The Eighth Plague: Locusts

10 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Go to Pharaoh, for I have hardened his heart and the hearts of his officials so that I may do these miraculous signs of Mine among them,[a](A) and so that you may tell[b] your son and grandson(B) how severely I dealt with the Egyptians and performed miraculous signs among them, and you will know that I am Yahweh.”

So Moses and Aaron went in to Pharaoh and told him, “This is what Yahweh, the God of the Hebrews, says: How long will you refuse to humble yourself before Me? Let My people go, that they may worship Me.(C) But if you refuse to let My people go, then tomorrow I will bring locusts(D) into your territory. They will cover the surface of the land so that no one will be able to see the land. They will eat the remainder left(E) to you that escaped the hail; they will eat every tree you have growing in the fields. They will fill your houses, all your officials’ houses, and the houses of all the Egyptians—something your fathers and ancestors never saw since the time they occupied the land until today.” Then he turned and left Pharaoh’s presence.

Pharaoh’s officials asked him, “How long must this man be a snare(F) to us? Let the men go, so that they may worship Yahweh their God. Don’t you realize yet that Egypt is devastated?”

So Moses and Aaron were brought back to Pharaoh. “Go, worship Yahweh your God,” Pharaoh said. “But exactly who will be going?”

Moses replied, “We will go with our young and our old; we will go with our sons and daughters and with our flocks and herds because we must hold Yahweh’s festival.”(G)

10 He said to them, “May Yahweh be with you if I ever let you and your families go![c] Look out—you are planning evil. 11 No, only the men may go and worship Yahweh, for that is what you have been asking for.” And they were driven from Pharaoh’s presence.

12 The Lord then said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand over the land of Egypt and the locusts will come up over it and eat every plant in the land, everything that the hail left.” 13 So Moses stretched out his staff over the land of Egypt, and the Lord sent an east wind over the land all that day and through the night. By morning the east wind had brought in the locusts. 14 The locusts went up over the entire land of Egypt and settled on the whole territory of Egypt. Never before had there been such a large number of locusts, and there never will be again.(H) 15 They covered the surface of the whole land so that the land was black, and they consumed all the plants on the ground and all the fruit on the trees that the hail had left. Nothing green was left on the trees or the plants in the field throughout the land of Egypt.(I)

16 Pharaoh urgently sent for Moses and Aaron and said, “I have sinned against Yahweh your God and against you. 17 Please forgive my sin once more and make an appeal to Yahweh your God, so that He will take this death away from me.” 18 Moses left Pharaoh’s presence and appealed to the Lord.(J) 19 Then the Lord changed the wind to a strong west[d] wind, and it carried off the locusts and blew them into the Red Sea.(K) Not a single locust was left in all the territory of Egypt. 20 But the Lord hardened Pharaoh’s heart,(L) and he did not let the Israelites go.

The Ninth Plague: Darkness

21 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand toward heaven, and there will be darkness over the land of Egypt, a darkness that can be felt.” 22 So Moses stretched out his hand toward heaven, and there was thick darkness throughout the land of Egypt for three days. 23 One person could not see another, and for three days they did not move from where they were. Yet all the Israelites had light where they lived.(M)

24 Pharaoh summoned Moses and said, “Go, worship Yahweh. Even your families may go with you; only your flocks and herds must stay behind.”

25 Moses responded, “You must also let us have[e] sacrifices and burnt offerings to prepare for Yahweh our God. 26 Even our livestock must go with us; not a hoof will be left behind because we will take some of them to worship Yahweh our God. We will not know what we will use to worship Yahweh until we get there.”

27 But the Lord hardened Pharaoh’s heart,(N) and he was unwilling to let them go. 28 Pharaoh said to him, “Leave me! Make sure you never see my face again, for on the day you see my face, you will die.”

29 “As you have said,” Moses replied, “I will never see your face again.”(O)

The Tenth Plague: Death of the Firstborn

11 The Lord said[f] to Moses, “I will bring one more plague on Pharaoh and on Egypt. After that, he will let you go from here. When he lets you go,[g] he will drive you out of here. Now announce to the people that both men and women should ask their neighbors for silver and gold jewelry.” The Lord gave[h] the people favor in the sight of the Egyptians. And the man Moses was highly regarded[i] in the land of Egypt by[j] Pharaoh’s officials and the people.(P)

So Moses said, “This is what Yahweh says: ‘About midnight I will go throughout Egypt, and every firstborn male in the land of Egypt will die, from the firstborn of Pharaoh who sits on his throne to the firstborn of the servant girl who is behind the millstones, as well as every firstborn of the livestock. Then there will be a great cry of anguish through all the land of Egypt such as never was before, or ever will be again. But against all the Israelites, whether man or beast, not even a dog will snarl,[k] so that you may know that Yahweh makes a distinction between Egypt and Israel. All these officials of yours will come down to me and bow before me, saying: Leave, you and all the people who follow you.[l] After that, I will leave.’” And he left Pharaoh’s presence in fierce anger.(Q)

The Lord said to Moses, “Pharaoh will not listen(R) to you, so that My wonders may be multiplied in the land of Egypt.” 10 Moses and Aaron did all these wonders before Pharaoh, but the Lord hardened Pharaoh’s heart,(S) and he would not let the Israelites go out of his land.

