Study Desk

'My father made me swear [an oath], saying, "Hear me, I am about to die; bury me in my tomb which I prepared for myself in the land of Canaan." So now let me go up [to Canaan], please, and bury my father; then I will return.'"

So Joseph went up [to Canaan] to bury his father, and with him went all the officials of Pharaoh, [the nobles of his court and] the elders of his household and all [the nobles and] the elders of the land of Egypt—

So Jacob's sons did for him as he had commanded them;

So they sent word to Joseph, saying, "Your father commanded us before he died, saying,

"So now, do not be afraid; I will provide for you and support you and your little ones." So he comforted them [giving them encouragement and hope] and spoke [with kindness] to their hearts.

So Joseph died, being a hundred and ten years old; and they embalmed him and he was put in a coffin in Egypt.

but the Israelites were prolific and increased greatly; they multiplied and became extremely strong, so that the land was filled with them.

"Come, let us deal shrewdly with them, so that they will not multiply and in the event of war, join our enemies, and fight against us and escape from the land."

So they set taskmasters over them to oppress them with hard labor. And the sons of Israel built Pithom and Raamses as storage cities for Pharaoh.

But the more the Egyptians oppressed them, the more they multiplied and expanded, so that the Egyptians dreaded and were exasperated by the Israelites.

So the king of Egypt called for the midwives and said to them, "Why have you done this thing, and allowed the boy babies to live?"

So God was good to the midwives, and the people [of Israel] multiplied and became very strong.

And Pharaoh's daughter said to her, "Go ahead." So the girl went and called the child's mother.

Then Pharaoh's daughter said to her, "Take this child away and nurse him for me, and I will give you your wages." So the woman took the child and nursed him.

When they came to Reuel (Jethro) their father, he said, "How is it that you have come back so soon today?"

So God heard their groaning and God remembered His covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob (Israel).

So Moses said, "I must turn away [from the flock] and see this great sight—why the bush is not burned up."

"So I have come down to rescue them from the hand (power) of the Egyptians, and to bring them up from that land to a land [that is] good and spacious, to a land flowing with milk and honey [a land of plenty]—to the place of the Canaanite, the Hittite, the Amorite, the Perizzite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite.

"So I said I will bring you up out of the suffering and oppression of Egypt to the land of the Canaanite, the Hittite, the Amorite, the Perizzite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite, to a land flowing with milk and honey."'

"The elders [of the tribes] will listen and pay attention to what you say; and you, with the elders of Israel, shall go to the king of Egypt and you shall say to him, 'The LORD, the God of the Hebrews, has met with us; so now, please, [we ask and plead with you,] let us go on a three days' journey into the wilderness, so that we may sacrifice to the LORD our God.'