The Israelites Oppressed

These are the names of the sons of Israel who went to Egypt with Jacob, each with his family: Reuben, Simeon, Levi and Judah; Issachar, Zebulun and Benjamin; Dan and Naphtali; Gad and Asher. The descendants of Jacob numbered seventy in all; Joseph was already in Egypt.

       Now Joseph and all his brothers and all that generation died, but the Israelites were fruitful and multiplied greatly and became exceedingly numerous, so that the land was filled with them.

       Then a new king, who did not know about Joseph, came to power in Egypt. "Look," he said to his people, "the Israelites have become much too numerous for us. Come, we must deal shrewdly with them or they will become even more numerous and, if war breaks out, will join our enemies, fight against us and leave the country."

       So they put slave masters over them to oppress them with forced labor, and they built Pithom and Rameses as store cities for Pharaoh. But the more they were oppressed, the more they multiplied and spread; so the Egyptians came to dread the Israelites and worked them ruthlessly. They made their lives bitter with hard labor in brick and mortar and with all kinds of work in the fields; in all their hard labor the Egyptians used them ruthlessly.

       The king of Egypt said to the Hebrew midwives, whose names were Shiphrah and Puah, "When you help the Hebrew women in childbirth and observe them on the delivery stool, if it is a boy, kill him; but if it is a girl, let her live." The midwives, however, feared GOD and did not do what the king of Egypt had told them to do; they let the boys live. Then the king of Egypt summoned the midwives and asked them, "Why have you done this? Why have you let the boys live?"

       The midwives answered Pharaoh, "Hebrew women are not like Egyptian women; they are vigorous and give birth before the midwives arrive."

       So GOD was kind to the midwives and the people increased and became even more numerous. And because the midwives feared GOD, HE gave them families of their own.

       Then Pharaoh gave this order to all his people: "Every boy that is born you must throw into the Nile, but let every girl live."

Exodus: chapter 1

The Birth of Moses

Now a man of the house of Levi married a Levite woman, and she became pregnant and gave birth to a son. When she saw that he was a fine child, she hid him for three months. But when she could hide him no longer, she got a papyrus basket for him and coated it with tar and pitch. Then she placed the child in it and put it among the reeds along the bank of the Nile. His sister stood at a distance to see what would happen to him.

       Then Pharaoh's daughter went down to the Nile to bathe, and her attendants were walking along the river bank. She saw the basket among the reeds and sent her slave girl to get it. She opened it and saw the baby. He was crying, and she felt sorry for him. "This is one of the Hebrew babies," she said.

       Then his sister asked Pharaoh's daughter, "Shall I go and get one of the Hebrew women to nurse the baby for you?"

       "Yes, go," she answered. And the girl went and got the baby's mother. Pharaoh's daughter said to her, "Take this baby and nurse him for me, and I will pay you." So the woman took the baby and nursed him. When the child grew older, she took him to Pharaoh's daughter and he became her son. She named him Moses, saying, "I drew him out of the water."

Exodus: chapter 2, verses 1 - 10

Moses Flees to Midian

       One day, after Moses had grown up, he went out to where his own people were and watched them at their hard labor. He saw an Egyptian beating a Hebrew, one of his own people. Glancing this way and that and seeing no one, he killed the Egyptian and hid him in the sand. The next day he went out and saw two Hebrews fighting. He asked the one in the wrong, "Why are you hitting your fellow Hebrew?"

       The man said, "Who made you ruler and judge over us? Are you thinking of killing me as you killed the Egyptian?" Then Moses was afraid and thought, "What I did must have become known."

       When Pharaoh heard of this, he tried to kill Moses, but Moses fled from Pharaoh and went to live in Midian, where he sat down by a well. Now a priest of Midian had seven daughters, and they came to draw water and fill the troughs to water their father's flock. Some shepherds came along and drove them away, but Moses got up and came to their rescue and watered their flock.

       When the girls returned to Reuel their father, he asked them, "Why have you returned so early today?"

       They answered, "An Egyptian rescued us from the shepherds. He even drew water for us and watered the flock."

       "And where is he?" he asked his daughters. "Why did you leave him? Invite him to have something to eat."

       Moses agreed to stay with the man, who gave his daughter Zipporah to Moses in marriage. Zipporah gave birth to a son, and Moses named him Gershom, saying, "I have become an alien in a foreign land."

