Bible in 90 Days

Parashat Shemot

Oppression in Egypt

1 Now these are the names of Bnei-Yisrael who came into Egypt with Jacob, each man with his family: ² Reuben, Simeon, Levi and Judah; ³ Issachar, Zebulun and Benjamin; ⁴ Dan, Naphtali, Gad and Asher. ⁵ The souls that came out of the line of Jacob numbered 70 in all, while Joseph was already in Egypt.

⁶ Then Joseph died, as did all his brothers and all that generation. ⁷ Yet Bnei-Yisrael were fruitful, increased abundantly, multiplied and grew extremely numerous—so the land was filled with them.

⁸ Now there arose a new king over Egypt, who did not know Joseph. ⁹ He said to his people, “Look, the people of Bnei-Yisrael are too numerous and too powerful for us. ¹⁰ Come, we must deal shrewdly with them, or else they will grow even more numerous, so that if war breaks out, they may join our enemies, fight against us, and then escape from the land.”

¹¹ So they set slave masters over them to afflict them with forced labor, and they built Pithom and Raamses as storage cities for Pharaoh. ¹² But the more they afflicted them, the more they multiplied and the more they spread. So the Egyptians dreaded the presence of Bnei-Yisrael. ¹³ They worked them harshly, ¹⁴ and made their lives bitter with hard labor with mortar and brick, doing all sorts of work in the fields. In all their labors they worked them with cruelty.

¹⁵ Moreover the king of Egypt spoke to the Hebrew midwives, one of whom was named Shiphrah and the other Puah, ¹⁶ and said, “When you help the Hebrew women during childbirth, look at the sex. If it’s a son, then kill him, but if it’s a daughter, she may live.” ¹⁷ Yet the midwives feared God, so they did not do as the king of Egypt commanded them, but let the boys live. ¹⁸ So the king of Egypt summoned the midwives and said to them, “Why have you done this—let the boys live?”

¹⁹ The midwives told Pharaoh, “Because the Hebrew women are not like Egyptian women. They are like animals,^[a] and give birth before the midwife comes to them.” ²⁰ So God was good to the midwives, and the people multiplied, growing very numerous. ²¹ Because the midwives feared God, He gave them families of their own.

²² But Pharaoh charged all his people saying, “You are to cast every son that is born into the river, but let every daughter live.”

Young Moses

2 Now a man from the house of Levi took as his wife a daughter of Levi. ² The woman conceived and gave birth to a son. Now when she saw that he was delightful, she hid him for three months. ^{[b] 3} But when she could no longer hide him, she took a basket of papyrus reeds, coated it with tar and pitch, put the child inside, and laid it in the reeds by the bank of the Nile. ⁴ His sister stood off at a distance to see what would happen to him.

⁵ Then the daughter of Pharaoh came down to bathe, while her maidens walked along by the riverside. When she saw the basket^[c] among the reeds, she sent her handmaiden to fetch it. ⁶ When she opened it, she saw the child—a baby boy crying! She had compassion on him and said, “This is one of the Hebrew children.”

⁷ Then his sister said to Pharaoh’s daughter, “Should I go and call a nurse from the Hebrews to nurse the child for you?”

⁸ Pharaoh’s daughter told her, “Go!” So the girl went and called the child’s mother. ⁹ Then Pharaoh’s daughter said to her, “Take this child and nurse him for me, and I will pay you your wages.” So the woman took the child and nursed him. ¹⁰ After the boy grew older she brought him to Pharaoh’s daughter and he became her son. So she named him Moses saying, “Because I drew him out of the water.”^[d]

¹¹ Now it happened in those days, after Moses had grown up, that he went out to his brothers and saw their burdens. He noticed an Egyptian beating a Hebrew, one of his own people. ^{[e] 12} So he looked around and when he saw that there was nobody, he killed the Egyptian and hid him in the sand. ¹³ Then he went out the following day, and saw two Hebrew men fighting. So he said to the guilty one, “Why are you beating your companion?”

¹⁴ But the man answered, “Who made you a ruler and a judge over us? Are you saying you’re going to kill me—just as you killed the Egyptian?”

Then Moses was afraid, and thought, “For sure the deed had become known.” ¹⁵ When Pharaoh heard about this, he tried to kill Moses.

But Moses fled from Pharaoh and settled in the land of Midian,^[f] where he sat down by a well. ¹⁶ Now the priest of Midian had seven daughters who came and drew water. They filled the troughs to water their father’s flock. ¹⁷ But shepherds came and drove them away, so Moses stood up, helped them and watered their flock.

¹⁸ When they came to Reuel their father, he said, “How come you’ve returned so soon today?”

¹⁹ So they told him, “An Egyptian delivered us out of the hand of the shepherds. He also drew water for us and watered the flock.”

²⁰ “Where is he then?” he said to his daughters. “Why did you leave the man behind? Invite him to have some food to eat!”

²¹ Moses was content to stay on with the man. Later he gave Moses his daughter Zipporah. ²² She gave birth to a son and he named him Gershom, saying, “I have been an outsider^[g] in a foreign land.”

²³ Now it came about over the course of those many days that the king of Egypt died. Bnei-Yisrael groaned because of their slavery. They cried out and their cry from slavery went up to God. ²⁴ God heard their sobbing and remembered His covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. ²⁵ God saw Bnei-Yisrael, and He was concerned about them.

Angel of Adonai in a Burning Bush

3 Now Moses was tending the flock of his father-in-law Jethro, the priest of Midian. So he led the flock to the farthest end of the wilderness, coming to the mountain of God, Horeb. ^{[h] 2} Then the angel of Adonai appeared to him in a flame of fire from within a bush. So he looked and saw the bush burning with fire, yet it was not consumed. ³ Moses thought, “I will go now, and see this great sight. Why is the bush not burnt?”

⁴ When Adonai saw that he turned to look, He called to him out of the midst of the bush and said, “Moses, Moses!”

So he answered, “Hineni.”

⁵ Then He said, “Come no closer. Take your sandals off your feet, for the place where you are standing is holy ground.” ⁶ Moreover He said, “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.” So Moses hid his face, because he was afraid to look at God.

