The Second Book of Moses Exodus

• Author: Moses
• Place Written: Wilderness
• When Written: c. 1500 B.C.E.

CHAPTER 1

The Sons of Israel Multiply in Egypt

1 Now these are the names of Israel’s sons who came into Egypt with Jacob, each man who came with his household: ² Reuben, Simeon, Levi, and Judah; ³ Issachar, Zebulun, and Benjamin; ⁴ Dan and Naphtali, Gad and Asher. ⁵ And all the souls who came out of the loins of Jacob were seventy souls:[1] and Joseph was already in Egypt. ⁶ Then Joseph died, and all his brothers and all that generation. ⁷ But the sons of Israel were fruitful and increased greatly, and multiplied and grew exceedingly strong,[2] so that the land was filled with them.

Pharaoh Oppresses the Sons of Israel

⁸ Now there arose a new king over Egypt, who did not know Joseph. ⁹ And he said to his people, “Look, the people of the sons of Israel are too many and too mighty for us. ¹⁰ Come, let us deal shrewdly with them, lest they multiply, and, if war breaks out, they will join our enemies and fight against us[3] and go up from the land.” ¹¹ So they appointed taskmasters over them to afflict them with hard labor.[4] And they built for Pharaoh storage cities, Pithom and Raamses. ¹² But the more they were oppressed, the more they multiplied and the more they spread out.[5] And the Egyptians were in dread of the sons of Israel. ¹³ The Egyptians ruthlessly forced the sons of Israel into harsh slavery. ¹⁴ And they made their lives bitter with hard service, in mortar and brick, and in all kinds of work in the field. In all their work they ruthlessly made them work as slaves.

God-Fearing Midwives Save Lives

¹⁵ Then the king of Egypt said to the Hebrew midwives, one of whom was named Shiphrah and the other Puah, ¹⁶ and he said, “When you are helping the Hebrew women to give birth and see them upon the birthstool, if it is a son, then you will put him to death; but if it is a daughter, then she will live.” ¹⁷ But the midwives feared God[6] and did not do as the king of Egypt commanded them, but let the male children live. ¹⁸ So the king of Egypt called for the midwives and said to them, “Why have you done this thing, and let the boys live?” ¹⁹ The midwives said to Pharaoh, “Because the Hebrew women are not as the Egyptian women; for they are vigorous and give birth before the midwife comes to them.” ²⁰ So God dealt well with the midwives, and the people multiplied and grew very strong. ²¹ And because the midwives feared God, he gave them families.[7] ²² And Pharaoh commanded all his people, saying, “Every son[8] who is born you will throw into the Nile, and every daughter you will let live.”

CHAPTER 2

The Birth of Moses

2 Now a man from the house of Levi went and took as his wife a daughter of Levi. ² The woman conceived and bore a son, and she saw him, that he was a good child,[9] she hid him three months. ³ But when she could hide him no longer, she got a papyrus basket for him, and she coated it with tar and with pitch. She put the child in it and placed it among the reeds by the bank of the Nile. ⁴ And his sister stood at a distance to know what would be done to him.

The Daughter of Pharaoh Adopts Moses

⁵ Now the daughter of Pharaoh came down to bathe at the river, while her young women walked beside the river. She saw the basket among the reeds, and she sent her slave girl, and she took it. ⁶ When she opened it, she saw the child, and look, the baby was crying. She took pity on him and said, “This is one of the children of the Hebrews.” ⁷ And his sister said to the daughter of Pharaoh, “Shall I go and call for you a woman nursing from the Hebrew women to nurse the child for you?” ⁸ And the daughter of Pharaoh said to her, “Go.” And the girl went, and she called the mother of the child. ⁹ And Pharaoh’s daughter said to her, “Take this child away, and nurse it for me, and I will give you your wages. And the woman took the child and nursed it. ¹⁰ And the child grew, and she brought him to Pharaoh’s daughter, and he became her son. And she called his name Moses, and said, “Because I drew him out of the water.”

Moses Flees to Midian and Marries Zipporah

¹¹ And it was in those days, when Moses had grown up, that he went out to his brothers and looked on their burdens; and he saw an Egyptian beating a Hebrew, one of his brothers. ¹² And he looked this way and that way, and when he saw that there was no one, he struck down the Egyptian and hid him in the sand. 

¹³ And he went out the second day, and look, two men of the Hebrews were struggling together. And he said to him that did the wrong, “Why do you strike your neighbor?”[10] ¹⁴ And he said, “Who made you a prince and a judge over us? Do you mean to kill me, as you killed the Egyptian?”[11] Then Moses was afraid, and thought, “Surely the thing is known.”

¹⁵ Now when Pharaoh heard this thing, he sought to kill Moses. But Moses fled from the face of Pharaoh and dwelt in[12] the land of Midian. And he sat down by a well. ¹⁶ Now the priest of Midian had seven daughters. And they came and drew water and filled the troughs to water their father’s flock. ¹⁷ And the shepherds came and drove them away, but Moses stood up and helped them,[13] and watered their flock. ¹⁸ And when they came to Reuel their father, he said, “How is it that you have come so soon today? ¹⁹ And they said, “An Egyptian delivered us out of the hand of the shepherds, and he even drew water for us and watered the flock.” ²⁰ And he said to his daughters, “And where is he? Why is it that you have left the man? Call him, that he may eat bread.” ²¹ And Moses was content to dwell with the man. And he gave Zipporah his daughter to Moses. ²² And she bore a son, and he called his name Gershom,[14] for he said, “I have been a sojourner[15] in a foreign land.”

God Hears the Israelites’ Crying Out

²³ After many days, the king of Egypt died, but the sons of Israel continued to groan because of the slavery and to cry out in complaint, and their cry for help because of the slavery kept going up to the true God. ²⁴ And God heard their groaning, and God remembered his covenant with Abraham, with Isaac, and with Jacob. ²⁵ And God saw the sons of Israel, and God took notice.[16]

CHAPTER 3

Moses at the Burning Bush

3 Now Moses was shepherding the flock of Jethro his father-in-law, the priest of Midian, and he led the flock to the west side of the wilderness and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. ² The angel of Jehovah appeared to him in a blazing fire from the midst of a bush; and he looked, and behold, the bush was burning with fire, yet the bush was not consumed. ³ And Moses said, “Let me turn aside to see this great sight, why the bush is not burned.” ⁴ When Jehovah[17] saw that he turned aside to see, God called to him out of the bush, “Moses, Moses!” And he said, “Here I am.” ⁵ Then he said, “Do not come near; take your sandals off your feet, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground.” 

⁶ And he said, “I am the God of your father,[18] the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” And Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look at God. ⁷ And Jehovah said, I have surely seen the affliction of my people that are in Egypt, and have heard their cry because of their taskmasters, for I know their sufferings. ⁸ And I have come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians, and to bring them up out of that land to a good and spacious land, to a land flowing with milk and honey, to the place of the Canaanite, and the Hittite, and the Amorite, and the Perizzite, and the Hivite, and the Jebusite. ⁹ And now, look, the cry of the sons of Israel has come to me, and I have seen the oppression with which the Egyptians oppress them.

The Mission of Moses

¹⁰ Come now, and I will send you to Pharaoh, so that you may bring my people, the sons of Israel, out of Egypt.” ¹¹ And Moses said to God, “Who am I, that I should go to Pharaoh, and that I should bring the sons of Israel out of Egypt?” ¹² And he said, “Certainly I will be with you, and this shall be the sign to you, that I have sent you. When you have brought the people out of Egypt, you shall serve God upon this mountain.”

Jehovah Clarifies His name

¹³ Then Moses said to God, “Look, I am going to the sons of Israel, and I will say to them, ‘The God of your forefathers has sent me to you.’ Now they may say to me, ‘What is his name?’ What shall I say to them?” ¹⁴ God said to Moses, “I am what I am”[19] And he said, “Say this to the sons of Israel: ‘I am sent me to you.’” ¹⁵ God, furthermore, said to Moses, “Thus you shall say to the sons of Israel, ‘Jehovah, the God of your forefathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you.’ This is my name forever, and this is how I am to be remembered from generation to generation.

Moses Receives Instructions 

¹⁶ Go, and gather the elders of Israel together, and say to them, ‘Jehovah, the God of your forefathers, the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob, has appeared to me,’ saying, ‘I have observed you and what has been done to you in Egypt.’ ¹⁷ So I said, ‘I will bring you up out of the affliction of Egypt to the land of the Canaanite, and the Hittite, and the Amorite, and the Perizzite, and the Hivite, and the Jebusite, unto a land flowing with milk and honey.’” 

¹⁸ And they will listen to your voice: and you will come, you and the elders of Israel, to the king of Egypt, and you will say to him, ‘Jehovah, the God of the Hebrews, has met with us: and now let us go, please, three days’ journey into the wilderness, that we may sacrifice to Jehovah our God.’ ¹⁹ But I know that the king of Egypt will not let you go unless compelled by a mighty hand.[20] ²⁰ So I will stretch out my hand and strike Egypt with all the wonders that I will do in it; after that he will let you go. ²¹ And I will give this people favor in the sight of the Egyptians; and it will be, that, when you go, you shall not go empty. ²² But every woman shall ask of her neighbor and the woman who lives in her house, articles of silver and articles of gold, and clothing; and you will put them on your sons and on your daughters; and you will plunder the Egyptians.”

CHAPTER 4

Moses Given Powers to Perform Three Signs

4 Then Moses answered, “But behold, they will not believe me or listen to my voice, for they will say, ‘Jehovah did not appear to you.’” ² And Jehovah said to him, “What is this in your hand?” And he said, “A rod.”[21] ³ He said, “Throw it on the ground.” So he threw it on the ground, and it became a serpent; and Moses fled from it. ⁴ And Jehovah said to Moses, “Put out your hand, and take it by the tail: (so he put out his hand, and caught it, and it became a rod[22] in his hand); ⁵ “that they may believe that Jehovah, the God of their forefathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has appeared to you.”

⁶ And Jehovah said to him again, “Put your hand, now, into the fold of your garment.” So he put his hand into the fold of his garment. When he took it out, look, his hand was stricken with leprosy like snow. ⁷ Then he said, “Return your hand into the fold of your garment.” So he returned his hand into his garment. When he drew it out of the garment, it was restored like the rest of his flesh. ⁸ “And it shall be, if they will not believe you, neither listen to the voice of the first sign, they will believe the voice of the latter sign. ⁹ And if they also do not believe the second of these signs and they will not listen to your voice, then you must take water from the Nile and pour it onto the dry ground, and the water that you take from the Nile will become blood on the dry ground.”

Moses Feels Inadequate

¹⁰ But Moses said to Jehovah, “Oh, my Jehovah,[23] I am not eloquent, either in the past or since you have spoken to your servant, but I am slow of speech[24] and slow of tongue.” ¹¹ And Jehovah said to him, “Who has made man’s mouth? Or who makes him mute or deaf, or seeing or blind? is it not I, Jehovah? ¹² Now therefore go, and I will be with your mouth, and teach you what you should say.” ¹³ But he said, “Oh, my Lord, please send some other person.”

Aaron to Be Moses’ Mouthpiece

¹⁴ And the anger of Jehovah was kindled against Moses, and he said, “Is there not Aaron your brother the Levite? I know that he can speak well. And also, look, he is coming out to meet you, and when he sees you, he will be glad in his heart. ¹⁵ And you shall speak to him, and put the words in his mouth, and I will be with your mouth, and with his mouth, and will teach you what you shall do. ¹⁶ And he shall speak for you to the people, and it shall be, that he shall be to you a mouth, and you shall be to him as God. ¹⁷ And you shall take in your hand this rod,[25] with which you shall do the signs.”

Moses Returns to Egypt

¹⁸ And Moses went and returned to Jethro his father-in-law, and said to him, “Let me go, please, and return to my brothers that are in Egypt, and see whether they are yet alive.” And Jethro said to Moses, “Go in peace.” ¹⁹ And Jehovah said to Moses in Midian, “return to Egypt, for all the men who were seeking your soul are dead.” ²⁰ And Moses took his wife and his sons, and set them upon a donkey, and he returned to the land of Egypt. And Moses took the rod[26] of God in his hand. ²¹ Jehovah said to Moses, “When you go and return to Egypt see that you perform before Pharaoh all the wonders which I have put in your hand; but I will harden his heart[27] so that he will not let the people go. ²² Then you shall say to Pharaoh, ‘Thus says Jehovah, “Israel is my son, my firstborn. ²³ And I say to you, ‘Let my son go that he may serve me.’ If you refuse to let him go, look, ‘I will kill your son, your firstborn son.’”

²⁴ And it happened on the way at the lodging place that Jehovah[28] met him and sought to kill him. ²⁵ Then Zipporah took a flint, and cut off the foreskin of her son, and caused it to touch his feet, and she said, “Surely a bridegroom of blood you are to me.” ²⁶ So he let him alone. Then she said, “A bridegroom of blood are you,” because of the circumcision.[29]

Moses Joins Up with Aaron

²⁷ And Jehovah said to Aaron, “Go into the wilderness to meet Moses.” And he went, and met him in the mountain of God, and kissed him. ²⁸ And Moses told Aaron all the words of Jehovah with which he had sent him, and all the signs that he had commanded him to do.[30] ²⁹ And Moses and Aaron went and gathered together all the elders of the sons of Israel. ³⁰ And Aaron spoke all the words which Jehovah had spoken to Moses and did the signs in the sight of the people. ³¹ And the people believed; and when they heard that Jehovah had visited the sons of Israel and that he had seen their affliction, they bowed down and worshiped.

CHAPTER 5

Israel’s Labor Increased – Moses and Aaron before Pharaoh

5  Afterward Moses and Aaron went and said to Pharaoh, “Thus says Jehovah, the God of Israel, ‘Let my people go, that they may hold a feast to me in the wilderness.’” ² But Pharaoh said, “Who is Jehovah that I should obey his voice and let Israel go? I do not know Jehovah, and moreover, I will not let Israel go.” ³ Then they said, “The God of the Hebrews has met with us. Please let us go a three days’ journey into the wilderness that we may sacrifice to Jehovah our God, lest he fall upon us with pestilence[31] or with the sword.” ⁴ But the king of Egypt said to them, “Moses and Aaron, why do you take the people away from their work? Get back to your burdens.” ⁵ And Pharaoh said, “Look, the people of the land are now many, and you make them rest from their burdens!” 

Persecution Intensifies

⁶ And the same day Pharaoh commanded the taskmasters of the people and their foremen,[32] saying, ⁷ “You shall no longer give the people straw to make bricks, as before. Let them go and gather straw for themselves. ⁸ But the number of bricks that they made before you shall impose on them, you shall by no means lessen it, for they are idle. Therefore, they cry, saying, ‘Let us go and sacrifice to our God.’ ⁹ Let the labor be heavier on the men, and let them work at it so that they will pay no attention to false words.”

¹⁰ And the taskmasters of the people went out, and their foremen, and they spoke to the people, saying, “Thus saith Pharaoh, ‘I will not give you straw. ¹¹ Go yourselves, get your straw where you can find it, but your work shall not be reduced.’” ¹² So the people were scattered abroad throughout all the land of Egypt to gather stubble for straw. ¹³ And the taskmasters were urgent saying, “Complete your work, your daily tasks, as when there was straw.” ¹⁴ And the foreman of the sons of Israel, whom Pharaoh’s taskmasters had set over them, were beaten, and demanded, “Why have you not completed your required task both yesterday and today, in making bricks as before?”

¹⁵ Then the foremen of the sons of Israel came and cried to Pharaoh, saying, “Why do you deal with your servants this way? ¹⁶ There is no straw given to your servants, and they say to us, ‘Make brick!’ And look, your servants are beaten; but the fault is in your own people.”[33] ¹⁷ But he said, “You are idle, you are idle. Therefore, you say, ‘Let us go and sacrifice to Jehovah.’ ¹⁸ So now, go and work, for there shall be no straw given to you, yet you shall deliver the same number of bricks.”

Israel Condemns Moses and Aaron

¹⁹ And the foremen of the sons of Israel did see that they were in an evil plight, when they said, “You shall by no means lessen your bricks, your daily tasks.” ²⁰ And they met Moses and Aaron, who were waiting to meet them, as they came forth from Pharaoh. ²¹ And they said to them, “May Jehovah look upon you and judge because you have made us smell offensive in the eyes of Pharaoh, and in the eyes of his servants, to put a sword in their hand to kill us.” ²² And Moses returned to Jehovah, and said, “Jehovah,[34] why have you done evil to this people? And why is it that you ever sent me? ²³ For since I came to Pharaoh to speak in your name, he has done evil to this people, neither have you delivered your people at all.”

CHAPTER 6

God Promises Action

6 But Jehovah said to Moses, “Now you shall see what I will do to Pharaoh; for with a strong hand, he will send them out, and with a strong hand he will drive them out of his land.”

² And God[35] spoke to Moses and said to him, “I am Jehovah. ³ And I appeared to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, as God Almighty,[36] but by my name Jehovah I did not make myself known to them. ⁴ I also established my covenant with them, to give them the land of Canaan, the land in which they sojourned. ⁵ Moreover, I have heard the groaning of the sons of Israel whom the Egyptians hold as slaves, and I have remembered my covenant. ⁶ Say therefore to the sons of Israel, ‘I am Jehovah, and I will bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians, and I will deliver you from slavery to them, and I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with great acts of judgment. ⁷ And I will take you to be my people, and I will be your God, and you shall know that I am Jehovah your God, who has brought you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians. ⁸ I will bring you into the land that I swore to give to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob. I will give it to you for a possession. I am Jehovah.’” ⁹ And Moses spoke thus to the sons of Israel, but they did not listen to Moses, because of their lack of spirit[37] and harsh slavery.

¹⁰ And Jehovah spoke to Moses, saying, ¹¹ “Go, speak to Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, to let the sons of Israel go out from his land.” ¹² And Moses spoke before Jehovah, saying, “Look, the Israelites do not listen to me, and how will Pharaoh listen to me, for I am of uncircumcised lips?”[38] ¹³ And Jehovah spoke to Moses and Aaron and gave them a charge about the sons of Israel and about Pharaoh king of Egypt: to bring the sons of Israel out of the land of Egypt.

Genealogy of Moses and Aaron

¹⁴ These are the heads of their fathers’ houses: the sons of Reuben, the firstborn of Israel: Hanoch, Pallu, Hezron, and Carmi; these are the families of Reuben. ¹⁵ And the sons of Simeon are Jemuel and Jamin and Ohad and Jachin and Zohar and Shaul the son of the Canaanitess. These are the families of Simeon. ¹⁶ And these are the names of the sons of Levi according to their generations: Gershon and Kohath and Merari, and the years of the life of Levi were one hundred and thirty-seven years. ¹⁷ The sons of Gershon: Libni and Shimei, by their families. ¹⁸ And the sons of Kohath are Amram and Izhar and Hebron and Uzziel, and the years of the life of Kohath were one hundred and thirty-three years. ¹⁹ And the sons of Merari are Mahli and Mushi. These are families of the Levites according to their generations. ²⁰ And Amram took as his wife Jochebed his father’s sister, and she bore him Aaron and Moses, the years of the life of Amram were one hundred and thirty-seven years. ²¹ And the sons of Izhar are Korah and Nepheg and Zikri. ²² And the sons of Uzziel are Mishael and Elzaphan and Sithri. ²³ And Aaron took Elisheba the daughter of Amminadab, the sister of Nahshon, as his wife, and she bore for him Nadab and Abihu, Eleazar and Ithamar. ²⁴ And the sons of Korah are Assir and Elkanah and Abiasaph; these are the families of the Korahites. ²⁵ And Eleazar the son of Aaron took one from the daughters of Putiel as a wife, and she bore for him Phinehas. These are the heads of the fathers’ houses of the Levites by their families. ²⁶ These are the Aaron and Moses to whom Jehovah said, “Bring out the sons of Israel from the land of Egypt by their hosts.” ²⁷ It was they who spoke to Pharaoh king of Egypt about bringing out the sons of Israel from Egypt, this Moses, and this Aaron.

Moses Appear Before Pharaoh

²⁸ And it was on a certain day Jehovah spoke to Moses in the land of Egypt. ²⁹ And Jehovah said to Moses, saying, “I am Jehovah. speak to Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, all that I am speaking to you.” ³⁰ And Moses said before the face of Jehovah, “Look, I am of uncircumcised lips.[39] How will Pharaoh listen to me?”

CHAPTER 7

Moses Is Strengthened

7 And Jehovah said to Moses, “See, I make you as God to Pharaoh, and your brother Aaron shall be your prophet. ² You shall speak all that I command you, and your brother Aaron shall tell Pharaoh to let the sons of Israel go out of his land. ³ But I will harden Pharaoh’s heart,[40] and I will multiply my signs and my wonders numerous in the land of Egypt. ⁴ And Pharaoh will not listen to you, and I will lay my hand into Egypt and bring out my divisions, my people, the sons of Israel, from the land of Egypt by great judgment. ⁵ The Egyptians shall know that I am Jehovah, when I stretch out my hand against Egypt and bring out the sons of Israel out from their midst.” ⁶ So Moses and Aaron did what Jehovah had commanded them; they did just so. ⁷ Now Moses was eighty years old, and Aaron eighty-three years old, when they spoke to Pharaoh.

Aaron’s Rod Becomes a Serpent

⁸ And Jehovah spoke to Moses and to Aaron, saying, ⁹ “When Pharaoh says to you, saying ‘Prove yourselves by performing a miracle,’ then you shall say to Aaron, ‘Take your rod and cast it down before Pharaoh, that it may become[41] a serpent.’” ¹⁰ So Moses and Aaron went to Pharaoh and did just as Jehovah commanded. Aaron threw down his rod before Pharaoh and his servants, and it became a serpent. ¹¹ Then Pharaoh also called for the wise men and the sorcerers, and they also, the magicians of Egypt, did the same with their magic arts. ¹² For each man cast down his rod, and they became serpents. But Aaron’s rod swallowed up their rods. ¹³ And Pharaoh’s heart was hardened,[42] and he would not listen to them, as Jehovah had said.

Plague 1: Water Is Turned to Blood

¹⁴ Then Jehovah said to Moses, “Pharaoh’s heart is hardened;[43] he refuses to let the people go. ¹⁵ Go to Pharaoh in the morning, as he is going out to the water. Wait on the bank of the Nile to meet him and take in your hand the rod that turned into a serpent. ¹⁶ And you shall say to him, ‘Jehovah, the God of the Hebrews, sent me to you, saying, “Let my people go, that they may serve me in the wilderness.” And look, so far, you have yet to obey. ¹⁷ Thus says Jehovah, “By this you shall know that I am Jehovah: look, with the rod that is in my hand I will strike the water that is in the Nile, and it shall be turned into blood. ¹⁸ And the fish that are in the Nile shall die, and the Nile will stink, and the Egyptians will loathe drinking water from the Nile.”’” 

¹⁹ Then Jehovah said to Moses, “Say to Aaron, ‘Take your rod and stretch out your hand over the waters of Egypt, over their rivers, over their canals, and over their pools, and over all their reservoirs of water, that they may become blood; and there shall be blood throughout all the land of Egypt, both in vessels of wood and in vessels of stone.’

