Israel

After this, his brother came out grasping Esauʼs heel; so he was named Jacob. And Isaac was sixty years old when the twins were born.

When the boys grew up, Esau became a skillful hunter, a man of the field, while Jacob was a quiet man who stayed at home.

Because Isaac had a taste for wild game, he loved Esau; but Rebekah loved Jacob.

One day, while Jacob was cooking some stew, Esau came in from the field and was famished.

He said to Jacob, “Let me eat some of that red stew, for I am famished.” (That is why he was also called Edom.)

“First sell me your birthright,” Jacob replied.

“Swear to me first,” Jacob said. So Esau swore to Jacob and sold him the birthright.

Then Jacob gave some bread and lentil stew to Esau, who ate and drank and then got up and went away. Thus Esau despised his birthright.

Rebekah said to her son Jacob, “Behold, I overheard your father saying to your brother Esau,

Jacob answered his mother Rebekah, “Look, my brother Esau is a hairy man, but I am smooth-skinned.

And Rebekah took the finest clothes in the house that belonged to her older son Esau, and she put them on her younger son Jacob.

Then she handed her son Jacob the tasty food and bread she had made.

Jacob said to his father, “I am Esau, your firstborn. I have done as you told me. Please sit up and eat some of my game, so that you may bless me.”

Then Isaac said to Jacob, “Please come closer so I can touch you, my son. Are you really my son Esau, or not?”

So Jacob came close to his father Isaac, who touched him and said, “The voice is the voice of Jacob, but the hands are the hands of Esau.”

As soon as Isaac had finished blessing him and Jacob had left his fatherʼs presence, his brother Esau returned from the hunt.

So Esau declared, “Is he not rightly named Jacob? For he has cheated me twice. He took my birthright, and now he has taken my blessing.” Then he asked, “Havenʼt you saved a blessing for me?”

Esau held a grudge against Jacob because of the blessing his father had given him. And Esau said in his heart, “The days of mourning for my father are at hand; then I will kill my brother Jacob.”

When the words of her older son Esau were relayed to Rebekah, she sent for her younger son Jacob and told him, “Look, your brother Esau is consoling himself by plotting to kill you.

Then Rebekah said to Isaac, “I am weary of my life because of these Hittite women. If Jacob takes a Hittite wife from among them, what good is my life?”

So Isaac called for Jacob and blessed him. “Do not take a wife from the Canaanite women,” he commanded.

So Isaac sent Jacob to Paddan-aram, to Laban son of Bethuel the Aramean, the brother of Rebekah, who was the mother of Jacob and Esau.

Now Esau learned that Isaac had blessed Jacob and sent him to Paddan-aram to take a wife there, commanding him, “Do not marry a Canaanite woman,”

and that Jacob had obeyed his father and mother and gone to Paddan-aram.

Meanwhile Jacob left Beersheba and set out for Haran.

When Jacob woke up, he said, “Surely the Lordis in this place, and I was unaware of it.”

Early the next morning, Jacob took the stone that he had placed under his head, and he set it up as a pillar. He poured oil on top of it,

Then Jacob made a vow, saying, “If God will be with me and watch over me on this journey, and if He will provide me with food to eat and clothes to wear,

Jacob resumed his journey and came to the land of the people of the east.

“My brothers,” Jacob asked the shepherds, “where are you from?” “We are from Haran,” they answered.

As soon as Jacob saw Rachel, the daughter of his motherʼs brother Laban, with Labanʼs sheep, he went up and rolled the stone away from the mouth of the well and watered his uncleʼs sheep.

Then Jacob kissed Rachel and wept aloud.

He told Rachel that he was Rebekahʼs son, a relative of her father, and she ran and told her father.

When Laban heard the news about his sisterʼs son Jacob, he ran out to meet him. He embraced him and kissed him and brought him to his home, where Jacob told him all that had happened.

Laban said to him, “Just because you are my relative, should you work for nothing? Tell me what your wages should be.”

Since Jacob loved Rachel, he answered, “I will serve you seven years for your younger daughter Rachel.”

So Jacob served seven years for Rachel, yet it seemed but a few days because of his love for her.

Finally Jacob said to Laban, “Grant me my wife, for my time is complete, and I want to sleep with her.”

And Jacob did just that. He finished the weekʼs celebration, and Laban gave him his daughter Rachel as his wife.

When Rachel saw that she was not bearing any children for Jacob, she envied her sister. “Give me children, or I will die!” she said to Jacob.

Jacob became angry with Rachel and said, “Am I in the place of God, who has withheld children from you?”

So Rachel gave Jacob her servant Bilhah as a wife, and he slept with her,

and Bilhah conceived and bore him a son.

And Rachelʼs servant Bilhah conceived again and bore Jacob a second son.

When Leah saw that she had stopped having children, she gave her servant Zilpah to Jacob as a wife.

And Leahʼs servant Zilpah bore Jacob a son.

When Leahʼs servant Zilpah bore Jacob a second son,

When Jacob came in from the field that evening, Leah went out to meet him and said, “You must come with me, for I have hired you with my sonʼs mandrakes.” So he slept with her that night.

And God listened to Leah, and she conceived and bore a fifth son to Jacob.

Again Leah conceived and bore a sixth son to Jacob.

Now after Rachel had given birth to Joseph, Jacob said to Laban, “Send me on my way so I can return to my homeland.

“What can I give you?” Laban asked. “You do not need to give me anything,” Jacob replied. “If you do this one thing for me, I will keep on shepherding and keeping your flocks.

Then he put a three-day journey between himself and Jacob, while Jacob was shepherding the rest of Labanʼs flocks.

Jacob, however, took fresh branches of poplar, almond, and plane trees, and peeled the bark, exposing the white inner wood of the branches.

Jacob set apart the young, but made the rest face the streaked dark-colored sheep in Labanʼs flocks. Then he set his own stock apart and did not put them with Labanʼs animals.

Whenever the stronger females of the flock were in heat, Jacob would place the branches in the troughs, in full view of the animals, so that they would breed in front of the branches.

But if the animals were weak, he did not set out the branches. So the weaker animals went to Laban and the stronger ones to Jacob.

Now Jacob heard that Labanʼs sons were saying, “Jacob has taken away all that belonged to our father and built all this wealth at our fatherʼs expense.”

And Jacob saw from the countenance of Laban that his attitude toward him had changed.

Then the Lordsaid to Jacob, “Go back to the land of your fathers and to your kindred, and I will be with you.”

So Jacob sent word and called Rachel and Leah to the field where his flocks were,

In that dream the angel of God said to me, ‘Jacob!’ And I replied, ‘Here I am.’

Then Jacob got up and put his children and his wives on camels,

Moreover, Jacob deceived Laban the Aramean by not telling him that he was running away.

On the third day Laban was informed that Jacob had fled.

But that night God came to Laban the Aramean in a dream and warned him, “Be careful not to say anything to Jacob, either good or bad.”

Now Jacob had pitched his tent in the hill country of Gilead when Laban overtook him, and Laban and his relatives camped there as well.

Then Laban said to Jacob, “What have you done? You have deceived me and carried off my daughters like captives of war!

I have power to do you great harm, but last night the God of your father said to me, ‘Be careful not to say anything to Jacob, either good or bad.’

“I was afraid,” Jacob answered, “for I thought you would take your daughters from me by force.

If you find your gods with anyone here, he shall not live! In the presence of our relatives, see for yourself if anything is yours, and take it back.” For Jacob did not know that Rachel had stolen the idols.

So Laban went into Jacobʼs tent, then Leahʼs tent, and then the tents of the two maidservants, but he found nothing. Then he left Leahʼs tent and entered Rachelʼs tent.

Then Jacob became incensed and challenged Laban. “What is my crime?” he said. “For what sin of mine have you so hotly pursued me?

But Laban answered Jacob, “These daughters are my daughters, these sons are my sons, and these flocks are my flocks! Everything you see is mine! Yet what can I do today about these daughters of mine or the children they have borne?

So Jacob picked out a stone and set it up as a pillar,

and he said to his relatives, “Gather some stones.” So they took stones and made a mound, and there by the mound they ate.

Laban called it Jegar-sahadutha, and Jacob called it Galeed.

Laban also said to Jacob, “Here is the mound, and here is the pillar I have set up between you and me.

