Exodus 4-6
Complete Jewish Bible
4 Moshe replied, “But I’m certain they won’t believe me, and they won’t listen to what I say, because they’ll say, ‘Adonai did not appear to you.’” 2 Adonai answered him, “What is that in your hand?” and he said, “A staff.” 3 He said, “Throw it on the ground!” and he threw it on the ground. It turned into a snake, and Moshe recoiled from it. 4 Then Adonai said to Moshe, “Put your hand out and take it by the tail.” He reached out with his hand and took hold of it, and it became a staff in his hand. 5 “This is so that they will believe that Adonai, the God of their fathers, the God of Avraham, the God of Yitz’chak and the God of Ya‘akov, has appeared to you!”
6 Furthermore Adonai said to him, “Now put your hand inside your coat.” He put his hand in his coat; and when he took it out his hand was leprous, as white as snow. 7 Then God said, “Now put your hand back in your coat.” He put his hand back in his coat; and when he took it out, it was as healthy as the rest of his body. 8 “If they won’t believe you or heed the evidence of the first sign, they will be convinced by the second. 9 But if they aren’t persuaded even by both these signs and still won’t listen to what you say, then take some water from the river, and pour it on the ground. The water you take from the river will turn into blood on the dry land.”
10 Moshe said to Adonai, “Oh, Adonai, I’m a terrible speaker. I always have been, and I’m no better now, even after you’ve spoken to your servant! My words come slowly, my tongue moves slowly.” 11 Adonai answered him, “Who gives a person a mouth? Who makes a person dumb or deaf, keen-sighted or blind? Isn’t it I, Adonai? 12 Now, therefore, go; and I will be with your mouth and will teach you what to say.”
13 But he replied, “Please, Lord, send someone else — anyone you want!” 14 At this, Adonai’s anger blazed up against Moshe; he said, “Don’t you have a brother, Aharon the Levi? I know that he’s a good speaker. In fact, here he is now, coming out to meet you; and he’ll be happy to see you. 15 You will speak to him and put the words in his mouth; and I will be with your mouth and his, teaching you both what to do. 16 Thus he will be your spokesman to the people, in effect; for you, he will be a mouth; and for him, you will be like God. 17 Now take this staff in your hand, because you need it to perform the signs.”
(vi) 18 Moshe left, returned to Yitro his father-in-law and said to him, “I beg you to let me go and return to my kinsmen in Egypt, to see if they are still alive.” Yitro said to Moshe, “Go in peace.” 19 Adonai said to Moshe in Midyan, “Go on back to Egypt, because all the men who wanted to kill you are dead.” 20 So Moshe took his wife and sons, put them on a donkey, and started out for Egypt. Moshe took God’s staff in his hand. 21 Adonai said to Moshe, “When you get back to Egypt, make sure that you do before Pharaoh every one of the wonders I have enabled you to do. Nevertheless, I am going to make him hardhearted, and he will refuse to let the people go. 22 Then you are to tell Pharaoh: ‘Adonai says, “Isra’el is my firstborn son. 23 I have told you to let my son go in order to worship me, but you have refused to let him go. Well, then, I will kill your firstborn son!”’”
24 At a lodging-place on the way, Adonai met Moshe and would have killed him, 25 had not Tzipporah taken a flintstone and cut off the foreskin of her son. She threw it at his feet, saying, “What a bloody bridegroom you are for me!” 26 But then, God let Moshe be. She added, “A bloody bridegroom because of the circumcision!”
27 Adonai said to Aharon, “Go into the desert to meet Moshe.” He went, met him at the mountain of God and kissed him. 28 Moshe told him everything Adonai had said in sending him, including all the signs he had ordered him to perform. 29 Then Moshe and Aharon went and gathered together all the leaders of the people of Isra’el. 30 Aharon said everything Adonai had told Moshe, who then performed the signs for the people to see. 31 The people believed; when they heard that Adonai had remembered the people of Isra’el and seen how they were oppressed, they bowed their heads and worshipped.
