Exodus 12; Exodus 13; Exodus 14; Exodus 15

Exodus 12

1 Now the LORD said to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt,

2 “This month is the beginning of months for you; it shall be the first month of your year.

3 Tell the whole congregation of Israel that on the tenth day of this month each man must select a lamb for his family, one per household.

4 If the household is too small for a whole lamb, they are to share with the nearest neighbor based on the number of people, and apportion the lamb accordingly.

5 Your lamb must be an unblemished year-old male, and you may take it from the sheep or the goats.

6 You must keep it until the fourteenth day of the month, when the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel will slaughter the animals at twilight.

7 They are to take some of the blood and put it on the sides and tops of the doorframes of the houses where they eat the lambs.

8 They are to eat the meat that night, roasted over the fire, along with unleavened bread and bitter herbs.

9 Do not eat any of the meat raw or cooked in boiling water, but only roasted over the fire—its head and legs and inner parts.

10 Do not leave any of it until morning; before the morning you must burn up any part that is left over.

11 This is how you are to eat it: You must be fully dressed for travel, with your sandals on your feet and your staff in your hand. You are to eat in haste; it is the LORD’s Passover.

12 On that night I will pass through the land of Egypt and strike down every firstborn male, both man and beast, and I will execute judgment against all the gods of Egypt. I am the LORD.

13 The blood on the houses where you are staying will be a sign; when I see the blood, I will pass over you. No plague will fall on you to destroy you when I strike the land of Egypt.

14 And this day will be a memorial for you, and you are to celebrate it as a feast to the LORD, as a permanent statute for the generations to come.

15 For seven days you must eat unleavened bread. On the first day you are to remove the leaven from your houses. Whoever eats anything leavened from the first day through the seventh must be cut off from Israel.

16 On the first day you are to hold a sacred assembly, and another on the seventh day. You must not do any work on those days, except to prepare the meals—that is all you may do.

17 So you are to keep the Feast of Unleavened Bread, for on this very day I brought your divisions out of the land of Egypt. You must keep this day as a permanent statute for the generations to come.

18 In the first month you are to eat unleavened bread, from the evening of the fourteenth day until the evening of the twenty-first day.

19 For seven days there must be no leaven found in your houses. If anyone eats something leavened, that person, whether a foreigner or native of the land, must be cut off from the congregation of Israel.

20 You are not to eat anything leavened; eat unleavened bread in all your homes.”

21 Then Moses summoned all the elders of Israel and told them, “Go at once and select for yourselves a lamb for each family, and slaughter the Passover lamb.

22 Take a cluster of hyssop, dip it into the blood in the basin, and brush the blood on the top and sides of the doorframe. None of you shall go out the door of his house until morning.

23 When the LORD passes through to strike down the Egyptians, He will see the blood on the top and sides of the doorframe and will pass over that doorway; so He will not allow the destroyer to enter your houses and strike you down.

24 And you are to keep this command as a permanent statute for you and your descendants.

25 When you enter the land that the LORD will give you as He promised, you are to keep this service.

26 When your children ask you, ‘What does this service mean to you?’

27 you are to reply, ‘It is the Passover sacrifice to the LORD, who passed over the houses of the Israelites in Egypt when He struck down the Egyptians and spared our homes.’” Then the people bowed down and worshiped.

28 And the Israelites went and did just what the LORD had commanded Moses and Aaron.

29 Now at midnight the LORD struck down every firstborn male in the land of Egypt, from the firstborn of Pharaoh, who sat on his throne, to the firstborn of the prisoner in the dungeon, as well as all the firstborn among the livestock.

30 During the night Pharaoh got up—he and all his officials and all the Egyptians—and there was loud wailing in Egypt; for there was no house without someone dead.

31 Then Pharaoh summoned Moses and Aaron by night and said, “Get up, leave my people, both you and the Israelites! Go, worship the LORD as you have requested.