May the God of Abraham and the God of Nahor, the God of their father, judge between us.” So Jacob swore by the Fear of his father Isaac.

Then Jacob offered a sacrifice on the mountain and invited his relatives to eat a meal. And after they had eaten, they spent the night on the mountain.

Jacob also went on his way, and the angels of God met him.

When Jacob saw them, he said, “This is the camp of God.” So he named that place Mahanaim.

Jacob sent messengers ahead of him to his brother Esau in the land of Seir, the country of Edom.

He instructed them, “You are to say to my master Esau, ‘Your servant Jacob says: I have been staying with Laban and have remained there until now.

When the messengers returned to Jacob, they said, “We went to your brother Esau, and now he is coming to meet you—he and four hundred men with him.”

In great fear and distress, Jacob divided his people into two camps, as well as the flocks and herds and camels.

Then Jacob declared, “O God of my father Abraham, God of my father Isaac, the Lordwho told me, ‘Go back to your country and to your kindred, and I will make you prosper,’

then you are to say, ‘They belong to your servant Jacob. They are a gift, sent to my lord Esau. And behold, Jacob is behind us.’”

You are also to say, ‘Look, your servant Jacob is right behind us.’” For he thought, “I will appease Esau with the gift that is going before me. After that I can face him, and perhaps he will accept me.”

So Jacob was left all alone, and there a man wrestled with him until daybreak.

When the man saw that he could not overpower Jacob, he struck the socket of Jacobʼs hip and dislocated it as they wrestled.

“What is your name?” the man asked. “Jacob,” he replied.

Then the man said, “Your name will no longer be Jacob, but Israel, because you have struggled with God and with men, and you have prevailed.”

And Jacob requested, “Please tell me your name.” But he replied, “Why do you ask my name?” Then he blessed Jacob there.

So Jacob named the place Peniel, saying, “Indeed, I have seen God face to face, and yet my life was spared.”

Therefore to this day the Israelites do not eat the tendon attached to the socket of the hip, because the socket of Jacobʼs hip was struck near that tendon.

Now Jacob looked up and saw Esau coming toward him with four hundred men. So he divided the children among Leah, Rachel, and the two maidservants.

But Jacob insisted, “No, please! If I have found favor in your sight, then receive this gift from my hand. For indeed, I have seen your face, and it is like seeing the face of God, since you have received me favorably.

but Jacob went on to Succoth, where he built a house for himself and shelters for his livestock; that is why the place was called Succoth.

After Jacob had come from Paddan-aram, he arrived safely at the city of Shechem in the land of Canaan, and he camped just outside the city.

Now Dinah, the daughter Leah had borne to Jacob, went out to visit the daughters of the land.

And his soul was drawn to Dinah, the daughter of Jacob. He loved the young girl and spoke to her tenderly.

Jacob heard that Shechem had defiled his daughter Dinah, but since his sons were with his livestock in the field, he remained silent about it until they returned.

Meanwhile, Shechemʼs father Hamor came to speak with Jacob.

When Jacobʼs sons heard what had happened, they returned from the field. They were filled with grief and fury, because Shechem had committed an outrage in Israel by lying with Jacobʼs daughter—a thing that should not be done.

But because Shechem had defiled their sister Dinah, Jacobʼs sons answered him and his father Hamor deceitfully.

The young man, who was the most respected of all his fatherʼs household, did not hesitate to fulfill this request, because he was delighted with Jacobʼs daughter.

Three days later, while they were still in pain, two of Jacobʼs sons (Dinahʼs brothers Simeon and Levi) took their swords, went into the unsuspecting city, and slaughtered every male.

Jacobʼs other sons came upon the slaughter and looted the city, because their sister had been defiled.

Then Jacob said to Simeon and Levi, “You have brought trouble upon me by making me a stench to the Canaanites and Perizzites, the people of this land. We are few in number; if they unite against me and attack me, I and my household will be destroyed.”

Then God said to Jacob, “Arise, go up to Bethel, and settle there. Build an altar there to the God who appeared to you when you fled from your brother Esau.”

So Jacob told his household and all who were with him, “Get rid of the foreign gods that are among you. Purify yourselves and change your garments.

So they gave Jacob all their foreign gods and all their earrings, and Jacob buried them under the oak near Shechem.

As they set out, a terror from God fell over the surrounding cities, so that they did not pursue Jacobʼs sons.

So Jacob and everyone with him arrived in Luz (that is, Bethel) in the land of Canaan.

After Jacob had returned from Paddan-aram, God appeared to him again and blessed him.

And God said to him, “Though your name is Jacob, you will no longer be called Jacob. Instead, your name will be Israel.” So God named him Israel.

So Jacob set up a pillar in the place where God had spoken with him—a stone marker—and he poured out a drink offering on it and anointed it with oil.

Jacob called the place where God had spoken with him Bethel.

Jacob set up a pillar on her grave; it marks Rachelʼs tomb to this day.

Israel again set out and pitched his tent beyond the Tower of Eder.

While Israel was living in that region, Reuben went in and slept with his fatherʼs concubine Bilhah, and Israel heard about it. Jacob had twelve sons:

The sons of Leah were Reuben the firstborn of Jacob, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, and Zebulun.

And the sons of Leahʼs maidservant Zilpah were Gad and Asher. These are the sons of Jacob, who were born to him in Paddan-aram.

Jacob returned to his father Isaac at Mamre, near Kiriath-arba (that is, Hebron), where Abraham and Isaac had stayed.

Then he breathed his last and died and was gathered to his people, old and full of years. And his sons Esau and Jacob buried him.

Later, Esau took his wives and sons and daughters and all the people of his household, along with his livestock, all his other animals, and all the property he had acquired in Canaan, and he moved to a land far away from his brother Jacob.

These are the kings who reigned in the land of Edom before any king reigned over the Israelites:

Now Jacob lived in the land where his father had resided, the land of Canaan.

This is the account of Jacob. When Joseph was seventeen years old, he was tending the flock with his brothers, the sons of his fatherʼs wives Bilhah and Zilpah, and he brought their father a bad report about them.

Now Israel loved Joseph more than his other sons, because Joseph had been born to him in his old age; so he made him a robe of many colors.

Israel said to him, “Are not your brothers pasturing the flocks at Shechem? Get ready; I am sending you to them.” “I am ready,” Joseph replied.

Then Jacob tore his clothes, put sackcloth around his waist, and mourned for his son many days.

When Jacob learned that there was grain in Egypt, he said to his sons, “Why are you staring at one another?”

But Jacob did not send Josephʼs brother Benjamin with his brothers, for he said, “I am afraid that harm might befall him.”

So the sons of Israel were among those who came to buy grain, since the famine had also spread to the land of Canaan.

When they reached their father Jacob in the land of Canaan, they described to him all that had happened to them:

Their father Jacob said to them, “You have deprived me of my sons. Joseph is gone and Simeon is no more. Now you want to take Benjamin. Everything is going against me!”

“Why did you bring this trouble upon me?” Israel asked. “Why did you tell the man you had another brother?”

And Judah said to his father Israel, “Send the boy with me, and we will go at once, so that we may live and not die—neither we, nor you, nor our children.

Then their father Israel said to them, “If it must be so, then do this: Put some of the best products of the land in your packs and carry them down as a gift for the man—a little balm and a little honey, spices and myrrh, pistachios and almonds.

So the sons of Israel did as they were told. Joseph gave them wagons as Pharaoh had instructed, and he also gave them provisions for their journey.

So the brothers went up out of Egypt and came to their father Jacob in the land of Canaan.

However, when they relayed all that Joseph had told them, and when he saw the wagons that Joseph had sent to carry him back, the spirit of their father Jacob was revived.

“Enough!” declared Israel. “My son Joseph is still alive! I will go to see him before I die.”

So Israel set out with all that he had, and when he came to Beersheba, he offered sacrifices to the God of his father Isaac.

And that night God spoke to Israel in a vision: “Jacob, Jacob!” He said. “Here I am,” replied Jacob.

Then Jacob departed from Beersheba, and the sons of Israel took their father Jacob in the wagons Pharaoh had sent to carry him, along with their children and wives.

They also took the livestock and possessions they had acquired in the land of Canaan, and Jacob and all his offspring went to Egypt.

