Study Desk

Now these are the ^(a)names of the sons of Israel who came to Egypt with Jacob; they came each one ^[a]with his household:

Reuben, Simeon, Levi and Judah;

Issachar, Zebulun and Benjamin;

Dan and Naphtali, Gad and Asher.

All the ^[b]persons who came from the loins of Jacob were ^(b)seventy ^[c]in number, but Joseph was already in Egypt.

^(c)Joseph died, and all his brothers and all that generation.

But the sons of Israel ^(d)were fruitful and ^[d]increased greatly, and multiplied, and became exceedingly ^[e]mighty, so that the land was filled with them.

Now a new ^(e)king arose over Egypt, who did not know Joseph.

^(f)He said to his people, "Behold, the people of the sons of Israel are ^[f]more and mightier than we.

Come, let us ^(g)deal wisely with them, or else they will multiply and ^[g]in the event of war, they will also join themselves to those who hate us, and fight against us and ^[h]depart from the land."

So they appointed ^(h)taskmasters over them to afflict them with ^[i](i)hard labor. And they built for Pharaoh ^(j)storage cities, Pithom and ^(k)Raamses.

But the more they afflicted them, ^(l)the more they multiplied and the more they ^[j]spread out, so that they were in dread of the sons of Israel.

The Egyptians compelled the sons of Israel ^(m)to labor rigorously;

and they made ⁽ⁿ⁾their lives bitter with hard labor in mortar and bricks and at all kinds of labor in the field, all their labors which they rigorously ^[k]imposed on them.

Then the king of Egypt spoke to the Hebrew midwives, one of whom ^[l]was named Shiphrah and the other ^[m]was named Puah;

and he said, "When you are helping the Hebrew women to give birth and see them upon the birthstool, ^(o)if it is a son, then you shall put him to death; but if it is a daughter, then she shall live."

But the midwives ^[n](p)feared God, and ^(q)did not do as the king of Egypt had ^[o]commanded them, but let the boys live.

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

The midwives said to Pharaoh, "Because the Hebrew women are not as the Egyptian women; for they are vigorous and give birth before the midwife ^[p]can get to them."

So ^(r)God was good to the midwives, and ^(s)the people multiplied, and became very ^[q]mighty.

Because the midwives ^[r](t)feared God, He ^[s](u)established ^[t]households for them.

Then Pharaoh commanded all his people, saying, "^(v)Every son who is born ^[u]you are to cast into ^(w)the Nile, and every daughter you are to keep alive."

Now a man from ^(a)the house of Levi went and ^[a]married a daughter of Levi.

The woman conceived and bore a son; and when she saw ^[b]that he was ^[c](b)beautiful, she hid him for three months.

But when she could hide him no longer, she got him a ^[d](c)wicker ^[e]basket and covered it over with tar and pitch. Then she put the child into it and set it among the ^(d)reeds by the bank of the Nile.

^(e)His sister stood at a distance to ^[f]find out what would ^[g]happen to him.

The daughter of Pharaoh came down ^(f)to bathe at the Nile, with her maidens walking alongside the Nile; and she saw the ^[h]basket among the reeds and sent her maid, and she brought it to her.

When she opened it, she ^[i]saw the child, and behold, the ^[j]boy was crying. And she had pity on him and said, "This is one of the Hebrews' children."

Then his sister said to Pharaoh's daughter, "Shall I go and call ^[k]a nurse for you from the Hebrew women that she may nurse the child for you?"

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.

The child grew, and she brought him to Pharaoh's daughter and ^(g)he became her son. And she named him ^[l]Moses, and said, "Because I ^[m]drew him out of the water."

Now it came about in those days, ^(h)when Moses had grown up, that he went out to his brethren and looked on their ^[n](i)hard labors; and ^(j)he saw an Egyptian beating a Hebrew, one of his brethren.

So he ^[o]looked this way and that, and when he saw there was no one around, he ^(k)struck down the Egyptian and hid him in the sand.

He went out ^(l)the next day, and behold, two Hebrews were ^[p]fighting with each other; and he said to the ^[q]offender, "Why are you striking your companion?"

But he said, "^(m)Who made you a ^[r]prince or a judge over us? Are you ^[s]intending to kill me as you killed the Egyptian?" Then Moses was afraid and said, "Surely the matter has become known."

When Pharaoh heard of this matter, he tried to kill Moses. But ⁽ⁿ⁾Moses fled from the presence of Pharaoh and ^[t]settled in the land of Midian, and he sat down ^(o)by a well.

Now ^(p)the priest of Midian had seven daughters; and ^(q)they came to draw water and filled the troughs to water their father's flock.

Then the shepherds came and drove them away, but ^(r)Moses stood up and helped them and watered their flock.

When they came to ^(s)Reuel their father, he said, "Why have you come back so soon today?"

So they said, "An Egyptian delivered us from the hand of the shepherds, and what is more, he even drew the water for us and watered the flock."

He said to his daughters, "Where is he then? Why is it that you have left the man behind? Invite him ^[u]to have something to eat."

^(t)Moses was willing to dwell with the man, and he gave his daughter ^(u)Zipporah to Moses.

Then she gave birth to ^(v)a son, and he named him ^[v]Gershom, for he said, "I have been ^(w)a ^[w]sojourner in a foreign land."

Now it came about in the course of those many days that the king of Egypt died. And the sons of Israel ^(x)sighed because of the bondage, and they cried out; and ^(y)their cry for help because of their bondage rose up to God.

So ^(z)God heard their groaning; and God remembered ^(aa)His covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

^(ab)God saw the sons of Israel, and God ^[x]took notice of them.