       During that long period, the king of Egypt died. The Israelites groaned in their slavery and cried out, and their cry for help because of their slavery went up to GOD. GOD heard their groaning and HE remembered HIS covenant with Abraham, with Isaac and with Jacob. So GOD looked on the Israelites and was concerned about them.

Exodus: chapter 2, verses 11 - 25

Moses and the Burning Bush

Now Moses was tending the flock of Jethro his father-in-law, the priest of Midian, and he led the flock to the far side of the desert and came to Horeb, the mountain of GOD. There the angel of THE LORD appeared to him in flames of fire from within a bush. Moses saw that though the bush was on fire it did not burn up. So Moses thought, "I will go over and see this strange sight--why the bush does not burn up."

       When THE LORD saw that he had gone over to look, GOD called to him from within the bush, "Moses! Moses!"

       And Moses said, "Here I am."

       "Do not come any closer," GOD said. "Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy ground." Then HE said, "I AM THE GOD OF YOUR FATHER, THE GOD OF ABRAHAM, THE GOD OF ISAAC AND THE GOD OF JACOB." At this, Moses hid his face, because he was afraid to look at GOD.

       THE LORD said, "I have indeed seen the misery of MY people in Egypt. I have heard them crying out because of their slave drivers, and I am concerned about their suffering. So I have come down to rescue them from the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land into a good and spacious land, a land flowing with milk and honey--the home of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites. And now the cry of the Israelites has reached ME, and I have seen the way the Egyptians are oppressing them. So now, go. I am sending you to Pharaoh to bring MY people the Israelites out of Egypt."

       But Moses said to GOD, "Who am I, that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?"

       And GOD said, "I will be with you. And this will be the sign to you that it is I who have sent you: When you have brought the people out of Egypt, you will worship GOD on this mountain."

       Moses said to GOD, "Suppose I go to the Israelites and say to them, 'THE GOD OF YOUR FATHERS has sent me to you,' and they ask me, 'What is HIS name?' Then what shall I tell them?"

       GOD said to Moses, "I AM WHO I AM. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: 'I AM has sent me to you.' "

       GOD also said to Moses, "Say to the Israelites, 'THE LORD, THE GOD OF YOUR FATHERS--THE GOD OF ABRAHAM, THE GOD OF ISAAC AND THE GOD OF JACOB--has sent me to you.' This is MY name forever, the name by which I AM to be remembered from generation to generation.

       "Go, assemble the elders of Israel and say to them, 'THE LORD, THE GOD OF YOUR FATHERS--THE GOD OF ABRAHAM, ISAAC AND JACOB--appeared to me and said: I have watched over you and have seen what has been done to you in Egypt. And I have promised to bring you up out of your misery in Egypt into the land of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites--a land flowing with milk and honey.'

       "The elders of Israel will listen to you. Then you and the elders are to go to the king of Egypt and say to him, 'THE LORD, THE GOD OF THE HEBREWS, has met with us. Let us take a three-day journey into the desert to offer sacrifices to THE LORD our GOD.' But I know that the king of Egypt will not let you go unless a mighty hand compels him. So I will stretch out MY hand and strike the Egyptians with all the wonders that I will perform among them. After that, he will let you go.

       "And I will make the Egyptians favorably disposed toward this people, so that when you leave you will not go empty-handed. Every woman is to ask her neighbor and any woman living in her house for articles of silver and gold and for clothing, which you will put on your sons and daughters. And so you will plunder the Egyptians."

Exodus: chapter 3

Signs for Moses

Moses answered, "What if they do not believe me or listen to me and say, 'THE LORD did not appear to you'?"

       Then THE LORD said to him, "What is that in your hand?"

       "A staff," he replied.

       THE LORD said, "Throw it on the ground."

       Moses threw it on the ground and it became a snake, and he ran from it. Then THE LORD said to him, "Reach out your hand and take it by the tail." So Moses reached out and took hold of the snake and it turned back into a staff in his hand. "This," said THE LORD, "is so 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."

       Then THE LORD said, "Put your hand inside your cloak." So Moses put his hand into his cloak, and when he took it out, it was leprous, like snow.

       "Now put it back into your cloak," HE said. So Moses put his hand back into his cloak, and when he took it out, it was restored, like the rest of his flesh.

       Then THE LORD said, "If they do not believe you or pay attention to the first miraculous sign, they may believe the second. But if they do not believe these two signs or listen to you, take some water from the Nile and pour it on the dry ground. The water you take from the river will become blood on the ground."

       Moses said to THE LORD, "O LORD, I have never been eloquent, neither in the past nor since YOU have spoken to YOUR servant. I am slow of speech and tongue."