²⁰ And Moses and Aaron did so as Jehovah had commanded. And he lifted up the rod and struck the water that was in the Nile, in the sight of Pharaoh and in the sight of his servants, and all the water that was in the Nile was turned to blood. ²¹ And the fish that were in the Nile died, and the Nile stank, and the Egyptians were not able to drink water from the Nile, and there was blood throughout all the land of Egypt. 

²² But the magicians of Egypt did the same by their magic arts. So that Pharaoh’s heart continued to be hardened,[44] and he would not listen to them, as Jehovah had said. ²³ Then Pharaoh turned and went into his house, and he did not take this to heart either. ²⁴ And all the Egyptians dug around the Nile for water to drink, for they could not drink of the water of the Nile. ²⁵ And seven days were fulfilled[45] after Jehovah had struck the Nile.

CHAPTER 8

Plague 2: Frogs over the Land

8 [46]Then Jehovah said to Moses, “Go to Pharaoh and say to him, ‘Thus says Jehovah, “Let my people go, that they may serve me. ² But if you refuse to let them go, look, I will plague all your territory with frogs. ³ The Nile shall swarm with frogs, which will come up and go into your house and into your bedroom and on your bed, and into the houses of your servants and on your people, and into your ovens and into your kneading bowls. ⁴ And the frogs shall come up on you and on your people and on all your servants.”’” 

^5 [47]And Jehovah said to Moses, “Say to Aaron, ‘Stretch out your hand with your rod over the rivers, over the canals and over the pools, and make frogs come up on the land of Egypt.’ ⁶ So Aaron stretched out his hand over the waters of Egypt, and the frogs came up and covered the land of Egypt. ⁷ And the magicians did the same by their magic arts and made frogs come up on the land of Egypt. ⁸ And Pharaoh called Moses and Aaron and said, “Plead with Jehovah, and let him remove the frogs from me and from my people, and let me release the people so that they can sacrifice to Jehovah.” ⁹ And Moses said to Pharaoh, “I leave to you the honor of telling me when I should plead to have the frogs removed from you, your servants, your people, and your houses. Only in the Nile River will they be left.” ¹⁰ And he said, “Tomorrow.” And he said, “Let it be according to your word so that you will know that there is no one like Jehovah our God. ¹¹ The frogs shall depart from you and from your house and from your servants. They shall be left only in the Nile.” 

¹² And Moses and Aaron went out from Pharaoh, and Moses cried out to Jehovah concerning the frogs that he had brought on Pharaoh. ¹³ And Jehovah did according to the word of Moses, and the frogs died off from the houses, off from the courtyards,[48] and off from the fields. ¹⁴ And they gathered them together in heaps, and the land stank. ¹⁵ But when Pharaoh saw that there was a relief, he hardened[49] his heart and would not listen to them, as Jehovah had said.

Plague 3:  Gnats

¹⁶ Then Jehovah said to Moses, “Say to Aaron, ‘Stretch out your staff and strike the dust of the earth, so that it may become gnats in all the land of Egypt.’” ¹⁷ And they did so, and Aaron stretched out his hand with his rod, and struck the dust of the earth, and there were gnats on man and beast. All the dust of the earth became gnats throughout all the land of Egypt. ¹⁸ And the magicians tried with their magic arts to bring forth gnats, but they could not. So there were gnats on man and beast. ¹⁹ Then the magicians said to Pharaoh, “This is the finger of God.” But Pharaoh’s heart was hardened,[50] and he did not listen to them, as Jehovah had said.

Plague 4: Flies

²⁰ And Jehovah said to Moses, “Rise early in the morning and present yourself before Pharaoh, as he comes out to the water, and say to him, ‘Thus says Jehovah, “Let my people go, that they may serve me. ²¹ But if you do not let my people go, look, I will send swarms of flies on you and on your servants and on your people and into your houses; and the houses of the Egyptians will be full of swarms of flies,[51] and also the ground on which they dwell. ²² But on that day, I will set apart the land of Goshen, where my people are dwelling, so that no swarms of flies will be there, in order that you may know that I, Jehovah, am in the midst of the land. ²³ I will put a division[52] between my people and your people. Tomorrow this sign shall be.’” ²⁴ And Jehovah did so. There came heavy[53] swarms of flies into the house of Pharaoh and into his servants’ houses. Throughout all the land of Egypt the land was ruined by the swarms of flies.

²⁵ Then Pharaoh called Moses and Aaron and said, “Go, sacrifice to your God[54] within the land.” ²⁶ But Moses said, “It is not right to do so, for we will sacrifice to Jehovah our God what is the abomination[55] of Egypt. If we sacrifice what is the abomination of Egypt before their eyes, and will they not stone us? ²⁷ We must go a three days’ journey into the wilderness and sacrifice to Jehovah our God as he commands us.” ²⁸ And Pharaoh said, “I will let you go, that you may sacrifice to Jehovah your God in the wilderness; only you shall not go very far away. Plead for me.” ²⁹ Then Moses said, “Look, I am going out from you, and I shall plead to Jehovah that the swarms of flies may depart from Pharaoh, from his servants, and from his people tomorrow. Only do not let Pharaoh deal deceitfully again in not letting the people go to sacrifice to Jehovah.”

³⁰ So Moses went out from Pharaoh and plead to Jehovah. ³¹ And Jehovah did as Moses asked, and removed the swarms of flies from Pharaoh, from his servants and from his people; not one remained. ³² But Pharaoh hardened his heart[56] this time also, and he did not let the people go.

CHAPTER 9

Plague 5: Death of Livestock

9 Then Jehovah said to Moses, “Go in to Pharaoh and say to him, ‘Thus says Jehovah, the God of the Hebrews, “Let my people go, that they may serve me. ² For if you refuse to let them go, and will hold them still, ³ look, the hand of Jehovah will come upon your livestock in the field, on the horses, on the donkeys, on the camels, on the herds, and on the flocks, there will be a severe plague. ⁴ But Jehovah will make a distinction between the livestock of Israel and the livestock of Egypt, so that nothing of all that belongs to the sons of Israel shall die.”’” ⁵ And Jehovah set a time, saying, “Tomorrow Jehovah will do this thing in the land.” 

⁶ And Jehovah did this thing the next day; all the livestock of Egypt died, but from the livestock of the sons of Israel not one died. ⁷ And Pharaoh sent, and look, there was not so much as one of the cattle of the sons of Israel dead. But the heart of Pharaoh was hardened,[57] and he did not let the people go.

Plague 6: Boils on Man and Beast

⁸ And Jehovah said to Moses and Aaron, “Take for yourselves handfuls of soot from the kiln, and let Moses sprinkle it toward heavens in the sight of Pharaoh. ⁹ It shall become fine dust over all the land of Egypt and become boils breaking out in sores on man and beast throughout all the land of Egypt.” 

¹⁰ So they took soot from a kiln and stood before Pharaoh; and Moses threw it toward the sky, and Moses sprinkled it toward the heavens, and it became boils breaking out on man and on beast. ¹¹ And the magicians could not stand before Moses because of the boils, for the boils came upon the magicians and upon all the Egyptians. ¹² But Jehovah hardened the heart of Pharaoh,[58] and he did not listen to them, as Jehovah had spoken to Moses.

Plague 7: Hail

¹³ Then Jehovah said to Moses, “Rise up early in the morning and present yourself before Pharaoh and say to him, ‘Thus says Jehovah, the God of the Hebrews, “Let my people go, that they may serve me. ¹⁴ For I will this time send all my plagues upon your heart,[59] and upon your servants, and upon your people; that you may know that there is none like me in all the earth. ¹⁵ For by now I could have put out my hand and struck you and your people with pestilence, and you would have been cut off from the earth. ¹⁶ But for this reason I have let you live, to show you my power and to have my name declared in all the earth.[60] ¹⁷ You are still exalting yourself against my people and will not let them go. ¹⁸ Look, tomorrow about this time I will cause it to rain a very severe hail, such as has not been in Egypt since the day it was founded even until now. ¹⁹ Now therefore send, bring all your livestock and all that is yours in the field under shelter, for every man and beast that will be found in the field and not gathered into the house, the hail shall come down upon them, and they shall die.”’” 

²⁰ He who feared the word of Jehovah among the servants of Pharaoh made his slaves and his cattle flee into the houses, ²¹ but he who did not set his heart upon[61] the word of Jehovah left his slaves and his cattle in the field.

²² Then Jehovah said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand toward the heavens, that hail may fall on all the land of Egypt, on man and on beast and on every plant of the field, throughout the land of Egypt.” ²³ Then Moses stretched out his rod toward the heavens, and Jehovah sent thunder and hail, and fire ran down to the earth. And Jehovah rained hail upon the land of Egypt. ²⁴ So there was hail, and fire flashing continually in the midst of the hail, very severe, such as had not been in all the land of Egypt since it became a nation. ²⁵ And the hail struck throughout all the land of Egypt all that was in the field, both man and beast, and the hail struck every plant of the field, and broke every tree of the field. ²⁶ Only in the land of Goshen, where the sons of Israel were, there was no hail.

²⁷ And Pharaoh sent, and called for Moses and Aaron, and said to them, “I have sinned this time; Jehovah is the righteous one, and I and my people are the wicked ones. ²⁸ Plead with Jehovah, for there has been enough of God’s thunder and hail. I will let you go, and you shall stay no longer.” ²⁹ Moses said to him, “As soon as I have gone out of the city, I will stretch out my hands to Jehovah. The thunder will cease, and there will be no more hail, so that you may know that the earth belongs to Jehovah. ³⁰ But as for you and your servants, I know that you do not yet fear Jehovah God.” 

³¹ And the flax and the barley were struck, for the barley was in the ear and the flax was in bud. ³² But the wheat and the spelt were not struck, for they are late in coming up. ³³ So Moses went out of the city from Pharaoh and stretched out his hands to Jehovah, and the thunder and the hail ceased, and the rain no longer poured upon the earth. ³⁴ But when Pharaoh saw that the rain and the hail and the thunder had ceased, he sinned yet again and hardened his heart,[62] he and his servants. ³⁵ So the heart of Pharaoh was hardened,[63] and he did not let the sons of Israel go, just as Jehovah had spoken through Moses.

CHAPTER 10

Plague 8: Locusts

10 Then Jehovah said to Moses, “Go in to Pharaoh, for I have hardened his heart[64] and the heart of his servants, that I may show these signs of mine among them,[65] ² and that you may tell in the hearing of your son and of your grandson how I have dealt harshly with the Egyptians and what signs I have done among them, that you may know that I am Jehovah.”

³ So Moses and Aaron went in to Pharaoh and said to him, “Thus says Jehovah, the God of the Hebrews, ‘How long will you refuse to humble yourself before me? Let my people go, that they may serve me. ⁴ For if you refuse to let my people go, look, tomorrow I will bring locusts into your territory, ⁵ and they shall cover the face of the land, and no one will be able to see the land. And they shall eat what is left to you after the hail, and they shall eat every tree of yours that grows in the field, ⁶ and they shall fill your houses and the houses of all your servants and the houses of all Egypt, as neither your fathers nor your fathers’ fathers have seen, from the day they came on earth to this day.’” Then he turned and went out from Pharaoh. 

⁷ Then Pharaoh’s servants said to him, “How long shall this man be a snare to us? Let the men go, that they may serve Jehovah their God. Do you not yet understand that Egypt is destroyed?”[66] ⁸ And Moses and Aaron were brought again to Pharaoh, and he said to them, “Go, serve Jehovah your God, but who are the ones going?” ⁹ And Moses said, “We will go with our young and with our old; with our sons and with our daughters, with our flocks and with our herds will we go, for we must hold a feast to Jehovah.” ¹⁰ But he said to them, “Jehovah be with you, if ever I let you and your little ones go! Look, something evil is in front of your faces.[67] ¹¹ Not so! Go now, the men among you, and serve Jehovah, for that is what you desire.” So they were driven out from Pharaoh’s presence.

¹² Then Jehovah said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand over the land of Egypt for the locusts, so that they may come upon the land of Egypt and eat every plant in the land, all that the hail has left.” ¹³ So Moses stretched out his rod over the land of Egypt, and Jehovah brought an east wind upon the land all that day and all that night. When it was morning, the east wind had brought the locusts. ¹⁴ And the locusts went up over all the land of Egypt, and they settled in all the territory of Egypt, very heavy;[68] never before had there been so many locusts,[69] nor will there be after it. ¹⁵ For they covered the face of the whole land, so that the land was darkened, and they ate all the plants in the land and all the fruit of the trees that the hail had left; nothing green was left on the trees or on the plant of the field in all the land of Egypt 

¹⁶ Then Pharaoh in haste called Moses and Aaron and said, “I have sinned against Jehovah your God, and against you. ¹⁷ Now therefore, please forgive my sin only this once, and entreat Jehovah your God, that he would only remove this death from me.” ¹⁸ And he went out from Pharaoh, and entreated Jehovah. ¹⁹ And Jehovah turned a very strong west wind, which took up the locusts, and drove them into the Sea of Reeds;[70] there remained not one locust in all the territory of Egypt. ²⁰ But Jehovah hardened Pharaoh’s heart,[71] and he did not let the sons of Israel go.

Plague 9: Darkness

²¹ And Jehovah said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand toward the heavens that there may be darkness over the land of Egypt, even darkness which may be felt.” ²² So Moses stretched out his hand toward the heavens, and there was a thick darkness in all the land of Egypt for three days. ²³ They did not see one another, nor did anyone rise from his place for three days, but all the sons of Israel had light in their dwellings. ²⁴ And Pharaoh called to Moses, and said, “Go, serve Jehovah; let your little ones also go with you, only let your flocks and your herds remain behind.” ²⁵ And Moses said, “You must also give into our hand sacrifices and burnt offerings, that we may sacrifice to Jehovah our God. ²⁶ Our livestock also must go with us; not a hoof shall be left behind, for we must take of them to serve Jehovah our God, and we do not know with what we must serve Jehovah until we arrive there.” ²⁷ But Jehovah hardened Pharaoh’s heart,[72] and he would not let them go. ²⁸ Then Pharaoh said to him, “Get away from me; take heed to yourself never to see my face again, for on the day you see my face you shall die.” ²⁹ Moses said, “As you have spoken! I shall never again see your face.”

CHAPTER 11

Tenth Plague Declared

11 And Jehovah said to Moses, “Yet one plague more will I bring on Pharaoh and on Egypt. Afterward, he will let you go from here: when he lets you go, he will surely drive you out from here completely. ² Speak now in the ears of the people, and let them ask every man of his neighbor, and every woman of her neighbor, for jewels of silver, and jewels of gold.” ³ And Jehovah gave the people favor in the sight of the Egyptians. Moreover, the man Moses was very great in the land of Egypt, in the sight of Pharaoh’s servants, and in the sight of the people.

⁴ So Moses said, “Thus says Jehovah: ‘About midnight I will go out in the midst of Egypt, ⁵ and all the firstborn in the land of Egypt shall die, from the firstborn of Pharaoh who sits on his throne, even to the firstborn of the slave girl who is behind the hand mill, and all the firstborn of the cattle. ⁶ And there shall be a great cry throughout all the land of Egypt, such as there has never been, nor ever will be again. ⁷ But against any of the sons of Israel no dog shall growl,[73] against man or beast, that you may know how that Jehovah does make a distinction between Egypt and Israel.’ ⁸ And all these your servants shall come down to me and bow down to me, saying, ‘Get out, you and all the people who follow you.’ And after that I will go out.” And he went out from Pharaoh in hot anger.

⁹ Then Jehovah said to Moses, “Pharaoh will not listen to you, so that my wonders may be multiplied in the land of Egypt.” ¹⁰ Moses and Aaron did all these wonders before Pharaoh, and Jehovah hardened Pharaoh’s heart,[74] and he did not let the sons of Israel go out of his land.

CHAPTER 12

The Passover Lamb

12 And Jehovah spoke to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt, saying, ² “This month shall be for you the beginning of months. It shall be the first month of the year for you. ³ Speak to all the congregation of Israel, saying, ‘On the tenth day of this month they shall each man take a lamb for themselves, according to their fathers’ households, a lamb for each household. 

⁴ And if the household is too small for a lamb, then he and his nearest neighbor shall take according to the number of souls; according to what each man can eat you shall make your count for the lamb. ⁵ Your lamb shall be without blemish, a male a year old. You may take it from the sheep or from the goats, ⁶ and you shall keep it until the fourteenth day of this month, then the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel shall kill their lambs between the two evenings.[75] ⁷ “And then they shall take some of the blood and put it on the two doorposts and on the lintel on the houses in which they eat it.

⁸ They shall eat the flesh that night, roasted on the fire; with unleavened bread and bitter herbs they shall eat it. ⁹ Do not eat any of it raw or boiled at all with water, but roasted, its head with its legs and its inner parts. ¹⁰ And you shall let none of it remain until the morning; but any that remains of it until the morning you shall burn with fire. ¹¹ And thus in this manner you shall eat it: with your loins girded, your shoes on your feet, and your staff in your hand. And you shall eat it in haste. It is Jehovah’s Passover. ¹² For I will go through the land of Egypt in that night and will strike all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and against all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgments: I am Jehovah. ¹³ And the blood shall be for you a sign upon the houses where you are. And when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and there shall be no plague befall you to destroy you, when I strike the land of Egypt.

Feast of Unleavened Bread

¹⁴ “And this day shall be a memorial for you, and you shall keep it as a feast to Jehovah; throughout your generations, as a lasting statute forever, you shall keep it as a feast. ¹⁵ Seven days you shall eat unleavened bread. But on the first day you shall remove leaven from your houses, for if anyone eats what is leavened, from the first day until the seventh day, that soul shall be cut off from Israel. ¹⁶ On the first day you shall hold a holy assembly, and on the seventh day a holy assembly. No work shall be done on those days. But only what every soul needs to eat, that alone may be prepared by you. 

¹⁷ And you shall observe the Feast of Unleavened Bread, for on this very day I brought your armies out of the land of Egypt. Therefore, you shall observe this day, throughout your generations, as a lasting statute forever. ¹⁸ In the first day, on the fourteenth day of the month at evening, you shall eat unleavened bread until the twenty-first day of the month at evening. ¹⁹ Seven days shall there be no leaven found in your houses. For whoever eats what is leavened, that soul will be cut off from the congregation of Israel, whether he is a sojourner or a native of the land. ²⁰ You shall eat nothing leavened; in all your dwellings you shall eat unleavened bread.”

²¹ Then Moses called for all the elders of Israel and said to them, “Go and select lambs for yourselves according to your families and slaughter the Passover lamb. ²² And you shall take a bunch of hyssop and dip it in the blood that is in the basin and touch the lintel and the two doorposts with the blood that is in the basin. And none of you shall go out of the door of his house until the morning. ²³ For Jehovah will pass through to strike the Egyptians, and when he sees the blood on the lintel, and on the two doorposts, Jehovah will pass over the door, and will not allow the destroyer to come into your houses to strike you.

²⁴ And you shall observe this rite as an ordinance for you and for your sons forever. ²⁵ And it shall be, when you come to the land that Jehovah will give you, as he has promised that you shall keep this service. ²⁶ And when your sons ask you, ‘What does this service mean to you?’ ²⁷ you shall say, ‘It is the sacrifice of Jehovah’s Passover, for he passed over the houses of the sons of Israel in Egypt, when he struck the Egyptians but spared our houses.’” And the people knelt down and worshiped.

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

Plague 10: Firstborn Killed

²⁹ Now it came about at midnight that Jehovah struck 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 dungeon, and all the firstborn of cattle. ³⁰ And Pharaoh rose up in the night, he and all his servants and all the Egyptians. And there was a great cry in Egypt, for there was not a house where someone was not dead. ³¹ Then he called for Moses and Aaron at night and said, “Rise up, get out from among my people, both you and the sons of Israel; and go, serve Jehovah, as you have said. ³² Take both your flocks and your herds, as you have said, and be gone, and bless me also.”

Exodus of Israel

³³ The Egyptians urged the people, to send them out of the land in haste, for they said, “We will all be dead.” ³⁴ So the people took their dough before it was leavened, their kneading troughs[76] being bound up in their cloaks on their shoulders.

³⁵ Now the sons of Israel did according to the word of Moses; and they asked of the Egyptians jewels of silver, and jewels of gold, and clothing. ³⁶ And Jehovah had given the people favor in the sight of the Egyptians, so that they let them have what they asked, and they plundered the Egyptians.

³⁷ And the sons of Israel journeyed from Rameses to Succoth, about six hundred thousand on foot that were men[77] besides children. ³⁸ And a mixed multitude[78] went up also with them, and flocks, and herds, a great number of livestock. ³⁹ And they baked unleavened cakes of the dough that they had brought out of Egypt, for it was not leavened, because they were thrust out of Egypt and could not wait, nor had they prepared any provisions for themselves.

End of 430 Years

⁴⁰ And the time of dwelling of the sons of Israel,[79] who had dwelt[80] in Egypt, was four hundred and thirty years. ⁴¹ And at the end of four hundred and thirty years, on that very day, all the armies of Jehovah[81] went out from the land of Egypt. ⁴² It is a night to be observed with regard to Jehovah for bringing them out of the land of Egypt; this night is for Jehovah, to be observed by all the sons of Israel throughout their generations.

Instructions for Passover

⁴³ And Jehovah said to Moses and Aaron, “This is the statute of the Passover: no foreigner shall eat of it. ⁴⁴ But any slave of a man, who was purchased with money, after you have circumcised him, then he shall eat it. ⁴⁵ A sojourner[82] and a hired worker shall not eat of it. ⁴⁶ In one house shall it be eaten; you shall not carry forth any of the flesh out of the house; neither shall you break a bone of it. ⁴⁷ All the congregation of Israel shall keep it. ⁴⁸ If a stranger shall sojourn with you and would keep the Passover to Jehovah, let all his males be circumcised, and then he may come near and keep it; and he shall be as a native of the land. But no uncircumcised person shall eat of it. ⁴⁹ There shall be one law for the native and for the stranger who sojourns among you.”

⁵⁰ And all the sons of Israel did as Jehovah had commanded Moses and Aaron; so they did. ⁵¹ And on that same day Jehovah brought the sons of Israel out of the land of Egypt according to their armies.[83]

CHAPTER 13

Consecration of the Firstborn

13 And Jehovah spoke to Moses, saying, ² “Sanctify to me all the firstborn. Whatever is the first to open the womb among the sons of Israel, both of man and of beast, is mine.”

Festival of Unleavened Bread

³ Then Moses said to the people, “Remember this day in which you came out from Egypt, out of the house of slavery, for by a strong hand Jehovah brought you out from this place. There shall no leavened bread be eaten. ⁴ This day you go forth in the month Abib. ⁵ And it shall be, when Jehovah brings you into the land of the Canaanite, and the Hittite, and the Amorite, and the Hivite, and the Jebusite, which he swore to your forefathers to give you, a land flowing with milk and honey, that you shall keep this service in this month. ⁶ Seven days you shall eat unleavened bread, and on the seventh day shall be a feast to Jehovah. ⁷ Unleavened bread shall be eaten throughout the seven days; and there shall no leavened bread be seen with you, neither shall there be leaven seen with you, in all your territory. ⁸ And you shall tell your son in that day, saying, ‘It is because of that which Jehovah did for me when I came forth out of Egypt.’ ⁹ And it shall be for a sign to you upon your hand, and for a memorial between your eyes, that the law of Jehovah may be in your mouth: for with a strong hand has Jehovah brought you out of Egypt. ¹⁰ You shall therefore keep this statute at its appointed time from year to year.

