Exodus
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12 - 13 - 14 - 15 - 16 - 17 -
18 - 19 - 20 - 21 - 22 -
23 - 24 - 25 - 26 - 27 -
28 - 29 - 30 - 31 - 32 -
33 - 34 - 35 - 36 - 37 -
38 - 39 - 40
TOC
Maps Info
Notations
These are the names of the sons of Israel who came to Egypt with Jacob,
each with his household: 2 Reuben, Simeon, Levi,
and Judah, 3Issachar, Zebulun, and Benjamin, 4
Dan and Naphtali, Gad and Asher. 5The total number
of people born to Jacob was seventy. Joseph was already in Egypt. 6Then
Joseph died, and all his brothers, and that whole generation. 7But
the Israelites were fruitful and prolific; they multiplied and grew exceedingly
strong, so that the land was filled with them. 8Now
a new king arose over Egypt, who did not know Joseph. 9He
said to his people, "Look, the Israelite people are more numerous and more
powerful than we. 10 Come, let us deal shrewdly with
them, or they will increase and, in the event of war, join our enemies and fight
against us and escape from the land." 11 Therefore
they set taskmasters over them to oppress them with forced labor. They built supply
cities, Pithom and Rameses, for Pharaoh. 12 But the
more they were oppressed, the more they multiplied and spread, so that the Egyptians
came to dread the Israelites. 13The Egyptians became
ruthless in imposing tasks on the Israelites, 14and
made their lives bitter with hard service in mortar and brick and in every kind
of field labor. They were ruthless in all the tasks that they imposed on them.
15The king of Egypt said to the Hebrew midwives,
one of whom was named Shiphrah and the other Puah, 16
"When you act as midwives to the Hebrew women, and see them on the birthstool,
if it is a boy, kill him; but if it is a girl, she shall live." 17
But the midwives feared God; they did not do as the king of Egypt commanded them,
but they let the boys live. 18So the king of Egypt
summoned the midwives and said to them, "Why have you done this, and allowed
the boys to live?" 19The midwives said to Pharaoh,
"Because the Hebrew women are not like the Egyptian women; for they are vigorous
and give birth before the midwife comes to them." 20So
God dealt well with the midwives; and the people multiplied and became very strong.
21 And because the midwives feared God, he gave them
families. 22 Then Pharaoh commanded all his people,
"Every boy that is born to the Hebrews you shall throw into the Nile, but
you shall let every girl live."Return
to Top
Now a man from the house of Levi
went and married a Levite woman. 2
The woman conceived and bore a son; and when she saw
that he was a fine baby, she hid him three months.
3When she
could hide him no longer she got a papyrus basket for him, and plastered it
with bitumen and pitch; she put the child in it and placed it among the reeds
on the bank of the river. 4
His sister stood at a distance, to see what would
happen to him. 5
The daughter of Pharaoh came down to bathe at the
river, while her attendants walked beside the river. She saw the basket among
the reeds and sent her maid to bring it.
6When she opened it, she
saw the child. He was crying, and she took pity on him, "This must be one
of the Hebrews' children," she said.
7Then his sister said to
Pharaoh's daughter, "Shall I go and get you a nurse from the Hebrew women
to nurse the child for you?" 8
Pharaoh's daughter said to her, "Yes." So
the girl went and called the child's mother.
9Pharaoh's
daughter said to her, "Take this child and nurse it for me, and I will
give you your wages." So the woman took the child and nursed it.
10When the
child grew up, she brought him to Pharaoh's daughter, and she took him as her
son. She named him Moses, "because," she said, "I drew him out
of the water." 11
One day, after Moses had grown up, he went out to his
people and saw their forced labor. He saw an Egyptian beating a Hebrew, one of
his kinsfolk. 12
He looked this way and that, and seeing no one he
killed the Egyptian and hid him in the sand.
13When he
went out the next day, he saw two Hebrews fighting; and he said to the one who
was in the wrong, "Why do you strike your fellow Hebrew?"
14He
answered, "Who made you a ruler and judge over us? Do you mean to kill me as
you killed the Egyptian?" Then Moses was afraid and thought, "Surely
the thing is known." 15
When Pharaoh heard of it, he sought to kill Moses. But
Moses fled from Pharaoh. He settled in the land of Midian, and sat down by a
well. 16
The priest of Midian had seven daughters. They came to
draw water, and filled the troughs to water their father's flock.
17But some
shepherds came and drove them away. Moses got up and came to their defense and
watered their flock. 18
When they returned to their father Reuel, he said,
"How is it that you have come back so soon today?"
19They
said, "An Egyptian helped us against the shepherds; he even drew water for
us and watered the flock." 20
He said to his daughters, "Where is he? Why did
you leave the man? Invite him to break bread."
21Moses
agreed to stay with the man, and he gave Moses his daughter Zipporah in
marriage. 22
She bore a son, and he named him Gershom; for he said,
"I have been an alien residing in a foreign land."
23After a
long time the king of Egypt died. The Israelites groaned under their slavery,
and cried out. Out of the slavery their cry for help rose up to God.
24God
heard their groaning, and God remembered his covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and
Jacob. 25
God looked upon the Israelites, and God took notice of
them.
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Moses was keeping the flock of his
father-in-law Jethro, the priest of Midian; he led his flock beyond the
wilderness, and came to Horeb, the mountain of God.
2There the
angel of the LORD appeared to him in a flame of fire out of a bush; he looked,
and the bush was blazing, yet it was not consumed.
3Then
Moses said, "I must turn aside and look at this great sight, and see why
the bush is not burned up." 4
When the LORD saw that he had turned aside to see, God
called to him out of the bush, "Moses, Moses!" And he said,
"Here I am." 5
Then he said, "Come no closer! Remove the sandals
from your feet, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground."
6He said
further, "I am the God of your father, 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
Then the LORD said, "I have observed the misery
of my people who are in Egypt; I have heard their cry on account of their
taskmasters. Indeed, I know their sufferings,
8and I
have come down to deliver them from the Egyptians, and to bring them up out of
that land to a good and broad land, a land flowing with milk and honey, to the
country of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the
Hivites, and the Jebusites. 9
The cry of the Israelites has now come to me; I have
also seen how the Egyptians oppress them.
10So come, I will send you
to Pharaoh to bring my people, the Israelites, out of Egypt."
11But
Moses said to God, "Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh, and bring the
Israelites out of Egypt?" 12
He said, "I will be with you; and this shall be
the sign for you that it is I who sent you: when you have brought the people
out of Egypt, you shall worship God on this mountain."
13But
Moses said to God, "If I come to the Israelites and say to them, 'The God
of your ancestors has sent me to you,' and they ask me, 'What is his name?'
what shall I say to them?" 14
God said to Moses, "I AM WHO I AM." He said
further, "Thus you shall say to the Israelites, 'I AM has sent me to
you.'" 15
God also said to Moses, "Thus you shall say to
the Israelites, 'The LORD, the God of your ancestors, 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 my title for all generations.
16Go and
assemble the elders of Israel, and say to them, 'The LORD, the God of your
ancestors, the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob, has appeared to me,
saying: I have given heed to you and to what has been done to you in Egypt.
17I
declare that I will bring you up out of the misery of Egypt, to the land of the
Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the
Jebusites, a land flowing with milk and honey.'
18They
will listen to your voice; and you and the elders of Israel shall go to the
king of Egypt and say to him, 'The LORD, the God of the Hebrews, has met with
us; let us now go a three days' journey into the wilderness, so that we may
sacrifice to the LORD our God.' 19
I know, however, that the king of Egypt will not let
you go unless compelled by a mighty hand.
20So I will stretch out my
hand and strike Egypt with all my wonders that I will perform in it; after that
he will let you go. 21
I will bring this people into such favor with the
Egyptians that, when you go, you will not go empty-handed;
22each
woman shall ask her neighbor and any woman living in the neighbor's house for
jewelry of silver and of gold, and clothing, and you shall put them on your
sons and on your daughters; and so you shall plunder the Egyptians."
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Then Moses answered, "But
suppose they do not believe me or listen to me, but say, 'The LORD did not
appear to you.'" 2
The LORD said to him, "What is that in your
hand?" He said, "A staff."
3And he said, "Throw
it on the ground." So he threw the staff on the ground, and it became a
snake; and Moses drew back from it. 4
Then the LORD said to Moses, "Reach out your
hand, and seize it by the tail"--so he reached out his hand and grasped
it, and it became a staff in his hand--
5"so that they may
believe that the LORD, the God of their ancestors, the God of Abraham, the God
of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has appeared to you."
6Again,
the LORD said to him, "Put your hand inside your cloak." He put his
hand into his cloak; and when he took it out, his hand was leprous, as white as
snow. 7
Then God said, "Put your hand back into your
cloak"--so he put his hand back into his cloak, and when he took it out,
it was restored like the rest of his body--
8"If they will not
believe you or heed the first sign, they may believe the second sign.
9If they
will not believe even these two signs or heed you, you shall take some water
from the Nile and pour it on the dry ground; and the water that you shall take
from the Nile will become blood on the dry ground."
10But
Moses said to the LORD, "O my Lord, I have never been eloquent, neither in
the past nor even now that you have spoken to your servant; but I am slow of
speech and slow of tongue." 11
Then the LORD said to him, "Who gives speech to
mortals? Who makes them mute or deaf, seeing or blind? Is it not I, the LORD?
12Now go,
and I will be with your mouth and teach you what you are to speak."
13But he
said, "O my Lord, please send someone else."
14Then the
anger of the LORD was kindled against Moses and he said, "What of your
brother Aaron, the Levite? I know that he can speak fluently; even now he is
coming out to meet you, and when he sees you his heart will be glad.
15You
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.
16He
indeed shall speak for you to the people; he shall serve as a mouth for you,
and you shall serve as God for him. 17
Take in your hand this staff, with which you shall
perform the signs." 18
Moses went back to his father-in-law Jethro and said
to him, "Please let me go back to my kindred in Egypt and see whether they
are still living." And Jethro said to Moses, "Go in peace."
19The LORD
said to Moses in Midian, "Go back to Egypt; for all those who were seeking
your life are dead." 20
So Moses took his wife and his sons, put them on a
donkey and went back to the land of Egypt; and Moses carried the staff of God
in his hand. 21
And the LORD said to Moses, "When you go back to
Egypt, see that you perform before Pharaoh all the wonders that I have put in
your power; but I will harden his heart, so that he will not let the people go.
22
Then you shall say to Pharaoh, 'Thus says the LORD:
Israel is my firstborn son. 23
I said to you, "Let my son go that he may worship
me." But you refused to let him go; now I will kill your firstborn
son.'" 24
On the way, at a place where they spent the night, the
LORD met him and tried to kill him. 25
But Zipporah took a flint and cut off her son's
foreskin, and touched Moses' feet with it, and said, "Truly you are a
bridegroom of blood to me!" 26
So he let him alone. It was then she said, "A
bridegroom of blood by circumcision."
27The LORD said to Aaron,
"Go into the wilderness to meet Moses." So he went; and he met him at
the mountain of God and kissed him. 28
Moses told Aaron all the words of the LORD with which
he had sent him, and all the signs with which he had charged him.
29Then
Moses and Aaron went and assembled all the elders of the Israelites.
30Aaron
spoke all the words that the LORD had spoken to Moses, and performed the signs
in the sight of the people. 31
The people believed; and when they heard that the LORD
had given heed to the Israelites and that he had seen their misery, they bowed
down and worshiped.
Return to Top Afterward Moses and Aaron went to
Pharaoh and said, "Thus says the LORD, the God of Israel, 'Let my people
go, so that they may celebrate a festival to me in the wilderness.'"
2But
Pharaoh said, "Who is the LORD, that I should heed him and let Israel go?
I do not know the LORD, and I will not let Israel go."
3Then they
said, "The God of the Hebrews has revealed himself to us; let us go a
three days' journey into the wilderness to sacrifice to the LORD our God, or he
will fall upon us with pestilence or sword."
4But the
king of Egypt said to them, "Moses and Aaron, why are you taking the
people away from their work? Get to your labors!"
5Pharaoh
continued, "Now they are more numerous than the people of the land and yet
you want them to stop working!" 6
That same day Pharaoh commanded the taskmasters of the
people, as well as their supervisors, 7
"You shall no longer give the people straw to
make bricks, as before; let them go and gather straw for themselves.
8But you
shall require of them the same quantity of bricks as they have made previously;
do not diminish it, for they are lazy; that is why they cry, 'Let us go and
offer sacrifice to our God.' 9
Let heavier work be laid on them; then they will labor
at it and pay no attention to deceptive words."
10So the
taskmasters and the supervisors of the people went out and said to the people,
"Thus says Pharaoh, 'I will not give you straw.
11Go and
get straw yourselves, wherever you can find it; but your work will not be
lessened in the least.'" 12
So the people scattered throughout the land of Egypt,
to gather stubble for straw. 13
The taskmasters were urgent, saying, "Complete
your work, the same daily assignment as when you were given straw."
14And the
supervisors of the Israelites, whom Pharaoh's taskmasters had set over them,
were beaten, and were asked, "Why did you not finish the required quantity
of bricks yesterday and today, as you did before?"
15Then the
Israelite supervisors came to Pharaoh and cried, "Why do you treat your
servants like this? 16
No straw is given to your servants, yet they say to
us, 'Make bricks!' Look how your servants are beaten! You are unjust to your
own people." 17
He said, "You are lazy, lazy; that is why you
say, 'Let us go and sacrifice to the LORD.'
18Go now, and work; for no
straw shall be given you, but you shall still deliver the same number of
bricks." 19
The Israelite supervisors saw that they were in
trouble when they were told, "You shall not lessen your daily number of
bricks." 20
As they left Pharaoh, they came upon Moses and Aaron
who were waiting to meet them. 21
They said to them, "The LORD look upon you and
judge! You have brought us into bad odor with Pharaoh and his officials, and
have put a sword in their hand to kill us."
22Then
Moses turned again to the LORD and said, "O LORD, why have you mistreated
this people? Why did you ever send me? 23
Since I first came to Pharaoh to speak in your name,
he has mistreated this people, and you have done nothing at all to deliver your
people."
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Then the LORD said to Moses,
"Now you shall see what I will do to Pharaoh: Indeed, by a mighty hand he
will let them go; by a mighty hand he will drive them out of his land."
2God also
spoke to Moses and said to him: "I am the LORD.
3I appeared
to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob as God Almighty, but by my name 'The LORD' 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 resided as aliens.
5I have
also heard the groaning of the Israelites whom the Egyptians are holding as
slaves, and I have remembered my covenant.
6Say therefore to the
Israelites, 'I am the LORD, and I will free you from the burdens of the
Egyptians and deliver you from slavery to them. I will redeem you with an
outstretched arm and with mighty acts of judgment.
7I will
take you as my people, and I will be your God. You shall know that I am the
LORD your God, who has freed you from the burdens of the Egyptians.
8I will
bring you into the land that I swore to give to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; I
will give it to you for a possession. I am the LORD.'"
9Moses
told this to the Israelites; but they would not listen to Moses, because of
their broken spirit and their cruel slavery.
10Then the
LORD spoke to Moses, 11
"Go and tell Pharaoh king of Egypt to let the
Israelites go out of his land." 12
But Moses spoke to the LORD, "The Israelites have
not listened to me; how then shall Pharaoh listen to me, poor speaker that I
am?" 13
Thus the LORD spoke to Moses and Aaron, and gave them
orders regarding the Israelites and Pharaoh king of Egypt, charging them to
free the Israelites from the land of Egypt.
14The following are the
heads of their ancestral houses: the sons of Reuben, the firstborn of Israel:
Hanoch, Pallu, Hezron, and Carmi; these are the families of Reuben.
15The sons
of Simeon: Jemuel, Jamin, Ohad, Jachin, Zohar, and Shaul, the son of a
Canaanite woman; these are the families of Simeon.
16The
following are the names of the sons of Levi according to their genealogies:
Gershon, Kohath, and Merari, and the length of Levi's life was one hundred
thirty-seven years. 17
The sons of Gershon: Libni and Shimei, by their
families. 18
The sons of Kohath: Amram, Izhar, Hebron, and Uzziel,
and the length of Kohath's life was one hundred thirty-three years.
19The sons
of Merari: Mahli and Mushi. These are the families of the Levites according to
their genealogies. 20
Amram married Jochebed his father's sister and she
bore him Aaron and Moses, and the length of Amram's life was one hundred
thirty-seven years. 21
The sons of Izhar: Korah, Nepheg, and Zichri.
22The sons
of Uzziel: Mishael, Elzaphan, and Sithri.