Instructions for the Passover

12 The Lord said to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt: “This month is to be the beginning of months for you; it is the first month of your year.(T) Tell the whole community of Israel that on the tenth day of this month they must each select an animal of the flock according to their fathers’ households, one animal per household. If the household is too small for a whole animal, that person and the neighbor nearest his house are to select one based on the combined number of people; you should apportion the animal according to what each person[m] will eat. You must have an unblemished(U) animal, a year-old male; you may take it from either the sheep or the goats. You are to keep it until the fourteenth day of this month; then the whole assembly of the community of Israel will slaughter the animals at twilight.(V) They must take some of the blood and put it on the two doorposts and the lintel of the houses where they eat them. They are to eat the meat that night; they should eat it, roasted over the fire along with unleavened bread and bitter herbs.(W) Do not eat any of it raw or cooked in boiling[n] water, but only roasted(X) over fire—its head as well as its legs and inner organs. 10 Do not let any of it remain until morning;(Y) you must burn up any part of it that does remain before morning. 11 Here is how you must eat it: you must be dressed for travel,[o] your sandals on your feet, and your staff in your hand. You are to eat it in a hurry; it is the Lord’s Passover.(Z)

12 “I will pass through(AA) the land of Egypt on that night and strike every firstborn male in the land of Egypt, both man and beast. I am Yahweh; I will execute judgments against all the gods of Egypt.(AB) 13 The blood on the houses where you are staying will be a distinguishing mark for you; when I see the blood, I will pass over you. No plague will be among you to destroy you when I strike the land of Egypt.

14 “This day is to be a memorial for you, and you must celebrate it as a festival to the Lord. You are to celebrate it throughout your generations as a permanent statute.(AC) 15 You must eat unleavened bread for seven days. On the first day you must remove yeast(AD) from your houses. Whoever eats what is leavened from the first day through the seventh day must be cut off(AE) from Israel. 16 You are to hold a sacred assembly(AF) on the first day and another sacred assembly on the seventh day. No work may be done on those days except for preparing what people need to eat—you may do only that.

17 “You are to observe the Festival of Unleavened Bread because on this very day I brought your divisions out of the land of Egypt.(AG) You must observe this day throughout your generations as a permanent statute. 18 You are to eat unleavened bread in the first month,(AH) from the evening of the fourteenth day of the month until the evening of the twenty-first day. 19 Yeast must not be found in your houses for seven days. If anyone eats something leavened, that person, whether a foreign resident or native of the land, must be cut off from the community of Israel. 20 Do not eat anything leavened; eat unleavened bread in all your homes.”[p]

21 Then Moses summoned all the elders of Israel and said to them, “Go, select an animal from the flock according to your families, and slaughter the Passover animal.(AI) 22 Take a cluster of hyssop, dip it in the blood(AJ) that is in the basin, and brush the lintel and the two doorposts with some of the blood in the basin. None of you may go out the door of his house until morning. 23 When the Lord passes through to strike Egypt and sees the blood on the lintel and the two doorposts, He will pass over the door and not let the destroyer enter your houses to strike you.(AK)

24 “Keep this command permanently as a statute for you and your descendants. 25 When you enter the land that the Lord will give you as He promised, you are to observe this ritual. 26 When your children(AL) ask you, ‘What does this ritual mean to you?’ 27 you are to reply, ‘It is the Passover sacrifice(AM) to the Lord, for He passed over the houses of the Israelites in Egypt when He struck the Egyptians and spared our homes.’” So the people bowed down and worshiped. 28 Then the Israelites went and did this; they did just as the Lord had commanded Moses and Aaron.

The Exodus

29 Now at midnight the Lord struck every firstborn male in the land of Egypt, from the firstborn of Pharaoh who sat on his throne to the firstborn of the prisoner who was in the dungeon, and every firstborn of the livestock.(AN) 30 During the night Pharaoh got up, he along with all his officials and all the Egyptians, and there was a loud wailing(AO) throughout Egypt because there wasn’t a house without someone dead. 31 He summoned Moses and Aaron during the night and said, “Get up, leave my people, both you and the Israelites, and go, worship Yahweh as you have asked. 32 Take even your flocks and your herds as you asked and leave, and also bless me.”