Every Firstborn Male Devoted to God

¹¹ “And it shall be, when Jehovah shall bring you into the land of the Canaanite, as he swore to you and to your forefathers, and shall give it to you, ¹² you shall set apart to Jehovah all that first opens the womb. All the firstborn of your animals that are males shall be Jehovah’s. ¹³ And every firstborn of a donkey you shall redeem with a lamb, but if you will not redeem it, you shall break its neck. And every firstborn of man among your sons you shall redeem. 

¹⁴ And it shall be when your son asks you in time to come, saying, ‘What is this?’ then you shall say to him, ‘With a powerful hand Jehovah brought us out of Egypt, from the house of slavery. ¹⁵ And it shall be, when Pharaoh would refuse to let us go, that Jehovah slew all the first-born in the land of Egypt, both the firstborn of man, and the firstborn of beast: therefore I sacrifice to Jehovah all that opens the womb, being males; but all the firstborn of my sons I redeem.’ ¹⁶ And it shall be for a sign upon your hand, and for frontlet bands between your eyes: for by strength of hand Jehovah brought us forth out of Egypt.”

Israel Led Toward the Red Sea

¹⁷ Now when Pharaoh had let the people go, God did not lead them by the way of the land of the Philistines, even though it was near; for God said, “The people might change their minds when they see war, and return to Egypt.” ¹⁸ But God led the people around by the way of the wilderness to the Sea of Reeds:^[84] and the sons of Israel[85] went up armed out of the land of Egypt. ¹⁹ Moses took the bones of Joseph with him, for Joseph had made the sons of Israel solemnly swear, saying, “God will surely visit you, and you shall carry my bones from here with you.” ²⁰ And they journeyed from Succoth, and camped in Etham, on the edge of the wilderness. 

²¹ And Jehovah went before them by day in a pillar of cloud, to lead them the way, and by night in a pillar of fire, to give them light, that they might travel by day and by night ²² The pillar of cloud by day and the pillar of fire by night did not depart from before the people.

CHAPTER 14

Pharaoh in Pursuit

14 And Jehovah spoke to Moses, saying, ² “Tell the sons of Israel to turn back and encamp in front of Pi-hahiroth, between Migdol and the sea, in front of Baal-zephon; you shall encamp facing it, by the sea. ³ For Pharaoh will say of the sons of Israel, ‘They are wandering in the land; the wilderness has shut them in.’ ⁴ And I will harden Pharaoh’s heart,[86] and he will pursue them, and I will get glory over Pharaoh and all his host, and the Egyptians shall know that I am Jehovah.” And they did so.

Pharaoh Pursues Israel

⁵ When the king of Egypt was told that the people had fled, and the heart of Pharaoh and his servants was changed toward the people, and they said, “What is this we have done, that we have let Israel go from serving us?” ⁶ And he made ready his chariot, and took his people[87] with him, ⁷ and took six hundred chosen chariots and all the other chariots of Egypt with officers over all of them. ⁸ And Jehovah hardened the heart of Pharaoh[88] king of Egypt, and he pursued the sons of Israel while the sons of Israel were going out defiantly. ⁹ And the Egyptians pursued after them, all the horses and chariots of Pharaoh, and his horsemen, and his army, and overtook them camping by the sea, beside Pi-hahiroth, before Baal-zephon.

¹⁰ And when Pharaoh drew near, the sons of Israel lifted up their eyes, and look, the Egyptians were marching after them; and they were in great fear: and the sons of Israel cried out to Jehovah. ¹¹ And they said to Moses, “Because there are no graves in Egypt, is that why you have taken us away to die in the wilderness? Why have you dealt with us in this way, bringing us out of Egypt? ¹² Is not this what we said to you in Egypt, saying, ‘Leave us alone that we may serve the Egyptians’? For it would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the wilderness.”

The Sea Is Divided

¹³ And Moses said to the people, “Fear not, stand firm, and see the salvation of Jehovah, which he will work for you today. For the Egyptians whom you see today, you shall never see again. ¹⁴ Jehovah will fight for you, and you must be silent.”

Israel Crosses the Red Sea

¹⁵ And Jehovah said to Moses, “Why do you cry out to me? Speak to the sons of Israel so that they go forward. ¹⁶ Lift up your rod and stretch out your hand over the sea and divide it, that the sons of Israel may go through the sea on dry ground. ¹⁷ And as for me, look, I will harden the hearts of the Egyptians[89] so that they shall go in after them, and I will get glory over Pharaoh and all his host, his chariots, and his horsemen. ¹⁸ And the Egyptians shall know that I am Jehovah, when I have gotten glory over Pharaoh, his chariots, and his horsemen.”

¹⁹ Then the angel of God who was going before the army of Israel moved and went behind them, and the pillar of cloud moved from before them and stood behind them, ²⁰ so that it came between the camp of Egypt and the camp of Israel. And there was the cloud and the darkness.[90] And it lit up the night without one coming near the other all night.

²¹ And Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and Jehovah moved the sea with a strong east wind all night, and he made the sea become dry ground, and the waters were divided. ²² And the sons of Israel went into the midst of the sea on dry ground, the waters being a wall to them on their right hand and on their left. ²³ And the Egyptians pursued and went in after them into the midst of the sea, all Pharaoh’s horses, his chariots, and his horsemen. ²⁴ And it was during the morning watch that Jehovah looked down on the army of the Egyptians through the pillar of fire and of cloud and confused the army of the Egyptians. ²⁵ And he removed the wheels of their chariots[91] so that they drove them with difficulty. And the Egyptians said, “Let us flee from Israel, for Jehovah is fighting for them against the Egyptians.”

Egyptians Drown in the Sea

²⁶ Then Jehovah said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand over the sea, that the water may come back upon the Egyptians, upon their chariots, and upon their horsemen.” ²⁷ And Moses stretched forth his hand over the sea, and the sea returned to its normal strength when the morning appeared. And the Egyptians fled into it, and Jehovah overthrew the Egyptians in the midst of the sea. ²⁸ And the waters returned and covered the chariots, and the horsemen, even all the army of Pharaoh that went in after them into the sea, there remained not so much as one of them. 

Israel Has Faith in Jehovah

²⁹ But the sons of Israel walked on dry ground through the sea, and the waters being a wall to them on their right hand and on their left. ³⁰ Thus Jehovah saved Israel that day from the hand of the Egyptians, and Israel saw the Egyptians dead on the seashore. ³¹ And Israel saw the great hand[92] that Jehovah used against Egypt, and the people feared Jehovah, and they believed in Jehovah and in Moses his servant.

CHAPTER 15

The Victory Song of Moses and Israel

15 Then Moses and the sons of Israel sang this song to Jehovah, saying,

“I will sing to Jehovah, for he has triumphed gloriously;
    the horse and his rider he has thrown into the sea.
² My strength and my might is Jah,[93]
    and he has become my salvation;
this is my God, and I will praise him,
    my father’s God, and I will exalt him.
³ Jehovah is a man of war;
    Jehovah is his name.

⁴ “Pharaoh’s chariots and his army he cast into the sea,
    and his chosen officers were sunk in the Sea of Reeds.^[94]
5 The floods covered them;
    they went down into the depths like a stone.
⁶ Your right hand, O Jehovah, glorious in power,
    your right hand, O Jehovah, shatters the enemy.
⁷ In the greatness of your majesty you overthrow your adversaries;
    you send out your fury; it consumes them like stubble.
⁸ At the blast of your nostrils the waters piled up;
    the floods stood up in a heap;
    the deeps congealed in the heart of the sea.
⁹ The enemy said, ‘I will pursue, I will overtake,
    I will divide the spoil, my desire shall have its fill of them.
    I will draw my sword; my hand shall destroy them.’
¹⁰ You blew with your wind; the sea covered them;
    they sank like lead in the mighty waters.

¹¹ “Who is like you, O Jehovah, among the gods?
    Who is like you, majestic in holiness,
    awesome in glorious deeds, doing wonders?
¹² You stretched out your right hand;
    the earth swallowed them.

¹³ “You have led in your loyal love the people whom you have redeemed;
    you have guided them by your strength to your holy place of dwelling.
¹⁴ The peoples have heard; they tremble;
    anguish seized the inhabitants of Philistia.
¹⁵ Now are the chiefs of Edom dismayed;
    trembling seizes the leaders of Moab;
    all the inhabitants of Canaan have melted away.
¹⁶ Terror and dread fall upon them;
    because of the greatness of your arm, they are still as a stone,
till your people, O Lord, pass by,
    till the people pass by whom you have purchased.
¹⁷ You will bring them in and plant them on your own mountain,
    the place, O Jehovah, which you have made for your dwelling,
    the sanctuary, O Jehovah, which your hands have established.
¹⁸ Jehovah will reign forever and ever.”

¹⁹ For when the horses of Pharaoh with his chariots and his horsemen went into the sea, Jehovah brought back the waters of the sea upon them, but the sons of Israel walked on dry ground in the midst of the sea.

Miriam Sings in Response

²⁰ And Miriam the prophetess, the sister of Aaron, took her tambourine in her hand, and all of the women went out after her with tambourines and with dances. ²¹ Miriam answered them,

“Sing[95] to Jehovah, for he is highly exalted;
The horse and his rider he has hurled into the sea.”

Jehovah Makes Bitter Water Sweet

²² Then Moses had Israel set out from the Sea of Reeds,^[96] and they went into the wilderness of Shur. They went three days in the wilderness and found no water. ²³ When they came to Marah, they could not drink the water of Marah because it was bitter; therefore, the name of it was called Marah. ²⁴ And the people murmured against Moses, saying, “What shall we drink?” ²⁵ And he cried to Jehovah, and Jehovah showed him a tree, and he threw it into the water, and the water became sweet. There Jehovah made for them a statute and a regulation, and there he tested them, ²⁶ He said: “If you will diligently listen to the voice of Jehovah your God and will do what is right in his eyes and will pay attention to his commandments and keep all his statutes, I will put none of the diseases on you that I put on the Egyptians, for I, Jehovah, am your healer.”

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

CHAPTER 16

Jehovah Provides Manna

16 They journeyed from Elim, and all the congregation of the sons of Israel came to the wilderness of Sin, which is between Elim and Sinai, on the fifteenth day of the second month after they had departed from the land of Egypt. 

² And the whole congregation of the sons of Israel murmured against Moses and Aaron in the wilderness, ³ The sons of Israel said to them, “Would that we had died by Jehovah’s hand in the land of Egypt, when we sat by the pots of meat, when we ate bread to the full, because you have brought us out into this wilderness to kill this whole assembly with hunger.”

Jehovah Hears the Murmurs

⁴ Then Jehovah said to Moses, “Look, I will rain bread from heaven for you, and the people shall go out and gather a day’s portion every day, that I may test them,[97] whether they will walk in my law, or not. ⁵ On the sixth day, when they prepare what they bring in, it will be twice as much as they gather daily.” 

⁶ So Moses and Aaron said to all the sons of Israel, “At evening you shall know that it was Jehovah who brought you out of the land of Egypt, ⁷ and in the morning, you shall see the glory of Jehovah, because he has heard your murmurings against Jehovah. For what are we, that you murmur against us?” ⁸ And Moses said, “When Jehovah gives you in the evening meat to eat and in the morning bread to the full, because Jehovah has heard your murmurings that you murmur against him, and what are we? Your murmurings are not against us but against Jehovah.”

⁹ Then Moses said to Aaron, “Say to the whole congregation of the sons of Israel, ‘Come near before Jehovah, for he has heard your murmurings.’” ¹⁰ And as soon as Aaron spoke to the whole congregation of the sons of Israel, they looked toward the wilderness, and look, the glory of Jehovah appeared in the cloud. 

¹¹ And Jehovah spoke to Moses, saying, ¹² “I have heard the murmurings of the sons of Israel. Say to them, ‘between the two evenings[98] you shall eat meat, and in the morning, you shall be filled with bread. Then you shall know that I am Jehovah your God.’”

Quail and Manna Provided

¹³ And so it was, in the evening, the quail came up and covered the camp, and in the morning, a layer of dew was all around the camp. ¹⁴ And when the dew had gone up, there was on the face of the wilderness a fine, flake-like thing, fine as the frost on the ground. ¹⁵ When the sons of Israel saw it, they said to one another, “What is it?” For they did not know what it was. And Moses said to them, “It is the bread that Jehovah has given you to eat. ¹⁶ This is what Jehovah has commanded: ‘Gather of it, every man, as much as he can eat. You shall each take an omer,[99] according to the number of the souls that each of you has in his tent.’ ¹⁷ And the sons of Israel did so, and they gathered, some more and some less. ¹⁸ But when they measured it with an omer, the one who had gathered much had nothing left over, and the one who had gathered little had no lack, every man gathered as much as he could eat. 

¹⁹ And Moses said to them, “Let no man leave any of it over till the morning.” ²⁰ But they did not listen to Moses, and some left part of it till the morning, and it bred worms and became foul. And Moses was angry with them. ²¹ And they gathered it morning by morning, each according to what he could eat, and it melted when the sun grew hot.

No Manna on the Sabbath

²² Now on the sixth day, they gathered twice as much bread, two omers for each one,  and all the leaders of the congregation came and told Moses. ²³ And he said to them, “This is what Jehovah has commanded: ‘Tomorrow is a day of solemn rest, a holy sabbath to Jehovah; bake what you will bake and boil what you will boil, and all that is left over lay aside for yourselves to be kept till the morning.’” ²⁴ So they laid it aside till the morning, as Moses commanded them, and it did not become foul, and there were no worms in it. ²⁵ Moses said, “Eat it today, for today is a Sabbath to Jehovah; today you will not find it in the field. ²⁶ Six days you shall gather it, but on the seventh day, which is a Sabbath, there will be none.” ²⁷ It came about on the seventh day that some of the people went out to gather, but they found none. 

²⁸ And Jehovah said to Moses, “How long will you refuse to keep my commandments and my laws? ²⁹ See, Jehovah has given you the Sabbath; therefore, on the sixth day he gives you bread for two days. Remain each man in his place; let no man go out of his place on the seventh day.” ³⁰ So the people rested on the seventh day.

Manna Kept as a reminder

³¹ Now the house of Israel called its name manna.[100] It was like coriander seed, white, and the taste of it was like wafers made with honey. ³² Then Moses said, “This is what Jehovah has commanded: ‘Let an omer of it be kept throughout your generations, so that they may see the bread with which I fed you in the wilderness, when I brought you out of the land of Egypt.’” ³³ And Moses said to Aaron, “Take a jar, and put an omer of manna in it, and place it before Jehovah to be kept throughout your generations. ³⁴ As Jehovah commanded Moses, so Aaron placed it before the testimony to be kept. ³⁵ And the sons of Israel ate the manna forty years, till they came to an inhabitable land. They ate the manna till they came to the border of the land of Canaan. ³⁶ Now an omer is a tenth of an ephah measure.[101]

CHAPTER 17

Complaint about Lack of Water at Horeb

17 All the congregation of the sons of Israel moved on from the wilderness of Sin by stages, according to the commandment of Jehovah, and camped at Rephidim, but there was no water for the people to drink.

² Therefore the people quarreled with Moses and said, “Give us water to drink.” And Moses said to them, “Why do you quarrel with me? Why do you test Jehovah? ³ But the people thirsted there for water, and the people murmured against Moses and said, “Why did you bring us up out of Egypt, to kill us and our children and our livestock with thirst?” ⁴ So Moses cried to Jehovah, saying, “What shall I do with this people? A little longer and they will stone me.” 

Water from a Rock

⁵ And Jehovah said to Moses, “Pass on before the people, taking with you some of the elders of Israel, and take in your hand the rod with which you struck the Nile, and go. ⁶ Look, I will stand before you there on the rock at Horeb, and you shall strike the rock, and water shall come out of it, and the people will drink.” And Moses did so, in the sight of the elders of Israel. ⁷ And he called the name of the place Massah[102] and Meribah,[103] because of the quarreling of the sons of Israel, and because they tested Jehovah by saying, “Is Jehovah among us or not?”

Amalek Fought and Defeated

⁸ Then Amalek came and fought against Israel at Rephidim. ⁹ And Moses said to Joshua, “Choose men for us, and go out, fight against Amalek tomorrow. I will be standing on the top of the hill, and the rod of God will be in my hand.” ¹⁰ So Joshua did as Moses told him, and fought against Amalek; and Moses, Aaron, and Hur went up to the top of the hill. 

¹¹ So it was when Moses held his hand up, that Israel prevailed, and when he let his hand down, Amalek prevailed. ¹² But the hands of Moses were heavy, and they took a stone and put it under him, and he sat on it; Aaron and Hur supported his hands, one on each side, and his hands were steady until the going down of the sun. ¹³ And Joshua overwhelmed Amalek and his people with the edge of the sword.

¹⁴ Then Jehovah said to Moses, “Write this as a memorial in the book and recite it in the ears of Joshua, that I will utterly blot out the memory of Amalek from under the heavens.” ¹⁵ And Moses built an altar and called the name of it Jehovah-nissi;[104] ¹⁶ and he said, “Because a hand is against the throne of Jah;[105] Jehovah will have war[106] against Amalek from generation to generation.”

CHAPTER 18

Jethro and Zipporah Arrive

18 Now Jethro, the priest of Midian, Moses’ father-in-law, heard of all that God had done for Moses, and for Israel his people, how that Jehovah had brought Israel out of Egypt. ² And Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law, took Zipporah, Moses’ wife, after he had sent her away, ³ and her two sons; of whom the name of the one was Gershom, for he said, “I have been a sojourner in a foreign land.” ⁴ And the name of the other was Eliezer, for he said, “The God of my father was my help, and delivered me from the sword of Pharaoh.”

⁵ Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law, came with his sons and his wife to Moses in the wilderness where he was camped at the mountain of God. ⁶ And when he sent word to Moses, “I,[107] your father-in-law Jethro, am coming to you with your wife and her two sons with her,” ⁷ And Moses went out to meet his father-in-law, and he bowed down and kissed him; and they asked each other of their welfare and went into the tent. 

⁸ Then Moses told his father-in-law all that Jehovah had done to Pharaoh and to the Egyptians for Israel’s sake, all the hardship that had come upon them in the way, and how Jehovah had delivered them. ⁹ And Jethro rejoiced for all the goodness which Jehovah had done to Israel, in that he had delivered them out of the hand of the Egyptians. ¹⁰ And Jethro said, “Blessed be Jehovah, who has delivered you out of the hand of the Egyptians, and out of the hand of Pharaoh, who has delivered the people from under the hand of the Egyptians. ¹¹ Now I know that Jehovah is greater than all gods; when in the matter they dealt arrogantly with them.” ¹² And Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law, took[108] a burnt offering and sacrifices for God: and Aaron came, and all the elders of Israel, to eat bread with Moses’ father-in-law before God.

Jethro’s Suggestion to Appoint Judges

¹³ And it happened on the next day that Moses sat to judge the people: and the people stood before Moses from the morning until the evening. ¹⁴ When Moses’ father-in-law saw all that he was doing for the people, he said, “What is this thing that you are doing for the people? Why do you sit alone, and all the people stand before you from morning till evening?” ¹⁵ And Moses said to his father-in-law, “Because the people come to me to inquire of God; ¹⁶ when they have a matter, they come to me and I judge between a man and his neighbor, and I make them know the statutes of God, and his laws.”

Jethro Counsels Moses

¹⁷ And Moses’ father-in-law said to him, “What you are doing is not good. ¹⁸ You will surely wear out, both you and this people who are with you, because this is too heavy for you. You are not able to do it alone. ¹⁹ Now listen to my voice; I will advise you, and may God be with you. You shall represent the people before God and bring their cases to God, ²⁰ and you shall teach them the statutes and the laws and shall show them the way in which they must walk, and the work that they must do. ²¹ Moreover you shall provide out of all the people able men, such as fear God, men of truth, hating unjust gain, and place such over them, to be chiefs of thousands, chiefs of hundreds, chiefs of fifties, and chiefs of tens ²² And let them judge the people at all times. Every difficult case they shall bring to you, but every minor case they will decide themselves. So it will be easier for you, and they will bear the burden with you. ²³ If you shall do this thing, and God commands you so, then you shall be able to endure, and all this people also shall go to their place in peace.”

²⁴ So Moses listened to the voice of his father-in-law and did all that he had said. ²⁵ And Moses chose able men out of all Israel, and made them heads over the people, chiefs of thousands, chiefs of hundreds, chiefs of fifties, and chiefs of tens. ²⁶ And they judged the people at all times. Any hard case they brought to Moses, but every minor case they would judge. ²⁷ And Moses let his father-in-law depart, and he went his way into his own land.

CHAPTER 19

Moses on Sinai

19 On the third new moon after the sons of Israel had gone out of the land of Egypt, on that day they came into the wilderness of Sinai. ² And when they had departed from Rephidim, and came to the wilderness of Sinai, they camped in the wilderness; and there Israel camped before the mountain. 

³ And Moses went up to God, and Jehovah called to him out of the mountain, saying, “Thus shall you say to the house of Jacob, and tell the sons of Israel: ⁴ ‘You yourselves have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles’ wings and brought you to myself. ⁵ Now therefore, if you will indeed obey my voice and keep my covenant, you shall be my treasured possession among all peoples, for all the earth is mine; ⁶ and you shall be to me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation. These are the words that you shall speak to the sons of Israel.”

⁷ So Moses came and called the elders of the people and set before them all these words that Jehovah had commanded him. ⁸ All the people answered together and said, “All that Jehovah has spoken we will do!” And Moses brought back the words of the people to Jehovah. ⁹ And Jehovah said to Moses, “Look, I am coming to you in a thick cloud, that the people may hear when I speak with you and may also believe you forever.” When Moses told the words of the people to Jehovah,

¹⁰ Jehovah said to Moses, “Go to the people and sanctify them today and tomorrow, and let them wash their garments, ¹¹ and be ready for the third day. For on the third day Jehovah will come down on Mount Sinai in the sight of all the people. ¹² And you shall set limits for the people all around, saying, ‘Take heed to yourselves not to go up into the mountain or touch the edge of it. Whoever touches the mountain shall be put to death. ¹³ No hand shall touch him, but he shall be stoned or shot; whether beast or man, he shall not live.’ When the trumpet sounds a long blast, they shall come up to the mountain.” 

¹⁴ So Moses went down from the mountain to the people and sanctified the people; and they washed their garments. ¹⁵ And he said to the people, “Be ready for the third day; do not go near a woman.”

¹⁶ And on the third day, when it was morning, there was thunder and lightning, and a heavy cloud over the mountain and a very loud sound of a horn, and all the people who were in the camp trembled. ¹⁷ And Moses brought the people out from the camp to meet God, and they took their stand at the foot of the mountain. ¹⁸ Now Mount Sinai was wrapped in smoke because Jehovah had descended on it in fire. The smoke of it went up like the smoke of a kiln, and the whole mountain quaked violently.[109] ¹⁹ And as the sound of the trumpet grew louder and louder, Moses spoke, and God answered him with thunder. 

²⁰ Jehovah came down on Mount Sinai, to the top of the mountain. And Jehovah called Moses to the top of the mountain, and Moses went up. ²¹ And Jehovah said to Moses, “Go down and warn the people, lest they break through to Jehovah to look and many of them perish. ²² Also let the priests who come near to Jehovah sanctify themselves, lest Jehovah break out against them.” ²³ And Moses said to Jehovah, “The people cannot come up to Mount Sinai, for you yourself warned us, saying, ‘Set boundaries around the mountain and sanctify it.’” ²⁴ And Jehovah said to him, “Go down, and come up bringing Aaron with you. But do not let the priests and the people break through to come up to Jehovah, lest he break out against them.” ²⁵ So Moses went down to the people and told them.