23Aaron married Elisheba,
daughter of Amminadab and sister of Nahshon, and she bore him Nadab, Abihu,
Eleazar, and Ithamar. 24
The sons of Korah: Assir, Elkanah, and Abiasaph; these
are the families of the Korahites. 25
Aaron's son Eleazar married one of the daughters of
Putiel, and she bore him Phinehas. These are the heads of the ancestral houses
of the Levites by their families. 26
It was this same Aaron and Moses to whom the LORD
said, "Bring the Israelites out of the land of Egypt, company by
company." 27
It was they who spoke to Pharaoh king of Egypt to
bring the Israelites out of Egypt, the same Moses and Aaron.
28On the
day when the LORD spoke to Moses in the land of Egypt,
29he said
to him, "I am the LORD; tell Pharaoh king of Egypt all that I am speaking
to you." 30
But Moses said in the Lord's presence, "Since I
am a poor speaker, why would Pharaoh listen to me?"
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The LORD said to Moses, "See,
I have made you like 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 Israelites go out of his land.
3But I
will harden Pharaoh's heart, and I will multiply my signs and wonders in the
land of Egypt. 4
When Pharaoh does not listen to you, I will lay my
hand upon Egypt and bring my people the Israelites, company by company, out of
the land of Egypt by great acts of judgment.
5The
Egyptians shall know that I am the LORD, when I stretch out my hand against
Egypt and bring the Israelites out from among them."
6Moses and
Aaron did so; they did just as the LORD commanded them.
7Moses was
eighty years old and Aaron eighty-three when they spoke to Pharaoh.
8The LORD
said to Moses and Aaron, 9
"When Pharaoh says to you, 'Perform a wonder,'
then you shall say to Aaron, 'Take your staff and throw it down before Pharaoh,
and it will become a snake.'" 10
So Moses and Aaron went to Pharaoh and did as the LORD
had commanded; Aaron threw down his staff before Pharaoh and his officials, and
it became a snake. 11
Then Pharaoh summoned the wise men and the sorcerers;
and they also, the magicians of Egypt, did the same by their secret arts.
12Each one
threw down his staff, and they became snakes; but Aaron's staff swallowed up
theirs. 13
Still Pharaoh's heart was hardened, and he would not
listen to them, as the LORD had said. 14
Then the LORD said to Moses, "Pharaoh's heart is
hardened; he refuses to let the people go.
15Go to Pharaoh in the
morning, as he is going out to the water; stand by at the river bank to meet
him, and take in your hand the staff that was turned into a snake.
16Say to
him, 'The LORD, the God of the Hebrews, sent me to you to say, "Let my
people go, so that they may worship me in the wilderness." But until now
you have not listened.' 17
Thus says the LORD, "By this you shall know that
I am the LORD." See, with the staff that is in my hand I will strike the
water that is in the Nile, and it shall be turned to blood.
18The fish
in the river shall die, the river itself shall stink, and the Egyptians shall
be unable to drink water from the Nile.'"
19The LORD
said to Moses, "Say to Aaron, 'Take your staff and stretch out your hand
over the waters of Egypt--over its rivers, its canals, and its ponds, and all
its pools of water--so that they may become blood; and there shall be blood
throughout the whole land of Egypt, even in vessels of wood and in vessels of
stone.'" 20
Moses and Aaron did just as the LORD commanded. In the
sight of Pharaoh and of his officials he lifted up the staff and struck the
water in the river, and all the water in the river was turned into blood,
21and the
fish in the river died. The river stank so that the Egyptians could not drink
its water, and there was blood throughout the whole land of Egypt.
22But the
magicians of Egypt did the same by their secret arts; so Pharaoh's heart
remained hardened, and he would not listen to them; as the LORD had said.
23Pharaoh
turned and went into his house, and he did not take even this to heart.
24And all
the Egyptians had to dig along the Nile for water to drink, for they could not
drink the water of the river. 25
Seven days passed after the LORD had struck the Nile.
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Then the LORD said to Moses,
"Go to Pharaoh and say to him, 'Thus says the LORD: Let my people go, so
that they may worship me. 2
If you refuse to let them go, I will plague your whole
country with frogs. 3
The river shall swarm with frogs; they shall come up
into your palace, into your bedchamber and your bed, and into the houses of
your officials and of your people, and into your ovens and your kneading bowls.
4
The frogs shall come up on you and on your people and
on all your officials.'" 5
And the LORD said to Moses, "Say to Aaron,
'Stretch out your hand with your staff over the rivers, the canals, and the
pools, and make frogs come up on the land of Egypt.'"
6So Aaron
stretched out his hand over the waters of Egypt; and the frogs came up and
covered the land of Egypt. 7
But the magicians did the same by their secret arts,
and brought frogs up on the land of Egypt.
8Then Pharaoh called Moses
and Aaron, and said, "Pray to the LORD to take away the frogs from me and
my people, and I will let the people go to sacrifice to the LORD."
9Moses
said to Pharaoh, "Kindly tell me when I am to pray for you and for your
officials and for your people, that the frogs may be removed from you and your houses
and be left only in the Nile." 10
And he said, "Tomorrow." Moses said,
"As you say! So that you may know that there is no one like the LORD our
God, 11
the frogs shall leave you and your houses and your
officials and your people; they shall be left only in the Nile."
12Then
Moses and Aaron went out from Pharaoh; and Moses cried out to the LORD
concerning the frogs that he had brought upon Pharaoh.
13And the
LORD did as Moses requested: the frogs died in the houses, the courtyards, and
the fields. 14
And they gathered them together in heaps, and the land
stank. 15
But when Pharaoh saw that there was a respite, he
hardened his heart, and would not listen to them, just as the LORD had said.
16Then the
LORD said to Moses, "Say to Aaron, 'Stretch out your staff and strike the
dust of the earth, so that it may become gnats throughout the whole land of
Egypt.'" 17
And they did so; Aaron stretched out his hand with his
staff and struck the dust of the earth, and gnats came on humans and animals
alike; all the dust of the earth turned into gnats throughout the whole land of
Egypt. 18
The magicians tried to produce gnats by their secret
arts, but they could not. There were gnats on both humans and animals.
19And the
magicians said to Pharaoh, "This is the finger of God!" But Pharaoh's
heart was hardened, and he would not listen to them, just as the LORD had said.
20
Then the LORD said to Moses, "Rise early in the
morning and present yourself before Pharaoh, as he goes out to the water, and
say to him, 'Thus says the LORD: Let my people go, so that they may worship me.
21
For if you will not let my people go, I will send
swarms of flies on you, your officials, and your people, and into your houses;
and the houses of the Egyptians shall be filled with swarms of flies; so also
the land where they live. 22
But on that day I will set apart the land of Goshen,
where my people live, so that no swarms of flies shall be there, that you may
know that I the LORD am in this land. 23
Thus I will make a distinction between my people and
your people. This sign shall appear tomorrow.'"
24The LORD
did so, and great swarms of flies came into the house of Pharaoh and into his
officials' houses; in all of Egypt the land was ruined because of the flies.
25Then
Pharaoh summoned Moses and Aaron, and said, "Go, sacrifice to your God
within the land." 26
But Moses said, "It would not be right to do so;
for the sacrifices that we offer to the LORD our God are offensive to the
Egyptians. If we offer in the sight of the Egyptians sacrifices that are
offensive to them, will they not stone us?
27We must go a three days'
journey into the wilderness and sacrifice to the LORD our God as he commands
us." 28
So Pharaoh said, "I will let you go to sacrifice
to the LORD your God in the wilderness, provided you do not go very far away.
Pray for me." 29
Then Moses said, "As soon as I leave you, I will
pray to the LORD that the swarms of flies may depart tomorrow from Pharaoh,
from his officials, and from his people; only do not let Pharaoh again deal
falsely by not letting the people go to sacrifice to the LORD."
30So Moses
went out from Pharaoh and prayed to the LORD.
31And the
LORD did as Moses asked: he removed the swarms of flies from Pharaoh, from his
officials, and from his people; not one remained.
32But
Pharaoh hardened his heart this time also, and would not let the people go.
Return to Top Then the LORD said to Moses,
"Go to Pharaoh, and say to him, 'Thus says the LORD, the God of the
Hebrews: Let my people go, so that they may worship me.
2For if
you refuse to let them go and still hold them,
3the hand
of the LORD will strike with a deadly pestilence your livestock in the field:
the horses, the donkeys, the camels, the herds, and the flocks.
4But the
LORD will make a distinction between the livestock of Israel and the livestock
of Egypt, so that nothing shall die of all that belongs to the
Israelites.'" 5
The LORD set a time, saying, "Tomorrow the LORD
will do this thing in the land." 6
And on the next day the LORD did so; all the livestock
of the Egyptians died, but of the livestock of the Israelites not one died.
7Pharaoh
inquired and found that not one of the livestock of the Israelites was dead.
But the heart of Pharaoh was hardened, and he would not let the people go.
8Then the
LORD said to Moses and Aaron, "Take handfuls of soot from the kiln, and
let Moses throw it in the air in the sight of Pharaoh.
9It shall
become fine dust all over the land of Egypt, and shall cause festering boils on
humans and animals throughout the whole land of Egypt."
10So they
took soot from the kiln, and stood before Pharaoh, and Moses threw it in the
air, and it caused festering boils on humans and animals.
11The
magicians could not stand before Moses because of the boils, for the boils
afflicted the magicians as well as all the Egyptians.
12But the
LORD hardened the heart of Pharaoh, and he would not listen to them, just as
the LORD had spoken to Moses. 13
Then the LORD said to Moses, "Rise up early in
the morning and present yourself before Pharaoh, and say to him, 'Thus says the
LORD, the God of the Hebrews: Let my people go, so that they may worship me.
14For this
time I will send all my plagues upon you yourself, and upon your officials, and
upon your people, so that you may know that there is no one like me in all the
earth. 15
For by now I could have stretched out my hand and
struck you and your people with pestilence, and you would have been cut off
from the earth. 16
But this is why I have let you live: to show you my
power, and to make my name resound through all the earth.
17You are
still exalting yourself against my people, and will not let them go.
18Tomorrow
at this time I will cause the heaviest hail to fall that has ever fallen in
Egypt from the day it was founded until now.
19Send,
therefore, and have your livestock and everything that you have in the open
field brought to a secure place; every human or animal that is in the open
field and is not brought under shelter will die when the hail comes down upon
them.'" 20
Those officials of Pharaoh who feared the word of the
LORD hurried their slaves and livestock off to a secure place.
21Those
who did not regard the word of the LORD left their slaves and livestock in the
open field. 22
The LORD said to Moses, "Stretch out your hand
toward heaven so that hail may fall on the whole land of Egypt, on humans and
animals and all the plants of the field in the land of Egypt."
23Then
Moses stretched out his staff toward heaven, and the LORD sent thunder and
hail, and fire came down on the earth. And the LORD rained hail on the land of
Egypt; 24
there was hail with fire flashing continually in the
midst of it, such heavy hail as had never fallen in all the land of Egypt since
it became a nation. 25
The hail struck down everything that was in the open
field throughout all the land of Egypt, both human and animal; the hail also
struck down all the plants of the field, and shattered every tree in the field.
26
Only in the land of Goshen, where the Israelites were,
there was no hail. 27
Then Pharaoh summoned Moses and Aaron, and said to
them, "This time I have sinned; the LORD is in the right, and I and my
people are in the wrong. 28
Pray to the LORD! Enough of God's thunder and hail! I
will let you go; you need stay no longer."
29Moses
said to him, "As soon as I have gone out of the city, I will stretch out
my hands to the LORD; the thunder will cease, and there will be no more hail,
so that you may know that the earth is the Lord's.
30But as
for you and your officials, I know that you do not yet fear the LORD God."
31
(Now the flax and the barley were ruined, for the
barley was in the ear and the flax was in bud.
32But the
wheat and the spelt were not ruined, for they are late in coming up.)
33So Moses
left Pharaoh, went out of the city, and stretched out his hands to the LORD;
then the thunder and the hail ceased, and the rain no longer poured down on the
earth. 34
But when Pharaoh saw that the rain and the hail and
the thunder had ceased, he sinned once more and hardened his heart, he and his
officials. 35
So the heart of Pharaoh was hardened, and he would not
let the Israelites go, just as the LORD had spoken through Moses.
Return to Top
Then the LORD said to Moses,
"Go to Pharaoh; for I have hardened his heart and the heart of his
officials, in order that I may show these signs of mine among them,
2and that
you may tell your children and grandchildren how I have made fools of the
Egyptians and what signs I have done among them--so that you may know that I am
the LORD." 3
So Moses and Aaron went to Pharaoh, and said to him,
"Thus says the LORD, the God of the Hebrews, 'How long will you refuse to
humble yourself before me? Let my people go, so that they may worship me.
4For if
you refuse to let my people go, tomorrow I will bring locusts into your
country. 5
They shall cover the surface of the land, so that no
one will be able to see the land. They shall devour the last remnant left you
after the hail, and they shall devour every tree of yours that grows in the
field. 6
They shall fill your houses, and the houses of all
your officials and of all the Egyptians--something that neither your parents
nor your grandparents have seen, from the day they came on earth to this
day.'" Then he turned and went out from Pharaoh.
7Pharaoh's
officials said to him, "How long shall this fellow be a snare to us? Let
the people go, so that they may worship the LORD their God; do you not yet
understand that Egypt is ruined?" 8
So Moses and Aaron were brought back to Pharaoh, and
he said to them, "Go, worship the LORD your God! But which ones are to go?"
9
Moses said, "We will go with our young and our
old; we will go with our sons and daughters and with our flocks and herds,
because we have the Lord's festival to celebrate."
10He said
to them, "The LORD indeed will be with you, if ever I let your little ones
go with you! Plainly, you have some evil purpose in mind.
11No,
never! Your men may go and worship the LORD, for that is what you are
asking." And they were driven out from Pharaoh's presence.
12Then the
LORD said to Moses, "Stretch out your hand over the land of Egypt, so that
the locusts may come upon it and eat every plant in the land, all that the hail
has left." 13
So Moses stretched out his staff over the land of
Egypt, and the LORD brought an east wind upon the land all that day and all
that night; when morning came, the east wind had brought the locusts.
14The
locusts came upon all the land of Egypt and settled on the whole country of
Egypt, such a dense swarm of locusts as had never been before, nor ever shall
be again. 15
They covered the surface of the whole land, so that
the land was black; 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, no tree, no plant
in the field, in all the land of Egypt.
16Pharaoh hurriedly
summoned Moses and Aaron and said, "I have sinned against the LORD your
God, and against you. 17
Do forgive my sin just this once, and pray to the LORD
your God that at the least he remove this deadly thing from me."
18So he
went out from Pharaoh and prayed to the LORD.
19The LORD
changed the wind into a very strong west wind, which lifted the locusts and
drove them into the Red Sea; not a single locust was left in all the country of
Egypt. 20
But the LORD hardened Pharaoh's heart, and he would
not let the Israelites go. 21
Then the LORD said to Moses, "Stretch out your
hand toward heaven so that there may be darkness over the land of Egypt, a
darkness that can be felt." 22
So Moses stretched out his hand toward heaven, and
there was dense darkness in all the land of Egypt for three days.
23People
could not see one another, and for three days they could not move from where
they were; but all the Israelites had light where they lived.
24Then
Pharaoh summoned Moses, and said, "Go, worship the LORD. Only your flocks
and your herds shall remain behind. Even your children may go with you."
25But
Moses said, "You must also let us have sacrifices and burnt offerings to
sacrifice to the LORD our God. 26
Our livestock also must go with us; not a hoof shall
be left behind, for we must choose some of them for the worship of the LORD our
God, and we will not know what to use to worship the LORD until we arrive
there." 27
But the LORD hardened Pharaoh's heart, and he was
unwilling to let them go. 28
Then Pharaoh said to him, "Get away from me! Take
care that you do not see my face again, for on the day you see my face you
shall die." 29
Moses said, "Just as you say! I will never see
your face again."
Return to Top
The LORD said to Moses, "I
will bring one more plague upon Pharaoh and upon Egypt; afterwards he will let
you go from here; indeed, when he lets you go, he will drive you away.
2Tell the
people that every man is to ask his neighbor and every woman is to ask her
neighbor for objects of silver and gold."
3The LORD
gave the people favor in the sight of the Egyptians. Moreover, Moses himself
was a man of great importance in the land of Egypt, in the sight of Pharaoh's
officials and in the sight of the people.
4Moses said, "Thus
says the LORD: About midnight I will go out through Egypt.
5Every
firstborn in the land of Egypt shall die, from the firstborn of Pharaoh who
sits on his throne to the firstborn of the female slave who is behind the
handmill, and all the firstborn of the livestock.
