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Moses and Aaron speak to Pharaoh

5 After this, Moses and Aaron went to visit Pharaoh. They said to him, ‘Listen to what the Lord says. He is the God of Israel. He says, “Let my people go. Let them prepare a feast in the desert to worship me.” ’

² But Pharaoh said, ‘The Lord is not my god. I do not need to obey him. I do not have to let the Israelites go. I do not know the Lord . I will not let the Israelites go.’

³ Moses and Aaron said, ‘The God of the Israelites has met us. Please let us go. We must go on a journey of three days into the desert. There we must give gifts to the Lord our God. If we do not do this, God may punish us. We may become very ill, or people may attack us in war.’

⁴ But the king of Egypt said, ‘Moses and Aaron, you must not take the people away from their work! Go back to your jobs!’ ⁵ Pharaoh said, ‘Look, there are now many of your people who live in my country. But you are taking them away from their work.’

⁶ On that day, Pharaoh gave a command to the masters of the slaves, and to the leaders of the work. ⁷ This was the command: ‘Do not give the people any more straw to make bricks. Now they must go and find their own straw. ⁸ But they must still make the same number of bricks as they did before. Do not let them make fewer bricks. These people are lazy. That is why they are complaining. They say, “We want to go and offer sacrifices to our God.” ⁹ Make the work more difficult for them to do. They will have to do very hard work. They will be too busy to listen to the lies of their leaders.’ ^{[ a ]}

¹⁰ So the slaves' masters and the leaders of the work went to the Israelite people. They said to them, ‘Pharaoh says, “Now I will not give you straw. ¹¹ You must try to find straw for yourselves. But you will still have to make the same number of bricks.” ’

¹² So the people went everywhere in the land of Egypt, to get straw from the fields. ¹³ The slaves' masters made the Israelites work quickly. They said, ‘Finish all your work for each day, as much as when we gave straw to you.’ ¹⁴ Pharaoh's slave masters hit the Israelite leaders who had authority over the people. They said to them, ‘Why have you not made the complete number of bricks today, as you did before?’

¹⁵ Then the Israelite leaders of the work went to Pharaoh. They asked him, ‘Please sir, why do you do these things to us, your servants? ¹⁶ Our masters no longer give us any straw. But they say “Make bricks!” Then they hit us. But it is your people who are doing wrong things, not us.’

¹⁷ But Pharaoh said, ‘You Israelites are just lazy people! That is why you say, “Let us go to offer sacrifices to the Lord .” ¹⁸ Now go back and do your work. Nobody will give you any straw. But you must make the complete number of bricks.’

¹⁹ The Israelite work leaders heard Pharaoh say, ‘You must still make the same number of bricks as you made before.’ Then they knew that they were in trouble. ²⁰ When they left Pharaoh, they met Moses and Aaron. Moses and Aaron were waiting for them to return from Pharaoh. ²¹ The work leaders said to Moses and Aaron, ‘We hope that the Lord will punish you! You have made us like a bad smell to Pharaoh and to his officers. You have given them a reason to kill us.’

²² Then Moses returned to the Lord . He said, ‘My Lord, why have you brought trouble to these people? Why did you send me to lead them? ²³ I went to speak to Pharaoh with your authority. But since I spoke to Pharaoh, he has caused these people to have trouble. And you have done nothing to save your people.’

Footnotes

5:9 When they made bricks, they mixed straw with the clay. This made the bricks stronger. Pharaoh was making the Israelites do work that was even harder. Now they had to look for straw before they could use it in the bricks.

Moses and Aaron Before Pharaoh

5 After Moses and Aaron talked to the people, they went to Pharaoh and said, “The Lord , ^{[ a ]} the God of Israel, says, ‘Let my people go into the desert so that they can have a festival to honor me.’”

² But Pharaoh said, “Who is the Lord ? Why should I obey him? Why should I let Israel go? I don’t even know who this Lord is, so I refuse to let Israel go.”

³ Then Aaron and Moses said, “The God of the Hebrews ^{[ b ]} has talked with us. So we beg you to let us travel three days into the desert. There we will offer a sacrifice to the Lord our God. If we don’t do this, he might become angry and destroy us. He might make us die from sickness or war.”

⁴ But Pharaoh said to them, “Moses and Aaron, you are bothering the workers. Let them do their work. Go back to your own work! ⁵ There are very many workers, and you are keeping them from doing their jobs.”