CHAPTER 20

The Ten Commandments

20 Then God spoke all these words, saying,

² “I am Jehovah your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery.

³ “You shall have no other gods before me.

⁴ “You shall not make for yourself a carved image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. ⁵ You shall not bow down to them or serve them, for I Jehovah your God am a jealous God, visiting the error of the fathers upon the sons to the third and the fourth generation of those who hate me, ⁶ but showing loyal love to thousands of those who love me and keep my commandments.

⁷ “You shall not take the name of Jehovah your God in vain, for Jehovah will not hold him guiltless who takes his name in vain.

⁸ “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. ⁹ Six days you shall labor, and do all your work, ¹⁰ but the seventh day is a sabbath to Jehovah your God. On it you shall not do any work, you, or your son, or your daughter, your male servant, or your female servant, or your livestock, or the sojourner who is within your gates. ¹¹ For in six days Jehovah made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested on the seventh day. Therefore, Jehovah blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.

¹² “Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be prolonged in the land which Jehovah your God gives you.

¹³ “You shall not murder.

¹⁴ “You shall not commit adultery.

¹⁵ “You shall not steal.

¹⁶ “You shall not bear false witness against your fellow man.

¹⁷ “You shall not covet your fellow man’s house; you shall not covet your fellow man’s wife, or his male servant, or his female servant, or his ox, or his donkey, or anything that is your fellow man’s.”

Phenomenon Causes Israel to Fear

¹⁸ Now when all the people saw[110] the thunder and the flashes of lightning and the sound of the trumpet and the mountain smoking, the people were afraid and trembled, and they stood at a distance. ¹⁹ Then they said to Moses, “Speak to us yourself and we will listen; but let not God speak to us, lest we die.” ²⁰ Moses said to the people, “Do not fear, for God has come to test you, that the fear of him may be before you, that you may not sin.” ²¹ And the people stood at a distance, while Moses drew near to the thick darkness where God was.

Instructions Concerning Worship

²² And Jehovah said to Moses, “Thus you shall say to the sons of Israel: ‘You yourselves have seen that I have talked with you from heaven. ²³ You shall not make other gods besides me; gods of silver or gods of gold, you shall not make for yourselves. ²⁴ An altar of earth you shall make for me and sacrifice on it your burnt offerings and your peace offerings, your sheep, and your oxen. In every place where I cause my name to be remembered I will come to you and bless you. ²⁵ And if you make me an altar of stone, you shall not build it of hewn stones, for if you wield your tool on it you profane it. ²⁶ And you shall not go up by steps to my altar, that your nakedness be not exposed on it.’

CHAPTER 21

Ordinances for the People

21 “Now these are the statutes which you are to set before them:

Hebrew Slaves

² “If you buy a Hebrew slave, he will serve as a slave for six years, but in the seventh year, he will be set free without payment. ³ If he comes in single, he shall go out single; if he comes in married, then his wife shall go out with him. ⁴ If his master gives him a wife and she bears him sons or daughters, the wife and her children shall be her master’s, and he shall go out alone. ⁵ But if the slave plainly says, ‘I love my master, my wife, and my children; I will not go out free,’ ⁶ then his master shall bring him unto God and shall bring him to the door or to the doorpost; and his master shall bore his ear through with an awl;[111] and he shall be his slave for life.

⁷ “And if a man sells his daughter to be a slave, she shall not go out as the men slaves do. ⁸ If she is displeasing in the eyes of her master, who has designated her for himself, then he shall let her be redeemed. He shall have no right to sell her to a foreign people, since he has dealt treacherously with her. ⁹ If he designates her for his son, he shall grant her the rights of a daughter. ¹⁰ If he takes another wife to himself, her food, her clothing, or her marital due shall not be diminished. ¹¹ And if he does not do these three things for her, she shall go out for nothing, without payment of money.

Violence Done to a Fellow Man

¹² “He who strikes a man so that he dies shall be put to death. ¹³ But if he did not lie in wait for him, but God let him fall into his hand,[112] then I will appoint for you a place to which he may flee. ¹⁴ If a man becomes very angry with his fellow man and he cunningly kills him, the man must die, you shall take him from my altar.

¹⁵ “He who strikes his father, or his mother shall surely be put to death.

¹⁶ “He who kidnaps[113] a man, whether he sells him or he is found in his possession,[114] shall surely be put to death.

¹⁷ “He who curses[115] his father, or his mother shall surely be put to death.

¹⁸ “And if men contend, and one strikes his fellow man with a stone, or with his fist, and he does not die, but is confined to his bed, ¹⁹ if he is able to get up and walk outdoors with his staff, then the one who struck him must be free from punishment; only he shall pay for the loss of his time until he is completely healed.

²⁰ “And if a man strikes his male slave or his female slave with the rod[116] and he dies under his hand, he shall surely be avenged. ²¹ But if the slave keeps standing[117] a day or two, he is not to be avenged, for the slave is his money.

²² “If men should struggle with each other and they hurt a pregnant woman and her children come out,[118] yet there is no injury, he shall surely be fined as the woman’s husband lays on him, and he shall pay as the judges determine. ²³ And if any harm follows, you shall give life for life, ²⁴ eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot, ²⁵ burn for burn, wound for wound, stripe for stripe.

²⁶ “‘And if a man strikes the eye of his male slave or the eye of his female slave and destroys it, he shall let him go free because of his eye. ²⁷ And if he knocks out a tooth of his male or female slave, he shall let him go free on account of his tooth.

Animals

²⁸ “And if an ox gores a man or a woman to death, the ox shall surely be stoned, and its flesh shall not be eaten, but the owner of the ox shall be free from punishment. ²⁹ But if the ox has been accustomed to gore in the past, and its owner has been warned but has not kept it in, and it kills a man or a woman, the ox shall be stoned, and its owner also shall be put to death. ³⁰ If a ransom is laid on him,[119] then he shall give for the redemption of his soul whatever is laid on him.[120] ³¹ If it gores a son or a daughter, he is to be dealt with according to this same rule. ³² If the ox gores a slave man or a slave girl, the owner shall give to their master thirty shekels[121] of silver, and the ox shall be stoned.

³³ “If a man opens a pit, or if a man digs a pit and does not cover it, and an ox or a donkey falls into it, ³⁴ the owner of the pit shall make restitution. He shall give money to its owner, and the dead beast shall be his.

³⁵ “If one man’s ox hurts another’s, so that it dies, then they shall sell the live ox and divide its price, and the dead beast also they shall divide. ³⁶ Or if it is known that the ox had been in the habit of goring in the past, and its owner has not kept it in, he shall make restitution ox for ox, and the dead beast shall be his.

CHAPTER 22

Property Rights

22 “If a man steals an ox or a sheep, and kills it or sells it, he shall repay five oxen for an ox, and four sheep for a sheep.[122]

² If the thief is found breaking in, and is struck so that he dies, there shall be no bloodguilt for him. ³ But if the sun has risen on him, there shall be bloodguilt for him. He shall surely pay. If he has nothing, then he shall be sold for his theft. ⁴ If the stolen beast is found alive in his possession, whether it be ox, or donkey, or sheep, he shall pay double.

⁵ “If a man causes a field or a vineyard to be grazed over,[123] or he does send out his beasts and so that it grazes in another field, he shall make restitution from the best of his own field[124] and the best of his own vineyard.

⁶ “If a fire breaks out and spreads to thornbushes and it causes sheaves or standing grain or a field to be consumed, he who started the fire shall surely make full restitution.

⁷ “If a man shall deliver to his fellow man money or stuff to keep, and it gets stolen out of the fellow man’s house; if the thief is found, he shall pay double. ⁸ If the thief is not found, the owner of the house must be brought before God to determine whether he put his hand on the goods of his fellow man. ⁹ For every breach of trust, whether it is for an ox, for a donkey, for a sheep, for a garment, or for any kind of lost thing, of which one says, ‘This is it,’ both parties will present their case before the true God.[125] The one whom God condemns shall pay double to his fellow man.

¹⁰ “If a man gives to his fellow man a donkey or an ox or a sheep or any beast to keep safe, and it dies or is injured or is driven away, with no man is seeing it, ¹¹ the oath of Jehovah shall be between them both, whether he has not put his hand to his fellow man’s goods; and the owner thereof shall accept it, and he shall not make restitution. ¹² But if it is stolen from him, he shall make restitution to its owner. ¹³ If it is torn in pieces, let him bring it for witness: he shall not make good that which was torn.[126]

¹⁴ “And if a man borrows anything from his fellow man, and it is hurt, or dies, the owner not being with it, he shall surely make restitution. ¹⁵ If its owner is with it, he is not to make restitution. If it is hired, it came for its hire.[127]

Laws on Seduction

¹⁶ “If a man seduces a virgin who is not engaged, and lies with her, he must pay a bride-price for her to be his wife. ¹⁷ If her father absolutely refuses to give her to him, he will weigh out silver according to the bride-price for virgins.

¹⁸ “You shall not allow a sorceress to live.

¹⁹ “Whoever lies with an animal[128] shall surely be put to death.

²⁰ “He who sacrifices to any gods, but Jehovah alone shall be utterly destroyed.[129]

Laws on Foreigners and the Poor

²¹ “You shall not wrong a sojourner or oppress him, for you were sojourners in the land of Egypt. ²² You shall not afflict any widow or fatherless child. ²³ If you afflict him at all, so that he cries out to me, I shall surely hear his cry, ²⁴ and my anger will indeed burn, and I shall certainly kill you with the sword, and your wives shall become widows and your sons fatherless boys.

²⁵ “If you lend money to anyone poor of my people, someone who is dwelling with you, you must not become like a moneylender to him. You must not charge him interest. ²⁶ If ever you take your fellow man’s garment in pledge, you shall return it to him before the sun goes down, ²⁷ for it is his only covering, his clothing to cover his skin; in what will he lie down to sleep? And when he cries out to me, I will hear, for I am gracious.

²⁸ “You shall not revile God, nor curse a ruler of your people.

²⁹ “You shall not delay the offering from the fullness of your harvest and from the outflow of your presses. The firstborn of your sons you shall give to me. ³⁰ You shall do the same with your oxen and with your sheep: seven days it shall be with its mother; on the eighth day you shall give it to me.

³¹ “You shall be holy men to me. Therefore, you shall not eat any flesh that is torn by beasts in the field; you shall throw it to the dogs.

CHAPTER 23

Laws Regarding Justice for Israel

23 “You shall not utter a false report. You shall not join hands with a wicked man to be a malicious witness. ² You shall not follow a multitude to do evil, nor shall you bear witness in a lawsuit, so as to turn aside with the crowd in order to pervert justice,[130] ³ nor shall you be partial to a poor man in his lawsuit.

⁴ “If you meet your enemy’s ox or his donkey going astray, you shall surely bring it back to him. ⁵ If you see the donkey of one who hates you lying down under its burden, you shall refrain from leaving him with it; you shall by all means rescue it with him.

⁶ “You shall not pervert the justice due to your poor in his lawsuit. ⁷ Keep far from a false charge, and do not kill the innocent and righteous, for I will not acquit the wicked.

⁸ “And you shall take no bribe: for a bribe blinds the officials and subverts the cause of those who are in the right.[131]

⁹ “And a sojourner you shall not oppress: for you know the heart of a sojourner, seeing you were sojourners in the land of Egypt.

Sabbaths and Festivals

¹⁰ “And six years you shall sow your land and gather its yield. ¹¹ but the seventh year you shall let it rest and lie fallow, that the poor of your people may eat; and what they leave the beast of the field shall eat. In like manner you shall deal with your vineyard, and with your olive grove.

¹² “Six days you shall do your work, but on the seventh day you shall rest; that your ox and your donkey may have rest, and the son of your slave woman, and the sojourner, may be refreshed. ¹³ And in all things that I have said to you take heed and make no mention of the name of other gods, neither let it be heard out of your mouth.

Three National Feasts

¹⁴ “Three times you shall keep a feast to me in the year. ¹⁵ The feast of unleavened bread you shall keep: seven days you shall eat unleavened bread, as I commanded you, at the time appointed in the month Abib for in it you came out from Egypt. And none shall appear[132] before me empty-handed. ¹⁶ And the feast of harvest, the firstfruits of your labors, which you sow in the field. And the feast of ingathering, at the end of the year, when you gather in your labors from the field. ¹⁷ Three times in the year all your males shall appear before the Sovereign Lord Jehovah.[133]

¹⁸ “You shall not offer the blood of my sacrifice with leavened bread or let the fat of my feast remain overnight until the morning.

¹⁹ The first[134] of the firstfruits of your ground you shall bring into the house of Jehovah your God. You shall not boil a young goat in its mother’s milk.

Conquest of the Land

²⁰ “Look, I am sending an angel ahead of you to guard you on the way and to bring you into the place that I have prepared. ²¹ Take heed before him, and listen to his voice, do not rebel against him; for he will not pardon your transgression, for my name is in him. ²² “But if you shall indeed listen to his voice, and do all that I say; then, I will be an enemy to your enemies, and an adversary to your adversaries. ²³ “When my angel goes before you and brings you to the Amorites and the Hittites and the Perizzites and the Canaanites, the Hivites and the Jebusites, and I will cut them off. ²⁴ You shall not bow down to their gods, nor serve them, nor do according to their works, but you shall utterly overthrow them, and break in pieces their sacred pillars. ²⁵ And you shall serve Jehovah your God, and he will bless[135] your bread, and your water, and I will take sickness away from the midst of you. ²⁶ There shall none suffer a miscarriage, or be barren, in your land. I will make the number of your days full. 

Land Purchases and Boundaries

²⁷ I will send my terror before you and will throw into confusion all the people against whom you shall come, and I will make all your enemies turn their backs to you. ²⁸ And I will send hornets before you, which shall drive out the Hivites, the Canaanites, and the Hittites from before you. ²⁹ I will not drive them out from before you in one year, lest the land become desolate, and the wild beasts multiply against you. ³⁰ Little by little I will drive them out from before you, until you have increased and take possession of the land. 

³¹ And I will set your border from the Sea of Reeds^[136] to the Sea of the Philistines, and from the wilderness to the river,[137] for I will deliver the inhabitants of the land into your hand, and you[138] shall drive them out before you. ³² You shall make no covenant with them or with their gods. ³³ They shall not dwell in your land, lest they make you sin against me; for if you serve their gods, it will surely be a snare to you.”

CHAPTER 24

People Affirm Their Covenant with God

24 Then he said to Moses, “Come up to Jehovah, you and Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel, and worship at a distance. ² Moses alone shall come near to Jehovah, but the others shall not come near, and the people shall not come up with him.”

³ Moses came and told the people all the words of Jehovah and all the rules. And all the people answered with one voice and said, “All the words that Jehovah has spoken we will do.” ⁴ And Moses wrote down all the words of Jehovah. He rose early in the morning and built an altar at the foot of the mountain, and twelve pillars, according to the twelve tribes of Israel. ⁵ And he sent young men of the sons of Israel, who offered burnt offerings and sacrificed peace offerings of oxen to Jehovah. ⁶ And Moses took half of the blood and put it in basins, and half of the blood he sprinkled on the altar. ⁷ Then he took the book of the covenant and read it in the hearing of the people. And they said, “All that Jehovah has spoken we will do, and we will be obedient.” ⁸ And Moses took the blood and sprinkled it on the people, and said, “Look the blood of the covenant, which Jehovah has made with you in accordance with all these words.”

⁹ Then Moses went up with Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel, ¹⁰ and they saw the God of Israel; and under his feet was what seemed like a sapphire pavement, as clear as the sky itself. ¹¹ And he did not lay his hand on the chief men of the sons of Israel; they beheld God and ate and drank.

¹² And Jehovah said to Moses, “Come up to me on the mountain and be there, and I will give you the tablets of stone, with the law and the commandment, which I have written for their instruction.” ¹³ And Moses arose with Joshua his servant, and Moses went up to the mountain of God. ¹⁴ And he said to the elders, “Wait here for us until we return to you. And look, Aaron and Hur are with you. Whoever has a dispute, let him go to them.” ¹⁵ And Moses went up to the mountain, and the cloud covered the mountain. 

¹⁶ The glory of Jehovah dwelt on Mount Sinai, and the cloud covered it six days. And on the seventh day he called to Moses from the midst of the cloud. ¹⁷ Now the appearance of the glory of Jehovah was like a devouring fire on the top of the mountain in the sight of the sons of Israel. ¹⁸ And Moses entered into the midst of the cloud and went up into the mountain. And Moses was on the mountain forty days and forty nights.

CHAPTER 25

Offerings for the Sanctuary

25 And Jehovah spoke to Moses, saying, ² “Speak to the sons of Israel, that they take for me a contribution. From every man whose heart moves him you shall receive the contribution for me. ³ And this is the contribution that you shall receive from them: gold, silver, and copper, ⁴ blue and purple and scarlet material and fine twisted linen, goats’ hair, ⁵ And ram skins dyed red, sealskins, acacia wood, ⁶ oil for the lamps, balsam for the anointing oil and for the fragrant incense, ⁷ and onyx stones and other stones to be set in the ephod and the breastpiece. ⁸ And let them make me a sanctuary, that I may dwell among them. ⁹ According to all that I am going to show you concerning the pattern of the tabernacle, and of all its furniture, so you shall make it.

Ark of the Covenant

¹⁰ “And they shall make an ark of acacia wood. Two cubits and a half shall be its length, a cubit and a half its breadth, and a cubit and a half its height. ¹¹ You shall overlay it with pure gold, inside and outside shall you overlay it, and you shall make on it a molding of gold around it. ¹² And you shall cast four rings of gold for it and put them on its four feet, two rings on the one side of it, and two rings on the other side of it. ¹³ And you shall make poles of acacia wood and overlay them with gold. ¹⁴ And you shall put the poles into the rings on the sides of the ark to carry the ark by them. ¹⁵ The poles shall remain in the rings of the ark; they shall not be taken from it. ¹⁶ And you shall put into the ark the testimony that I shall give you.

¹⁷ “You shall make a mercy seat of pure gold. Two cubits and a half shall be its length, and a cubit and a half its breadth. ¹⁸ And you will make two cherubim of gold; you will make them of hammered work at the two ends of the mercy seat. ¹⁹ And make one cherub at the one end, and one cherub at the other end. Of one piece with the mercy seat shall you make the cherubim on its two ends. ²⁰ And the cherubim shall spread out their wings above, overshadowing the mercy seat with their wings, their faces one to another; toward the mercy seat shall the faces of the cherubim be. ²¹ And you shall put the mercy seat on the top of the ark, and in the ark, you shall put the testimony that I shall give you. ²² There I will meet with you, and from above the mercy seat, from between the two cherubim that are on the ark of the testimony, I will speak with you about all that I will give you in commandment for the sons of Israel.

The Table of Showbread

²³ “And you shall make a table of acacia wood. Two cubits shall be its length, a cubit its breadth, and a cubit and a half its height. ²⁴ And you shall overlay it with pure gold and make a molding of gold around it. ²⁵ And you will make a rim around it a handbreadth[139] wide and a border of gold to go around the rim. ²⁶ And you shall make its plates and dishes for incense, and its flagons and bowls with which to pour drink offerings; you shall make them of pure gold. ²⁷ Close to the frame the rings shall lie, as holders for the poles to carry the table. ²⁸ You shall make the poles of acacia wood, and overlay them with gold, and the table shall be carried[140] with these. ²⁹ And you shall make its dishes and its cups and its pitchers and its bowls with which they will pour libations; you shall make them of pure gold. ³⁰ And you shall set on the table showbread[141] before me always.

The Golden Lampstand

³¹ “And you shall make a lampstand of pure gold. The lampstand is to be made of hammered work. Its base, its stem, its branches, its cups, its knobs, and its blossoms will be one piece. ³² And there shall be six branches going out of its sides, three branches of the lampstand out of one side of it and three branches of the lampstand out of the other side of it. ³³ Three cups made like almond blossoms, each with knobs and flowers, on one branch, and three cups made like almond blossoms, each with knobs and flowers, on the other branch: so for the six branches going out of the lampstand. ³⁴ And on the lampstand itself there shall be four cups made like almond blossoms, with their knobs and flowers, ³⁵ A knob shall be under the first two branches that extend out of the stem and a knob under the next two branches and a knob under the next two branches, for the six branches extending out from the stem. ³⁶ Their knobs and their branches shall be of one piece with it, the whole of it a single piece of hammered work of pure gold. ³⁷ And you shall make the lamps, and its lamps will be set up, so as to give light on the space in front of it. ³⁸ And its snuffers and its fire pans will be pure gold. ³⁹ And it shall be made, with all these utensils, from a talent of pure gold. ⁴⁰ And see that you make them after the pattern for them, which has been shown to you on the mountain.

CHAPTER 26

The Tabernacle

26 “Moreover you shall make the tabernacle with ten curtains of fine twisted linen, and blue, and purple, and scarlet material, with cherubim the work of the skillful workman you shall make them. ² The length of each curtain shall be twenty-eight cubits,[142] and the width of each curtain four cubits; all the curtains shall have one measurement. ³ Five curtains shall be coupled together one to another; and the other five curtains shall be coupled one to another. ⁴ And you shall make loops of blue on the edge of the outermost curtain in the first set, and likewise you shall make them on the edge of the curtain that is outermost in the second set. ⁵ Fifty loops you shall make in the one curtain, and fifty loops you shall make in the edge of the curtain that is in the second set; the loops shall be opposite one to another. ⁶ And you shall make fifty clasps of gold and couple the curtains one to another with the clasps: so that the tabernacle shall be one whole.

Curtains of Goats’ Hair

⁷ “And you shall make curtains of goats’ hair for a tent over the tabernacle; eleven curtains you shall make them. ⁸ The length of each curtain shall be thirty cubits, and the breadth of each curtain four cubits; the eleven curtains shall have one measurement. ⁹ And you shall couple five curtains by themselves, and six curtains by themselves, and you shall double over the sixth curtain in the front of the tent. ¹⁰ And you shall make fifty loops on the edge of the one curtain that is outermost in the set, and fifty loops on the edge of the curtain which is outermost in the second set.

¹¹ “And you shall make fifty clasps of copper, and put the clasps into the loops, and couple the tent together, that it may be one. ¹² And the overhanging part that remains of the curtains of the tent, the half curtain that remains, shall hang over the back of the tabernacle. ¹³ And the cubit on the one side, and the cubit on the other side, of that which remains in the length of the curtains of the tent, shall hang over the sides of the tabernacle on this side and on that side, to cover it. 

