Exodus 13
King James Version
13 And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying,
2 Sanctify unto me all the firstborn, whatsoever openeth the womb among the children of Israel, both of man and of beast: it is mine.
3 And Moses said unto the people, Remember this day, in which ye came out from Egypt, out of the house of bondage; for by strength of hand the Lord brought you out from this place: there shall no leavened bread be eaten.
4 This day came ye out in the month Abib.
5 And it shall be when the Lord shall bring thee into the land of the Canaanites, and the Hittites, and the Amorites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites, which he sware unto thy fathers to give thee, a land flowing with milk and honey, that thou shalt keep this service in this month.
6 Seven days thou shalt eat unleavened bread, and in the seventh day shall be a feast to the Lord.
7 Unleavened bread shall be eaten seven days; and there shall no leavened bread be seen with thee, neither shall there be leaven seen with thee in all thy quarters.
8 And thou shalt shew thy son in that day, saying, This is done because of that which the Lord did unto me when I came forth out of Egypt.
9 And it shall be for a sign unto thee upon thine hand, and for a memorial between thine eyes, that the Lord's law may be in thy mouth: for with a strong hand hath the Lord brought thee out of Egypt.
10 Thou shalt therefore keep this ordinance in his season from year to year.
11 And it shall be when the Lord shall bring thee into the land of the Canaanites, as he sware unto thee and to thy fathers, and shall give it thee,
12 That thou shalt set apart unto the Lord all that openeth the matrix, and every firstling that cometh of a beast which thou hast; the males shall be the Lord's.
13 And every firstling of an ass thou shalt redeem with a lamb; and if thou wilt not redeem it, then thou shalt break his neck: and all the firstborn of man among thy children shalt thou redeem.
14 And it shall be when thy son asketh thee in time to come, saying, What is this? that thou shalt say unto him, By strength of hand the Lord brought us out from Egypt, from the house of bondage:
15 And it came to pass, when Pharaoh would hardly let us go, that the Lord slew all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both the firstborn of man, and the firstborn of beast: therefore I sacrifice to the Lord all that openeth the matrix, being males; but all the firstborn of my children I redeem.
16 And it shall be for a token upon thine hand, and for frontlets between thine eyes: for by strength of hand the Lord brought us forth out of Egypt.
17 And it came to pass, when Pharaoh had let the people go, that God led them not through the way of the land of the Philistines, although that was near; for God said, Lest peradventure the people repent when they see war, and they return to Egypt:
18 But God led the people about, through the way of the wilderness of the Red sea: and the children of Israel went up harnessed out of the land of Egypt.
19 And Moses took the bones of Joseph with him: for he had straitly sworn the children of Israel, saying, God will surely visit you; and ye shall carry up my bones away hence with you.
20 And they took their journey from Succoth, and encamped in Etham, in the edge of the wilderness.
21 And the Lord went before them by day in a pillar of a cloud, to lead them the way; and by night in a pillar of fire, to give them light; to go by day and night:
22 He took not away the pillar of the cloud by day, nor the pillar of fire by night, from before the people.
Exodus 13
English Standard Version
Consecration of the Firstborn
13 The Lord said to Moses, 2 (A)“Consecrate to me all the firstborn. Whatever is the first to open the womb among the people of Israel, both of man and of beast, is mine.”
The Feast of Unleavened Bread
3 Then Moses said to the people, (B)“Remember this day in which you came out from Egypt, out of the house of slavery, (C)for by a strong hand the Lord brought you out from this place. (D)No leavened bread shall be eaten. 4 Today, in the month of (E)Abib, you are going out. 5 And when the Lord brings you into (F)the land of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites, which (G)he swore to your fathers to give you, a land (H)flowing with milk and honey, (I)you shall keep this service in this month. 6 (J)Seven days you shall eat unleavened bread, and on the seventh day there shall be a feast to the Lord. 7 Unleavened bread shall be eaten for seven days; no leavened bread shall be seen with you, and no leaven shall be seen with you in all your territory. 8 (K)You shall tell your son on that day, ‘It is because of what the Lord did for me when I came out of Egypt.’ 9 And it shall (L)be to you as a sign on your hand and as (M)a memorial (N)between your eyes, that the law of the Lord may be in your mouth. For with a strong hand the Lord has brought you out of Egypt. 10 (O)You shall therefore keep this statute at its appointed time from year to year.
11 “When the Lord brings you into the land of the Canaanites, (P)as he swore to you and your fathers, and shall give it to you, 12 (Q)you shall set apart to the Lord all that first opens the womb. All the firstborn of your animals that are males shall be the Lord's. 13 (R)Every firstborn of a donkey you shall redeem with a lamb, or if you will not redeem it you shall break its neck. Every (S)firstborn of man among your sons you shall redeem. 14 (T)And when in time to come your son asks you, ‘What does this mean?’ you shall say to him, (U)‘By a strong hand the Lord brought us out of Egypt, from the house of (V)slavery. 15 For when Pharaoh stubbornly refused to let us go, the (W)Lord killed all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both the firstborn of man and the firstborn of animals. Therefore I sacrifice to the Lord all the males that first open the womb, but (X)all the firstborn of my sons I redeem.’ 16 (Y)It shall be as a mark on your hand or frontlets between your eyes, for (Z)by a strong hand the Lord brought us out of Egypt.”
