The First Passover (Numbers 9:1–14)
1 CPDV The Lord also said to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt: BSB BSB: Now the LORD said to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt,
2 CPDV “This month will be for you the beginning of the months. It will be first in the months of the year. BSB BSB: “This month is the beginning of months for you; it shall be the first month of your year.
3 CPDV Speak to the entire assembly of the sons of Israel, and say to them: On the tenth day of this month, let everyone take a lamb, by their families and houses. BSB BSB: Tell the whole congregation of Israel that on the tenth day of this month each man must select a lamb for his family, one per household.
4 CPDV But if the number is less than may suffice to be able to consume the lamb, he shall accept his neighbor, who has been joined with his house according to the number of souls that may suffice to be able to eat the lamb. BSB BSB: If the household is too small for a whole lamb, they are to share with the nearest neighbor based on the number of people, and apportion the lamb accordingly.
5 CPDV And it shall be a lamb without blemish, a one year old male. According to this rite, you shall also take a young goat. BSB BSB: Your lamb must be an unblemished year-old male, and you may take it from the sheep or the goats.
6 CPDV And you shall keep it until the fourteenth day of this month. And the entire multitude of the sons of Israel shall immolate it toward evening. BSB BSB: You must keep it until the fourteenth day of the month, when the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel will slaughter the animals at twilight.
7 CPDV And they shall take from its blood, and place it on both the door posts and the upper threshold of the houses, in which they will consume it. BSB BSB: They are to take some of the blood and put it on the sides and tops of the doorframes of the houses where they eat the lambs.
8 CPDV And that night they shall eat the flesh, roasted by fire, and unleavened bread with wild lettuce. BSB BSB: They are to eat the meat that night, roasted over the fire, along with unleavened bread and bitter herbs.
9 CPDV You shall not consume anything from it raw, nor boiled in water, but only roasted by fire. You shall devour the head with its feet and entrails. BSB BSB: Do not eat any of the meat raw or cooked in boiling water, but only roasted over the fire—its head and legs and inner parts.
10 CPDV Neither shall there remain anything from it until morning. If anything will have been left over, you shall burn it with fire. BSB BSB: Do not leave any of it until morning; before the morning you must burn up any part that is left over.
11 CPDV Now you shall consume it in this way: You shall gird your waist, and you shall have shoes on your feet, holding staves in your hands, and you shall consume it in haste. For it is the Passover (that is, the Crossing) of the Lord. BSB BSB: This is how you are to eat it: You must be fully dressed for travel, with your sandals on your feet and your staff in your hand. You are to eat in haste; it is the LORD’s Passover.
12 CPDV And I will cross through the land of Egypt that night, and I will strike down all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, from man, even to cattle. And I will bring judgments against all the gods of Egypt. I am the Lord. BSB BSB: On that night I will pass through the land of Egypt and strike down every firstborn male, both man and beast, and I will execute judgment against all the gods of Egypt. I am the LORD.
13 CPDV But the blood will be for you as a sign in the buildings where you will be. And I will see the blood, and I will pass over you. And the plague will not be with you to destroy, when I strike the land of Egypt. BSB BSB: The blood on the houses where you are staying will be a sign; when I see the blood, I will pass over you. No plague will fall on you to destroy you when I strike the land of Egypt.
The Feast of Unleavened Bread (Leviticus 23:4–8; Numbers 28:16–25; Deuteronomy 16:1–8)
14 CPDV Then you shall have this day as a memorial, and you shall celebrate it as a solemnity to the Lord, in your generations, as an everlasting devotion. BSB BSB: And this day will be a memorial for you, and you are to celebrate it as a feast to the LORD, as a permanent statute for the generations to come.
15 CPDV For seven days, you shall eat unleavened bread. On the first day there shall be no leaven in your houses. Whoever will consume anything leavened, from the first day, even until the seventh day, that soul shall perish from Israel. BSB BSB: For seven days you must eat unleavened bread. On the first day you are to remove the leaven from your houses. Whoever eats anything leavened from the first day through the seventh must be cut off from Israel.
16 CPDV The first day shall be holy and solemn, and the seventh day shall be venerated with the same festivity. You shall do no work in these days, except that which pertains to the eating. BSB BSB: On the first day you are to hold a sacred assembly, and another on the seventh day. You must not do any work on those days, except to prepare the meals—that is all you may do.