Now these are the names of the sons of Israel (Jacob and his descendants) who went to Egypt: Reuben, Jacobʼs firstborn.

These are the sons of Leah born to Jacob in Paddan-aram, in addition to his daughter Dinah. The total number of sons and daughters was thirty-three.

These are the sons of Jacob born to Zilpah—whom Laban gave to his daughter Leah—sixteen in all.

The sons of Jacobʼs wife Rachel: Joseph and Benjamin.

These are the sons of Rachel born to Jacob—fourteen in all.

These are the sons of Jacob born to Bilhah, whom Laban gave to his daughter Rachel—seven in all.

All those belonging to Jacob who came to Egypt—his direct descendants, besides the wives of Jacobʼs sons—numbered sixty-six persons.

And with the two sons who had been born to Joseph in Egypt, the members of Jacobʼs family who went to Egypt were seventy in all.

Joseph prepared his chariot and went there to meet his father Israel. Joseph presented himself to him, embraced him, and wept profusely.

Then Israel said to Joseph, “Finally I can die, now that I have seen your face and know that you are still alive!”

Then Joseph brought in his father Jacob and presented him before Pharaoh, and Jacob blessed Pharaoh.

“How many years have you lived?” Pharaoh asked.

“My travels have lasted 130 years,” Jacob replied. “My years have been few and hard, and they have not matched the years of the travels of my fathers.”

Then Jacob blessed Pharaoh and departed from his presence.

Now the Israelites settled in the land of Egypt, in the region of Goshen. They acquired property there and became fruitful and increased greatly in number.

And Jacob lived in the land of Egypt seventeen years, and the length of his life was 147 years.

When the time drew near for Israel to die, he called his son Joseph and said to him, “If I have found favor in your eyes, put your hand under my thigh and promise to show me kindness and faithfulness. Do not bury me in Egypt,

“Swear to me,” Jacob said. So Joseph swore to him, and Israel bowed in worship at the head of his bed.

When Jacob was told, “Your son Joseph has come to you,” Israel rallied his strength and sat up in bed.

Jacob said to Joseph, “God Almighty appeared to me at Luz in the land of Canaan, and there He blessed me

When Israel saw the sons of Joseph, he asked, “Who are these?”

Now Israelʼs eyesight was poor because of old age; he could hardly see. Joseph brought his sons to him, and his father kissed them and embraced them.

“I never expected to see your face again,” Israel said to Joseph, “but now God has let me see your children as well.”

And Joseph took both of them—with Ephraim in his right hand toward Israelʼs left hand, and Manasseh in his left hand toward Israelʼs right hand—and brought them close to him.

But Israel stretched out his right hand and put it on the head of Ephraim, the younger; and crossing his hands, he put his left on Manassehʼs head, although Manasseh was the firstborn.

So that day Jacob blessed them and said: “By you shall Israel pronounce this blessing: ‘May God make you like Ephraim and Manasseh.’” So he put Ephraim before Manasseh.

Then Israel said to Joseph, “Look, I am about to die, but God will be with you and bring you back to the land of your fathers.

Then Jacob called for his sons and said, “Gather around so that I can tell you what will happen to you in the days to come:

Come together and listen, O sons of Jacob; listen to your father Israel.

Cursed be their anger, for it is strong, and their wrath, for it is cruel! I will disperse them in Jacob and scatter them in Israel.

Dan shall provide justice for his people as one of the tribes of Israel.

Yet he steadied his bow, and his strong arms were tempered by the hands of the Mighty One of Jacob, in the name of the Shepherd, the Rock of Israel,

These are the tribes of Israel, twelve in all, and this was what their father said to them. He blessed them, and he blessed each one with a suitable blessing.

When Jacob had finished instructing his sons, he pulled his feet into the bed and breathed his last, and he was gathered to his people.

And Joseph directed the physicians in his service to embalm his father Israel. So they embalmed him,

Then Joseph said to his brothers, “I am about to die, but God will surely visit you and bring you up from this land to the land He promised on oath to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.”

And Joseph made the sons of Israel take an oath and said, “God will surely attend to you, and then you must carry my bones up from this place.”

These are the names of the sons of Israel who went to Egypt with Jacob, each with his family:

The descendants of Jacob numbered seventy in all, including Joseph, who was already in Egypt.

but the Israelites were fruitful and increased rapidly; they multiplied and became exceedingly numerous, so that the land was filled with them.

“Look,” he said to his people, “the Israelites have become too numerous and too powerful for us.

But the more they were oppressed, the more they multiplied and flourished; so the Egyptians came to dread the Israelites.

They worked the Israelites ruthlessly

After a long time, the king of Egypt died. The Israelites groaned and cried out under their burden of slavery, and their cry for deliverance from bondage ascended to God.

So God heard their groaning, and He remembered His covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

God saw the Israelites and took notice.

Then He said, “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” At this, Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look at God.

And now the cry of the Israelites has reached Me, and I have seen how severely the Egyptians are oppressing them.

Therefore, go! I am sending you to Pharaoh to bring My people the Israelites out of Egypt.”

But Moses asked God, “Who am I, that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?”

Then Moses asked God, “Suppose I go to the Israelites 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 tell them?”

God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: ‘I AM has sent me to you.’”

God also told Moses, “Say to the Israelites, ‘The LORD, the God of your fathers—the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob—has sent me to you.’ This is My name forever, and this is how I am to be remembered in every generation.

Go, assemble the elders of Israel and say to them, ‘The LORD, the God of your fathers—the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob—has appeared to me and said: I have surely attended to you and have seen what has been done to you in Egypt.

The elders of Israel will listen to what you say, and you must go with them to the king of Egypt and tell him, ‘The LORD, 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 the LORD our God.’

“This is so that they may believe that the LORD, the God of their fathers—the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob—has appeared to you.”

Then tell Pharaoh that this is what the LORD says: ‘Israel is My firstborn son,

Then Moses and Aaron went and assembled all the elders of the Israelites,

and they believed. And when they heard that the LORD had attended to the Israelites and had seen their affliction, they bowed down and worshiped.

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

But Pharaoh replied, “Who is the LORD that I should obey His voice and let Israel go? I do not know the LORD, and I will not let Israel go.”

Then the Israelite foremen, whom Pharaohʼs taskmasters had set over the people, were beaten and asked, “Why have you not fulfilled your quota of bricks yesterday or today, as you did before?”

So the Israelite foremen went and appealed to Pharaoh: “Why are you treating your servants this way?

The Israelite foremen realized they were in trouble when they were told, “You must not reduce your daily quota of bricks.”

I appeared to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob as God Almighty, but by My name the LORD I did not make Myself known to them.

Furthermore, I have heard the groaning of the Israelites, whom the Egyptians are enslaving, and I have remembered My covenant.

Therefore tell the Israelites: ‘I am the LORD, and I will bring you out from under the yoke of the Egyptians and deliver you from their bondage. I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with mighty acts of judgment.

And I will bring you into the land that I swore to give to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. I will give it to you as a possession. I am the LORD!’”

Moses relayed this message to the Israelites, but on account of their broken spirit and cruel bondage, they did not listen to him.

“Go and tell Pharaoh king of Egypt to let the Israelites go out of his land.”

But in the LORDʼs presence Moses replied, “If the Israelites will not listen to me, then why would Pharaoh listen to me, since I am unskilled in speech?”

Then the LORD spoke to Moses and Aaron and gave them a charge concerning both the Israelites and Pharaoh king of Egypt, to bring the Israelites out of the land of Egypt.

These were the heads of their fathersʼ houses: The sons of Reuben, the firstborn of Israel, were Hanoch and Pallu, Hezron and Carmi. These were the clans of Reuben.

It was this Aaron and Moses to whom the LORD said, “Bring the Israelites out of the land of Egypt by their divisions.”

Moses and Aaron were the ones who spoke to Pharaoh king of Egypt in order to bring the Israelites out of Egypt.

You are to speak all that I command you, and your brother Aaron is to tell Pharaoh to let the Israelites go out of his land.

Pharaoh will not listen to you. Then I will lay My hand on Egypt, and by mighty acts of judgment I will bring the divisions of My people the Israelites out of the land of Egypt.