¹⁴ And you shall make a covering for the tent of rams’ skins dyed red, and over that a covering of sealskins.[143]

Boards and Sockets

¹⁵ “And you shall make the boards for the tabernacle of acacia wood, standing upright. ¹⁶ Ten cubits shall be the length of a board, and a cubit and a half the breadth of each board. ¹⁷ There shall be two tenons in each board, joined one to another: so shall you make for all the boards of the tabernacle. ¹⁸ And you shall make the boards for the tabernacle: twenty boards for the south side toward the Negev,[144] to the south. ¹⁹ And you shall make forty sockets[145] of silver under the twenty boards; two sockets under one board for its two tenons, and two sockets under another board for its two tenons; ²⁰ and for the second side of the tabernacle, on the north side, twenty boards, ²¹ and their forty sockets of silver; two sockets under one board, and two sockets under another board. ²² And for the rear of the tabernacle westward[146] you shall make six boards. ²³ And two boards you shall make for the corners of the tabernacle in the rear. ²⁴ And they shall be double beneath, but joined at the top, at the first ring; it shall be with both of them; they shall form the two corners. ²⁵ And there shall be eight boards, and their sockets of silver, sixteen sockets: two sockets under one board, and two sockets under another board.

²⁶ “And you shall make bars of acacia wood: five for the boards of the one side of the tabernacle, ²⁷ and five bars for the boards of the other side of the tabernacle, and five bars for the boards of the side of the tabernacle, for the rear part westward.[147] ²⁸ And the middle bar in the midst of the boards shall pass through from end to end. 

²⁹ And you shall overlay the boards with gold and make their rings of gold as holders for the bars: and you shall overlay the bars with gold. ³⁰ And you shall erect the tabernacle according to the plan for it that you were shown on the mountain.

The Curtain and Screen

³¹ “And you shall make a curtain of blue, and purple, and scarlet material, and fine twisted linen. It shall be skillfully made with cherubim worked into it. ³² And you shall hang it upon four pillars of acacia overlaid with gold; their hooks shall be of gold, upon four sockets of silver. ³³ And you shall hang the curtain from the clasps and bring the ark of the testimony in there within the curtain. And the curtain shall separate for you the holy place from the Most Holy. ³⁴ And you shall put the mercy seat on the ark of the testimony in the Most Holy place. ³⁵ And you shall set the table without the curtain, and the candlestick over against the table on the side of the tabernacle toward the south: and you shall put the table on the north side.

³⁶ “And you shall make a screen for the entrance of the tent, of blue, and purple, and scarlet material, and fine twisted linen, the work of the embroiderer. ³⁷ And you shall make for the screen five pillars of acacia and overlay them with gold: their hooks shall be of gold: and you shall cast five sockets of copper for them.

CHAPTER 27

Altar of Burnt Offering

27 “And you shall make the altar of acacia wood, five cubits long, and five cubits broad; the altar shall be square: and the height shall be three cubits. ² And you shall make the horns on its four corners; the horns shall be of one piece with it, and you shall overlay it with copper. ³ And you shall make its pots to take away its fatty ashes,[148] and its shovels, and its basins, and its forks, and its firepans: all the vessels[149] you shall make of copper. ⁴ And you shall make for it a grating of network of copper: and on the net you shall make four copper rings in the four corners. ⁵ And you shall put it under the ledge of the altar beneath, so that the net may reach halfway up the altar. ⁶ And you shall make poles for the altar, poles of acacia wood, and overlay them with copper. ⁷ And the poles shall be put into the rings, and the poles shall be on the two sides of the altar when carrying it. ⁸ You shall make it hollow, with boards. As it has been shown you[150] on the mountain, so they shall make it.

Court of the Tabernacle

⁹ “And you shall make the courtyard[151] of the tabernacle: for the south side southward, there shall be hangings for the court of fine twisted linen a hundred cubits long for one side. ¹⁰ And the pillars shall be twenty, with their twenty bases of copper; the hooks of the pillars and their bands shall be of silver. ¹¹ And likewise for the north side in length there shall be hangings a hundred cubits long, and its twenty pillars with their twenty bases of copper; the hooks of the pillars and their bands shall be of silver. ¹² And for the breadth of the court on the west side shall be hangings of fifty cubits; their pillars ten, and their sockets ten. ¹³ And the breadth of the court on the front to the east shall be fifty cubits. ¹⁴ The hangings for the one side of the gate shall be fifteen cubits: their pillars three, and their sockets three. ¹⁵ And for the other side shall be hangings of fifteen cubits; their pillars three, and their sockets three. 

¹⁶ And for the gate of the court shall be a screen of twenty cubits of blue, and purple, and scarlet material, and fine twisted linen, the work of the embroiderer: their pillars four, and their sockets four. ¹⁷ All the pillars of the court around shall be filleted with silver, their hooks of silver, and their sockets of copper. ¹⁸ The length of the court shall be a hundred cubits, and the breadth fifty[152] throughout, and the height five cubits, of fine twisted linen, and their sockets of copper. ¹⁹ All the utensils of the tabernacle in all the service thereof, and all the pins thereof, and all the pegs of the court, shall be of copper.

²⁰ “And you shall command the sons of Israel, that they bring to you pure beaten olive oil for the light, to cause a lamp to burn continually. ²¹ In the tent of meeting, outside the curtain which is before the testimony, Aaron and his sons shall keep it in order from evening to morning before Jehovah: it shall be a continual statute throughout their generations on the behalf of the sons of Israel.

CHAPTER 28

Priestly Garments

28 “Then bring near to yourself Aaron your brother, and his sons with him, from among the sons of Israel, to minister as priest to me: Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, Eleazar and Ithamar, Aaron’s sons. ² And you shall make holy garments for Aaron your brother, for glory and for beauty. ³ And you will speak to all the wise of heart,[153] whom I have given a gift of skill, and they will make the garments of Aaron to sanctify him, so that he may serve as priest to me. 

⁴ These are the garments that they shall make: a breastpiece, an ephod, a robe, a coat of checker work, a turban, and a sash.[154] They shall make holy garments for Aaron your brother and his sons, to serve me as priests. ⁵ They shall receive gold, blue and purple and scarlet material, and the fine linen.

The Ephod

⁶ “And they shall make the ephod of gold, of blue, and purple, scarlet material, and fine twisted linen, the work of the skillful workman. ⁷ It shall have two shoulder pieces joined to the two ends, so that it may be joined together. ⁸ And the skillfully woven band, which is upon it, to gird it on, shall be like the same workmanship and of the same piece, of gold, of blue, and purple, and scarlet material, and fine twisted linen. 

⁹ You shall take two onyx stones and engrave on them the names of the sons of Israel, ¹⁰ six of their names on the one stone, and the names of the six that remain on the other stone, according to their birth. ¹¹ With the work of an engraver in stone, like the engravings of a signet, you shall engrave the two stones, according to the names of the sons of Israel: you shall make them to be enclosed in settings of gold. ¹² And you shall put the two stones upon the shoulder-pieces of the ephod, to be stones of memorial for the sons of Israel: and Aaron shall bear their names before Jehovah upon his two shoulders for a memorial. ¹³ And you shall make settings of gold, ¹⁴ and two chains of pure gold twisted like a cord, and you must attach the corded chains to the settings.

The Breastpiece

¹⁵ “You shall make a breastpiece[155] of judgment, the work of a skillful workman; like the work of the ephod, you shall make it: of gold, of blue and purple and scarlet material and fine twisted linen you shall make it. ¹⁶ It should be square when doubled, a span[156] shall be the length and a span shall be the breadth. ¹⁷ And you shall set in it settings of stones, four rows of stones: a row of sardius, topaz, and carbuncle shall be the first row; ¹⁸ and the second row an emerald, a sapphire, and a diamond; ¹⁹ and the third row a jacinth,[157] an agate,[158] and an amethyst;[159] ²⁰ and the fourth row a beryl, and an onyx, and a jasper: they shall be enclosed in gold in their settings. ²¹ And the stones shall be according to the names of the sons of Israel, twelve, according to their names; like the engravings of a signet, everyone according to his name, they shall be for the twelve tribes. 

²² And you shall make wreathed chains on the breastpiece, like cords of pure gold. ²³ And you shall make on the breastpiece two rings of gold and shall put the two rings on the two ends of the breastpiece. ²⁴ And you shall put the two wreathen chains of gold in the two rings at the ends of the breastpiece. ²⁵ And the other two ends of the two wreathen chains you shall put on the two settings and put them on the shoulder pieces of the ephod at the front of it. ²⁶ And you shall make two rings of gold, and you shall put them upon the two ends of the breastplate, upon the edge, which is toward the inner side of the ephod. ²⁷ And you shall make two rings of gold and shall put them on the two shoulder pieces of the ephod underneath, in the front, close by the coupling, above the skillfully woven band of the ephod. ²⁸ And they shall bind the breastpiece by the rings to the rings of the ephod with a lace of blue, that it may be on the skillfully woven band of the ephod, and that the breastpiece shall not come loose from the ephod. 

²⁹ And Aaron shall bear the names of the sons of Israel in the breastpiece of judgment upon his heart, when he goes into the holy place, for a memorial before Jehovah continually. ³⁰ And you shall put in the breastpiece of judgment the Urim and the Thummim;[160] and they shall be upon Aaron’s heart, when he goes in before Jehovah: and Aaron shall bear the judgment[161] of the sons of Israel upon his heart before Jehovah continually.

³¹ “And you shall make the robe of the ephod all of blue. ³² And it shall have an opening for the head in the midst of it: it shall have a binding of woven work round about the hole of it, as it were the opening of a coat of mail,[162] that it be not torn. ³³ And on the hem of it you shall make pomegranates of blue, and of purple, and of scarlet material, all around the hem; and bells of gold between them all round, ³⁴ a golden bell and a pomegranate, a golden bell and a pomegranate, around the hem of the robe. ³⁵ And it shall be on Aaron to minister: and the sound shall be heard when he goes into the holy place before Jehovah, and when he comes out, so that he will not die.

³⁶ “And you shall make a plate of pure gold and engrave on it, like the engraving of a signet, ‘Holy to Jehovah.’ ³⁷ And you shall fasten it on a blue cord, and it shall be on the turban; it shall be at the front of the turban. ³⁸ And it shall be on Aaron’s forehead, and Aaron shall bear the guilt of the holy things, which the sons of Israel shall sanctify in all their holy gifts; and it shall be always on his forehead, that they may be accepted before Jehovah.

³⁹ “And you shall weave the coat in checker work of fine linen, and you shall make a turban of fine linen, and you shall make a sash,[163] the work of the embroiderer.

⁴⁰ “And for Aaron’s sons you shall make coats, and you shall make for them sashes, and headbands[164] shall you make for them, for glory and for beauty. ⁴¹ And you shall put them on Aaron your brother, and on his sons with him, and shall anoint[165] them and ordain them and sanctify them, that they may serve me as priests. ⁴² And you shall make for them undergarments of linen to cover naked flesh; they will be from loins to thigh. ⁴³ And they shall be on Aaron, and on his sons, when they go into the tent of meeting, or when they come near to the altar to minister in the holy place; that they bear no guilt and die: it shall be a statute forever to him and to his offspring after him.

CHAPTER 29

Consecration of the Priests

29 “And this is the thing that you shall do to them to sanctify them, to minister to me as priests: take one young bull and two rams without blemish, ² and unleavened ring-shaped loaves mixed with oil, and wafers unleavened anointed with oil: of fine wheat flour you shall make them. ³ And you shall put them into one basket, and bring them in the basket, with the bull and the two rams. 

⁴ And Aaron and his sons you shall bring to the entrance of the tent of meeting and shall wash them with water. ⁵ And you shall take the garments, and put on Aaron the coat, and the robe of the ephod, and the ephod, and the breastpiece, and gird him with the skillfully woven band of the ephod. ⁶ And you shall set the turban upon his head and put the holy crown upon the turban. ⁷ Then you shall take the anointing oil, and pour it on his head, and anoint him. 

⁸ And you shall bring his sons and put coats upon them. ⁹ And you shall gird them with sashes, Aaron, and his sons,[166] and bind headbands on them: and they shall have the priesthood by a perpetual[167] statute: and you shall fill the hand of Aaron and the hand of his sons.[168]

The Sacrifices

¹⁰ “And you shall bring the bull before the tent of meeting: and Aaron and his sons shall lay their hands on the head of the bull. ¹¹ And you shall slaughter the bull before Jehovah, at the entrance of the tent of meeting. ¹² And you shall take of the blood of the bull and put it on the horns of the altar with your finger; and you shall pour out all the blood at the base of the altar. ¹³ And you shall take all the fat that covers the inward organs, and the appendage[169] on the liver, and the two kidneys, and the fat that is on them, and burn them on the altar. ¹⁴ But the flesh of the bull, and its skin, and its dung, you shall burn with fire outside the camp: it is a sin offering.

¹⁵ “You shall also take the one ram; and Aaron and his sons shall lay their hands on the head of the ram. ¹⁶ And you shall slay the ram, and you shall take its blood, and sprinkle it around the altar. ¹⁷ And you shall cut the ram into its pieces, and wash its inward organs, and its legs, and put them with its pieces, and with its head. ¹⁸ You must burn the entire ram, making it smoke on the altar. It is a burnt offering[170] to Jehovah, a restful[171] aroma. It is an offering made by fire[172] to Jehovah.

¹⁹ “And you shall take the other ram; and Aaron and his sons shall lay their hands on the head of the ram. ²⁰ Then you shall kill the ram, and take of its blood, and put it on the tip of the right ear of Aaron, and on the tip of the right ear of his sons, and on the thumbs of their right hands, and upon the great toes of their right feet, and sprinkle the blood around on the altar. ²¹ And you shall take of the blood that is on the altar, and of the anointing oil, and sprinkle it on Aaron, and on his garments, and on his sons, and on the garments of his sons with him: and he shall be holy, and his garments, and his sons, and his sons’ garments with him.

²² “Also you shall take of the ram the fat, and the fat tail, and the fat that covers the inward organs, and the appendage of the liver, and the two kidneys, and the fat that is on them, and the right thigh (for it is a ram of ordination), ²³ and one loaf of bread and a ring-shaped loaf of oiled bread and one wafer from the basket of unleavened bread that is before Jehovah. ²⁴ and you shall put all of these on the hands of Aaron, and on the hands of his sons, and shall wave them for a wave offering before Jehovah. ²⁵ And you shall take them from their hands and burn them on the altar on top of the burnt offering, for a restful aroma[173] before Jehovah: it is an offering made by fire unto Jehovah.

²⁶ “And you shall take the breast of Aaron’s ram of ordination and wave it for a wave offering before Jehovah: and it shall be your portion. ²⁷ And you shall sanctify the breast of the wave offering, and the thigh of the heave offering, which is waved, and which is heaved up, of the ram of ordination, even of that which is for Aaron, and of that which is for his sons. ²⁸ And it shall be for Aaron and his sons as their portion forever from the sons of Israel; for it is a heave offering: and it shall be a heave offering from the sons of Israel of the sacrifices of their peace offerings, even their heave offering to Jehovah.

²⁹ “And the holy garments of Aaron shall be for his sons after him, to be anointed in them, and to be ordained in them. ³⁰ Seven days shall the son that is priest in his stead put them on, when he comes into the tent of meeting to minister in the holy place.

Food of the Priests

³¹ “And you shall take the ram of ordination and boil its flesh in a holy place. ³² And Aaron and his sons shall eat the flesh of the ram, and the bread that is in the basket, at the entrance of the tent of meeting. ³³ And they shall eat those things with which atonement was made by them to ordain[174] and sanctify them, but a stranger[175] shall not eat of them, because they are holy. ³⁴ And if any of the flesh of the ordination, or of the bread, remain until the morning, then you shall burn the remainder with fire: it shall not be eaten, because it is holy.

³⁵ “And thus shall you do to Aaron, and to his sons, according to all that I have commanded you: seven days you shall ordain them. ³⁶ Each day you shall offer a bull as a sin offering for atonement, and you shall purify the altar when you make atonement for it, and you shall anoint it to consecrate it. ³⁷ Seven days you shall make atonement for the altar and sanctify it: and the altar shall be most holy; whatsoever touches the altar shall be holy.

The Daily Offering

³⁸ “Now this is what you shall offer on the altar: two one year old lambs each day, continuously. ³⁹ The one lamb you shall offer in the morning; and the other lamb you shall offer between the two evenings.[176] ⁴⁰ And with the one lamb a tenth part of an ephah[177] of fine flour mixed with the fourth part of a hin[178] of beaten oil, and the fourth part of a hin of wine for a drink offering. ⁴¹ And the other lamb you shall offer between the two evenings[179] and shall offer with it the same grain offering and the same drink offering as in the morning, for a soothing aroma, an offering by fire to Jehovah. ⁴² It shall be a continual burnt offering throughout your generations at the entrance of the tent of meeting before Jehovah, where I will meet with you, to speak to you there. ⁴³ And there I will meet with the sons of Israel, and it[180] shall be sanctified by my glory. ⁴⁴ I will sanctify the tent of meeting and the altar, and I will sanctify Aaron and his sons so that they may serve as priests to me. ⁴⁵ And I will dwell among the sons of Israel and will be their God. ⁴⁶ And they shall know that I am Jehovah their God, who brought them forth out of the land of Egypt, that I might dwell among them: I am Jehovah their God.

CHAPTER 30

Incense Altar

30 “You shall make an altar on which to burn incense; you shall make it of acacia wood. ² A cubit shall be its length, and a cubit its breadth. It shall be square, and two cubits shall be its height: the horns shall be of one piece with it. ³ And you shall overlay it with pure gold: its top, its sides all around, and its horns and you shall make it a crown of gold around it. ⁴ And two golden rings you shall make for it. Under its molding on two opposite sides of it you shall make them, and they shall be holders for poles with which to carry it. ⁵ And you shall make the poles of acacia wood and overlay them with gold. ⁶ And you shall put it in front of the curtain that is above the ark of the testimony, in front of the mercy seat that is over the testimony, where I will meet with you. 

⁷ And Aaron shall burn fragrant incense on it. Morning by morning, when he dresses the lamps, he shall burn it. ⁸ And when Aaron lights the lamps between the two evenings,[181] he shall burn it. It is a perpetual incense before Jehovah throughout your generations. ⁹ You shall not offer strange incense on it, or a burnt offering, or a grain offering, and you shall not pour a drink offering on it. ¹⁰ And Aaron shall make atonement on its horns once a year. With the blood of the sin offering of atonement he shall make atonement for it once in the year throughout your generations. It is most holy to Jehovah.”

Census and Price for Atonement

¹¹ Jehovah also spoke to Moses, saying, ¹² “When you take the sum of the sons of Israel to number them, then each one of them shall give a ransom for his soul to Jehovah, when you number them, so that there will be no plague among them when you number them. ¹³ Each one who is numbered in the census shall give this: half a shekel according to the shekel[182] of the holy place (the shekel[183] is twenty gerahs), half a shekel as an offering to Jehovah. ¹⁴ Everyone who is numbered, from twenty years old and over, shall give the offering of Jehovah. ¹⁵ The rich shall not give more, and the poor shall not give less, than the half shekel, when they give the offering of Jehovah, to make atonement for your souls. ¹⁶ You shall take the atonement money from the sons of Israel and shall give it for the service of the tent of meeting, that it may bring the sons of Israel to remembrance before Jehovah, so as to make atonement for your souls.”

Copper Basin for Washing

¹⁷ And Jehovah spoke to Moses, saying, ¹⁸ “You shall also make a basin of copper, with its stand of copper, for washing. You shall put it between the tent of meeting and the altar, and you shall put water in it, ¹⁹ And Aaron and his sons shall wash their hands and their feet. ²⁰ When they go into the tent of meeting, they shall wash with water, so that they do not die, or when they come near to the altar to minister, to make an offering of fire and smoke to Jehovah. ²¹ So they shall wash their hands and their feet, so that they do not die: and it shall be a statute forever to them, even to him and to his offspring throughout their generations.”

The Anointing Oil

²² Moreover Jehovah spoke to Moses, saying, ²³ “Take the finest spices: of liquid myrrh five hundred shekels, and of sweet-smelling cinnamon half as much, two hundred and fifty, and two hundred and fifty of aromatic cane, ²⁴ and of cassia five hundred, according to the shekel of the holy place, and of olive oil a hin.[184] ²⁵ And you shall make it a holy anointing oil, a perfume mixture, the work of a perfumer; it shall be a holy anointing oil. ²⁶ And you shall anoint with it the tent of meeting and the ark of the testimony, ²⁷ and the table and all its utensils, and the lampstand and its utensils, and the altar of incense, ²⁸ and the altar of burnt offering and all its utensils and the basin and its stand. ²⁹ And you shall sanctify them, that they may be most holy: whatever touches them shall be holy. ³⁰ And you shall anoint Aaron and his sons, and sanctify them, that they may minister to me as priests. ³¹ And you shall speak to the sons of Israel, saying, ‘This shall be a holy anointing oil to me throughout your generations. ³² Upon the flesh of man it shall not be poured, neither shall you make any like it in composition. It is holy, and it shall be holy to you. ³³ Whoever compounds any like it or whoever puts any of it on a stranger shall be cut off from his people.’”

The Incense

³⁴ And Jehovah said to Moses, “Take for yourself sweet spices, stacte, and onycha, and galbanum, sweet spices with pure frankincense, part by part it will be.[185] ³⁵ And you shall make incense, a perfume after the work of a perfumer, seasoned with salt, pure and holy. ³⁶ And you shall beat some of it very small and put part of it before the testimony in the tent of meeting where I shall meet with you. It shall be most holy for you. ³⁷ And the incense that you shall make according to its composition, you shall not make for yourselves. It shall be for you holy to Jehovah. ³⁸ Whoever shall make any like it to use as perfume shall be cut off from his people.”

CHAPTER 31

Craftsmen Filled with God’s Spirit

31 And Jehovah spoke to Moses, saying, ² “See, I have called by name Bezalel the son of Uri, son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah. ³ I have filled him with the Spirit of God in wisdom, in understanding, in knowledge, and in all kinds of craftsmanship, ⁴ to devise artistic designs, to work in gold, silver, and in copper,[186] ⁵ and in the cutting of stones for settings, and in the carving of wood, that he may work in all kinds of craftsmanship. ⁶ And look, I myself have given with him Oholiab, the son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan; and in the hearts of all who are wise of heart[187] I have put wisdom,[188] that they may make all that I have commanded you: ⁷ the tent of meeting, and the ark of testimony, and the atonement cover[189] that is on it, and all the furniture of the tent, ⁸ the table and its utensils, and the pure gold lampstand with all its utensils, and the altar of incense, ⁹ and the altar of burnt offering with all its utensils, and the basin and its stand, ¹⁰ the finely woven garments,[190] the holy garments for Aaron the priest, the garments of his sons to serve as priests; ¹¹ the anointing oil also, and the fragrant incense for the holy place, they are to make them according to all that I have commanded you.”

The Sign of the Sabbath

¹² And Jehovah spoke to Moses, saying, ¹³ “Speak you also to the sons of Israel, saying, Surely you shall keep my sabbaths: for it is a sign between me and you throughout your generations; that you may know that I am Jehovah who sanctifies you. ¹⁴ You shall keep the Sabbath, for it is holy to you: every one that profanes it shall surely be put to death; for whoever does any work on it, that soul shall be cut off from among his people. ¹⁵ For six days shall work be done, but on the seventh day there is a sabbath of complete rest, holy to Jehovah; whoever does any work on the sabbath day shall surely be put to death. ¹⁶ So the sons of Israel shall observe the Sabbath, to celebrate the Sabbath throughout their generations as a perpetual covenant ¹⁷ It is a sign between me and the sons of Israel forever: for in six days Jehovah made the heavens and the earth, and on the seventh day he rested, and was refreshed.”

¹⁸ And he gave to Moses, when he had finished speaking with him on Mount Sinai, the two tablets of the testimony, tablets of stone, written with the finger of God.