6Then
there will be a loud cry throughout the whole land of Egypt, such as has never
been or will ever be again. 7
But not a dog shall growl at any of the
Israelites--not at people, not at animals--so that you may know that the LORD
makes a distinction between Egypt and Israel.
8Then all
these officials of yours shall come down to me, and bow low to me, saying,
'Leave us, you and all the people who follow you.' After that I will
leave." And in hot anger he left Pharaoh.
9The LORD
said to Moses, "Pharaoh will not listen to you, in order that my wonders
may be multiplied in the land of Egypt."
10Moses
and Aaron performed all these wonders before Pharaoh; but the LORD hardened
Pharaoh's heart, and he did not let the people of Israel go out of his land.
Return to Top
The LORD said to Moses and Aaron
in the land of Egypt: 2
This month shall mark for you the beginning of months;
it shall be the first month of the year for you.
3Tell the
whole congregation of Israel that on the tenth of this month they are to take a
lamb for each family, a lamb for each household.
4If a
household is too small for a whole lamb, it shall join its closest neighbor in
obtaining one; the lamb shall be divided in proportion to the number of people
who eat of it. 5
Your lamb shall be without blemish, a year-old male;
you may take it from the sheep or from the goats.
6You shall
keep it until the fourteenth day of this month; then the whole assembled
congregation of Israel shall slaughter it at twilight.
7They
shall take some of the blood and put it on the two doorposts and the lintel of
the houses in which they eat it. 8
They shall eat the lamb that same night; they shall
eat it roasted over the fire with unleavened bread and bitter herbs.
9Do not
eat any of it raw or boiled in water, but roasted over the fire, with its head,
legs, and inner organs. 10
You shall let none of it remain until the morning;
anything that remains until the morning you shall burn.
11This is
how you shall eat it: your loins girded, your sandals on your feet, and your
staff in your hand; and you shall eat it hurriedly. It is the passover of the
LORD. 12
For I will pass through the land of Egypt that night,
and I will strike down every firstborn in the land of Egypt, both human beings
and animals; on all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgments: I am the LORD.
13The
blood shall be a sign for you on the houses where you live: when I see the
blood, I will pass over you, and no plague shall destroy you when I strike the
land of Egypt. 14
This day shall be a day of remembrance for you. You
shall celebrate it as a festival to the LORD; throughout your generations you
shall observe it as a perpetual ordinance.
15Seven days you shall eat
unleavened bread; on the first day you shall remove leaven from your houses,
for whoever eats leavened bread from the first day until the seventh day shall
be cut off from Israel. 16
On the first day you shall hold a solemn assembly, and
on the seventh day a solemn assembly; no work shall be done on those days; only
what everyone must eat, that alone may be prepared by you.
17You shall
observe the festival of unleavened bread, for on this very day I brought your
companies out of the land of Egypt: you shall observe this day throughout your
generations as a perpetual ordinance. 18
In the first month, from the evening of the fourteenth
day until the evening of the twenty-first day, you shall eat unleavened bread.
19For
seven days no leaven shall be found in your houses; for whoever eats what is
leavened shall be cut off from the congregation of Israel, whether an alien or
a native of the land. 20
You shall eat nothing leavened; in all your
settlements you shall eat unleavened bread.
21Then Moses called all the
elders of Israel and said to them, "Go, select lambs for your families,
and slaughter the passover lamb. 22
Take a bunch of hyssop, dip it in the blood that is in
the basin, and touch the lintel and the two doorposts with the blood in the
basin. None of you shall go outside the door of your house until morning.
23For the
LORD will pass through to strike down the Egyptians; when he sees the blood on
the lintel and on the two doorposts, the LORD will pass over that door and will
not allow the destroyer to enter your houses to strike you down.
24You
shall observe this rite as a perpetual ordinance for you and your children.
25When you
come to the land that the LORD will give you, as he has promised, you shall
keep this observance. 26
And when your children ask you, 'What do you mean by
this observance?' 27
you shall say, 'It is the passover sacrifice to the
LORD, for he passed over the houses of the Israelites in Egypt, when he struck
down the Egyptians but spared our houses.'" And the people bowed down and
worshiped. 28
The Israelites went and did just as the LORD had
commanded Moses and Aaron. 29
At midnight the LORD struck down all the firstborn in
the land of Egypt, from the firstborn of Pharaoh who sat on his throne to the
firstborn of the prisoner who was in the dungeon, and all the firstborn of the
livestock. 30
Pharaoh arose in the night, he and all his officials
and all the Egyptians; and there was a loud cry in Egypt, for there was not a
house without someone dead. 31
Then he summoned Moses and Aaron in the night, and
said, "Rise up, go away from my people, both you and the Israelites! Go,
worship the LORD, as you said. 32
Take your flocks and your herds, as you said, and be
gone. And bring a blessing on me too!"
33The Egyptians urged the
people to hasten their departure from the land, for they said, "We shall
all be dead." 34
So the people took their dough before it was leavened,
with their kneading bowls wrapped up in their cloaks on their shoulders.
35The
Israelites had done as Moses told them; they had asked the Egyptians for
jewelry of silver and gold, and for clothing,
36and the
LORD had given the people favor in the sight of the Egyptians, so that they let
them have what they asked. And so they plundered the Egyptians.
37The
Israelites journeyed from Rameses to Succoth, about six hundred thousand men on
foot, besides children. 38
A mixed crowd also went up with them, and livestock in
great numbers, both flocks and herds. 39
They baked unleavened cakes of the dough that they had
brought out of Egypt; it was not leavened, because they were driven out of
Egypt and could not wait, nor had they prepared any provisions for themselves.
40The time
that the Israelites had lived in Egypt was four hundred thirty years.
41At the
end of four hundred thirty years, on that very day, all the companies of the
LORD went out from the land of Egypt. 42
That was for the LORD a night of vigil, to bring them
out of the land of Egypt. That same night is a vigil to be kept for the LORD by
all the Israelites throughout their generations.
43The LORD
said to Moses and Aaron: This is the ordinance for the passover: no foreigner
shall eat of it, 44
but any slave who has been purchased may eat of it
after he has been circumcised; 45
no bound or hired servant may eat of it.
46It shall
be eaten in one house; you shall not take any of the animal outside the house,
and you shall not break any of its bones.
47The whole congregation of
Israel shall celebrate it. 48
If an alien who resides with you wants to celebrate
the passover to the LORD, all his males shall be circumcised; then he may draw
near to celebrate it; he shall be regarded 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
alien who resides among you. 50
All the Israelites did just as the LORD had commanded
Moses and Aaron. 51
That very day the LORD brought the Israelites out of
the land of Egypt, company by company.
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The LORD said to Moses:
2Consecrate
to me all the firstborn; whatever is the first to open the womb among the
Israelites, of human beings and animals, is mine.
3Moses
said to the people, "Remember this day on which you came out of Egypt, out
of the house of slavery, because the LORD brought you out from there by
strength of hand; no leavened bread shall be eaten.
4Today, in
the month of Abib, you are going out. 5
When the LORD brings you into the land of the
Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites, which
he swore to your ancestors to give you, a land flowing with milk and honey, you
shall keep this observance in this month.
6Seven days you shall eat
unleavened bread, and on the seventh day there shall be a festival to the LORD.
7
Unleavened bread shall be eaten for seven days; no
leavened bread shall be seen in your possession, and no leaven shall be seen
among you in all your territory. 8
You shall tell your child on that day, 'It is because
of what the LORD did for me when I came out of Egypt.'
9It shall
serve for you as a sign on your hand and as a reminder on your forehead, so
that the teaching of the LORD may be on your lips; for with a strong hand the
LORD brought you out of Egypt. 10
You shall keep this ordinance at its proper time from
year to year. 11
"When the LORD has brought you into the land of
the Canaanites, as he swore to you and your ancestors, and has given it to you,
12
you shall set apart to the LORD all that first opens
the womb. All the firstborn of your livestock that are males shall be the
Lord's. 13
But every firstborn donkey you shall redeem with a
sheep; if you do not redeem it, you must break its neck. Every firstborn male
among your children you shall redeem. 14
When in the future your child asks you, 'What does
this mean?' you shall answer, 'By strength of hand the LORD brought us out of
Egypt, from the house of slavery. 15
When Pharaoh stubbornly refused to let us go, the LORD
killed all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, from human firstborn to the
firstborn of animals. Therefore I sacrifice to the LORD every male that first
opens the womb, but every firstborn of my sons I redeem.'
16It shall
serve as a sign on your hand and as an emblem on your forehead that by strength
of hand the LORD brought us out of Egypt."
17When
Pharaoh let the people go, God did not lead them by way of the land of the
Philistines, although that was nearer; for God thought, "If the people
face war, they may change their minds and return to Egypt."
18So God
led the people by the roundabout way of the wilderness toward the Red Sea. The
Israelites went up out of the land of Egypt prepared for battle.
19And
Moses took with him the bones of Joseph who had required a solemn oath of the
Israelites, saying, "God will surely take notice of you, and then you must
carry my bones with you from here."
20They set out from
Succoth, and camped at Etham, on the edge of the wilderness.
21The LORD
went in front of them in a pillar of cloud by day, to lead them along the way,
and in a pillar of fire by night, to give them light, so that they might travel
by day and by night. 22
Neither the pillar of cloud by day nor the pillar of
fire by night left its place in front of the people.
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Then the LORD said to Moses:
2Tell the
Israelites to turn back and camp in front of Pi-hahiroth, between Migdol and
the sea, in front of Baal-zephon; you shall camp opposite it, by the sea.
3Pharaoh
will say of the Israelites, 'They are wandering aimlessly in the land; the
wilderness has closed in on them.' 4
I will harden Pharaoh's heart, and he will pursue
them, so that I will gain glory for myself over Pharaoh and all his army; and
the Egyptians shall know that I am the LORD. And they did so.
5When the
king of Egypt was told that the people had fled, the minds of Pharaoh and his
officials were changed toward the people, and they said, "What have we
done, letting Israel leave our service?"
6So he had
his chariot made ready, and took his army with him;
7he took
six hundred picked chariots and all the other chariots of Egypt with officers
over all of them. 8
The LORD hardened the heart of Pharaoh king of Egypt
and he pursued the Israelites, who were going out boldly.
9The
Egyptians pursued them, all Pharaoh's horses and chariots, his chariot drivers
and his army; they overtook them camped by the sea, by Pi-hahiroth, in front of
Baal-zephon. 10
As Pharaoh drew near, the Israelites looked back, and
there were the Egyptians advancing on them. In great fear the Israelites cried
out to the LORD. 11
They said to Moses, "Was it because there were no
graves in Egypt that you have taken us away to die in the wilderness? What have
you done to us, bringing us out of Egypt?
12Is this not the very
thing we told you in Egypt, 'Let us alone and let us serve the Egyptians'? For
it would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the
wilderness." 13
But Moses said to the people, "Do not be afraid,
stand firm, and see the deliverance that the LORD will accomplish for you
today; for the Egyptians whom you see today you shall never see again.
14The LORD
will fight for you, and you have only to keep still."
15Then the
LORD said to Moses, "Why do you cry out to me? Tell the Israelites to go
forward. 16
But you lift up your staff, and stretch out your hand
over the sea and divide it, that the Israelites may go into the sea on dry
ground. 17
Then I will harden the hearts of the Egyptians so that
they will go in after them; and so I will gain glory for myself over Pharaoh
and all his army, his chariots, and his chariot drivers.
18And the
Egyptians shall know that I am the LORD, when I have gained glory for myself
over Pharaoh, his chariots, and his chariot drivers."
19The
angel of God who was going before the Israelite army moved and went behind them;
and the pillar of cloud moved from in front of them and took its place behind
them. 20
It came between the army of Egypt and the army of
Israel. And so the cloud was there with the darkness, and it lit up the night;
one did not come near the other all night.
21Then Moses stretched out
his hand over the sea. The LORD drove the sea back by a strong east wind all
night, and turned the sea into dry land; and the waters were divided.
22The
Israelites went into the sea on dry ground, the waters forming a wall for them
on their right and on their left. 23
The Egyptians pursued, and went into the sea after
them, all of Pharaoh's horses, chariots, and chariot drivers.
24At the
morning watch the LORD in the pillar of fire and cloud looked down upon the
Egyptian army, and threw the Egyptian army into panic.
25He
clogged their chariot wheels so that they turned with difficulty. The Egyptians
said, "Let us flee from the Israelites, for the LORD is fighting for them
against Egypt." 26
Then the LORD said to Moses, "Stretch out your
hand over the sea, so that the water may come back upon the Egyptians, upon
their chariots and chariot drivers."
27So Moses stretched out
his hand over the sea, and at dawn the sea returned to its normal depth. As the
Egyptians fled before it, the LORD tossed the Egyptians into the sea.
28The
waters returned and covered the chariots and the chariot drivers, the entire
army of Pharaoh that had followed them into the sea; not one of them remained.
29But the
Israelites walked on dry ground through the sea, the waters forming a wall for
them on their right and on their left. 30
Thus the LORD saved Israel that day from the
Egyptians; and Israel saw the Egyptians dead on the seashore.
31Israel
saw the great work that the LORD did against the Egyptians. So the people
feared the LORD and believed in the LORD and in his servant Moses.
Return to Top
Then Moses and the Israelites
sang this song to the LORD: "I will sing to the LORD, for he has triumphed
gloriously; horse and rider he has thrown into the sea.
2The LORD
is my strength and my might, and he has become my salvation; this is my God,
and I will praise him, my father's God, and I will exalt him.
3The LORD
is a warrior; the LORD is his name. 4
"Pharaoh's chariots and his army he cast into the
sea; his picked officers were sunk in the Red Sea.
5The
floods covered them; they went down into the depths like a stone.
6Your
right hand, O LORD, glorious in power-- your right hand, O LORD, shattered the
enemy. 7
In the greatness of your majesty you overthrew your
adversaries; you sent out your fury, it consumed them like stubble.
8At 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.
9The 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.'
10You blew
with your wind, the sea covered them; they sank like lead in the mighty waters.
11
"Who is like you, O LORD, among the gods? Who is
like you, majestic in holiness, awesome in splendor, doing wonders?
12You
stretched out your right hand, the earth swallowed them.
13"In
your steadfast love you led the people whom you redeemed; you guided them by
your strength to your holy abode. 14
The peoples heard, they trembled; pangs seized the
inhabitants of Philistia. 15
Then the chiefs of Edom were dismayed; trembling
seized the leaders of Moab; all the inhabitants of Canaan melted away.
16Terror
and dread fell upon them; by the might of your arm, they became still as a
stone until your people, O LORD, passed by, until the people whom you acquired
passed by. 17
You brought them in and planted them on the mountain
of your own possession, the place, O LORD, that you made your abode, the
sanctuary, O LORD, that your hands have established.
18The LORD
will reign forever and ever." 19
When the horses of Pharaoh with his chariots and his
chariot drivers went into the sea, the LORD brought back the waters of the sea
upon them; but the Israelites walked through the sea on dry ground.
20Then the
prophet Miriam, Aaron's sister, took a tambourine in her hand; and all the
women went out after her with tambourines and with dancing.
21And
Miriam sang to them: "Sing to the LORD, for he has triumphed gloriously;
horse and rider he has thrown into the sea."
22Then
Moses ordered Israel to set out from the Red Sea, and they went into the
wilderness of Shur. They went three days in the wilderness and found no water.
23When
they came to Marah, they could not drink the water of Marah because it was
bitter. That is why it was called Marah.
24And the people complained
against Moses, saying, "What shall we drink?"
25He cried
out to the LORD; and the LORD showed him a piece of wood; he threw it into the
water, and the water became sweet. There the LORD made for them a statute and
an ordinance and there he put them to the test.
26He said,
"If you will listen carefully to the voice of the LORD your God, and do
what is right in his sight, and give heed to his commandments and keep all his
statutes, I will not bring upon you any of the diseases that I brought upon the
Egyptians; for I am the LORD who heals you."
27Then
they came to Elim, where there were twelve springs of water and seventy palm trees;
and they camped there by the water.
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The whole congregation of the
Israelites set out from Elim; and 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
The whole congregation of the Israelites complained
against Moses and Aaron in the wilderness.
3The Israelites said to
them, "If only we had died by the hand of the LORD in the land of Egypt,
when we sat by the fleshpots and ate our fill of bread; for you have brought us
out into this wilderness to kill this whole assembly with hunger."
4Then the
LORD said to Moses, "I am going to rain bread from heaven for you, and
each day the people shall go out and gather enough for that day. In that way I
will test them, whether they will follow my instruction or not.
