Font Size
Exodus 1:15-22
Holman Christian Standard Bible
Exodus 1:15-22
Holman Christian Standard Bible
15 Then the king of Egypt said to the Hebrew midwives, one of whom was named Shiphrah and the other Puah, 16 “When you help the Hebrew women give birth, observe them as they deliver.[a] If the child is a son, kill him, but if it’s a daughter, she may live.” 17 The Hebrew midwives, however, feared God(A) and did not do as the king of Egypt had told them;(B) they let the boys live. 18 So the king of Egypt summoned the midwives and asked them, “Why have you done this and let the boys live?”
19 The midwives said to Pharaoh, “The Hebrew women are not like the Egyptian women, for they are vigorous and give birth before a midwife can get to them.”(C)
20 So God was good to the midwives,(D) and the people multiplied and became very numerous. 21 Since the midwives feared God, He gave them families.(E) 22 Pharaoh then commanded all his people: “You must throw every son born to the Hebrews[b] into the Nile, but let every daughter live.”(F)
Read full chapterFootnotes
- Exodus 1:16 Lit birth, look at the stones
- Exodus 1:22 Sam, LXX, Tg; MT omits to the Hebrews
Exodus 1:15-22
Common English Bible
Exodus 1:15-22
Common English Bible
15 The king of Egypt spoke to two Hebrew midwives named Shiphrah and Puah: 16 “When you are helping the Hebrew women give birth and you see the baby being born, if it’s a boy, kill him. But if it’s a girl, you can let her live.” 17 Now the two midwives respected God so they didn’t obey the Egyptian king’s order. Instead, they let the baby boys live.
18 So the king of Egypt called the two midwives and said to them, “Why are you doing this? Why are you letting the baby boys live?”
19 The two midwives said to Pharaoh, “Because Hebrew women aren’t like Egyptian women. They’re much stronger and give birth before any midwives can get to them.” 20 So God treated the midwives well, and the people kept on multiplying and became very strong. 21 And because the midwives respected God, God gave them households of their own.
22 Then Pharaoh gave an order to all his people: “Throw every baby boy born to the Hebrews into the Nile River, but you can let all the girls live.”
Read full chapter
Exodus 1:15-22
New International Version
Exodus 1:15-22
New International Version
15 The king of Egypt said to the Hebrew midwives,(A) whose names were Shiphrah and Puah, 16 “When you are helping the Hebrew women during childbirth on the delivery stool, if you see that the baby is a boy, kill him; but if it is a girl, let her live.”(B) 17 The midwives, however, feared(C) God and did not do what the king of Egypt had told them to do;(D) they let the boys live. 18 Then the king of Egypt summoned the midwives and asked them, “Why have you done this? Why have you let the boys live?”
19 The midwives answered Pharaoh, “Hebrew women are not like Egyptian women; they are vigorous and give birth before the midwives arrive.”(E)
20 So God was kind to the midwives(F) and the people increased and became even more numerous. 21 And because the midwives feared(G) God, he gave them families(H) of their own.
22 Then Pharaoh gave this order to all his people: “Every Hebrew boy that is born you must throw into the Nile,(I) but let every girl live.”(J)
Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)
Copyright © 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2009 by Holman Bible Publishers, Nashville Tennessee. All rights reserved.
Common English Bible (CEB)
Copyright © 2011 by Common English Bible
New International Version (NIV) 
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.