5 (vii) After that, Moshe and Aharon came and said to Pharaoh, “Here is what Adonai, the God of Isra’el, says: ‘Let my people go, so that they can celebrate a festival in the desert to honor me.’” 2 But Pharaoh replied, “Who is Adonai, that I should obey when he says to let Isra’el go? I don’t know Adonai, and I also won’t let Isra’el go.” 3 They said, “The God of the Hebrews has met with us. Please let us go three days’ journey into the desert, so that we can sacrifice to Adonai our God. Otherwise, he may strike us with a plague or with the sword.” 4 The king of Egypt answered them, “Moshe and Aharon, what do you mean by taking the people away from their work? Get back to your labor! 5 Look!” Pharaoh added, “the population of the land has grown, yet you are trying to have them stop working!”
6 That same day Pharaoh ordered the slavemasters and the people’s foremen, 7 “You are no longer to provide straw for the bricks the people are making, as you did before. Let them go and gather straw for themselves. 8 But you will require them to produce the same quantity of bricks as before, don’t reduce it, because they’re lazing around. This is why they’re crying, ‘Let us go and sacrifice to our God.’ 9 Give these people harder work to do. That will keep them too busy to pay attention to speeches full of lies.”
10 The people’s slavemasters went out, their foremen too, and said to the people, “Here is what Pharaoh says: ‘I will no longer give you straw. 11 You go, yourselves, and get straw wherever you can find it. But your output is not to be reduced.’” 12 So the people were dispersed throughout all the land of Egypt to gather stubble for straw. 13 The slavemasters kept pressing them. “Keep working! Make your daily quota, just as when straw was provided.” 14 The foremen of the people of Isra’el, whom Pharaoh’s slavemasters had appointed to be over them, were flogged and asked, “Why haven’t you fulfilled your quota of bricks yesterday and today, as you did formerly?”
15 Then the foremen of the people of Isra’el came and complained to Pharaoh: “Why are you treating your servants this way? 16 No straw is given to your servants, yet they keep telling us to make bricks. And now your servants are being flogged, but the fault lies with your own people.” 17 “Lazy!” he retorted, “You’re just lazy! That’s why you say, ‘Let us go and sacrifice to Adonai.’ 18 Get going now, and get back to work! No straw will be given to you, and you will still deliver the full amount of bricks.” 19 When they said, “You are not to reduce your daily production quota of bricks,” the foremen of the people of Isra’el could see that they were in deep trouble.
20 As they were leaving Pharaoh, they encountered Moshe and Aharon standing by the road; 21 and they said to them, “May Adonai look at you and judge accordingly, because you have made us utterly abhorrent in the view of Pharaoh and his servants, and you have put a sword in their hands to kill us!” (Maftir) 22 Moshe returned to Adonai and said, “Adonai, why have you treated this people so terribly? What has been the value of sending me? 23 For ever since I came to Pharaoh to speak in your name, he has dealt terribly with this people! And you haven’t rescued your people at all!”
6 Adonai said to Moshe, “Now you will see what I am going to do to Pharaoh. With a mighty hand he will send them off; with force he will drive them from the land!”
Haftarah Sh’mot: Yesha‘yahu (Isaiah) 27:6–28:13; 29:22–23 (A); Yirmeyahu (Jeremiah) 1:1–2:3 (S)
B’rit Hadashah suggested readings for Parashah Sh’mot: Mattityahu (Matthew) 22:23–33; 41–46; Mark 12:18–27; 35–37; Luke 20:27–44; Acts 3:12–15; 5:27–32; 7:17–36; 22:12–16; 24:14–16; Messianic Jews (Hebrews) 11:23–26
Parashah 14: Va’era (I appeared) 6:2–9:35
2 God spoke to Moshe; he said to him, “I am Adonai. 3 I appeared to Avraham, Yitz’chak and Ya‘akov as El Shaddai, although I did not make myself known to them by my name, Yud-Heh-Vav-Heh [Adonai]. 4 Also with them I established my covenant to give them the land of Kena‘an, the land where they wandered about and lived as foreigners. 5 Moreover, I have heard the groaning of the people of Isra’el, whom the Egyptians are keeping in slavery; and I have remembered my covenant.