17 CPDV And you shall observe the feast of unleavened bread. For on this same day, I will lead your army out of the land of Egypt, and you shall keep this day, in your generations, as a perpetual ritual. BSB BSB: So you are to keep the Feast of Unleavened Bread, for on this very day I brought your divisions out of the land of Egypt. You must keep this day as a permanent statute for the generations to come.
18 CPDV In the first month, on the fourteenth day of the month, toward evening, you shall consume the unleavened bread, until the twenty-first day of the same month, toward evening. BSB BSB: In the first month you are to eat unleavened bread, from the evening of the fourteenth day until the evening of the twenty-first day.
19 CPDV For seven days, there shall not be found leaven in your houses. Whoever will eat leaven, his soul will perish from the assembly of Israel, as much with the newcomers as with the natives of the land. BSB BSB: For seven days there must be no leaven found in your houses. If anyone eats something leavened, that person, whether a foreigner or native of the land, must be cut off from the congregation of Israel.
20 CPDV You shall not consume any leaven. In all your dwelling places, you shall eat unleavened bread.” BSB BSB: You are not to eat anything leavened; eat unleavened bread in all your homes.”
21 CPDV Then Moses called all the elders of the sons of Israel, and he said to them: “Go, taking an animal by your families, and sacrifice the Passover. BSB BSB: Then Moses summoned all the elders of Israel and told them, “Go at once and select for yourselves a lamb for each family, and slaughter the Passover lamb.
22 CPDV And dip a little bundle of hyssop in the blood which is at the entrance, and sprinkle the upper threshold with it, and both of the door posts. Let none of you go out of the door of his house until morning. BSB BSB: Take a cluster of hyssop, dip it into the blood in the basin, and brush the blood on the top and sides of the doorframe. None of you shall go out the door of his house until morning.
23 CPDV For the Lord will cross through, striking the Egyptians. And when he will see the blood on the upper threshold, and on both the door posts, he will pass over the door of the house and not permit the Striker to enter into your houses or to do harm. BSB BSB: When the LORD passes through to strike down the Egyptians, He will see the blood on the top and sides of the doorframe and will pass over that doorway; so He will not allow the destroyer to enter your houses and strike you down.
24 CPDV You shall keep this word as a law for you and for your sons, forever. BSB BSB: And you are to keep this command as a permanent statute for you and your descendants.
25 CPDV And when you have entered into the land that the Lord will give to you, just as he has promised, you shall observe these ceremonies. BSB BSB: When you enter the land that the LORD will give you as He promised, you are to keep this service.
26 CPDV And when your sons will say to you, ‘What is the meaning of this religious observance?’ BSB BSB: When your children ask you, ‘What does this service mean to you?’
27 CPDV You shall say to them: ‘It is the victim of the crossing of the Lord, when he passed over the houses of the sons of Israel in Egypt, striking the Egyptians, and freeing our houses.’ ” And the people, bowing down, worshipped. BSB BSB: you are to reply, ‘It is the Passover sacrifice to the LORD, who passed over the houses of the Israelites in Egypt when He struck down the Egyptians and spared our homes.’” Then the people bowed down and worshiped.
28 CPDV And the sons of Israel, departing, did just as the Lord had instructed Moses and Aaron. BSB BSB: And the Israelites went and did just what the LORD had commanded Moses and Aaron.
The Tenth Plague: Death of the Firstborn 29 CPDV Then it happened, in the middle of the night: the Lord struck down every firstborn in the land of Egypt, from the firstborn of Pharaoh, who sits on his throne, even to the firstborn of the captive woman who was in prison, and all the firstborn of the cattle. BSB BSB: Now at midnight the LORD struck down every firstborn male in the land of Egypt, from the firstborn of Pharaoh, who sat on his throne, to the firstborn of the prisoner in the dungeon, as well as all the firstborn among the livestock.
30 CPDV And Pharaoh rose up in the night, and all his servants, and all of Egypt. And there arose a great outcry in Egypt. For there was not a house in which no one lay dead. BSB BSB: During the night Pharaoh got up—he and all his officials and all the Egyptians—and there was loud wailing in Egypt; for there was no house without someone dead.
The Exodus Begins 31 CPDV And Pharaoh, calling Moses and Aaron in the night, said: “Rise up and go forth from among my people, you and the sons of Israel. Go, sacrifice to the Lord, just as you say. BSB BSB: Then Pharaoh summoned Moses and Aaron by night and said, “Get up, leave my people, both you and the Israelites! Go, worship the LORD as you have requested.
