Exo_6:1-30; Exo_7:1-25; Exo_8:1-32; Exo_9:1-35; Exo_10:1-29; Exo_11:1-10
SECTIONXIV.
VAERA.
[VI]AND the Lord spake to Mosheh and said to him, I am theLord; and I appeared unto Abraham and to Izhak and to Jakob by (the name) EI-Shaddai,but by My name Jehovah[1] <\l > I was not known to them. And also Ihave confirmed My covenant with them to give them the land of Kenaan, the landof their sojournings in which they sojourned. And before Me hath been heard thecry of the sons of Israel whom the Mizraee make to labour for them; and I haveremembered My covenant. Therefore, say thou to the sons of Israel, I am theLord, and I will bring you out from the midst of the sore labour for theMizraee, and will deliver you from their servitude, and redeem you with a loftyarm and with great judgments. And I will bring you nigh before Me to be apeople, and I will be unto you a God; and you shall know that I am the Lordyour God who bringeth you out from the sore Mizrean bondage. And I will leadyou into the land which I have sworn in My Word to give to Abraham, to Izhak,and to Jakob; and to you will I give it for an inheritance; I am the Lord. AndMosheh so spake with the sons of Israel: but they received not from Moshehthrough anguish of spirit, and from the labour which was hard upon them. And the Lord spake toMosheh, saying, Go in, speak with Pharoh king of Mizraim, that he send away thesons of Israel from his land. And Mosheh spake before the Lord, saying, Behold,the sons of Israel have not received from me, and how then will Pharoh receive,and I (so) heavy of speech? And the Lord spake to Mosheh and Aharon, and gavethem commandment to the sons of Israel and unto Pharoh king of Mizraim for thegoing forth of the sons of Israel from the land of Mizraim.
These are the heads of the house oftheir fathers. The sons of Reuben the firstborn of Israel, Hanuk and Phalli,Hetsron and Karmi; these are the progeny of Reuben. And the sons of Shimeon,Yemuel and Yamin and Achad and Yakin and Zochar and Shaul the son of aKenaanitha; these are the progeny of Shimeon. And these are the names of the sonsof Levi, according to their generations: Gershon and Kehath and Merari. And theyears of the life of Levi were a hundred and thirty and seven years. The sonsof Gerson, Libni and Shimei, after their progenies. And the sons of Kehath.,Amram and Izhar and Hebron and Uzziel. And the years of the life of Kehath, ahundred and thirty and three years. And the sons of Merari, Maheli and Mushi.These are the progenies of Levi, after their generations. And Amram tookYokebed the sister of his father unto him to wife, and she bare him Aharon andMosheh. And the years of the life of Amram were an hundred and thirty and sevenyears. And the sons of Izhar, Korah and Nepheg and Zikri. And the sons ofUzziel, Mishael and Elzaphan and Sithri. And Aharon took Elisheba the daughterof Aminadab the sister of Nachshon to him to wife; and she bare him Nadab andAbihu, Elazar and Ithamar. And the sons of Korah, Asir and Elkanah andAbiasaph: these are the progeny of Korah. And Elazar the son of Aharon took(one) of the daughters of Phutiel to himself to wife, and she bare him Pinhas.These are the chiefs of the fathers of the Levaee, according to theirgenerations. It is Aharon and Mosheh, to whom the Lord had said, Bring forththe sons of Israel from the land of Mizraim by their armies. These are they whospake with Pharoh king of Mizraim to let the sons of Israel go forth fromMizraim: it is Mosheh and Aharon. And it was in the daywhen the Lord spake with Mosheh in the land of Mizraim, that the Lord spakeunto Mosheh, saying, I am the Lord: Speak with Pharoh king of Mizraim all thatI have said to thee. But Mosheh said before the Lord, Behold, I am heavy ofspeech, and how will Pharoh receive from me?
