Exodus 11

The Tenth Plague—The Death of the Firstborn

1 Then the Lord said to Moses, “I will bring one more plague on Pharaoh and Egypt. After that he will let you go. When he does, he will be certain to force all of you out of here.

2 Now announce to the people of Israel that each man and woman must ask the Egyptians for silver and gold jewelry.”
3 The Lord made the Egyptians kind to the people. And Moses was highly respected by Pharaoh’s officials and all the Egyptians.4 Moses said, “This is what the Lord says: About midnight I will go out among the Egyptians.5 Every firstborn son in Egypt will die, from the firstborn of Pharaoh who rules the land, to the firstborn children of female slaves who use their handmills, including every firstborn domestic animal.6 There will be loud crying throughout Egypt, such as there has never been or ever will be again.7 But where the Israelites are, not even a dog will be startled by any person or animal. This is how you will see that the Lord shows the distinction between Egypt and Israel.

8 Then all these officials of yours will come, bow down to me, and say, ‘You and all the people who follow you, get out!’ After that I will leave.” Burning with anger, Moses left Pharaoh.
9 The Lord had said to Moses, “Pharaoh will not listen to you. This is why I will do more amazing things in Egypt.”

10 Moses and Aaron showed Pharaoh all these amazing things. Yet, the Lord made Pharaoh stubborn, so he wouldn’t let the Israelites leave his country.

Exodus 12

Passover

1 The Lord said to Moses and Aaron in Egypt,2 “This month will be the very first month of the year for you.3 Tell the whole community of Israel: On the tenth day of this month each man must take a lamb or a young goat for his family—one animal per household.4 A household may be too small to eat a whole animal. That household and the one next door can share one animal. Choose your animal based on the number of people and what each person can eat.5 Your animal must be a one-year-old male that has no defects. You may choose a lamb or a young goat.

6 Take care of it until the fourteenth day of this month.
“Then at dusk, all the assembled people from the community of Israel must slaughter their animals.7 They must take some of the blood and put it on the sides and tops of the doorframes of the houses where they will eat the animals.8 The meat must be eaten that same night. It must be roasted over a fire and eaten with bitter herbs and unleavened bread.9 Don’t eat any of it raw or boiled but roast the whole animal over a fire.10 Don’t leave any of it until morning. Anything left over in the morning must be burned up.

11 This is how you should be dressed when you eat it: with your belt on, your sandals on your feet, and your shepherd’s staff in your hand. You must eat it in a hurry. It is the Lord’s Passover.
12 “On that same night I will go throughout Egypt and kill every firstborn male, both human and animal. I will severely punish all the gods of Egypt, because I am the Lord.

13 But the blood on your houses will be a sign for your protection. When I see the blood, I will pass over you. Nothing will touch or destroy you when I strike Egypt.
14 “This day will be one for you to remember. This is a permanent law for generations to come: You will celebrate this day as a pilgrimage festival in the Lord’s honor.15 For seven days you must eat unleavened bread. On the very first day you must remove any yeast that you have in your houses. Whoever eats anything with yeast in it from the first day through the seventh day must be excluded from Israel.

16 You must have a holy assembly on the first day and another one on the seventh. You must not work on these days except to prepare your own meals. That’s all you may do.
17 You must celebrate the Festival of Unleavened Bread because it was on this very day that I brought you out of Egypt in organized family groups. This is a permanent law for future generations: You must celebrate this day.18 From the evening of the fourteenth day of the first month until the evening of the twenty-first day you must eat unleavened bread.19 There should be no yeast in your houses for seven days. Whoever eats anything with yeast in it must be excluded from the community of Israel, whether he is an Israelite or not.

20 Eat nothing made with yeast. Wherever you live, you must eat only unleavened bread.”
21 Then Moses called for all the leaders of Israel. He said to them, “Pick out a lamb or a young goat for your families, and kill the Passover animal.22 Take the branch of a hyssop plant, dip it in the blood which is in a bowl, and put some of the blood on the top and sides of the doorframes of your houses. No one may leave the house until morning.

23 The Lord will go throughout Egypt to kill the Egyptians. When he sees the blood on the top and sides of the doorframe, he will pass over that doorway, and he will not let the destroyer come into your home to kill you.
24 “You must follow these instructions. They are a permanent law for you and your children.25 When you enter the land that the Lord will give you as he promised, observe this ceremony.26 When your children ask you what this ceremony means to you,

27 you must answer, ‘It’s the Passover sacrifice in the Lord’s honor. The Lord passed over the houses of the Israelites in Egypt and spared our homes when he killed the Egyptians.’ ”
Then the people knelt, bowing with their faces touching the ground.

28 The Israelites did as the Lord had commanded Moses and Aaron.
29 At midnight the Lord killed every firstborn male in Egypt from the firstborn son of Pharaoh who ruled the land to the firstborn son of the prisoner in jail, and also every firstborn animal.

30 Pharaoh, all his officials, and all the other Egyptians got up during the night. There was loud crying throughout Egypt because in every house someone had died.

