2 Mose 13

1 Awurade ka kyerɛɛ Mose se,

Yahweh said to Moses/me,

2 “Tew Israelfo mmabarima ne aboa biara abakan ho ma me; wɔn nyinaa yɛ me dea.”

“Set apart all the firstborn males in order that they may belong to me. The firstborn males of the Israeli people and of their animals will be mine.”

3 Na Mose ka kyerɛɛ nnipa no se, “Nnɛ yɛ da a ɛsɛ sɛ mokae daa—da a mutu fii Misraim asase a na moyɛ nkoa wɔ so no so. Awurade ayɛ anwonwade akɛse bebree akyerɛ mo. Enti monkae sɛ, sɛ afe du na moredi afahyɛ yi a, mommfa mmɔkaw mfra mo aduan; na mommfa bi nkɔ mo afi nso mu koraa.

Moses/I said to the people, “Do not forget this day! This is the day that you are leaving Egypt. This is the day you [are freed from] being their slaves. Yahweh has brought you out of Egypt by his great power [MTY]. Do not eat any bread that has yeast in it [whenever you celebrate] this day.

4 Afe biara mu Abib ɔsram awiei (bɛyɛ Ɔbɛnem awiei), monkae saa otukɔ yi.

You are leaving Egypt on this day, which is the first day of the month that is [named] Abib.

5 Awurade de mo baa Kanaanfo, Hetifo, Amorifo, Hewifo ne Yebusifo nsase a ɛwo ne nufusu sen so a ɔkaa ho ntam sɛ ɔde bɛma mo no so.

Later, when Yahweh brings you into the land where the descendants of Canaan, Heth, Amor, Hiv, and Jebus [now live], the land that he solemnly promised to give to you, a land that will be very good for raising livestock and growing crops [MTY], you must celebrate this festival during this month [every year].

6 Mubedi brodo a mmɔkaw nni mu nko ara nnanson. Na da a ɛto so ason no, monto pon kɛse mma Awurade.

For seven days the bread that you eat must not have any yeast in it. On the seventh day there must be a festival to [honor] Yahweh.

7 Ɛnsɛ sɛ obiara kora mmɔkaw wɔ ne fi anaa mo asase no ahye so baabiara.

For seven days do not eat bread that has yeast in it. You should not have any yeast or bread made with yeast anywhere in your land.

8 Edu afirihyia na moredi nna yi a, monkyerɛ mo mma nea enti a moredi saa afahyɛ no. Ɛyɛ afahyɛ a mode bɛkae nea Awurade yɛ maa mo bere a mutu fii Misraim asase so no.

On the day [the festival starts], you must tell your children, ‘[We are doing this to remember] what Yahweh did for our ancestors when they left Egypt.

9 Saa afe biara mu nnaawɔtwe afahyɛ yi nyɛ nsɛnkyerɛnne te sɛ agyiraehyɛde a wɔde abɔ mo nsa ho anaa mo moma so sɛ nkae ade. Momma Awurade mmara ntena mo anom, efisɛ tumi kɛse na ɔde yii mo fii Misraim.

This ritual will remind you how Yahweh brought your ancestors out of Egypt with his great power [MTY]. [The ritual will be like something] you tie on your forehead or on your wrist. It will remind you to recite to others what Yahweh has instructed you.

10 Afe biara, ɛrekɔ Abib (bɛyɛ Ɔbɛnem) awiei no, munni afahyɛ yi.

So you must celebrate this festival every year at the time [Yahweh] has appointed.’

11 “Sɛ Awurade de mo ba asase a ɔhyɛɛ mo agyanom ho bɔ tete no a Kanaanfo te so mprempren no so a, monkae sɛ

Yahweh will bring you into the land where the descendants of Canaan live, just as he promised you and your ancestors that he would do. When he gives that land to you,

12 mo mmabarima a wɔyɛ mmakan nyinaa ne nyɛmmoa mmakan a wɔyɛ mmarima no nyinaa yɛ Awurade dea. Enti momfa mma no.

you must dedicate to Yahweh the firstborn males of all your animals. These all will belong to Yahweh.

13 Mutumi de oguan ba anaa abirekyi ba bɛsesa afurum ba abakan. Na sɛ woyɛ wʼadwene sɛ woremfa afurum no nni nsesa a, ɛsɛ sɛ wubu afurum no kɔn mu kum no. Nanso mo mmabarima abakan de, ɛsɛ sɛ motɔ wɔn ti.