Pillars of Cloud and Fire
17 When Pharaoh let the people go, God did (AA)not lead them by way of the land of the Philistines, although that was near. For God said, “Lest the people (AB)change their minds when they see war and return to Egypt.” 18 But God (AC)led the people around by the way of the wilderness toward the Red Sea. And the people of Israel went up out of the land of Egypt equipped for battle. 19 Moses took the bones of Joseph with him, for Joseph[a] had made the sons of Israel solemnly swear, saying, (AD)“God will surely visit you, and you shall carry up my bones with you from here.” 20 And (AE)they moved on from Succoth and encamped at Etham, on the edge of the wilderness. 21 And (AF)the Lord went before them by day in a pillar of cloud to lead them along the way, and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light, that they might travel by day and by night. 22 The pillar of cloud by day and the pillar of fire by night did not depart from before the people.
Footnotes
- Exodus 13:19 Samaritan, Septuagint; Hebrew he
Exodus 13
Easy-to-Read Version
13 Then the Lord said to Moses, 2 “You must give me every male in Israel who is his mother’s first child. That means that every firstborn baby boy and every firstborn male animal will be mine.”
3 Moses said to the people, “Remember this day. You were slaves in Egypt, but on this day the Lord used his great power and made you free. You must not eat bread with yeast. 4 Today, in the month of Abib, you are leaving Egypt. 5 The Lord made a special promise to your ancestors. He promised to give you the land of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Hivites, and Jebusites. After the Lord leads you to the land filled with many good things,[a] then you must remember this day. You must have a special day of worship on this day during the first month of every year.
6 “For seven days, you must eat only bread without yeast. On the seventh day there will be a great festival to show honor to the Lord. 7 So for seven days, you must not eat any bread made with yeast. There must be no bread with yeast any place in your land. 8 On this day you should tell your children, ‘We are having this festival because the Lord took me out of Egypt.’
9 “This festival will help you remember; it will be like a string tied on your hand. It will be like a sign before your eyes.[b] This festival will help you remember the Lord’s teachings. It will help you remember that the Lord used his great power to take you out of Egypt. 10 So remember this festival every year at the right time.
11 “The Lord will lead you into the land he promised to give you. The Canaanites live there now. But God promised your ancestors that he would give you this land. When that happens, 12 you must remember to give the Lord every firstborn boy. And every male animal that is the firstborn must also be given to the Lord. 13 Every firstborn donkey can be bought back. You can offer a lamb and keep the donkey. If you don’t want to buy back the donkey like this, then you must break its neck to kill it. But every firstborn baby boy[c] must be bought back from the Lord.
14 “In the future, your children will ask why you do this. They will say, ‘What does all this mean?’ And you will answer, ‘The Lord used his great power to save us from Egypt. We were slaves in that place, but he led us out and brought us here. 15 In Egypt, Pharaoh was stubborn and refused to let us leave. So the Lord killed every firstborn in all the land. (The Lord killed the firstborn males—animal and human.) That is why I give every firstborn male animal to the Lord, and that is why I buy back each of my firstborn sons from him.’ 16 This is like a string tied on your hand, like a sign in front of your eyes. It helps you remember that the Lord brought us out of Egypt with his great power.”
The Trip Out of Egypt
17 Pharaoh made the people leave Egypt. God did not let the people take the road leading to the land of the Philistines. That road by the Mediterranean Sea is the shortest way, but God said, “If the people go that way they will have to fight. Then they might change their minds and go back to Egypt.” 18 So God led them another way through the desert by the Red Sea.[d] The Israelites were dressed for war when they left Egypt.
Joseph Goes Home
19 Moses carried the bones of Joseph with him. Before Joseph died, he made the Israelites promise to do this for him. He said, “When God saves you, remember to carry my bones with you out of Egypt.”
The Lord Leads His People
20 The Israelites left Succoth and camped at Etham. Etham was near the desert. 21 The Lord led the way. During the day, he used a tall cloud to lead the people. And during the night, he used a tall column of fire to lead the way. This fire gave them light so that they could also travel at night. 22 The cloud was always with them during the day, and the column of fire was always with them at night.
Footnotes
- Exodus 13:5 land … things Literally, “land flowing with milk and honey.”
- Exodus 13:9 string … eyes Literally, “a mark on your hands and a reminder between your eyes.” This might refer to the special things an Israelite ties to his arm and forehead to help him remember God’s laws for him. Also in verse 16.
- Exodus 13:13 baby boy Or “baby.”
- Exodus 13:18 Red Sea Or “Reed Sea.” Also in 14:2, 9, 16, 21, 30. See 1 Kings 9:26.
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.
Copyright © 2006 by Bible League International