At midnight Jehovah destroyed all the eldest sons in the land of Egypt,
from the eldest son of Pharaoh who sat on his throne to the eldest son
of the captive who was in prison. Then Pharaoh arose in the night,
together with all his servants and all the Egyptians, and there was a
great cry of sorrow, for there was not a house in Egypt in which there
was not one dead. Pharaoh called Moses and Aaron at night and said, "Go
away from among my people, both you and the Israelites; go, worship
Jehovah as you have asked. Also take with you your sheep and your
cattle, as you have asked, go and ask a blessing for me also." The
Egyptians also told the people to hasten out of the land, for they said,
"We shall all perish." So the people took their dough before the yeast
had worked, and their kneading-troughs were bound up in their clothes
upon their shoulders.
The Israelites went on foot from Rameses to Succoth; and a mixed
multitude went with them, and they had a great many flocks and herds.
They baked unraised cakes of the dough which they had brought with them
from Egypt, for there was no yeast in it, because they had been driven
out of Egypt and could not wait, neither had they prepared for
themselves any food for the journey.
And they went from Succoth and camped at Etham on the border of the
wilderness. Jehovah went before them by day in a pillar of cloud, to
show them the way, and at night in a pillar of fire, to give them light,
that they might march both by day and by night; the pillar of cloud by
day and the pillar of fire at night stayed in front of the people.
When the king of Egypt was told that the people had fled, the feeling of
Pharaoh and his servants toward them was changed, and they said, "Why
have we done this and let the Israelites escape from serving us?" So he
made ready his chariot and took his people with him. He also took six
hundred chosen chariots and the rest of the chariots of Egypt with
captains over all of them; and Jehovah let the heart of Pharaoh, king of
Egypt, remain stubborn, so that he followed the Israelites, because they
had defied him.
When Pharaoh drew near to them the Israelites looked up and saw the
Egyptians marching after them; and they were very much afraid and cried
to Jehovah. And they said to Moses, "Why have you misled us by bringing
us out of Egypt? Is not this what we told you in Egypt, when we said,
'Let us alone, that we may serve the Egyptians? For it is better for us
to serve the Egyptians than to die in the wilderness.'" But Moses said
to the people, "Do not be frightened, remain quiet and you will see how
Jehovah will save you to-day; for as surely as you now see the Egyptians
you shall never see them again. Jehovah will fight for you, and you are
to keep still."
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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