32 Take your flocks and herds as well, just as you have said, and depart! And bless me also.”

33 And in order to send them out of the land quickly, the Egyptians urged the people on. “For otherwise,” they said, “we are all going to die!”

34 So the people took their dough before it was leavened, carrying it on their shoulders in kneading bowls wrapped in clothing.

35 Furthermore, the Israelites acted on Moses’ word and asked the Egyptians for articles of silver and gold, and for clothing.

36 And the LORD gave the people such favor in the sight of the Egyptians that they granted their request. In this way they plundered the Egyptians.

37 The Israelites journeyed from Rameses to Succoth with about 600,000 men on foot, besides women and children.

38 And a mixed multitude also went up with them, along with great droves of livestock, both flocks and herds.

39 Since their dough had no leaven, the people baked what they had brought out of Egypt into unleavened loaves. For when they had been driven out of Egypt, they could not delay and had not prepared any provisions for themselves.

40 Now the duration of the Israelites’ stay in Egypt was 430 years.

41 At the end of the 430 years, to the very day, all the LORD’s divisions went out of the land of Egypt.

42 Because the LORD kept a vigil that night to bring them out of the land of Egypt, this same night is to be a vigil to the LORD, to be observed by all the Israelites for the generations to come.

43 And the LORD said to Moses and Aaron, “This is the statute of the Passover: No foreigner is to eat of it.

44 But any slave who has been purchased may eat of it, after you have circumcised him.

45 A temporary resident or hired hand shall not eat the Passover.

46 It must be eaten inside one house. You are not to take any of the meat outside the house, and you may not break any of the bones.

47 The whole congregation of Israel must celebrate it.

48 If a foreigner resides with you and wants to celebrate the LORD’s Passover, all the males in the household must be circumcised; then he may come near to celebrate it, and he shall be like a native of the land. But no uncircumcised man may eat of it.

49 The same law shall apply to both the native and the foreigner who resides among you.”

50 Then all the Israelites did this—they did just as the LORD had commanded Moses and Aaron.

51 And on that very day the LORD brought the Israelites out of the land of Egypt by their divisions.

Exodus 13

1 Then the LORD said to Moses,

2 “Consecrate to Me every firstborn male. The firstborn from every womb among the Israelites belongs to Me, both of man and beast.”

3 So Moses told the people, “Remember this day, the day you came out of Egypt, out of the house of slavery; for the LORD brought you out of it by the strength of His hand. And nothing leavened shall be eaten.

4 Today, in the month of Abib, you are leaving.

5 And when the LORD brings you into the land of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Hivites, and Jebusites—the land He swore to your fathers that He would give you, a land flowing with milk and honey—you shall keep this service in this month.

6 For seven days you are to eat unleavened bread, and on the seventh day there shall be a feast to the LORD.

7 Unleavened bread shall be eaten during those seven days. Nothing leavened may be found among you, nor shall leaven be found anywhere within your borders.

8 And on that day you are to explain to your son, ‘This is because of what the LORD did for me when I came out of Egypt.’

9 It shall be a sign for you on your hand and a reminder on your forehead that the Law of the LORD is to be on your lips. For with a mighty hand the LORD brought you out of Egypt.

10 Therefore you shall keep this statute at the appointed time year after year.

11 And after the LORD brings you into the land of the Canaanites and gives it to you, as He swore to you and your fathers,

12 you are to present to the LORD the firstborn male of every womb. All the firstborn males of your livestock belong to the LORD.

13 You must redeem every firstborn donkey with a lamb, and if you do not redeem it, you are to break its neck. And every firstborn of your sons you must redeem.

14 In the future, when your son asks you, ‘What does this mean?’ you are to tell him, ‘With a mighty hand the LORD brought us out of Egypt, out of the house of slavery.

15 And when Pharaoh stubbornly refused to let us go, the LORD killed every firstborn in the land of Egypt, both of man and beast. This is why I sacrifice to the LORD the firstborn male of every womb, but I redeem all the firstborn of my sons.’