Pharaoh Allows the Israelites to Leave Egypt

31 Pharaoh called for Moses and Aaron during the night. He said, “You and the Israelites must leave my people at once. Go, worship the Lord as you asked.

32 Take your flocks and herds, too, as you asked. Just go! And bless me, too!”
33 The Egyptians begged the people to leave the country quickly. They said, “Soon we’ll all be dead!”

34 So the people picked up their bread dough before it had risen and carried it on their shoulders in bowls, wrapped up in their clothes.
35 The Israelites did what Moses had told them and asked the Egyptians for gold and silver jewelry and for clothes.

36 The Lord made the Egyptians generous to the people, and they gave them what they asked for. So the Israelites stripped Egypt of its wealth.

The Israelites Leave Egypt

37 The Israelites left Rameses to go to Succoth. There were about six hundred thousand men on foot, plus all the women and children.

38 Many other people also went with them, along with large numbers of sheep, goats, and cattle.
39 With the dough they had brought from Egypt, they baked round, flat bread. The dough hadn’t risen because they’d been thrown out of Egypt and had no time to prepare food for the trip.40 The Israelites had been living in Egypt for 430 years.41 After exactly 430 years all the Lord’s people left Egypt in organized family groups.

42 That night the Lord kept watch to take them out of Egypt. (All Israelites in future generations must keep watch on this night, since it is dedicated to the Lord.)

Rules for the Passover

43 The Lord said to Moses and Aaron, “These are the rules for the Passover:“No foreigner may eat the Passover meal.44 “Any male slave you have bought may eat it after you have circumcised him.45 “No foreigner visiting you may eat it.“No hired worker may eat it.46 “The meal must be eaten inside one house. Never take any of the meat outside the house.“Never break any of the bones.47 “The whole community of Israel must celebrate the Passover.48 “Foreigners may want to celebrate the Lord’s Passover. First, every male in the household must be circumcised. Then they may celebrate the Passover like native-born Israelites. But no uncircumcised males may ever eat the Passover meal.

49 The same instructions apply to native-born Israelites as well as foreigners.”
50 All the Israelites did as the Lord had commanded Moses and Aaron.

51 That very day the Lord brought all the Israelites out of Egypt in organized family groups.

Exodus 13

1 The Lord spoke to Moses,

2 “Set apart every firstborn male for me. Every firstborn male offspring among the Israelites is mine, whether human or animal.”
3 Then Moses said to the people, “Remember this day—the day when you left Egypt, the land of slavery. The Lord used his mighty hand to bring you out of there. Don’t eat anything made with yeast.4 Today, in the month of Abib, you are leaving Egypt.

5 The Lord swore to your ancestors that he would give you the land of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Hivites, and Jebusites. When he brings you into that land flowing with milk and honey, you must observe this ceremony in this month.
6 “For seven days you must eat unleavened bread. The seventh day will be a pilgrimage festival in the Lord’s honor.7 Only unleavened bread should be eaten during these seven days. No sourdough or yeast should be seen anywhere in your territory.8 On that day tell your children, ‘We do this because of what the Lord did for us when we left Egypt.’9 This festival will be like a mark on your hand or a reminder on your forehead that the teachings of the Lord are always to be a part of your conversation. Because the Lord used his mighty hand to bring you out of Egypt,

10 you must follow these rules every year at this time.

Rules Concerning the Firstborn Child

11 “When the Lord brings you to the land of the Canaanites and gives it to you, as he swore to you and your ancestors,12 sacrifice every firstborn male offspring to the Lord. The firstborn male offspring of each of your animals belongs to the Lord.

13 It will cost you a sheep or a goat to buy any firstborn donkey back from the Lord. If you don’t buy it back, then you must break the donkey’s neck. You must also buy every firstborn son back from the Lord.
14 “In the future when your children ask you what this means, tell them, ‘The Lord used his mighty hand to bring us out of slavery in Egypt.15 When Pharaoh was too stubborn to let us go, the Lord killed every firstborn male in Egypt—human and animal. This is why we sacrifice every firstborn male to the Lord and buy every firstborn son back from the Lord.’

16 So this festival will be like a mark on your hand and like a band on your forehead, because the Lord used his mighty hand to bring us out of Egypt.”

God Leads the People out of Egypt

17 When Pharaoh let the people go, God didn’t lead them on the road through Philistine territory, although that was the shortest route. God said, “If they see that they have to fight a war, they may change their minds and go back to Egypt.”

18 So God led the people around the other way, on the road through the desert toward the Red Sea. The Israelites were ready for battle when they left Egypt.
19 Moses took the bones of Joseph with him, because Joseph had made the Israelites solemnly swear to do this. Joseph had said, “God will definitely come to help you. When he does, take my bones with you.”20 They moved from Succoth and camped at Etham, on the edge of the desert.21 By day the Lord went ahead of them in a column of smoke to lead them on their way. By night he went ahead of them in a column of fire to give them light so that they could travel by day or by night.

22 The column of smoke was always in front of the people during the day. The column of fire was always there at night.