6 “Therefore, say to the people of Isra’el: ‘I am Adonai. I will free you from the forced labor of the Egyptians, rescue you from their oppression, and redeem you with an outstretched arm and with great judgments. 7 I will take you as my people, and I will be your God. Then you will know that I am Adonai your God, who freed you from the forced labor of the Egyptians. 8 I will bring you into the land which I swore to give to Avraham, Yitz’chak and Ya‘akov — I will give it to you as your inheritance. I am Adonai.’”
9 Moshe said this to the people of Isra’el. But they wouldn’t listen to him, because they were so discouraged, and their slavery was so cruel.
10 Adonai said to Moshe, 11 “Go in; and tell Pharaoh, king of Egypt, to let the people of Isra’el leave his land.” 12 Moshe said to Adonai, “Look, the people of Isra’el haven’t listened to me; so how will Pharaoh listen to me, poor speaker that I am?” 13 But Adonai spoke to Moshe and Aharon and gave them orders concerning both the people of Isra’el and Pharaoh, king of Egypt, to bring the people of Isra’el out of the land of Egypt.
(ii) 14 These were the heads of their families: the sons of Re’uven the firstborn of Isra’el were Hanokh, Pallu, Hetzron and Karmi. These were the families of Re’uven.
15 The sons of Shim‘on were Y’mu’el, Yamin, Ohad, Yakhin, Tzochar and Sha’ul the son of a Kena‘ani woman. These were the families of Shim‘on.
16 These are the names of the sons of Levi with their descendants: Gershon, K’hat and M’rari. Levi lived to be 137 years old. 17 The sons of Gershon were Livni and Shim‘i, with their families. 18 The sons of K’hat were ‘Amram, Yitz’har, Hevron and ‘Uzi’el. K’hat lived to be 133 years old. 19 The sons of M’rari were Machli and Mushi. These were the families of Levi with their descendants.
20 ‘Amram married Yokheved his father’s sister, and she bore him Aharon and Moshe. ‘Amram lived to be 137 years old. 21 The sons of Yitz’har were Korach, Nefeg and Zikhri. 22 The sons of ‘Uzi’el were Misha’el, Eltzafan and Sitri. 23 Aharon married Elisheva daughter of ‘Amminadav and sister of Nachshon, and she bore him Nadav, Avihu, El‘azar and Itamar. 24 The sons of Korach were Asir, Elkanah and Avi’asaf. These were the Korchi families. 25 El‘azar the son of Aharon married one of the daughters of Puti’el, and she bore him Pinchas. These were the heads of the families of Levi, family by family.
26 These are the Aharon and Moshe to whom Adonai said, “Bring the people of Isra’el out of the land of Egypt, division by division,” 27 and who told Pharaoh king of Egypt, to let the people of Isra’el leave Egypt. These are the same Moshe and Aharon.
28 On the day when Adonai spoke to Moshe in the land of Egypt, (iii) 29 he said, “I am Adonai. Tell Pharaoh, king of Egypt, everything I say to you.”
30 Moshe answered Adonai, “Look, I’m such a poor speaker that Pharaoh won’t listen to me.”
Shemot 4-6
Orthodox Jewish Bible
4 And Moshe answered and said, But, what if they will not believe me, nor pay heed unto my voice but will say, Hashem hath not appeared unto thee.
2 And Hashem said unto him, What is that in thine yad? And he said, A matteh (a rod, staff).
3 And He said, Cast it on the ground. And he cast it on the ground, and it became a nachash; and Moshe fled from before it.