       THE LORD said to him, "Who gave man his mouth? Who makes him deaf or mute? Who gives him sight or makes him blind? Is it not I, THE LORD? Now go; I will help you speak and will teach you what to say."

       But Moses said, "O LORD, please send someone else to do it."

       Then THE LORD'S anger burned against Moses and HE said, "What about your brother, Aaron the Levite? I know he can speak well. He is already on his way to meet you, and his heart will be glad when he sees you. You shall speak to him and put words in his mouth; I will help both of you speak and will teach you what to do. He will speak to the people for you, and it will be as if he were your mouth and as if you were GOD to him. But take this staff in your hand so you can perform miraculous signs with it."

Exodus: chapter 4, verses 1 - 17

Moses Returns to Egypt

       Then Moses went back to Jethro his father-in-law and said to him, "Let me go back to my own people in Egypt to see if any of them are still alive."

       Jethro said, "Go, and I wish you well."

       Now THE LORD had said to Moses in Midian, "Go back to Egypt, for all the men who wanted to kill you are dead." So Moses took his wife and sons, put them on a donkey and started back to Egypt. And he took the staff of GOD in his hand.

       THE LORD said to Moses, "When you return to Egypt, see that you perform before Pharaoh all the wonders I have given you the power to do. But I will harden his heart so that he will not let the people go. Then say to Pharaoh, 'This is what THE LORD says: Israel is MY firstborn son, and I told you, "Let MY son go, so he may worship ME." But you refused to let him go; so I will kill your firstborn son.' "

       At a lodging place on the way, THE LORD met Moses and was about to kill him. But Zipporah took a flint knife, cut off her son's foreskin and touched Moses feet with it. "Surely you are a bridegroom of blood to me," she said. So THE LORD let him alone. (At that time she said "bridegroom of blood," referring to circumcision.)

       THE LORD said to Aaron, "Go into the desert to meet Moses." So he met Moses at the mountain of GOD and kissed him. Then Moses told Aaron everything THE LORD had sent him to say, and also about all the miraculous signs HE had commanded him to perform.

       Moses and Aaron brought together all the elders of the Israelites, and Aaron told them everything THE LORD had said to Moses. He also performed the signs before the people, and they believed. And when they heard that THE LORD was concerned about them and had seen their misery, they bowed down and worshiped.

Exodus: chapter 4, verses 18 - 31

Bricks Without Straw

Afterward Moses and Aaron went to Pharaoh and said, "This is what THE LORD, THE GOD OF ISRAEL, says: 'Let MY people go, so that they may hold a festival to ME in the desert.' "

       Pharaoh said, "Who is THE LORD, that I should obey HIM and let Israel go? I do not know THE LORD and I will not let Israel go."

       Then they said, "THE GOD OF THE HEBREWS has met with us. Now let us take a three-day journey into the desert to offer sacrifices to THE LORD our GOD, or HE may strike us with plagues or with the sword."

       But the king of Egypt said, "Moses and Aaron, why are you taking the people away from their labor? Get back to your work!" Then Pharaoh said, "Look, the people of the land are now numerous, and you are stopping them from working."

       That same day Pharaoh gave this order to the slave drivers and foremen in charge of the people: "You are no longer to supply the people with straw for making bricks; let them go and gather their own straw. But require them to make the same number of bricks as before; don't reduce the quota. They are lazy; that is why they are crying out, 'Let us go and sacrifice to our GOD.' Make the work harder for the men so that they keep working and pay no attention to lies."
       Then the slave drivers and the foremen went out and said to the people, "This what Pharaoh says: 'I will not give you any more straw. Go and get your own straw wherever you can find it, but your work will not be reduced at all.' " So the people scattered all over Egypt to gather stubble to use for straw. The slave drivers kept pressing them, saying, "Complete the work required of you for each day, just as when you had straw." The Israelite foremen appointed by Pharaoh's slave drivers were beaten and were asked, "Why didn't you meet your quota of bricks yesterday or today, as before?"

       Then the Israelite foremen went and appealed to Pharaoh: "Why have you treated your servants this way? Your servants are given no straw, yet we are told, 'Make bricks!' Your servants are being beaten, but the fault is with your own people."

       Pharaoh said, "Lazy, that's what you are--lazy! That is why you keep saying, 'Let us go and sacrifice to THE LORD.' Now get to work. You will not be given any straw, yet you must produce your full quota of bricks."