Pharaoh Punishes the People

⁶ That same day Pharaoh gave a command to the slave masters and Hebrew foremen. ⁷ He said, “You have always given the people straw to use to make bricks. But now, tell them they have to go and find their own straw to make bricks. ⁸ But they must still make the same number of bricks as they did before. They have gotten lazy. That is why they are asking me to let them go. They don’t have enough work to do. That is why they asked me to let them make sacrifices to their God. ⁹ So make these people work harder. Keep them busy. Then they will not have enough time to listen to the lies of Moses.”

¹⁰ So the Egyptian slave masters and the Hebrew foremen went to the Israelites and said, “Pharaoh has decided that he will not give you straw for your bricks. ¹¹ You must go and get the straw for yourselves. So go and find straw, but you must still make as many bricks as you made before.”

¹² So the people went everywhere in Egypt looking for straw. ¹³ The slave masters forced the people to work even harder. They forced the people to make as many bricks as before. ¹⁴ The Egyptian slave masters had chosen the Hebrew foremen and had made them responsible for the work the people did. The Egyptian slave masters beat these foremen and said to them, “Why aren’t you making as many bricks as you made in the past? If you could do it then, you can do it now!”

¹⁵ Then the Hebrew foremen went to Pharaoh. They complained and said, “We are your servants. Why are you treating us like this? ¹⁶ You give us no straw, but you tell us to make as many bricks as before. And now our masters are beating us. Your people are wrong for doing this.”

¹⁷ Pharaoh answered, “You are lazy, and you don’t want to work! That is why you ask me to let you go. And that is why you want to leave here and make sacrifices to the Lord . ¹⁸ Now, go back to work! We will not give you any straw. And you must still make as many bricks as you did before.”

¹⁹ The Hebrew foremen knew they were in trouble, because the Pharaoh had told them, “You must still make as many bricks as you made before.”

²⁰ When they were leaving the meeting with Pharaoh, they passed Moses and Aaron. Moses and Aaron were waiting for them. ²¹ So they said to Moses and Aaron, “May the Lord judge and punish you for what you did! You made Pharaoh and his rulers hate us. You have given them an excuse to kill us.”

Moses Complains to God

²² Then Moses prayed to the Lord and said, “Lord, why have you done this terrible thing to your people? Why did you send me here? ²³ I went to Pharaoh and said what you told me to say. But since that time he has made the people suffer, and you have done nothing to help them!”

Footnotes

Exodus 5:1 The Lord Or “ Yahweh .” See “ Yahweh ” in the Word List.
Exodus 5:3 Hebrews Or “Israelites.” Also in verses 10, 14, 15, 19.

5 And afterward Moses and Aaron went in, and told Pharaoh, Thus saith the Lord God of Israel, Let my people go, that they may hold a feast unto me in the wilderness.

² And Pharaoh said, Who is the Lord , that I should obey his voice to let Israel go? I know not the Lord , neither will I let Israel go.

³ And they said, The God of the Hebrews hath met with us: let us go, we pray thee, three days' journey into the desert, and sacrifice unto the Lord our God; lest he fall upon us with pestilence, or with the sword.

⁴ And the king of Egypt said unto them, Wherefore do ye, Moses and Aaron, let the people from their works? get you unto your burdens.

⁵ And Pharaoh said, Behold, the people of the land now are many, and ye make them rest from their burdens.

⁶ And Pharaoh commanded the same day the taskmasters of the people, and their officers, saying,

⁷ Ye shall no more give the people straw to make brick, as heretofore: let them go and gather straw for themselves.

⁸ And the tale of the bricks, which they did make heretofore, ye shall lay upon them; ye shall not diminish ought thereof: for they be idle; therefore they cry, saying, Let us go and sacrifice to our God.

⁹ Let there more work be laid upon the men, that they may labour therein; and let them not regard vain words.

¹⁰ And the taskmasters of the people went out, and their officers, and they spake to the people, saying, Thus saith Pharaoh, I will not give you straw.

¹¹ Go ye, get you straw where ye can find it: yet not ought of your work shall be diminished.

¹² So the people were scattered abroad throughout all the land of Egypt to gather stubble instead of straw.

¹³ And the taskmasters hasted them, saying, Fulfil your works, your daily tasks, as when there was straw.

¹⁴ And the officers of the children of Israel, which Pharaoh's taskmasters had set over them, were beaten, and demanded, Wherefore have ye not fulfilled your task in making brick both yesterday and to day, as heretofore?

¹⁵ Then the officers of the children of Israel came and cried unto Pharaoh, saying, Wherefore dealest thou thus with thy servants?