5On the
sixth day, when they prepare what they bring in, it will be twice as much as
they gather on other days." 6
So Moses and Aaron said to all the Israelites,
"In the evening you shall know that it was the LORD who brought you out of
the land of Egypt, 7
and in the morning you shall see the glory of the
LORD, because he has heard your complaining against the LORD. For what are we,
that you complain against us?" 8
And Moses said, "When the LORD gives you meat to
eat in the evening and your fill of bread in the morning, because the LORD has
heard the complaining that you utter against him--what are we? Your complaining
is not against us but against the LORD."
9Then
Moses said to Aaron, "Say to the whole congregation of the Israelites,
'Draw near to the LORD, for he has heard your complaining.'"
10And as
Aaron spoke to the whole congregation of the Israelites, they looked toward the
wilderness, and the glory of the LORD appeared in the cloud.
11The LORD
spoke to Moses and said, 12
"I have heard the complaining of the Israelites;
say to them, 'At twilight you shall eat meat, and in the morning you shall have
your fill of bread; then you shall know that I am the LORD your God.'"
13In the
evening quails came up and covered the camp; and in the morning there was a
layer of dew around the camp. 14
When the layer of dew lifted, there on the surface of
the wilderness was a fine flaky substance, as fine as frost on the ground.
15When the
Israelites saw it, they said to one another, "What is it?" For they
did not know what it was. Moses said to them, "It is the bread that the
LORD has given you to eat. 16
This is what the LORD has commanded: 'Gather as much
of it as each of you needs, an omer to a person according to the number of
persons, all providing for those in their own tents.'"
17The
Israelites did so, some gathering more, some less.
18But when
they measured it with an omer, those who gathered much had nothing over, and
those who gathered little had no shortage; they gathered as much as each of
them needed. 19
And Moses said to them, "Let no one leave any of
it over until morning." 20
But they did not listen to Moses; some left part of it
until morning, and it bred worms and became foul. And Moses was angry with
them. 21
Morning by morning they gathered it, as much as each
needed; but when the sun grew hot, it melted.
22On the
sixth day they gathered twice as much food, two omers apiece. When all the
leaders of the congregation came and told Moses,
23he said
to them, "This is what the LORD has commanded: 'Tomorrow is a day of
solemn rest, a holy sabbath to the LORD; bake what you want to bake and boil
what you want to boil, and all that is left over put aside to be kept until
morning.'" 24
So they put it aside until morning, as Moses commanded
them; and it did not become foul, and there were no worms in it.
25Moses
said, "Eat it today, for today is a sabbath to the LORD; 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."
27On the
seventh day some of the people went out to gather, and they found none.
28The LORD
said to Moses, "How long will you refuse to keep my commandments and
instructions? 29
See! The LORD has given you the sabbath, therefore on
the sixth day he gives you food for two days; each of you stay where you are;
do not leave your place on the seventh day."
30So the
people rested on the seventh day. 31
The house of Israel called it manna; it was like
coriander seed, white, and the taste of it was like wafers made with honey.
32Moses
said, "This is what the LORD has commanded: 'Let an omer of it be kept
throughout your generations, in order that they may see the food with which I
fed you in the wilderness, when I brought you out of the land of Egypt.'"
33And
Moses said to Aaron, "Take a jar, and put an omer of manna in it, and
place it before the LORD, to be kept throughout your generations."
34As the
LORD commanded Moses, so Aaron placed it before the covenant, for safekeeping.
35The
Israelites ate manna forty years, until they came to a habitable land; they ate
manna, until they came to the border of the land of Canaan.
36An omer
is a tenth of an ephah.
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From the wilderness of Sin the
whole congregation of the Israelites journeyed by stages, as the LORD
commanded. They camped at Rephidim, but there was no water for the people to
drink. 2
The people quarreled with Moses, and said, "Give
us water to drink." Moses said to them, "Why do you quarrel with me?
Why do you test the LORD?" 3
But the people thirsted there for water; and the
people complained against Moses and said, "Why did you bring us out of
Egypt, to kill us and our children and livestock with thirst?"
4So Moses
cried out to the LORD, "What shall I do with this people? They are almost
ready to stone me." 5
The LORD said to Moses, "Go on ahead of the
people, and take some of the elders of Israel with you; take in your hand the
staff with which you struck the Nile, and go.
6I will be
standing there in front of you on the rock at Horeb. Strike the rock, and water
will come out of it, so that the people may drink." Moses did so, in the
sight of the elders of Israel. 7
He called the place Massah and Meribah, because the
Israelites quarreled and tested the LORD, saying, "Is the LORD among us or
not?" 8
Then Amalek came and fought with Israel at Rephidim.
9Moses
said to Joshua, "Choose some men for us and go out, fight with Amalek.
Tomorrow I will stand on the top of the hill with the staff of God in my
hand." 10
So Joshua did as Moses told him, and fought with
Amalek, while Moses, Aaron, and Hur went up to the top of the hill.
11Whenever
Moses held up his hand, Israel prevailed; and whenever he lowered his hand,
Amalek prevailed. 12
But Moses' hands grew weary; so they took a stone and
put it under him, and he sat on it. Aaron and Hur held up his hands, one on one
side, and the other on the other side; so his hands were steady until the sun
set. 13
And Joshua defeated Amalek and his people with the
sword. 14
Then the LORD said to Moses, "Write this as a
reminder in a book and recite it in the hearing of Joshua: I will utterly blot
out the remembrance of Amalek from under heaven."
15And
Moses built an altar and called it, The LORD is my banner.
16He said,
"A hand upon the banner of the LORD! The LORD will have war with Amalek
from generation to generation."
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Jethro, the priest of Midian,
Moses' father-in-law, heard of all that God had done for Moses and for his
people Israel, how the LORD had brought Israel out of Egypt.
2After
Moses had sent away his wife Zipporah, his father-in-law Jethro took her back,
3along
with her two sons. The name of the one was Gershom (for he said, "I have
been an alien in a foreign land"),
4and the name of the other,
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 into the wilderness
where Moses was encamped at the mountain of God, bringing Moses' sons and wife
to him. 6
He sent word to Moses, "I, your father-in-law
Jethro, am coming to you, with your wife and her two sons."
7Moses
went out to meet his father-in-law; he bowed down and kissed him; each asked
after the other's welfare, and they went into the tent.
8Then
Moses told his father-in-law all that the LORD had done to Pharaoh and to the
Egyptians for Israel's sake, all the hardship that had beset them on the way,
and how the LORD had delivered them. 9
Jethro rejoiced for all the good that the LORD had
done to Israel, in delivering them from the Egyptians.
10Jethro
said, "Blessed be the LORD, who has delivered you from the Egyptians and
from Pharaoh. 11
Now I know that the LORD is greater than all gods,
because he delivered the people from the Egyptians, when they dealt arrogantly
with them." 12
And Jethro, Moses' father-in-law, brought a burnt
offering and sacrifices to God; and Aaron came with all the elders of Israel to
eat bread with Moses' father-in-law in the presence of God.
13The next
day Moses sat as judge for the people, while the people stood around him from
morning until evening. 14
When Moses' father-in-law saw all that he was doing
for the people, he said, "What is this that you are doing for the people?
Why do you sit alone, while all the people stand around you from morning until
evening?" 15
Moses said to his father-in-law, "Because the
people come to me to inquire of God. 16
When they have a dispute, they come to me and I decide
between one person and another, and I make known to them the statutes and instructions
of God." 17
Moses' father-in-law said to him, "What you are
doing is not good. 18
You will surely wear yourself out, both you and these
people with you. For the task is too heavy for you; you cannot do it alone.
19Now
listen to me. I will give you counsel, and God be with you! You should
represent the people before God, and you should bring their cases before God;
20teach
them the statutes and instructions and make known to them the way they are to
go and the things they are to do. 21
You should also look for able men among all the
people, men who fear God, are trustworthy, and hate dishonest gain; set such
men over them as officers over thousands, hundreds, fifties and tens.
22Let them
sit as judges for the people at all times; let them bring every important case
to you, but decide every minor case themselves. So it will be easier for you,
and they will bear the burden with you.
23If you do this, and God
so commands you, then you will be able to endure, and all these people will go
to their home in peace." 24
So Moses listened to his father-in-law and did all
that he had said. 25
Moses chose able men from all Israel and appointed
them as heads over the people, as officers over thousands, hundreds, fifties,
and tens. 26
And they judged the people at all times; hard cases
they brought to Moses, but any minor case they decided themselves.
27Then
Moses let his father-in-law depart, and he went off to his own country.
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On the third new moon after the
Israelites had gone out of the land of Egypt, on that very day, they came into
the wilderness of Sinai. 2
They had journeyed from Rephidim, entered the
wilderness of Sinai, and camped in the wilderness; Israel camped there in front
of the mountain. 3
Then Moses went up to God; the LORD called to him from
the mountain, saying, "Thus you shall say to the house of Jacob, and tell
the Israelites: 4
You have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I
bore you on eagles' wings and brought you to myself.
5Now
therefore, if you obey my voice and keep my covenant, you shall be my treasured
possession out of all the peoples. Indeed, the whole earth is mine,
6but you
shall be for me a priestly kingdom and a holy nation. These are the words that
you shall speak to the Israelites."
7So Moses came, summoned
the elders of the people, and set before them all these words that the LORD had
commanded him. 8
The people all answered as one: "Everything that
the LORD has spoken we will do." Moses reported the words of the people to
the LORD. 9
Then the LORD said to Moses, "I am going to come
to you in a dense cloud, in order that the people may hear when I speak with
you and so trust you ever after." When Moses had told the words of the
people to the LORD, 10
the LORD said to Moses: "Go to the people and
consecrate them today and tomorrow. Have them wash their clothes
11and
prepare for the third day, because on the third day the LORD will come down
upon Mount Sinai in the sight of all the people.
12You
shall set limits for the people all around, saying, 'Be careful not to go up
the mountain or to touch the edge of it. Any who touch the mountain shall be
put to death. 13
No hand shall touch them, but they shall be stoned or
shot with arrows; whether animal or human being, they shall not live.' When the
trumpet sounds a long blast, they may go up on the mountain."
14So Moses
went down from the mountain to the people. He consecrated the people, and they
washed their clothes. 15
And he said to the people, "Prepare for the third
day; do not go near a woman." 16
On the morning of the third day there was thunder and
lightning, as well as a thick cloud on the mountain, and a blast of a trumpet
so loud that all the people who were in the camp trembled.
17Moses
brought the people out of the camp to meet God. They took their stand at the
foot of the mountain. 18
Now Mount Sinai was wrapped in smoke, because the LORD
had descended upon it in fire; the smoke went up like the smoke of a kiln,
while the whole mountain shook violently.
19As the blast of the
trumpet grew louder and louder, Moses would speak and God would answer him in
thunder. 20
When the LORD descended upon Mount Sinai, to the top
of the mountain, the LORD summoned Moses to the top of the mountain, and Moses
went up. 21
Then the LORD said to Moses, "Go down and warn
the people not to break through to the LORD to look; otherwise many of them
will perish. 22
Even the priests who approach the LORD must consecrate
themselves or the LORD will break out against them."
23Moses
said to the LORD, "The people are not permitted to come up to Mount Sinai;
for you yourself warned us, saying, 'Set limits around the mountain and keep it
holy.'" 24
The LORD said to him, "Go down, and come up
bringing Aaron with you; but do not let either the priests or the people break
through to come up to the LORD; otherwise he will break out against them."
25
So Moses went down to the people and told them.
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Then God spoke all these words:
2I am the
LORD 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.
4You shall
not make for yourself an idol, whether in the form of anything that is in
heaven above, or that is on the earth beneath, or that is in the water under
the earth. 5
You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I
the LORD your God am a jealous God, punishing children for the iniquity of
parents, to the third and the fourth generation of those who reject me,
6but
showing steadfast love to the thousandth generation of those who love me and
keep my commandments. 7
You shall not make wrongful use of the name of the
LORD your God, for the LORD will not acquit anyone who misuses his name.
8Remember
the sabbath day, and keep it holy. 9
Six days you shall labor and do all your work.
10But the
seventh day is a sabbath to the LORD your God; you shall not do any work--you,
your son or your daughter, your male or female slave, your livestock, or the
alien resident in your towns. 11
For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the
sea, and all that is in them, but rested the seventh day; therefore the LORD
blessed the sabbath day and consecrated it.
12Honor your father and
your mother, so that your days may be long in the land that the LORD your God
is giving you. 13
You shall not murder.
14You
shall not commit adultery. 15
You shall not steal.
16You
shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.
17You
shall not covet your neighbor's house; you shall not covet your neighbor's
wife, or male or female slave, or ox, or donkey, or anything that belongs to
your neighbor. 18
When all the people witnessed the thunder and
lightning, the sound of the trumpet, and the mountain smoking, they were afraid
and trembled and stood at a distance, 19
and said to Moses, "You speak to us, and we will
listen; but do not let God speak to us, or we will die."
20Moses
said to the people, "Do not be afraid; for God has come only to test you
and to put the fear of him upon you so that you do not sin."
21Then the
people stood at a distance, while Moses drew near to the thick darkness where
God was. 22
The LORD said to Moses: Thus you shall say to the
Israelites: "You have seen for yourselves that I spoke with you from
heaven. 23
You shall not make gods of silver alongside me, nor
shall you make for yourselves gods of gold.
24You need make for me only
an altar of earth and sacrifice on it your burnt offerings and your offerings
of well-being, your sheep and your oxen; in every place where I cause my name
to be remembered I will come to you and bless you.
25But if
you make for me an altar of stone, do not build it of hewn stones; for if you
use a chisel upon it you profane it. 26
You shall not go up by steps to my altar, so that your
nakedness may not be exposed on it."
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These are the ordinances that you
shall set before them: 2
When you buy a male Hebrew slave, he shall serve six
years, but in the seventh he shall go out a free person, without debt.
3If 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 declares, "I love my master, my
wife, and my children; I will not go out a free person,"
6then his
master shall bring him before God. He shall be brought to the door or the
doorpost; and his master shall pierce his ear with an awl; and he shall serve
him for life. 7
When a man sells his daughter as a slave, she shall
not go out as the male slaves do. 8
If she does not please her master, who 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 unfairly with her.
9If he
designates her for his son, he shall deal with her as with a daughter.
10If he
takes another wife to himself, he shall not diminish the food, clothing, or
marital rights of the first wife. 11
And if he does not do these three things for her, she
shall go out without debt, without payment of money.
12Whoever
strikes a person mortally shall be put to death.
13If it
was not premeditated, but came about by an act of God, then I will appoint for
you a place to which the killer may flee.
14But if someone willfully
attacks and kills another by treachery, you shall take the killer from my altar
for execution. 15
Whoever strikes father or mother shall be put to
death. 16
Whoever kidnaps a person, whether that person has been
sold or is still held in possession, shall be put to death.
17Whoever
curses father or mother shall be put to death.
18When
individuals quarrel and one strikes the other with a stone or fist so that the
injured party, though not dead, is confined to bed,
19but
recovers and walks around outside with the help of a staff, then the assailant
shall be free of liability, except to pay for the loss of time, and to arrange
for full recovery. 20
When a slaveowner strikes a male or female slave with
a rod and the slave dies immediately, the owner shall be punished.
21But if
the slave survives a day or two, there is no punishment; for the slave is the
owner's property. 22
When people who are fighting injure a pregnant woman
so that there is a miscarriage, and yet no further harm follows, the one
responsible shall be fined what the woman's husband demands, paying as much as
the judges determine. 23
If any harm follows, then 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.
26When a
slaveowner strikes the eye of a male or female slave, destroying it, the owner
shall let the slave go, a free person, to compensate for the eye.
27If the
owner knocks out a tooth of a male or female slave, the slave shall be let go,
a free person, to compensate for the tooth.
28When an ox gores a man or
a woman to death, the ox shall be stoned, and its flesh shall not be eaten; but
the owner of the ox shall not be liable.
29If the ox has been
accustomed to gore in the past, and its owner has been warned but has not
restrained it, 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 imposed on the owner, then the owner
shall pay whatever is imposed for the redemption of the victim's life.
31If it
gores a boy or a girl, the owner shall be dealt with according to this same
rule. 32
If the ox gores a male or female slave, the owner
shall pay to the slaveowner thirty shekels of silver, and the ox shall be
stoned. 33
If someone leaves a pit open, or digs a pit and does
not cover it, and an ox or a donkey falls into it,
34the
owner of the pit shall make restitution, giving money to its owner, but keeping
the dead animal. 35
If someone's ox hurts the ox of another, so that it
dies, then they shall sell the live ox and divide the price of it; and the dead
animal they shall also divide. 36
But if it was known that the ox was accustomed to gore
in the past, and its owner has not restrained it, the owner shall restore ox
for ox, but keep the dead animal.