[VII]But the Lord said to Mosheh,See, I have appointed thee a Master (rab) with Pharoh, and Aharon shall be thy interpreter (methurgeman).Thou shalt speakall that I have commanded thee, and Aharon thy brother shall speak with Pharohto send away the sons of Israel from his land. And I will harden the heart ofPharoh, and will multiply My signs and wonders in the land of Mizraim. ButPharoh will not receive from you; and I will give forth the stroke of My powerupon Mizraim, and will bring out My host, My people, the sons of Israel, from the land of Mizraim bygreat judgments. And the Mizraee shall know that I am the Lord when I upliftthe stroke of My power upon Mizraim, and bring forth the sons of Israel fromamong them. And Mosheh and Aharon did as the Lord commanded them, so did they.And Mosheh was the son of eighty years, and Aharon the son of eighty and threeyears, in their speaking with Pharoh. And the Lord spake toMosheh and Aharon, saying, When Pharoh shall speak to you, saying, Produce asign, thou shalt say to Aharon, Take thy rod, and throw it down before Pharoh.,and it shall become a serpent (tanina, Heb., tanin, a long creature, whether serpent or crocodile. T.).And Mosheh and Aharon went in unto Pharoh, and did as the Lord had commandedthem. Aharon threw down his rod before Pharoh and before his servants, and itbecame a serpent. And Pharoh called for the wise men and the magicians; andthey also, the Mizraite magicians, did so by their enchantments. They cast downevery man his rod, and they became serpents; but the rod of Aharon swallowed uptheir rods. And Pharoh’s heart was hardened, and be would not hearken to them,as the Lord had said. And the Lord said toMosheh, The heart of Pharoh is obdurate (heavy): he is unwilling to send thepeople away. Go unto Pharoh in the morning; behold, he goeth forth to thewaters, and stand to meet him on the bank of the river, and the rod that wasturned to a serpent (chevja, Heb., nachash) take in thy hand; and say to him, The Lord God of theJehudaee hath sent me to thee, saying, Release My people, that they may servebefore Me in the desert; and, behold, thou hast not yet acceded. Thus saith theLord, By this thou shalt know that I am the Lord: Behold, with the rod that isin my hand I smite the water of the river, and it shall be turned to blood: andthe fish which are in the river shall die, and the river become putrid, and theMizraee try in vain to drink the water from the river.
[VIII]And the Lord spake to Mosheh,Say to Aharon, Take thy rod, and lift up thy hand over the waters of theMizraee, upon their rivers, upon their canals, and upon their lakes, and uponall their reservoirs of water, that they may become blood; and there shall beblood in all the land of Mizraim, and in vessels of wood and in vessels ofstone. And Mosheh and Aharon did so, as the Lord commanded; and he lifted therod, and struck the waters of the river, in the sight of Pharoh, and in theeyes of his servants, and all the waters of the river were turned into blood.And the fish of the river died, and the river became putrid; and the Mizraeecould not drink of the water of the river, and there was blood in all the landof Mizraim. And the magicians did so with their enchantments; and Pharoh’sheart was hardened, and he would not hearken to them, as the Lord had said. AndPharoh turned and entered into his house; neither did he set his heart alsounto this. And all the Mizraee digged by the bending of the river for water todrink; for the water which was in the river they could not drink. And seven days were fulfilled afterthat the Lord had struck the river; and the Lord said to Mosheh, Go in untoPharoh and say to him, Thus saith the Lord: Send away My people, that they mayserve before me. But if thou refuse to send them away, behold, I will smite allthy borders with frogs, and the river shall multiply frogs; and they shall comeup and enter into thy house, and into thy chamber the place of sleep, and uponthy bed, and into the house of thy servants, and among thy people, and into thyovens and thy kneading pans; and upon thee and upon thy people and upon all thyservants shall the frogs come up. And the Lord said to Mosheh, Say to Aharon,Uplift thy hand with thy staff upon