And the Egyptians will know that I am the LORD, when I stretch out My hand against Egypt and bring the Israelites out from among them.”

But the LORD will make a distinction between the livestock of Israel and the livestock of Egypt, so that no animal belonging to the Israelites will die.’”

And the next day the LORD did just that. All the livestock of the Egyptians died, but not one animal belonging to the Israelites died.

Pharaoh sent officials and found that none of the livestock of the Israelites had died. But Pharaohʼs heart was hardened, and he would not let the people go.

The only place where it did not hail was in the land of Goshen, where the Israelites lived.

So Pharaohʼs heart was hardened, and he would not let the Israelites go, just as the LORD had said through Moses.

But the LORD hardened Pharaohʼs heart, and he would not let the Israelites go.

No one could see anyone else, and for three days no one left his place. Yet all the Israelites had light in their dwellings.

But among all the Israelites, not even a dog will snarl at man or beast.’ Then you will know that the LORD makes a distinction between Egypt and Israel.

Moses and Aaron did all these wonders before Pharaoh, but the LORD hardened Pharaohʼs heart so that he would not let the Israelites go out of his land.

Tell the whole congregation of Israel that on the tenth day of this month each man must select a lamb for his family, one per household.

You must keep it until the fourteenth day of the month, when the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel will slaughter the animals at twilight.

For seven days you must eat unleavened bread. On the first day you are to remove the leaven from your houses. Whoever eats anything leavened from the first day through the seventh must be cut off from Israel.

For seven days there must be no leaven found in your houses. If anyone eats something leavened, that person, whether a foreigner or native of the land, must be cut off from the congregation of Israel.

Then Moses summoned all the elders of Israel and told them, “Go at once and select for yourselves a lamb for each family, and slaughter the Passover lamb.

you are to reply, ‘It is the Passover sacrifice to the LORD, who passed over the houses of the Israelites in Egypt when He struck down the Egyptians and spared our homes.’” Then the people bowed down and worshiped.

And the Israelites went and did just what the LORD had commanded Moses and Aaron.

Then Pharaoh summoned Moses and Aaron by night and said, “Get up, leave my people, both you and the Israelites! Go, worship the LORD as you have requested.

Furthermore, the Israelites acted on Mosesʼ word and asked the Egyptians for articles of silver and gold, and for clothing.

The Israelites journeyed from Rameses to Succoth with about 600,000 men on foot, besides women and children.

Now the duration of the Israelitesʼ stay in Egypt was 430 years.

Because the LORD kept a vigil that night to bring them out of the land of Egypt, this same night is to be a vigil to the LORD, to be observed by all the Israelites for the generations to come.

The whole congregation of Israel must celebrate it.

Then all the Israelites did this—they did just as the LORD had commanded Moses and Aaron.

And on that very day the LORD brought the Israelites out of the land of Egypt by their divisions.

“Consecrate to Me every firstborn male. The firstborn from every womb among the Israelites belongs to Me, both of man and beast.”

So God led the people around by the way of the wilderness toward the Red Sea. And the Israelites left the land of Egypt arrayed for battle.

Moses took the bones of Joseph with him because Joseph had made the sons of Israel swear a solemn oath when he said, “God will surely attend to you, and then you must carry my bones with you from this place.”

“Tell the Israelites to turn back and encamp before Pi-hahiroth, between Migdol and the sea. You are to encamp by the sea, directly opposite Baal-zephon.

For Pharaoh will say of the Israelites, ‘They are wandering the land in confusion; the wilderness has boxed them in.’

When the king of Egypt was told that the people had fled, Pharaoh and his officials changed their minds about them and said, “What have we done? We have released Israel from serving us.”

And the LORD hardened the heart of Pharaoh king of Egypt so that he pursued the Israelites, who were marching out defiantly.

As Pharaoh approached, the Israelites looked up and saw the Egyptians marching after them, and they were terrified and cried out to the LORD.

Then the LORD said to Moses, “Why are you crying out to Me? Tell the Israelites to go forward.

And as for you, lift up your staff and stretch out your hand over the sea and divide it, so that the Israelites can go through the sea on dry ground.

And the angel of God, who had gone before the camp of Israel, withdrew and went behind them. The pillar of cloud also moved from before them and stood behind them,

so that it came between the camps of Egypt and Israel. The cloud was there in the darkness, but it lit up the night. So all night long neither camp went near the other.

and the Israelites went through the sea on dry ground, with walls of water on their right and on their left.

He caused their chariot wheels to wobble, so that they had difficulty driving. “Let us flee from the Israelites,” said the Egyptians, “for the LORD is fighting for them against Egypt!”

But the Israelites had walked through the sea on dry ground, with walls of water on their right and on their left.

That day the LORD saved Israel from the hand of the Egyptians, and Israel saw the Egyptians dead on the shore.

When Israel saw the great power that the LORD had exercised over the Egyptians, the people feared the LORD and believed in Him and in His servant Moses.

Then Moses and the Israelites sang this song to the LORD: “I will sing to the LORD, for He is highly exalted. The horse and rider He has thrown into the sea.

For when Pharaohʼs horses, chariots, and horsemen went into the sea, the LORD brought the waters of the sea back over them. But the Israelites walked through the sea on dry ground.

Then Moses led Israel from the Red Sea, and they went out into the Desert of Shur. For three days they walked in the desert without finding water.

On the fifteenth day of the second month after they had left the land of Egypt, the whole congregation of Israel set out from Elim and came to the Desert of Sin, which is between Elim and Sinai.

And there in the desert the whole congregation of Israel grumbled against Moses and Aaron.

“If only we had died by the LORDʼs hand in the land of Egypt!” they said. “There we sat by pots of meat and ate our fill of bread, but you have brought us into this desert to starve this whole assembly to death!”

So Moses and Aaron said to all the Israelites, “This evening you will know that it was the LORD who brought you out of the land of Egypt,

Then Moses said to Aaron, “Tell the whole congregation of Israel, ‘Come before the LORD, for He has heard your grumbling.’”

And as Aaron was speaking to the whole congregation of Israel, they looked toward the desert, and there in a cloud the glory of the LORD appeared.

“I have heard the grumbling of the Israelites. Tell them, ‘At twilight you will eat meat, and in the morning you will be filled with bread. Then you will know that I am the LORD your God.’”

When the Israelites saw it, they asked one another, “What is it?” For they did not know what it was. So Moses told them, “It is the bread that the LORD has given you to eat.

So the Israelites did this. Some gathered more, and some less.

Now the house of Israel called the bread manna. It was white like coriander seed and tasted like wafers made with honey.

The Israelites ate manna forty years, until they came to a land where they could settle; they ate manna until they reached the border of Canaan.

Then the whole congregation of Israel left the Desert of Sin, moving from place to place as the LORD commanded. They camped at Rephidim, but there was no water for the people to drink.

And the LORD said to Moses, “Walk on ahead of the people and take some of the elders of Israel with you. Take along in your hand the staff with which you struck the Nile, and go.

Behold, I will stand there before you by the rock at Horeb. And when you strike the rock, water will come out of it for the people to drink.” So Moses did this in the sight of the elders of Israel.

He named the place Massah and Meribah because the Israelites quarreled, and because they tested the LORD, saying, “Is the LORD among us or not?”

After this, the Amalekites came and attacked the Israelites at Rephidim.

As long as Moses held up his hands, Israel prevailed; but when he lowered them, Amalek prevailed.

Now Mosesʼ father-in-law Jethro, the priest of Midian, heard about all that God had done for Moses and His people Israel, and how the LORD had brought Israel out of Egypt.

Then Moses recounted to his father-in-law all that the LORD had done to Pharaoh and the Egyptians for Israelʼs sake, all the hardships they had encountered along the way, and how the LORD had delivered them.

And Jethro rejoiced over all the good things the LORD had done for Israel, whom He had rescued from the hand of the Egyptians.

Then Mosesʼ father-in-law Jethro brought a burnt offering and sacrifices to God, and Aaron came with all the elders of Israel to eat bread with Mosesʼ father-in-law in the presence of God.

So Moses chose capable men from all Israel and made them heads over the people as leaders of thousands, of hundreds, of fifties, and of tens.

In the third month, on the same day of the month that the Israelites had left the land of Egypt, they came to the Wilderness of Sinai.

