< Exodus 4 >

1 And Moses answers and says, “And if they do not give credence to me, nor listen to my voice, and say, YHWH has not appeared to you?”
“But what if they don't believe me or listen to what I say?” Moses asked. “They could say, ‘The Lord didn't appear to you.’”
2 And YHWH says to him, “What [is] this in your hand?” And he says, “A rod”;
The Lord asked him, “What are you holding in your hand?” “A walking stick,” Moses replied.
3 and He says, “Cast it to the earth”; and he casts it to the earth, and it becomes a serpent—and Moses flees from its presence.
“Throw it on the ground,” he told Moses. So Moses did. It turned into a snake and Moses ran away from it.
4 And YHWH says to Moses, “Put forth your hand, and lay hold on the tail of it”; and he puts forth his hand, and lays hold on it, and it becomes a rod in his hand—
“Reach out and grab hold of it by its tail,” the Lord told Moses. Moses did so and it turned back into a walking stick in his hand.
5 “so that they believe that YHWH, God of their fathers, has appeared to you, God of Abraham, God of Isaac, and God of Jacob.”
“You are to do this so that they will believe that I the Lord did appear to you, the God of their fathers, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.”
6 And YHWH says to him again, “Now put your hand into your bosom”; and he puts his hand into his bosom, and he brings it out, and behold, his hand [is] leprous as snow;
Then the Lord told him, “Put your hand inside your clothes close to your chest.” So Moses did as he was told. When he took his hand out, it was white like snow with a skin disease.
7 and He says, “Put your hand back into your bosom”; and he puts his hand back into his bosom, and he brings it out from his bosom, and behold, it has turned back as his flesh—
“Now put your hand back inside your clothes,” the Lord said. Moses did so. When he took it out again, his hand had returned to normal.
8 “and it has come to pass, if they do not give credence to you, and do not listen to the voice of the first sign, that they have given credence to the voice of the latter sign.
“If they don't believe you and they're not convinced by the first sign, they'll believe because of the second sign,” the Lord explained.
9 And it has come to pass, if they do not give credence even to these two signs, nor listen to your voice, that you have taken of the waters of the River, and have poured [it] on the dry land, and the waters which you take from the River have been, indeed, they have become blood on the dry land.”
“But if they still don't believe you or listen to you because of these two signs, then you are to take some water from the Nile and pout it out on the ground. The Nile water will turn into blood on the ground.”
10 And Moses says to YHWH, “O my Lord, I [am] not a man of words, either yesterday, or before, or since Your speaking to Your servant, for I [am] slow of mouth, and slow of tongue.”
Then Moses said to the Lord, “Pleased excuse me, but I'm not someone who is good with words—not in the past, and not from the time you have been speaking with me, your servant. My speech is slow and I don't say things well.”
11 And YHWH says to him, “Who appointed a mouth for man? Or who appoints the mute, or deaf, or open, or blind? Is it not I, YHWH?
“Who gave people mouths?” the Lord asked him. “Who makes people deaf or dumb, able to see or blind? It's I, the Lord, who does that.
12 And now, go, and I am with your mouth, and have directed you that which you speak”;
Now go, and I myself will be your mouth, and I will tell you what you are to say.”
13 and he says, “O my Lord, please send by the hand [of another that] You send.”
“Please, Lord, send someone else!” Moses responded.
14 And the anger of YHWH burns against Moses, and He says, “Is Aaron the Levite not your brother? I have known that he speaks well, and also, behold, he is coming out to meet you; when he has seen you, then he has rejoiced in his heart,
The Lord got angry with Moses, and told him, “There's your brother Aaron, the Levite. I know he speaks well. He's on his way to meet you, and he'll be very happy to see you.
15 and you have spoken to him, and have set the words in his mouth, and I am with your mouth, and with his mouth, and have directed you that which you do;
Speak to him and tell him what to say. I will be your mouth and his mouth, and I will tell you what you are to do.
16 and he, he has spoken to the people for you, and it has come to pass, he is to you for a mouth, and you are to him for God;
Aaron will speak on your behalf to the people, as if he was your mouth, and you will be in the place of God to him.
17 and you take this rod in your hand, with which you do the signs.”
Make sure to take your walking stick with you so you can use it to do the signs.”
18 And Moses goes and turns back to his father-in-law Jethro, and says to him, “Please let me go, and I return to my brothers who [are] in Egypt, and I see whether they are yet alive.” And Jethro says to Moses, “Go in peace.”
Then Moses returned to Jethro his father-in-law and told him, “Please allow me to go back to my own people in Egypt so I can see if any of them are still alive.” “Go with my blessing,” Jethro replied.
19 And YHWH says to Moses in Midian, “Go, return to Egypt, for all the men who seek your life have died”;
While Moses was in Midian, the Lord told him, “Go back to Egypt because all those who wanted to kill you have died.”
20 and Moses takes his wife, and his sons, and causes them to ride on the donkey, and turns back to the land of Egypt, and Moses takes the rod of God in his hand.
Moses put his wife and sons on a donkey and went back to Egypt, carrying the walking stick that God had used to perform miracles.
21 And YHWH says to Moses, “In your going to return to Egypt, see—all the wonders which I have put in your hand—that you have done them before Pharaoh, and I strengthen his heart, and he does not send the people away;
The Lord told Moses, “When you get back to Egypt, make sure to go to Pharaoh and carry out the miracles I've given you to do. I will make him stubborn and he will not let the people go.
22 and you have said to Pharaoh, Thus said YHWH: My son, My firstborn [is] Israel,
This is what you are to tell Pharaoh, ‘This is what the Lord says. Israel is my firstborn son.
23 and I say to you, send My son away, and he serves Me; and [if] you refuse to send him away, behold, I am slaying your son, your firstborn.”
I ordered you to let my son go so he can worship me. But you refused to release him, so I will now kill your firstborn son.”
24 And it comes to pass in the way, in a lodging place, that YHWH meets him, and seeks to put him to death;
But while they were on their way the Lord came to the place where they were staying, wanting to kill Moses.
25 and Zipporah takes a flint, and cuts off the foreskin of her son, and causes [it] to touch his feet, and says, “You [are] surely a bridegroom of blood to me”;
However, Zipporah used a flint knife to cut off her son's foreskin. She touched his feet with it, and said to him, “You are a blood-husband to me.”
26 and He desists from him. Then she said, “A bridegroom of blood,” in reference to the circumcision.
(Calling him a blood-husband referred to circumcision.) After this the Lord left Moses alone.
27 And YHWH says to Aaron, “Go into the wilderness to meet Moses”; and he goes, and meets him on the mountain of God, and kisses him,
The Lord had told Aaron, “Go and meet Moses in the desert.” So Aaron went and met Moses at the mountain of God and greeted him with a kiss.
28 and Moses declares to Aaron all the words of YHWH with which He has sent him, and all the signs with which He has charged him.
Then Moses explained to Aaron everything the Lord had sent him to say and all the miracles he had ordered him to do.
29 And Moses goes—Aaron also—and they gather all the elderly of the sons of Israel,
Moses and Aaron traveled to Egypt. There they had all the Israelite elders gather together.
30 and Aaron speaks all the words which YHWH has spoken to Moses, and does the signs before the eyes of the people;
Aaron shared with them everything the Lord had told Moses, and Moses carried out the miracles so they could see them.
31 and the people believe when they hear that YHWH has looked after the sons of Israel, and that He has seen their affliction; and they bow and pay respect.
The Israelites were convinced. When they heard that the Lord had come to them, and that he had been touched by their suffering, they bowed their heads and worshiped.

< Exodus 4 >