Exodus 4
He Sends a Man Who Says Send Someone Else
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The Signs and Excuses
4:1Moses answered, “If they do not believe me or listen to my voice, for they will say, ‘God has not appeared to you,’ what shall I say to them?”
4:2The Lord said to him, “What is that in your hand?” He said, “A staff.”
4:3He said, “Throw it on the ground.” He threw it on the ground, and it became a serpent; Moses fled from it.
4:4The Lord said to Moses, “Reach out your hand and grasp it by the tail.” He reached out his hand and grasped the tail, and it became a staff in his hand.
4:5“This is so that they may believe you, that the Lord, the God of their fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has appeared to you.”
4:6The Lord said again to him, “Put your hand inside your cloak.” He put his hand inside his cloak and drew it out; his hand had become like snow.
4:7He said again, “Put your hand inside your cloak.” He put it inside and drew it out; it was restored again to its flesh’s color.
4:8“If they do not believe you or listen to the voice of the first sign, they will believe you through the voice of the latter sign.
4:9“If they do not believe even these two signs or listen to your voice, take water from the river and pour it onto dry ground. The water you take from the river will become blood on the dry ground.”
4:10Moses said to the Lord, “Please, Lord, I have never been capable, neither before nor since You began to speak to Your servant, for I am weak-voiced and slow-tongued.”
4:11The Lord said to Moses, “Who gave a human being a mouth? Who made one hard of hearing or deaf, seeing or blind? Is it not I, God?
4:12“Now go. I will open your mouth and teach you what to say.”
4:13Moses said, “Please, Lord, appoint another capable person whom You will send.”
4:14The Lord became angry with Moses and said, “Is not Aaron the Levite your brother? I know that he will surely speak for you. Look, he will come out to meet you, and when he sees you he will rejoice within himself.
4:15“Speak to him and put My words in his mouth. I will open your mouth and his mouth and teach you both what to do.
4:16“He shall speak for you to the people. He shall be your mouth, and you shall represent him in matters concerning God.
4:17“Take in your hand this staff that was turned into a serpent, with which you shall perform the signs.”
The Return and the Warning
4:18Moses went back to Jethro his father-in-law and said, “I will return to my brothers in Egypt to see whether they are still alive.” Jethro said to Moses, “Go in health.”
4:19After those many days the king of Egypt died. The Lord said to Moses in Midian, “Go, depart for Egypt, for all who sought your life are dead.”
4:20Moses took his wife and children, set them on the beasts of burden, and returned toward Egypt. Moses took the staff he had from God in his hand.
4:21The Lord said to Moses, “When you return to Egypt, see that you perform before Pharaoh all the wonders I have put in your hands. I will harden his heart, and he will certainly not let the people go.
4:22“Say to Pharaoh, ‘Thus says the Lord: Israel is My firstborn son.
4:23“‘I said to you, “Let My people go so that they may serve Me.” If you refuse to let them go, take heed: I will kill your firstborn son.’”
The Blood of Circumcision
4:24On the way, at the lodging place, an angel of the Lord met him and sought to kill him.
4:25Zipporah took a stone, circumcised her son, fell at the feet, and said, “The blood of my child’s circumcision has stopped.”
4:26He went away from him, because she said, “The blood of my child’s circumcision has stopped.”
The People’s Belief
4:27The Lord said to Aaron, “Go into the wilderness to meet Moses.” He went and met him at the mountain of God, and they kissed each other.
4:28Moses told Aaron all the words of the Lord with which He had sent him, and all the signs He had commanded him.
4:29Moses and Aaron went and gathered the council of elders of the sons of Israel.
4:30Aaron spoke all these words God had spoken to Moses and performed the signs before the people.
4:31The people believed and rejoiced that God had attended to the sons of Israel and had seen their affliction. The people bowed down and worshiped.
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Saints Translation · Liturgical reading edition · V1 · working draft awaiting specialist review.