CHAPTER 32

Worshipping the Golden Calf

32 When the people saw that Moses delayed coming down from the mountain, the people gathered themselves together to Aaron and said to him, “Up, make us a god[191] who shall go before us. As for this Moses, the man who brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him.” ² So Aaron said to them, “Take off the rings of gold that are in the ears of your wives, your sons, and your daughters, and bring them to me.” ³ And all the people took off the rings of gold that were in their ears and brought them to Aaron. ⁴ And he received the gold from their hand and fashioned it with a graving tool and made a golden calf. And they said, “This is your God,[192] O Israel, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt.” 

⁵ And Aaron saw, and he built an altar before it, and Aaron made a proclamation and said, “A feast for Jehovah tomorrow.” ⁶ And they rose up early the next day and offered burnt offerings and brought peace offerings. And the people sat down to eat and drink and rose up to play.

⁷ And Jehovah spoke to Moses, “Go down, for your people, have corrupted themselves, whom you brought up out of the land of Egypt. ⁸ They have turned aside quickly out of the way that I commanded them. They have made for themselves a golden calf and have worshiped it and sacrificed to it and said, ‘This is your God,[193] O Israel, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt.’ ⁹ And Jehovah said to Moses, “I have seen this people, and look, it is a stiff-necked people. ¹⁰ Now therefore let me alone, that my wrath may burn hot against them, and that I may consume them: and I will make of you a great nation.”

Moses’ Entreaty

¹¹ And Moses implored Jehovah his God, and said, Jehovah, “why does your wrath burn hot against your people, that you have brought forth out of the land of Egypt with great power and with a mighty hand? ¹² Why should the Egyptians speak, saying, ‘With evil intent did he bring them out, to kill them in the mountains and to consume them from the face of the earth’? Turn from your burning anger and feel regret over this evil against your people. ¹³ Remember Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, your servants, to whom you swore by your own self, and said to them, ‘I will multiply your offspring as the stars of the heavens, and all this land that I have spoken of will I give to your offspring, and they shall inherit it forever.’” 

¹⁴ And Jehovah began to feel regret[194] about the calamity which he said he would do to his people.

¹⁵ And Moses turned, and went down from the mountain, with the two tablets of the testimony in his hand; tablets that were written on both sides; on the one side and on the other were they written. ¹⁶ And the tablets were the work of God, and the writing was the writing of God engraved on the tablets. ¹⁷ And when Joshua heard the noise of the people as they shouted, he said to Moses, “There is a noise of war in the camp.” ¹⁸ But he said,

“It is not the sound of the cry of triumph,
nor is it the sound of the cry of defeat;
but the sound of singing I hear.”

Moses’ Anger

¹⁹ And it happened, as soon as he came near the camp, that he saw the calf and the dancing: and Moses’ anger burned hot, and he threw the tablets out of his hands, and broke them at the foot of the mountain. ²⁰ And he took the calf that they had made and burned it with fire and ground it to powder and scattered it on the water and made the sons of Israel drink it.

²¹ And Moses said to Aaron, “What did this people do to you that you have brought such a great sin upon them?” ²² And Aaron said, “Let not the anger of my lord burn hot. You know the people, that they are set on evil. ²³ For they said to me, ‘Make for us a god who will go ahead of us. As for this Moses, the man who brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him.’ ²⁴ And I said to them, ‘Whoever has any gold, let them tear it off.’ So they gave it to me, and I threw it into the fire, and out came this calf.”

Levites Loyal to Jehovah

²⁵ And when Moses saw that the people had broken loose (for Aaron had let them break loose, to the derision of their enemies), ²⁶ then Moses stood in the gate of the camp, and said, “Whoever is on Jehovah’s side, let him come to me.” And all the sons of Levi gathered themselves together to him. ²⁷ And he said to them, “Thus says Jehovah, the God of Israel, ‘Every man of you put his sword on his thigh, and go to and fro from gate to gate throughout the camp, and kill every man his brother, and every man his companion, and every man his neighbor.’” ²⁸ And the sons of Levi did according to the word of Moses: and there fell of the people that day about three[195] thousand men. ²⁹ And Moses said, “Fill your hand[196] for Jehovah today, for every man has gone against his son, and against his brother; so that he might bestow a blessing upon you this day.”

³⁰ On the next day Moses said to the people, “You yourselves have committed a great sin; and now I am going up to Jehovah, perhaps I can make atonement for your sin.” ³¹ Then Moses returned to Jehovah, and said, “Alas, this people has committed a great sin, and they made a god[197] of gold for themselves. ³² But now, if you will forgive their sin; but if not, please blot me out of your book that you have written.” ³³ And Jehovah said to Moses, “Whoever has sinned against me, him will I blot out of my book. ³⁴ And now go, lead the people to the place of which I have spoken to you: look, my angel shall go before you. Nevertheless, in the day when I visit, I will visit their sin upon them.” ³⁵ And Jehovah sent a plague on the people, because they made the calf, the one that Aaron made.

CHAPTER 33

God’s Message of Correction

33 And Jehovah spoke to Moses, “Go, go up from here, you and the people whom you have brought up from the land of Egypt, to the land that I swore to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, saying, ‘I will give it to your offspring.’ ² I will send an angel before you, and I will drive out the Canaanites, the Amorites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites. ³ Go up to a land[198] flowing with milk and honey; but I will not go up among you, because you are a stiff-necked people, lest I destroy you on the way.”

⁴ When the people heard this evil word, they mourned, and no man put on his ornaments. ⁵ For Jehovah had said to Moses, “Say to the sons of Israel, ‘You are a stiff-necked people; should I go up in your midst for one moment, I would destroy you. Now therefore, put off your ornaments from you, that I may know what I shall do with you.’” ⁶ So the sons of Israel stripped themselves of their ornaments, from Mount Horeb onward.

Tent of Meeting Outside the Camp

⁷ Now Moses used to take the[199] tent and pitch it outside the camp, a good distance from the camp, and he called it the tent of meeting. And everyone who sought Jehovah would go out to the tent of meeting which was outside the camp. ⁸ And it came about, whenever Moses went out to the tent, that all the people would arise and stand, every man at the entrance of his tent, and gaze after Moses until he had gone into the tent. ⁹ Whenever Moses entered the tent, the pillar of cloud would descend and stand at the entrance of the tent; and Jehovah[200] would speak with Moses. ¹⁰ And when all the people saw the pillar of cloud standing at the entrance of the tent, all the people would rise up and worship, every man at the entrance of his tent. ¹¹ Thus Jehovah used to speak to Moses face to face, as a man speaks to his friend. When he[201] turned again into the camp, his servant Joshua the son of Nun, a young man, would not depart from the tent.

Moses Asks to See Jehovah’s Glory

¹² And Moses said to Jehovah, “See, you say to me, ‘Bring up this people,’ but you have not let me know whom you will send with me. Yet you have said, ‘I know you by name, and you have also found favor in my sight.’ ¹³ Now therefore, if I have found favor in your sight, please show me now your ways, that I may know you in order to find favor in your sight. And consider[202] too that this nation is your people.” ¹⁴ And he said, “My presence shall go with[203] you, and I will give you rest.” ¹⁵ And he said to him, “If your presence[204] does not go with me, do not bring us up from here. ¹⁶ For how shall it be known that I have found favor in your sight, I and your people? Is it not in your going with us, so that I and your people will be distinguished from every other people on the face of the earth?”

¹⁷ And Jehovah said to Moses, “I will do this thing also that you have spoken; for you have found favor in my sight, and I know you by name.” ¹⁸ And he said, “Please show me your glory.” ¹⁹ And he said, “I will make all my goodness pass before your face and will proclaim before you my name ‘Jehovah.’ And I will favor the one[205] whom I will favor and will show mercy to the one whom I will show mercy. ²⁰ But he said, “You cannot see my face, for no man can see me and live!” ²¹ And Jehovah said, “Behold, there is a place by me where you shall stand on the rock, ²² and while my glory passes by I will put you in a cleft of the rock, and I will cover you with my hand until I have passed by. ²³ Then I will take away my hand, and you shall see my back, but my face shall not be seen.”

CHAPTER 34

The Two Tablets Replaced

34 And Jehovah said to Moses, “Cut for yourself two tablets of stone like the first, and I will write on the tablets the words that were on the first tablets, which you broke. ² And be ready by the morning, and come up in the morning to Mount Sinai, and present yourself there to me on the top of the mountain. ³ And no man shall come up with you, nor let any man be seen throughout all the mountain. Let no flocks or herds graze opposite that mountain.” ⁴ And he cut two tablets of stone like the first. And Moses rose early in the morning and went up on Mount Sinai, as Jehovah had commanded him, and took in his hand two tablets of stone. ⁵ And Jehovah descended in the cloud and stood with him there and proclaimed the name of Jehovah. ⁶ Then Jehovah passed by in front of him and proclaimed, “Jehovah, Jehovah, a God, compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in loyal love and truth;[206] ⁷ keeping loyal love for thousands, forgiving error and transgression and sin, but who will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the error of the fathers upon sons and upon grandsons, upon the third generation and upon the fourth generation.” ⁸ And Moses made haste to bow low to the earth and worship. ⁹ And he said, “If now I have found favor in your sight, O Jehovah,[207] then please Jehovah go in the midst of us, for it is a stiff-necked people, and pardon our iniquity and our sin, and take us for your inheritance.”

The Covenant Repeated

¹⁰ And he said, “Look, I make a covenant: before all your people I will do marvels, such as have not been done in all the earth, nor in any nation. And all the people among which you are shall see the work of Jehovah, for it is a fear-inspiring thing that I will do with you.

¹¹ “Observe what I command you this day. Look, I will drive out before you the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites. ¹² Watch yourself that you make no covenant with the inhabitants of the land into which you are going, or it will become a snare in your midst. ¹³ But you shall tear down their altars and smash their pillars and cut down their Asherah poles[208] ¹⁴ for you shall worship no other god, for Jehovah, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God, ¹⁵ lest you make a covenant with the inhabitants of the land, and they play the harlot after their gods,[209] and sacrifice to their gods, and one invites you, and you eat of his sacrifice, ¹⁶ and you take some of their daughters to your sons, and their daughters play the harlot after their gods, and make your sons play the harlot after their gods.[210] ¹⁷ “You shall make for yourself no molten gods.

¹⁸ “You shall keep the Feast of Unleavened Bread. Seven days you shall eat unleavened bread, as I commanded you, at the time appointed in the month Abib, for in the month Abib you came out from Egypt.

¹⁹ “All that open the womb are mine, all your male livestock, the firstborn of cow and sheep. ²⁰ The firstborn of a donkey you shall redeem with a lamb, or if you will not redeem it, you shall break its neck. All the firstborn of your sons you shall redeem. And none shall appear before me empty-handed.

²¹ “Six days you shall work, but on the seventh day you shall rest. In plowing time and in harvest you shall rest. ²² You shall observe the Feast of Weeks, the firstfruits of wheat harvest, and the Feast of Ingathering at the year’s end. ²³ Three times in the year shall all your males appear before Jehovah[211] God, the God of Israel. ²⁴ For I will cast out nations before you and enlarge your borders, and no man shall covet your land, when you go up to appear before Jehovah your God three times in the year.

²⁵ “You shall not offer the blood of my sacrifice with leavened bread, nor is the sacrifice of the Feast of the Passover to be left over until morning.

²⁶ “The first of the firstfruits of your ground you shall bring to the house of Jehovah your God. You shall not boil a young goat in its mother’s milk.”

²⁷ And Jehovah said to Moses, “Write for yourself these words, for in accordance with these words I have made a covenant with you and with Israel.” ²⁸ And he was there with Jehovah forty days and forty nights. He neither ate bread nor drank water. And he wrote on the tablets the words of the covenant, the ten words.[212]

Moses’ Face Shines

²⁹ And it came about, when Moses came down from Mount Sinai with the two tables of the testimony in Moses’ hand, when he came down from the mount, that Moses knew not that the skin of his face shone because of his speaking with him. ³⁰ And when Aaron and all the sons of Israel saw Moses, look, the skin of his face shone; and they were afraid to come near him. ³¹ And Moses called to them, and Aaron and all the rulers of the congregation returned to him, and Moses spoke to them. ³² And afterward all the sons of Israel came near, and he commanded them all that Jehovah had spoken with him in Mount Sinai. ³³ And when Moses had finished speaking with them, he put a veil over his face. ³⁴ But when Moses went in before Jehovah to speak with him, he took the veil off, until he came out; and he came out. And spoke to the sons of Israel that which he was commanded. ³⁵ And the sons of Israel saw the face of Moses, that the skin of Moses’ face shone. So Moses put the veil upon his face again, until he went in to speak with him.

CHAPTER 35

The Sabbath Emphasized

35 And Moses assembled all the congregation of the sons of Israel and said to them, “These are the things that Jehovah has commanded you to do.

² “Six days shall work be done; but on the seventh day there shall be to you a holy day, a sabbath of solemn rest to Jehovah: whoever does any work on it shall be put to death. ³ You shall kindle no fire in all your dwelling places on the Sabbath day.”

Contributions for the Tabernacle

⁴ Moses said to all the congregation of the sons of Israel, “This is the thing that Jehovah has commanded, saying, ⁵ Take from among you a contribution to Jehovah. Whoever is of a willing heart, let him bring Jehovah’s contribution: gold, silver, and copper; ⁶ and blue, and purple, and scarlet material, and fine linen, and goats’ hair, ⁷ and rams’ skins dyed red, and sealskins, and acacia wood, ⁸ and oil for the light, and spices for the anointing oil, and for the fragrant incense, ⁹ and onyx stones, and other stones for setting in the ephod and the breastpiece.

Tabernacle Workmen

¹⁰ “And let all men who are wise of heart[213] among you come and make everything that Jehovah has commanded, ¹¹ the tabernacle, its tent and its covering, its hooks and its frames, its bars, its pillars, and its bases; ¹² the ark with its poles, the mercy seat, and the curtain of the screen; ¹³ the table and its poles, and all its utensils, and the showbread;[214] ¹⁴ and the lampstand also for the light and its utensils and its lamps and the oil for the light; ¹⁵ and the altar of incense, with its poles, and the anointing oil and the fragrant incense, and the screen for the entrance, at the entrance of the tabernacle; ¹⁶ the altar of burnt offering, with its grating of copper, its poles, and all its utensils, the basin and its stand; ¹⁷ the hangings of the court, its pillars and its bases, and the screen for the gate of the court; ¹⁸ the pegs of the tabernacle and the pegs of the court, and their cords; ¹⁹ the finely worked garments for ministering in the holy place, the holy garments for Aaron the priest, and the garments of his sons, for their service as priests.”

Gifts Received

²⁰ Then all the congregation of the sons of Israel departed from the presence of Moses. ²¹ And they came, every man whose heart lifted him and every man whose spirit impelled him, they brought Jehovah’s contribution for the work of the tent of assembly and for all its service and for the holy garments. ²² And they came, both men and women, each with a willing heart, and brought brooches, and earrings, and signet rings, and armlets, all jewels of gold; so did every man who presented their wave offering of gold to Jehovah. ²³ And every man with whom was found blue, and purple, and scarlet material, and fine linen, and goats’ hair, and rams’ skins dyed red, and sealskins, brought them. ²⁴ Everyone who did offer an offering of silver and copper brought Jehovah’s offering; and every man who had acacia wood for any work of the service brought it. 

²⁵ And all the women who were wise of heart[215] spun with their hands, and brought that which they had spun, the blue, and the purple, the scarlet material, and the fine linen. ²⁶ And all the women whose heart lifted them with skill spun the goat hair. 

²⁷ And the rulers brought the onyx stones, and the stones to be set, for the ephod, and for the breastpiece; ²⁸ and the spice and the oil for the light and for the anointing oil and for the fragrant incense. ²⁹ Every man and woman whose heart impelled them to bring for all the work to be done that Jehovah through Moses, had commanded to be done; the sons of Israel brought it as a voluntary offering to Jehovah.

Bezalel and Oholiab filled with the Spirit

³⁰ And Moses said to the sons of Israel, “See, Jehovah has called by name Bezalel the son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah. ³¹ And he has filled him with the Spirit of God, in wisdom, in understanding, and in knowledge, and in all manner of craftsmanship, ³² And for making artistic designs, for working with gold, silver, and copper, ³³ and in cutting of stones for setting, and in carving of wood, to work in all manner of skillful craftsmanship. ³⁴ And he has put it into his heart to teach, both he, and Oholiab, the son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan. ³⁵ He has filled them with wisdom of heart to do all the work of a craftsman and an embroiderer and of a weaver in blue thread and wool dyed reddish purple, in coccus scarlet material and fine linen, and of a weaver, men doing every sort of work and designing devices.

CHAPTER 36

The Tabernacle Underwritten

36 “And Bezalel must work, also Oholiab and every man wise of heart[216] to whom Jehovah has put wisdom and understanding in these things in order to know how to do all the work for the service of the sanctuary according to all that Jehovah has commanded.”

² And Moses called Bezalel and Oholiab, and every man wise of heart,[217] in whose heart Jehovah had put wisdom, even everyone whose heart stirred him to come to the work to do it. ³ And they received from Moses all the contribution that the sons of Israel had brought for the work of the service for the sanctuary. And they continued to bring him voluntary offerings morning after morning. 

⁴ And all the wise men who were doing all the work of the sanctuary came, one man after another, from their work that they were doing, ⁵ and they spoke to Moses, saying “The people bring much more than enough for doing the work that Jehovah has commanded us to do.” ⁶ So Moses gave command, and word was proclaimed throughout the camp, “Let no man or woman do anything more work for the contribution for the sanctuary.” So the people were restrained from bringing. ⁷ For the material they had was sufficient to do all the work, and more.

Construction of the Tabernacle Proceeds

⁸ And all the wise of heart[218] among those doing the work went making the tabernacle, the ten tent cloths of fine twisted linen and blue thread and wool dyed reddish purple and coccus scarlet material; with cherubim, the work of an embroiderer, he[219] made them. ⁹ The length of each curtain was twenty-eight cubits and the width of each curtain four cubits; all the curtains had the same measurements. ¹⁰ And he joined five of the curtains one to another, and five curtains he joined one to another. ¹¹ And he made loops of blue on the edge of the one curtain, at the end in the set;[220] so he did on the edge of the end curtain in the second set. ¹² He made fifty loops on the one curtain, and he made fifty loops on the edge of the curtain that was in the second set. The loops were opposite one another. ¹³ And he made fifty clasps of gold and coupled the curtains one to another with the clasps. So that the tabernacle was one.

¹⁴ And he made curtains of goats’ hair for a tent over the tabernacle: eleven curtains he made them. ¹⁵ The length of each curtain was thirty cubits, and four cubits the breadth of each curtain: the eleven curtains had one measurement. ¹⁶ And he coupled five curtains by themselves, and six curtains by themselves. ¹⁷ And he made fifty loops on the edge of the curtain that was outmost in the first set, and fifty loops made he on the edge of the curtain that was outmost in the second set. ¹⁸ And he made fifty clasps of copper to couple the tent together, that it might be one.

¹⁹ And he made a covering for the tent out of ram skins dyed red and a covering out of sealskins to go above.

²⁰ And he made the frames for the tabernacle of acacia wood, standing upright. ²¹ Ten cubits was the length of a frame, and a cubit and a half the breadth of each frame. ²² Each frame had two tenons, joined one to another. Thus, he did make for all the frames of the tabernacle. ²³ And he made the frames for the tabernacle: twenty frames for the side toward the Negev,[221] to the south. ²⁴ And he made forty bases of silver under the twenty frames, two bases under one frame for its two tenons, and two bases under another frame for its two tenons. ²⁵ And for the second side of the tabernacle, on the north side, he made twenty frames, ²⁶ and their forty bases of silver, two bases under one frame and two bases under another frame. ²⁷ And for the rear of the tabernacle westward he made six frames. ²⁸ And he made two frames for corners of the tabernacle in the rear. ²⁹ And they were double beneath, and in like manner they were complete to the top to the first ring; thus, he did to both of them for the two corners. ³⁰ And there were eight frames with their bases of silver: sixteen bases, under every frame two bases.

³¹ And he made bars of acacia wood, five for the frames of the one side of the tabernacle, ³² and five bars for the frames of the other side of the tabernacle, and five bars for the frames of the tabernacle at the rear to the west. ³³ And he made the middle bar to pass through the midst of the frames from end to end. ³⁴ And he overlaid the frames with gold and made their rings of gold for holders for the bars and overlaid the bars with gold.

³⁵ And he made the curtain of blue and purple and scarlet material and fine twisted linen; skillfully worked he made it with cherubim. ³⁶ And he made for it four pillars of acacia and overlaid them with gold. Their hooks were of gold, and he cast for them four bases of silver. ³⁷ And he made a screen for the entrance of the tent, of blue and purple and scarlet material and fine twisted linen, the work of an embroiderer, ³⁸ and the five pillars and their hooks, and he overlaid their capitals, and their bands were of gold, but their five bases were of copper.

CHAPTER 37

Making the Ark

37 And Bezalel made the ark of acacia wood: two cubits and a half was the length of it, and a cubit and a half the breadth of it, and a cubit and a half the height of it. ² And he overlaid it with pure gold inside and outside and made a molding of gold all around it. ³ And he cast for it four rings of gold for its four feet, even two rings on one side of it, and two rings on the other side of it. ⁴ And he made poles of acacia wood and overlaid them with gold. ⁵ And he put the poles into the rings on the sides of the ark to carry the ark.

⁶ And he made a mercy seat[222] of pure gold. Two cubits and a half was its length, and a cubit and a half its breadth. ⁷ And he made two cherubim of gold. He made them of hammered work at the two ends of the mercy seat, ⁸ one cherub at the one end, and one cherub at the other end. Of one piece with the mercy seat, he made the cherubim at the two ends. ⁹ And the cherubim spread out their wings above, covering the mercy seat with their wings, with their faces one to another, toward the mercy seat were the faces of the cherubim.

Making the Table

¹⁰ And he made the table of acacia wood: two cubits was the length, and a cubit the breadth, and a cubit and a half the height. ¹¹ And he overlaid it with pure gold and made a molding of gold all around. ¹² And he made a rim for it of a handbreadth all around and made a gold molding for its rim all around. ¹³ And he cast for it four rings of gold and put the rings in the four corners that were on its four legs. ¹⁴ Close to the frame were the rings, as holders for the poles to carry the table. ¹⁵ And he made the poles of acacia wood and overlaid them with gold to carry the table. ¹⁶ And he made the vessels which were on the table, the dishes, and the spoons, and the bowls, and the flagons,[223] with which to pour out drink offerings of pure gold.

Making the Lampstand

¹⁷ And he made the lampstand of pure gold. He made the lampstand of hammered work. Its base, its stem, its cups, its knobs,[224] and its flowers were of one piece with it. ¹⁸ And there were six branches going out of its sides, three branches of the lampstand out of one side of it and three branches of the lampstand out of the other side of it; ¹⁹ three cups made like almond blossoms, each with knobs and flower, on one branch, and three cups made like almond blossoms, each with knobs and flower, on the other branch: so for the six branches going out of the lampstand. ²⁰ And on the lampstand, there were four cups made like almond blossoms, with their knobs and flowers. ²¹ And there was a knob under the first two branches that came out of it and a knob under the second two branches and a knob under the third two branches, for the six branches coming out of it. ²² Their knobs and their branches were of one piece with it. The whole of it was a single piece of hammered work of pure gold. ²³ And he made its seven lamps and its snuffers[225] and its fire holders of pure gold. ²⁴ From a talent of pure gold he made all its utensils.

