< Exodus 11 >
1 Then Yahweh said to Moses/me, “I will cause one more disaster to strike the king of Egypt and all his people [MTY]. After that, he will let you leave. In fact, he will expel you all.
Then the LORD said to Moses, “I will bring upon Pharaoh and Egypt one more plague. After that, he will allow you to leave this place. And when he lets you go, he will drive you out completely.
2 So now speak to all the [Israeli] people. Tell them to ask all their [Egyptian] neighbors, both men and women, to give them some silver and gold jewelry.”
Now announce to the people that men and women alike should ask their neighbors for articles of silver and gold.”
3 Yahweh made the Egyptians highly respect the Israeli people. In particular, the Egyptian officials and all [the rest of] the people considered Moses/me to be a very great man.
And the LORD gave the people favor in the sight of the Egyptians. Moreover, Moses himself was highly regarded in Egypt by Pharaoh’s officials and by the people.
4 Then Moses/I [went to the king and] said, “This is what Yahweh says: ‘About midnight [tonight] I will go throughout Egypt,
So Moses declared, “This is what the LORD says: ‘About midnight I will go throughout Egypt,
5 and I will cause all the firstborn/oldest [sons] to die. That will include your oldest son, the oldest sons of the slave women who grind grain, [and the oldest sons of everyone else]. I will also kill the oldest males of the Egyptians’ livestock.
and every firstborn son in the land of Egypt will die, from the firstborn of Pharaoh who sits on his throne, to the firstborn of the servant girl behind the hand mill, as well as the firstborn of all the cattle.
6 When that happens, people all over Egypt will wail loudly. They have never wailed like that before, and they will never wail like that again.
Then a great cry will go out over all the land of Egypt. Such an outcry has never been heard before and will never be heard again.
7 But among the Israeli people [it will be so quiet that] not even a dog will bark! Then you will know for sure that I, Yahweh, distinguish [how I act toward] the Egyptians and [how I act toward] the Israeli people.
But among all the Israelites, not even a dog will snarl at man or beast.’ Then you will know that the LORD makes a distinction between Egypt and Israel.
8 Then all these officials of yours will come and bow down before me and will say, “Please get out [of Egypt], you and all the Israeli people!”’ After that, I will leave Egypt!” [After Moses/I said that], he/I very angrily left the king.
And all these officials of yours will come and bow before me, saying, ‘Go, you and all the people who follow you!’ After that, I will depart.” And hot with anger, Moses left Pharaoh’s presence.
9 Then Yahweh said to Moses/me, “The king will not pay any attention to what you say. The result will be that I will perform more plagues in the land of Egypt.”
The LORD said to Moses, “Pharaoh will not listen to you, so that My wonders may be multiplied in the land of Egypt.”
10 Aaron and Moses/I performed all these miracles in front of the king, but Yahweh made the king stubborn, and he did not let the Israeli people leave his country.
Moses and Aaron did all these wonders before Pharaoh, but the LORD hardened Pharaoh’s heart so that he would not let the Israelites go out of his land.