33 Now the Egyptians pressured the people in order to send them quickly out of the country, for they said, “We’re all going to die!”(AP) 34 So the people took their dough before it was leavened, with their kneading bowls wrapped up in their clothes on their shoulders.

35 The Israelites acted on Moses’ word and asked the Egyptians for silver and gold jewelry and for clothing.(AQ) 36 And the Lord gave the people such favor in the Egyptians’ sight that they gave them what they requested. In this way they plundered the Egyptians.

37 The Israelites traveled from Rameses to Succoth,(AR) about 600,000(AS) soldiers on foot, besides their families. 38 An ethnically diverse crowd also went up with them, along with a huge number of livestock, both flocks and herds. 39 The people baked the dough they had brought out of Egypt into unleavened loaves, since it had no yeast; for when they had been driven(AT) out of Egypt they could not delay and had not prepared any provisions for themselves.

40 The time that the Israelites lived in Egypt[q] was 430 years.(AU) 41 At the end of 430 years, on that same day, all the Lord’s divisions went out from the land of Egypt. 42 It was a night of vigil in honor of the Lord, because He would bring them out of the land of Egypt. This same night is in honor of the Lord, a night vigil for all the Israelites throughout their generations.(AV)

Passover Instruction

43 The Lord said to Moses and Aaron, “This is the statute of the Passover: no foreigner may eat it. 44 But any slave a man has purchased may eat it, after you have circumcised him. 45 A temporary resident or hired hand may not eat the Passover.(AW) 46 It is to be eaten in one house. You may not take any of the meat outside the house, and you may not break any of its bones.(AX) 47 The whole community of Israel must celebrate[r] it. 48 If a foreigner resides with you and wants to celebrate the Lord’s Passover, every male in his household must be circumcised, and then he may participate;[s] he will become like a native of the land. But no uncircumcised person may eat it. 49 The same law will apply to both the native and the foreigner(AY) who resides among you.”

50 Then all the Israelites did this; they did just as the Lord had commanded Moses and Aaron. 51 On that same day the Lord brought the Israelites out of the land of Egypt according to their divisions.(AZ)

Footnotes

  1. Exodus 10:1 Lit Mine in his midst
  2. Exodus 10:2 Lit tell in the ears of
  3. Exodus 10:10 Pharaoh’s reply is sarcastic.
  4. Exodus 10:19 Lit sea
  5. Exodus 10:25 Lit also give in our hand
  6. Exodus 11:1 Or had said
  7. Exodus 11:1 Or go, it will be finished
  8. Exodus 11:3 Or had given
  9. Exodus 11:3 Lit was very great
  10. Exodus 11:3 Or in the eyes of
  11. Exodus 11:7 Lit point its tongue
  12. Exodus 11:8 Lit people at your feet
  13. Exodus 12:4 Or household
  14. Exodus 12:9 Or or boiled at all in
  15. Exodus 12:11 Lit it: with your loins girded
  16. Exodus 12:20 Or settlements
  17. Exodus 12:40 LXX, Sam add and in Canaan
  18. Exodus 12:47 Lit do
  19. Exodus 12:48 Lit may come near to do it

The Plague of Locusts

10 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Go to Pharaoh, for I have hardened his heart(A) and the hearts of his officials so that I may perform these signs(B) of mine among them that you may tell your children(C) and grandchildren how I dealt harshly(D) with the Egyptians and how I performed my signs among them, and that you may know that I am the Lord.”(E)

So Moses and Aaron went to Pharaoh and said to him, “This is what the Lord, the God of the Hebrews, says: ‘How long will you refuse to humble(F) yourself before me? Let my people go, so that they may worship me. If you refuse(G) to let them go, I will bring locusts(H) into your country tomorrow. They will cover the face of the ground so that it cannot be seen. They will devour what little you have left(I) after the hail, including every tree that is growing in your fields.(J) They will fill your houses(K) and those of all your officials and all the Egyptians—something neither your parents nor your ancestors have ever seen from the day they settled in this land till now.’”(L) Then Moses turned and left Pharaoh.

Pharaoh’s officials said to him, “How long will this man be a snare(M) to us? Let the people go, so that they may worship the Lord their God. Do you not yet realize that Egypt is ruined?”(N)

Then Moses and Aaron were brought back to Pharaoh. “Go, worship(O) the Lord your God,” he said. “But tell me who will be going.”