4 And Hashem said unto Moshe, Put forth thine yad, and take it by the tail. And he put forth his yad, and caught it, and it became a matteh in his yad;
5 That they may believe that Hashem Elohei Avotam, Elohei Avraham, Elohei Yitzchak, and Elohei Ya’akov, hath appeared unto thee.
6 And Hashem said furthermore unto him, Put now thine yad into thy kheyk. And he put his yad into his kheyk; and when he took it out, hinei, his yad was leprous as snow.
7 And He said, Put thine yad into thy kheyk again. And he put his yad into his kheyk again; and plucked it out of his kheyk, and, hinei, it was turned again as his other basar.
8 And it shall come to pass, if they will not believe thee, neither pay heed to the voice of haOt Harishon, that they will believe the voice of haOt haAcharon.
9 And it shall come to pass, if they will not believe also these two otot, neither pay heed unto thy voice, that thou shalt take of the mayim of the Nile, and pour it upon the yabashah (dry land); and the mayim which thou takest out of the Nile shall become dahm upon the yabashah.
10 And Moshe said unto Hashem, O Adonoi, I am not an ish devarim, neither heretofore, nor since Thou hast spoken unto Thy eved; but I am slow of speech, and of a slow lashon.
11 And Hashem said unto him, Who hath made man’s peh (mouth)? Or who maketh dumb, or deaf, or seeing, or blind? Is it not I, Hashem?
12 Now therefore go, and Eh-heh-yeh (I will be) with thy mouth, and teach thee what thou shalt say.
13 And he said, O Adonoi, send, now, by the yad of him whom Thou wilt send.
14 And the Af Hashem was kindled against Moshe, and He said, Is there not Aharon thy ach the Levi? I know that he can speak well. And also, hinei, he cometh forth to meet thee; and when he seeth thee, he will be glad in his lev.
15 And thou shalt speak unto him, and put words in his mouth; and Eh-heh-yeh (I will be) with thy mouth, and with his mouth, and will teach you what ye shall do.
16 And he shall be thy spokesman unto the people; and he shall be, even he shall be to thee instead of a mouth, and thou shalt be to him instead of Elohim.
17 And thou shalt take this matteh in thine yad, wherewith thou shalt do haOtot.
18 And Moshe went and returned to Yitro his khoten (father-in-law), and said unto him, Let me go, now, and return unto my achim which are in Mitzrayim, and see whether they be yet alive. And Yitro said to Moshe, Lech l’shalom (go in peace).
19 And Hashem said unto Moshe in Midyan, Go, shuv (return) into Mitzrayim; for all the anashim are dead which sought thy life.
20 And Moshe took his isha and his banim, and set them upon a donkey, and he returned to Eretz Mitzrayim; and matteh HaElohim in his yad.
21 And Hashem said unto Moshe, When thou goest to return into Mitzrayim, see that thou do all those mofetim before Pharaoh, which I have put in thine yad: but I will harden his lev, that he shall not let HaAm go.
22 And thou shalt say unto Pharaoh, Thus saith Hashem, Yisroel is beni (My son), even My bechor (first-born):
23 And I say unto thee, Let beni (My son) go, that he may serve Me: and if thou refuse to let him go, hinei, I will slay thy ben, even thy bechor.
24 And it came to pass on the derech at the malon, that Hashem met him, and sought to kill him.
25 Then Tzipporah took a sharp stone, and cut off the arlat ben (foreskin of son) of her, and cast it at his feet, and said, Surely a choson damim (a bridegroom of blood) art thou to me.
26 So He let him go; then she said, A choson damim thou art, because of the circumcision (i.e., [bris] milah).
27 And Hashem said to Aharon, Go into the midbar to meet Moshe. And he went, and met him in the Har HaElohim, and kissed him.
28 And Moshe told Aharon kol divrei Hashem who had sent him, and all haOtot He had commanded him.
29 And Moshe and Aharon went and assembled together kol Ziknei Bnei Yisroel;
30 And Aharon spoke all hadevarim which Hashem had spoken unto Moshe; and he did haOtot before the eyes of HaAm.
31 And HaAm believed; and when they heard that Hashem had visited the Bnei Yisroel, and that He had looked upon their oni, then they bowed their heads and worshiped.
