Exodus 4

1 Moses/I replied, “But what if [the Israeli people] (do not believe me/are not convinced) or not do what I tell them? What if they say, ‘Yahweh did not appear to you!’”

Then responded Moses, and said, And lo! they will not believe me, neither hearken to my voice, —for they will say, Yahweh, hath not appeared unto thee.

2 Yahweh said to him/me, “[Look at] that thing you are holding in your hand. What is it?” He/I replied, “A (walking stick/shepherd’s stick).”

And Yahweh said unto him—What is this in thy hand? And he said—A staff.

3 He said, “Throw it down on the ground!” So, he/I threw it on the ground, and it became a snake! And he/I ran/jumped away from it.

Then said he—Cast it to the earth. And he cast it to the earth, and it became a serpent, —and Moses fled from the face thereof.

4 But Yahweh said to Moses/me, “Reach down and pick it up by its tail!” So he/I reached down and caught it, and [when he/I picked it up], it became a stick in his/my hand [again.]

And Yahweh said unto Moses, Put forth thy hand, and take it by its tail: So he put forth his hand, and laid hold of it, and it became a staff in his hand: —

5 Yahweh said, “[Do the same thing in front of the Israeli people], in order that they may believe that [I], Yahweh God, the one Abraham and Isaac and Jacob worshiped, truly appeared to you.”

that they may believe that Yahweh, God of their fathers, —God of Abraham, God of Isaac, and God of Jacob hath appeared unto thee.

6 Yahweh spoke to Moses/me again, saying “Put your hand inside your robe [MTY]!” He/I did that. And when he/I took it out again, [surprisingly], his/my hand was white. It had a skin disease [that made it] as white as snow.

Then said Yahweh unto him, yet again—Bring, I pray thee, thy hand, into thy bosom. So he brought his hand, into his bosom, —and then took it out, and lo! his hand, was leprous, —like snow,

7 Then God said, “Put your hand back inside your robe [MTY]!” So he/I did that, and when he/I took it out again, surprisingly, it was normal again, just like the rest of his/my body!

And he said—Put back thy hand into thy bosom: So he put back his hand into his bosom, —and then took it out of his bosom, and lo it had come again like his own flesh:

8 God said, “[You can do that in front of the Israeli people, too]. If they do not pay attention to what you say because of [seeing] the first miracle, they will (believe [you/be convinced) when you perform] the second miracle.

thus shall it come to pass, if they will not believe thee, nor hearken to the voice of the first sign, then will they believe the voice of the next sign;

9 If they do not believe you or do what you say, even [after you perform] those two miracles, get some water from the Nile [River] and pour it on the ground. [When you do that], the water from the river that you pour on the ground will become blood [MTY] (OR, [red like] blood).”

and it shall come to pass if they will not believe even these two signs nor hearken to thy voice, then shalt thou take of the water of the river, and pour it out on the dry land, —so shall the water which thou hast taken from the river, become, yea it shall become, blood, on the dry land.

10 Moses/I replied, “O Yahweh! I am not an eloquent [speaker]! I was not an eloquent speaker before, and I have not become one since you started talking to me! I am not a good speaker [MTY], and I speak very slowly.”

And Moses said unto Yahweh—Pardon, O My Lord! not a man of words, am I, neither heretofore, nor since thou hast spoken unto thy servant, —for heavy of mouth and heavy of tongue, I am.

11 Then Yahweh said to him/me, “[You seem to forget] who it is that makes people able to speak [RHQ]! Who is it that enables people to be unable to speak or unable to hear, or able to see or not to see? It is I, Yahweh [RHQ]!

Then Yahweh said unto him—Who appointed a mouth for man, or who appointeth him to be dumb, or deaf, or seeing or blind? Is it not I, Yahweh?

12 So start going [to Egypt], and I will help you to speak [MTY], and I will tell you what you should say.”

Now, therefore go, —and, I, will be with thy mouth, so will I direct thee, what thou shalt speak.

13 But he/I replied, “O, Yahweh, I ask you, please send someone else [instead]!”

And he said—Pardon, O My Lord! send, I pray thee by the hand of him whom thou wilt send—

14 Then Yahweh became very angry with Moses/me. He said, “[What about] your [older] brother Aaron, who is [also] a descendant of Levi? I know that he is a very good/eloquent speaker. He is actually on his way here [right now], and he will be very happy to see you.

Then was kindled the anger of Yahweh against Moses, and he said—Is there not Aaron, thy brother, the Levite? I know that he, can speak. Moreover also lo! he himself is coming forth to meet thee, as surely as he seeth thee, so surely will he rejoice in his heart.

15 You can talk to him and tell him what to say [MTY], and I will help both of you [SYN] to know what to say [MTY]. And I will tell you both what you should do.

Then shalt thou speak unto him, and shalt put the words in his mouth, —and, I, will be with thy mouth and with his mouth, so will I direct you what ye shall do.