the streams, upon the rivulets, and uponthe lakes; and the frogs shall come up on the land of Mizraim. And Aharon liftedup his hand over the waters of the Mizraee, and the frogs came up and coveredthe land of Mizraim. And the magicians did so with their enchantments, and madefrogs to come up on the land of Mizraim. And Pharoh called Mosheh and Aharon,and said, Pray before the Lord that the frogs may be removed from me and frommy people; and I will release the people, that they may sacrifice before theLord. And Mosheh said to Pharoh, Demand for thyself a miracle, and appoint me atime[2] <\l >when I shall pray for thee, and for thy servants and thy people, that the frogsmay be finished from thee and from thy house, and remain only in the river. Andhe said, Tomorrow. And he said, According to thy word; that thou mayest knowthat there is none as the Lord our God. And the frogs shall be removed fromthee and from thy house and thy servants and thy people; in the river onlyshall they remain. And Mosheh and Aharon went out from Pharoh; and Moshehprayed before the Lord concerning the frogs which he had appointed unto Pharoh.And the Lord did according to the words of Mosheh; and the frogs died from thehouses, and from the courts, and from the fields. And they gathered them inheaps (upon) heaps, and they corrupted upon the ground. And Pharoh saw thatthere was relief; and hardened his heart, and would not hearken to them, as theLord had said. And the Lord spake toMosheh, Say unto Aharon, Lift up thy rod and smite the dust of the earth, andit shall become, insects,[3] <\l > in all the land of Mizraim. And theydid so. And Aharon lifted up his hand with the rod and smote the dust of theearth, and it became insects on man and on cattle; all the dust of the earthbecame insects in all the land of Mizraim. And the magicians wrought so withtheir enchantments to produce the insects, but were not able; and there wereinsects on man and on beast. And the magicians said to Pharoh, This is a plaguefrom before the Lord. Yet Pharoh’s heart was hardened, and he would not hearkento them, as the Lord had said. And the Lord said toMosheh, Arise in the morning and stand before Pharoh; behold, he goeth out tothe waters; and say to him, Thus saith the Lord, Send My people away, that theymay serve before Me. For if thou wilt not send My people away, behold, I willsend on thee, and on thy servants, and on thy people, and upon thy houses, thearoba;[4] <\l > I and they shall fill the houses ofthe Mizraee with the aroba; and also the ground on which they are. But I willmake a distinction in that day with the land of Goshen where My people dwell,that the aroba shall not be there; so that thou mayest know that I the Lord dorule in the midst of the earth. And I will ordain redemption to My people, butupon thy people shall be the plague. Tomorrow shall this sign be. And the Lorddid so; and the aroba came with strength into the house of Pharoh, and into thehouse of his servants, and into all the land of Mizraim; and the land wasdestroyed before the aroba. And Pharoh called forMosheh and Aharon, and said, Go, sacrifice before your God in the land. ButMosheh said, It will not be fitting to do so; because the animals which theMizraee worship we shall take to sacrifice before the Lord our God. Behold,should we immolate the animal which the Mizraee worship, would they not stoneus when they saw it? A journey of three days will we go into the desert, andsacrifice before the Lord our God, as He hath told us. And Pharoh said, I willsend you away, that you may sacrifice before the Lord your God in the desert;only you shall not go farther and farther: pray also for me. And Mosheh said,Behold I will go out from being with thee, and will pray before the Lord, andHe will remove the aroba from Pharoh, and from his servants, and his people,tomorrow; only let Pharoh no more be false[5] <\l > in not sending awaythe people to sacrifice unto the Lord. And Mosheh went out from before Pharoh,and prayed before the Lord. And the Lord did according to the word of Mosheh,and removed the aroba from. Pharoh and his servants, and his people; not oneremained. But Pharoh hardened his heart this time also, and would not dismissthe people.
