Exodus 4
Good News Translation
God Gives Moses Miraculous Power
4 Then Moses answered the Lord, “But suppose the Israelites do not believe me and will not listen to what I say. What shall I do if they say that you did not appear to me?”
2 So the Lord asked him, “What are you holding?”
“A walking stick,” he answered.
3 The Lord said, “Throw it on the ground.” When Moses threw it down, it turned into a snake, and he ran away from it. 4 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Reach down and pick it up by the tail.” So Moses reached down and caught it, and it became a walking stick again. 5 The Lord said, “Do this to prove to the Israelites that the Lord, the God of their ancestors, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, has appeared to you.”
6 The Lord spoke to Moses again, “Put your hand inside your robe.” Moses obeyed; and when he took his hand out, it was diseased, covered with white spots, like snow. 7 Then the Lord said, “Put your hand inside your robe again.” He did so, and when he took it out this time, it was healthy, just like the rest of his body. 8 The Lord said, “If they will not believe you or be convinced by the first miracle, then this one will convince them. 9 If in spite of these two miracles they still will not believe you, and if they refuse to listen to what you say, take some water from the Nile and pour it on the ground. The water will turn into blood.”
10 But Moses said, “No, Lord, don't send me. I have never been a good speaker, and I haven't become one since you began to speak to me. I am a poor speaker, slow and hesitant.”
11 The Lord said to him, “Who gives man his mouth? Who makes him deaf or dumb? Who gives him sight or makes him blind? It is I, the Lord. 12 Now, go! I will help you to speak, and I will tell you what to say.”
13 But Moses answered, “No, Lord, please send someone else.”
14 At this the Lord became angry with Moses and said, “What about your brother Aaron, the Levite? I know that he can speak well. In fact, he is now coming to meet you and will be glad to see you. 15 You can speak to him and tell him what to say. I will help both of you to speak, and I will tell you both what to do. 16 He will be your spokesman and speak to the people for you. Then you will be like God, telling him what to say. 17 Take this walking stick with you; for with it you will perform miracles.”
Moses Returns to Egypt
18 Then Moses went back to Jethro, his father-in-law, and said to him, “Please let me go back to my relatives in Egypt to see if they are still alive.” Jethro agreed and told him good-bye.
19 While Moses was still in Midian, the Lord said to him, “Go back to Egypt, for all those who wanted to kill you are dead.” 20 So Moses took his wife and his sons, put them on a donkey, and set out with them for Egypt, carrying the walking stick that God had told him to take.
21 Again the Lord said to Moses, “Now that you are going back to Egypt, be sure to perform before the king all the miracles which I have given you the power to do. But I will make the king stubborn, and he will not let the people go. 22 Then you must tell him that I, the Lord, say, ‘Israel is my first-born son. 23 (A)I told you to let my son go, so that he might worship me, but you refused. Now I am going to kill your first-born son.’”
24 At a camping place on the way to Egypt, the Lord met Moses and tried to kill him. 25-26 Then Zipporah, his wife, took a sharp stone, cut off the foreskin of her son, and touched Moses' feet[a] with it. Because of the rite of circumcision she said to Moses, “You are a husband of blood to me.” And so the Lord spared Moses' life.
27 Meanwhile the Lord had said to Aaron, “Go into the desert to meet Moses.” So he went to meet him at the holy mountain; and when he met him, he kissed him. 28 Then Moses told Aaron everything that the Lord had said when he told him to return to Egypt; he also told him about the miracles which the Lord had ordered him to perform. 29 So Moses and Aaron went to Egypt and gathered all the Israelite leaders together. 30 Aaron told them everything that the Lord had said to Moses, and then Moses performed all the miracles in front of the people. 31 They believed, and when they heard that the Lord had come to them and had seen how they were being treated cruelly, they bowed down and worshiped.
Footnotes
- Exodus 4:25 This reference to “feet” is thought by some to be a euphemism for the genitals.
Exodus 4
King James Version
4 And Moses answered and said, But, behold, they will not believe me, nor hearken unto my voice: for they will say, The Lord hath not appeared unto thee.
2 And the Lord said unto him, What is that in thine hand? And he said, A rod.
3 And he said, Cast it on the ground. And he cast it on the ground, and it became a serpent; and Moses fled from before it.
4 And the Lord said unto Moses, Put forth thine hand, and take it by the tail. And he put forth his hand, and caught it, and it became a rod in his hand:
5 That they may believe that the Lord God of their fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, hath appeared unto thee.