Moses answered, “We will go with our young and our old, with our sons and our daughters, and with our flocks and herds, because we are to celebrate a festival(P) to the Lord.”

10 Pharaoh said, “The Lord be with you—if I let you go, along with your women and children! Clearly you are bent on evil.[a] 11 No! Have only the men go and worship the Lord, since that’s what you have been asking for.” Then Moses and Aaron were driven out of Pharaoh’s presence.

12 And the Lord said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand(Q) over Egypt so that locusts swarm over the land and devour everything growing in the fields, everything left by the hail.”

13 So Moses stretched out his staff(R) over Egypt, and the Lord made an east wind blow across the land all that day and all that night. By morning the wind had brought the locusts;(S) 14 they invaded all Egypt and settled down in every area of the country in great numbers. Never before had there been such a plague of locusts,(T) nor will there ever be again. 15 They covered all the ground until it was black. They devoured(U) all that was left after the hail—everything growing in the fields and the fruit on the trees. Nothing green remained on tree or plant in all the land of Egypt.

16 Pharaoh quickly summoned(V) Moses and Aaron and said, “I have sinned(W) against the Lord your God and against you. 17 Now forgive(X) my sin once more and pray(Y) to the Lord your God to take this deadly plague away from me.”

18 Moses then left Pharaoh and prayed to the Lord.(Z) 19 And the Lord changed the wind to a very strong west wind, which caught up the locusts and carried them into the Red Sea.[b] Not a locust was left anywhere in Egypt. 20 But the Lord hardened Pharaoh’s heart,(AA) and he would not let the Israelites go.

The Plague of Darkness

21 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand toward the sky so that darkness(AB) spreads over Egypt—darkness that can be felt.” 22 So Moses stretched out his hand toward the sky, and total darkness(AC) covered all Egypt for three days. 23 No one could see anyone else or move about for three days. Yet all the Israelites had light in the places where they lived.(AD)

24 Then Pharaoh summoned Moses and said, “Go,(AE) worship the Lord. Even your women and children(AF) may go with you; only leave your flocks and herds behind.”(AG)

25 But Moses said, “You must allow us to have sacrifices and burnt offerings(AH) to present to the Lord our God. 26 Our livestock too must go with us; not a hoof is to be left behind. We have to use some of them in worshiping the Lord our God, and until we get there we will not know what we are to use to worship the Lord.”

27 But the Lord hardened Pharaoh’s heart,(AI) and he was not willing to let them go. 28 Pharaoh said to Moses, “Get out of my sight! Make sure you do not appear before me again! The day you see my face you will die.”

29 “Just as you say,” Moses replied. “I will never appear(AJ) before you again.”

The Plague on the Firstborn

11 Now the Lord had said to Moses, “I will bring one more plague on Pharaoh and on Egypt. After that, he will let you go(AK) from here, and when he does, he will drive you out completely.(AL) Tell the people that men and women alike are to ask their neighbors for articles of silver and gold.”(AM) (The Lord made the Egyptians favorably disposed(AN) toward the people, and Moses himself was highly regarded(AO) in Egypt by Pharaoh’s officials and by the people.)

So Moses said, “This is what the Lord says: ‘About midnight(AP) I will go throughout Egypt.(AQ) Every firstborn(AR) son in Egypt will die, from the firstborn son of Pharaoh, who sits on the throne, to the firstborn son of the female slave, who is at her hand mill,(AS) and all the firstborn of the cattle as well. There will be loud wailing(AT) throughout Egypt—worse than there has ever been or ever will be again. But among the Israelites not a dog will bark at any person or animal.’ Then you will know that the Lord makes a distinction(AU) between Egypt and Israel. All these officials of yours will come to me, bowing down before me and saying, ‘Go,(AV) you and all the people who follow you!’ After that I will leave.”(AW) Then Moses, hot with anger, left Pharaoh.

The Lord had said to Moses, “Pharaoh will refuse to listen(AX) to you—so that my wonders(AY) may be multiplied in Egypt.” 10 Moses and Aaron performed all these wonders before Pharaoh, but the Lord hardened Pharaoh’s heart,(AZ) and he would not let the Israelites go out of his country.

