HelpFinder Bible - Flipbook - Page 434
EX O D U S 1 3
all their males be circumcised. Only then may
they celebrate the Passover with you like any
native-born Israelite. But no uncircumcised
male may ever eat the Passover meal. 49 This instruction applies to everyone, whether a nativeborn Israelite or a foreigner living among you.”
50 So all the people of Israel followed all the
Lord’s commands to Moses and Aaron. 51 On
that very day the Lord brought the people of Israel out of the land of Egypt like an army.
Dedication of the Firstborn
Then the Lord said to Moses, 2 “Dedicate
to me every firstborn among the Israelites. The first offspring to be born, of both humans and animals, belongs to me.”
3 So Moses said to the people, “This is a day
to remember forever—the day you left Egypt,
the place of your slavery. Today the Lord has
brought you out by the power of his mighty
hand. (Remember, eat no food containing
yeast.) 4 On this day in early spring, in the
month of Abib,* you have been set free. 5 You
must celebrate this event in this month each
year after the Lord brings you into the land of
the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Hivites, and
Jebusites. (He swore to your ancestors that he
would give you this land—a land flowing with
milk and honey.) 6 For seven days the bread you
eat must be made without yeast. Then on the
seventh day, celebrate a feast to the Lord. 7 Eat
bread without yeast during those seven days. In
fact, there must be no yeast bread or any yeast
at all found within the borders of your land during this time.
8 “On the seventh day you must explain to
your children, ‘I am celebrating what the Lord
did for me when I left Egypt.’ 9 This annual festival will be a visible sign to you, like a mark
branded on your hand or your forehead. Let it
remind you always to recite this teaching of the
Lord: ‘With a strong hand, the Lord rescued you
from Egypt.’* 10 So observe the decree of this festival at the appointed time each year.
11 “This is what you must do when the Lord
fulfills the promise he swore to you and to your
ancestors. When he gives you the land where
the Canaanites now live, 12 you must present all
firstborn sons and firstborn male animals to
the Lord, for they belong to him. 13 A firstborn
donkey may be bought back from the Lord by
presenting a lamb or young goat in its place.
But if you do not buy it back, you must break
its neck. However, you must buy back every
firstborn son.
14 “And in the future, your children will ask
you, ‘What does all this mean?’ Then you will
tell them, ‘With the power of his mighty hand,
the Lord brought us out of Egypt, the place of
our slavery. 15 Pharaoh stubbornly refused to let
us go, so the Lord killed all the firstborn males
13
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throughout the land of Egypt, both people and
animals. That is why I now sacrifice all the
firstborn males to the Lord—except that the
firstborn sons are always bought back.’ 16 This
ceremony will be like a mark branded on your
hand or your forehead. It is a reminder that the
power of the Lord’s mighty hand brought us out
of Egypt.”
Israel’s Wilderness Detour
17 When Pharaoh finally let the people go, God
did not lead them along the main road that runs
through Philistine territory, even though that
was the shortest route to the Promised Land.
God said, “If the people are faced with a battle,
they might change their minds and return to
Egypt.” 18 So God led them in a roundabout way
through the wilderness toward the Red Sea.*
Thus the Israelites left Egypt like an army ready
for battle.*
19 Moses took the bones of Joseph with him,
for Joseph had made the sons of Israel swear
to do this. He said, “God will certainly come
to help you. When he does, you must take my
bones with you from this place.”
20 The Israelites left Succoth and camped at
Etham on the edge of the wilderness. 21 The Lord
went ahead of them. He guided them during the
day with a pillar of cloud, and he provided light
at night with a pillar of fire. This allowed them
to travel by day or by night. 22 And the Lord did
not remove the pillar of cloud or pillar of fire
from its place in front of the people.
14
Then the Lord gave these instructions
to Moses: 2 “Order the Israelites to turn
back and camp by Pi-hahiroth between Migdol
and the sea. Camp there along the shore, across
from Baal-zephon. 3 Then Pharaoh will think,
‘The Israelites are confused. They are trapped in
the wilderness!’ 4 And once again I will harden
Pharaoh’s heart, and he will chase after you.*
I have planned this in order to display my glory
through Pharaoh and his whole army. After this
the Egyptians will know that I am the Lord!”
So the Israelites camped there as they were told.
The Egyptians Pursue Israel
5 When word reached the king of Egypt that the
Israelites had fled, Pharaoh and his officials
changed their minds. “What have we done, letting all those Israelite slaves get away?” they
asked. 6 So Pharaoh harnessed his chariot and
called up his troops. 7 He took with him 600 of
Egypt’s best chariots, along with the rest of the
chariots of Egypt, each with its commander.
13:4 Hebrew On this day in the month of Abib. This first month
of the ancient Hebrew lunar calendar usually occurs within
the months of March and April. 13:9 Or Let it remind you
always to keep the instructions of the Lord on the tip of your
tongue, because with a strong hand, the Lord rescued you from
Egypt. 13:18a Hebrew sea of reeds. 13:18b Greek version
reads left Egypt in the fifth generation. 14:4 Hebrew after
them.