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When someone steals an ox or a
sheep, and slaughters it or sells it, the thief shall pay five oxen for an ox,
and four sheep for a sheep. The thief shall make restitution, but if unable to
do so, shall be sold for the theft. 2
If a thief is found breaking in, and is beaten to
death, no bloodguilt is incurred; 3
but if it happens after sunrise, bloodguilt is
incurred. 4
When the animal, whether ox or donkey or sheep, is
found alive in the thief's possession, the thief shall pay double.
5When
someone causes a field or vineyard to be grazed over, or lets livestock loose
to graze in someone else's field, restitution shall be made from the best in
the owner's field or vineyard. 6
When fire breaks out and catches in thorns so that the
stacked grain or the standing grain or the field is consumed, the one who
started the fire shall make full restitution.
7When
someone delivers to a neighbor money or goods for safekeeping, and they are
stolen from the neighbor's house, then the thief, if caught, shall pay double.
8If the
thief is not caught, the owner of the house shall be brought before God, to
determine whether or not the owner had laid hands on the neighbor's goods.
9In any
case of disputed ownership involving ox, donkey, sheep, clothing, or any other
loss, of which one party says, "This is mine," the case of both
parties shall come before God; the one whom God condemns shall pay double to
the other. 10
When someone delivers to another a donkey, ox, sheep,
or any other animal for safekeeping, and it dies or is injured or is carried
off, without anyone seeing it, 11
an oath before the LORD shall decide between the two
of them that the one has not laid hands on the property of the other; the owner
shall accept the oath, and no restitution shall be made.
12But if
it was stolen, restitution shall be made to its owner.
13If it
was mangled by beasts, let it be brought as evidence; restitution shall not be
made for the mangled remains. 14
When someone borrows an animal from another and it is
injured or dies, the owner not being present, full restitution shall be made.
15If the
owner was present, there shall be no restitution; if it was hired, only the
hiring fee is due. 16
When a man seduces a virgin who is not engaged to be
married, and lies with her, he shall give the bride-price for her and make her
his wife. 17
But if her father refuses to give her to him, he shall
pay an amount equal to the bride-price for virgins.
18You
shall not permit a female sorcerer to live.
19Whoever lies with an
animal shall be put to death. 20
Whoever sacrifices to any god, other than the LORD
alone, shall be devoted to destruction.
21You shall not wrong or
oppress a resident alien, for you were aliens in the land of Egypt.
22You
shall not abuse any widow or orphan. 23
If you do abuse them, when they cry out to me, I will
surely heed their cry; 24
my wrath will burn, and I will kill you with the
sword, and your wives shall become widows and your children orphans.
25If you
lend money to my people, to the poor among you, you shall not deal with them as
a creditor; you shall not exact interest from them.
26If you
take your neighbor's cloak in pawn, you shall restore it before the sun goes
down; 27
for it may be your neighbor's only clothing to use as
cover; in what else shall that person sleep? And if your neighbor cries out to
me, I will listen, for I am compassionate.
28You shall not revile God,
or curse a leader of your people. 29
You shall not delay to make offerings 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 remain with its mother; on the eighth day you shall
give it to me. 31
You shall be people consecrated to me; therefore you
shall not eat any meat that is mangled by beasts in the field; you shall throw
it to the dogs.
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You shall not spread a false
report. You shall not join hands with the wicked to act as a malicious witness.
2
You shall not follow a majority in wrongdoing; when
you bear witness in a lawsuit, you shall not side with the majority so as to
pervert justice; 3
nor shall you be partial to the poor in a lawsuit.
4When you
come upon your enemy's ox or donkey going astray, you shall bring it back.
5When you
see the donkey of one who hates you lying under its burden and you would hold
back from setting it free, you must help to set it free.
6You shall
not pervert the justice due to your poor in their lawsuits.
7Keep far
from a false charge, and do not kill the innocent and those in the right, for I
will not acquit the guilty. 8
You shall take no bribe, for a bribe blinds the
officials, and subverts the cause of those who are in the right.
9You shall
not oppress a resident alien; you know the heart of an alien, for you were
aliens in the land of Egypt. 10
For six years you shall sow your land and gather in
its yield; 11
but the seventh year you shall let it rest and lie
fallow, so that the poor of your people may eat; and what they leave the wild
animals may eat. You shall do the same with your vineyard, and with your olive
orchard. 12
Six days you shall do your work, but on the seventh
day you shall rest, so that your ox and your donkey may have relief, and your
homeborn slave and the resident alien may be refreshed.
13Be
attentive to all that I have said to you. Do not invoke the names of other
gods; do not let them be heard on your lips.
14Three
times in the year you shall hold a festival for me.
15You
shall observe the festival of unleavened bread; as I commanded you, you shall
eat unleavened bread for seven days at the appointed time in the month of Abib,
for in it you came out of Egypt. No one shall appear before me empty-handed.
16You
shall observe the festival of harvest, of the first fruits of your labor, of
what you sow in the field. You shall observe the festival of ingathering at the
end of the year, when you gather in from the field the fruit of your labor.
17Three
times in the year all your males shall appear before the Lord GOD.
18You
shall not offer the blood of my sacrifice with anything leavened, or let the
fat of my festival remain until the morning.
19The
choicest of the first fruits of your ground you shall bring into the house of
the LORD your God. You shall not boil a kid in its mother's milk.
20I am
going to send an angel in front of you, to guard you on the way and to bring
you to the place that I have prepared. 21
Be attentive to 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 listen attentively to his voice and do all
that I say, then I will be an enemy to your enemies and a foe to your foes.
23When my
angel goes in front of you, and brings you to the Amorites, the Hittites, the
Perizzites, the Canaanites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites, and I blot them
out, 24
you shall not bow down to their gods, or worship them,
or follow their practices, but you shall utterly demolish them and break their
pillars in pieces. 25
You shall worship the LORD your God, and I will bless
your bread and your water; and I will take sickness away from among you.
26No one
shall miscarry or be barren in your land; I will fulfill the number of your
days. 27
I will send my terror in front of 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 the pestilence in front of you, which
shall drive out the Hivites, the Canaanites, and the Hittites from before you.
29I will
not drive them out from before you in one year, or the land would become
desolate and the wild animals would multiply against you.
30Little
by little I will drive them out from before you, until you have increased and
possess the land. 31
I will set your borders from the Red Sea to the sea of
the Philistines, and from the wilderness to the Euphrates; for I will hand over
to you the inhabitants of the land, and you shall drive them out before you.
32You
shall make no covenant with them and their gods.
33They
shall not live in your land, or they will make you sin against me; for if you
worship their gods, it will surely be a snare to you.
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Then he said to Moses, "Come
up to the LORD, you and Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of
Israel, and worship at a distance. 2
Moses alone shall come near the LORD; but the others
shall not come near, and the people shall not come up with him."
3Moses
came and told the people all the words of the LORD and all the ordinances; and
all the people answered with one voice, and said, "All the words that the
LORD has spoken we will do." 4
And Moses wrote down all the words of the LORD. He
rose early in the morning, and built an altar at the foot of the mountain, and
set up twelve pillars, corresponding to the twelve tribes of Israel.
5He sent
young men of the people of Israel, who offered burnt offerings and sacrificed
oxen as offerings of well-being to the LORD.
6Moses
took half of the blood and put it in basins, and half of the blood he dashed
against 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 the LORD has spoken we
will do, and we will be obedient."
8Moses took the blood and
dashed it on the people, and said, "See the blood of the covenant that the
LORD has made with you in accordance with all these words."
9Then
Moses and Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel went up,
10
and they saw the God of Israel. Under his feet there
was something like a pavement of sapphire stone, like the very heaven for
clearness. 11
God did not lay his hand on the chief men of the people
of Israel; also they beheld God, and they ate and drank.
12The LORD
said to Moses, "Come up to me on the mountain, and wait there; and I will
give you the tablets of stone, with the law and the commandment, which I have
written for their instruction." 13
So Moses set out with his assistant Joshua, and Moses
went up into the mountain of God. 14
To the elders he had said, "Wait here for us,
until we come to you again; for Aaron and Hur are with you; whoever has a
dispute may go to them." 15
Then Moses went up on the mountain, and the cloud
covered the mountain. 16
The glory of the LORD settled on Mount Sinai, and the
cloud covered it for six days; on the seventh day he called to Moses out of the
cloud. 17
Now the appearance of the glory of the LORD was like a
devouring fire on the top of the mountain in the sight of the people of Israel.
18
Moses entered the cloud, and went up on the mountain.
Moses was on the mountain for forty days and forty nights.
Return to Top
The LORD said to Moses: 2Tell the Israelites to take
for me an offering; from all whose hearts prompt them to give you shall receive
the offering for me. 3This is the offering that you
shall receive from them: gold, silver, and bronze, 4blue,
purple, and crimson yarns and fine linen, goats' hair, 5tanned
rams' skins, fine leather, acacia wood, 6 oil for
the lamps, spices for the anointing oil and for the fragrant incense, 7
onyx stones and gems to be set in the ephod and for the breastpiece. 8
And have them make me a sanctuary, so that I may dwell among them. 9
In accordance with all that I show you concerning the pattern of the tabernacle
and of all its furniture, so you shall make it. 10They
shall make an ark of acacia wood; it shall be two
and a half cubits long, a cubit and a half wide, and a cubit and a half high.
11You shall overlay it with pure gold, inside and
outside you shall overlay it, and you shall make a molding of gold upon it all
around. 12You 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. 13You shall make poles of acacia
wood, and overlay them with gold. 14And you shall
put the poles into the rings on the sides of the ark, by which to carry the ark.
15 The poles shall remain in the rings of the ark;
they shall not be taken from it. 16 You shall put
into the ark the covenant that I shall give you. 17
Then 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 width. 18You
shall make two cherubim of gold; you shall make them of hammered work, at the
two ends of the mercy seat. 19 Make one cherub at
the one end, and one cherub at the other; of one piece with the mercy seat you
shall make the cherubim at its two ends. 20 The cherubim
shall spread out their wings above, overshadowing the mercy seat with their wings.
They shall face one to another; the faces of the cherubim shall be turned toward
the mercy seat. 21You shall put the mercy seat on
the top of the ark; and in the ark you shall put the covenant 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 covenant,
I will deliver to you all my commands for the Israelites. 23You
shall make a table of acacia wood, two cubits long, one cubit wide, and a cubit
and a half high. 24 You shall overlay it with pure
gold, and make a molding of gold around it. 25 You
shall make around it a rim a handbreadth wide, and a molding of gold around the
rim. 26 You shall make for it four rings of gold,
and fasten the rings to the four corners at its four legs. 27The
rings that hold the poles used for carrying the table shall be close to the rim.
28 You shall make the poles of acacia wood, and overlay
them with gold, and the table shall be carried with these. 29You
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. 30And
you shall set the bread of the Presence on the table before me always. 31You
shall make a lampstand of pure gold. The base and the shaft of the lampstand shall
be made of hammered work; its cups, its calyxes, and its petals shall be of one
piece with it; 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; 33three
cups shaped like almond blossoms, each with calyx and petals, on one branch, and
three cups shaped like almond blossoms, each with calyx and petals, on the other
branch--so for the six branches going out of the lampstand. 34On
the lampstand itself there shall be four cups shaped like almond blossoms, each
with its calyxes and petals. 35 There shall be a
calyx of one piece with it under the first pair of branches, a calyx of one piece
with it under the next pair of branches, and a calyx of one piece with it under
the last pair of branches--so for the six branches that go out of the lampstand.
36Their calyxes and their branches shall be of one
piece with it, the whole of it one hammered piece of pure gold. 37
You shall make the seven lamps for it; and the lamps shall be set up so as to
give light on the space in front of it. 38Its snuffers
and trays shall be of pure gold. 39It, and all these
utensils, shall be made from a talent of pure gold. 40And
see that you make them according to the pattern for them, which is being shown
you on the mountain. Return to Top
Moreover you shall make the
tabernacle with ten curtains of fine twisted linen, and blue, purple, and crimson
yarns; you shall make them with cherubim skillfully worked into them.
2The
length of each curtain shall be twenty-eight cubits, and the width of each
curtain four cubits; all the curtains shall be of the same size.
3Five
curtains shall be joined to one another; and the other five curtains shall be
joined to one another. 4
You shall make loops of blue on the edge of the
outermost curtain in the first set; and likewise you shall make loops on the
edge of the outermost curtain in the second set.
5You shall
make fifty loops on the one curtain, and you shall make fifty loops on the edge
of the curtain that is in the second set; the loops shall be opposite one
another. 6
You shall make fifty clasps of gold, and join the
curtains to one another with the clasps, so that the tabernacle may be one
whole. 7
You shall also make curtains of goats' hair for a tent
over the tabernacle; you shall make eleven curtains.
8The
length of each curtain shall be thirty cubits, and the width of each curtain
four cubits; the eleven curtains shall be of the same size.
9You shall
join five curtains by themselves, and six curtains by themselves, and the sixth
curtain you shall double over at the front of the tent.
10You
shall make fifty loops on the edge of the curtain that is outermost in one set,
and fifty loops on the edge of the curtain that is outermost in the second set.
11
You shall make fifty clasps of bronze, and put the
clasps into the loops, and join the tent together, so that it may be one whole.
12
The part that remains of the curtains of the tent, the
half curtain that remains, shall hang over the back of the tabernacle.
13The
cubit on the one side, and the cubit on the other side, of what remains in the
length of the curtains of the tent, shall hang over the sides of the tabernacle,
on this side and that side, to cover it.
14You shall make for the
tent a covering of tanned rams' skins and an outer covering of fine leather.
15You
shall make upright frames of acacia wood for the tabernacle.
16Ten
cubits shall be the length of a frame, and a cubit and a half the width of each
frame. 17
There shall be two pegs in each frame to fit the
frames together; you shall make these for all the frames of the tabernacle.
18You
shall make the frames for the tabernacle: twenty frames for the south side;
19and you
shall make forty bases of silver under the twenty frames, two bases under the
first frame for its two pegs, and two bases under the next frame for its two
pegs; 20
and for the second side of the tabernacle, on the
north side twenty frames, 21
and their forty bases of silver, two bases under the
first frame, and two bases under the next frame;
22and for
the rear of the tabernacle westward you shall make six frames.
23You
shall make two frames for corners of the tabernacle in the rear;
24they shall
be separate beneath, but joined at the top, at the first ring; it shall be the
same with both of them; they shall form the two corners.
25And so
there shall be eight frames, with their bases of silver, sixteen bases; two
bases under the first frame, and two bases under the next frame.
26You
shall make bars of acacia wood, five for the frames of the one side of the
tabernacle, 27
and five bars for the frames of the other side of the
tabernacle, and five bars for the frames of the side of the tabernacle at the
rear westward. 28
The middle bar, halfway up the frames, shall pass
through from end to end. 29
You shall overlay the frames with gold, and shall make
their rings of gold to hold the bars; and you shall overlay the bars with gold.
30
Then you shall erect the tabernacle according to the
plan for it that you were shown on the mountain.
31You
shall make a curtain of blue, purple, and crimson yarns, and of fine twisted
linen; it shall be made with cherubim skillfully worked into it.
32You
shall hang it on four pillars of acacia overlaid with gold, which have hooks of
gold and rest on four bases of silver. 33
You shall hang the curtain under the clasps, and bring
the ark of the covenant in there, within the curtain; and the curtain shall
separate for you the holy place from the most holy.
34You
shall put the mercy seat on the ark of the covenant in the most holy place.
35You
shall set the table outside the curtain, and the lampstand on the south side of
the tabernacle opposite the table; and you shall put the table on the north
side. 36
You shall make a screen for the entrance of the tent,
of blue, purple, and crimson yarns, and of fine twisted linen, embroidered with
needlework. 37
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 bases of bronze for them.
Return to Top
You shall make the altar of
acacia wood, five cubits long and five cubits wide; the altar shall be square,
and it shall be three cubits high. 2
You shall make horns for it on its four corners; its
horns shall be of one piece with it, and you shall overlay it with bronze.
3You shall
make pots for it to receive its ashes, and shovels and basins and forks and
firepans; you shall make all its utensils of bronze.
4You shall
also make for it a grating, a network of bronze; and on the net you shall make
four bronze rings at its four corners. 5
You shall set it under the ledge of the altar so that
the net shall extend halfway down the altar.
6You shall
make poles for the altar, poles of acacia wood, and overlay them with bronze;
7the poles
shall be put through the rings, so that the poles shall be on the two sides of
the altar when it is carried. 8
You shall make it hollow, with boards. They shall be
made just as you were shown on the mountain.
9You shall
make the court of the tabernacle. On the south side the court shall have
hangings of fine twisted linen one hundred cubits long for that side;
10its
twenty pillars and their twenty bases shall be of bronze, but the hooks of the
pillars and their bands shall be of silver.