The Passover and the Festival of Unleavened Bread(BA)

12 The Lord said to Moses and Aaron in Egypt, “This month is to be for you the first month,(BB) the first month of your year. Tell the whole community of Israel that on the tenth day of this month each man is to take a lamb[c](BC) for his family, one for each household.(BD) If any household is too small for a whole lamb, they must share one with their nearest neighbor, having taken into account the number of people there are. You are to determine the amount of lamb needed in accordance with what each person will eat. The animals you choose must be year-old males without defect,(BE) and you may take them from the sheep or the goats. Take care of them until the fourteenth day of the month,(BF) when all the members of the community of Israel must slaughter them at twilight.(BG) Then they are to take some of the blood(BH) and put it on the sides and tops of the doorframes of the houses where they eat the lambs. That same night(BI) they are to eat the meat roasted(BJ) over the fire, along with bitter herbs,(BK) and bread made without yeast.(BL) Do not eat the meat raw or boiled in water, but roast it over a fire—with the head, legs and internal organs.(BM) 10 Do not leave any of it till morning;(BN) if some is left till morning, you must burn it. 11 This is how you are to eat it: with your cloak tucked into your belt, your sandals on your feet and your staff in your hand. Eat it in haste;(BO) it is the Lord’s Passover.(BP)

12 “On that same night I will pass through(BQ) Egypt and strike down(BR) every firstborn(BS) of both people and animals, and I will bring judgment on all the gods(BT) of Egypt. I am the Lord.(BU) 13 The blood will be a sign for you on the houses where you are, and when I see the blood, I will pass over(BV) you. No destructive plague will touch you when I strike Egypt.(BW)

14 “This is a day you are to commemorate;(BX) for the generations to come you shall celebrate it as a festival to the Lord—a lasting ordinance.(BY) 15 For seven days you are to eat bread made without yeast.(BZ) On the first day remove the yeast from your houses, for whoever eats anything with yeast in it from the first day through the seventh must be cut off(CA) from Israel. 16 On the first day hold a sacred assembly, and another one on the seventh day. Do no work(CB) at all on these days, except to prepare food for everyone to eat; that is all you may do.

17 “Celebrate the Festival of Unleavened Bread,(CC) because it was on this very day that I brought your divisions out of Egypt.(CD) Celebrate this day as a lasting ordinance for the generations to come.(CE) 18 In the first month(CF) you are to eat bread made without yeast, from the evening of the fourteenth day until the evening of the twenty-first day. 19 For seven days no yeast is to be found in your houses. And anyone, whether foreigner(CG) or native-born, who eats anything with yeast in it must be cut off(CH) from the community of Israel. 20 Eat nothing made with yeast. Wherever you live,(CI) you must eat unleavened bread.”(CJ)

21 Then Moses summoned all the elders of Israel and said to them, “Go at once and select the animals for your families and slaughter the Passover(CK) lamb. 22 Take a bunch of hyssop,(CL) dip it into the blood in the basin and put some of the blood(CM) on the top and on both sides of the doorframe. None of you shall go out of the door of your house until morning. 23 When the Lord goes through the land to strike(CN) down the Egyptians, he will see the blood(CO) on the top and sides of the doorframe and will pass over(CP) that doorway, and he will not permit the destroyer(CQ) to enter your houses and strike you down.

24 “Obey these instructions as a lasting ordinance(CR) for you and your descendants. 25 When you enter the land(CS) that the Lord will give you as he promised, observe this ceremony. 26 And when your children(CT) ask you, ‘What does this ceremony mean to you?’ 27 then tell them, ‘It is the Passover(CU) sacrifice to the Lord, who passed over the houses of the Israelites in Egypt and spared our homes when he struck down the Egyptians.’”(CV) Then the people bowed down and worshiped.(CW) 28 The Israelites did just what the Lord commanded(CX) Moses and Aaron.

29 At midnight(CY) the Lord(CZ) struck down all the firstborn(DA) in Egypt, from the firstborn of Pharaoh, who sat on the throne, to the firstborn of the prisoner, who was in the dungeon, and the firstborn of all the livestock(DB) as well. 30 Pharaoh and all his officials and all the Egyptians got up during the night, and there was loud wailing(DC) in Egypt, for there was not a house without someone dead.

The Exodus

31 During the night Pharaoh summoned Moses and Aaron and said, “Up! Leave my people, you and the Israelites! Go, worship(DD) the Lord as you have requested. 32 Take your flocks and herds,(DE) as you have said, and go. And also bless(DF) me.”

33 The Egyptians urged the people to hurry(DG) and leave(DH) the country. “For otherwise,” they said, “we will all die!”(DI) 34 So the people took their dough before the yeast was added, and carried it on their shoulders in kneading troughs(DJ) wrapped in clothing. 35 The Israelites did as Moses instructed and asked the Egyptians for articles of silver and gold(DK) and for clothing.(DL) 36 The Lord had made the Egyptians favorably disposed(DM) toward the people, and they gave them what they asked for; so they plundered(DN) the Egyptians.