You may keep the firstborn male donkeys, but you must buy them back by sacrificing a lamb as a substitute for the donkey. If you do not want to buy back the donkey, you must [kill it by] breaking its neck. You must also buy back every one of your own firstborn sons.

14 “Na sɛ daakye bi mo mma bisa mo se, ‘Eyinom nyinaa ase ne dɛn a, monka nkyerɛ wɔn se, Awurade nam anwonwade akɛse a ɔyɛe so na oyii yɛn fii nkoasom mu wɔ Misraim.

In the future, when one of your children asks, ‘What does this mean?’, you must say to him, ‘Yahweh brought our ancestors out of Egypt with his great power [MTY], and freed us from being slaves there.

15 Na Farao mpɛ sɛ ɔma yɛn kwan ma yɛkɔ nti, Awurade kum mmabarima ne mmoanini a wɔyɛ mmakan a wɔwɔ Misraim asase so nyinaa. Ɛno nti na yɛde mmabarima a wɔyɛ mmakan rema Awurade yi, nanso nnipa mmabarima mmakan no de, wɔtɔ wɔn ti.’

The king of Egypt stubbornly refused to let them leave his country, so Yahweh killed all the firstborn males in Egypt, both the boys and the firstborn of their livestock. That is why we now sacrifice to Yahweh all the firstborn of our livestock, but we buy back our own firstborn sons.’

16 Na afahyɛ yi bɛda mo nsow sɛ moyɛ Onyankopɔn mma te sɛnea ɔde nʼagyiraehyɛde abɔ mo moma so a ɛkyerɛ sɛ Awurade nam ne tumi kɛse no so na ɔde yii yɛn fii Misraim.”

I repeat that this ritual will remind you about how Yahweh brought our [ancestors] out of Egypt by his great power [MTY]; it will be like something you tie on your wrist or on your forehead [to remind you of that].”

17 Farao maa nnipa no kwan sɛ wɔnkɔ no, Onyankopɔn amma wɔamfa ɔkwan a ɛfa Filistifo man no mu a na ɛyɛ tiaa no so. Efisɛ Onyankopɔn kae se, “Sɛ wokohyia ɔko a, ebia na wɔasesa wɔn adwene ama wɔasan akɔ Misraim.”

When the king [of Egypt] let the [Israeli] people go, God did not lead them to go through the land of the Philistines. That was a shorter way, but God said, “It would be bad if my people change their minds when they realize that they will have to fight [the Philistines to take their land], and then [decide to] return to Egypt.”

18 Enti Onyankopɔn dii wɔn anim de wɔn faa sare so de wɔn ani kyerɛɛ Po Kɔkɔɔ. Israelfo no sii mu fii Misraim a na wɔasiesie wɔn ho ama ɔko.

Instead, God led them to go around through the desert toward the Red Sea (OR, the Gulf of Suez). When the Israeli people left Egypt, they were carrying weapons to fight [their enemies].

19 Mose rekɔ no, ɔfaa Yosef nnompe de kaa ne ho kɔe, efisɛ na Yosef ama Israel mma aka Onyankopɔn ntam sɛ, “Sɛ ɔreyi wɔn afi Misraim a, wɔde ne nnompe bɛkɔ bi, efisɛ na onim sɛ Onyankopɔn beyi wɔn afi Misraim asase so.”

Moses/I [had them] take along the bones of Joseph with them/us, because Joseph long ago had made the Israeli people promise solemnly that they would do that. He had said to them, “God will enable your descendants to leave Egypt. When that happens, you must carry my bones with you.”

20 Wofi Sukot no, wɔkɔkyeree nsraban wɔ Etam sare no ano.

The Israeli people left Succoth and traveled to Etham, at the edge of the desert, and they set up their tents there.

21 Awurade de omununkum kyerɛɛ wɔn kwan awia na ɔde ogya nso kyerɛɛ wɔn kwan anadwo. Enti na wotumi tu wɔn kwan no awia ne anadwo nyinaa.

[When they traveled] during the daytime, Yahweh went in front of them in a tall [white] cloud to show them the way. During the night, he went in front of them in a tall cloud that looked like a fire. By doing that, he enabled them to travel in the daytime and also at nighttime.

22 Awia mununkum fadum anaa anadwo gya fadum no amfi nʼafa wɔ nnipa no anim da.

The tall cloud did not leave them. It was always in front of them, as a bright white cloud in the daytime and like a fire at night.