Exodus 6
GOD’S WORD Translation
6 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Now you will see what I will do to Pharaoh. I will show him my power, and he will let my people go. I will show him my power, and he will throw them out of his country.”
The Lord Tells Moses to Speak to Pharaoh Again
2 God spoke to Moses, “I am the Lord. 3 I appeared to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob as God Almighty, but I didn’t make myself known to them by my name, the Lord. 4 I even made a promise [a] to give them Canaan, the land where they lived as foreigners. 5 Now I have heard the groaning of the Israelites, whom the Egyptians hold in slavery, and I have remembered my promise.
6 “Tell the Israelites, ‘I am the Lord. I will bring you out from under the oppression of the Egyptians, and I will free you from slavery. I will rescue you with my powerful arm and with mighty acts of judgment. 7 Then I will make you my people, and I will be your God. You will know that I am the Lord your God, who brought you out from under the forced labor of the Egyptians. 8 I will bring you to the land I solemnly swore to give to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. I will give it to you as your own possession. I am the Lord.’ ”
9 Moses reported this to the Israelites. But they would not listen to him because they were so discouraged by their back-breaking work.
10 Then the Lord spoke to Moses, 11 “Go tell Pharaoh (the king of Egypt) to let the Israelites leave his country.”
12 But Moses protested to the Lord, “The Israelites wouldn’t listen to me. Why would Pharaoh listen to me? I’m such a poor speaker.”
13 The Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron about the Israelites and Pharaoh (the king of Egypt). He commanded them to bring the Israelites out of Egypt.
Aaron and Moses’ Ancestry(A)
14 These were the heads of the families:
The sons of Reuben, Israel’s firstborn, were Hanoch, Pallu, Hezron, and Carmi.
These were the families descended from Reuben.
15 The sons of Simeon were Jemuel, Jamin, Ohad, Jachin, Zohar, and Shaul, the son of a Canaanite woman. These were the families descended from Simeon.
16 These are the names of the sons of Levi listed in birth order: Gershon, Kohath, and Merari. Levi lived 137 years.
17 The sons of Gershon listed by their families were Libni and Shimei.
18 The sons of Kohath were Amram, Izhar, Hebron, and Uzziel. Kohath lived 133 years.
19 The sons of Merari were Mahli and Mushi.
These were the families descended from Levi listed in birth order.
20 Amram married his father’s sister Jochebed. She gave birth to Aaron and Moses. Amram lived 137 years.
21 The sons of Izhar were Korah, Nepheg, and Zichri.
22 The sons of Uzziel were Mishael, Elzaphan, and Sithri.
23 Aaron married Elisheba, daughter of Amminadab and sister of Nahshon. She gave birth to Nadab, Abihu, Eleazar, and Ithamar.
24 The sons of Korah were Assir, Elkanah, and Abiasaph.
These were the families descended from Korah.
25 Eleazar, son of Aaron, married one of the daughters of Putiel. She gave birth to Phinehas.
These were the heads of Levite households listed by their families.
26 This was the same Aaron and Moses to whom the Lord said, “Bring the Israelites out of Egypt in organized family groups.” 27 They—this same Moses and Aaron—told Pharaoh (the king of Egypt) to let the Israelites leave Egypt.
Aaron’s Staff Becomes a Snake
28 At that time the Lord spoke to Moses in Egypt. 29 He said to Moses, “I am the Lord. Tell Pharaoh (the king of Egypt) everything I tell you.”
30 But Moses said to the Lord, “Why would Pharaoh listen to me?”
Footnotes
- 6:4 Or “covenant.”
Exodus 6
English Standard Version
God Promises Deliverance
6 But the Lord said to Moses, “Now you shall see what I will do to Pharaoh; for with a strong hand he will send them out, and with (A)a strong hand he will (B)drive them out of his land.”
2 God spoke to Moses and said to him, (C)“I am the Lord. 3 I appeared to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, as (D)God Almighty,[a] but by my name the (E)Lord I did not make myself known to them. 4 (F)I also established my covenant with them (G)to give them the land of Canaan, the land in which they lived as sojourners. 5 Moreover, (H)I have heard the groaning of the people of Israel whom the Egyptians hold as slaves, and I have remembered my covenant. 6 Say therefore to the people of Israel, (I)‘I am the Lord, and (J)I will bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians, and I will deliver you from slavery to them, and (K)I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with great acts of judgment. 7 I (L)will take you to be my people, and (M)I will be your God, and you shall know that (N)I am the Lord your God, who has brought you out (O)from under the burdens of the Egyptians. 8 I will bring you into (P)the land that I (Q)swore to give to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob. I will give it to you for a possession. (R)I am the Lord.’” 9 Moses spoke thus to the people of Israel, but they (S)did not listen to Moses, because of their broken spirit and harsh slavery.
10 So the Lord said to Moses, 11 “Go in, tell Pharaoh king of Egypt to let the people of Israel go out of his land.” 12 But Moses said to the Lord, “Behold, the people of Israel have (T)not listened to me. How then shall Pharaoh listen to me, for (U)I am of uncircumcised lips?” 13 But the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron and gave them a charge about the people of Israel and about Pharaoh king of Egypt: to bring the people of Israel out of the land of Egypt.
The Genealogy of Moses and Aaron
14 These are the heads of their fathers' houses: the (V)sons of Reuben, the firstborn of Israel: Hanoch, Pallu, Hezron, and Carmi; these are the clans of Reuben. 15 The (W)sons of Simeon: Jemuel, Jamin, Ohad, Jachin, Zohar, and Shaul, the son of a Canaanite woman; these are the clans of Simeon. 16 These are the names of the (X)sons of Levi according to their generations: Gershon, Kohath, and Merari, the years of the life of Levi being 137 years. 17 The (Y)sons of Gershon: Libni and Shimei, by their clans. 18 The (Z)sons of Kohath: Amram, Izhar, Hebron, and Uzziel, the years of the life of Kohath being 133 years. 19 The (AA)sons of Merari: Mahli and Mushi. These are the clans of the Levites according to their generations. 20 (AB)Amram took as his wife Jochebed his father's sister, and she bore him Aaron and Moses, the years of the life of Amram being 137 years. 21 (AC)The sons of Izhar: Korah, Nepheg, and Zichri. 22 The (AD)sons of Uzziel: Mishael, Elzaphan, and Sithri. 23 Aaron took as his wife Elisheba, the daughter of (AE)Amminadab and the sister of (AF)Nahshon, and she bore him (AG)Nadab, Abihu, Eleazar, and Ithamar. 24 The (AH)sons of Korah: Assir, Elkanah, and Abiasaph; these are the clans of the Korahites. 25 Eleazar, Aaron's son, took as his wife one of the daughters of Putiel, and (AI)she bore him Phinehas. These are the heads of the fathers' houses of the Levites by their clans.
26 These are the Aaron and Moses (AJ)to whom the Lord said: “Bring out the people of Israel from the land of Egypt (AK)by their hosts.” 27 It was they who spoke to Pharaoh king of Egypt about bringing out the people of Israel from Egypt, this Moses and this Aaron.
28 On the day when the Lord spoke to Moses in the land of Egypt, 29 the Lord said to Moses, (AL)“I am the Lord; (AM)tell Pharaoh king of Egypt all that I say to you.” 30 But Moses said to the Lord, “Behold, (AN)I am of uncircumcised lips. How will Pharaoh listen to me?”
Footnotes
- Exodus 6:3 Hebrew El Shaddai
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