because 724 they were bitter. 725 (That is 726 why its name was 727 Marah.)
15:24 So the people murmured 728 against Moses, saying, “What can 729 we drink?” 15:25 He cried out to the Lord, and the Lord showed him 730 a tree. 731 When Moses 732 threw it into the water, the water became safe to drink. There the Lord 733 made for them 734 a binding ordinance, 735 and there he tested 736 them. 15:26 He said, “If you will diligently obey 737 the Lord your God, and do what is right 738 in his sight, and pay attention 739 to his commandments, and keep all his statutes, then all 740 the diseases 741 that I brought on the Egyptians I will not bring on you, for I, the Lord, am your healer.” 742
15:27 Then they came to Elim, 743 where there were twelve wells of water and seventy palm trees, and they camped there by the water.