⁷ Then Adonai said, “I have surely seen the affliction of My people who are in Egypt, and have heard their cry because of their slave masters, for I know their pains. ⁸ So I have come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians, to bring them up out of that land into a good and large land, a land flowing with milk and honey, into the place of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites. ^{[i] 9} Now behold, the cry of Bnei-Yisrael has come to Me. Moreover I have seen the oppression that the Egyptians have inflicted on them. ¹⁰ Come now, I will send you to Pharaoh, so that you may bring My people Bnei-Yisrael out from Egypt.”

¹¹ But Moses said to God, “Who am I, that I should go to Pharaoh, and bring Bnei-Yisrael out of Egypt?”

¹² So He said, “I will surely be with you. So that will be the sign to you that it is I who have sent you. When you have brought the people out of Egypt: you will worship God on this mountain.”

¹³ But Moses said to God, “Suppose I go to Bnei-Yisrael and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘What is His Name?’ What should I say to them?”

¹⁴ God answered Moses, “I AM WHO I AM.^[j]” Then He said, “You are to say to Bnei-Yisrael, ‘I AM’ has sent me to you.” ¹⁵ God also said to Moses: “You are to say to Bnei-Yisrael, Adonai, the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, has sent me to you. This is My Name forever, and the Name by which I should be remembered from generation to generation.

¹⁶ “Go now, gather the elders of Israel together, and say to them: ‘Adonai, the God of your fathers—the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob—has appeared to me, saying, I have been paying close attention to you and have seen what is done to you in Egypt. ¹⁷ So I promise I will bring you up out of the affliction of Egypt, into the land of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites, to a land flowing with milk and honey.’

¹⁸ “They will listen to your voice. So you will go, you along with the elders of Israel, to the king of Egypt, and say to him: ‘Adonai, the God of the Hebrews, has met with us. Now please let us take a three-day journey into the wilderness, so that we may sacrifice to Adonai our God.’ ¹⁹ Nevertheless, I know that the king of Egypt will not let you go, except by a mighty hand. ²⁰ So I will stretch out My hand and strike Egypt with all My wonders that I will do in the midst of it. After that, he will let you go.

²¹ “Then I shall grant these people favor in the eyes of the Egyptians. So it will happen that when you go, you will not leave empty-handed. ²² Every woman is to ask her neighbor and the woman who lives in her house for silver and gold jewelry and clothing. You will put them on your sons and your daughters. So you will plunder the Egyptians.”

Objections and Excuses

4 Then Moses said, “But look, they will not believe me or listen to my voice. They will say, ‘Adonai has not appeared to you.’”

² So Adonai said to him, “What is that in your hand?”

“A staff,” he said.

³ Then He said, “Cast it on the ground.” When he cast it to the ground, it became a serpent, so Moses fled from before it. ⁴ Then Adonai said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand, and take it by the tail.” So he put out his hand, laid hold of it, and it became a staff in his hand.

⁵ “This is so that they may believe Adonai, the God of their fathers—the God of Abra-ham, Isaac and Jacob—has appeared to you.”

⁶ Adonai also said to him, “Now put your hand within your cloak.” So he put his hand inside, and when he took it out, his hand had tza-ra’at—white as snow. ⁷ Then He said, “Put your hand back into your cloak.” So he put his hand back in, and when he took it out it was restored again as the rest of his skin.

⁸ Then He said, “If they do not believe you, or listen to the voice of the first sign, they will believe the message of the latter sign. ⁹ But if they do not believe even these two signs nor listen to your voice, you are to take the water of the river and pour it on the dry land. The water which you take out of the river will become blood on the ground.”

¹⁰ But Moses said to Adonai, “Adonai, I am not a man of words—not yesterday, nor the day before, nor since You have spoken to Your servant—because I have a slow mouth and a heavy tongue.”

¹¹ So Adonai said to him, “Who made man’s mouth? Or who makes a man mute or deaf, seeing or blind? Is it not I, Adonai? ¹² Now go! I will be with your mouth and teach you what to say.”

¹³ But he said, “Please, please, send it by another hand.”

¹⁴ Then the anger of Adonai was kindled against Moses, so He said, “In fact, Aaron the Levite is your brother. I know that he can speak well. Moreover, he is on his way to meet you! When he sees you, he will be glad in his heart. ¹⁵ You are to speak to him and put the words in his mouth. I will be with your mouth and with his, and teach you what to do. ¹⁶ He will be your spokesman to the people, so that he may act as a mouthpiece for you, and it will be as if you were as God for him. ¹⁷ Now then, you must take this staff in your hand to do the signs.”

Moses Returns to Egypt

¹⁸ So Moses went, returned to his father-in-law Jethro and said to him, “Please let me go, so I may return to my kinsmen who are in Egypt and see whether they are still alive.”

Jethro said to Moses, “Go in peace.”

¹⁹ Then Adonai said to Moses in Midian, “Go, return to Egypt, for all the men that sought your life are dead.” ²⁰ So Moses took his wife and his sons, set them on a donkey and returned to the land of Egypt. Moses took the staff of God in his hand.

²¹ Adonai said to Moses, “When you go back to Egypt, see that you do all the wonders before Pharaoh that I have put in your hand. Still, I will harden his heart, and he will not let the people go. ²² You are to say to Pharaoh, “This is what Adonai says: ‘Israel is My son, My firstborn. ²³ So I have said to you, Let My son go, that he may serve Me, but you have refused to let him go. Behold, I will slay your son, your firstborn.’”

²⁴ It happened along the way, at a lodging place, that Adonai met him and sought to kill him! ²⁵ But Zipporah took a flint, cut off the foreskin of her son, and threw it at his feet, saying, “You are surely a bridegroom of blood to me.” ²⁶ She said, “A bridegroom of blood” because of the circumcision. Then He let him alone.

²⁷ Now Adonai said to Aaron, “Go into the wilderness to meet Moses.” So he went and met him at the mountain of God, and kissed him. ²⁸ Then Moses told Aaron all the words of Adonai with which He had been sent, along with all the signs that He had commanded him to do. ²⁹ Then Moses and Aaron went and assembled all the elders of Bnei-Yisrael. ³⁰ Aaron spoke all the words that Adonai had spoken to Moses and did the signs in the sight of the people. ³¹ So the people believed. When they heard that Adonai had remembered Bnei-Yisrael and had seen their affliction, they bowed their heads and worshipped.

Pharaoh Will Not Let Israel Go

5 Afterward, Moses and Aaron went and said to Pharaoh, “This is what Adonai, God of Israel, says: Let My people go, so that they may hold a feast for Me in the wilderness.”