¹⁶ There is no straw given unto thy servants, and they say to us, Make brick: and, behold, thy servants are beaten; but the fault is in thine own people.

¹⁷ But he said, Ye are idle, ye are idle: therefore ye say, Let us go and do sacrifice to the Lord .

¹⁸ Go therefore now, and work; for there shall no straw be given you, yet shall ye deliver the tale of bricks.

¹⁹ And the officers of the children of Israel did see that they were in evil case, after it was said, Ye shall not minish ought from your bricks of your daily task.

²⁰ And they met Moses and Aaron, who stood in the way, as they came forth from Pharaoh:

²¹ And they said unto them, The Lord look upon you, and judge; because ye have made our savour to be abhorred in the eyes of Pharaoh, and in the eyes of his servants, to put a sword in their hand to slay us.

²² And Moses returned unto the Lord , and said, Lord , wherefore hast thou so evil entreated this people? why is it that thou hast sent me?

²³ For since I came to Pharaoh to speak in thy name, he hath done evil to this people; neither hast thou delivered thy people at all.

Israel’s Labor Increased

5 And afterward Moses and Aaron came and said to Pharaoh, “ ^{( A )} This is what the Lord , the God of Israel says: ‘ ^{( B )} Let My people go so that they may celebrate a feast to Me in the wilderness.’” ² But Pharaoh said, “ ^{( C )} Who is the Lord that I should obey His voice to let Israel go? I do not know the Lord , and besides, ^{( D )} I will not let Israel go.” ³ Then they said, “ ^{( E )} The God of the Hebrews has met with us. Please, let us go a three days’ journey into the wilderness so that we may sacrifice to the Lord our God, otherwise He will strike us with plague or with the sword.” ⁴ But the king of Egypt said to them, “Moses and Aaron, why do you let the people neglect their ^{[ a ]} work? Get back to your ^{( F )} labors!” ⁵ Again Pharaoh said, “Look, ^{( G )} the people of the land are now many, and you would have them cease from their labors!” ⁶ So the same day Pharaoh commanded ^{( H )} the taskmasters over the people and their ^{( I )} foremen, saying, ⁷ “You are no longer to give the people straw to make bricks as previously; have them go and gather straw for themselves. ⁸ But you shall impose on them the quota of bricks which they were making before; you are not to reduce any of it. Because they are ^{( J )} lazy, for that reason they cry ^{[ b ]} out, ‘Let us go and sacrifice to our God.’ ⁹ Let the labor be heavier on the men, and have them work at it so that they will pay no attention to false words.”

¹⁰ So ^{( K )} the taskmasters of the people and their foremen went out and spoke to the people, saying, “This is what Pharaoh says: ‘I am not going to give you any straw. ¹¹ You go, get straw for yourselves wherever you can find it ; but none of your labor will be reduced.’” ¹² So the people scattered through all the land of Egypt to gather stubble for straw. ¹³ And the taskmasters pressed them, saying, “Complete your ^{[ c ]} work quota, ^{[ d ]} your daily amount, just as when ^{[ e ]} you had straw.” ¹⁴ Moreover, ^{( L )} the foremen of the sons of Israel, whom Pharaoh’s taskmasters had set over them, ^{( M )} were beaten ^{[ f ]} and asked, “Why have you not completed your required task of making bricks either yesterday or today, as before?”

¹⁵ Then the foremen of the sons of Israel came and cried out to Pharaoh, saying, “Why do you deal this way with your servants? ¹⁶ There is no straw given to your servants, yet they keep saying to us, ‘Make bricks!’ And behold, your servants are being beaten; but it is the fault of your own people.” ¹⁷ But he said, “You are ^{( N )} lazy, very lazy; for that reason you say, ‘Let us go and sacrifice to the Lord .’ ¹⁸ So go now and work; for you will be given no straw, but you must deliver the quota of bricks.” ¹⁹ The foremen of the sons of Israel saw that they were in trouble, ^{[ g ]} since they were told, “You must not reduce ^{[ h ]} your daily amount of bricks.” ²⁰ When they left Pharaoh’s presence, they met Moses and Aaron as they were ^{[ i ]} waiting for them. ²¹ And ^{( O )} they said to them, “ ^{( P )} May the Lord look upon you and judge you , because you have ^{( Q )} made ^{[ j ]} us repulsive in Pharaoh’s sight and in the sight of his servants, to put a sword in their hand to kill us!”

