Exodus 12

NEW AMERICAN BIBLE	CATHOLIC PUBLIC DOMAIN
1 The LORD said to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt,	1 The Lord also said to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt:
2 "This month shall stand at the head of your calendar; you shall reckon it the first month of the year.	2 “This month will be for you the beginning of the months. It will be first in the months of the year.
3 Tell the whole community of Israel: On the tenth of this month every one of your families must procure for itself a lamb, one apiece for each household.	3 Speak to the entire assembly of the sons of Israel, and say to them: On the tenth day of this month, let everyone take a lamb, by their families and houses.
4 If a family is too small for a whole lamb, it shall join the nearest household in procuring one and shall share in the lamb in proportion to the number of persons who partake of it.	4 But if the number is less than may suffice to be able to consume the lamb, he shall accept his neighbor, who has been joined with his house according to the number of souls that may suffice to be able to eat the lamb.
5 The lamb must be a year-old male and without blemish. You may take it from either the sheep or the goats.	5 And it shall be a lamb without blemish, a one year old male. According to this rite, you shall also take a young goat.
6 You shall keep it until the fourteenth day of this month, and then, with the whole assembly of Israel present, it shall be slaughtered during the evening twilight.	6 And you shall keep it until the fourteenth day of this month. And the entire multitude of the sons of Israel shall immolate it toward evening.
7 They shall take some of its blood and apply it to the two doorposts and the lintel of every house in which they partake of the lamb.	7 And they shall take from its blood, and place it on both the door posts and the upper threshold of the houses, in which they will consume it.
8 That same night they shall eat its roasted flesh with unleavened bread and bitter herbs.	8 And that night they shall eat the flesh, roasted by fire, and unleavened bread with wild lettuce.
9 It shall not be eaten raw or boiled, but roasted whole, with its head and shanks and inner organs.	9 You shall not consume anything from it raw, nor boiled in water, but only roasted by fire. You shall devour the head with its feet and entrails.
10 None of it must be kept beyond the next morning; whatever is left over in the morning shall be burned up.	10 Neither shall there remain anything from it until morning. If anything will have been left over, you shall burn it with fire.
11 "This is how you are to eat it: with your loins girt, sandals on your feet and your staff in hand, you shall eat like those who are in flight. It is the Passover of the LORD.	11 Now you shall consume it in this way: You shall gird your waist, and you shall have shoes on your feet, holding staves in your hands, and you shall consume it in haste. For it is the Passover (that is, the Crossing) of the Lord.
12 For on this same night I will go through Egypt, striking down every first--born of the land, both man and beast, and executing judgment on all the gods of Egypt-I, the LORD!	12 And I will cross through the land of Egypt that night, and I will strike down all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, from man, even to cattle. And I will bring judgments against all the gods of Egypt. I am the Lord.
13 But the blood will mark the houses where you are. Seeing the blood, I will pass over you; thus, when I strike the land of Egypt, no destructive blow will come upon you.	13 But the blood will be for you as a sign in the buildings where you will be. And I will see the blood, and I will pass over you. And the plague will not be with you to destroy, when I strike the land of Egypt.
14 "This day shall be a memorial feast for you, which all your generations shall celebrate with pilgrimage to the LORD, as a perpetual institution.	14 Then you shall have this day as a memorial, and you shall celebrate it as a solemnity to the Lord, in your generations, as an everlasting devotion.
15 For seven days you must eat unleavened bread. From the very first day you shall have your houses clear of all leaven. Whoever eats leavened bread from the first day to the seventh shall be cut off from Israel.	15 For seven days, you shall eat unleavened bread. On the first day there shall be no leaven in your houses. Whoever will consume anything leavened, from the first day, even until the seventh day, that soul shall perish from Israel.
16 On the first day you shall hold a sacred assembly, and likewise on the seventh. On these days you shall not do any sort of work, except to prepare the food that everyone needs.	16 The first day shall be holy and solemn, and the seventh day shall be venerated with the same festivity. You shall do no work in these days, except that which pertains to the eating.