37 The Israelites journeyed from Rameses(DO) to Sukkoth.(DP) There were about six hundred thousand men(DQ) on foot, besides women and children. 38 Many other people(DR) went up with them, and also large droves of livestock, both flocks and herds. 39 With the dough the Israelites had brought from Egypt, they baked loaves of unleavened bread. The dough was without yeast because they had been driven out(DS) of Egypt and did not have time to prepare food for themselves.

40 Now the length of time the Israelite people lived in Egypt[d] was 430 years.(DT) 41 At the end of the 430 years, to the very day, all the Lord’s divisions(DU) left Egypt.(DV) 42 Because the Lord kept vigil that night to bring them out of Egypt, on this night all the Israelites are to keep vigil to honor the Lord for the generations to come.(DW)

Passover Restrictions

43 The Lord said to Moses and Aaron, “These are the regulations for the Passover meal:(DX)

“No foreigner(DY) may eat it. 44 Any slave you have bought may eat it after you have circumcised(DZ) him, 45 but a temporary resident or a hired worker(EA) may not eat it.

46 “It must be eaten inside the house; take none of the meat outside the house. Do not break any of the bones.(EB) 47 The whole community of Israel must celebrate it.

48 “A foreigner residing among you who wants to celebrate the Lord’s Passover must have all the males in his household circumcised; then he may take part like one born in the land.(EC) No uncircumcised(ED) male may eat it. 49 The same law applies both to the native-born and to the foreigner(EE) residing among you.”

50 All the Israelites did just what the Lord had commanded(EF) Moses and Aaron. 51 And on that very day the Lord brought the Israelites out of Egypt(EG) by their divisions.(EH)

Footnotes

  1. Exodus 10:10 Or Be careful, trouble is in store for you!
  2. Exodus 10:19 Or the Sea of Reeds
  3. Exodus 12:3 The Hebrew word can mean lamb or kid; also in verse 4.
  4. Exodus 12:40 Masoretic Text; Samaritan Pentateuch and Septuagint Egypt and Canaan

10 And the Lord said unto Moses, Go in unto Pharaoh: for I have hardened his heart, and the heart of his servants, that I might shew these my signs before him:

And that thou mayest tell in the ears of thy son, and of thy son's son, what things I have wrought in Egypt, and my signs which I have done among them; that ye may know how that I am the Lord.

And Moses and Aaron came in unto Pharaoh, and said unto him, Thus saith the Lord God of the Hebrews, How long wilt thou refuse to humble thyself before me? let my people go, that they may serve me.

Else, if thou refuse to let my people go, behold, to morrow will I bring the locusts into thy coast:

And they shall cover the face of the earth, that one cannot be able to see the earth: and they shall eat the residue of that which is escaped, which remaineth unto you from the hail, and shall eat every tree which groweth for you out of the field:

And they shall fill thy houses, and the houses of all thy servants, and the houses of all the Egyptians; which neither thy fathers, nor thy fathers' fathers have seen, since the day that they were upon the earth unto this day. And he turned himself, and went out from Pharaoh.

And Pharaoh's servants said unto him, How long shall this man be a snare unto us? let the men go, that they may serve the Lord their God: knowest thou not yet that Egypt is destroyed?

And Moses and Aaron were brought again unto Pharaoh: and he said unto them, Go, serve the Lord your God: but who are they that shall go?

And Moses said, We will go with our young and with our old, with our sons and with our daughters, with our flocks and with our herds will we go; for we must hold a feast unto the Lord.

10 And he said unto them, Let the Lord be so with you, as I will let you go, and your little ones: look to it; for evil is before you.

11 Not so: go now ye that are men, and serve the Lord; for that ye did desire. And they were driven out from Pharaoh's presence.

12 And the Lord said unto Moses, Stretch out thine hand over the land of Egypt for the locusts, that they may come up upon the land of Egypt, and eat every herb of the land, even all that the hail hath left.

13 And Moses stretched forth his rod over the land of Egypt, and the Lord brought an east wind upon the land all that day, and all that night; and when it was morning, the east wind brought the locusts.

14 And the locust went up over all the land of Egypt, and rested in all the coasts of Egypt: very grievous were they; before them there were no such locusts as they, neither after them shall be such.

15 For they covered the face of the whole earth, so that the land was darkened; and they did eat every herb of the land, and all the fruit of the trees which the hail had left: and there remained not any green thing in the trees, or in the herbs of the field, through all the land of Egypt.

16 Then Pharaoh called for Moses and Aaron in haste; and he said, I have sinned against the Lord your God, and against you.

17 Now therefore forgive, I pray thee, my sin only this once, and intreat the Lord your God, that he may take away from me this death only.

