Exodus 11:1-12:14

New King James Version

Death of the Firstborn Announced^(A)

11 And the Lord said to Moses, “I will bring one more plague on Pharaoh and on Egypt. ^(B)Afterward he will let you go from here. ^(C)When he lets you go, he will surely drive you out of here altogether. ² Speak now in the hearing of the people, and let every man ask from his neighbor and every woman from her neighbor, ^(D)articles of silver and articles of gold.” ^3 (E)And the Lord gave the people favor in the sight of the Egyptians. Moreover the man ^(F)Moses was very great in the land of Egypt, in the sight of Pharaoh’s servants and in the sight of the people.

⁴ Then Moses said, “Thus says the Lord: ^(G)‘About midnight I will go out into the midst of Egypt; ⁵ and ^(H)all the firstborn in the land of Egypt shall die, from the firstborn of Pharaoh who sits on his throne, even to the firstborn of the female servant who is behind the handmill, and all the firstborn of the animals. ^6 (I)Then there shall be a great cry throughout all the land of Egypt, ^(J)such as was not like it before, nor shall be like it again. ^7 (K)But against none of the children of Israel ^(L)shall a dog ^[a]move its tongue, against man or beast, that you may know that the Lord does make a difference between the Egyptians and Israel.’ ⁸ And ^(M)all these your servants shall come down to me and bow down to me, saying, ‘Get out, and all the people who follow you!’ After that I will go out.” ^(N)Then he went out from Pharaoh in great anger.

⁹ But the Lord said to Moses, ^(O)“Pharaoh will not heed you, so that ^(P)My wonders may be multiplied in the land of Egypt.” ¹⁰ So Moses and Aaron did all these wonders before Pharaoh; ^(Q)and the Lord hardened Pharaoh’s heart, and he did not let the children of Israel go out of his land.

The Passover Instituted^(R)

12 Now the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt, saying, ^2 (S)“This month shall be your beginning of months; it shall be the first month of the year to you. ³ Speak to all the congregation of Israel, saying: ‘On the ^(T)tenth of this month every man shall take for himself a lamb, according to the house of his father, a lamb for a household. ⁴ And if the household is too small for the lamb, let him and his neighbor next to his house take it according to the number of the persons; according to each man’s need you shall make your count for the lamb. ⁵ Your lamb shall be ^(U)without^[b] blemish, a male ^[c]of the first year. You may take it from the sheep or from the goats. ⁶ Now you shall keep it until the ^(V)fourteenth day of the same month. Then the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel shall kill it at twilight. ⁷ And they shall take some of the blood and put it on the two doorposts and on the lintel of the houses where they eat it. ⁸ Then they shall eat the flesh on that ^(W)night; ^(X)roasted in fire, with ^(Y)unleavened bread and with bitter herbs they shall eat it. ⁹ Do not eat it raw, nor boiled at all with water, but ^(Z)roasted in fire—its head with its legs and its entrails. ^10 (AA)You shall let none of it remain until morning, and what remains of it until morning you shall burn with fire. ¹¹ And thus you shall eat it: ^[d]with a belt on your waist, your sandals on your feet, and your staff in your hand. So you shall eat it in haste. ^(AB)It is the Lord’s Passover.

¹² ‘For I ^(AC)will pass through the land of Egypt on that night, and will strike all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and ^(AD)against all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgment: ^(AE)I am the Lord. ¹³ Now the blood shall be a sign for you on the houses where you are. And when I see the blood, I will pass over you; and the plague shall not be on you to destroy you when I strike the land of Egypt.

¹⁴ ‘So this day shall be to you ^(AF)a memorial; and you shall keep it as a ^(AG)feast to the Lord throughout your generations. You shall keep it as a feast ^(AH)by an everlasting ordinance.