After they had set out from Rephidim, they entered the Wilderness of Sinai, and Israel camped there in front of the mountain.

Then Moses went up to God, and the LORD called to him from the mountain, “This is what you are to tell the house of Jacob and explain to the sons of Israel:

And unto Me you shall be a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.’ These are the words that you are to speak to the Israelites.”

Then the LORD said to Moses, “This is what you are to tell the Israelites: ‘You have seen for yourselves that I have spoken to you from heaven.

Then the LORD said to Moses, “Come up to the LORD—you and Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, and seventy of Israelʼs elders—and you are to worship at a distance.

And Moses wrote down all the words of the LORD. Early the next morning he got up and built an altar at the base of the mountain, along with twelve pillars for the twelve tribes of Israel.

Then he sent out some young men of Israel, and they offered burnt offerings and sacrificed young bulls as peace offerings to the LORD.

Then Moses went up with Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel,

and they saw the God of Israel. Under His feet was a work like a pavement made of sapphire, as clear as the sky itself.

But God did not lay His hand on the nobles of Israel; they saw Him, and they ate and drank.

And the sight of the glory of the LORD was like a consuming fire on the mountaintop in the eyes of the Israelites.

“Tell the Israelites to bring Me an offering. You are to receive My offering from every man whose heart compels him.

And I will meet with you there above the mercy seat, between the two cherubim that are over the ark of the Testimony; I will speak with you about all that I command you regarding the Israelites.

And you are to command the Israelites to bring you pure oil of pressed olives for the light, to keep the lamps burning continually.

In the Tent of Meeting, outside the veil that is in front of the Testimony, Aaron and his sons are to tend the lamps before the LORD from evening until morning. This is to be a permanent statute for the Israelites for the generations to come.

“Next, have your brother Aaron brought to you from among the Israelites, along with his sons Nadab, Abihu, Eleazar, and Ithamar, to serve Me as priests.

Take two onyx stones and engrave on them the names of the sons of Israel:

Engrave the names of the sons of Israel on the two stones the way a gem cutter engraves a seal. Then mount the stones in gold filigree settings.

Fasten both stones on the shoulder pieces of the ephod as memorial stones for the sons of Israel. Aaron is to bear their names on his two shoulders as a memorial before the LORD.

The twelve stones are to correspond to the names of the sons of Israel, each engraved like a seal with the name of one of the twelve tribes.

Whenever Aaron enters the Holy Place, he shall bear the names of the sons of Israel over his heart on the breastpiece of judgment, as a continual reminder before the LORD.

And place the Urim and Thummim in the breastpiece of judgment, so that they will also be over Aaronʼs heart whenever he comes before the LORD. Aaron will continually carry the judgment of the sons of Israel over his heart before the LORD.

And it will be worn on Aaronʼs forehead, so that he may bear the iniquity of the holy things that the sons of Israel consecrate with regard to all their holy gifts. It shall always be on his forehead, so that they may be acceptable before the LORD.

This will belong to Aaron and his sons as a regular portion from the Israelites, for it is the heave offering the Israelites will make to the LORD from their peace offerings.

I will also meet with the Israelites there, and that place will be consecrated by My glory.

Then I will dwell among the Israelites and be their God.

“When you take a census of the Israelites to number them, each man must pay the LORD a ransom for his life when he is counted. Then no plague will come upon them when they are numbered.

Take the atonement money from the Israelites and use it for the service of the Tent of Meeting. It will serve as a memorial for the Israelites before the LORD to make atonement for your lives.”

And you are to tell the Israelites, ‘This will be My sacred anointing oil for the generations to come.

“Tell the Israelites, ‘Surely you must keep My Sabbaths, for this will be a sign between Me and you for the generations to come, so that you may know that I am the LORD who sanctifies you.

The Israelites must keep the Sabbath, celebrating it as a permanent covenant for the generations to come.

It is a sign between Me and the Israelites forever; for in six days the LORD made the heavens and the earth, but on the seventh day He rested and was refreshed.’”

He took the gold from their hands, and with an engraving tool he fashioned it into a molten calf. And they said, “These, O Israel, are your gods, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt!”

How quickly they have turned aside from the way that I commanded them! They have made for themselves a molten calf and have bowed down to it. They have sacrificed to it and said, ‘These, O Israel, are your gods, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt.’”

Remember Your servants Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, to whom You swore by Your very self when You declared, ‘I will make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky, and I will give your descendants all this land that I have promised, and it shall be their inheritance forever.’”

Then he took the calf they had made, burned it in the fire, ground it to powder, and scattered the powder over the face of the water. Then he forced the Israelites to drink it.

He told them, “This is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: ‘Each of you men is to fasten his sword to his side, go back and forth through the camp from gate to gate, and slay his brother, his friend, and his neighbor.’”

Then the LORD said to Moses, “Leave this place, you and the people you brought up out of the land of Egypt, and go to the land that I promised to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob when I said, ‘I will give it to your descendants.’

For the LORD had said to Moses, “Tell the Israelites, ‘You are a stiff-necked people. If I should go with you for a single moment, I would destroy you. Now take off your jewelry, and I will decide what to do with you.’”

So the Israelites stripped themselves of their jewelry from Mount Horeb onward.

Three times a year all your males are to appear before the Lord GOD, the God of Israel.

The LORD also said to Moses, “Write down these words, for in accordance with these words I have made a covenant with you and with Israel.”

Aaron and all the Israelites looked at Moses, and behold, his face was radiant. And they were afraid to approach him.

And after this all the Israelites came near, and Moses commanded them to do everything that the LORD had told him on Mount Sinai.

But whenever Moses went in before the LORD to speak with Him, he would remove the veil until he came out. And when he came out, he would tell the Israelites what he had been commanded,

and the Israelites would see that the face of Moses was radiant. So Moses would put the veil back over his face until he went in to speak with the LORD.

Then Moses assembled the whole congregation of Israel and said to them, “These are the things that the LORD has commanded you to do:

Moses also told the whole congregation of Israel, “This is what the LORD has commanded:

Then the whole congregation of Israel withdrew from the presence of Moses.

So all the men and women of the Israelites whose hearts prompted them brought a freewill offering to the LORD for all the work that the LORD through Moses had commanded them to do.

Then Moses said to the Israelites, “See, the LORD has called by name Bezalel son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah.

They received from Moses all the contributions that the Israelites had brought to carry out the service of constructing the sanctuary. Meanwhile, the people continued to bring freewill offerings morning after morning,

They mounted the onyx stones in gold filigree settings, engraved like a seal with the names of the sons of Israel.

Then they fastened them on the shoulder pieces of the ephod as memorial stones for the sons of Israel, as the LORD had commanded Moses.

The twelve stones corresponded to the names of the sons of Israel. Each stone was engraved like a seal with the name of one of the twelve tribes.

So all the work for the tabernacle, the Tent of Meeting, was completed. The Israelites did everything just as the LORD had commanded Moses.

The Israelites had done all the work just as the LORD had commanded Moses.

Whenever the cloud was lifted from above the tabernacle, the Israelites would set out through all the stages of their journey.

For the cloud of the LORD was over the tabernacle by day, and fire was in the cloud by night, in the sight of all the house of Israel through all their journeys.

“Speak to the Israelites and tell them: When any of you brings an offering to the LORD, you may bring as your offering an animal from the herd or the flock.

“Tell the Israelites to do as follows with one who sins unintentionally against any of the LORDʼs commandments and does what is forbidden by them:

Now if the whole congregation of Israel strays unintentionally and the matter escapes the notice of the assembly so that they violate any of the LORDʼs commandments and incur guilt by doing what is forbidden,

“Speak to the Israelites and say, ‘You are not to eat any of the fat of an ox, a sheep, or a goat.

“Speak to the Israelites and say, ‘Anyone who presents a peace offering to the LORD must bring it as his sacrifice to the LORD.

I have taken from the sons of Israel the breast of the wave offering and the thigh of the contribution of their peace offerings, and I have given them to Aaron the priest and his sons as a permanent portion from the sons of Israel.’”

On the day they were anointed, the LORD commanded that this be given them by the sons of Israel. It is a permanent portion for the generations to come.

which the LORD gave Moses on Mount Sinai on the day He commanded the Israelites to present their offerings to the LORD in the Wilderness of Sinai.