16 So it shall serve as a sign on your hand and a symbol on your forehead, for with a mighty hand the LORD brought us out of Egypt.”

17 When Pharaoh let the people go, God did not lead them along the road through the land of the Philistines, though it was shorter. For God said, “If the people face war, they might change their minds and return to Egypt.”

18 So God led the people around by the way of the wilderness toward the Red Sea. And the Israelites left the land of Egypt arrayed for battle.

19 Moses took the bones of Joseph with him because Joseph had made the sons of Israel swear a solemn oath when he said, “God will surely attend to you, and then you must carry my bones with you from this place.”

20 They set out from Succoth and camped at Etham on the edge of the wilderness.

21 And the LORD went before them in a pillar of cloud to guide their way by day, and in a pillar of fire to give them light by night, so that they could travel by day or night.

22 Neither the pillar of cloud by day nor the pillar of fire by night left its place before the people.

Exodus 14

1 Then the LORD said to Moses,

2 “Tell the Israelites to turn back and encamp before Pi-hahiroth, between Migdol and the sea. You are to encamp by the sea, directly opposite Baal-zephon.

3 For Pharaoh will say of the Israelites, ‘They are wandering the land in confusion; the wilderness has boxed them in.’

4 And I will harden Pharaoh’s heart so that he will pursue them. But I will gain honor by means of Pharaoh and all his army, and the Egyptians will know that I am the LORD.” So this is what the Israelites did.

5 When the king of Egypt was told that the people had fled, Pharaoh and his officials changed their minds about them and said, “What have we done? We have released Israel from serving us.”

6 So Pharaoh prepared his chariot and took his army with him.

7 He took 600 of the best chariots, and all the other chariots of Egypt, with officers over all of them.

8 And the LORD hardened the heart of Pharaoh king of Egypt so that he pursued the Israelites, who were marching out defiantly.

9 The Egyptians—all Pharaoh’s horses and chariots, horsemen and troops—pursued the Israelites and overtook them as they camped by the sea near Pi-hahiroth, opposite Baal-zephon.

10 As Pharaoh approached, the Israelites looked up and saw the Egyptians marching after them, and they were terrified and cried out to the LORD.

11 They said to Moses, “Was it because there were no graves in Egypt that you brought us into the wilderness to die? What have you done to us by bringing us out of Egypt?

12 Did we not say to you in Egypt, ‘Leave us alone so that we may serve the Egyptians’? For it would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the wilderness.”

13 But Moses told the people, “Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the LORD’s salvation, which He will accomplish for you today; for the Egyptians you see today, you will never see again.

14 The LORD will fight for you; you need only to be still.”

15 Then the LORD said to Moses, “Why are you crying out to Me? Tell the Israelites to go forward.

16 And as for you, lift up your staff and stretch out your hand over the sea and divide it, so that the Israelites can go through the sea on dry ground.

17 And I will harden the hearts of the Egyptians so that they will go in after them. Then I will gain honor by means of Pharaoh and all his army and chariots and horsemen.

18 The Egyptians will know that I am the LORD when I am honored through Pharaoh, his chariots, and his horsemen.”

19 And the angel of God, who had gone before the camp of Israel, withdrew and went behind them. The pillar of cloud also moved from before them and stood behind them,

20 so that it came between the camps of Egypt and Israel. The cloud was there in the darkness, but it lit up the night. So all night long neither camp went near the other.

21 Then Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and all that night the LORD drove back the sea with a strong east wind that turned it into dry land. So the waters were divided,

22 and the Israelites went through the sea on dry ground, with walls of water on their right and on their left.

23 And the Egyptians chased after them—all Pharaoh’s horses, chariots, and horsemen—and followed them into the sea.

24 At morning watch, however, the LORD looked down on the army of the Egyptians from the pillar of fire and cloud, and He threw their camp into confusion.

25 He caused their chariot wheels to wobble, so that they had difficulty driving. “Let us flee from the Israelites,” said the Egyptians, “for the LORD is fighting for them against Egypt!”

