Exodus 13
Legacy Standard Bible
Sanctifying the Firstborn
13 Then Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying, 2 “(A)Sanctify to Me every firstborn, the first [a]offspring of every womb among the sons of Israel, both of man and beast; it belongs to Me.”
The Feast of Unleavened Bread
3 And Moses said to the people, “(B)Remember this day in which you went out from Egypt, from the house of [b]slavery; for (C)by a strong hand Yahweh brought you out from this place. (D)And nothing leavened shall be eaten. 4 This day, in the (E)month of Abib, you are going out. 5 And it shall be when Yahweh (F)brings you to the land of the Canaanite, the Hittite, the Amorite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite, which (G)He swore to your fathers to give you, a land flowing with milk and honey, (H)that you shall [c]do this service in this month. 6 For (I)seven days you shall eat unleavened bread, and on the seventh day there shall be a feast to Yahweh. 7 Unleavened bread shall be eaten throughout the seven days; and (J)nothing leavened shall be seen [d]among you, nor shall any leaven be seen [e]among you in all your borders. 8 (K)And you shall tell your son on that day, saying, ‘It is because of what Yahweh did for me when I came out of Egypt.’ 9 And (L)it will be as a sign to you on your hand and as a memorial between your eyes, that the law of Yahweh may be in your mouth; for with (M)a strong hand Yahweh brought you out of Egypt. 10 Therefore, you shall (N)keep this statute at its appointed time from [f]year to year.
11 “And it will be when (O)Yahweh brings you to the land of the Canaanite, as (P)He swore to you and to your fathers, and gives it to you, 12 (Q)and you shall [g]devote to Yahweh the first [h]offspring of every womb and [i]the first offspring of every beast that you own; the males belong to Yahweh. 13 But (R)every first [j]offspring of a donkey you shall redeem with a lamb, but if you do not redeem it, then you shall break its neck; and (S)every firstborn of man among your sons you shall redeem. 14 (T)And it will be when your son asks you in time to come, saying, ‘What is this?’ then you shall say to him, ‘(U)With a strong hand Yahweh brought us out of Egypt, from the house of [k]slavery. 15 And it happened, when Pharaoh hardened his heart with stiffness about letting us go, that (V)Yahweh killed every firstborn in the land of Egypt, both the firstborn of man and the firstborn of beast. Therefore, I sacrifice to Yahweh the males, the first [l]offspring of every womb, but every firstborn of my sons I redeem.’ 16 So (W)it will be as a sign on your hand and as [m]phylacteries between your eyes, for with a strong hand Yahweh brought us out of Egypt.”
Pillars of Cloud and Fire
17 Now it happened that when Pharaoh had let the people go, God did not guide them by the way of the land of the Philistines, even though it was near; for God said, “(X)Lest the people change their minds when they see war, and return to Egypt.” 18 Hence God turned the people to the way of the wilderness to the [n]Red Sea; and the sons of Israel went up (Y)in battle array from the land of Egypt. 19 And Moses took (Z)the bones of Joseph with him, for he had made the sons of Israel solemnly swear, saying, “God will surely [o]take care of you, and you shall bring up my bones from here with you.” 20 Then they set out from (AA)Succoth and camped in Etham on the edge of the wilderness. 21 (AB)And Yahweh was going before them in a pillar of cloud by day to guide them on the way, and in a pillar of fire by night to give them light, that they might go by day and by night. 22 [p]He (AC)did not take away the pillar of cloud by day, nor the pillar of fire by night, from before the people.
Footnotes
- Exodus 13:2 Lit opening
- Exodus 13:3 Lit slaves
- Exodus 13:5 Lit serve this service
- Exodus 13:7 Lit to
- Exodus 13:7 Lit to
- Exodus 13:10 Lit days to days
- Exodus 13:12 Lit cause to pass over
- Exodus 13:12 Lit opening
- Exodus 13:12 Lit every issue the offspring of a beast
- Exodus 13:13 Lit opening
- Exodus 13:14 Lit slaves
- Exodus 13:15 Lit opening
- Exodus 13:16 Or frontlet-bands
- Exodus 13:18 Lit Sea of Reeds
- Exodus 13:19 Lit visit
- Exodus 13:22 Or The pillar of cloud by day and the pillar of fire by night did not depart
Exodus 13
Holman Christian Standard Bible
13 The Lord spoke to Moses: 2 “Consecrate every firstborn male(A) to Me, the firstborn from every womb among the Israelites, both man and domestic animal; it is Mine.”
3 Then Moses said to the people, “Remember this day when you came out of Egypt, out of the place of slavery, for the Lord brought you out of here by the strength of His hand. Nothing leavened may be eaten.(B) 4 Today, in the month of Abib,[a](C) you are leaving. 5 When the Lord brings you into the land of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Hivites, and Jebusites,[b] which He swore to your fathers that He would give you, a land flowing with milk and honey,(D) you must carry out this ritual in this month.(E) 6 For seven days you must eat unleavened bread, and on the seventh day there is to be a festival to the Lord. 7 Unleavened bread is to be eaten for those seven days. Nothing leavened may be found among you, and no yeast may be found among you in all your territory. 8 On that day explain to your son, ‘This is because of what the Lord did for me when I came out of Egypt.’(F) 9 Let it serve as a sign for you on your hand and as a reminder on your forehead,[c](G) so that the Lord’s instruction may be in your mouth; for the Lord brought you out of Egypt with a strong hand. 10 Keep this statute at its appointed time from year to year.
11 “When the Lord brings you into the land of the Canaanites, as He swore to you and your fathers, and gives it to you, 12 you are to present to the Lord every firstborn male of the womb. All firstborn offspring of the livestock you own that are males will be the Lord’s. 13 You must redeem every firstborn of a donkey with a flock animal, but if you do not redeem it, break its neck. However, you must redeem every firstborn among your sons.(H)
14 “In the future, when your son(I) asks you, ‘What does this mean?’ say to him, ‘By the strength of His hand the Lord brought us out of Egypt, out of the place of slavery. 15 When Pharaoh stubbornly refused to let us go, the Lord killed every firstborn male in the land of Egypt, from the firstborn of man to the firstborn of livestock. That is why I sacrifice to the Lord all the firstborn of the womb that are males, but I redeem all the firstborn of my sons.’ 16 So let it be a sign on your hand and a symbol[d] on your forehead, for the Lord brought us out of Egypt by the strength of His hand.”(J)
The Route of the Exodus
17 When Pharaoh let the people go, God did not lead them along the road to the land of the Philistines, even though it was nearby; for God said, “The people will change their minds and return to Egypt if they face war.”(K) 18 So He led the people around toward the Red Sea along the road of the wilderness. And the Israelites left the land of Egypt in battle formation.(L)
19 Moses took the bones of Joseph(M) with him, because Joseph had made the Israelites swear a solemn oath, saying, “God will certainly come to your aid; then you must take my bones with you from this place.”
20 They set out from Succoth and camped at Etham on the edge of the wilderness. 21 The Lord went ahead of them in a pillar of cloud(N) to lead them on their way during the day and in a pillar of fire to give them light at night, so that they could travel day or night. 22 The pillar of cloud by day and the pillar of fire by night never left its place in front of the people.
Footnotes
- Exodus 13:4 March–April; called Nisan in the post-exilic period; Neh 2:1; Est 3:7
- Exodus 13:5 DSS, Sam, LXX, Syr add Girgashites and Perizzites; Jos 3:10
- Exodus 13:9 Lit reminder between your eyes
- Exodus 13:16 Or phylactery
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