Moses’ Staff 1 Brenton And Moses answered and said, If they believe me not, and do not hearken to my voice (for they will say, God has not appeared to thee), what shall I say to them? BSB BSB: Then Moses answered, “What if they do not believe me or listen to my voice? For they may say, ‘The LORD has not appeared to you.’”
2 Brenton And the Lord said to him, What is this thing that is in thine hand? and he said, A rod. BSB BSB: And the LORD asked him, “What is that in your hand?” “A staff,” he replied.
3 Brenton And he said, Cast it on the ground: and he cast it on the ground, and it became a serpent, and Moses fled from it. BSB BSB: “Throw it on the ground,” said the LORD. So Moses threw it on the ground, and it became a snake, and he ran from it.
4 Brenton And the Lord said to Moses, Stretch forth thine hand, and take hold of its tail: so he stretched forth his hand and took hold of the tail, BSB BSB: “Stretch out your hand and grab it by the tail,” the LORD said to Moses, who reached out his hand and caught the snake, and it turned back into a staff in his hand.
5 Brenton and it became a rod in his hand,—that they may believe thee, that the God of thy fathers has appeared to thee, the God of Abraam, and God of Isaac, and God of Jacob. BSB BSB: “This is so that they may believe that the LORD, the God of their fathers—the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob—has appeared to you.”
Moses’ Hand 6 Brenton And the Lord said again to him, Put thine hand into thy bosom; and he put his hand into his bosom, and brought his hand out of his bosom, and his hand became as snow. BSB BSB: Furthermore, the LORD said to Moses, “Put your hand inside your cloak.” So he put his hand inside his cloak, and when he took it out, his hand was leprous, white as snow.
7 Brenton And he said again, Put thy hand into thy bosom; and he put his hand into his bosom, and brought his hand out of his bosom, and it was again restored to the complexion of his other flesh. BSB BSB: “Put your hand back inside your cloak,” said the LORD. So Moses put his hand back inside his cloak, and when he took it out, it was restored, like the rest of his skin.
8 Brenton And if they will not believe thee, nor hearken to the voice of the first sign, they will believe thee because of the voice of the second sign. BSB BSB: And the LORD said, “If they refuse to believe you or heed the witness of the first sign, they may believe that of the second.
9 Brenton And it shall come to pass if they will not believe thee for these two signs, and will not hearken to thy voice, that thou shalt take of the water of the river and pour it upon the dry land, and the water which thou shalt take from the river shall be blood upon the dry land. BSB BSB: But if they do not believe even these two signs or listen to your voice, take some water from the Nile and pour it on the dry ground. Then the water you take from the Nile will become blood on the ground.”
The Appointment of Aaron 10 Brenton And Moses said to the Lord, I pray, Lord, I have not been sufficient in former times, neither from the time that thou hast begun to speak to thy servant: I am weak in speech, and slow-tongued. BSB BSB: “Please, Lord,” Moses replied, “I have never been eloquent, neither in the past nor since You have spoken to Your servant, for I am slow of speech and tongue.”
11 Brenton And the Lord said to Moses, Who has given a mouth to man, and who has made the very hard of hearing, and the deaf, the seeing and the blind? have not I, God? BSB BSB: And the LORD said to him, “Who gave man his mouth? Or who makes the mute or the deaf, the sighted or the blind? Is it not I, the LORD?
12 Brenton And now go and I will open thy mouth, and will instruct thee in what thou shalt say. BSB BSB: Now go! I will help you as you speak, and I will teach you what to say.”
13 Brenton And Moses said, I pray thee, Lord, appoint another able person whom thou shalt send. BSB BSB: But Moses replied, “Please, Lord, send someone else.”
14 Brenton And the Lord was greatly angered against Moses, and said, Lo! is not Aaron the Levite thy brother? I know that he will surely speak to thee; and, behold, he will come forth to meet thee, and beholding thee he will rejoice within himself. BSB BSB: Then the anger of the LORD burned against Moses, and He said, “Is not Aaron the Levite your brother? I know that he can speak well, and he is now on his way to meet you. When he sees you, he will be glad in his heart.