26 Then the LORD said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand over the sea, so that the waters may flow back over the Egyptians and their chariots and horsemen.”

27 So Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and at daybreak the sea returned to its normal state. As the Egyptians were retreating, the LORD swept them into the sea.

28 The waters flowed back and covered the chariots and horsemen—the entire army of Pharaoh that had chased the Israelites into the sea. Not one of them survived.

29 But the Israelites had walked through the sea on dry ground, with walls of water on their right and on their left.

30 That day the LORD saved Israel from the hand of the Egyptians, and Israel saw the Egyptians dead on the shore.

31 When Israel saw the great power that the LORD had exercised over the Egyptians, the people feared the LORD and believed in Him and in His servant Moses.

Exodus 15

1 Then Moses and the Israelites sang this song to the LORD: “I will sing to the LORD, for He is highly exalted. The horse and rider He has thrown into the sea.

2 The LORD is my strength and my song, and He has become my salvation. He is my God, and I will praise Him, my father’s God, and I will exalt Him.

3 The LORD is a warrior, the LORD is His name.

4 Pharaoh’s chariots and army He has cast into the sea; the finest of his officers are drowned in the Red Sea.

5 The depths have covered them; they sank there like a stone.

6 Your right hand, O LORD, is majestic in power; Your right hand, O LORD, has shattered the enemy.

7 You overthrew Your adversaries by Your great majesty. You unleashed Your burning wrath; it consumed them like stubble.

8 At the blast of Your nostrils the waters piled up; like a wall the currents stood firm; the depths congealed in the heart of the sea.

9 The enemy declared, ‘I will pursue, I will overtake. I will divide the spoils; I will gorge myself on them. I will draw my sword; my hand will destroy them.’

10 But You blew with Your breath, and the sea covered them. They sank like lead in the mighty waters.

11 Who among the gods is like You, O LORD? Who is like You—majestic in holiness, revered with praises, performing wonders?

12 You stretched out Your right hand, and the earth swallowed them up.

13 With loving devotion You will lead the people You have redeemed; with Your strength You will guide them to Your holy dwelling.

14 The nations will hear and tremble; anguish will grip the dwellers of Philistia.

15 Then the chiefs of Edom will be dismayed; trembling will seize the leaders of Moab; those who dwell in Canaan will melt away,

16 and terror and dread will fall on them. By the power of Your arm they will be as still as a stone until Your people pass by, O LORD, until the people You have bought pass by.

17 You will bring them in and plant them on the mountain of Your inheritance— the place, O LORD, You have prepared for Your dwelling, the sanctuary, O Lord, Your hands have established.

18 The LORD will reign forever and ever!”

19 For when Pharaoh’s horses, chariots, and horsemen went into the sea, the LORD brought the waters of the sea back over them. But the Israelites walked through the sea on dry ground.

20 Then Miriam the prophetess, Aaron’s sister, took a tambourine in her hand, and all the women followed her with tambourines and dancing.

21 And Miriam sang back to them: “Sing to the LORD, for He is highly exalted; the horse and rider He has thrown into the sea.”

22 Then Moses led Israel from the Red Sea, and they went out into the Desert of Shur. For three days they walked in the desert without finding water.

23 And when they came to Marah, they could not drink the water there because it was bitter. (That is why it was named Marah.)

24 So the people grumbled against Moses, saying, “What are we to drink?”

25 And Moses cried out to the LORD, and the LORD showed him a log. And when he cast it into the waters, they were sweetened. There the LORD made for them a statute and an ordinance, and there He tested them,

26 saying, “If you will listen carefully to the voice of the LORD your God, and do what is right in His eyes, and pay attention to His commands, and keep all His statutes, then I will not bring on you any of the diseases I inflicted on the Egyptians. For I am the LORD who heals you.”

27 Then they came to Elim, where there were twelve springs of water and seventy palm trees, and they camped there by the waters.