² But Pharaoh said, “Who is Adonai, that I should listen to His voice and let Israel go? I do not know Adonai, and besides, I will not let Israel go.”

³ They answered, “The God of the Hebrews has met with us. Please let us take a three-day journey into the wilderness, so we may sacrifice to Adonai our God, or else He may strike us with pestilence or with the sword.”

⁴ But the king of Egypt said to them, “Why do you, Moses and Aaron, make the people break loose from their work? Go to your labors!” ⁵ Then Pharaoh said, “Look, the people of the land are now so numerous, yet you would have them rest from their labors?”

⁶ Then on the same day Pharaoh commanded the slave masters of the people and their foremen saying, ⁷ “You are not to give the people any more straw to make bricks, as before. Let them go and gather straw for themselves. ⁸ But impose on them the quota of bricks that they made previously; don’t reduce it. For they are lazy—that’s why they cry out saying, ‘Let us go and sacrifice to our God.’ ⁹ Let even heavier work be laid upon the men, so that they must labor, paying no attention to deceptive words.”

¹⁰ Then the slave masters of the people went out, along with their officers, and they spoke to the people saying: “This is what Pharaoh says: I will not give you straw. ¹¹ Go and get straw for yourselves wherever you can find it, for there will be no reduction of your work.” ¹² So the people were scattered throughout all the land of Egypt to gather stubble for straw. ¹³ But the slave masters pressured, saying, “Fulfill your work, your daily amount, just as when there was straw.” ¹⁴ Moreover the foremen of Bnei-Yisrael, whom Pharaoh’s slave masters had set over them, were beaten and asked, “Why haven’t you met your quota of bricks, both yesterday and today like before?”

¹⁵ The foremen of Bnei-Yisrael came and cried out to Pharaoh saying, “Why do you deal this way with your servants? ¹⁶ No straw is given to your servants, yet they say to us, ‘Make bricks!’ and look, your servants are beaten. But it is your own people at fault.”

¹⁷ But he said, “Lazy! You’re lazy! That’s why you were saying, ‘Let us go and sacrifice to Adonai.’ ¹⁸ So go now and work! No straw will be given to you—but you must deliver the quota of bricks.”

¹⁹ So the foremen of Bnei-Yisrael saw that they were in trouble when they were told, “You are not to reduce the number of bricks from day to day.” ²⁰ Then they met Moses and Aaron, who were waiting for them as they came from Pharaoh.

²¹ So they said to them, “May Adonai look on you and judge, because you have made us a stench in the eyes of Pharaoh and in the eyes of his servants—putting a sword in their hand to kill us!”

²² So Moses returned to Adonai and said, “Adonai, why have You brought evil on these people? Is this why You sent me? ²³ Ever since I came to Pharaoh to speak in Your Name, he has brought evil on these people. You have not delivered Your people at all.”

How Will Pharaoh Listen?

6 Adonai said to Moses, “Now you will see what I am going to do to Pharaoh. By way of a strong hand he will let them go, and drive them out of his land.”

Parashat Va’eira

² God spoke further to Moses and said to him, “I am Adonai. ³ I appeared to Abraham, to Isaac and to Jacob, as El Shaddai. Yet by My Name, Adonai, did I not make Myself known to them. ⁴ I also established My covenant with them, to give them the land of Canaan, the land of their pilgrimage where they journeyed. ⁵ Furthermore, I have heard the groaning of Bnei-Yisrael, whom the Egyptians are keeping in bondage. So I have remembered My covenant. ⁶ Therefore say to Bnei-Yisrael: I am Adonai, and I will bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians. I will deliver you from their bondage, and I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with great judgments. ⁷ I will take you to Myself as a people, and I will be your God. You will know that I am Adonai your God, who brought you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians. ⁸ So I will bring you into the land that I swore to give to Abraham, to Isaac and to Jacob, and give it to you as an inheritance. I am Adonai.”

⁹ Moses spoke this way to Bnei-Yisrael, but they did not listen to him because of their broken spirit and cruel bondage. ¹⁰ So Adonai told Moses, ¹¹ “Go, speak to Pharaoh king of Egypt, so that will he let Bnei-Yisrael go out of his land.”

¹² But Moses said to Adonai, “Bnei-Yisrael have not listened to me. So how would Pharaoh listen to me—I, who have uncircumcised lips?”

¹³ Then Adonai spoke to Moses and to Aaron and gave to them a charge for Bnei-Yisrael and Pharaoh king of Egypt, to bring Bnei-Yisrael out of the land of Egypt.

¹⁴ These are the heads of their father’s houses. The sons of Reuben the firstborn of Israel were Hanoch, Pallu, Hezron and Carmi. These are the families of Reuben. ¹⁵ The sons of Simeon were Jemuel, Jamin, Ohad, Jachin, Zohar and Shaul the son of a Canaanite woman. These are the families of Simeon.

¹⁶ These are the names of the sons of Levi according to their generations: Gershon, Kohath and Merari. Levi lived 137 years. ¹⁷ The sons of Gershon were Libni and Shimei, according to their families. 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 are the families of the Levites according to their generations.

²⁰ Amram married Jochebed, his father’s sister, and she bore him 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 Amminadav, sister of Nahshon, and she bore him Nadab and Abihu, Eleazar and Ithamar. ²⁴ The sons of Korah were Assir, Elkanah and Abiasaph. These are the families of the Korahites. ²⁵ Eleazar, Aaron’s son, married one of the daughters of Putiel and she bore him Phinehas. These are the heads of the ancestral houses of the Levites according to their families.

²⁶ These are the same Aaron and Moses to whom Adonai said, “Bring Bnei-Yisrael out from the land of Egypt according to their divisions.” ²⁷ These are the ones that spoke to Pharaoh king of Egypt, to bring Bnei-Yisrael out from Egypt. These are that same Moses and Aaron. ²⁸ So it happened on the day when Adonai spoke to Moses in the land of Egypt, ²⁹ that Adonai said to Moses, “I am Adonai. Tell Pharaoh king of Egypt everything that I tell to you.” ³⁰ But Moses said to Adonai, “I am of uncircumcised lips, so how would Pharaoh listen to me?”