15 Brenton And thou shalt speak to him; and thou shalt put my words into his mouth, and I will open thy mouth and his mouth, and I will instruct you in what ye shall do. BSB BSB: You are to speak to him and put the words in his mouth. I will help both of you to speak, and I will teach you what to do.
16 Brenton And he shall speak for thee to the people, and he shall be thy mouth, and thou shalt be for him in things pertaining to God. BSB BSB: He will speak to the people for you. He will be your spokesman, and it will be as if you were God to him.
17 Brenton And this rod that was turned into a serpent thou shalt take in thine hand, wherewith thou shalt work miracles. BSB BSB: But take this staff in your hand so you can perform signs with it.”
Moses Leaves for Egypt 18 Brenton And Moses went and returned to Jothor his father-in-law, and says, I will go and return to my brethren in Egypt, and will see if they are yet living. And Jothor said to Moses, Go in health. And in those days after some time, the king of Egypt died. BSB BSB: Then Moses went back to his father-in-law Jethro and said to him, “Please let me return to my brothers in Egypt to see if they are still alive.” “Go in peace,” Jethro replied.
19 Brenton And the Lord said to Moses in Madiam, Go, depart into Egypt, for all that sought thy life are dead. BSB BSB: Now the LORD had said to Moses in Midian, “Go back to Egypt, for all the men who sought to kill you are dead.”
20 Brenton And Moses took his wife and his children, and mounted them on the beasts, and returned to Egypt; and Moses took the rod which he had from God in his hand. BSB BSB: So Moses took his wife and sons, put them on a donkey, and headed back to Egypt. And he took the staff of God in his hand.
21 Brenton And the Lord said to Moses, When thou goest and returnest to Egypt, see—all the miracles I have charged thee with, thou shalt work before Pharao: and I will harden his heart, and he shall certainly not send away the people. BSB BSB: The LORD instructed Moses, “When you go back to Egypt, see that you perform before Pharaoh all the wonders that I have put within your power. But I will harden his heart so that he will not let the people go.
22 Brenton And thou shalt say to Pharao, These things saith the Lord, Israel is my first-born. BSB BSB: Then tell Pharaoh that this is what the LORD says: ‘Israel is My firstborn son,
23 Brenton And I said to thee, Send away my people, that they may serve me: now if thou wilt not send them away, see, I will slay thy first-born son. BSB BSB: and I told you to let My son go so that he may worship Me. But since you have refused to let him go, behold, I will kill your firstborn son!’”
24 Brenton And it came to pass that the angel of the Lord met him by the way in the inn, and sought to slay him. BSB BSB: Now at a lodging place along the way, the LORD met Moses and was about to kill him.
25 Brenton And Sepphora having taken a stone cut off the foreskin of her son, and fell at his feet and said, The blood of the circumcision of my son is staunched: BSB BSB: But Zipporah took a flint knife, cut off her son’s foreskin, and touched it to Moses’ feet. “Surely you are a bridegroom of blood to me,” she said.
26 Brenton and he departed from him, because she said, The blood of the circumcision of my son is staunched. BSB BSB: So the LORD let him alone. (When she said, “bridegroom of blood,” she was referring to the circumcision.)
The People Believe Moses and Aaron 27 Brenton 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 they kissed each other. BSB BSB: Meanwhile, the LORD had said to Aaron, “Go and meet Moses in the wilderness.” So he went and met Moses at the mountain of God and kissed him.
28 Brenton And Moses reported to Aaron all the words of the Lord, which he sent, and all the things which he charged him. BSB BSB: And Moses told Aaron everything the LORD had sent him to say, and all the signs He had commanded him to perform.
29 Brenton And Moses and Aaron went and gathered the elders of the children of Israel. BSB BSB: Then Moses and Aaron went and assembled all the elders of the Israelites,
30 Brenton And Aaron spoke all these words, which God spoke to Moses, and wrought the miracles before the people. BSB BSB: and Aaron relayed everything the LORD had said to Moses. And Moses performed the signs before the people,
31 Brenton And the people believed and rejoiced, because God visited the children of Israel, and because he saw their affliction: and the people bowed and worshipped. BSB BSB: and they believed. And when they heard that the LORD had attended to the Israelites and had seen their affliction, they bowed down and worshiped.