6 And the Lord said furthermore unto him, Put now thine hand into thy bosom. And he put his hand into his bosom: and when he took it out, behold, his hand was leprous as snow.
7 And he said, Put thine hand into thy bosom again. And he put his hand into his bosom again; and plucked it out of his bosom, and, behold, it was turned again as his other flesh.
8 And it shall come to pass, if they will not believe thee, neither hearken to the voice of the first sign, that they will believe the voice of the latter sign.
9 And it shall come to pass, if they will not believe also these two signs, neither hearken unto thy voice, that thou shalt take of the water of the river, and pour it upon the dry land: and the water which thou takest out of the river shall become blood upon the dry land.
10 And Moses said unto the Lord, O my Lord, I am not eloquent, neither heretofore, nor since thou hast spoken unto thy servant: but I am slow of speech, and of a slow tongue.
11 And the Lord said unto him, Who hath made man's mouth? or who maketh the dumb, or deaf, or the seeing, or the blind? have not I the Lord?
12 Now therefore go, and I will be with thy mouth, and teach thee what thou shalt say.
13 And he said, O my Lord, send, I pray thee, by the hand of him whom thou wilt send.
14 And the anger of the Lord was kindled against Moses, and he said, Is not Aaron the Levite thy brother? I know that he can speak well. And also, behold, he cometh forth to meet thee: and when he seeth thee, he will be glad in his heart.
15 And thou shalt speak unto him, and put words in his mouth: and I will be with thy mouth, and with his mouth, and will teach you what ye shall do.
16 And he shall be thy spokesman unto the people: and he shall be, even he shall be to thee instead of a mouth, and thou shalt be to him instead of God.
17 And thou shalt take this rod in thine hand, wherewith thou shalt do signs.
18 And Moses went and returned to Jethro his father in law, and said unto him, Let me go, I pray thee, and return unto my brethren which are in Egypt, and see whether they be yet alive. And Jethro said to Moses, Go in peace.
19 And the Lord said unto Moses in Midian, Go, return into Egypt: for all the men are dead which sought thy life.
20 And Moses took his wife and his sons, and set them upon an ass, and he returned to the land of Egypt: and Moses took the rod of God in his hand.
21 And the Lord said unto Moses, When thou goest to return into Egypt, see that thou do all those wonders before Pharaoh, which I have put in thine hand: but I will harden his heart, that he shall not let the people go.
22 And thou shalt say unto Pharaoh, Thus saith the Lord, Israel is my son, even my firstborn:
23 And I say unto thee, Let my son go, that he may serve me: and if thou refuse to let him go, behold, I will slay thy son, even thy firstborn.
24 And it came to pass by the way in the inn, that the Lord met him, and sought to kill him.
25 Then Zipporah took a sharp stone, and cut off the foreskin of her son, and cast it at his feet, and said, Surely a bloody husband art thou to me.
26 So he let him go: then she said, A bloody husband thou art, because of the circumcision.
27 And the Lord said to Aaron, Go into the wilderness to meet Moses. And he went, and met him in the mount of God, and kissed him.
28 And Moses told Aaron all the words of the Lord who had sent him, and all the signs which he had commanded him.
29 And Moses and Aaron went and gathered together all the elders of the children of Israel:
30 And Aaron spake all the words which the Lord had spoken unto Moses, and did the signs in the sight of the people.
31 And the people believed: and when they heard that the Lord had visited the children of Israel, and that he had looked upon their affliction, then they bowed their heads and worshipped.
Esodo 4
Conferenza Episcopale Italiana
Potere taumaturgico concesso a Mosè
4 Mosè rispose: «Ecco, non mi crederanno, non ascolteranno la mia voce, ma diranno: Non ti è apparso il Signore!». 2 Il Signore gli disse: «Che hai in mano?». Rispose: «Un bastone». 3 Riprese: «Gettalo a terra!». Lo gettò a terra e il bastone diventò un serpente, davanti al quale Mosè si mise a fuggire. 4 Il Signore disse a Mosè: «Stendi la mano e prendilo per la coda!». Stese la mano, lo prese e diventò di nuovo un bastone nella sua mano. 5 «Questo perché credano che ti è apparso il Signore, il Dio dei loro padri, il Dio di Abramo, il Dio di Isacco, il Dio di Giacobbe». 6 Il Signore gli disse ancora: «Introduci la mano nel seno!». Egli si mise in seno la mano e poi la ritirò: ecco la sua mano era diventata lebbrosa, bianca come la neve. 7 Egli disse: «Rimetti la mano nel seno!». Rimise in seno la mano e la tirò fuori: ecco era tornata come il resto della sua carne. 8 «Dunque se non ti credono e non ascoltano la voce del primo segno, crederanno alla voce del secondo! 9 Se non credono neppure a questi due segni e non ascolteranno la tua voce, allora prenderai acqua del Nilo e la verserai sulla terra asciutta: l'acqua che avrai presa dal Nilo diventerà sangue sulla terra asciutta».