18 And he went out from Pharaoh, and intreated the Lord.

19 And the Lord turned a mighty strong west wind, which took away the locusts, and cast them into the Red sea; there remained not one locust in all the coasts of Egypt.

20 But the Lord hardened Pharaoh's heart, so that he would not let the children of Israel go.

21 And the Lord said unto Moses, Stretch out thine hand toward heaven, that there may be darkness over the land of Egypt, even darkness which may be felt.

22 And Moses stretched forth his hand toward heaven; and there was a thick darkness in all the land of Egypt three days:

23 They saw not one another, neither rose any from his place for three days: but all the children of Israel had light in their dwellings.

24 And Pharaoh called unto Moses, and said, Go ye, serve the Lord; only let your flocks and your herds be stayed: let your little ones also go with you.

25 And Moses said, Thou must give us also sacrifices and burnt offerings, that we may sacrifice unto the Lord our God.

26 Our cattle also shall go with us; there shall not an hoof be left behind; for thereof must we take to serve the Lord our God; and we know not with what we must serve the Lord, until we come thither.

27 But the Lord hardened Pharaoh's heart, and he would not let them go.

28 And Pharaoh said unto him, Get thee from me, take heed to thyself, see my face no more; for in that day thou seest my face thou shalt die.

29 And Moses said, Thou hast spoken well, I will see thy face again no more.

11 And the Lord said unto Moses, Yet will I bring one plague more upon Pharaoh, and upon Egypt; afterwards he will let you go hence: when he shall let you go, he shall surely thrust you out hence altogether.

Speak now in the ears of the people, and let every man borrow of his neighbour, and every woman of her neighbour, jewels of silver and jewels of gold.

And the Lord gave the people favour in the sight of the Egyptians. Moreover the man Moses was very great in the land of Egypt, in the sight of Pharaoh's servants, and in the sight of the people.

And Moses said, Thus saith the Lord, About midnight will I go out into the midst of Egypt:

And all the firstborn in the land of Egypt shall die, from the first born of Pharaoh that sitteth upon his throne, even unto the firstborn of the maidservant that is behind the mill; and all the firstborn of beasts.

And there shall be a great cry throughout all the land of Egypt, such as there was none like it, nor shall be like it any more.

But against any of the children of Israel shall not a dog move his tongue, against man or beast: that ye may know how that the Lord doth put a difference between the Egyptians and Israel.

And all these thy servants shall come down unto me, and bow down themselves unto me, saying, Get thee out, and all the people that follow thee: and after that I will go out. And he went out from Pharaoh in a great anger.

And the Lord said unto Moses, Pharaoh shall not hearken unto you; that my wonders may be multiplied in the land of Egypt.

10 And Moses and Aaron did all these wonders before Pharaoh: and the Lord hardened Pharaoh's heart, so that he would not let the children of Israel go out of his land.

12 And the Lord spake unto Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt saying,

This month shall be unto you the beginning of months: it shall be the first month of the year to you.

Speak ye unto all the congregation of Israel, saying, In the tenth day of this month they shall take to them every man a lamb, according to the house of their fathers, a lamb for an house:

And if the household be too little for the lamb, let him and his neighbour next unto his house take it according to the number of the souls; every man according to his eating shall make your count for the lamb.

Your lamb shall be without blemish, a male of the first year: ye shall take it out from the sheep, or from the goats:

And ye shall keep it up until the fourteenth day of the same month: and the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel shall kill it in the evening.

And they shall take of the blood, and strike it on the two side posts and on the upper door post of the houses, wherein they shall eat it.

And they shall eat the flesh in that night, roast with fire, and unleavened bread; and with bitter herbs they shall eat it.

Eat not of it raw, nor sodden at all with water, but roast with fire; his head with his legs, and with the purtenance thereof.

10 And ye shall let nothing of it remain until the morning; and that which remaineth of it until the morning ye shall burn with fire.

11 And thus shall ye eat it; with your loins girded, your shoes on your feet, and your staff in your hand; and ye shall eat it in haste: it is the Lord's passover.

12 For I will pass through the land of Egypt this night, and will smite all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and against all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgment: I am the Lord.

13 And the blood shall be to you for a token upon the houses where ye are: and when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and the plague shall not be upon you to destroy you, when I smite the land of Egypt.

14 And this day shall be unto you for a memorial; and ye shall keep it a feast to the Lord throughout your generations; ye shall keep it a feast by an ordinance for ever.

15 Seven days shall ye eat unleavened bread; even the first day ye shall put away leaven out of your houses: for whosoever eateth leavened bread from the first day until the seventh day, that soul shall be cut off from Israel.