On the eighth day Moses summoned Aaron and his sons and the elders of Israel.

Then speak to the Israelites and say, ‘Take a male goat for a sin offering, a calf and a lamb—both a year old and without blemish—for a burnt offering,

Then Moses said to Aaron and his sons Eleazar and Ithamar, “Do not let your hair become disheveled and do not tear your garments, or else you will die, and the LORD will be angry with the whole congregation. But your brothers, the whole house of Israel, may mourn on account of the fire that the LORD has ignited.

so that you may teach the Israelites all the statutes that the LORD has given them through Moses.”

And you and your sons and daughters may eat the breast of the wave offering and the thigh of the contribution in a ceremonially clean place, because these portions have been assigned to you and your children from the peace offerings of the sons of Israel.

“Say to the Israelites, ‘Of all the beasts of the earth, these ones you may eat:

“Say to the Israelites, ‘A woman who becomes pregnant and gives birth to a son will be unclean for seven days, as she is during the days of her menstruation.

“Say to the Israelites, ‘When any man has a bodily discharge, the discharge is unclean.

You must keep the children of Israel separate from their uncleanness, so that they do not die by defiling My tabernacle, which is among them.

And he shall take from the congregation of Israel two male goats for a sin offering and one ram for a burnt offering.

So he shall make atonement for the Most Holy Place because of the impurities and rebellious acts of the Israelites in regard to all their sins. He is to do the same for the Tent of Meeting which abides among them, in the midst of their impurities.

No one may be in the Tent of Meeting from the time Aaron goes in to make atonement in the Most Holy Place until he leaves, after he has made atonement for himself, his household, and the whole assembly of Israel.

He is to splatter some of the blood on it with his finger seven times to cleanse it and consecrate it from the uncleanness of the Israelites.

Then he is to lay both hands on the head of the live goat and confess over it all the iniquities and rebellious acts of the Israelites in regard to all their sins. He is to put them on the goatʼs head and send it away into the wilderness by the hand of a man appointed for the task.

This is to be a permanent statute for you, to make atonement once a year for the Israelites because of all their sins.” And all this was done as the LORD had commanded Moses.

“Speak to Aaron, his sons, and all the Israelites and tell them this is what the LORD has commanded:

‘Anyone from the house of Israel who slaughters an ox, a lamb, or a goat in the camp or outside of it

For this reason the Israelites will bring to the LORD the sacrifices they have been offering in the open fields. They are to bring them to the priest at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting and offer them as sacrifices of peace offerings to the LORD.

Tell them that if anyone from the house of Israel or any foreigner living among them offers a burnt offering or a sacrifice

If anyone from the house of Israel or a foreigner living among them eats any blood, I will set My face against that person and cut him off from among his people.

Therefore I say to the Israelites, ‘None of you may eat blood, nor may any foreigner living among you eat blood.’

And if any Israelite or foreigner living among them hunts down a wild animal or bird that may be eaten, he must drain its blood and cover it with dirt.

For the life of all flesh is its blood. Therefore I have told the Israelites, ‘You must not eat the blood of any living thing, because the life of all flesh is its blood; whoever eats it must be cut off.’

“Speak to the Israelites and tell them: I am the LORD your God.

“Speak to the whole congregation of Israel and tell them: Be holy because I, the LORD your God, am holy.

“Tell the Israelites, ‘Any Israelite or foreigner living in Israel who gives any of his children to Molech must be put to death. The people of the land are to stone him.

Moses told this to Aaron and his sons and to all the Israelites.

“Tell Aaron and his sons to treat with respect the sacred offerings that the Israelites have consecrated to Me, so that they do not profane My holy name. I am the LORD.

Tell them that for the generations to come, if any of their descendants in a state of uncleanness approaches the sacred offerings that the Israelites consecrate to the LORD, that person must be cut off from My presence. I am the LORD.

The priests must not profane the sacred offerings that the Israelites present to the LORD

“Speak to Aaron and his sons and all the Israelites and tell them, ‘Any man of the house of Israel or any foreign resident who presents a gift for a burnt offering to the LORD, whether to fulfill a vow or as a freewill offering,

You must not profane My holy name. I must be acknowledged as holy among the Israelites. I am the LORD who sanctifies you,

“Speak to the Israelites and say to them, ‘These are My appointed feasts, the feasts of the LORD that you are to proclaim as sacred assemblies.

“Speak to the Israelites and say, ‘When you enter the land that I am giving you and you reap its harvest, you are to bring to the priest a sheaf of the firstfruits of your harvest.

“Speak to the Israelites and say, ‘On the first day of the seventh month you are to have a day of rest, a sacred assembly announced by trumpet blasts.

“Speak to the Israelites and say, ‘On the fifteenth day of the seventh month the Feast of Tabernacles to the LORD begins, and it continues for seven days.

You are to dwell in booths for seven days. All the native-born of Israel must dwell in booths,

so that your descendants may know that I made the Israelites dwell in booths when I brought them out of the land of Egypt. I am the LORD your God.’”

So Moses announced to the Israelites the appointed feasts of the LORD.

“Command the Israelites to bring you pure oil of pressed olives for the light, to keep the lamps burning continually.

Every Sabbath day the bread is to be set out before the LORD on behalf of the Israelites as a permanent covenant.

Now the son of an Israelite mother and an Egyptian father went out among the Israelites, and a fight broke out in the camp between him and an Israelite.

The son of the Israelite woman blasphemed the Name with a curse. So they brought him to Moses. (His motherʼs name was Shelomith daughter of Dibri, of the tribe of Dan.)

And you are to tell the Israelites, ‘If anyone curses his God, he shall bear the consequences of his sin.

Then Moses spoke to the Israelites, and they took the blasphemer outside the camp and stoned him. So the Israelites did as the LORD had commanded Moses.

“Speak to the Israelites and say to them: When you enter the land that I am giving you, the land itself must observe a Sabbath to the LORD.

So whatever belongs to the Levites may be redeemed—a house sold in a city they possess—and must be released in the Jubilee, because the houses in the cities of the Levites are their possession among the Israelites.

You may leave them to your sons after you to inherit as property; you can make them slaves for life. But as for your brothers, the Israelites, no man may rule harshly over his brother.

For the Israelites are My servants. They are My servants, whom I brought out of the land of Egypt. I am the LORD your God.

then I will remember My covenant with Jacob and My covenant with Isaac and My covenant with Abraham, and I will remember the land.

These are the statutes, ordinances, and laws that the LORD established between Himself and the Israelites through Moses on Mount Sinai.

“Speak to the Israelites and say to them, ‘When someone makes a special vow to the LORD involving the value of persons,

These are the commandments that the LORD gave to Moses for the Israelites on Mount Sinai.

“Take a census of the whole congregation of Israel by their clans and families, listing every man by name, one by one.

You and Aaron are to number those who are twenty years of age or older by their divisions—everyone who can serve in Israelʼs army.

These men were appointed from the congregation; they were the leaders of the tribes of their fathers, the heads of the clans of Israel.

From the sons of Reuben, the firstborn of Israel, according to the records of their clans and families, counting one by one the names of every male twenty years of age or older who could serve in the army,

These were the men numbered by Moses and Aaron, with the assistance of the twelve leaders of Israel, each one representing his family.

So all the Israelites twenty years of age or older who could serve in Israelʼs army were counted according to their families.

“Do not number the tribe of Levi in the census with the other Israelites.

The Israelites are to camp by their divisions, each man in his own camp and under his own standard.

But the Levites are to camp around the tabernacle of the Testimony and watch over it, so that no wrath will fall on the congregation of Israel. So the Levites are responsible for the tabernacle of the Testimony.”

Thus the Israelites did everything just as the LORD had commanded Moses.

“The Israelites are to camp around the Tent of Meeting at a distance from it, each man under his standard, with the banners of his family.

These are the Israelites, numbered according to their families. The total of those counted in the camps, by their divisions, was 603,550.

But the Levites were not counted among the other Israelites, as the LORD had commanded Moses.

So the Israelites did everything the LORD commanded Moses; they camped under their standards in this way and set out in the same way, each man with his clan and his family.