Aronne interprete di Mosè
10 Mosè disse al Signore: «Mio Signore, io non sono un buon parlatore; non lo sono mai stato prima e neppure da quando tu hai cominciato a parlare al tuo servo, ma sono impacciato di bocca e di lingua». 11 Il Signore gli disse: «Chi ha dato una bocca all'uomo o chi lo rende muto o sordo, veggente o cieco? Non sono forse io, il Signore? 12 Ora và! Io sarò con la tua bocca e ti insegnerò quello che dovrai dire». 13 Mosè disse: «Perdonami, Signore mio, manda chi vuoi mandare!». 14 Allora la collera del Signore si accese contro Mosè e gli disse: «Non vi è forse il tuo fratello Aronne, il levita? Io so che lui sa parlar bene. Anzi sta venendoti incontro. Ti vedrà e gioirà in cuor suo. 15 Tu gli parlerai e metterai sulla sua bocca le parole da dire e io sarò con te e con lui mentre parlate e vi suggerirò quello che dovrete fare. 16 Parlerà lui al popolo per te: allora egli sarà per te come bocca e tu farai per lui le veci di Dio. 17 Terrai in mano questo bastone, con il quale tu compirai i prodigi».
Ritorno di Mosè in Egitto. Partenza da Madian
18 Mosè partì, tornò da Ietro suo suocero e gli disse: «Lascia che io parta e torni dai miei fratelli che sono in Egitto, per vedere se sono ancora vivi!». Ietro disse a Mosè: «Và pure in pace!». 19 Il Signore disse a Mosè in Madian: «Và, torna in Egitto, perché sono morti quanti insidiavano la tua vita!». 20 Mosè prese la moglie e i figli, li fece salire sull'asino e tornò nel paese di Egitto. Mosè prese in mano anche il bastone di Dio.
21 Il Signore disse a Mosè: «Mentre tu parti per tornare in Egitto, sappi che tu compirai alla presenza del faraone tutti i prodigi che ti ho messi in mano; ma io indurirò il suo cuore ed egli non lascerà partire il mio popolo. 22 Allora tu dirai al faraone: Dice il Signore: Israele è il mio figlio primogenito. 23 Io ti avevo detto: lascia partire il mio figlio perché mi serva! Ma tu hai rifiutato di lasciarlo partire. Ecco io faccio morire il tuo figlio primogenito!».
Circoncisione del figlio di Mosè
24 Mentre si trovava in viaggio, nel luogo dove pernottava, il Signore gli venne contro e cercò di farlo morire. 25 Allora Zippora prese una selce tagliente, recise il prepuzio del figlio e con quello gli toccò i piedi e disse: «Tu sei per me uno sposo di sangue». 26 Allora si ritirò da lui. Essa aveva detto sposo di sangue a causa della circoncisione.
Incontro con Aronne
27 Il Signore disse ad Aronne: «Và incontro a Mosè nel deserto!». Andò e lo incontrò al monte di Dio e lo baciò. 28 Mosè riferì ad Aronne tutte le parole con le quali il Signore lo aveva inviato e tutti i segni con i quali l'aveva accreditato.
29 Mosè e Aronne andarono e adunarono tutti gli anziani degli Israeliti. 30 Aronne parlò al popolo, riferendo tutte le parole che il Signore aveva dette a Mosè, e compì i segni davanti agli occhi del popolo. 31 Allora il popolo credette. Essi intesero che il Signore aveva visitato gli Israeliti e che aveva visto la loro afflizione; si inginocchiarono e si prostrarono.
Good News Translation® (Today’s English Version, Second Edition) © 1992 American Bible Society. All rights reserved. For more information about GNT, visit www.bibles.com and www.gnt.bible.