²² Then Moses returned to the Lord and said, “ ^{( R )} Lord, why have You brought harm to this people? Why did You ever send me? ²³ Ever since I came to Pharaoh to speak in Your name, he has done harm to this people, ^{( S )} and You have not rescued Your people at all.”

Footnotes

Exodus 5:4 Lit works
Exodus 5:8 Lit out, saying,
Exodus 5:13 Lit works
Exodus 5:13 Lit the matter of a day in its day
Exodus 5:13 Lit there was
Exodus 5:14 Lit saying
Exodus 5:19 Lit saying
Exodus 5:19 Lit from your bricks the matter of a day in its day
Exodus 5:20 Lit standing to meet
Exodus 5:21 Lit our odor stink

Bricks Without Straw

5 Afterward Moses and Aaron went to Pharaoh and said, “This is what the Lord , the God of Israel, says: ‘Let my people go, ^{( A )} so that they may hold a festival ^{( B )} to me in the wilderness.’”

² Pharaoh said, “Who is the Lord , ^{( C )} that I should obey him and let Israel go? I do not know the Lord and I will not let Israel go.” ^{( D )}

³ Then they said, “The God of the Hebrews has met with us. Now let us take a three-day journey ^{( E )} into the wilderness to offer sacrifices to the Lord our God, or he may strike us with plagues ^{( F )} or with the sword.”

⁴ But the king of Egypt said, “Moses and Aaron, why are you taking the people away from their labor? ^{( G )} Get back to your work!” ⁵ Then Pharaoh said, “Look, the people of the land are now numerous, ^{( H )} and you are stopping them from working.”

⁶ That same day Pharaoh gave this order to the slave drivers ^{( I )} and overseers in charge of the people: ⁷ “You are no longer to supply the people with straw for making bricks; ^{( J )} let them go and gather their own straw. ⁸ But require them to make the same number of bricks as before; don’t reduce the quota. ^{( K )} They are lazy; ^{( L )} that is why they are crying out, ‘Let us go and sacrifice to our God.’ ^{( M )} ⁹ Make the work harder for the people so that they keep working and pay no attention to lies.”

¹⁰ Then the slave drivers ^{( N )} and the overseers went out and said to the people, “This is what Pharaoh says: ‘I will not give you any more straw. ¹¹ Go and get your own straw wherever you can find it, but your work will not be reduced ^{( O )} at all.’” ¹² So the people scattered all over Egypt to gather stubble to use for straw. ¹³ The slave drivers kept pressing them, saying, “Complete the work required of you for each day, just as when you had straw.” ¹⁴ And Pharaoh’s slave drivers beat the Israelite overseers they had appointed, ^{( P )} demanding, “Why haven’t you met your quota of bricks yesterday or today, as before?”

¹⁵ Then the Israelite overseers went and appealed to Pharaoh: “Why have you treated your servants this way? ¹⁶ Your servants are given no straw, yet we are told, ‘Make bricks!’ Your servants are being beaten, but the fault is with your own people.”

¹⁷ Pharaoh said, “Lazy, that’s what you are—lazy! ^{( Q )} That is why you keep saying, ‘Let us go and sacrifice to the Lord .’ ¹⁸ Now get to work. ^{( R )} You will not be given any straw, yet you must produce your full quota of bricks.”

¹⁹ The Israelite overseers realized they were in trouble when they were told, “You are not to reduce the number of bricks required of you for each day.” ²⁰ When they left Pharaoh, they found Moses and Aaron waiting to meet them, ²¹ and they said, “May the Lord look on you and judge ^{( S )} you! You have made us obnoxious ^{( T )} to Pharaoh and his officials and have put a sword ^{( U )} in their hand to kill us.” ^{( V )}

God Promises Deliverance

²² Moses returned to the Lord and said, “Why, Lord, why have you brought trouble on this people? ^{( W )} Is this why you sent me? ²³ Ever since I went to Pharaoh to speak in your name, he has brought trouble on this people, and you have not rescued ^{( X )} your people at all.”

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Table of Contents

Moses and Aaron speak to Pharaoh

Footnotes

Moses and Aaron Before Pharaoh

Pharaoh Punishes the People

Moses Complains to God

Footnotes

Israel’s Labor Increased

Footnotes

Cross references

Bricks Without Straw

God Promises Deliverance

Cross references

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Moses and Aaron speak to Pharaoh

Footnotes

Moses and Aaron Before Pharaoh

Pharaoh Punishes the People

Moses Complains to God

Footnotes

Israel’s Labor Increased

Footnotes

Cross references

Bricks Without Straw

God Promises Deliverance

Cross references

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