7 So Adonai said to Moses, “See, I have set you as God to Pharaoh, and Aaron your brother will be your prophet. ² You are to speak all that I command you and Aaron your brother is to speak to Pharaoh, so that he will let Bnei-Yisrael go out of his land. ³ Yet I will harden Pharaoh’s heart, and multiply My signs and wonders in the land of Egypt. ⁴ But Pharaoh will not listen to you, so I will lay My hand upon Egypt, and bring forth My armies, My people Bnei-Yisrael, out of the land of Egypt by great judgments. ⁵ The Egyptians will know that I am Adonai, when I stretch out My hand against Egypt, and bring out Bnei-Yisrael from among them.” ⁶ So Moses and Aaron did as Adonai commanded them. ⁷ Moses was eighty years old^[k] and Aaron eighty-three years old when they spoke to Pharaoh.

⁸ Adonai told Moses and Aaron, ⁹ “When Pharaoh speaks to you saying, ‘Prove yourselves with a miracle,’ then you are to say to Aaron, ‘Take your staff and cast it down before Pharaoh, so that it may become a serpent.’”

¹⁰ So Moses and Aaron went in to Pharaoh and did as Adonai had commanded. Aaron threw down his staff before Pharaoh and before his servants, and it became a serpent. ¹¹ Then Pharaoh called for the wise men and the sorcerers, and they too, the magicians of Egypt, did the same with their secret arts. ¹² For each man threw down his staff, and they became serpents. But Aaron’s staff swallowed up their staffs. ¹³ Yet Pharaoh’s heart was hardened. So he did not listen to them—just as Adonai had said.

Ten Plagues Begin: Blood

¹⁴ Then Adonai said to Moses, “Pharaoh’s heart is stubborn; he refuses to let the people go. ¹⁵ Go to Pharaoh in the morning as he is coming out to the water, and stand ready to meet him by the bank of the Nile. Take the staff that was transformed into a serpent in your hand. ¹⁶ You are to say to him: Adonai, God of the Hebrews, has sent me to you, saying, ‘Let My people go, so they may serve Me in the wilderness,’ and behold, you have not listened. ¹⁷ This is what Adonai says: ‘By this you will know that I am Adonai. Behold, I will strike the waters that are in the river with the staff that is in my hand, and they will be turned to blood. ¹⁸ The fish that are in the river will die, the river will become foul, and the Egyptians will hate to drink water from the Nile.”’

¹⁹ Adonai said to Moses, “Say to Aaron: Take your staff and stretch out your hand over the waters of Egypt, over their rivers, over their streams, over their pools and over all their ponds, so that they become blood. There will be blood throughout all the land of Egypt, even in wooden and stone containers.”

²⁰ So Moses and Aaron did as Adonai commanded. He lifted up the staff and struck the waters that were in the river in the sight of Pharaoh and his servants, and all the waters of the Nile turned to blood. ²¹ When the fish that were in the river died, the river became so foul that the Egyptians could not drink water from the river. The blood was throughout all the land of Egypt.

²² But the magicians of Egypt did the same with their secret arts. So Pharaoh’s heart was hardened, and he did not listen to them—just as Adonai had said. ²³ Pharaoh turned and went into his house, and did not even take it to heart. ²⁴ So all the Egyptians dug around the river for water to drink, because they could not drink of the water from the Nile. ²⁵ Seven days were fulfilled after Adonai had struck the Nile.

^26 [l] Then Adonai said to Moses, “Go to Pharaoh and say to him: This is what Adonai says: ‘Let My people go, so they may serve Me. ²⁷ If you refuse to let them go, see, I will strike all your territory with frogs. ²⁸ The river will swarm with frogs. They will go up and enter your house, into your bedroom, upon your bed, into the houses of your servants, upon your people, into your ovens, and in your kneading bowls. ²⁹ The frogs will climb up on you, your people and all your servants.’”

Frogs, Gnats, Flies

8 Then Adonai told Moses, “Say to Aaron: Stretch out your hand with your staff over the rivers, canals and pools, and cause frogs to come up over the land of Egypt.” ² So Aaron stretched out his hand over the waters of Egypt, and the frogs came up and covered the land. ³ But the magicians did the same with their secret arts and brought up frogs over the land of Egypt.

⁴ Then Pharaoh called for Moses and Aaron and said, “Pray to Adonai, that He would take the frogs away from me and from my people. Then I will let the people go, so they may sacrifice to Adonai.”

⁵ Moses answered Pharaoh, “Boast about me after I pray for you. When am I to pray for you, your servants and your people, that the frogs would be cut off from you and your houses, and remain only in the Nile?”

⁶ “Tomorrow,” he said.

So he said, “Let it happen according to your word, so that you may know that there is none like Adonai our God. ⁷ The frogs will depart from you, from your houses, from your servants and from your people. They will remain only in the Nile.”

⁸ After Moses and Aaron went out from Pharaoh, Moses cried out to Adonai concerning the frogs, which He had brought upon Pharaoh. ⁹ So Adonai acted according to the word of Moses, and the frogs died out in the houses, the courts and the fields. ¹⁰ They piled them together in large heaps, and the land stank. ¹¹ But when Pharaoh saw that there was relief, he hardened his heart and did not listen to them—just as Adonai had said.

¹² So Adonai said to Moses, “Tell Aaron, ‘Stretch out your staff and strike the dust of the earth, and it will become gnats^[m] throughout all the land of Egypt.’” ¹³ So they did. When Aaron stretched out his hand with his staff and struck the dust of the earth, there were gnats on men and animals. All the dust of the earth became gnats throughout all the land of Egypt.

¹⁴ When the magicians attempted the same with their secret arts to bring forth gnats, they could not. There were gnats on men and animals. ¹⁵ So the magicians said to Pharaoh, “This is the finger of God.” But Pharaoh’s heart was hardened, and he did not listen to them—just as Adonai had said.

¹⁶ Then Adonai said to Moses, “Rise up early in the morning and stand before Pharaoh. As he comes to the water say to him, This is what Adonai says: Let My people go, that they may serve Me. ¹⁷ Or else, if you do not let My people go, I will send the swarm of flies^[n] on you and on your servants, on your people and into your houses. The houses of the Egyptians will be full of the swarm of flies including the ground that they stand on.

¹⁸ “But on that day I will set apart the land of Goshen, where My people are dwelling—except no swarm of flies will be there—so that you may know that I, Adonai, am in the midst of the earth. ¹⁹ I will make a distinction between My people and your people. By tomorrow this sign will happen.”

