Open English Translation EXO Chapter 12

12 Then Yahweh told Mosheh and Aharon Egypt,[ref] 2 “This month is to become the beginning of the months for you all—from now on it will be the first month of the new year. 3 Assemble the people and tell them that on the tenth of this month, every man who’s the head of the household must select a lamb or young goat for his family. 4 But if the household’s too small to cook a whole animal, then neighbours can combine and share—budgeting on how much each person eats. 5 You all can choose either a sheep or a goat, but it must be a perfect, one-year-old male—without any defects. 6 You all must take special care of those animals until the fourteenth day of this month, then every Israeli household will slaughter their animal early that evening. 7 Then they must take some of the blood and put it on both doorposts and on the lintel of the houses that they’ll be in when they eat it. 8 They must roast them on the fire and eat the meat that night, along with flat bread and bitter herbs. 9 Don’t eat any of the meat raw and don’t boil it in water—it must be roasted over the fire with its head, legs, and internal organs. 10 Nothing must be left by morning—anything that’s not eaten must be burnt in the fire. 11 And this is how you all must eat it: with your belts fastened on your waists, your sandals on your feet, and your staffs in your hands. You all must eat it in a hurry. It is the Passover to Yahweh.

12 Then during that night, I will move throughout Egypt and I will kill all the oldest males—both people and animals. I will execute judgment on all the gods of Egypt. I am Yahweh. 13 That blood on the doorposts and lintel will be your sign on the houses which you are all in. I will see the blood and will pass over above you all, and the plague won’t affect you all with destruction as I strike against Egypt. 14 Then this day will become a memorial for you all, and you’ll celebrate it as a festival to Yahweh for future generations—a statute that you’ll all celebrate forever.[ref]

15 For seven days you all must only eat flat bread made without yeast. Yes, on the first day you all must remove any yeast from your houses, because anyone who eats bread with yeast during those seven days, that person must be permanently driven out of Israel. 16 On the first day, you all must gather for a sacred assembly, and similarly on the seventh day. No work can be done on those days other than meal preparation. 17 You all must regularly observe the Flat Bread Celebration, because on this very day I will have brought your divisions out from Egypt. You all must observe this day throughout future generations—a statute that you’ll all celebrate forever. 18 Starting on 14th of the first month in the evening, you all must eat only flat bread until the 21st day of the month in the evening. 19 For seven days you all must have no yeast in your homes, because anyone who eats bread with yeast in it, that person must be driven out from the Israeli people whether they’re a foreigner or a native. 20 You all mustn’t eat anything made with yeast. Wherever you live, you all must only eat flat bread.

21 Then Mosheh summoned the Israeli elders and told them, “Go ahead and select a lamb or young goat for each family and slaughter it. 22 Then you all must take a bunch of leafy hyssop stalks, and dip it in the basin with the blood from the sacrifice and paint the blood onto the lintel and both doorposts. After that, absolutely no one should go out the door of your houses until morning. 23 Then Yahweh will pass throughout Egypt to strike the Egyptians and when he sees the blood on the lintel and on the two doorposts, he’ll ‘pass over’ that doorway and won’t permit ‘the destroyer’ to enter into your houses to strike.[ref] 24 All of you and your descendants must maintain this as a law and celebrate it forever, 25 so when you all enter into the land that Yahweh will give to you just as he promised, then you must observe this ceremony. 26 Then when it occurs, your children will ask, ‘What does this ceremony mean to you?’ 27 you all must tell them, ‘It’s the sacrifice of ‘pass-over’ to Yahweh, who passed over the houses of the Israelis in Egypt when he struck the Egyptians and rescued our families.’ ”

And the people bowed their heads and prostrated themselves, 28 and the Israelis went and did just as Yahweh had commanded through Mosheh and Aharon.

29 Then, in the middle of the night, Yahweh struck all the oldest males in Egypt, from the oldest son of Far’oh who sat on his throne, to the firstborn of the prisoner in the dungeon and all oldest male offspring of the animals.[ref] 30 During the night, all the Egyptians got up, including Far’oh and all his servants. There was tremendous wailing throughout Egypt because it was a very rare house where there wasn’t someone dead. 31 Far’oh called for Mosheh and Aharon in the night and told them, “Pack up and get out from among my people—you two and all the other Israelis. Go and serve Yahweh as you’ve said. 32 Also take your flocks and your herds as you’ve said, and go. And bless me as well.

33 The Egyptians urged the Israelis, hurrying to let them go from the land because they said, “We’re all dying.”

34 So the people carried their bread dough before it could rise. Their bread-making bowls were wrapped in their clothes on their shoulders.

35 The Israelis did everything that Mosheh had instructed them, including asking for items of gold and silver, and clothing from the Egyptians.[ref] 36 Yahweh gave the people favour in the eyes of the Egyptians, so by their requests, they were able to strip the Egyptians of their wealth.

37 Then the Israelis walked from Rameses toward Succoth—about 600,000 strong men on foot, not counting women and children. 38 A large assortment of other people also went with them, along with large numbers of sheep and goats, and cattle.

39 They baked the dough that they brought from Egypt into flat bread since it hadn’t had time to rise,[fn] because they were driven out of Egypt in a hurry and hadn’t had time to prepare food to take.

40 The descendants of Yisra’el (Yacob) had lived in Egypt for 430 years[ref] 41 to the day, because that very day was when all the various divisions of Yahweh’s people left Egypt. 42 It was a time when they stayed awake all night as Yahweh took them out of Egypt—a night to be observed in that same way by every future generation.

43 Then Yahweh told Mosheh and Aharon, “This is the statute of the ‘pass-over’: No foreigners may share in the meal that night, 44 unless it’s a slave that you bought and who’s been circumcised— 45 no foreigner or hired helper can join in the meal. 46 Each animal must be eaten in only one house—don’t take any of the meat outside. And don’t break any of the animals bones.[ref] 47 Every Israeli must observe it, 48 and if someone is living among you and wants to join in Yahweh’s ‘pass-over’, then every male in their family must be circumcised. Only then will they be allowed to observe it, and then they should be considered like a native of the land. No uncircumcised person may eat it. 49 This one law will apply to both the natives, and those who live among you all.” 50 All the Israelis followed those instructions that Yahweh had given through Mosheh and Aharon, 51 and so on that very day, Yahweh took all the Israelis out of Egypt grouped by their family divisions.