One Year Pray for America Bible - Flipbook - Page 129
119
January 31
16 On
Israel.
the first day of the festival
and again on the seventh day, all the
people must observe an official day for
holy assembly. No work of any kind
may be done on these days except in
the preparation of food.
17 “Celebrate this Festival of Unleavened Bread, for it will remind you
that I brought your forces out of the
land of Egypt on this very day. This festival will be a permanent law for you;
celebrate this day from generation to
generation. 18 The bread you eat must
be made without yeast from the evening of the fourteenth day of the first
month until the evening of the t wenty-
first day of that month. 19 During those
seven days, there must be no trace of
yeast in your homes. Anyone who eats
anything made with yeast during this
week will be cut off from the community of Israel. These regulations apply
both to the foreigners living among
you and to the native-born Israelites.
20 During those days you must not eat
anything made with yeast. Wherever
you live, eat only bread made without
yeast.”
21 Then M
oses called all the elders
of Israel together and said to them,
“Go, pick out a lamb or young goat
for each of your families, and slaughter the Passover animal. 22 Drain the
blood into a basin. Then take a bundle
of hyssop branches and dip it into the
blood. Brush the hyssop across the
top and sides of the doorframes of
your houses. And no one may go out
through the door until morning. 23 For
the Lord will pass through the land to
strike down the Egyptians. But when
he sees the blood on the top and sides
of the doorframe, the Lord will pass
over your home. He will not permit his
death angel to enter your house and
strike you down.
24 “Remember, these instructions
are a permanent law that you and your
descendants must observe forever.
25 When you enter the land the Lord
has promised to give you, you will continue to observe this ceremony. 26 Then
your children will ask, ‘What does
this ceremony mean?’ 27 And you will
reply, ‘It is the Passover sacrifice to the
Lord, for he passed over the houses
of the Israelites in Egypt. And though
he struck the Egyptians, he spared our
families.’” When Moses had finished
speaking, all the people bowed down
to the ground and worshiped.
28 So the people of Israel did just as
the Lord had commanded through
Moses and Aaron. 29 And that night at
midnight, the Lord struck down all
the firstborn sons in the land of Egypt,
from the firstborn son of Pharaoh,
who sat on his throne, to the firstborn
son of the prisoner in the dungeon.
Even the firstborn of their livestock
were killed. 30 Pharaoh and all his officials and all the people of Egypt woke
up during the night, and loud wailing was heard throughout the land of
Egypt. There was not a single house
where someone had not died.
31 Pha
r aoh sent for M
oses and
Aaron during the night. “Get out!” he
ordered. “Leave my p
eople—and take
the rest of the Israelites with you! Go
and worship the Lord as you have requested. 32 Take your flocks and herds,
as you said, and be gone. Go, but bless
me as you leave.” 33 All the Egyptians
urged the people of Israel to get out
of the land as quickly as possible, for
they thought, “We will all die!”
34 The Isr aelites took their bread
dough before yeast was added. They
wrapped their kneading boards in
their cloaks and carried them on their
shoulders. 35 And the people of Israel
did as Moses had instructed; they
asked the Egyptians for clothing and
articles of silver and gold. 36 The Lord
caused the Egyptians to look favorably on the Israelites, and they gave
the Israelites whatever they asked for.
So they stripped the Egyptians of their
wealth!
37 That night the people of Is
rael
left Rameses and started for Succoth.
There were about 600,000 men,* plus
all the women and children. 38 A rabble of non-Israelites went with them,
along with great flocks and herds of
livestock. 39 For bread they baked
flat cakes from the dough without