11Likewise for its length
on the north side there shall be hangings one hundred cubits long, their
pillars twenty and their bases twenty, of bronze, but the hooks of the pillars
and their bands shall be of silver. 12
For the width of the court on the west side there
shall be fifty cubits of hangings, with ten pillars and ten bases.
13The
width of the court on the front to the east shall be fifty cubits.
14There
shall be fifteen cubits of hangings on the one side, with three pillars and
three bases. 15
There shall be fifteen cubits of hangings on the other
side, with three pillars and three bases.
16For the gate of the court
there shall be a screen twenty cubits long, of blue, purple, and crimson yarns,
and of fine twisted linen, embroidered with needlework; it shall have four
pillars and with them four bases. 17
All the pillars around the court shall be banded with
silver; their hooks shall be of silver, and their bases of bronze.
18The
length of the court shall be one hundred cubits, the width fifty, and the
height five cubits, with hangings of fine twisted linen and bases of bronze.
19All the
utensils of the tabernacle for every use, and all its pegs and all the pegs of
the court, shall be of bronze. 20
You shall further command the Israelites to bring you
pure oil of beaten olives for the light, so that a lamp may be set up to burn
regularly. 21
In the tent of meeting, outside the curtain that is
before the covenant, Aaron and his sons shall tend it from evening to morning
before the LORD. It shall be a perpetual ordinance to be observed throughout
their generations by the Israelites.
Return to Top
Then bring near to you your
brother Aaron, and his sons with him, from among the Israelites, to serve me as
priests--Aaron and Aaron's sons, Nadab and Abihu, Eleazar and Ithamar.
2You shall
make sacred vestments for the glorious adornment of your brother Aaron.
3And you
shall speak to all who have ability, whom I have endowed with skill, that they
make Aaron's vestments to consecrate him for my priesthood.
4These are
the vestments that they shall make: a breastpiece, an ephod, a robe, a
checkered tunic, a turban, and a sash. When they make these sacred vestments
for your brother Aaron and his sons to serve me as priests,
5they
shall use gold, blue, purple, and crimson yarns, and fine linen.
6They
shall make the ephod of gold, of blue, purple, and crimson yarns, and of fine
twisted linen, skillfully worked. 7
It shall have two shoulder-pieces attached to its two
edges, so that it may be joined together.
8The decorated band on it
shall be of the same workmanship and materials, of gold, of blue, purple, and
crimson yarns, and of fine twisted linen.
9You shall take two onyx
stones, and engrave on them the names of the sons of Israel,
10six of
their names on the one stone, and the names of the remaining six on the other
stone, in the order of their birth. 11
As a gem-cutter engraves signets, so you shall engrave
the two stones with the names of the sons of Israel; you shall mount them in
settings of gold filigree. 12
You shall set the two stones on the shoulder-pieces of
the ephod, as stones of remembrance for the sons of Israel; and Aaron shall
bear their names before the LORD on his two shoulders for remembrance.
13You
shall make settings of gold filigree, 14
and two chains of pure gold, twisted like cords; and
you shall attach the corded chains to the settings.
15You
shall make a breastpiece of judgment, in skilled work; you shall make it in the
style of the ephod; of gold, of blue and purple and crimson yarns, and of fine
twisted linen you shall make it. 16
It shall be square and doubled, a span in length and a
span in width. 17
You shall set in it four rows of stones. A row of
carnelian, chrysolite, and emerald shall be the first row;
18and the
second row a turquoise, a sapphire and a moonstone;
19and the
third row a jacinth, an agate, and an amethyst;
20and the
fourth row a beryl, an onyx, and a jasper; they shall be set in gold filigree.
21There
shall be twelve stones with names corresponding to the names of the sons of
Israel; they shall be like signets, each engraved with its name, for the twelve
tribes. 22
You shall make for the breastpiece chains of pure
gold, twisted like cords; 23
and you shall make for the breastpiece two rings of
gold, and put the two rings on the two edges of the breastpiece.
24You
shall put the two cords of gold in the two rings at the edges of the
breastpiece; 25
the two ends of the two cords you shall attach to the
two settings, and so attach it in front to the shoulder-pieces of the ephod.
26You
shall make two rings of gold, and put them at the two ends of the breastpiece,
on its inside edge next to the ephod. 27
You shall make two rings of gold, and attach them in
front to the lower part of the two shoulder-pieces of the ephod, at its joining
above the decorated band of the ephod. 28
The breastpiece shall be bound by its rings to the
rings of the ephod with a blue cord, so that it may lie on the decorated band of
the ephod, and so that the breastpiece shall not come loose from the ephod.
29So Aaron
shall bear the names of the sons of Israel in the breastpiece of judgment on
his heart when he goes into the holy place, for a continual remembrance before
the LORD. 30
In the breastpiece of judgment you shall put the Urim
and the Thummim, and they shall be on Aaron's heart when he goes in before the
LORD; thus Aaron shall bear the judgment of the Israelites on his heart before
the LORD continually. 31
You shall make the robe of the ephod all of blue.
32It shall
have an opening for the head in the middle of it, with a woven binding around
the opening, like the opening in a coat of mail, so that it may not be torn.
33On its
lower hem you shall make pomegranates of blue, purple, and crimson yarns, all
around the lower hem, with bells of gold between them all around--
34a golden
bell and a pomegranate alternating all around the lower hem of the robe.
35Aaron
shall wear it when he ministers, and its sound shall be heard when he goes into
the holy place before the LORD, and when he comes out, so that he may not die.
36You
shall make a rosette of pure gold, and engrave on it, like the engraving of a
signet, "Holy to the LORD." 37
You shall fasten it on the turban with a blue cord; it
shall be on the front of the turban. 38
It shall be on Aaron's forehead, and Aaron shall take
on himself any guilt incurred in the holy offering that the Israelites
consecrate as their sacred donations; it shall always be on his forehead, in
order that they may find favor before the LORD.
39You
shall make the checkered tunic of fine linen, and you shall make a turban of
fine linen, and you shall make a sash embroidered with needlework.
40For
Aaron's sons you shall make tunics and sashes and headdresses; you shall make
them for their glorious adornment. 41
You shall put them on your brother Aaron, and on his
sons with him, and shall anoint them and ordain them and consecrate them, so
that they may serve me as priests. 42
You shall make for them linen undergarments to cover
their naked flesh; they shall reach from the hips to the thighs;
43Aaron
and his sons shall wear them when they go into the tent of meeting, or when
they come near the altar to minister in the holy place; or they will bring guilt
on themselves and die. This shall be a perpetual ordinance for him and for his
descendants after him.
Return to Top
Now this is what you shall do to them to consecrate them, so that they may serve
me as priests. Take one young bull and two rams without blemish, 2
and unleavened bread, unleavened cakes mixed with oil, and unleavened wafers spread
with oil. You shall make them of choice wheat flour. 3
You shall put them in one basket and bring them in the basket, and bring the bull
and the two rams. 4You shall bring Aaron and his
sons to the entrance of the tent of meeting, and wash them with water. 5
Then you shall take the vestments, and put on Aaron the tunic and the robe of
the ephod, and the ephod, and the breastpiece,
and gird him with the decorated band of the ephod; 6and
you shall set the turban on his head, and put the holy diadem on the turban. 7You
shall take the anointing oil, and pour it on his head and anoint him. 8Then
you shall bring his sons, and put tunics on them, 9and
you shall gird them with sashes and tie headdresses on them; and the priesthood
shall be theirs by a perpetual ordinance. You shall then ordain Aaron and his
sons. 10 You shall bring the bull in front of the
tent of meeting. Aaron and his sons shall lay their hands on the head of the bull,
11and you shall slaughter the bull before the LORD,
at the entrance of the tent of meeting, 12 and shall
take some of the blood of the bull and put it on the horns of the altar with your
finger, and all the rest of the blood you shall pour out at the base of the altar.
13You shall take all the fat that covers the entrails,
and the appendage of the liver, and the two kidneys with the fat that is on them,
and turn them into smoke 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. 15Then you shall
take one of the rams, and Aaron and his sons shall lay their hands on the head
of the ram, 16 and you shall slaughter the ram, and
shall take its blood and dash it against all sides of the altar. 17Then
you shall cut the ram into its parts, and wash its entrails and its legs, and
put them with its parts and its head, 18 and turn
the whole ram into smoke on the altar; it is a burnt offering to the LORD; it
is a pleasing odor, an offering by fire to the LORD. 19
You shall take the other ram; and Aaron and his sons shall lay their hands on
the head of the ram, 20and you shall slaughter the
ram, and take some of its blood and put it on the lobe of Aaron's right ear and
on the lobes of the right ears of his sons, and on the thumbs of their right hands,
and on the big toes of their right feet, and dash the rest of the blood against
all sides of the altar. 21Then you shall take some
of the blood that is on the altar, and some of the anointing oil, and sprinkle
it on Aaron and his vestments and on his sons and his sons' vestments with him;
then he and his vestments shall be holy, as well as his sons and his sons' vestments.
22 You shall also take the fat of the ram, the fat
tail, the fat that covers the entrails, the appendage of the liver, the two kidneys
with the fat that is on them, and the right thigh (for it is a ram of ordination),
23 and one loaf of bread, one cake of bread made
with oil, and one wafer, out of the basket of unleavened bread that is before
the LORD; 24 and you shall place all these on the
palms of Aaron and on the palms of his sons, and raise them as an elevation offering
before the LORD. 25 Then you shall take them from
their hands, and turn them into smoke on the altar on top of the burnt offering
of pleasing odor before the LORD; it is an offering by fire to the LORD. 26You
shall take the breast of the ram of Aaron's ordination and raise it as an elevation
offering before the LORD; and it shall be your portion. 27You
shall consecrate the breast that was raised as an elevation offering and the thigh
that was raised as an elevation offering from the ram of ordination, from that
which belonged to Aaron and his sons. 28 These things
shall be a perpetual ordinance for Aaron and his sons from the Israelites, for
this is an offering; and it shall be an offering by the Israelites from their
sacrifice of offerings of well-being, their offering to the LORD. 29
The sacred vestments of Aaron shall be passed on to his sons after him; they shall
be anointed in them and ordained in them. 30The son
who is priest in his place shall wear them seven days, when he comes into the
tent of meeting to minister in the holy place. 31You
shall take the ram of ordination, and boil its flesh in a holy place; 32and
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. 33They
themselves shall eat the food by which atonement is made, to ordain and consecrate
them, but no one else shall eat of them, because they are holy. 34If
any of the flesh for the ordination, or of the bread, remains until the morning,
then you shall burn the remainder with fire; it shall not be eaten, because it
is holy. 35 Thus you shall do to Aaron and to his
sons, just as I have commanded you; through seven days you shall ordain them.
36Also every day you shall offer a bull as a sin
offering for atonement. Also you shall offer a sin offering for the altar, when
you make atonement for it, and shall anoint it, to consecrate it. 37
Seven days you shall make atonement for the altar, and consecrate it, and the
altar shall be most holy; whatever touches the altar shall become holy. 38
Now this is what you shall offer on the altar: two lambs a year old regularly
each day. 39 One lamb you shall offer in the morning,
and the other lamb you shall offer in the evening; 40
and with the first lamb one-tenth of a measure of choice flour mixed with one-fourth
of a hin of beaten oil, and one-fourth of a hin of wine for a drink offering.
41 And the other lamb you shall offer in the evening,
and shall offer with it a grain offering and its drink offering, as in the morning,
for a pleasing odor, an offering by fire to the LORD. 42It
shall be a regular burnt offering throughout your generations at the entrance
of the tent of meeting before the LORD, where I will meet with you, to speak to
you there. 43 I will meet with the Israelites there,
and it shall be sanctified by my glory; 44 I will
consecrate the tent of meeting and the altar; Aaron also and his sons I will consecrate,
to serve me as priests. 45I will dwell among the
Israelites, and I will be their God. 46And they shall
know that I am the LORD their God, who brought them out of the land of Egypt that
I might dwell among them; I am the LORD their God. Return
to Top
You shall make an altar on which
to offer incense; you shall make it of acacia wood.
2It shall
be one cubit long, and one cubit wide; it shall be square, and shall be two
cubits high; its horns shall be of one piece with it.
3You shall
overlay it with pure gold, its top, and its sides all around and its horns; and
you shall make for it a molding of gold all around.
4And you
shall make two golden rings for it; under its molding on two opposite sides of
it you shall make them, and they shall hold the poles with which to carry it.
5You shall
make the poles of acacia wood, and overlay them with gold.
6You shall
place it in front of the curtain that is above the ark of the covenant, in
front of the mercy seat that is over the covenant, where I will meet with you.
7Aaron
shall offer fragrant incense on it; every morning when he dresses the lamps he
shall offer it, 8
and when Aaron sets up the lamps in the evening, he
shall offer it, a regular incense offering before the LORD throughout your
generations. 9
You shall not offer unholy incense on it, or a burnt
offering, or a grain offering; and you shall not pour a drink offering on it.
10Once a
year Aaron shall perform the rite of atonement on its horns. Throughout your
generations he shall perform the atonement for it once a year with the blood of
the atoning sin offering. It is most holy to the LORD.
11The LORD
spoke to Moses: 12
When you take a census of the Israelites to register
them, at registration all of them shall give a ransom for their lives to the
LORD, so that no plague may come upon them for being registered.
13This is
what each one who is registered shall give: half a shekel according to the
shekel of the sanctuary (the shekel is twenty gerahs), half a shekel as an
offering to the LORD. 14
Each one who is registered, from twenty years old and
upward, shall give the Lord's offering.
15The rich shall not give
more, and the poor shall not give less, than the half shekel, when you bring
this offering to the LORD to make atonement for your lives.
16You
shall take the atonement money from the Israelites and shall designate it for
the service of the tent of meeting; before the LORD it will be a reminder to
the Israelites of the ransom given for your lives.
17The LORD
spoke to Moses: 18
You shall make a bronze basin with a bronze stand for
washing. You shall put it between the tent of meeting and the altar, and you
shall put water in it; 19
with the water Aaron and his sons shall wash their
hands and their feet. 20
When they go into the tent of meeting, or when they
come near the altar to minister, to make an offering by fire to the LORD, they
shall wash with water, so that they may not die.
21They
shall wash their hands and their feet, so that they may not die: it shall be a
perpetual ordinance for them, for him and for his descendants throughout their
generations. 22
The LORD spoke to Moses:
23Take the
finest spices: of liquid myrrh five hundred shekels, and of sweet-smelling cinnamon
half as much, that is, two hundred fifty, and two hundred fifty of aromatic
cane, 24
and five hundred of cassia--measured by the sanctuary
shekel--and a hin of olive oil; 25
and you shall make of these a sacred anointing oil
blended as by the perfumer; it shall be a holy anointing oil.
26With it
you shall anoint the tent of meeting and the ark of the covenant,
27and the
table and all its utensils, and the lampstand and its utensils, and the altar
of incense, 28
and the altar of burnt offering with all its utensils,
and the basin with its stand; 29
you shall consecrate them, so that they may be most
holy; whatever touches them will become holy.
30You
shall anoint Aaron and his sons, and consecrate them, in order that they may
serve me as priests. 31
You shall say to the Israelites, "This shall be
my holy anointing oil throughout your generations.
32It shall
not be used in any ordinary anointing of the body, and you shall make no other
like it in composition; it is holy, and it shall be holy to you.
33Whoever compounds
any like it or whoever puts any of it on an unqualified person shall be cut off
from the people." 34
The LORD said to Moses: Take sweet spices, stacte, and
onycha, and galbanum, sweet spices with pure frankincense (an equal part of
each), 35
and make an incense blended as by the perfumer,
seasoned with salt, pure and holy; 36
and you shall beat some of it into powder, and put
part of it before the covenant in the tent of meeting where I shall meet with
you; it shall be for you most holy. 37
When you make incense according to this composition,
you shall not make it for yourselves; it shall be regarded by you as holy to
the LORD. 38
Whoever makes any like it to use as perfume shall be
cut off from the people.
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The LORD spoke to Moses:
2See, I
have called by name Bezalel son of Uri son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah:
3and I
have filled him with divine spirit, with ability, intelligence, and knowledge
in every kind of craft, 4
to devise artistic designs, to work in gold, silver,
and bronze, 5
in cutting stones for setting, and in carving wood, in
every kind of craft. 6
Moreover, I have appointed with him Oholiab son of
Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan; and I have given skill to all the skillful, so
that they may make all that I have commanded you:
7the tent
of meeting, and the ark of the covenant, and the mercy seat that is on it, and
all the furnishings of the tent, 8
the table and its utensils, and the pure lampstand
with all its utensils, and the altar of incense,
9and the
altar of burnt offering with all its utensils, and the basin with its stand,
10and the
finely worked vestments, the holy vestments for the priest Aaron and the
vestments of his sons, for their service as priests,
11and the
anointing oil and the fragrant incense for the holy place. They shall do just
as I have commanded you. 12
The LORD said to Moses:
13You
yourself are to speak to the Israelites: "You shall keep my sabbaths, for
this is a sign between me and you throughout your generations, given in order
that you may know that I, the LORD, sanctify you.
