Exodus

Describes how Moses leads the Israelites out of Egypt and slavery, and how they receive laws from God.

Chapter 4

1 And Moses answered and said, But, behold, they will not believe me, nor hearken unto my voice: for they will say, The LORD hath not appeared unto thee.

*Moses replied, "But they won't believe me or listen to my words, because they'll think, 'The Lord hasn't really spoken to you.'"

2 And the LORD said unto him, What is that in thine hand? And he said, A rod.

*And God asked him, "What do you have in your hand?" He replied, "A stick."

3 And he said, Cast it on the ground. And he cast it on the ground, and it became a serpent; and Moses fled from before it.

*He said, "Throw it to the ground." So, it was thrown to the ground, and it turned into a snake. Then, Moses ran away from it.

4 And the LORD said unto Moses, Put forth thine hand, and take it by the tail. And he put forth his hand, and caught it, and it became a rod in his hand:

*And God told Moses, Reach out your hand and grab it by the end. So he reached out and grabbed it, and it turned back into a stick in his hand.

5 That they may believe that the LORD God of their fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, hath appeared unto thee.

*So they can believe that the LORD, the God of your ancestors - the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob - has spoken to you.

6 And the LORD said furthermore unto him, Put now thine hand into thy bosom. And he put his hand into his bosom: and when he took it out, behold, his hand was leprous as snow.

*Then God told him, Put your hand in your chest area. So he did, and when he pulled it out, his hand was very white, like snow, but not healthy.

7 And he said, Put thine hand into thy bosom again. And he put his hand into his bosom again; and plucked it out of his bosom, and, behold, it was turned again as his other flesh.

*He said, Put your hand back in your chest cavity. So, they did, and when they took it out, it was like the rest of their body again.

8 And it shall come to pass, if they will not believe thee, neither hearken to the voice of the first sign, that they will believe the voice of the latter sign.

*If people don't believe you or listen to the first sign, they will believe and listen to the second sign instead.

9 And it shall come to pass, if they will not believe also these two signs, neither hearken unto thy voice, that thou shalt take of the water of the river, and pour it upon the dry land: and the water which thou takest out of the river shall become blood upon the dry land.

*If they don't believe in the two signs and listen to your voice, you should take water from the river and pour it on the dry land. The water you take will turn into blood on the dry land.

10 And Moses said unto the LORD, O my LORD, I am not eloquent, neither heretofore, nor since thou hast spoken unto thy servant: but I am slow of speech, and of a slow tongue.

*Moses told God, "Lord, I am not good with words. I haven't been in the past, and I'm not now. Speaking is hard for me, and so is understanding what people say."

11 And the LORD said unto him, Who hath made man’s mouth? or who maketh the dumb, or deaf, or the seeing, or the blind? have not I the LORD?

*And the LORD asked him, Who created human mouths? Or who makes people unable to speak, or hard of hearing, or able to see, or unable to see? Didn't I do it, the LORD?

12 Now therefore go, and I will be with thy mouth, and teach thee what thou shalt say.

*Now, so go, and I'll be with you when speaking, guiding you on what to say.

13 And he said, O my LORD, send, I pray thee, by the hand of him whom thou wilt send.

*He said, "Lord, please send someone through whoever you choose."

14 And the anger of the LORD was kindled against Moses, and he said, Is not Aaron the Levite thy brother? I know that he can speak well. And also, behold, he cometh forth to meet thee: and when he seeth thee, he will be glad in his heart.

*God became very angry with Moses and asked, "Isn't Aaron your brother from the Levite family? I know he can speak well. He is also coming to meet you, and when he sees you, he will be very happy inside.

15 And thou shalt speak unto him, and put words in his mouth: and I will be with thy mouth, and with his mouth, and will teach you what ye shall do.

*You should tell him what to say and I will be with you both. I'll guide you on what actions to take.

16 And he shall be thy spokesman unto the people: and he shall be, even he shall be to thee instead of a mouth, and thou shalt be to him instead of God.

*He will speak for you to the people. He will be like your voice, and you will be like God to him.

17 And thou shalt take this rod in thine hand, wherewith thou shalt do signs.

*And you will take this stick in your hand, with which you will do miracles.

18 And Moses went and returned to Jethro his father in law, and said unto him, Let me go, I pray thee, and return unto my brethren which are in Egypt, and see whether they be yet alive. And Jethro said to Moses, Go in peace.

*Moses went back to his father-in-law, Jethro, and asked permission to visit his brothers in Egypt to check if they were still alive. Jethro agreed and told Moses to go in peace.

19 And the LORD said unto Moses in Midian, Go, return into Egypt: for all the men are dead which sought thy life.

*And God told Moses in Midian, "Go back to Egypt, because all the people who wanted to kill you are now dead."

20 And Moses took his wife and his sons, and set them upon an ass, and he returned to the land of Egypt: and Moses took the rod of God in his hand.

*Moses put his wife and children on a donkey and went back to Egypt with God's staff in his hand.

21 And the LORD said unto Moses, When thou goest to return into Egypt, see that thou do all those wonders before Pharaoh, which I have put in thine hand: but I will harden his heart, that he shall not let the people go.

*And God told Moses, "When you go back to Egypt, perform miracles for Pharaoh using the power I've given you. But I will make Pharaoh's heart stubborn, so he won't let the people leave."

22 And thou shalt say unto Pharaoh, Thus saith the LORD, Israel is my son, even my firstborn:

*And you will tell Pharaoh, This is what the Lord says: Israel is my child, my oldest one.

23 And I say unto thee, Let my son go, that he may serve me: and if thou refuse to let him go, behold, I will slay thy son, even thy firstborn.

*I tell you, let my child go so they can work for me. If you don't let them go, know that I will kill your firstborn child.

24 And it came to pass by the way in the inn, that the LORD met him, and sought to kill him.

*One day, while traveling at an inn, the Lord encountered him and wanted to end his life.

25 Then Zipporah took a sharp stone, and cut off the foreskin of her son, and cast it at his feet, and said, Surely a bloody husband art thou to me.

*Then Zipporah used a sharp stone to remove her son's foreskin and threw it at his feet, saying, "You are a bloodthirsty husband to me."

26 So he let him go: then she said, A bloody husband thou art, because of the circumcision.

*So he released him, and she said, "You are a blood-filled husband due to the cutting."

27 And the LORD said to Aaron, Go into the wilderness to meet Moses. And he went, and met him in the mount of God, and kissed him.

*And God told Aaron, "Go to the desert to find Moses." So he went and found him on a mountain, and they hugged each other.

28 And Moses told Aaron all the words of the LORD who had sent him, and all the signs which he had commanded him.

*Moses shared with Aaron everything that God said to him and the signs He instructed.

29 And Moses and Aaron went and gathered together all the elders of the children of Israel:

*Moses and Aaron went and brought together all the older people of the Israeli kids.

30 And Aaron spake all the words which the LORD had spoken unto Moses, and did the signs in the sight of the people.

*Aaron said everything that God told Moses and showed the signs to the people.

31 And the people believed: and when they heard that the LORD had visited the children of Israel, and that he had looked upon their affliction, then they bowed their heads and worshipped.

*The people trusted and listened as they learned that God helped the Israelites and saw their suffering. So, they bent their heads in respect and worshiped.

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