16 And in the first day there shall be an holy convocation, and in the seventh day there shall be an holy convocation to you; no manner of work shall be done in them, save that which every man must eat, that only may be done of you.

17 And ye shall observe the feast of unleavened bread; for in this selfsame day have I brought your armies out of the land of Egypt: therefore shall ye observe this day in your generations by an ordinance for ever.

18 In the first month, on the fourteenth day of the month at even, ye shall eat unleavened bread, until the one and twentieth day of the month at even.

19 Seven days shall there be no leaven found in your houses: for whosoever eateth that which is leavened, even that soul shall be cut off from the congregation of Israel, whether he be a stranger, or born in the land.

20 Ye shall eat nothing leavened; in all your habitations shall ye eat unleavened bread.

21 Then Moses called for all the elders of Israel, and said unto them, Draw out and take you a lamb according to your families, and kill the passover.

22 And ye shall take a bunch of hyssop, and dip it in the blood that is in the bason, and strike the lintel and the two side posts with the blood that is in the bason; and none of you shall go out at the door of his house until the morning.

23 For the Lord will pass through to smite the Egyptians; and when he seeth the blood upon the lintel, and on the two side posts, the Lord will pass over the door, and will not suffer the destroyer to come in unto your houses to smite you.

24 And ye shall observe this thing for an ordinance to thee and to thy sons for ever.

25 And it shall come to pass, when ye be come to the land which the Lord will give you, according as he hath promised, that ye shall keep this service.

26 And it shall come to pass, when your children shall say unto you, What mean ye by this service?

27 That ye shall say, It is the sacrifice of the Lord's passover, who passed over the houses of the children of Israel in Egypt, when he smote the Egyptians, and delivered our houses. And the people bowed the head and worshipped.

28 And the children of Israel went away, and did as the Lord had commanded Moses and Aaron, so did they.

29 And it came to pass, that at midnight the Lord smote all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, from the firstborn of Pharaoh that sat on his throne unto the firstborn of the captive that was in the dungeon; and all the firstborn of cattle.

30 And Pharaoh rose up in the night, he, and all his servants, and all the Egyptians; and there was a great cry in Egypt; for there was not a house where there was not one dead.

31 And he called for Moses and Aaron by night, and said, Rise up, and get you forth from among my people, both ye and the children of Israel; and go, serve the Lord, as ye have said.

32 Also take your flocks and your herds, as ye have said, and be gone; and bless me also.

33 And the Egyptians were urgent upon the people, that they might send them out of the land in haste; for they said, We be all dead men.

34 And the people took their dough before it was leavened, their kneadingtroughs being bound up in their clothes upon their shoulders.

35 And the children of Israel did according to the word of Moses; and they borrowed of the Egyptians jewels of silver, and jewels of gold, and raiment:

36 And the Lord gave the people favour in the sight of the Egyptians, so that they lent unto them such things as they required. And they spoiled the Egyptians.

37 And the children of Israel journeyed from Rameses to Succoth, about six hundred thousand on foot that were men, beside children.

38 And a mixed multitude went up also with them; and flocks, and herds, even very much cattle.

39 And they baked unleavened cakes of the dough which they brought forth out of Egypt, for it was not leavened; because they were thrust out of Egypt, and could not tarry, neither had they prepared for themselves any victual.

40 Now the sojourning of the children of Israel, who dwelt in Egypt, was four hundred and thirty years.

41 And it came to pass at the end of the four hundred and thirty years, even the selfsame day it came to pass, that all the hosts of the Lord went out from the land of Egypt.

42 It is a night to be much observed unto the Lord for bringing them out from the land of Egypt: this is that night of the Lord to be observed of all the children of Israel in their generations.

43 And the Lord said unto Moses and Aaron, This is the ordinance of the passover: There shall no stranger eat thereof:

44 But every man's servant that is bought for money, when thou hast circumcised him, then shall he eat thereof.

45 A foreigner and an hired servant shall not eat thereof.

46 In one house shall it be eaten; thou shalt not carry forth ought of the flesh abroad out of the house; neither shall ye break a bone thereof.

47 All the congregation of Israel shall keep it.

48 And when a stranger shall sojourn with thee, and will keep the passover to the Lord, let all his males be circumcised, and then let him come near and keep it; and he shall be as one that is born in the land: for no uncircumcised person shall eat thereof.

49 One law shall be to him that is homeborn, and unto the stranger that sojourneth among you.

50 Thus did all the children of Israel; as the Lord commanded Moses and Aaron, so did they.

51 And it came to pass the selfsame day, that the Lord did bring the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt by their armies.