²⁰ Adonai did just so. A massive swarm of flies went into the house of Pharaoh and into his servant’s houses. All the land of Egypt was ruined because of the swarm of flies.

²¹ So Pharaoh called for Moses and for Aaron and said, “Go! Sacrifice to your God—in the land.”

²² But Moses said, “That would not be right. For the offerings we intend to sacrifice to Adonai our God are an abomination to the Egyptians. If we sacrifice what is an abomination to the Egyptians, wouldn’t they stone us? ²³ We must walk a three-day journey into the wilderness and sacrifice to Adonai our God—just as He tells us.”

²⁴ Pharaoh said, “I will let you go, so that you may sacrifice to Adonai your God in the wilderness. Only you must not go very far away. Pray for me.”

²⁵ So Moses said, “See, I am leaving you, and I will pray to Adonai that the swarm of flies will depart from Pharaoh, his servants and from his people tomorrow. However, let Pharaoh no longer deal deceitfully by not letting the people go sacrifice to Adonai.” ²⁶ Then Moses went out from Pharaoh and prayed to Adonai. ²⁷ Adonai acted according to the word of Moses, and removed the swarm of flies from Pharaoh, from his servants and from his people. Nothing remained. ²⁸ But Pharaoh hardened his heart this time also, and did not let the people go.

Livestock, Boils, Hail

9 Then Adonai said to Moses, “Go in to Pharaoh, and tell him: This is what Adonai, the God of the Hebrews, says: ‘Let My people go, so they may serve Me.’ ² For if you refuse to let them go, and hold them still, ³ behold, the hand of Adonai will fall upon your livestock that are in the field—on the horses, donkeys, camels, herds and flocks. There will be a crushing plague. ⁴ But Adonai will make a distinction between the cattle of Israel and the cattle of Egypt, and nothing will die that belongs to Bnei-Yisrael.”

⁵ Also Adonai set a specific time, saying, “Tomorrow Adonai will do this thing in the land.”

⁶ Then the next day, Adonai did the deed. All the cattle of Egypt died, yet of the cattle of Bnei-Yisrael, not one died. ⁷ When Pharaoh inquired, there was not so much as one of the cattle of Bnei-Yisrael dead. But the heart of Pharaoh was stubborn, and he did not let the people go.

⁸ Then Adonai said to Moses and Aaron, “Take handfuls of soot from the furnace, and have Moses throw it heavenward in the sight of Pharaoh. ⁹ It will become fine dust over all the land of Egypt, and will become boils erupting with sores on both men and animals throughout all the land.”

¹⁰ So they took soot from the furnace and stood before Pharaoh. When Moses threw it heavenward, it became boils erupting with sores on both men and animals. ¹¹ Moreover, the magicians could not stand before Moses because of the boils, because they were on the magicians, as on all the Egyptians. ¹² But Adonai hardened the heart of Pharaoh, so he did not listen to them—just as Adonai had said to Moses.

¹³ Then Adonai said to Moses, “Rise up early in the morning, stand before Pharaoh and say to him: This is what Adonai the God of the Hebrews says: ‘Let My people go, so they may serve Me. ¹⁴ For this time I will send all My plagues to your heart, and on your servants and your people, so that you may know that there is none like Me in all the earth. ¹⁵ Surely by now I could have stretched out My hand and struck you and your people with a plague that would have wiped you off the earth. ¹⁶ However, I have let you stand for this reason: to show you My power, and that My Name might be proclaimed throughout all the earth. ¹⁷ Yet still you exalt yourself over My people, by not letting them go. ¹⁸ Behold, tomorrow at about this time, I will cause it to rain a very severe hailstorm, the likes of which has not occurred in Egypt since the day it was founded until now. ¹⁹ Send word, shelter your cattle and all that you have in the field. For every person and animal found in the field and not brought home, when the hail comes down on them, they will die.’”

²⁰ Whoever feared the word of Adonai among the servants of Pharaoh had his own servants and cattle flee into the houses, ²¹ but whoever disregarded the word of Adonai left his servants and cattle in the field.

²² Then Adonai said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand toward heaven and let there be hail in all the land of Egypt, on people, animals and every plant of the field, throughout all the land.”

²³ So Moses stretched out his staff toward heaven, and Adonai sent thunder and hail. Fire came down on the earth, as Adonai rained hail on the land of Egypt. ²⁴ The hail fell very severely, with fire flashing up amidst the hail, the likes of which had not occurred in all the land of Egypt since it became a nation. ²⁵ The hail struck down everything that was in the fields, both men and animals, all throughout the land of Egypt. It also struck every plant of the field and broke down every tree. ²⁶ Only in the land of Goshen, where Bnei-Yisrael were, was there no hail.

²⁷ So Pharaoh sent, called for Moses and Aaron and said to them, “I have sinned this time. Adonai is righteous, while I and my people are wicked. ²⁸ Pray to Adonai—there has been enough of God’s thunders and hail! I will let you go. You don’t have to stay any longer.”

²⁹ Moses said to him, “As soon as I am gone out of the city, I will stretch out my hands to Adonai. The thunder will cease and there will be no more hail—so you may know that the earth is Adonai’s. ³⁰ But as for you and your servants, I know that you do not yet fear Adonai Elohim.”

³¹ (The flax and the barley were destroyed, because the barley was in the ear, and the flax was in bloom. ³² But the wheat and the spelt were not destroyed, because they ripen later.)

³³ Moses went out of the city, away from Pharaoh, and stretched out his hands to Adonai. Then the thunder and hail ceased, and rain no longer poured down on the earth. ³⁴ But when Pharaoh saw that the rain, the hail and the thunder had ceased, he increased his sin and hardened his heart, both he and his servants. ³⁵ So Pharaoh’s heart was hardened and he did not let Bnei-Yisrael go—just as Adonai had said by Moses’ hand.

Parashat Bo

Locusts, Darkness

10 Then Adonai said to Moses, “Go to Pharaoh, because I have hardened his heart and the heart of his servants, so that I might show these My signs in their midst, ² and so you may tell your son and your grandchildren what I have done in Egypt, as well as My signs that I did among them, so you may know that I am Adonai.”

