Exodus 1

1 These were the names of the sons of Israel (Jacob) who came with him to Egypt along with their families:

Now these are the names of the children of Israel, which came into Egypt; every man and his household came with Jacob.

2 Reuben, Simeon, Levi, and Judah;

Reuben, Simeon, Levi, and Judah,

3 Issachar, Zebulun, and Benjamin;

Issachar, Zebulun, and Benjamin,

4 Dan and Naphtali, Gad and Asher.

Dan, and Naphtali, Gad, and Asher.

5 Jacob had 70 descendants there, including Joseph who was already in Egypt.

And all the souls that came out of the loins of Jacob were seventy souls: for Joseph was in Egypt already.

6 Eventually Joseph and all his brothers and all that generation died.

And Joseph died, and all his brothers, and all that generation.

7 However, the Israelites had many children and their numbers increased rapidly. In fact there were so many of them that they became very powerful—the country was full of them.

And the children of Israel were fruitful, and increased abundantly, and multiplied, and waxed exceeding mighty; and the land was filled with them.

8 Then a new king came to power who didn't know anything about Joseph.

Now there arose up a new king over Egypt, which knew not Joseph.

9 He conferred with his fellow Egyptians and said, “Look at these Israelites—there are more than them than us, and they're more powerful than us.

And he said to his people, Behold, the people of the children of Israel are more and mightier than we:

10 We've got to make plan to deal with them before they become so many that if there's a war they'll side with our enemies and fight us, and flee the country.”

Come on, let us deal wisely with them; lest they multiply, and it come to pass, that, when there falls out any war, they join also to our enemies, and fight against us, and so get them up out of the land.

11 So the Egyptians made them do forced labor and put taskmasters in charge of them. They used them to build the storage towns of Pithom and Rameses.

Therefore they did set over them taskmasters to afflict them with their burdens. And they built for Pharaoh treasure cities, Pithom and Raamses.

12 But the more the Israelites were mistreated, the more they grew in numbers and spread out—and the more the Egyptians detested them.

But the more they afflicted them, the more they multiplied and grew. And they were grieved because of the children of Israel.

13 The Egyptians worked the Israelites brutally,

And the Egyptians made the children of Israel to serve with rigor:

14 making their lives a misery. They made them do hard labor, building with mortar and brick, and all kind of heavy work in the fields. In all of this hard labor they treated them brutally.

And they made their lives bitter with hard bondage, in mortar, and in brick, and in all manner of service in the field: all their service, wherein they made them serve, was with rigor.

15 Then the king gave orders to the Hebrew midwives, Shiphrah and Puah.

And the king of Egypt spoke to the Hebrew midwives, of which the name of the one was Shiphrah, and the name of the other Puah:

16 He told them, “When you assist the Hebrew women during childbirth, if you see it's a boy, kill him; but if it's a girl, let her live.”

And he said, When you do the office of a midwife to the Hebrew women, and see them on the stools; if it be a son, then you shall kill him: but if it be a daughter, then she shall live.

17 But because the midwives revered God, they didn't do what the king of Egypt had ordered. They let the boys live as well.

But the midwives feared God, and did not as the king of Egypt commanded them, but saved the men children alive.

18 The king of Egypt called the midwives in and demanded to know, “Why have you done this— letting the male children live?”

And the king of Egypt called for the midwives, and said to them, Why have you done this thing, and have saved the men children alive?

19 “Hebrew women aren't like Egyptian women,” the midwives told Pharaoh. “They give birth more easily—they have them before we midwives arrive.”

And the midwives said to Pharaoh, Because the Hebrew women are not as the Egyptian women; for they are lively, and are delivered before the midwives come in to them.

20 God treated the midwives well, and the people increased in number so there were even more of them.

Therefore God dealt well with the midwives: and the people multiplied, and waxed very mighty.

21 Because the midwives revered God, he gave them families of their own.

And it came to pass, because the midwives feared God, that he made them houses.

22 Then Pharaoh issued this order to all his people: “Throw every Hebrew boy that's born into the Nile, but let every girl live.”

And Pharaoh charged all his people, saying, Every son that is born you shall cast into the river, and every daughter you shall save alive.