14You
shall keep the sabbath, because it is holy for you; everyone who profanes it
shall be put to death; whoever does any work on it shall be cut off from among
the people. 15
Six days shall work be done, but the seventh day is a sabbath
of solemn rest, holy to the LORD; whoever does any work on the sabbath day
shall be put to death. 16
Therefore the Israelites shall keep the sabbath,
observing the sabbath throughout their generations, as a perpetual covenant.
17It is a
sign forever between me and the people of Israel that in six days the LORD made
heaven and earth, and on the seventh day he rested, and was refreshed."
18When God
finished speaking with Moses on Mount Sinai, he gave him the two tablets of the
covenant, tablets of stone, written with the finger of God.
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When the people saw that Moses
delayed to come down from the mountain, the people gathered around Aaron, and
said to him, "Come, make gods for us, 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
Aaron said to them, "Take off the gold rings that
are on the ears of your wives, your sons, and your daughters, and bring them to
me." 3
So all the people took off the gold rings from their
ears, and brought them to Aaron. 4
He took the gold from them, formed it in a mold, and
cast an image of a calf; and they said, "These are your gods, O Israel,
who brought you up out of the land of Egypt!"
5When
Aaron saw this, he built an altar before it; and Aaron made proclamation and
said, "Tomorrow shall be a festival to the LORD."
6They rose
early the next day, and offered burnt offerings and brought sacrifices of
well-being; and the people sat down to eat and drink, and rose up to revel.
7The LORD
said to Moses, "Go down at once! Your people, whom you brought up out of
the land of Egypt, have acted perversely;
8they have been quick to
turn aside from the way that I commanded them; they have cast for themselves an
image of a calf, and have worshiped it and sacrificed to it, and said, 'These
are your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt!'"
9The LORD
said to Moses, "I have seen this people, how stiff-necked they are.
10Now let
me alone, so that my wrath may burn hot against them and I may consume them;
and of you I will make a great nation."
11But
Moses implored the LORD his God, and said, "O LORD, why does your wrath
burn hot against your people, whom you brought out of the land of Egypt with
great power and with a mighty hand? 12
Why should the Egyptians say, 'It was with evil intent
that he brought them out to kill them in the mountains, and to consume them
from the face of the earth'? Turn from your fierce wrath; change your mind and
do not bring disaster on your people. 13
Remember Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, your servants,
how you swore to them by your own self, saying to them, 'I will multiply your
descendants like the stars of heaven, and all this land that I have promised I
will give to your descendants, and they shall inherit it forever.'"
14And the
LORD changed his mind about the disaster that he planned to bring on his
people. 15
Then Moses turned and went down from the mountain,
carrying the two tablets of the covenant in his hands, tablets that were
written on both sides, written on the front and on the back.
16The
tablets were the work of God, and the writing was the writing of God, engraved
upon the tablets. 17
When Joshua heard the noise of the people as they
shouted, he said to Moses, "There is a noise of war in the camp."
18But he
said, "It is not the sound made by victors, or the sound made by losers;
it is the sound of revelers that I hear."
19As soon
as he came near the camp and saw the calf and the dancing, Moses' anger burned
hot, and he threw the tablets from his hands and broke them at the foot of the
mountain. 20
He took the calf that they had made, burned it with
fire, ground it to powder, scattered it on the water, and made the Israelites
drink it. 21
Moses said to Aaron, "What did this people do to
you that you have brought so great a sin upon them?"
22And
Aaron said, "Do not let the anger of my lord burn hot; you know the
people, that they are bent on evil. 23
They said to me, 'Make us gods, 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.' 24
So I said to them, 'Whoever has gold, take it off'; so
they gave it to me, and I threw it into the fire, and out came this calf!"
25
When Moses saw that the people were running wild (for
Aaron had let them run wild, to the derision of their enemies),
26then
Moses stood in the gate of the camp, and said, "Who is on the Lord's side?
Come to me!" And all the sons of Levi gathered around him.
27He said
to them, "Thus says the LORD, the God of Israel, 'Put your sword on your
side, each of you! Go back and forth from gate to gate throughout the camp, and
each of you kill your brother, your friend, and your neighbor.'"
28The sons
of Levi did as Moses commanded, and about three thousand of the people fell on
that day. 29
Moses said, "Today you have ordained yourselves
for the service of the LORD, each one at the cost of a son or a brother, and so
have brought a blessing on yourselves this day."
30On the
next day Moses said to the people, "You have sinned a great sin. But now I
will go up to the LORD; perhaps I can make atonement for your sin."
31So Moses
returned to the LORD and said, "Alas, this people has sinned a great sin;
they have made for themselves gods of gold.
32But now, if you will only
forgive their sin--but if not, blot me out of the book that you have
written." 33
But the LORD said to Moses, "Whoever has sinned
against me I will blot out of my book. 34
But now go, lead the people to the place about which I
have spoken to you; see, my angel shall go in front of you. Nevertheless, when
the day comes for punishment, I will punish them for their sin."
35Then the
LORD sent a plague on the people, because they made the calf--the one that
Aaron made.
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The LORD said to Moses, "Go,
leave this place, you and the people whom you have brought up out of the land
of Egypt, and go to the land of which I swore to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob,
saying, 'To your descendants I will give it.'
2I will
send an angel before you, and I will drive out the Canaanites, the Amorites,
the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites.
3Go up to
a land flowing with milk and honey; but I will not go up among you, or I would
consume you on the way, for you are a stiff-necked people."
4When the
people heard these harsh words, they mourned, and no one put on ornaments.
5For the
LORD had said to Moses, "Say to the Israelites, 'You are a stiff-necked
people; if for a single moment I should go up among you, I would consume you.
So now take off your ornaments, and I will decide what to do to you.'"
6Therefore
the Israelites stripped themselves of their ornaments, from Mount Horeb onward.
7
Now Moses used to take the tent and pitch it outside
the camp, far off from the camp; he called it the tent of meeting. And everyone
who sought the LORD would go out to the tent of meeting, which was outside the
camp. 8
Whenever Moses went out to the tent, all the people
would rise and stand, each of them, at the entrance of their tents and watch
Moses until he had gone into the tent. 9
When Moses entered the tent, the pillar of cloud would
descend and stand at the entrance of the tent, and the LORD would speak with
Moses. 10
When all the people saw the pillar of cloud standing
at the entrance of the tent, all the people would rise and bow down, all of
them, at the entrance of their tent. 11
Thus the LORD used to speak to Moses face to face, as
one speaks to a friend. Then he would return to the camp; but his young
assistant, Joshua son of Nun, would not leave the tent.
12Moses
said to the LORD, "See, you have said 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.'
13Now if I
have found favor in your sight, show me your ways, so that I may know you and
find favor in your sight. Consider too that this nation is your people."
14He said,
"My presence will go with you, and I will give you rest."
15And he
said to him, "If your presence will not go, do not carry us up from here.
16For how
shall it be known that I have found favor in your sight, I and your people,
unless you go with us? In this way, we shall be distinct, I and your people,
from every people on the face of the earth."
17The LORD
said to Moses, "I will do the very thing that you have asked; for you have
found favor in my sight, and I know you by name."
18Moses
said, "Show me your glory, I pray."
19And he
said, "I will make all my goodness pass before you, and will proclaim
before you the name, 'The LORD'; and I will be gracious to whom I will be
gracious, and will show mercy on whom I will show mercy.
20But,"
he said, "you cannot see my face; for no one shall see me and live."
21And the
LORD continued, "See, 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;
23then I
will take away my hand, and you shall see my back; but my face shall not be
seen."
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The LORD said to Moses, "Cut
two tablets of stone like the former ones, and I will write on the tablets the
words that were on the former tablets, which you broke.
2Be ready
in the morning, and come up in the morning to Mount Sinai and present yourself
there to me, on the top of the mountain.
3No one shall come up with
you, and do not let anyone be seen throughout all the mountain; and do not let
flocks or herds graze in front of that mountain."
4So Moses
cut two tablets of stone like the former ones; and he rose early in the morning
and went up on Mount Sinai, as the LORD had commanded him, and took in his hand
the two tablets of stone. 5
The LORD descended in the cloud and stood with him
there, and proclaimed the name, "The LORD."
6The LORD
passed before him, and proclaimed, "The LORD, the LORD, a God merciful and
gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness,
7keeping
steadfast love for the thousandth generation, forgiving iniquity and
transgression and sin, yet by no means clearing the guilty, but visiting the
iniquity of the parents upon the children and the children's children, to the
third and the fourth generation." 8
And Moses quickly bowed his head toward the earth, and
worshiped. 9
He said, "If now I have found favor in your
sight, O Lord, I pray, let the Lord go with us. Although this is a stiff-necked
people, pardon our iniquity and our sin, and take us for your
inheritance." 10
He said: I hereby make a covenant. Before all your
people I will perform marvels, such as have not been performed in all the earth
or in any nation; and all the people among whom you live shall see the work of
the LORD; for it is an awesome thing that I will do with you.
11Observe
what I command you today. See, I will drive out before you the Amorites, the
Canaanites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites.
12Take
care not to make a covenant with the inhabitants of the land to which you are
going, or it will become a snare among you.
13You shall tear down their
altars, break their pillars, and cut down their sacred poles
14(for you
shall worship no other god, because the LORD, whose name is Jealous, is a
jealous God). 15
You shall not make a covenant with the inhabitants of
the land, for when they prostitute themselves to their gods and sacrifice to
their gods, someone among them will invite you, and you will eat of the
sacrifice. 16
And you will take wives from among their daughters for
your sons, and their daughters who prostitute themselves to their gods will
make your sons also prostitute themselves to their gods.
17You
shall not make cast idols. 18
You shall keep the festival of unleavened bread. Seven
days you shall eat unleavened bread, as I commanded you, at the time appointed
in the month of Abib; for in the month of Abib you came out from Egypt.
19All that
first opens the womb is 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. No one shall appear before me empty-handed.
21Six days
you shall work, but on the seventh day you shall rest; even in plowing time and
in harvest time you shall rest. 22
You shall observe the festival of weeks, the first
fruits of wheat harvest, and the festival of ingathering at the turn of the
year. 23
Three times in the year all your males shall appear
before the LORD God, the God of Israel.
24For I will cast out
nations before you, and enlarge your borders; no one shall covet your land when
you go up to appear before the LORD your God three times in the year.
25You
shall not offer the blood of my sacrifice with leaven, and the sacrifice of the
festival of the passover shall not be left until the morning.
26The best
of the first fruits of your ground you shall bring to the house of the LORD
your God. You shall not boil a kid in its mother's milk.
27The LORD
said to Moses: Write these words; in accordance with these words I have made a
covenant with you and with Israel. 28
He was there with the LORD 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 commandments.
29Moses
came down from Mount Sinai. As he came down from the mountain with the two
tablets of the covenant in his hand, Moses did not know that the skin of his
face shone because he had been talking with God.
30When
Aaron and all the Israelites saw Moses, the skin of his face was shining, and
they were afraid to come near him. 31
But Moses called to them; and Aaron and all the
leaders of the congregation returned to him, and Moses spoke with them.
32Afterward
all the Israelites came near, and he gave them in commandment all that the LORD
had spoken with him on Mount Sinai. 33
When Moses had finished speaking with them, he put a
veil on his face; 34
but whenever Moses went in before the LORD to speak
with him, he would take the veil off, until he came out; and when he came out,
and told the Israelites what he had been commanded,
35the
Israelites would see the face of Moses, that the skin of his face was shining;
and Moses would put the veil on his face again, until he went in to speak with
him.
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Moses assembled all the
congregation of the Israelites and said to them: These are the things that the
LORD has commanded you to do: 2
Six days shall work be done, but on the seventh day
you shall have a holy sabbath of solemn rest to the LORD; whoever does any work
on it shall be put to death. 3
You shall kindle no fire in all your dwellings on the
sabbath day. 4
Moses said to all the congregation of the Israelites:
This is the thing that the LORD has commanded:
5Take from
among you an offering to the LORD; let whoever is of a generous heart bring the
Lord's offering: gold, silver, and bronze;
6blue, purple, and crimson
yarns, and fine linen; goats' hair, 7
tanned rams' skins, and fine leather; acacia wood,
8oil for
the light, spices for the anointing oil and for the fragrant incense,
9and onyx
stones and gems to be set in the ephod and the breastpiece.
10All who
are skillful among you shall come and make all that the LORD has commanded: the
tabernacle, 11
its tent and its covering, its clasps and its frames,
its bars, its pillars, and its bases; 12
the ark with its poles, the mercy seat, and the
curtain for the screen; 13
the table with its poles and all its utensils, and the
bread of the Presence; 14
the lampstand also for the light, with its utensils
and its lamps, and the oil for the light;
15and the altar of incense,
with its poles, and the anointing oil and the fragrant incense, and the screen
for the entrance, the entrance of the tabernacle;
16the
altar of burnt offering, with its grating of bronze, its poles, and all its
utensils, the basin with its stand; 17
the hangings of the court, its pillars and its bases,
and the screen for the gate of the court;
18the pegs of the
tabernacle and the pegs of the court, and their cords;
19the
finely worked vestments for ministering in the holy place, the holy vestments
for the priest Aaron, and the vestments of his sons, for their service as
priests. 20
Then all the congregation of the Israelites withdrew
from the presence of Moses. 21
And they came, everyone whose heart was stirred, and
everyone whose spirit was willing, and brought the Lord's offering to be used
for the tent of meeting, and for all its service, and for the sacred vestments.
22
So they came, both men and women; all who were of a
willing heart brought brooches and earrings and signet rings and pendants, all
sorts of gold objects, everyone bringing an offering of gold to the LORD.
23And
everyone who possessed blue or purple or crimson yarn or fine linen or goats'
hair or tanned rams' skins or fine leather, brought them.
24Everyone
who could make an offering of silver or bronze brought it as the Lord's
offering; and everyone who possessed acacia wood of any use in the work,
brought it. 25
All the skillful women spun with their hands, and
brought what they had spun in blue and purple and crimson yarns and fine linen;
26
all the women whose hearts moved them to use their
skill spun the goats' hair. 27
And the leaders brought onyx stones and gems to be set
in the ephod and the breastpiece, 28
and spices and oil for the light, and for the
anointing oil, and for the fragrant incense.
29All the
Israelite men and women whose hearts made them willing to bring anything for
the work that the LORD had commanded by Moses to be done, brought it as a
freewill offering to the LORD. 30
Then Moses said to the Israelites: See, the LORD has
called by name Bezalel son of Uri son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah;
31he has
filled him with divine spirit, with skill, intelligence, and knowledge in every
kind of craft, 32
to devise artistic designs, to work in gold, silver,
and bronze, 33
in cutting stones for setting, and in carving wood, in
every kind of craft. 34
And he has inspired him to teach, both him and Oholiab
son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan. 35
He has filled them with skill to do every kind of work
done by an artisan or by a designer or by an embroiderer in blue, purple, and
crimson yarns, and in fine linen, or by a weaver--by any sort of artisan or
skilled designer.
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Bezalel and Oholiab and every
skillful one to whom the LORD has given skill and understanding to know how to
do any work in the construction of the sanctuary shall work in accordance with
all that the LORD has commanded. 2
Moses then called Bezalel and Oholiab and every
skillful one to whom the LORD had given skill, everyone whose heart was stirred
to come to do the work; 3
and they received from Moses all the freewill
offerings that the Israelites had brought for doing the work on the sanctuary.
They still kept bringing him freewill offerings every morning,
4so that
all the artisans who were doing every sort of task on the sanctuary came, each
from the task being performed, 5
and said to Moses, "The people are bringing much
more than enough for doing the work that the LORD has commanded us to do."
6
So Moses gave command, and word was proclaimed
throughout the camp: "No man or woman is to make anything else as an
offering for the sanctuary." So the people were restrained from bringing;
7for what
they had already brought was more than enough to do all the work.
8All those
with skill among the workers made the tabernacle with ten curtains; they were
made of fine twisted linen, and blue, purple, and crimson yarns, with cherubim
skillfully worked into them. 9
The length of each curtain was twenty-eight cubits,
and the width of each curtain four cubits; all the curtains were of the same
size. 10
He joined five curtains to one another, and the other
five curtains he joined to one another.
