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1 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Now you will see what I will do to Pharaoh. I will show him my power, and he will let my people go. I will show him my power, and he will throw them out of his country.”
The LORD Tells Moses to Speak to Pharaoh Again
2 God spoke to Moses, “I am the Lord. 3 I appeared to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob as God Almighty, but I didn’t make myself known to them by my name, the Lord. 4 I even made a promise *Or “covenant.” to give them Canaan, the land where they lived as foreigners. 5 Now I have heard the groaning of the Israelites, whom the Egyptians hold in slavery, and I have remembered my promise.
6 “Tell the Israelites, ‘I am the Lord. I will bring you out from under the oppression of the Egyptians, and I will free you from slavery. I will rescue you with my powerful arm and with mighty acts of judgment. 7 Then I will make you my people, and I will be your God. You will know that I am the Lord your God, who brought you out from under the forced labor of the Egyptians. 8 I will bring you to the land I solemnly swore to give to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. I will give it to you as your own possession. I am the Lord.’ ”
9 Moses reported this to the Israelites. But they would not listen to him because they were so discouraged by their back-breaking work.
10 Then the Lord spoke to Moses, 11 “Go tell Pharaoh (the king of Egypt) to let the Israelites leave his country.”
12 But Moses protested to the Lord, “The Israelites wouldn’t listen to me. Why would Pharaoh listen to me? I’m such a poor speaker.”
13 The Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron about the Israelites and Pharaoh (the king of Egypt). He commanded them to bring the Israelites out of Egypt.
Aaron and Moses’ Ancestry
(Genesis 46:9–11)
14 These were the heads of the families:
The sons of Reuben, Israel’s firstborn, were Hanoch, Pallu, Hezron, and Carmi.
These were the families descended from Reuben.
15 The sons of Simeon were Jemuel, Jamin, Ohad, Jachin, Zohar, and Shaul, the son of a Canaanite woman. These were the families descended from Simeon.
16 These are the names of the sons of Levi listed in birth order: Gershon, Kohath, and Merari. Levi lived 137 years.
17 The sons of Gershon listed by their families were Libni and Shimei.
18 The sons of Kohath were Amram, Izhar, Hebron, and Uzziel. Kohath lived 133 years.
19 The sons of Merari were Mahli and Mushi.
These were the families descended from Levi listed in birth order.
20 Amram married his father’s sister Jochebed. She gave birth to Aaron and Moses. Amram lived 137 years.
21 The sons of Izhar were Korah, Nepheg, and Zichri.
22 The sons of Uzziel were Mishael, Elzaphan, and Sithri.
23 Aaron married Elisheba, daughter of Amminadab and sister of Nahshon. She gave birth to Nadab, Abihu, Eleazar, and Ithamar.
24 The sons of Korah were Assir, Elkanah, and Abiasaph.
These were the families descended from Korah.
25 Eleazar, son of Aaron, married one of the daughters of Putiel. She gave birth to Phinehas.
These were the heads of Levite households listed by their families.
26 This was the same Aaron and Moses to whom the Lord said, “Bring the Israelites out of Egypt in organized family groups.” 27 They—this same Moses and Aaron—told Pharaoh (the king of Egypt) to let the Israelites leave Egypt.
Aaron’s Staff Becomes a Snake
28 At that time the Lord spoke to Moses in Egypt. 29 He said to Moses, “I am the Lord. Tell Pharaoh (the king of Egypt) everything I tell you.”
30 But Moses said to the Lord, “Why would Pharaoh listen to me?”