They shall take care of all the furnishings of the Tent of Meeting and fulfill obligations for the Israelites by attending to the service of the tabernacle.

Assign the Levites to Aaron and his sons; they have been given exclusively to him from among the Israelites.

“Behold, I have taken the Levites from among the children of Israel in place of every firstborn Israelite from the womb. The Levites belong to Me,

for all the firstborn are Mine. On the day I struck down every firstborn in the land of Egypt, I consecrated to Myself all the firstborn in Israel, both man and beast. They are Mine; I am the LORD.”

Moses, Aaron, and Aaronʼs sons were to camp to the east of the tabernacle, toward the sunrise, before the Tent of Meeting. They were to perform the duties of the sanctuary as a service on behalf of the Israelites; but any outsider who approached the sanctuary was to be put to death.

Then the LORD said to Moses, “Number every firstborn male of the Israelites a month old or more, and list their names.

You are to take the Levites for Me—I am the LORD—in place of all the firstborn of Israel, and the livestock of the Levites in place of all the firstborn of the livestock of the Israelites.”

So Moses numbered all the firstborn of the Israelites, as the LORD had commanded him.

“Take the Levites in place of all the firstborn of Israel, and the livestock of the Levites in place of their livestock. The Levites belong to Me; I am the LORD.

To redeem the 273 firstborn Israelites who outnumber the Levites,

He collected the money from the firstborn of the Israelites: 1,365 shekels, according to the sanctuary shekel.

So Moses, Aaron, and the leaders of Israel numbered by their clans and families all the Levites

“Command the Israelites to send away from the camp anyone with a skin disease, anyone who has a bodily discharge, and anyone who is defiled by a dead body.

So the Israelites did this, sending such people outside the camp. They did just as the LORD had instructed Moses.

“Tell the Israelites that when a man or woman acts unfaithfully against the LORD by committing any sin against another, that person is guilty

Every sacred contribution the Israelites bring to the priest shall belong to him.

“Speak to the Israelites and tell them that if any manʼs wife goes astray and is unfaithful to him

“Speak to the Israelites and tell them that if a man or woman makes a special vow, the vow of a Nazirite, to separate himself to the LORD,

“Tell Aaron and his sons: This is how you are to bless the Israelites. Say to them:

So they shall put My name on the Israelites, and I will bless them.”

And the leaders of Israel, the heads of their families, presented an offering. These men were the tribal leaders who had supervised the registration.

So these were the offerings from the leaders of Israel for the dedication of the altar when it was anointed: twelve silver platters, twelve silver bowls, and twelve gold dishes.

“Take the Levites from among the Israelites and make them ceremonially clean.

Bring the Levites before the Tent of Meeting and assemble the whole congregation of Israel.

You are to present the Levites before the LORD and have the Israelites lay their hands upon them.

Aaron is to present the Levites before the LORD as a wave offering from the sons of Israel, so that they may perform the service of the LORD.

In this way you shall separate the Levites from the rest of the Israelites, and the Levites will belong to Me.

For the Levites have been wholly given to Me from among the sons of Israel. I have taken them for Myself in place of all who come first from the womb, the firstborn of all the sons of Israel.

For every firstborn male in Israel is Mine, both man and beast. I set them apart for Myself on the day I struck down all the firstborn in the land of Egypt.

But I have taken the Levites in place of all the firstborn among the sons of Israel.

And I have given the Levites as a gift to Aaron and his sons from among the Israelites, to perform the service for the Israelites at the Tent of Meeting and to make atonement on their behalf, so that no plague will come against the Israelites when they approach the sanctuary.”

So Moses, Aaron, and the whole congregation of Israel did with the Levites everything that the LORD had commanded Moses they should do.

“The Israelites are to observe the Passover at its appointed time.

So Moses told the Israelites to observe the Passover,

and they did so in the Wilderness of Sinai, at twilight on the fourteenth day of the first month. The Israelites did everything just as the LORD had commanded Moses.

and said to Moses, “We are unclean because of a dead body, but why should we be excluded from presenting the LORDʼs offering with the other Israelites at the appointed time?”

“Tell the Israelites: ‘When any one of you or your descendants is unclean because of a dead body, or is away on a journey, he may still observe the Passover to the LORD.

Whenever the cloud was lifted from above the Tent, the Israelites would set out, and wherever the cloud settled, there the Israelites would camp.

At the LORDʼs command the Israelites set out, and at the LORDʼs command they camped. As long as the cloud remained over the tabernacle, they remained encamped.

Even when the cloud lingered over the tabernacle for many days, the Israelites kept the LORDʼs charge and did not set out.

Whether the cloud lingered for two days, a month, or longer, the Israelites camped and did not set out as long as the cloud remained over the tabernacle; but when it was lifted, they would set out.

But if only one is sounded, then the leaders, the heads of the clans of Israel, are to gather before you.

and the Israelites set out from the Wilderness of Sinai, traveling from place to place until the cloud settled in the Wilderness of Paran.

This was the order of march for the Israelite divisions as they set out.

Then Moses said to Hobab, the son of Mosesʼ father-in-law Reuel the Midianite, “We are setting out for the place of which the LORD said: ‘I will give it to you.’ Come with us, and we will treat you well, for the LORD has promised good things to Israel.”

And when it came to rest, he would say: “Return, O LORD, to the countless thousands of Israel.”

Meanwhile, the rabble among them had a strong craving for other food, and again the Israelites wept and said, “Who will feed us meat?

Then the LORD said to Moses, “Bring Me seventy of the elders of Israel known to you as leaders and officers of the people. Bring them to the Tent of Meeting and have them stand there with you.

Then Moses returned to the camp, along with the elders of Israel.

“Send out for yourself men to spy out the land of Canaan, which I am giving to the Israelites. From each of their fathersʼ tribes send one man who is a leader among them.”

So at the consent of the LORD, Moses sent them out from the Wilderness of Paran. All the men were leaders of the Israelites,

Because of the cluster of grapes the Israelites cut there, that place was called the Valley of Eshcol.

and they went back to Moses, Aaron, and the whole congregation of Israel in the Wilderness of Paran at Kadesh. They brought back a report for the whole congregation and showed them the fruit of the land.

So they gave the Israelites a bad report about the land that they had spied out: “The land we explored devours its inhabitants, and all the people we saw there are great in stature.

All the Israelites grumbled against Moses and Aaron, and the whole congregation said to them, “If only we had died in the land of Egypt, or if only we had died in this wilderness!

Then Moses and Aaron fell facedown before the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel.

and said to the whole congregation of Israel, “The land we passed through and explored is an exceedingly good land.

But the whole congregation threatened to stone Joshua and Caleb. Then the glory of the LORD appeared to all the Israelites at the Tent of Meeting.

“How long will this wicked congregation grumble against Me? I have heard the complaints that the Israelites are making against Me.

And when Moses relayed these words to all the Israelites, the people mourned bitterly.

“Speak to the Israelites and tell them: After you enter the land that I am giving you as a home

“Speak to the Israelites and tell them: When you enter the land to which I am bringing you

The priest is to make atonement for the whole congregation of Israel, so that they may be forgiven; for the sin was unintentional and they have brought to the LORD a food offering and a sin offering, presented before the LORD for their unintentional sin.

Then the whole congregation of Israel and the foreigners residing among them will be forgiven, since it happened to all the people unintentionally.

You shall have the same law for the one who acts in error, whether he is a native-born Israelite or a foreigner residing among you.

While the Israelites were in the wilderness, a man was found gathering wood on the Sabbath day.

“Speak to the Israelites and tell them that throughout the generations to come they are to make for themselves tassels for the corners of their garments, with a blue cord on each tassel.

a rebellion against Moses, along with 250 men of Israel renowned as leaders of the congregation and representatives in the assembly.

Is it not enough for you that the God of Israel has separated you from the congregation of Israel and brought you near to Himself to perform the work at the LORDʼs tabernacle, and to stand before the congregation to minister to them?

So Moses got up and went to Dathan and Abiram, and the elders of Israel followed him.

At their cries, all the people of Israel who were around them fled, saying, “The earth may swallow us too!”

As for the censers of those who sinned at the cost of their own lives, hammer them into sheets to overlay the altar, for these were presented before the LORD, and so have become holy. They will serve as a sign to the Israelites.”

just as the LORD commanded him through Moses. This was to be a reminder to the Israelites that no outsider who is not a descendant of Aaron should approach to offer incense before the LORD, lest he become like Korah and his followers.