17 "Keep, then, this custom of the unleavened bread. Since it was on this very day that I brought your ranks out of the land of Egypt, you must celebrate this day throughout your generations as a perpetual institution.	17 And you shall observe the feast of unleavened bread. For on this same day, I will lead your army out of the land of Egypt, and you shall keep this day, in your generations, as a perpetual ritual.
18 From the evening of the fourteenth day of the first month until the evening of the twenty-first day of this month you shall eat unleavened bread.	18 In the first month, on the fourteenth day of the month, toward evening, you shall consume the unleavened bread, until the twenty-first day of the same month, toward evening.
19 For seven days no leaven may be found in your houses. Anyone, be he a resident alien or a native, who eats leavened food shall be cut off from the community of Israel.	19 For seven days, there shall not be found leaven in your houses. Whoever will eat leaven, his soul will perish from the assembly of Israel, as much with the newcomers as with the natives of the land.
20 Nothing leavened may you eat; wherever you dwell you may eat only unleavened bread."	20 You shall not consume any leaven. In all your dwelling places, you shall eat unleavened bread.”
21 Moses called all the elders of Israel and said to them, "Go and procure lambs for your families, and slaughter them as Passover victims.	21 Then Moses called all the elders of the sons of Israel, and he said to them: “Go, taking an animal by your families, and sacrifice the Passover.
22 Then take a bunch of hyssop, and dipping it in the blood that is in the basin, sprinkle the lintel and the two doorposts with this blood. But none of you shall go outdoors until morning.	22 And dip a little bundle of hyssop in the blood which is at the entrance, and sprinkle the upper threshold with it, and both of the door posts. Let none of you go out of the door of his house until morning.
23 For the LORD will go by, striking down the Egyptians. Seeing the blood on the lintel and the two doorposts, the LORD will pass over that door and not let the destroyer come into your houses to strike you down.	23 For the Lord will cross through, striking the Egyptians. And when he will see the blood on the upper threshold, and on both the door posts, he will pass over the door of the house and not permit the Striker to enter into your houses or to do harm.
24 "You shall observe this as a perpetual ordinance for yourselves and your descendants.	24 You shall keep this word as a law for you and for your sons, forever.
25 Thus, you must also observe this rite when you have entered the land which the LORD will give you as he promised.	25 And when you have entered into the land that the Lord will give to you, just as he has promised, you shall observe these ceremonies.
26 When your children ask you, 'What does this rite of yours mean?'	26 And when your sons will say to you, ‘What is the meaning of this religious observance?’
27 you shall reply, 'This is the Passover sacrifice of the LORD, who passed over the houses of the Israelites in Egypt; when he struck down the Egyptians, he spared our houses.'" Then the people bowed down in worship,	27 You shall say to them: ‘It is the victim of the crossing of the Lord, when he passed over the houses of the sons of Israel in Egypt, striking the Egyptians, and freeing our houses.’ ” And the people, bowing down, worshipped.
28 and the Israelites went and did as the LORD had commanded Moses and Aaron.	28 And the sons of Israel, departing, did just as the Lord had instructed Moses and Aaron.
29 At midnight the LORD slew every first-born in the land of Egypt, from the first-born of Pharaoh on the throne to the first-born of the prisoner in the dungeon, as well as all the first-born of the animals.	29 Then it happened, in the middle of the night: the Lord struck down every firstborn in the land of Egypt, from the firstborn of Pharaoh, who sits on his throne, even to the firstborn of the captive woman who was in prison, and all the firstborn of the cattle.
30 Pharaoh arose in the night, he and all his servants and all the Egyptians; and there was loud wailing throughout Egypt, for there was not a house without its dead.	30 And Pharaoh rose up in the night, and all his servants, and all of Egypt. And there arose a great outcry in Egypt. For there was not a house in which no one lay dead.
31 During the night Pharaoh summoned Moses and Aaron and said, "Leave my people at once, you and the Israelites with you! Go and worship the LORD as you said.	31 And Pharaoh, calling Moses and Aaron in the night, said: “Rise up and go forth from among my people, you and the sons of Israel. Go, sacrifice to the Lord, just as you say.
32 Take your flocks, too, and your herds, as you demanded, and be gone; and you will be doing me a favor."	32 Your sheep and herds take along with you, as you requested, and as you go away, bless me.”