Making the Altar of Incense

²⁵ And he made the altar of incense from acacia wood: a cubit was the length, and a cubit the breadth. It was square, and two cubits was its height. Its horns were of one piece with it. ²⁶ And he overlaid it with pure gold, the top, and the sides all around about, and the horns of it. And he made a molding of gold all around it. ²⁷ And he made for it two rings of gold under its molding, on two opposite sides of it, as holders for the poles with which to carry it. ²⁸ And he made the poles of acacia wood and overlaid them with gold. ²⁹ And he made the holy anointing oil also, and the pure fragrant incense, blended as by the perfumer.

CHAPTER 38

The Altar of Burnt Offering

38 And he made the altar of burnt offering of acacia wood: five cubits was the length, and five cubits the breadth, square; and three cubits the height. ² And he made the horns on the four corners of it; the horns were of one piece with it. And he overlaid it with copper. ³ And he made all the utensils of the altar, the pots, and the shovels, and the basins, the forks, and the fire holders. All the utensils he made of copper. ⁴ And he made for the altar a grating, a network of copper, under its ledge, reaching halfway up. ⁵ And he cast four rings on the four corners of the copper grating as holders for the poles. ⁶ And he made the poles of acacia wood and overlaid them with copper. ⁷ And he put the poles through the rings on the sides of the altar to carry it with them. He made it hollow with planks.

⁸ And he made the basin of copper and its stand of copper from the mirrors of the serving women who served at the entrance of the tent of meeting.

The Courtyard

⁹ And he made the court. For the side toward the Negev,[226] to the south, the hangings of the courtyard were of fine twisted linen, for a hundred cubits; ¹⁰ their twenty pillars and their twenty bases were of copper, but the hooks of the pillars and their bands were of silver. ¹¹ And for the north side there were one hundred cubits; their twenty pillars and their twenty sockets were of copper; the hooks of the pillars and their bands were of silver. ¹² And for the west side there were hangings of fifty cubits with their ten pillars and their ten sockets; the hooks of the pillars and their bands were of silver. ¹³ And for the east side toward the sunrising there were fifty cubits. ¹⁴ The hangings for the one side of the gate were fifteen cubits, with their three pillars and their three sockets, ¹⁵ and so for the other side. On both sides of the gate of the court were hangings of fifteen cubits, with their three pillars and their three sockets. ¹⁶ All the hangings of the court all around were of fine twisted linen. ¹⁷ The sockets for the pillars were of copper, the hooks of the pillars and their bands, of silver; and the overlaying of their tops, of silver, and all the pillars of the court were banded with silver. 

¹⁸ The screen[227] of the entrance of the court was embroidered with needlework in blue and purple and scarlet material and fine twisted linen. It was twenty cubits long and five cubits high in its breadth, corresponding to the hangings of the court. ¹⁹ And their pillars were four, and their sockets four, of copper, their hooks of silver, and the overlaying of their capitals, and their bands, of silver. ²⁰ And all the pegs of the tabernacle, and of the court all round, were of copper.

The List of Tabernacle Materials

²¹ This is the number of the things for the tabernacle, the tabernacle of the testimony, as they were numbered according to the command of Moses, for the service of the Levites, by the hand of Ithamar the son of Aaron the priest. ²² And Bezalel the son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah, made all that Jehovah had commanded Moses. ²³ And with him was Oholiab the son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan, an engraver and a skillful workman and an embroiderer in blue and in purple and in scarlet material and fine twisted linen.

²⁴ All the gold that was used for the work, in all the construction of the holy place, even the gold from the offering, was twenty-nine talents[228] and seven hundred and thirty shekels, by the shekel[229] of the holy place. ²⁵ The silver from those of the congregation who were recorded was a hundred talents one thousand seven hundred and seventy-five shekels by the shekel of the holy place: ²⁶ a beka[230] a head,[231] that is, half a shekel, after the shekel of the holy place, for every one that passed over to them that were numbered, from twenty years old and upward, for six hundred thousand and three thousand and five hundred and fifty men. 

²⁷ And the hundred talents of silver were for casting the sockets of the holy place, and the sockets of the curtain: a hundred sockets for the hundred talents, a talent for a socket. ²⁸ And of the thousand seven hundred seventy and five shekels[232] he made hooks for the pillars, and overlaid their tops, and made bands for them. 

²⁹ And the copper of the offering was seventy talents, and two thousand and four hundred shekels. ³⁰ And with it he made the sockets to the entrance of the tent of meeting, and the copper altar, and the copper grating for it, and all the utensils of the altar, ³¹ and the sockets of the court all round, and the sockets of the gate of the court, and all the pegs of the tabernacle, and all the pegs of the court all around.

CHAPTER 39

Making the Priestly Garments

39 And from the blue and purple and scarlet material they made finely woven garments, for ministering in the holy place. They made the holy garments for Aaron, as Jehovah had commanded Moses.

The Ephod

² And he made the ephod of gold, blue, and purple, and scarlet material, and fine twisted linen. ³ And they hammered plates of gold into thin sheets, and he cut it into threads to work in with the blue thread, the purple wool, the scarlet material, and the fine linen, and the work of a skillful workman. ⁴ They made shoulder pieces for it, joined together at the two ends it was joined together. ⁵ The skillfully woven band which was on it was like its workmanship, of the same material: of gold and of blue and purple and scarlet material, and fine twisted linen, just as Jehovah had commanded Moses.

⁶ And they made the onyx stones, enclosed in settings of gold filigree,[233] and engraved like the engravings of a signet, according to the names of the sons of Israel. ⁷ And he placed them on the shoulder pieces of the ephod, to be stones of memorial for the sons of Israel, as Jehovah commanded Moses.

The Breastpiece

⁸ And he made the breastpiece,[234] the work of the skillful workman, like the work of the ephod, of gold, of blue, and purple, and scarlet material, and fine twisted linen. ⁹ It was square. They made the breastpiece doubled, a span[235] its length and a span[236] its breadth when doubled. ¹⁰ And they set in it four rows of stones. A row of sardius, topaz, and carbuncle was the first row; ¹¹ and the second row, an emerald, a sapphire, and a diamond; ¹² and the third row, a jacinth,[237] an agate,[238] and an amethyst; ¹³ and the fourth row, a beryl, an onyx, and a jasper: they were enclosed in fillings of gold in their settings. ¹⁴ And the stones were according to the names of the sons of Israel, twelve, according to their names; like the engravings of a signet, each one according to his name, for the twelve tribes. 

¹⁵ And they made on the breastpiece twisted chains like cords, of pure gold. ¹⁶ And they made two settings of gold, and two gold rings, and put the two rings on the two ends of the breastpiece. ¹⁷ And they put the two cords of gold in the two rings at the ends of the breastpiece. ¹⁸ And the other two ends of the two cords they put on the two settings and put them on the shoulder pieces of the ephod, at the front of it. ¹⁹ And they made two rings of gold and put them at the two ends of the breastpiece on its edge that is on the side toward the ephod inward. ²⁰ Then they made two rings of gold and put them upon the two shoulder pieces of the ephod from beneath, on its front, near its place of joining, above the band of the ephod. ²¹ And they bound the breastpiece by its rings to the rings of the ephod with a lace of blue, so that it should lie on the skillfully woven band of the ephod, and that the breastpiece should not come loose from the ephod, as Jehovah had commanded Moses.

The Robe

²² And he made the robe of the ephod of woven work, all of blue, ²³ and the hole of the robe in the center, as the hole of a coat of mail,[239] with a binding round about the hole of it, that it should not be torn. ²⁴ And they made upon the hem of the robe pomegranates of blue, and purple, and scarlet, and twisted linen.[240] ²⁵ And they made bells of pure gold and put the bells between the pomegranates upon the hem of the robe all around, between the pomegranates, ²⁶ a bell and a pomegranate, a bell and a pomegranate, on the hem of the robe all around for serving, as Jehovah commanded Moses.

Other Priestly Garments

²⁷ And they made the tunics,[241] woven of fine linen, for Aaron and his sons, ²⁸ and the turban of fine linen, and the caps of fine linen, and the linen undergarments of fine twisted linen, ²⁹ and the sash of fine twisted linen, and blue, and purple, and scarlet material, the work of the embroiderer, as Jehovah commanded Moses.

The Golden Plate

³⁰ And they made the plate of the holy crown of pure gold, and wrote on it a writing, like the engravings of a signet, “holy to Jehovah.” ³¹ And they tied to it a cord of blue to fasten it on the turban above, as Jehovah had commanded Moses.

Moses Examines the Tabernacle

³² Thus all the work of the tabernacle of the tent of meeting was finished, and the sons of Israel did according to all that Jehovah commanded Moses, so they did. ³³ And they brought the tabernacle to Moses, the tent and all its utensils, its hooks, its frames, its bars, its pillars, and its bases; ³⁴ and the covering of rams’ skins dyed red, and the covering of sealskins, and the curtain of the screen; ³⁵ the ark of the testimony with its poles and the mercy seat; ³⁶ the table with all its utensils, and the showbread;[242] ³⁷ the lampstand of pure gold and its lamps with the lamps set and all its utensils, and the oil for the light; ³⁸ the golden altar, and the anointing oil and the fragrant incense, and the screen for the entrance of the tent; ³⁹ the copper altar, and its grating of copper, its poles, and all its utensils; the basin and its stand; ⁴⁰ the hangings for the court, its pillars and its sockets, and the screen[243] for the gate of the court, its cords and its pegs and all the utensils for the service of the tabernacle, for the tent of meeting; ⁴¹ the finely worked garments for ministering in the holy place, the holy garments for Aaron the priest, and the garments of his sons, to serve as priests. ⁴² According to all that Jehovah commanded Moses, so the sons of Israel did all the work. ⁴³ And Moses saw all the work, and look, they had done it; as Jehovah had commanded, even so had they done it: and Moses blessed them.

CHAPTER 40

Erecting the Tabernacle

40 And Jehovah spoke to Moses, saying, ² “On the first day of the first month you shall set up the tabernacle of the tent of meeting. ³ And you shall put in it the ark of the testimony, and you shall screen the ark with the curtain. ⁴ And you shall bring in the table and set its arrangements, and you shall bring in the lampstand and set up its lamps. ⁵ And you shall set the golden altar for incense before the ark of the testimony and set up the screen for the entrance to the tabernacle. 

⁶ And you shall set the altar of burnt offering before the entrance of the tabernacle of the tent of meeting. ⁷ And you shall place the basin between the tent of meeting and the altar and put water in it. ⁸ And you shall set up the court all around and hang up the screen for the gate of the court. ⁹ “And you shall take the anointing oil and anoint the tabernacle and all that is in it, and sanctify it and all its furniture, and it shall be holy. ¹⁰ And you shall also anoint the altar of burnt offering and all its utensils, and sanctify the altar, and the altar shall be most holy. ¹¹ You shall also anoint the basin and its stand and sanctify it.

¹² And you shall bring Aaron and his sons to the entrance of the tent of meeting and shall wash them with water. ¹³ And you shall put on Aaron the holy garments. And you shall anoint him and sanctify him that he may serve me as priest. ¹⁴ And you shall bring his sons, and put tunics on them, ¹⁵ and you shall anoint them just as you anointed their father, so that they will serve as priests to me, and their anointing will serve continually for them as a lasting priesthood during their generations.” 

¹⁶ Thus Moses did according to all that Jehovah had commanded him, so he did.

¹⁷ And it proceeded to be in the first month in the second year, on the first day of the month, that the tabernacle was erected. ¹⁸ And Moses erected the tabernacle. He laid its bases, and set up its frames, and put in its poles, and set up its pillars. ¹⁹ And he spread the tent over the tabernacle, and put the covering of the tent over it, as Jehovah commanded Moses. ²⁰ And he took the testimony and put it into the ark and put the poles on the ark and set the mercy seat above on the ark. ²¹ And he brought the ark into the tabernacle, and set up the curtain of the screen, and screened the ark of the testimony, as Jehovah commanded Moses. ²² And put the table in the tent of meeting, on the north side of the tabernacle, outside the curtain, ²³ and he arranged the row of bread on it before Jehovah, just as Jehovah had commanded Moses. ²⁴ And he put the lampstand in the tent of meeting, opposite the table on the side of the tabernacle toward the Negev,[244] ²⁵ And he lit the lamps before Jehovah, just as Jehovah had commanded Moses. ²⁶ And he put the golden altar in the tent of meeting before the curtain, ²⁷ and he burned fragrant incense on it, as Jehovah had commanded Moses. ²⁸ And he put the screen[245] for the entrance of the tabernacle in place. ²⁹ And he set the altar of burnt offering at the entrance of the tabernacle of the tent of meeting and offered on it the burnt offering and the grain offering, as Jehovah had commanded Moses. ³⁰ And he set the basin between the tent of meeting and the altar, and put water in it for washing, ³¹ And Moses and Aaron and his sons washed their hands and their feet. ³² When they went into the tent of meeting, and when they came near to the altar, they washed, as Jehovah commanded Moses. ³³ And he erected the court all around the tabernacle and the altar and set up the screen of the gate of the court. So, Moses finished the work.

The Glory of Jehovah Fills the Tabernacle

³⁴ Then the cloud covered the tent of meeting, and the glory of Jehovah filled the tabernacle. ³⁵ And Moses was not able to go into the tent of meeting because the cloud remained over it, and the glory of Jehovah filled the tabernacle.

³⁶ Throughout all their journeys whenever the cloud was taken up from over the tabernacle, the sons of Israel went onward, throughout all their journeys. ³⁷ But if the cloud was not taken up, then they did not journey till the day that it was taken up. ³⁸ For the cloud of Jehovah was on the tabernacle by day, and there was fire by night, in the sight of all the house of Israel, throughout all their journeys.

[1] MT VG “Seventy souls” LXX “seventy-five” See Gen. 46:20, 27 fns.

[2] Or were numerous

[3] SP LXX SYR VG “us” MT lacks

[4] Lit their burdens

[5] Lit broke forth

[6] That is revered God: fear of displeasing him because they love Him so

[7] Or families

[8] LXX SP AT adds “to the Hebrews” after the phrase “every son”

[9] Or beautiful

[10] Neighbor: (רֵעַ rea) This does not necessarily refer to someone who lives next door or near to another. The Hebrew noun generally refers to any countryman focusing on local companions, friends, acquaintances, colleagues. It can be one of the same race, social/geographical, or someone who lives within your community. – Ex. 2:13; 22:6; 2 Sam. 16:17; Prov. 6:1.

[11] LXX and Ac 7:28 add “yesterday”

[12] MT “that he might dwell in” SYR “and he departed for”

[13] Or defended them, delivered them, saved them, rescued them

[14] Meaning a foreign resident there

[15] Sojourner: The Hebrew term (גֵּר ger) refers to a person who comes from a foreign country (or a different geographical or cultural group), and so they are a foreign resident, who has no allegiance to the other country and usually does not speak the language. The sojourner has fewer rights than the citizens of the land.

[16] MT “God took notice” (Lit God knew) VG “he took notice of them” LXX “he became known to them.”

[17] SP “God” MT “Jehovah” The angel of Jehovah, His representative who spoke for Him. See vs 2.

[18] MT LXX SYR VG “father” SP “fathers” The term “fathers” is in reference to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, which is also the rendering in Acts 7:32.

[19] Or, based on grammar and context, an alternative reading could be, I will be what I will be.

[20] MT “The king of Egypt will not let you go unless compelled by a mighty hand” LXX VG “Pharaoh king of Egypt will not let you go, save with a mighty hand”

[21] The Hebrew words (מַטֶּה matteh; שֵׁבֶט shebet; מַקֵּל maqqel) can be rendered rod or staff, which is a long, straight, thick wooden rod or stick, especially one used to assist in walking. The basic uses of a rod or a staff was for support (Ex 12:11; Zech. 8:4; Heb 11:21); for defense or protection (2 Sam. 23:21; Matt. 10:10); to punish children, slaves, or others (Ex. 21:20; Prov. 10:13; 23:13, 14; Acts 16:22)

[22] See vs 2 fn

[23] This is one of the 134 scribal changes from יהוה [JHVH] to אדני [Adonai]. The earliest MSS have the Tetragrammaton.

[24] Lit heavy of mouth

[25] See vs 2 fn

[26] See vs 2 fn

[27] This here in 4:21 is simply prophetic, in that God is saying what will happen as the result of his actions. In other words, it is spoken of as though God did something because his actions are what brought about the outcome that he knew would come. Exodus mentions that a heart is hardened or unbending 19 times. (4:21; 7:3, 13-14, 22; 8:15, 19, 32; 9:7, 12, 34-35; 10:1, 20, 27; 11:10; 14:4, 8, 17) It should be noted, Jehovah is the subject of kbd [heart] only once (10:1); all the other times it is the heart of Pharaoh or Pharaoh himself. Since God gives the people advance warnings, it could never be his fault, if they choose to become stubborn. God does not harden hearts against people’s free will, but he does tell us what to expect, and if we stubbornly ignore that loving insight, he does harden our hearts indirectly by his actions, but it came about because of our stubbornness. In Hebrew, the occasion or permission of an event is often presented as if it were the cause of the event. God permitted or allowed Pharaoh to harden his own heart. God gave him Pharaoh the chance of exercising the wickedness that was already in him.

[28] MT SP “Jehovah” AT LXX “the angel of the Lord”

[29] Circumcision: (Heb. מוּל mul; Gr περιτομή peritomē) This is the removal of the foreskin of the male’s genital organ for ceremonial, social, or ritual purposes. Abraham and his descendants were under mandatory circumcision. However, it is not a requirement for Christians. Circumcision is also used figuratively in the Bible in many different contexts. For example, the removal of the old person and the putting on the new person (Rom. 12:2; Eph. 4:22-23; Col. 3:9-11), removing the flesh so to speak, acquiring the mind of Christ (1 Cor. 3:1), and being regenerated by the Holy Spirit, identifies one as a true Christian, separating him or her from the world. – Gen. 17:10; Rom. 2:26-29; 1 Cor. 7:19; Gal. 2:7-9; Phil. 3:3.

[30] SYR “Commanded him to do” MT LXX VG “commanded (him)”

[31] LXX “lest at any time death” (deadly plague)

[32] Officer; foreman: (שָׁטַר [shoter /shotare/]) This is a person who exercises control over another person. In the Old Testament, it can be a judicial, civil, or military personnel who is like a working foreman who overseers and manages the tasks at hand, be they judicial, civil, or military, depending on the context. – Ex. 5:6, 10, 14-15, 19; Prov. 6:7.

[33] LXX SYR VG “therefore you will injure your people” MT “but the fault is in your own people”

[34] This is one of the 134 scribal changes from יהוה [JHVH] to אדני [Adonai]. The earliest MSS have the Tetragrammaton.

[35] MT LXX “God” SP SYR VG “Jehovah”

[36] Almighty (Heb. אֵל שַׁדַּי El Shaddai; Gr. παντοκράτωρ pantokratōr) convey the idea of strength or power. This is a title for the true God, often with a focus on the power to complete promises of blessing and prosperity. In the Hebrew text, Shaddai is used seven times with God (אֵל el), giving us the title “God Almighty.” (Ge 17:1; 28:3; 35:11; 43:14; 48:3; Ex 6:3; Eze 10:5) There are another 41 occurrences where it is used alone and is translated as “the Almighty” or “the Almighty One.” In the Christian Greek New Testament, the word (παντοκράτωρ pantokratōr) occurs ten times, nine of which are found in the book of Revelation. – Ge 49:25; Nu 24:4, 16; Ru 1:20, 21; Job 5:17; 6:4, 14; 8:3, 5; 11:7; 13:3; 15:25; 21:15, 20; 22:3, 17, 23, 25, 26; 23:16; 24:1; 27:2, 10, 11, 13; 29:5; 31:2, 35; 32:8; 33:4; 34:10, 12; 35:13; 37:23; 40:2; Ps 68:14; 91:1; Isa 13:6; Eze 1:24; Joel 1:15; 2Co 6:18; Rev 1:8; 4:8; 11:17; 15:3; 16:7, 14; 19:6, 15; 21:22.

[37] That is, their discouragement or their despondency

[38] That is, as I speak with difficulty or a poor speaker or unskilled in speech

[39] That is, as I speak with difficulty or a poor speaker or unskilled in speech

[40] See the footnote on Exodus 4:21.

[41] SP LXX SYR VG “And it will become”

[42] We see here that Pharaoh’s heart grew hard because he would not listen. See the footnote on Exodus 4:21.

[43] See the footnote on Exodus 4:21.

[44] See the footnote on Exodus 4:21.

[45] That is, seven days passed

[46] MT LXX make this vs 7:26

[47] MT LXX begin chapter 8 here.

[48] Courtyard: (Heb. חָצֵר chatser; Gr αὐλή aulē) This was an open area surrounding the tabernacle that was fenced in. Later, one of the open area yards around the temple building was walled off. The altar of burnt offering was in the courtyard of the tabernacle and the temple’s inner courtyard. According to the Scriptures, some houses and palaces had courtyards as well. – Ex 8:13; 27:9; 1Ki 7:12; Es 4:11; Mt 26:3.

[49] See the footnote on Exodus 4:21. We notice here that Pharaoh hardened his heart.

[50] See the footnote on Exodus 4:21.

[51] LXX “Dog fly”

[52] MT “I will put a division (redemption) between my people” LXX SYR VG “I will put a difference between my people”

[53] That is, there came great or severe swarms of flies

[54] MT “to your God” AT^J LXX SYR “Jehovah your God”

[55] Abomination: (תּוֹעֵבָה toebah or תֹּעֵבָה toebah) It is a repulsion, abhorrence, that is, an object or person that is loathsome or repulsive. The sense of toebah is a detestable thing or person, which causes horror and disgust in another person. – Dt 32:16; 2Ch 34:33; Jer 16:18; Eze 5:9; 7:20; 11:18, 21; 16:36.

[56] See the footnote on Exodus 4:21.

[57] See the footnote on Exodus 4:21.

[58] See the footnote on Exodus 4:21.

[59] The heart can be used figuratively to refer to the whole person, so here “I will send all my plagues upon your heart” is a reference to the Pharaoh alone, namely, ‘I will send all my plagues on you yourself,’ or ‘you personally.’

[60] LXX “And for this purpose you have been preserved, that I might display in you my strength, and that my name might be published in all the earth.” See Rom. 9:17

[61] That is, did not regard

[62] See the footnote on Exodus 4:21.

[63] See the footnote on Exodus 4:21.

[64] See the footnote on Exodus 4:21.

[65] AT^J SYR “These signs among them,” LXX “these signs upon them.”

[66] Or devastated, ruined

[67] This is an idiomatic expression that means that the Pharaoh accused Moses and Aaron of intending to do something evil, some evil purpose in their minds.

[68] That is, severe or numerous

[69] Lit locusts like them before them

[70] MT “Reed Sea” or “Sea of Reeds” LXX “Red Sea”

[71] See the footnote on Exodus 4:21.

[72] See the footnote on Exodus 4:21.

[73] MT “no dog shall sharpen its tongue (growl)” LXX “no dog shall snarl with his tongue” VG “will no dog bark.” Compare Josh. 10:21.