³ So Moses and Aaron went to Pharaoh and said to him, “This is what Adonai, the God of the Hebrews, says: How long would you refuse to humble yourself before Me? Let My people go, so they may serve Me. ⁴ Or else, if you refuse to let My people go, behold, tomorrow I will bring locusts into your borders. ⁵ Then they will cover the face of the earth, so that no one will be able to see the ground. They will eat the remainder of what escaped—whatever is left from the hail—and eat every tree that grows for you out in the field. ⁶ Your houses will be filled, as will the houses of all your servants and the houses of all the Egyptians, as neither your fathers nor your grandfathers have seen since the day they were on the earth until today!” Then he turned and went out from Pharaoh.

⁷ Pharaoh’s servants said to him, “How long will this man be a snare to us? Send the men, so they may serve Adonai their God. Don’t you realize yet that Egypt is being destroyed?”

⁸ So Moses and Aaron were brought to Pharaoh again. “Go, serve Adonai your God,” he said. “But who will be going?”

⁹ Moses answered, “We will go with our young and our elderly, our sons and our daughters. We will go with our flocks and our herds—for we must have Adonai’s feast for Him.”

¹⁰ But he said to them, “So may Adonai be with you, if I ever do let you go, with your little ones. See clearly now! Evil is in your face. ¹¹ Not so! Go now—the men—and serve Adonai! For that’s what you were seeking.” Then they were driven out from Pharaoh’s presence.

¹² Then Adonai said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand over the land of Egypt for the locusts, so they may come up onto Egypt and eat every plant in the land—everything the hail has left.” ¹³ So Moses stretched out his staff over the land of Egypt, and Adonai brought an east wind over the land all that day and all night. When it was morning, the east wind brought the locusts. ¹⁴ The locusts came up over all the land of Egypt and rested on the entire territory of Egypt. So dense—there was nothing like it before them, nor will there ever be again. ¹⁵ For they covered the face of the whole earth so that the land was darkened, and they ate every plant in the land and all the fruit from the trees that the hail had left. No green thing remained, not a tree or a plant of the field throughout all the land of Egypt.

¹⁶ Then Pharaoh quickly called for Moses and Aaron and said, “I have sinned against Adonai your God and against you. ¹⁷ Now forgive my sin, only this once, please! So pray to Adonai your God—just so He would take this death away from me!”

¹⁸ So he went out from Pharaoh and prayed to Adonai. ¹⁹ Then Adonai turned the wind from the west, very strong, and it carried off the locusts and drove them into the Sea of Reeds. Not one locust remained in all the territory of Egypt. ²⁰ But Adonai hardened Pharaoh’s heart, and he did not let Bnei-Yisrael go.

²¹ Then Adonai said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand toward heaven, and there will be darkness over the land of Egypt—a darkness that may be felt.”

²² So Moses stretched out his hand toward heaven, and there was a thick darkness in all the land of Egypt for three days. ²³ They could not see one another, nor could anyone rise from his place for three days. Yet all Bnei-Yisrael had light within their dwellings.

²⁴ Pharaoh called Moses and said, “Go, serve Adonai. Only let your flocks and your herds remain. Your little ones may also go with you.”

²⁵ But Moses said, “You must also put sacrifices and burnt offerings into our hand, then we will do it for Adonai our God. ²⁶ Our cattle must also go with us—not a hoof may be left behind. We must take from them to serve Adonai our God. We ourselves will not know how we will serve Adonai until we arrive there.”

²⁷ But Adonai hardened Pharaoh’s heart, and he was unwilling to let them go. ²⁸ So Pharaoh said to him, “Go away from me! Take heed never to see my face again, because on the day you do, you will die!”

²⁹ “Right!” Moses said. “You said it! May I never see your face again!”

Final Plague: Death

11 Now Adonai had said to Moses, “I will bring one more plague upon Pharaoh and on Egypt. After that, he will let you go from here. When he lets you go, he will surely thrust you out altogether from here. ² Speak now into the ears of the people, and let every man ask from his neighbor and every woman from her neighbor for articles of silver and gold.” ³ Adonai gave the people favor in the eyes of the Egyptians. Indeed, the man Moses was very great in the land of Egypt, in the eyes of Pharaoh’s servants and in the eyes of the people.

⁴ So Moses said, “This is what Adonai says: At around midnight I will go out into the midst of Egypt, ⁵ and all the firstborn in the land of Egypt will die—from the firstborn of Pharaoh sitting on his throne to the firstborn of the maidservant behind the mill, along with all the firstborn cattle. ^{[o] 6} There will be a great cry throughout all the land of Egypt, the likes of which has never been before nor will ever be again. ⁷ But not so much as a dog will growl against any of Bnei-Yisrael, neither man nor beast—so that you may know that Adonai makes a distinction between the Egyptians and Israel. ⁸ All these servants of yours will come down to me and bow down to me, saying, ‘Get out, you and all the people who follow you!’ After that, I will go.” Then he went out from Pharaoh hot with anger.

⁹ Adonai had said to Moses, “Pharaoh will not listen to you, so that My wonders may be multiplied in the land of Egypt.” ¹⁰ So Moses and Aaron did all these wonders before Pharaoh, yet Adonai hardened Pharaoh’s heart, so he did not let Bnei-Yisrael go out of his land.

The Passover Lamb

12 Now Adonai spoke to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt saying, ² “This month will mark the beginning of months for you; it is to be the first month of the year for you. ³ Tell all the congregation of Israel that on the tenth day of this month, each man is to take a lamb for his family one lamb for the household. ⁴ But if the household is too small for a lamb, then he and his nearest neighbor are to take one according to the number of the people. According to each person eating, you are to make your count for the lamb. ⁵ Your lamb is to be without blemish, a year old male.^[p] You may take it from the sheep or from the goats. ⁶ You must watch over it until the fourteenth day of the same month. Then the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel is to slaughter it at twilight. ^{[q] 7} They are to take the blood and put it on the two doorposts and on the crossbeam of the houses where they will eat it. ⁸ They are to eat the meat that night, roasted over a fire. With matzot and bitter herbs^[r] they are to eat it. ⁹ Do not eat any of it raw or boiled with water, but only roasted with fire—its head with its legs and its innards. ¹⁰ So let nothing of it remain until the morning. Whatever remains until the morning you are to burn with fire. ¹¹ Also you are to eat it this way: with your loins girded, your shoes on your feet and your staff in your hand. You are to eat it in haste. It is Adonai’s Passover.