5 And afterward Moshe and Aharon went in, and told Pharaoh, Thus saith Hashem Elohei Yisroel, Let My people go, that they may hold a chag (feast) unto Me in the midbar.
2 And Pharaoh said, Who is Hashem, that I should obey His voice to let Yisroel go? I know not Hashem, neither will I let Yisroel go.
3 And they said, Elohei HaIvrim hath met with us; let us go, now, derech shloshet yamim into the midbar, and sacrifice unto Hashem Eloheinu; lest He fall upon us with dever (cattle disease), or with the cherev.
4 And Melech Mitzrayim said unto them, Why do ye, Moshe and Aharon, disturb the people from their works? Get you back unto your own sivlot (burdens).
5 And Pharaoh said, Hinei, the Am HaAretz now are many, and ye make them rest from their sivlot.
6 And Pharaoh commanded the same day the nogesim of the people, and their foremen, saying,
7 Ye shall no more give HaAm straw to make brick, as heretofore; let them go and gather straw for themselves.
8 And the matkonet (quota) of the bricks, which they did make heretofore, ye shall lay upon them; ye shall not diminish ought thereof; for they are idle; therefore they cry out, saying, Let us go and sacrifice to Eloheinu.
9 Let there more avodah be laid upon the anashim, that they may labor therein; and let them not regard divrei sheker.
10 And the nogesim of HaAm went out, and their foremen; they spoke to HaAm, saying, Thus saith Pharaoh, I will not give you straw.
11 Go ye, get you straw where ye can find it; yet not ought of your avodah shall be diminished.
12 So HaAm were scattered abroad throughout kol Eretz Mitzrayim to gather stubble instead of straw.
13 And the nogesim pressed them, saying, Fulfil your ma’asim, your daily tasks, as when there was straw.
14 And the foremen of the Bnei Yisroel, which Pharaoh’s nogesim had set over them, were beaten, and were asked, Why have ye not fulfilled your task in making brick both yesterday and today, as heretofore?
15 Then the foremen of the Bnei Yisroel came and cried unto Pharaoh, saying, Why dealest thou thus with thy avadim?
16 There is no straw given unto thy avadim, and they say to us, Make brick. And, hinei, thy avadim are beaten; but the fault is in thine own people.
17 But he said, Ye are idle, ye are idle: therefore ye say, Let us go and do sacrifice to Hashem.
18 Go therefore now, and work; for there shall no straw be given you, yet shall ye deliver the tokhen (full measure) of bricks.
19 And the foremen of the Bnei Yisroel did see that they were in rah (trouble), after it was said, Ye shall not reduce ought from your bricks of your daily task.
20 And they went to meet Moshe and Aharon, who stood waiting to meet them, as they came forth from Pharaoh:
21 And they said unto them, Hashem look upon you, and judge; because ye have made us stench to be abhorred in the eyes of Pharaoh, and in the eyes of his avadim, to put a cherev in their yad to slay us.
22 And Moshe returned unto Hashem, and said, Adonoi, why hast Thou brought evil upon this people? why is it that Thou hast sent me?
23 For since I came to Pharaoh to speak in Thy Shem, he hath done evil to this people; neither hast Thou delivered Thy people at all.
6 Then Hashem said unto Moshe, Now shalt thou see what I will do to Pharaoh; for through a yad chazakah shall he let them go, and with a yad chazakah shall he drive them out of his land.
[VAEIRA]
2 And Elohim spoke unto Moshe, and said unto him, I am Hashem;
3 And I appeared unto Avraham, unto Yitzchak, and unto Ya’akov, as El Shaddai, but by My Shem Hashem I did not make Myself known to them.
4 And I have also established My brit (covenant) with them, to give them Eretz Kena’an, the land of their sojourning, wherein they sojourned.
5 And I have also heard the groaning of the Bnei Yisroel, whom the Egyptians keep in bondage; and I have remembered My brit (covenant).
6 Therefore say unto the Bnei Yisroel, I am Hashem, and I will bring you out from under the sivlot Mitzrayim, and I will free you out of their bondage, and I will redeem you with a stretched out zero’a, and with mishpatim gedolim:
7 And I will take you to Me for a people, and I will be to you Elohim; and ye shall know that I am Hashem Eloheichem, which bringeth you out from under the sivlot Mitzrayim.
8 And I will bring you in unto HaAretz, concerning the which I did lift up My hand to swear to give it to Avraham, to Yitzchak, and to Ya’akov; and I will give it to you for a morashah (heritage); I am Hashem.
9 And Moshe spoke so unto the Bnei Yisroel; but they did not listen unto Moshe because of their kotzer ruach (shortness of spirit, broken spirit), and for avodah kesheh (cruel bondage).
10 And Hashem spoke unto Moshe, saying,
11 Go in, speak unto Pharaoh Melech Mitzrayim, that he let the Bnei Yisroel go out of his land.
12 And Moshe spoke before Hashem, saying, See, the Bnei Yisroel have not paid heed unto me; how then shall Pharaoh hear me, who am of aral sefatayim (uncircumcised lips, stumbling speech, sealed lips)?
13 And Hashem spoke unto Moshe and unto Aharon, and gave them a charge unto the Bnei Yisroel, and unto Pharaoh Melech Mitzrayim, to bring the Bnei Yisroel out of Eretz Mitzrayim.
14 These are the Rashei Bais Avotam: The Bnei Reuven the bechor Yisroel; Chanoch, and Pallu, Chetzron, and Carmi: these are the mishpokhot of Reuven.
15 And the Bnei Simeon; Yemuel, and Yamin, and Ohad, and Yachin, and Tzochar, and Shaul ben of a Kena’anit: these are the mishpokhot of Simeon.
16 And these are the shemot Bnei Levi according to their toldot; Gershon, and Kehat, and Merari: and the years of the life of Levi were a hundred thirty and seven shanah.
17 The Bnei Gershon; Livni, and Shimi, according to their mishpokhot.
18 And the Bnei Kehat; Amram, and Yitzhar, and Hevron, and Uzziel: and the years of the life of Kehat were a hundred thirty and three shanah.
19 And the Bnei Merari; Mahali and Mushi: these are the mishpokhot of Levi according to their toldot.
20 And Amram took him Yocheved his father’s sister to wife; and she bore him Aharon and Moshe: and the years of the life of Amram were a hundred and thirty and seven shanah.
21 And the Bnei Yitzhar; Korach, Nepheg, and Zichri.
22 And the Bnei Uzziel; Mishael, Eltzaphan, and Sitri.
23 And Aharon took him Elisheva, bat Amminadav, achot Nachshon, to wife; and she bore him Nadav, and Avihu, Eleaz and Itamar.
24 And the Bnei Korach; Assir, and Elkanah, and Aviasaph: these are the mishpokhot of the Korchi.
25 And Eleazar ben Aharon took him one of the banot Putiel to wife; and she bore him Pinchas: these are the Rashei Avot HaLevi’im according to their mishpokhot.
26 These are that Aharon and Moshe, to whom Hashem said, Bring out the Bnei Yisroel from Eretz Mitzrayim according to their tzve’os.
27 These are they which spoke to Pharaoh Melech Mitzrayim, to bring out the Bnei Yisroel from Mitzrayim: these are that Moshe and Aharon.
28 And it came to pass on the day when Hashem spoke unto Moshe in Eretz Mitzrayim,
29 That Hashem spoke unto Moshe, saying, I am Hashem: speak thou unto Pharaoh Melech Mitzrayim all that I say unto thee.
30 And Moshe said before Hashem, See, I am of aral sefatayim,and why should Pharaoh pay heed unto me.
Copyright © 1998 by David H. Stern. All rights reserved.
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