32 CPDV Your sheep and herds take along with you, as you requested, and as you go away, bless me.” BSB BSB: Take your flocks and herds as well, just as you have said, and depart! And bless me also.”
33 CPDV And the Egyptians urged the people to go away from the land quickly, saying, “We will all die.” BSB BSB: And in order to send them out of the land quickly, the Egyptians urged the people on. “For otherwise,” they said, “we are all going to die!”
34 CPDV Therefore, the people took bread dough before it was leavened. And tying it in their cloaks, they placed it on their shoulders. BSB BSB: So the people took their dough before it was leavened, carrying it on their shoulders in kneading bowls wrapped in clothing.
35 CPDV And the sons of Israel did just as Moses had instructed. And they petitioned the Egyptians for vessels of silver and of gold, and very many garments. BSB BSB: Furthermore, the Israelites acted on Moses’ word and asked the Egyptians for articles of silver and gold, and for clothing.
36 CPDV Then the Lord granted favor to the people in the sight of the Egyptians, so that they bestowed on them. And they despoiled the Egyptians. BSB BSB: And the LORD gave the people such favor in the sight of the Egyptians that they granted their request. In this way they plundered the Egyptians.
38 CPDV But also an innumerable mix of common people ascended with them, sheep and herds and animals of diverse kinds, exceedingly many. BSB BSB: And a mixed multitude also went up with them, along with great droves of livestock, both flocks and herds.
39 CPDV And they baked the bread, which a little while ago they had taken out of Egypt as dough. And they made unleavened bread baked under ashes. For it was not able to be leavened, with the Egyptians compelling them to leave and not permitting them to cause any delay. Neither did they have occasion to prepare any meat. BSB BSB: Since their dough had no leaven, the people baked what they had brought out of Egypt into unleavened loaves. For when they had been driven out of Egypt, they could not delay and had not prepared any provisions for themselves.
40 CPDV Now the habitation of the sons of Israel, while they remained in Egypt, was four hundred and thirty years. BSB BSB: Now the duration of the Israelites’ stay in Egypt was 430 years.
41 CPDV Having been completed, on the same day all the army of the Lord departed from the land of Egypt. BSB BSB: At the end of the 430 years, to the very day, all the LORD’s divisions went out of the land of Egypt.
42 CPDV This night is a worthy observance of the Lord, when he led them out of the land of Egypt. This all the sons of Israel must observe in their generations. BSB BSB: Because the LORD kept a vigil that night to bring them out of the land of Egypt, this same night is to be a vigil to the LORD, to be observed by all the Israelites for the generations to come.
Instructions for the Passover 43 CPDV And the Lord said to Moses and to Aaron: “This is the religious observance of the Passover. No foreigner shall eat from it. BSB BSB: And the LORD said to Moses and Aaron, “This is the statute of the Passover: No foreigner is to eat of it.
44 CPDV But every bought servant shall be circumcised, and so he may eat from it. BSB BSB: But any slave who has been purchased may eat of it, after you have circumcised him.
45 CPDV The newcomer and the hired hand shall not eat from it. BSB BSB: A temporary resident or hired hand shall not eat the Passover.
46 CPDV In one house it shall be eaten; you shall not carry its flesh outside, nor shall you break its bone. BSB BSB: It must be eaten inside one house. You are not to take any of the meat outside the house, and you may not break any of the bones.
47 CPDV The entire assembly of the sons of Israel shall do this. BSB BSB: The whole congregation of Israel must celebrate it.
48 CPDV And if any sojourner will be willing to cross over into your settlement, and to keep the Passover of the Lord, all his males shall first be circumcised, and then he shall celebrate the rite. And he shall be just like a native of the land. But if any man is not circumcised, he shall not eat from it. BSB BSB: If a foreigner resides with you and wants to celebrate the LORD’s Passover, all the males in the household must be circumcised; then he may come near to celebrate it, and he shall be like a native of the land. But no uncircumcised man may eat of it.
49 CPDV The law shall be the same for the native born and for the settler who sojourns with you.” BSB BSB: The same law shall apply to both the native and the foreigner who resides among you.”
50 CPDV And all the sons of Israel did just as the Lord had instructed Moses and Aaron. BSB BSB: Then all the Israelites did this—they did just as the LORD had commanded Moses and Aaron.
51 CPDV And on the same day, the Lord led the sons of Israel out of the land of Egypt by their companies. BSB BSB: And on that very day the LORD brought the Israelites out of the land of Egypt by their divisions.