¹² “For I will go through the land of Egypt on that night and strike down every firstborn, both men and animals, and I will execute judgments against all the gods of Egypt. I am Adonai. ¹³ The blood will be a sign for you on the houses where you are.^[s] When I see the blood, I will pass over you. So there will be no plague among you to destroy you when I strike the land of Egypt.

¹⁴ “This day is to be a memorial for you.^[t] You are to keep it as a feast to Adonai. Throughout your generations you are to keep it as an eternal ordinance. ¹⁵ For seven days you are to eat matzot, but on the first day you must remove hametz from your houses,^[u] for whoever eats hametz from the first day until the seventh day, that soul will be cut off from Israel. ¹⁶ The first day is to be a holy assembly for you as well as the seventh day. No manner of work is to be done on those days, except what is to be eaten by every person—that alone may be prepared by you. ¹⁷ So you are to observe the Feast of Matzot, for on this very same day have I brought your ranks out of the land of Egypt. Therefore you are to observe this day throughout your generations as an eternal ordinance.

¹⁸ During the first month in the evening of the fourteenth day of the month, you are to eat matzot, until the evening of the twenty-first day of the month. ¹⁹ For seven days no hametz is to be found in your houses, for whoever eats hametz, that soul will be cut off from the congregation of Israel, whether he is an outsider or one who is born in the land. ²⁰ You are to eat no hametz; in all your houses you are to eat matzot.”

²¹ Then Moses called for all the elders of Israel and said to them, “Go, select lambs for your families and slaughter the Passover lamb. ^{[v] 22} You are to take a bundle of hyssop, dip it in the blood that is in the basin, and apply it to the crossbeam and two doorposts with the blood from the basin. None of you may go out the door of his house until morning. ²³ Adonai will pass through to strike down the Egyptians, but when He sees the blood on the crossbeam and the two doorposts, Adonai will pass over that door, and will not allow the destroyer to come into your houses to strike you down. ²⁴ Also you are to observe this event as an eternal ordinance, for you and your children.

²⁵ “When you come into the land which Adonai will give you as He has promised, you are to keep this ceremony. ²⁶ Now when it happens that your children ask you, ‘What does this ceremony mean to you?’ ²⁷ You are to say, ‘It is the sacrifice of Adonai’s Passover, because He passed over the houses of Bnei-Yisrael in Egypt, when He struck down the Egyptians, but spared our households.’” So the people bowed their heads and worshipped.

²⁸ Then Bnei-Yisrael went and did it. They did just as Adonai had commanded Moses and Aaron. ²⁹ So it came about at midnight that Adonai struck down all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, from the firstborn of Pharaoh sitting on his throne to the firstborn of the captive who was in the dungeon, and all the firstborn cattle.^[w]

³⁰ Then Pharaoh rose up in the night, he and all his servants and all the Egyptians, and there was loud wailing in Egypt. For there was not a house where someone was not dead. ³¹ So he called for Moses and Aaron at night and said, “Rise up, go out from my people, both you and Bnei-Yisrael, go, serve Adonai as you have said. ³² Take your flocks and your herds, as you said, and be gone! But bless me, too.”

³³ Now the Egyptians urged the people, sending them out of the land quickly, for they thought, “We will all be dead!” ³⁴ So the people took their dough before it was leavened, with their kneading bowls bound up in their clothes on their shoulders. ³⁵ So Bnei-Yisrael acted according to the word of Moses. They asked the Egyptians for articles of silver and gold, and for clothing. ³⁶ Adonai gave the people favor in the eyes of the Egyptians and let them have what they asked for. So they plundered the Egyptians.

³⁷ Then Bnei-Yisrael journeyed from Rameses to Succoth, about 600,000 men on foot, as well as children. ³⁸ Also a mixed multitude went up with them, along with the flocks, herds and heavy livestock. ³⁹ They had baked matzot cakes from the dough that they brought out of Egypt. It had no hametz, because they were thrust out of Egypt and could not delay, so they had not made provisions for themselves.

⁴⁰ Now the time that Bnei-Yisrael lived in Egypt was 430 years. ⁴¹ So it happened at the end of 430 years, to the very day, that all the armies of Adonai went out from the land of Egypt. ⁴² It was a night of watching for Adonai to bring them out of the land of Egypt. This same night is a night of vigil for Adonai, for all Bnei-Yisrael throughout their generations.

⁴³ Then Adonai said to Moses and Aaron, “This is the ordinance of the Passover. No foreigner may eat it, ⁴⁴ but every man’s servant that is bought for money, after you have circumcised him, may eat it. ⁴⁵ Nor should a visitor or hired servant eat it. ⁴⁶ It is to be eaten inside a single house. You are not to carry the meat out of the house, nor are you to break any of its bones. ^{[x] 47} All the congregation of Israel must keep it. ⁴⁸ But if an outsider dwells with you, who would keep the Passover for Adonai, all his males must be circumcised. Then let him draw near and keep it. He will be like one who is native to the land. But no uncircumcised person may eat from it. ⁴⁹ The same Torah applies to the native as well as the outsider who dwells among you.”

⁵⁰ So all Bnei-Yisrael did so. They did just as Adonai commanded Moses and Aaron. ⁵¹ It was on that very day that Adonai brought Bnei-Yisrael out of the land of Egypt as armies.

Redemption of the Firstborn

13 Adonai spoke to Moses saying, ² “Consecrate to Me all the firstborn, from every womb of Bnei-Yisrael, both men and animals—this is Mine.”^[y]

³ Moses said to the people, “Remember this day, on which you came out from Egypt, out of the house of bondage. For by a strong hand Adonai brought you out from this place. No hametz may be eaten. ⁴ This day, in the month of Aviv, you are going out. ⁵ When Adonai brings you into the land of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Hivites and the Jebusites, which He swore to your fathers to give you, a land flowing with milk and honey, you are to observe this service during this month. ⁶ For seven days you are to eat matzah, and the seventh day is to be a feast to Adonai. ⁷ Matzot is to be eaten throughout the seven days, and no hametz is to be seen among you, nor within any of your borders.

⁸ “You are to tell your son on that day saying, ‘It is because of what Adonai did for me when I came out of Egypt. ⁹ So it will be like a sign on your hand and a reminder between your eyes, so that the Torah of Adonai may be in your mouth. For with a strong hand Adonai has brought you out of Egypt. ¹⁰ You are to keep this ordinance as a moed from year to year.