       The Israelite foremen realized they were in trouble when they were told, "You are not to reduce the number of bricks required of you for each day." When they left Pharaoh, they found Moses and Aaron waiting to meet them, and they said, "May THE LORD look upon you and judge you! You have made us a stench to Pharaoh and his officials and have put a sword in their hand to kill us."

Exodus: chapter 5, verses 1 - 21

GOD Promises Deliverance

       Moses returned to THE LORD and said, "O LORD, why have YOU brought trouble upon this people? Is this why YOU sent me? Ever since I went to Pharaoh to speak in YOUR name, he has brought trouble upon this people, and YOU gave not rescued YOUR people at all."

Then THE LORD said to Moses, "Now you will see what I will do to Pharaoh: Because of MY mighty hand he will let them go; because of MY mighty hand he will drive them out of his country."

       GOD also said to Moses, "I AM THE LORD. I appeared to Abraham, to Isaac and to Jacob as GOD ALMIGHTY, but by MY name THE LORD I did not make MYSELF known to them. I also established MY covenant with them to give them the land of Canaan, where they lived as aliens. Moreover, I have heard the groaning of the Israelites, whom the Egyptians are enslaving, and I have remembered MY covenant.

       "Therefore, say to the Israelites: 'I AM THE LORD, and I will bring you out from under the yoke of the Egyptians. I will free you from being slaves to them, and I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with mighty acts of judgment. I will take you as MY own people, and I will be your GOD. Then you will know that I AM THE LORD your GOD, who brought you out from under the yoke of the Egyptians. And I will bring you to the land I wore with uplifted hand to give to Abraham, to Isaac and to Jacob. I will give it to you as a possession. I AM THE LORD.' "

       Moses reported this to the Israelites, but they did not listen to him because of their discouragement and cruel bondage.

       Then THE LORD said to Moses, "Go, tell Pharaoh king of Egypt to let the Israelites go out of his country."

       But Moses said the THE LORD, "If the Israelites will not listen to me, why would Pharaoh listen to me, since I speak with faltering lips?"

Exodus: chapter 5, verses 22 & 23 &chapter 6, verses 1 - 12

Family Record of Moses and Aaron

       Now THE LORD spoke to Moses and Aaron about the Israelites and Pharaoh king of Egypt, and HE commanded them to bring the Israelites out of Egypt.

   These were the heads of their families:

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

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

       These were the names of the sons of Levi according to their records: Gershon, Kohath and Merari. Levi lived 137 years.

       The sons of Gershon, by clans, were Libni and Shimei.

       The sons of Kohath were Amram, Izhar, Hebron and Uzziel. Kohath lived 133 years.

       The sons of Merari were Mahli and Mushi.

       These were the clans of Levi according to their records.

       Amram married his father's sister Jochebed, who bore him Aaron and Moses. Amram lived 137 years.

       The sons of Izhar were Korah, Nepheg and Zicri.

       The sons of Uzziel were Mishael, Elzaphan and Sithri.

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

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

       Eleazar son of Aaron married one of the daughters of Putiel, and she bore him Phinehas.

       These were the heads of the Levite families, clan by clan.

       It was this same Aaron and Moses to whom THE LORD said, "Bring the Israelites out of Egypt by their divisions." They were the ones who spoke to Pharaoh king of Egypt about bringing the Israelites out of Egypt. It was the same Moses and Aaron.

Exodus: chapter 6, verses 13 - 27

Aaron to Speak for Moses

       Now when THE LORD spoke to Moses in Egypt, HE said to him, "I AM THE LORD. Tell Pharaoh king of Egypt everything I tell you."

       But Moses said to THE LORD, "Since I speak with faltering lips, why would Pharaoh listen to me?"

Then THE LORD said to Moses, "See, I have made you like GOD to Pharaoh, and your brother Aaron will be your prophet. You are to say everything I command you, and your brother Aaron is to tell Pharaoh to let the Israelites go out of his country. But I will harden Pharaoh's heart, and though I multiply MY miraculous signs and wonders in Egypt, he will not listen to you. Then I will lay MY hand on Egypt and with mighty acts of judgment I will bring out MY divisions, MY people the Israelites. And the Egyptians will know that I AM THE LORD when I stretch out MY hand against Egypt and bring the Israelites out of it."

       Moses and Aaron did just as THE LORD commanded them. Moses was eighty years old and Aaron eighty-three when they spoke to Pharaoh.

Exodus: chapter 6, verses 28 - 30 & chapter 7, verses 1 - 7