[74] See the footnote on Exodus 4:21.

[75] The Hebrew rendered “between the two evenings” (Heb. בֵּין הָעֲרְבַּיִם ben hoarbayim) according to some scholars (e.g., Ronald B. Allen, R. Laird Harris, Gleason L. Archer Jr., and Bruce K. Waltke), as well as the Karaite Jews and Samaritans, at twilight, the period of the evening between when the sun sets on the horizon and the actual darkness. The Pharisees and the Rabbis viewed it differently. For them, it was the first evening when the sun began to go down and the sunset of the second evening.

[76] A kneading trough is a term for the vessel in which dough, after being mixed and leavened, was left to swell or ferment. The dough in the vessels at the time of The Exodus was still unleavened because the people were compelled to withdraw in haste.

[77] The Hebrew term gevarim (adult able-bodied men) as opposed to women.

[78] That is, a mixed multitude of non-Israelites that also included Egyptians

[79] SP adds, “and their fathers”

[80] MT “Who had dwelt.” The Hebrew verb (יָשְׁבוּ) is plural. The relative pronoun (אֲשֶׁר asher), “who,” can apply to the “sons of Israel” instead of the “dwelling.” LXX SP adds “and the land of Canaan” after “Egypt.” LXX “And the dwelling of the sons of Israel which they dwelt in the land of Egypt and the land of Chanaan, was four hundred and thirty years.” SP “in the land of Canaan and in the land of Egypt.” The sons of Israel “set out from Rameses in the first month, on the fifteenth day of the first month.” (Ex 12:37; Nu 33:3, 5) SP LXX and Josephus show us that the four hundred and thirty years should be counted from the time Abraham came into the land of Canaan until the time the sons of Israel set out of Egypt. See Gal. 3:17.

[81] Jehovah of armies: (יְהוָ֣ה צְבָא֣וֹת Jehovah tsebaot) literally means an army of soldiers or military forces (Gen. 21:22; Deut. 20:9). It can also be used figuratively, “the sun and the moon and the stars, all the armies of heaven.” (Deut. 4:19) In the plural form, it is also used of the Israelites forces as well. (Ex. 6:26; 7:4; Num. 33:1; Psa. 44:9) However, the “armies” in the expression “Jehovah of armies” is a reference to the angelic forces primarily, if not exclusively.

[82] This is a temporary resident.

[83] Or their multitudes

[84] MT “Reed Sea” or “Sea of Reeds” LXX “Red Sea”

[85] LXX adds “in the fifth generation” before “the sons of Israel.”

[86] See the footnote on Exodus 4:21.

[87] That is, his army

[88] See the footnote on Exodus 4:21.

[89] See the footnote on Exodus 4:21.

[90] LXX “and there was darkness and blackness; and the night passed.”

[91] LXX SP SYR “he bound the wheels of their chariots”

[92] Or power

[93] “Jah” (יָ֔הּ) is a shortened form of the name Jehovah, which is found in the exhortation “Hallelujah!” That is, “Praise Jah!” It occurs 49 times in MT identified by a point (mappiq) in its second letter and once in Ca 8:6 without the mappiq. The mappiq is a diacritic used in the Hebrew alphabet. It is part of the Masoretes’ system of vowel points. It takes the form of a dot in the middle of a letter (usually הּ‎, he).

[94] MT “Reed Sea” or “Sea of Reeds” LXX “Red Sea”

[95] MT “Sing” LXX VG “Let us sing”

[96] MT “Reed Sea” or “Sea of Reeds” LXX “Red Sea”

[97] God does not test us with evil. (Jam. 1:13) But each one is tempted when he is carried away and enticed by his own desire. (Jam. 1:14) Yes, God does allow various kinds of circumstances to come about that prove appealing to a His servants even if wrong or inadvisable. But God is not making wrong look enticing.

[98] The Hebrew rendered “between the two evenings” (Heb. בֵּין הָעֲרְבַּיִם ben hoarbayim) according to some scholars (e.g., Ronald B. Allen, R. Laird Harris, Gleason L. Archer Jr., and Bruce K. Waltke), as well as the Karaite Jews and Samaritans, at twilight, the period of the evening between when the sun sets on the horizon and the actual darkness. The Pharisees and the Rabbis viewed it differently. For them, it was the first evening when the sun began to go down and the sunset of the second evening.

[99] About 2.2 L (2 dry qt).

[100] SYR “manna” MT SP LXX VG, “man”

[101] An ephah equaled 22 L (20 dry qt).

[102] Meaning testing; trial

[103] Meaning quarreling

[104] Meaning Jehovah Is My Banner

[105] “Jah” (יָ֔הּ) is a shortened form of the name Jehovah, which is found in the exhortation “Hallelujah!” That is, “Praise Jah!” It occurs 49 times in MT identified by a point (mappiq) in its second letter and once in Ca 8:6 without the mappiq. The mappiq is a diacritic used in the Hebrew alphabet. It is part of the Masoretes’ system of vowel points. It takes the form of a dot in the middle of a letter (usually הּ‎, he).

[106] LXX “because with a secret hand Jehovah wages war” VG^c “because the hand of Jehovah’s throne, and Jehovah’s war, will be.”

[107] SP LXX SYR “Then someone said to Moses: ‘Look!’” VG “And he sent to Moses, saying: ‘I.’”

[108] MT “took” SYR AT VG “offered”

[109] MT “the whole mountain quaked violently” LXX and a few Hebrew MSS “all the people quaked violently”

[110] MT “when all the people saw” LXX SP SYR VG “and the people were afraid”

[111] A tool of which we do not know the ancient form (flint, bone, stone, or metal). The only notice of it is in connection with the custom of boring the ear of the slave. – Ex. 21:6; Deut. 15:17.

[112] LXX VG “God delivered him into his hand(s).”

[113] Lit steals

[114] Lit hand

[115] MT “curses” LXX “reviles” The LXX reading is what we find in Matt. 15:4 and Mark 7:10.

[116] LXX VG “fist”

[117] Or survives

[118] That is, she gives birth prematurely

[119] That is, a ransom is demanded of him

[120] That is, whatever is demanded of him

[121] A shekel equaled 11.4 g (0.367 oz t).

[122] MT LXX end 21:37 here.

[123] LXX “But if anyone should feed his cattle in a field or a vineyard” VG “If anybody should damage a field or a vineyard”

[124] MT “he shall make restitution from the best of his own field” DSS LXX SP “he shall make compensation of his own field according to his produce”

[125] SP “Jehovah”

[126] If a man were exercising the same care that he would have for his own animals, and a domestic animal died of itself, was torn to pieces by a wild beast, or was taken by a thief, the person holding the animal was free from blame. – Ex 22:7-13.

[127] If it was anything that was hired, the owner would take the loss because he would or should have consider the risk, he set the hiring price.

[128] That is, sexual intercourse with animals

[129] Lit be put under ban; that is, be devoted to Jehovah for destruction

[130] LXX “In order to shut out justice (judgment),” MT lacks “justice” compare Deut. 24:17.

[131] Miscarriage of justice by judicial corruption was expressed by blindness, and there is much insistence in the Law toward bribery, gifts, or prejudice, as such things can blind an official and block the impartial application of justice.

[132] LXX VG “You must not appear”

[133] MT SP “Jehovah” LXX SYR VG^c, “your God”

[134] That is, the best of your firstfruits

[135] MT “he will bless” LXX VG “I will bless”

[136] MT “Reed Sea” or “Sea of Reeds” LXX “Red Sea”

[137] LXX adds “Euphrates”

[138] MT SYR “you” SP LXX VG “I”

[139] About 7.4 cm (2.9 in.).

[140] SP SYR “They must carry”

[141] “The showbread” or “the bread of the Presence” of the tabernacle was literally called “the bread of the face” in Hebrew (וְאֵ֖ת לֶ֥חֶם הַפָּנִֽים), that is, it was the bread of the Presence. This expression stressed God’s closeness to the sons of Israel as embodied in the sanctuary.

[142] A cubit equaled 44.5 cm (17.5 in.).

[143] Some translations render (Heb. תַּחַשׁ tachash) as sealskins, while others have goatskins, and others simply as fine leather. The Hebrew is uncertain. The presence of the monk seal in ancient Mediterranean waters makes the translation as sealskin having a sound basis.

[144] Or the south. That is the southern part of the Promised Land. The Negev was an arid region in the southern part of Palestine, and its name came to mean south.

[145] Or bases

[146] Lit seaward, toward the Mediterranean Sea

[147] Lit seaward, toward the Mediterranean Sea

[148] That is the ashes from the burnt wood of the altar fire, which were soaked with the fat of the animal sacrifices.

[149] LXX SYR “And all its vessels” MT “You shall make all its vessels”

[150] MT SP SYR “Just as he showed you” LXX “According to what was shown you” VG “Just as it has been shown to you.”

[151] Courtyard: (Heb. חָצֵר chatser; Gr αὐλή aulē) This was an open area surrounding the tabernacle that was fenced in. Later, one of the open area yards around the temple building was walled off. The altar of burnt offering was in the courtyard of the tabernacle and the temple’s inner courtyard. According to the Scriptures, some houses and palaces had courtyards as well. – Ex 8:13; 27:9; 1Ki 7:12; Es 4:11; Mt 26:3.

[152] SP “Fifty cubits,” MT LXX SYR “fifty by fifty” VG “fifty [cubits]”

[153] That is, skilled workers

[154] To “gird up the loins” or “gird up your hips” is an idiom that means to cause oneself to be in a state of readiness: ‘to get ready,’ ‘to prepare oneself.’ It refers to a person gathering up the ends of the garments between his legs and then tucking them under the sash (כֻּתֹּנֶת kuttoneth) worn around their hips to expedite physical activity. They often wore a sash over the inner or outer garments. This girding up the loins would include any physical labor and getting ready to do battle. It also came to be used as an expression meaning to equip oneself for vigorous mental or spiritual activity. There are times when it also has a sense of strengthening.

[155] Breastpiece: (חשֶׁן choshen) This is the pouch covered with twelve Jewels, which was worn over the high priest’s heart (connected to the high priest’s ephod), as he entered the Most Holy. It was called the “breastpiece of judgment” because it held the Urim and the Thummim, which the high priest used so as to determine God’s judgments. – Ex 25:7, 15-20; 28:4-30; 29:5; 35:9–21; Lev 8:8)

[156] That is, the span of the hand, about 22.2 cm (8.75 in.).

[157] MT (לֶשֶׁם)“leshem stone” LXX VG “ligure.”  The Hebrew is obscure, so this precious stone is unable to be identified. It is possibly referring to amber (ASV fn), hyacinth, opal, or tourmaline.

[158] LXX VG “agate” MT (שְׁבוֹ), shebo, a decorative stone.

[159] A precious stone consisting of a violet or purple variety of quartz.

[160] MT  “The Urim and the Thummim.” (אֶת־הָאוּרִים֙ וְאֶת־הַתֻּמִּ֔ים) haurim weeth-hattummim LXX “the Manifestation and the Truth” SYR “the light and the perfection” VG “the doctrine and the truth.” The LXX SYR VG are not translating here but rather are interpreting the Hebrew.

[161] LXX SYR “Judgments” MT VG “judgment”

[162] A coat that was worn for protection during battle. The coat of mail (Heb., שִׁרְיוֹן shiryon or שִׁרְיָן shiryan) was body armor made with a cloth or leather cloak that contained hundreds of small connecting pieces of metal (like fish scales) fastened to its surface. Usually, it covered the breast, back, and shoulders. However, some went down to the knees or even the ankles.

[163] To “gird up the loins” or “gird up your hips” is an idiom that means to cause oneself to be in a state of readiness: ‘to get ready,’ ‘to prepare oneself.’ It refers to a person gathering up the ends of the garments between his legs and then tucking them under the sash (כֻּתֹּנֶת kuttoneth) worn around their hips to expedite physical activity. They often wore a sash over the inner or outer garments. This girding up the loins would include any physical labor and getting ready to do battle. It also came to be used as an expression meaning to equip oneself for vigorous mental or spiritual activity. There are times when it also has a sense of strengthening.

[164] A small kind of turban or head covering.

[165] Anoint: (Heb. masach Gr. chrio) In the Hebrew OT, the word meant to anoint, smear, rub an object or person (a prophet, priest, or king) with a liquid, which symbolized a dedication or installation for a special service. In the Greet NT, the word meant to anoint with oil, to assign one to a duty, role, or office. It is also used of the pouring out of the Holy Spirit on those who are anointed in Christ. – Ex 28:41; 1 Sam 16:13; 2 Cor. 1:21.

[166] LXX lacks “Aaron and his sons”

[167] LXX “And they shall have a priestly office to me forever” Compare Heb 7:28.

[168] LXX “and you shall ^βfill the hands (Lit make perfect the hands) of Aaron and the hands of his sons”

[169] Appendage; lobe; caul: (יֹתֶרֶת yothereth) This was the fatty mass on the opening of the liver, frequently identified as lobus caudatus as an appendage of the liver. – Ex 29:13, 22; Lev 3:4, 10, 15; 4:9; 7:4; 8:16, 25; 9:10, 19.

[170] Burnt offering: (עֹלָה olah) A sacrifice that was clean and acceptable in which the entire animal (bull, ram, a male goat, turtledove, or young pigeon), was consumed on the altar, as a total offering to God. The worshipper kept no part of the sacrifice for himself. – Ex. 29:18; Lev. 6:9.

[171] That is, pleasing, appeasing, soothing

[172] (Heb. אִשֶּׁה ishsheh) “An offering made by fire” derived from ʼesh, “fire.”  The meaning can be how one can set up a close connection with God, derived from ʼnsh.

[173] That is, a pleasing, soothing, or sweet aroma

[174] Lit fill their hand

[175] That is, a man who is not of Aaron’s family

[176] The Hebrew rendered “between the two evenings” (Heb. בֵּין הָעֲרְבַּיִם ben hoarbayim) according to some scholars (e.g., Ronald B. Allen, R. Laird Harris, Gleason L. Archer Jr., and Bruce K. Waltke), as well as the Karaite Jews and Samaritans, at twilight, the period of the evening between when the sun sets on the horizon and the actual darkness. The Pharisees and the Rabbis viewed it differently. For them, it was the first evening when the sun began to go down and the sunset of the second evening.

[177] An ephah equaled 22 L (20 dry qt).
LXX VG “And a tenth part of an ephah measure” in Num 15:4. MT “and a tenth part of”

[178] A hin equaled 3.67 L (7.75 pt).

[179] See the footnote on Exodus 29:39.

[180] MT “It” VG “the altar”

[181] See the footnote on Exodus 29:39.

[182] MT SYR “Shekel” LXX “didrachma”

[183] Stumble, fall away, to be offended: (σκανδαλίζω skandalizō) In Greek, “stumbling block” (skandalon) was originally a device or trap, which contained bait, to ensnare or catch something alive. (1 John 2:10) It is used in the Scriptures as a trap, obstacle, or snare that stumbles one into sinning. (Rom. 11:9; Matt. 13:41) It can also be used as an obstacle that causes offense, resulting in opposition. (1 Cor. 1:23; Gal. 5:11) The Greek, (skandalizomai) refers to one who ceases to believe because of tribulation. (Matt. 13:21) It can also refer to one who is spiritually weak, immature in the faith, resulting in their falling into sin. (2 Cor. 11:29) In addition, it can refer to one who takes offense to some action. (Matt. 15:12) It can refer to one who causes another no longer to believe (John 6:61) It can also refer to something or someone that causes another to sin because they are spiritually weak or immature in the faith. (Matt. 5:29; Rom. 14:21) It can refer to another who is angered or shocked by something or someone, which could result in their sinning. – Matt. 17:27; John 6:61.

[184] A hin equaled 3.67 L (7.75 pt).

[185] That is, equal portions

[186] Or bronze

[187] That is, skilled workers

[188] That is, skill

[189] Lit propitiatory

[190] MT “the finely woven garments” LXX “garments for public service”

[191] MT “a god.” (אֱלֹהִים) elohim, plural, which probably indicates excellence. LXX VG “gods” We also find a plural reading in Ac 7:40, where Luke is apparently quoting the LXX. See vs 4 and 31 fns.

[192] MT “These [are] your gods” (אֵלֶּה אֱלֹהֶיךָ) elleh eloheyka But Neh. 9:18 has the following “This is your God,” (זֶה אֱלֹהֶיךָ) zeh eloheyka. The Heb. pronoun and the following verb are sing. and elohim is plural, which again is indicating excellence. Compare Ps 106:19-21.

[193] See vs 4 fn

[194] The Hebrew word (נִחוּם nichum or נִחֻם nichum) has the sense of feel regret over. It can be translated as “be sorry,” “grieved,” “repent,” “regret,” “be comforted, “compassion,” “comfort,” “reconsider,” and “change one’s mind.” It can pertain to a change of attitude or intention. God is perfect and therefore does not make mistakes in his dealings with his creation. However, he can have a change of attitude or intention regarding how humans react to his warnings. God can go from the Creator of humans to that of a destroyer of them because of their unrepentant wickedness and failure to heed his warnings. On the other hand, if they repent and turn from their wicked ways, the Father can be compassionate and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in loyal love. He will “reconsider” the calamity that he may have intended. (Genesis 6:6; Exodus 32:14; Joel 2:13) This is not really God changing his mind per se but rather his altering circumstances once persons with free will brought those altered circumstances about so God could carry out his will and purposes. Second, draw comfort in the fact that we can be sure that God will never change his standards of love and justice regardless of what created beings do with their free will. Nevertheless, just as any of us might change our mind about someone who has altered the way they treat us, God does change in the way that he deals with humans to the evolving circumstances, situations, and conditions. There are also times when God has changed his commands, laws, and instructions according to his people’s situation and needs. We should not be astonished by this because God has foreknowledge, and he is well aware of conditions that will come where he will have to change or alter circumstances. The English word “regret” means ‘to feel sorry and sad about something previously done or said that now appears wrong, mistaken, or hurtful to others.’ The Hebrew word (nacham here translated as “regretted” relates to a change of attitude or intention. The Hebrew could not be used to suggest that God felt that he had made a mistake in creating man.

[195] MT LXX SYR “Three” VG^c “twenty-three”

[196] That is, ordain yourselves LXX VG “You have filled your hands this day” That is, “You have dedicated yourselves today.”

[197] MT “A god.” (אֱלֹהִים) elohim, plural, which probably indicates excellence. It is a reference to one golden calf. LXX VG “gods”

[198] MT “to a land” LXX “and I shall lead you into a land”

[199] LXX SYR “His” MT VG “the”

[200] Lit he

[201] That is, Moses

[202] MT SYR “and consider” LXX “And that I may know”

[203] LXX “I myself shall go before you” SYR “Walk before me”

[204] MT (אִם־אֵין פָּנֶיךָ) Lit “your face” LXX VG “you yourself.”

[205] LXX VG “One”

[206] Or faithfulness

[207] This is one of the 134 scribal changes from יהוה [JHVH] to אדני [Adonai]. The earliest MSS have the Tetragrammaton.

[208] Asherah poles:  The Hebrew word (אֲשֵׁרָה Asherah) refers to (1) a sacred wooden pole used in the worship of Asherah, a Canaanite goddess of fertility, or (2) an Asherah image of the goddess. These were upright poles made of wood.​ – Deut. 16:21; Judges 6:26; 1Ki 15:13.

[209] That is, they prostitute themselves after their gods

[210] That is, prostitute themselves after their gods or whore after their gods

[211] MT “The Lord, Jehovah.” (הָֽאָדֹ֥ן׀ יְהוָ֖ה), haadon Jehvah; VG “the omnipotent Lord”

[212] That is, the Ten Commandments: also known as the Decalogue

[213] That is, skilled workers

[214] “The showbread” or “the bread of the Presence” of the tabernacle was literally called “the bread of the face” in Hebrew (וְאֵ֖ת לֶ֥חֶם הַפָּנִֽים), that is, it was the bread of the Presence. This expression stressed God’s closeness to the sons of Israel as embodied in the sanctuary. VG “loaves of presentation”

[215] That is, skilled workers

[216] That is, skilled workers

[217] That is, skilled workers

[218] That is, skilled workers

[219] A reference to Bezalel

[220] Lit coupling

[221] Or the south. That is the southern part of the Promised Land. The Negev was an arid region in the southern part of Palestine, and its name came to mean south.

[222] MT (כַּפֹּרֶת) kapporeth “propitiatory, mercy seat” LXX propitiatory VG “propitiatorium”

[223] A large container in which drink was served, typically with two handles and spout. Also used for storing wine.

[224] A decorative part of the golden seven-branched lampstand that was used in the tabernacle. It is designated by the Hebrew word (כַּפְתֹּר kaphtor, or כַּפְתּוֹר kaphtor), apparently referring to a round protrusion. (KJV knop; RSV capital; NRSV, ESV calyx; NIV buds Ex 25:31-36; 37:17-22)

[225] Or tongs

[226] Or the south. That is the southern part of the Promised Land. The Negev was an arid region in the southern part of Palestine, and its name came to mean south.

[227] Or curtain

[228] A talent equaled 34.2 kg (1,101 oz t).

[229] A shekel equaled 11.4 g (0.367 oz t).

[230] MT (בֶּקַע) “A beka” of silver. LXX “One drachma”

[231] Lit skull, a head tax

[232] LXX “Shekels”

[233] Filigree settings: (מִשְׁבְּצוֹת mishbetsoth) is a type of ornamental wire mounting for setting gems or jewels; often made of gold.

[234] Breastpiece: (חשֶׁן choshen) This is the pouch covered with twelve Jewels, which was worn over the high priest’s heart (connected to the high priest’s ephod), as he entered the Most Holy. It was called the “breastpiece of judgment” because it held the Urim and the Thummim, which the high priest used so as to determine God’s judgments. – Ex 25:7, 15-20; 28:4-30; 29:5; 35:9–21; Lev 8:8)

[235] That is, the span of the hand, which was about 22.2 cm (8.75 in.)

[236] That is, the span of the hand, which was about 22.2 cm (8.75 in.)

[237] MT (לֶשֶׁם)“leshem stone” LXX VG “ligure.”  The Hebrew is obscure, so this precious stone is unable to be identified. It is possibly referring to amber (ASV fn), hyacinth, opal, or tourmaline.

[238] LXX VG “agate” MT (שְׁבוֹ), shebo, a decorative stone.

[239] A coat that was worn for protection during battle. The coat of mail (Heb., שִׁרְיוֹן shiryon or שִׁרְיָן shiryan) was body armor made with a cloth or leather cloak that contained hundreds of small connecting pieces of metal (like fish scales) fastened to its surface. Usually, it covered the breast, back, and shoulders. However, some went down to the knees or even the ankles.

[240] LXX SP VG added “linen” after “twisted,”^[240] which enables the reader to know what is being “twisted.”

[241] A basic garment for wear and work that was worn over any loincloth or undergarment, which went from the shoulder to the knees.

[242] “The showbread” or “the bread of the Presence” of the tabernacle was literally called “the bread of the face” in Hebrew (וְאֵ֖ת לֶ֥חֶם הַפָּנִֽים), that is, it was the bread of the Presence. This expression stressed God’s closeness to the sons of Israel as embodied in the sanctuary.

[243] Or curtain

[244] Or the south. That is the southern part of the Promised Land. The Negev was an arid region in the southern part of Palestine, and its name came to mean south.

[245] Or curtain