11He made loops of blue on
the edge of the outermost curtain of the first set; likewise he made them on
the edge of the outermost curtain of the second set;
12he 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.
13And he
made fifty clasps of gold, and joined the curtains one to the other with
clasps; so the tabernacle was one whole.
14He also made curtains of
goats' hair for a tent over the tabernacle; he made eleven curtains.
15The
length of each curtain was thirty cubits, and the width of each curtain four
cubits; the eleven curtains were of the same size.
16He joined
five curtains by themselves, and six curtains by themselves.
17He made
fifty loops on the edge of the outermost curtain of the one set, and fifty
loops on the edge of the other connecting curtain.
18He made
fifty clasps of bronze to join the tent together so that it might be one whole.
19
And he made for the tent a covering of tanned rams'
skins and an outer covering of fine leather.
20Then he
made the upright frames for the tabernacle of acacia wood.
21Ten
cubits was the length of a frame, and a cubit and a half the width of each
frame. 22
Each frame had two pegs for fitting together; he did
this for all the frames of the tabernacle.
23The frames for the
tabernacle he made in this way: twenty frames for the south side;
24and he
made forty bases of silver under the twenty frames, two bases under the first
frame for its two pegs, and two bases under the next frame for its two pegs.
25For the
second side of the tabernacle, on the north side, he made twenty frames
26and
their forty bases of silver, two bases under the first frame and two bases
under the next frame. 27
For the rear of the tabernacle westward he made six
frames. 28
He made two frames for corners of the tabernacle in
the rear. 29
They were separate beneath, but joined at the top, at
the first ring; he made two of them in this way, for the two corners.
30There
were eight frames with their bases of silver: sixteen bases, under every frame
two bases. 31
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
westward. 33
He made the middle bar to pass through from end to end
halfway up the frames. 34
And he overlaid the frames with gold, and made rings
of gold for them to hold the bars, and overlaid the bars with gold.
35He made
the curtain of blue, purple, and crimson yarns, and fine twisted linen, with
cherubim skillfully worked into it. 36
For it he made four pillars of acacia, and overlaid
them with gold; their hooks were of gold, and he cast for them four bases of
silver. 37
He also made a screen for the entrance to the tent, of
blue, purple, and crimson yarns, and fine twisted linen, embroidered with
needlework; 38
and its five pillars with their hooks. He overlaid
their capitals and their bases with gold, but their five bases were of bronze.
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Bezalel made the ark of acacia
wood; it was two and a half cubits long, a cubit and a half wide, and a cubit
and a half high. 2
He overlaid it with pure gold inside and outside, and
made a molding of gold around it. 3
He cast for it four rings of gold for its four feet,
two rings on its one side and two rings on its other side.
4He made
poles of acacia wood, and overlaid them with gold,
5and put
the poles into the rings on the sides of the ark, to carry the ark.
6He made a
mercy seat of pure gold; two cubits and a half was its length, and a cubit and
a half its width. 7
He made two cherubim of hammered gold; at the two ends
of the mercy seat he made them, 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 its two ends.
9The
cherubim spread out their wings above, overshadowing the mercy seat with their
wings. They faced one another; the faces of the cherubim were turned toward the
mercy seat. 10
He also made the table of acacia wood, two cubits
long, one cubit wide, and a cubit and a half high.
11He
overlaid it with pure gold, and made a molding of gold around it.
12He made
around it a rim a handbreadth wide, and made a molding of gold around the rim.
13He cast
for it four rings of gold, and fastened the rings to the four corners at its
four legs. 14
The rings that held the poles used for carrying the
table were close to the rim. 15
He made the poles of acacia wood to carry the table,
and overlaid them with gold. 16
And he made the vessels of pure gold that were to be
on the table, its plates and dishes for incense, and its bowls and flagons with
which to pour drink offerings. 17
He also made the lampstand of pure gold. The base and
the shaft of the lampstand were made of hammered work; its cups, its calyxes,
and its petals were of one piece with it.
18There 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;
19three
cups shaped like almond blossoms, each with calyx and petals, on one branch,
and three cups shaped like almond blossoms, each with calyx and petals, on the
other branch--so for the six branches going out of the lampstand.
20On the
lampstand itself there were four cups shaped like almond blossoms, each with
its calyxes and petals. 21
There was a calyx of one piece with it under the first
pair of branches, a calyx of one piece with it under the next pair of branches,
and a calyx of one piece with it under the last pair of branches.
22Their
calyxes and their branches were of one piece with it, the whole of it one
hammered piece of pure gold. 23
He made its seven lamps and its snuffers and its trays
of pure gold. 24
He made it and all its utensils of a talent of pure
gold. 25
He made the altar of incense of acacia wood, one cubit
long, and one cubit wide; it was square, and was two cubits high; its horns
were of one piece with it. 26
He overlaid it with pure gold, its top, and its sides
all around, and its horns; and he made for it a molding of gold all around,
27and made
two golden rings for it under its molding, on two opposite sides of it, to hold
the poles with which to carry it. 28
And he made the poles of acacia wood, and overlaid
them with gold. 29
He made the holy anointing oil also, and the pure
fragrant incense, blended as by the perfumer.
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He made the altar of burnt
offering also of acacia wood; it was five cubits long, and five cubits wide; it
was square, and three cubits high. 2
He made horns for it on its four corners; its horns
were of one piece with it, and he overlaid it with bronze.
3He made
all the utensils of the altar, the pots, the shovels, the basins, the forks, and
the firepans: all its utensils he made of bronze.
4He made
for the altar a grating, a network of bronze, under its ledge, extending
halfway down. 5
He cast four rings on the four corners of the bronze
grating to hold the poles; 6
he made the poles of acacia wood, and overlaid them
with bronze. 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 boards.
8He made
the basin of bronze with its stand of bronze, from the mirrors of the women who
served at the entrance to the tent of meeting.
9He made
the court; for the south side the hangings of the court were of fine twisted
linen, one hundred cubits long; 10
its twenty pillars and their twenty bases were of
bronze, but the hooks of the pillars and their bands were of silver.
11For the
north side there were hangings one hundred cubits long; its twenty pillars and
their twenty bases were of bronze, but the hooks of the pillars and their bands
were of silver. 12
For the west side there were hangings fifty cubits
long, with ten pillars and ten bases; the hooks of the pillars and their bands
were of silver. 13
And for the front to the east, fifty cubits.
14The
hangings for one side of the gate were fifteen cubits, with three pillars and
three bases. 15
And so for the other side; on each side of the gate of
the court were hangings of fifteen cubits, with three pillars and three bases.
16All the
hangings around the court were of fine twisted linen.
17The
bases for the pillars were of bronze, but the hooks of the pillars and their
bands were of silver; the overlaying of their capitals was also of silver, and
all the pillars of the court were banded with silver.
18The
screen for the entrance to the court was embroidered with needlework in blue,
purple, and crimson yarns and fine twisted linen. It was twenty cubits long
and, along the width of it, five cubits high, corresponding to the hangings of
the court. 19
There were four pillars; their four bases were of
bronze, their hooks of silver, and the overlaying of their capitals and their
bands of silver. 20
All the pegs for the tabernacle and for the court all
around were of bronze. 21
These are the records of the tabernacle, the
tabernacle of the covenant, which were drawn up at the commandment of Moses,
the work of the Levites being under the direction of Ithamar son of the priest
Aaron. 22
Bezalel son of Uri son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah,
made all that the LORD commanded Moses;
23and with him was Oholiab
son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan, engraver, designer, and embroiderer in
blue, purple, and crimson yarns, and in fine linen.
24All the
gold that was used for the work, in all the construction of the sanctuary, the
gold from the offering, was twenty-nine talents and seven hundred thirty
shekels, measured by the sanctuary shekel.
25The silver from those of
the congregation who were counted was one hundred talents and one thousand
seven hundred seventy-five shekels, measured by the sanctuary shekel;
26a beka a
head (that is, half a shekel, measured by the sanctuary shekel), for everyone
who was counted in the census, from twenty years old and upward, for six
hundred three thousand, five hundred fifty men.
27The
hundred talents of silver were for casting the bases of the sanctuary, and the
bases of the curtain; one hundred bases for the hundred talents, a talent for a
base. 28
Of the thousand seven hundred seventy-five shekels he
made hooks for the pillars, and overlaid their capitals and made bands for
them. 29
The bronze that was contributed was seventy talents,
and two thousand four hundred shekels; 30
with it he made the bases for the entrance of the tent
of meeting, the bronze altar and the bronze grating for it and all the utensils
of the altar, 31
the bases all around the court, and the bases of the
gate of the court, all the pegs of the tabernacle, and all the pegs around the
court.
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Of the blue, purple, and crimson
yarns they made finely worked vestments, for ministering in the holy place;
they made the sacred vestments for Aaron; as the LORD had commanded Moses.
2He made
the ephod of gold, of blue, purple, and crimson yarns, and of fine twisted
linen. 3
Gold leaf was hammered out and cut into threads to
work into the blue, purple, and crimson yarns and into the fine twisted linen,
in skilled design. 4
They made for the ephod shoulder-pieces, joined to it
at its two edges. 5
The decorated band on it was of the same materials and
workmanship, of gold, of blue, purple, and crimson yarns, and of fine twisted
linen; as the LORD had commanded Moses.
6The onyx stones were
prepared, enclosed in settings of gold filigree and engraved like the
engravings of a signet, according to the names of the sons of Israel.
7He set
them on the shoulder-pieces of the ephod, to be stones of remembrance for the
sons of Israel; as the LORD had commanded Moses.
8He made
the breastpiece, in skilled work, like the work of the ephod, of gold, of blue,
purple, and crimson yarns, and of fine twisted linen.
9It was
square; the breastpiece was made double, a span in length and a span in width
when doubled. 10
They set in it four rows of stones. A row of
carnelian, chrysolite, and emerald was the first row;
11and the
second row, a turquoise, a sapphire, and a moonstone;
12and the
third row, a jacinth, an agate, and an amethyst;
13and the
fourth row, a beryl, an onyx, and a jasper; they were enclosed in settings of
gold filigree. 14
There were twelve stones with names corresponding to
the names of the sons of Israel; they were like signets, each engraved with its
name, for the twelve tribes. 15
They made on the breastpiece chains of pure gold,
twisted like cords; 16
and they made two settings of gold filigree and two
gold rings, and put the two rings on the two edges of the breastpiece;
17and they
put the two cords of gold in the two rings at the edges of the breastpiece.
18Two ends
of the two cords they had attached to the two settings of filigree; in this way
they attached it in front to the shoulder-pieces of the ephod.
19Then
they made two rings of gold, and put them at the two ends of the breastpiece,
on its inside edge next to the ephod. 20
They made two rings of gold, and attached them in
front to the lower part of the two shoulder-pieces of the ephod, at its joining
above the decorated band of the ephod. 21
They bound the breastpiece by its rings to the rings
of the ephod with a blue cord, so that it should lie on the decorated band of
the ephod, and that the breastpiece should not come loose from the ephod; as
the LORD had commanded Moses. 22
He also made the robe of the ephod woven all of blue
yarn; 23
and the opening of the robe in the middle of it was
like the opening in a coat of mail, with a binding around the opening, so that
it might not be torn. 24
On the lower hem of the robe they made pomegranates of
blue, purple, and crimson yarns, and of fine twisted linen.
25They
also made bells of pure gold, and put the bells between the pomegranates on the
lower hem of the robe all around, between the pomegranates;
26a bell
and a pomegranate, a bell and a pomegranate all around on the lower hem of the
robe for ministering; as the LORD had commanded Moses.
27They
also made the tunics, woven of fine linen, for Aaron and his sons,
28and the
turban of fine linen, and the headdresses of fine linen, and the linen
undergarments of fine twisted linen, 29
and the sash of fine twisted linen, and of blue,
purple, and crimson yarns, embroidered with needlework; as the LORD had
commanded Moses. 30
They made the rosette of the holy diadem of pure gold,
and wrote on it an inscription, like the engraving of a signet, "Holy to
the LORD." 31
They tied to it a blue cord, to fasten it on the
turban above; as the LORD had commanded Moses.
32In this
way all the work of the tabernacle of the tent of meeting was finished; the
Israelites had done everything just as the LORD had commanded Moses.
33Then
they brought the tabernacle to Moses, the tent and all its utensils, its hooks,
its frames, its bars, its pillars, and its bases;
34the
covering of tanned rams' skins and the covering of fine leather, and the
curtain for the screen; 35
the ark of the covenant with its poles and the mercy
seat; 36
the table with all its utensils, and the bread of the
Presence; 37
the pure lampstand with its lamps set on it and all
its utensils, and the oil for the light;
38the golden altar, the anointing
oil and the fragrant incense, and the screen for the entrance of the tent;
39the
bronze altar, and its grating of bronze, its poles, and all its utensils; the
basin with its stand; 40
the hangings of the court, its pillars, and its bases,
and the screen 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;
41the
finely worked vestments for ministering in the holy place, the sacred vestments
for the priest Aaron, and the vestments of his sons to serve as priests.
42The
Israelites had done all of the work just as the LORD had commanded Moses.
43When
Moses saw that they had done all the work just as the LORD had commanded, he
blessed them.
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The LORD spoke to Moses: 2On the first day of
the first month you shall set up the tabernacle of the tent of meeting. 3
You shall put in it the ark of the covenant, and you shall screen the ark with
the curtain. 4 You shall bring in the table, and
arrange its setting; and you shall bring in the lampstand, and set up its lamps.
5You shall put the golden altar for incense before
the ark of the covenant, and set up the screen for the entrance of the tabernacle.
6You shall set the altar of burnt offering before
the entrance of the tabernacle of the tent of meeting, 7and
place the basin between the tent of meeting and the altar, and put water in
it. 8You shall set up the court all around, and
hang up the screen for the gate of the court. 9Then
you shall take the anointing oil, and anoint the tabernacle and all that is
in it, and consecrate it and all its furniture, so that it shall become holy.
10You shall also anoint the altar of burnt offering
and all its utensils, and consecrate the altar, so that the altar shall be most
holy. 11You shall also anoint the basin with its
stand, and consecrate it. 12Then you shall bring
Aaron and his sons to the entrance of the tent of meeting, and shall wash them
with water, 13 and put on Aaron the sacred vestments,
and you shall anoint him and consecrate him, so that he may serve me as priest.
14You shall bring his sons also and put tunics
on them, 15and anoint them, as you anointed their
father, that they may serve me as priests: and their anointing shall admit them
to a perpetual priesthood throughout all generations to come. 16
Moses did everything just as the LORD had commanded him. 17
In the first month in the second year, on the first day of the month, the tabernacle
was set up. 18Moses set up the tabernacle; he laid
its bases, and set up its frames, and put in its poles, and raised up its pillars;
19 and he spread the tent over the tabernacle,
and put the covering of the tent over it; as the LORD had commanded Moses. 20He
took the covenant and put it into the ark, and put the poles on the ark, and
set the mercy seat above the ark; 21 and he brought
the ark into the tabernacle, and set up the curtain for screening, and screened
the ark of the covenant; as the LORD had commanded Moses. 22
He put the table in the tent of meeting, on the north side of the tabernacle,
outside the curtain, 23and set the bread in order
on it before the LORD; as the LORD had commanded Moses. 24He
put the lampstand in the tent of meeting, opposite the table on the south side
of the tabernacle, 25 and set up the lamps before
the LORD; as the LORD had commanded Moses. 26 He
put the golden altar in the tent of meeting before the curtain, 27
and offered fragrant incense on it; as the LORD had commanded Moses. 28
He also put in place the screen for the entrance of the tabernacle. 29
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 the LORD had commanded Moses. 30He set the basin
between the tent of meeting and the altar, and put water in it for washing,
31 with which Moses and Aaron and his sons washed
their hands and their feet. 32 When they went into
the tent of meeting, and when they approached the altar, they washed; as the
LORD had commanded Moses. 33He set up the court
around the tabernacle and the altar, and put up the screen at the gate of the
court. So Moses finished the work. 34Then the cloud
covered the tent of meeting, and the glory of the LORD filled the tabernacle.
35 Moses was not able to enter the tent of meeting
because the cloud settled upon it, and the glory of the LORD filled the tabernacle.
36Whenever the cloud was taken up from the tabernacle,
the Israelites would set out on each stage of their journey; 37
but if the cloud was not taken up, then they did not set out until the day that
it was taken up. 38For the cloud of the LORD was
on the tabernacle by day, and fire was in the cloud by night, before the eyes
of all the house of Israel at each stage of their journey.
NOTATIONS IN TEXT
Thirteen Tribes Of Israel Arc
of the Covenant , Ephod
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