Exodus Chapter 1
1 These are the names of the children of Israel who came into Egypt. Every man and his household came with Jacob.
2 Reuben, Simeon, Levi, and Judah.
3 Issachar, Zebulun, and Benjamin.
4 Dan and Naphtali, Gad and Asher.
5 Seventy souls in all came out of Jacob. Joseph was already in Egypt.
6 Then Joseph and all his brothers and all of that generation died.
7 The children of Israel were fruitful and increased and multiplied and became exceedingly mighty and the land was filled with them.
8 Then a new king who did not know Joseph arose over Egypt.
9 He said to his people, The children of Israel are many and mightier than we.
10 Let us deal wisely with them lest they multiply and when war comes, they will join with our enemies and fight against us and get out of the land.
11 So they set taskmasters over them to afflict them with burdens, and they built the treasure cities of Pithon and Raamses for Pharaoh.
12 But the more they afflicted them, the more they multiplied and grew and they were grieved because of the children of Israel.
13 The Egyptians made the children of Israel serve with harshness.
14 They made their lives bitter with hard work in mortar and in bricks and in all kinds of work in the field. All the work they made them do was with harshness⁺.
15 The king of Egypt spoke to the Hebrew midwives, one of whom was Shiphrah, and the name of the other Puah.
16 He said, When you midwife the Hebrew women and look on the birth stools, if it is a son, then you shall kill him. But if it is a daughter, then she shall live.
17 But the midwives feared God and did not do as the king of Egypt commanded them, but they saved the male children alive.
18 The king of Egypt called for the midwives and said to them, Why have you done this and have saved the male children alive?
19 The midwives said to Pharaoh, Because the Hebrew women are not like the Egyptian women. For they are lively and are delivered before the midwives come to them.
20 God dealt well with the midwives and the people multiplied and became very mighty.
21 Because the midwives feared God, He made them houses and families of their own.
22 Pharaoh charged all his people saying, Every son that is born you shall cast into the river and every daughter you shall save alive.