[XI]And the Lord said to Mosheh, Goin unto Pharoh and say to him: Thus saith the Lord, the God of the Jehudaee;Send My people away, that they may serve before Me: for if thou refuse to sendthem away, -and thou hast kept them until now, -behold, a plaguefrom before the Lord shall be upon thy cattle which are in the field; upon thehorses, upon the asses, upon the camels, upon the oxen, and upon the sheep, avery great death. But the Lord will make distinction between the cattle ofIsrael and the cattle of the
Mizraee; and of all that thechildren of Israel possess not one shall die. And the Lord set a time,[6] <\l >saying, To-morrow will the Lord do this thing in the land. And the Lord did thatthing on the following day, and all the cattle of the Mizraee died; but of thecattle of the sons of Israel died not one. And Pharoh sent, and, behold, notone of the cattle of the sons of Israel had died. And Pharoh’s heart washardened, and he would not send the people away. And the Lord said to Mosheh andAharon, Take you handfuls of dust of the furnace, and let Mosheh scatter ittowards the heavens in the presence of Pharoh; and it will be like fine powderupon all the land of Mizraim, and it shall be upon man and beast aninflammation growing into ulcers in all the land of Mizraim. And they took thedust of the furnace and stood before Pharoh; and Mosheh scattered it towardsthe heavens, and it became an inflammation of ulcers multiplying on man and beast. Andthe magicians could not stand before Mosheh, on account of the disease; for thedisease was upon the magicians and upon all the Mizraee. And the Lord obduratedthe heart of Pharoh, and he would not hearken to them, as the Lord had said toMosheh. And the Lord said to Mosheh,Rise up in the morning and stand before Pharoh, and say to him, Thussaith the Lord, the God of the Jehudaee Send My people away, that they mayserve before Me: for at this time I will send all My plagues upon thy heart,and uponthy servants and thy people, that thou mayest know that there is no one likeMe, the Ruler in all the earth. For now it is nigh before Me to send indeed Mystrong plagues, and smite thee and thy people with death, and cut thee off fromthe earth. For therefore have I raised thee up, that I may show thee My power,and that they may acknowledge the might of My name in all the earth. Until nowhast thou kept My people down,[7] <\l > that thou mayest not release them.Behold, I will cause to come down, as at this time tomorrow, hail most mighty,the like of which hath never been in Mizraim from the day that it was foundeduntil now. And now, send, gather in thy cattle and all that thou hast in thefield; for upon every man and beast that may be found in the field not gatheredinto the house the hail will fall, and they shall die. Who feared the word ofthe Lord among the servants of Pharoh collected his servants and his cattleunto the houses; but he who did not set his heart upon the word of the Lord,left his servants and his cattle in the field. And the Lord said toMosheh, Uplift thy hand towards the heavens, and there shall be hail in all theland of Mizraim upon man, and beast, and every herb of the field throughout theland of Mizraim. And Mosheh lifted up the rod towards the heavens, and the Lordsent thunders, (voices,) and hail, and fire going upon the ground: and the Lordrained hail upon the land of Mizraim, and there was hail, and fire flamingamong the hail, very mighty, such as the like of had not been in all the landof Mizraim since the time it had been for a people. And the hail smote in allthe land of Mizraim all that was in the field from man to cattle, and everyherb of the field the hail struck, and every tree of the field it brake. Only inthe land of Goshen, where the sons of Israel were, there was no hail. And Pharoh sent andcalled for Mosheh and Aharon, and said to them, I have sinned this time; theLord is righteous, and I and my people are guilty. Pray before the Lord thatrelief may be multiplied before Him, so that there may be upon us no morethunders of malediction like these before the Lord, nor hail; and I will sendyou away, and will not continue to detain you. And Mosheh said to him, When Ishall have gone out of the city, I will spread forth my hands in prayer beforethe Lord, and the thunders shall cease, and there shall be no more hail, thatyou may know that the earth is the Lord’s. But (as for) thee and thy servants,I know that as yet ye are not humbled before the Lord God. And the flax and thebarley were smitten, because the barley was earing and the flax was in flower:but the wheat and the spelt were not smitten, for they were later. And Moshehwent out of the city from Pharoh, and spread forth his hands in prayer beforethe Lord, and the thunders ceased, and the hail and the rain which haddescended came not (more) upon the earth. And Pharoh saw that the rain hadceased, and the hail and the thunders, and he added yet to sin, and hardenedhis heart, he and his servants. And the heart of Pharoh was hardened, and hewould not send away the sons of Israel, as the Lord had spoken by the hand ofMosheh.
[1] <\l > Onkelos, Yeyd.
[2] <\l > Sam. Vers., ÒDecide for me,Ó or,Òover me.Ó
[3] <\l > ÒPoisonous flies.Ó Kalmetha, ONK. Ciniphes, Skniphes, LXX.
[4] <\l > Heb., Arob; probably beetles, - blatta ®gyptica, a formidable and voracious insect.
[5] <\l > ÒAdd to lie.Ó So also the Sam. Vers.
[6] <\l > Sam. Vers., Òappointed a testimony.Ó
[7] <\l > Sam. Vers., Òhast dealt deceitfullywith.Ó