Moses and Aaron and his sons would wash their hands and their feet from it.

But when the cloud was lifted up<n id="1" /> from the tabernacle, the Israelites would set out<n id="2" /> on all their journeys;

<p class="bodytext">The <sc>Lordsc> spoke<n id="1" /> to Moses and Aaron and gave them a charge<n id="2" /> for the Israelites and Pharaoh king of Egypt to bring the Israelites out of the land of Egypt.p>

In the tent of meeting<n id="1" /> outside the curtain that is before the testimony, Aaron and his sons are to arrange it from evening<n id="2" /> to morning before the <sc>Lordsc>. This is to be a lasting ordinance among the Israelites for generations to come.<n id="3" />p>

You are to receive the atonement money<n id="1" /> from the Israelites and give it for the service<n id="2" /> of the tent of meeting. It will be a memorial<n id="3" /> for the Israelites before the <sc>Lordsc>, to make atonement<n id="4" /> for your lives.&#8221;p>

<n id="1" /> &#8220;When you assist<n id="2" /> the Hebrew women in childbirth, observe at the delivery:<n id="3" /> If it is a son, kill him,<n id="4" /> but if it is a daughter, she may live.&#8221;<n id="5" />

<p class="bodytext">Then Pharaoh commanded all his people, &#8220;All sons<n id="1" /> that are born you must throw<n id="2" /> into the river, but all daughters you may let live.&#8221;<n id="3" />p>

<p class="bodytext">When the child grew older<n id="1" /> she brought him to Pharaoh&#8217;s daughter, and he became her son.<n id="2" /> She named him Moses, saying, &#8220;Because I drew him from the water.&#8221;<n id="3" />p>

And now indeed<n id="1" /> the cry<n id="2" /> of the Israelites has come to me, and I have also seen how severely the Egyptians oppress them.<n id="3" />

<p class="bodytext">Moses said<n id="1" /> to God,<n id="2" /> &#8220;Who am I, that I should go<n id="3" /> to Pharaoh, or that I should bring the Israelites out of Egypt?&#8221;

<p class="bodytext">God said to Moses, &#8220;<sc>I amsc> that <sc>I amsc>.&#8221;<n id="1" /> And he said, &#8220;You must say this<n id="2" /> to the Israelites, &#8216;<sc>I amsc> has sent me to you.&#8217;&#8221;

Every<n id="1" /> woman will ask her neighbor and the one who happens to be staying<n id="2" /> in her house for items of silver and gold<n id="3" /> and for clothing. You will put these articles on your sons and daughters &#8211; thus you will plunder Egypt!&#8221;<n id="4" />p>

Then Moses took<n id="1" /> his wife and sons<n id="2" /> and put them on a donkey and headed back<n id="3" /> to the land of Egypt, and Moses took the staff of God in his hand.

But Zipporah took a flint knife, cut off the foreskin of her son and touched it to Moses&#8217; feet,<n id="1" /> and said, &#8220;Surely you are a bridegroom of blood<n id="2" /> to me.&#8221;

and the people believed. When they heard<n id="1" /> that the <sc>Lordsc> had attended to<n id="2" /> the Israelites and that he had seen their affliction, they bowed down close to the ground.<n id="3" />p>

The Israelite foremen saw<n id="1" /> that they<n id="2" /> were in trouble when they were told,<n id="3" /> &#8220;You must not reduce the daily quota of your bricks.&#8221;p>

I<n id="1" /> have also heard<n id="2" /> the groaning of the Israelites, whom the Egyptians are enslaving,<n id="3" /> and I have remembered my covenant.<n id="4" />

<n id="1" /><p class="bodytext">Moses told this<n id="2" /> to the Israelites, but they did not listen to him<n id="3" /> because of their discouragement<n id="4" /> and hard labor.

But Moses replied to<n id="1" /> the <sc>Lordsc>, &#8220;If the Israelites did not listen to me, then<n id="2" /> how will Pharaoh listen to me, since<n id="3" /> I speak with difficulty?&#8221;<n id="4" />p>

<t /><n id="1" /><p class="bodytext">These are the heads of their fathers&#8217; households:<n id="2" />p> <p class="bodytext">The sons<n id="3" /> of Reuben, the firstborn son of Israel, were Hanoch and Pallu, Hezron and Carmi. These were the clans<n id="4" /> of Reuben.p>