¹¹ “Now when Adonai brings you into the land of the Canaanite, as He swore to you and your fathers and gives it you, ¹² you are to set apart to Adonai every firstborn from the womb, and every firstborn male animal you have will be Adonai’s. ¹³ Every firstborn donkey you are to redeem with a lamb, and if you do not redeem it, then you are to break its neck. But you are to redeem every firstborn male among your sons.

¹⁴ “So when your son asks you in times to come, ‘What is this?’ say to him, ‘By a strong hand Adonai brought us out from Egypt, the house of bondage, ¹⁵ and when Pharaoh refused to let us go, Adonai slew all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both men and animals. So I sacrifice to Adonai all firstborn males, but I redeem the firstborn of my sons.’ ¹⁶ So it will be like a sign on your hand and like frontlets between your eyes, for by a strong hand Adonai brought us out of Egypt.”

Parashat Beshalach

¹⁷ After Pharaoh had let the people go, God did not lead them along the road to the land of the Philistines, although that was nearby, for God said, “The people might change their minds if they see war and return to Egypt.” ¹⁸ So God led the people around by the way of the wilderness to the Sea of Reeds, and Bnei-Yisrael went up out of the land of Egypt armed.

¹⁹ Moses also took the bones of Joseph with him, for he had made Bnei-Yisrael swear an oath saying, “God will surely remember you, and then you are to carry my bones away with you.”^[z]

²⁰ So they journeyed from Succoth and encamped in Etham, on the edge of the wilderness. ²¹ Adonai went before them in a pillar of cloud by day to lead the way and in a pillar of fire by night to give them light. So they could travel both day and night. ^{[aa] 22} The pillar of cloud by day and the pillar of fire by night never departed from the people.

Sea of Reeds Showdown

14 Adonai spoke to Moses saying, ² “Speak to Bnei-Yisrael, so that they turn back and encamp before Pi-hahiroth, between Migdol and the sea. You are to camp by the sea, opposite Baal-zephon. ³ Pharaoh will say concerning Bnei-Yisrael, ‘They are wandering aimlessly in the land—the wilderness has shut them in!’ ⁴ I will harden Pharaoh’s heart, so he will follow after them. Then I will be glorified over Pharaoh along with all his army, and the Egyptians will know that I am Adonai.” So they did so.

⁵ When the king of Egypt was told that the people had fled, Pharaoh and his servants had a change of heart toward the people, and they said, “What is this we have done, that we let Israel go from serving us?” ⁶ So he prepared his chariots and took his people with him. ⁷ He took 600 of the finest chariots, along with all other chariots of Egypt, and captains over them. ⁸ Adonai hardened the heart of Pharaoh king of Egypt, so he pursued Bnei-Yisrael, for Bnei-Yisrael went out with a high hand. ⁹ But the Egyptians pursued them with all the horses and chariots of Pharaoh, as well as his charioteers and his army, and overtook them as they were encamped by the sea, beside Pi-hahiroth opposite Baal-zephon.

¹⁰ When Pharaoh drew near, Bnei-Yisrael lifted up their eyes, and behold, the Egyptians were marching after them! So they were terrified, and Bnei-Yisrael cried out to Adonai. ¹¹ They said to Moses, “Have you taken us away to die in the wilderness because there were no graves in Egypt? Why have you dealt this way with us, to bring us out of Egypt? ¹² Did we not say to you in Egypt, ‘Let us alone, so that we may serve the Egyptians?’ It was better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the wilderness!”

¹³ But Moses said to the people, “Don’t be afraid! Stand still, and see the salvation of Adonai, which He will perform for you today. You have seen the Egyptians today, but you will never see them again, ever! ¹⁴ Adonai will fight for you, while you hold your peace.”

¹⁵ Then Adonai said to Moses, “Why are you crying to Me? Tell Bnei-Yisrael to go forward. ¹⁶ Lift up your staff, stretch out your hand over the sea, and divide it. Then Bnei-Yisrael will go into the midst of the sea on dry ground. ¹⁷ Then I, behold, I will harden the hearts of the Egyptians, and they will go in after them, so that I will be glorified over Pharaoh and all his army, his chariots and his horsemen. ¹⁸ Then the Egyptians will know that I am Adonai, when I have been glorified over Pharaoh, his chariots and his horsemen.”

¹⁹ Then the angel of God, who went before the camp of Israel, moved and went behind them. Also the pillar of cloud moved from in front and stood behind them, ²⁰ and so came between the camp of Egypt and the camp of Israel—there was the cloud and the darkness over here, yet it gave light by night over there—neither one came near the other all night long.

²¹ Then Moses stretched out his hand over the sea. Adonai drove the sea back with a strong east wind throughout the night and turned the sea into dry land. So the waters were divided. ²² Then Bnei-Yisrael went into the midst of the sea on the dry ground, while the waters were like walls to them on their right and on their left.^[ab]

²³ But the Egyptians pursued and went in after them into the midst of the sea, all Pharaoh’s horses, his chariots and his horsemen. ²⁴ Now it came about during the morning watch that Adonai looked at the army of the Egyptians through the pillar of fire and cloud and caused the army of the Egyptians to panic. ²⁵ He took off their chariot wheels and caused them to drive heavily, so that the Egyptians said, “Get away from the presence of Israel! For Adonai fights for them against the Egyptians!”

²⁶ Then Adonai said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand over the sea, so that the waters come back upon the Egyptians, over their chariots and their horsemen.” ²⁷ So Moses stretched his hand out over the waters, and the sea returned to its strength at the break of dawn. The Egyptians were fleeing from it, but Adonai overthrew them in the midst of the sea. ^{[ac] 28} The waters returned and covered the chariots, the horsemen and the entire army of Pharaoh that went after them into the sea. Not one of them remained.

²⁹ But Bnei-Yisrael had walked on dry land in the midst of the sea, and the waters were like walls to them on their right hand and on their left. ³⁰ So Adonai saved Israel that day out of the hand of the Egyptians, and Israel saw the Egyptians dead on the seashore. ³¹ When Israel saw the great work that Adonai did over the Egyptians, the people feared Adonai, and they believed in Adonai and in His servant Moses.

Song of Moses and Miriam

15 Then Moses and Bnei-Yisrael sang this song to Adonai:^[ad]