33 The Egyptians likewise urged the people on, to hasten their departure from the land; they thought that otherwise they would all die.	33 And the Egyptians urged the people to go away from the land quickly, saying, “We will all die.”
34 The people, therefore, took their dough before it was leavened, in their kneading bowls wrapped in their cloaks on their shoulders.	34 Therefore, the people took bread dough before it was leavened. And tying it in their cloaks, they placed it on their shoulders.
35 The Israelites did as Moses had commanded: they asked the Egyptians for articles of silver and gold and for clothing.	35 And the sons of Israel did just as Moses had instructed. And they petitioned the Egyptians for vessels of silver and of gold, and very many garments.
36 The LORD indeed had made the Egyptians so well-disposed toward the people that they let them have whatever they asked for. Thus did they despoil the Egyptians.	36 Then the Lord granted favor to the people in the sight of the Egyptians, so that they bestowed on them. And they despoiled the Egyptians.
37 The Israelites set out from Rameses for Succoth, about six hundred thousand men on foot, not counting the children.	37 And the sons of Israel set out from Rameses to Soccoth, about six hundred thousand men on foot, besides little ones.
38 A crowd of mixed ancestry also went up with them, besides their livestock, very numerous flocks and herds.	38 But also an innumerable mix of common people ascended with them, sheep and herds and animals of diverse kinds, exceedingly many.
39 Since the dough they had brought out of Egypt was not leavened, they baked it into unleavened loaves. They had been rushed out of Egypt and had no opportunity even to prepare food for the journey.	39 And they baked the bread, which a little while ago they had taken out of Egypt as dough. And they made unleavened bread baked under ashes. For it was not able to be leavened, with the Egyptians compelling them to leave and not permitting them to cause any delay. Neither did they have occasion to prepare any meat.
40 The time the Israelites had stayed in Egypt was four hundred and thirty years.	40 Now the habitation of the sons of Israel, while they remained in Egypt, was four hundred and thirty years.
41 At the end of four hundred and thirty years, all the hosts of the LORD left the land of Egypt on this very date.	41 Having been completed, on the same day all the army of the Lord departed from the land of Egypt.
42 This was a night of vigil for the LORD, as he led them out of the land of Egypt; so on this same night all the Israelites must keep a vigil for the LORD throughout their generations.	42 This night is a worthy observance of the Lord, when he led them out of the land of Egypt. This all the sons of Israel must observe in their generations.
43 The LORD said to Moses and Aaron, "These are the regulations for the Passover. No foreigner may partake of it.	43 And the Lord said to Moses and to Aaron: “This is the religious observance of the Passover. No foreigner shall eat from it.
44 However, any slave who has been bought for money may partake of it, provided you have first circumcised him.	44 But every bought servant shall be circumcised, and so he may eat from it.
45 But no transient alien or hired servant may partake of it.	45 The newcomer and the hired hand shall not eat from it.
46 It must be eaten in one and the same house; you may not take any of its flesh outside the house. You shall not break any of its bones.	46 In one house it shall be eaten; you shall not carry its flesh outside, nor shall you break its bone.
47 The whole community of Israel must keep this feast.	47 The entire assembly of the sons of Israel shall do this.
48 If any aliens living among you wish to celebrate the Passover of the LORD, all the males among them must first be circumcised, and then they may join in its observance just like the natives. But no man who is uncircumcised may partake of it.	48 And if any sojourner will be willing to cross over into your settlement, and to keep the Passover of the Lord, all his males shall first be circumcised, and then he shall celebrate the rite. And he shall be just like a native of the land. But if any man is not circumcised, he shall not eat from it.
49 The law shall be the same for the resident alien as for the native."	49 The law shall be the same for the native born and for the settler who sojourns with you.”
50 All the Israelites did just as the LORD had commanded Moses and Aaron.	50 And all the sons of Israel did just as the Lord had instructed Moses and Aaron.
51 On that same day the LORD brought the Israelites out of Egypt company by company.	51 And on the same day, the Lord led the sons of Israel out of the land of Egypt by their companies.