The next day the whole congregation of Israel grumbled against Moses and Aaron, saying, “You have killed the LORDʼs people!”

“Speak to the Israelites and take from them twelve staffs, one from the leader of each tribe. Write each manʼs name on his staff,

The staff belonging to the man I choose will sprout, and I will rid Myself of the constant grumbling of the Israelites against you.”

So Moses spoke to the Israelites, and each of their leaders gave him a staff—one for each of the leaders of their tribes, twelve staffs in all. And Aaronʼs staff was among them.

Then Moses brought out all the staffs from the LORDʼs presence to all the Israelites. They saw them, and each man took his own staff.

Then the Israelites declared to Moses, “Look, we are perishing! We are lost; we are all lost!

And you shall attend to the duties of the sanctuary and of the altar, so that wrath may not fall on the Israelites again.

Behold, I Myself have selected your fellow Levites from the Israelites as a gift to you, dedicated to the LORD to perform the service for the Tent of Meeting.

Then the LORD said to Aaron, “Behold, I have put you in charge of My offerings. As for all the sacred offerings of the Israelites, I have given them to you and your sons as a portion and a permanent statute.

And this is yours as well: the offering of their gifts, along with all the wave offerings of the Israelites. I have given this to you and your sons and daughters as a permanent statute. Every ceremonially clean person in your household may eat it.

Every devoted thing in Israel belongs to you.

All the holy offerings that the Israelites present to the LORD I give to you and to your sons and daughters as a permanent statute. It is a permanent covenant of salt before the LORD for you and your offspring.”

Then the LORD said to Aaron, “You will have no inheritance in their land, nor will you have any portion among them. I am your portion and your inheritance among the Israelites.

Behold, I have given to the Levites all the tithes in Israel as an inheritance in return for the work they do, the service of the Tent of Meeting.

No longer may the Israelites come near to the Tent of Meeting, or they will incur guilt and die.

The Levites are to perform the work of the Tent of Meeting, and they must bear their iniquity. This is a permanent statute for the generations to come. The Levites will not receive an inheritance among the Israelites.

For I have given to the Levites as their inheritance the tithe that the Israelites present to the LORD as a contribution. That is why I told them that they would not receive an inheritance among the Israelites.”

“Speak to the Levites and tell them: ‘When you receive from the Israelites the tithe that I have given you as your inheritance, you must present part of it as an offering to the LORD—a tithe of the tithe.

So you are to present an offering to the LORD from all the tithes you receive from the Israelites, and from these you are to give the LORDʼs offering to Aaron the priest.

Once you have presented the best part of it, you will not incur guilt because of it. But you must not defile the sacred offerings of the Israelites, or else you will die.’”

“This is the statute of the law that the LORD has commanded: Instruct the Israelites to bring you an unblemished red heifer that has no defect and has never been placed under a yoke.

Then a man who is ceremonially clean is to gather up the ashes of the heifer and store them in a ceremonially clean place outside the camp. They must be kept by the congregation of Israel for preparing the water of purification; this is for purification from sin.

The man who has gathered up the ashes of the heifer must also wash his clothes, and he will be ceremonially unclean until evening. This is a permanent statute for the Israelites and for the foreigner residing among them.

Anyone who touches a human corpse and fails to purify himself defiles the tabernacle of the LORD. That person must be cut off from Israel. He remains unclean, because the water of purification has not been splattered on him, and his uncleanness is still on him.

In the first month, the whole congregation of Israel entered the Wilderness of Zin and stayed in Kadesh. There Miriam died and was buried.

But the LORD said to Moses and Aaron, “Because you did not trust Me to show My holiness in the sight of the Israelites, you will not bring this assembly into the land that I have given them.”

These were the waters of Meribah, where the Israelites quarreled with the LORD, and He showed His holiness among them.

From Kadesh, Moses sent messengers to tell the king of Edom, “This is what your brother Israel says: You know all the hardship that has befallen us,

“We will stay on the main road,” the Israelites replied, “and if we or our herds drink your water, we will pay for it. There will be no problem; only let us pass through on foot.”

So Edom refused to allow Israel to pass through their territory, and Israel turned away from them.

After they had set out from Kadesh, the whole congregation of Israel came to Mount Hor.

“Aaron will be gathered to his people; he will not enter the land that I have given the Israelites, because both of you rebelled against My command at the waters of Meribah.

When the whole congregation saw that Aaron had died, the entire house of Israel mourned for him thirty days.

When the Canaanite king of Arad, who lived in the Negev, heard that Israel was coming along the road to Atharim, he attacked Israel and captured some prisoners.

So Israel made a vow to the LORD: “If You will deliver this people into our hands, we will devote their cities to destruction.”

And the LORD heard Israelʼs plea and delivered up the Canaanites. Israel devoted them and their cities to destruction; so they named the place Hormah.

So the LORD sent venomous snakes among the people, and many of the Israelites were bitten and died.

Then the Israelites set out and camped at Oboth.

Then Israel sang this song: “Spring up, O well, all of you sing to it!

Then Israel sent messengers to Sihon king of the Amorites, saying,

But Sihon would not let Israel pass through his territory. Instead, he gathered his whole army and went out to confront Israel in the wilderness. When he came to Jahaz, he fought against Israel.

And Israel put him to the sword and took possession of his land, from the Arnon to the Jabbok—but only up to the border of the Ammonites, because it was fortified.

Israel captured all the cities of the Amorites and occupied them, including Heshbon and all its villages.

So Israel lived in the land of the Amorites.

Then the Israelites traveled on and camped in the plains of Moab near the Jordan, across from Jericho.

Now Balak son of Zippor saw all that Israel had done to the Amorites,

and Moab was terrified of the people because they were numerous. Indeed, Moab dreaded the Israelites.

And Balaam lifted up an oracle, saying: “Balak brought me from Aram, the king of Moab from the mountains of the east. ‘Come,’ he said, ‘put a curse on Jacob for me; come and denounce Israel!’

Who can count the dust of Jacob or number even a fourth of Israel? Let me die the death of the righteous; let my end be like theirs!”

He considers no disaster for Jacob; He sees no trouble for Israel. The LORD their God is with them, and the shout of the King is among them.

For there is no spell against Jacob and no divination against Israel. It will now be said of Jacob and Israel, ‘What great things God has done!’

And when Balaam saw that it pleased the LORD to bless Israel, he did not seek omens as on previous occasions, but he turned his face toward the wilderness.

When Balaam looked up and saw Israel encamped tribe by tribe, the Spirit of God came upon him,

How lovely are your tents, O Jacob, your dwellings, O Israel!

I see him, but not now; I behold him, but not near. A star will come forth from Jacob, and a scepter will arise from Israel. He will crush the skulls of Moab and strike down all the sons of Sheth.

Edom will become a possession, as will Seir, his enemy; but Israel will perform with valor.

A ruler will come from Jacob and destroy the survivors of the city.”

While Israel was staying in Shittim, the men began to indulge in sexual immorality with the daughters of Moab,

So Israel joined in worshiping Baal of Peor, and the anger of the LORD burned against them.

Then the LORD said to Moses, “Take all the leaders of the people and execute them in broad daylight before the LORD, so that His fierce anger may turn away from Israel.”

So Moses told the judges of Israel, “Each of you must kill all of his men who have joined in worshiping Baal of Peor.”

Just then an Israelite man brought to his family a Midianite woman in the sight of Moses and the whole congregation of Israel while they were weeping at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting.

followed the Israelite into his tent, and drove the spear through both of them—through the Israelite and on through the belly of the woman. So the plague against the Israelites was halted,

“Phinehas son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, has turned My wrath away from the Israelites; for he was zealous for My sake among them, so that I did not consume the Israelites in My zeal.

It will be a covenant of permanent priesthood for him and his descendants, because he was zealous for his God and made atonement for the Israelites.”

“Take a census of the whole congregation of Israel by the houses of their fathers—all those twenty years of age or older who can serve in the army of Israel.”

“Take a census of the men twenty years of age or older, as the LORD has commanded Moses.” And these were the Israelites who came out of the land of Egypt: