Exodus 5
Tree of Life Version
Pharaoh Will Not Let Israel Go
5 Afterward, Moses and Aaron went and said to Pharaoh, “This is what Adonai, God of Israel, says: Let My people go, so that they may hold a feast for Me in the wilderness.”
2 But Pharaoh said, “Who is Adonai, that I should listen to His voice and let Israel go? I do not know Adonai, and besides, I will not let Israel go.”
3 They answered, “The God of the Hebrews has met with us. Please let us take a three-day journey into the wilderness, so we may sacrifice to Adonai our God, or else He may strike us with pestilence or with the sword.”
4 But the king of Egypt said to them, “Why do you, Moses and Aaron, make the people break loose from their work? Go to your labors!” 5 Then Pharaoh said, “Look, the people of the land are now so numerous, yet you would have them rest from their labors?”
6 Then on the same day Pharaoh commanded the slave masters of the people and their foremen saying, 7 “You are not to give the people any more straw to make bricks, as before. Let them go and gather straw for themselves. 8 But impose on them the quota of bricks that they made previously; don’t reduce it. For they are lazy—that’s why they cry out saying, ‘Let us go and sacrifice to our God.’ 9 Let even heavier work be laid upon the men, so that they must labor, paying no attention to deceptive words.”
10 Then the slave masters of the people went out, along with their officers, and they spoke to the people saying: “This is what Pharaoh says: I will not give you straw. 11 Go and get straw for yourselves wherever you can find it, for there will be no reduction of your work.” 12 So the people were scattered throughout all the land of Egypt to gather stubble for straw. 13 But the slave masters pressured, saying, “Fulfill your work, your daily amount, just as when there was straw.” 14 Moreover the foremen of Bnei-Yisrael, whom Pharaoh’s slave masters had set over them, were beaten and asked, “Why haven’t you met your quota of bricks, both yesterday and today like before?”
15 The foremen of Bnei-Yisrael came and cried out to Pharaoh saying, “Why do you deal this way with your servants? 16 No straw is given to your servants, yet they say to us, ‘Make bricks!’ and look, your servants are beaten. But it is your own people at fault.”
17 But he said, “Lazy! You’re lazy! That’s why you were saying, ‘Let us go and sacrifice to Adonai.’ 18 So go now and work! No straw will be given to you—but you must deliver the quota of bricks.”
19 So the foremen of Bnei-Yisrael saw that they were in trouble when they were told, “You are not to reduce the number of bricks from day to day.” 20 Then they met Moses and Aaron, who were waiting for them as they came from Pharaoh.
21 So they said to them, “May Adonai look on you and judge, because you have made us a stench in the eyes of Pharaoh and in the eyes of his servants—putting a sword in their hand to kill us!”
22 So Moses returned to Adonai and said, “Adonai, why have You brought evil on these people? Is this why You sent me? 23 Ever since I came to Pharaoh to speak in Your Name, he has brought evil on these people. You have not delivered Your people at all.”
Exodus 5
Living Bible
5 After this presentation to the elders, Moses and Aaron went to see Pharaoh. They told him, “We bring you a message from Jehovah, the God of Israel. He says, ‘Let my people go, for they must make a holy pilgrimage out into the wilderness, for a religious feast, to worship me there.’”
2 “Is that so?” retorted Pharaoh. “And who is Jehovah, that I should listen to him, and let Israel go? I don’t know Jehovah and I will not let Israel go.”
3 But Aaron and Moses persisted. “The God of the Hebrews has met with us,” they declared. “We must take a three days’ trip into the wilderness and sacrifice there to Jehovah our God; if we don’t obey him, we face death by plague or sword.”
4-5 “Who do you think you are,” Pharaoh shouted, “distracting the people from their work? Get back to your jobs!” 6 That same day Pharaoh sent this order to the taskmasters and officers he had set over the people of Israel: 7-8 “Don’t give the people any more straw for making bricks! However, don’t reduce their production quotas by a single brick, for they obviously don’t have enough to do or else they wouldn’t be talking about going out into the wilderness and sacrificing to their God. 9 Load them with work and make them sweat; that will teach them to listen to Moses’ and Aaron’s lies!”
10-11 So the taskmasters and officers informed the people: “Pharaoh has given orders to furnish you with no more straw. Go and find it wherever you can; but you must produce just as many bricks as before!” 12 So the people scattered everywhere to gather straw.
13 The taskmasters were brutal. “Fulfill your daily quota just as before,” they kept demanding. 14 Then they whipped the Israeli work-crew bosses. “Why haven’t you fulfilled your quotas either yesterday or today?” they roared.
15 These foremen went to Pharaoh and pleaded with him. “Don’t treat us like this,” they begged. 16 “We are given no straw and told to make as many bricks as before, and we are beaten for something that isn’t our fault—it is the fault of your taskmasters for making such unreasonable demands.”
17 But Pharaoh replied, “You don’t have enough work, or else you wouldn’t be saying, ‘Let us go and sacrifice to Jehovah.’ 18 Get back to work. No straw will be given you, and you must deliver the regular quota of bricks.”
19 Then the foremen saw that they were indeed in a bad situation. 20 When they met Moses and Aaron waiting for them outside the palace, as they came out from their meeting with Pharaoh, 21 they swore at them. “May God judge you for making us stink before Pharaoh and his people,” they said, “and for giving them an excuse to kill us.”
22 Then Moses went back to the Lord. “Lord,” he protested, “how can you mistreat your own people like this? Why did you ever send me if you were going to do this to them? 23 Ever since I gave Pharaoh your message, he has only been more and more brutal to them, and you have not delivered them at all!”
Tree of Life (TLV) Translation of the Bible. Copyright © 2015 by The Messianic Jewish Family Bible Society.
The Living Bible copyright © 1971 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.