16 He will speak for you to the [Israeli] people. He will be (your spokesman/as though he was your mouth) [MET], and you will be to him as though you are [his] god.

And, he, shall speak for thee unto the people, —so shall it come to pass that he shall become thy mouth, and thou shalt become to him as God.

17 [Be sure] to take with you the walking/shepherd’s stick [that is in your hand], because you will perform miracles with it.”

And this staff, take thou in thy hand, —wherewith thou shalt do the signs.

18 Moses/I returned to his/my father-in-law Jethro and said to him, “Please let me go back to Egypt, to see my fellow Israelis there. I want to know if they are still alive.” Jethro said to Moses/me, “Go, and may [God give you inner] peace.”

So Moses went and returned unto Jethro his father-in-law and said to him—Let me go, I pray thee, and return unto my brethren who are in Egypt, that I may see whether they are yet alive. And Jethro said to Moses: Go and prosper.

19 Yahweh said to Moses/me [before he/I left] Midian, “You can [safely] return to Egypt, because the men who were wanting to kill you [MTY] are [now] dead.”

Then said Yahweh unto Moses in Midian, Go, return to Egypt, —for all the men are dead who were seeking thy life.

20 So Moses/I took his/my wife and sons and put them on donkeys, and they/we returned to Egypt. And Moses/I took in his/my hand the stick that God [told him/me to take along].

So Moses took his wife and his sons, and caused them to ride upon the ass, and he returned to the land of Egypt, —and Moses took the staff of God in his hand.

21 Yahweh said to Moses/me, “When you return to Egypt, be sure to perform all the miracles that I have given you power [to do], while the king is watching. But I will make him stubborn [IDM], with the result that he will not let the Israeli people leave [Egypt].

And Yahweh said unto Moses, When thou goest to return to Egypt, see as touching all the wonders which I have put in thy hand, that thou do them before Pharaoh—but, I, will let his heart wax bold, and he will not suffer the people to go.

22 Then say to him, ‘This is what Yahweh says: “The Israeli [people] [MTY] are [as dear to] me as firstborn sons [MET].

Then shalt thou say unto Pharaoh, Thus, saith Yahweh—My son—my firstborn, is Israel;

23 I told you to let my people [MTY] leave [Egypt], in order that they may worship me [in the desert]. If you refuse to let them go, I warn you, I will kill your firstborn son!”’”

Therefore I say unto thee, Let my son go, that he may serve me, But if thou refuse to let him go, behold, I, am going to slay, thy son, thy firstborn.

24 [One night], as they were camping on the way [to Egypt], Yahweh appeared to Moses/me. He wanted/threatened to kill Moses/me [for disobeying his command that boys/sons be circumcised].

And it came to pass, on the way, in the resting-place for the night, that Yahweh fell upon him, and sought to kill him.

25 Then [his/my wife] Zipporah took a flint knife and circumcised her son. Then she touched the boy’s feet (OR, genitals) with the piece of skin [she had cut off], and she said, “The blood [which flowed when I circumcised you] will protect you [from being harmed by Yahweh] [MET].”

So Zipporah took a sharp stone and cut off the foreskin of her son, and cast it down at his feet, —and said—Surely, a bridegroom by rites of blood, art thou to me!

26 She said to him, “You are safe now [MET] because you have been circumcised.” So Yahweh did not harm her son.

So he let him go, Then, it was that she said, A bridegroom by rites of blood—with regard to the rites of circumcision.

27 Yahweh said to Aaron, “Go into the desert to meet/see Moses!” So he went [there from Egypt] and met him/me at [Sinai], the mountain dedicated to God, and [greeted him/me by] kissing him/me [on the cheek].

And Yahweh said unto Aaron, Go thy way to meet Moses, towards the desert. So he went his way, and fell in with him in the mountain of God and kissed him.

28 Moses/I told Aaron everything that Yahweh had said to him/me when he told him/me to return to Egypt. He/I also told Aaron about all the miracles that Yahweh told him/me to perform.

And Moses told Aaron, all the words of Yahweh wherewith he had sent him, —and all the signs wherewith he had charged him.

29 [So Aaron and Moses/I] returned [to Egypt]. There they/we gathered together all the Israeli elders/leaders.

So Moses and Aaron went their way, —and gathered together all the elders of the sons of Israel.

30 Aaron told them everything that Yahweh had told Moses/me, and Aaron performed [all] the miracles as the people watched.

And Aaron spake all the words which Yahweh had spoken unto Moses, —and did the signs before the eyes of the people,

31 They believed [that what they/we were saying was true]. When they heard that Yahweh had seen how the Israeli people were being cruelly oppressed and that he was going to help them, they bowed down and worshiped [Yahweh].

And the people believed, —and when they heard that Yahweh had concerned himself for the sons of Israel, and that he had looked upon their humiliation, then bent they their heads and bowed themselves down.