Exodus 12

NEW JERUSALEM	NEW AMERICAN BIBLE
1 Yahweh said to Moses and Aaron in Egypt,	1 The LORD said to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt,
2 'This month must be the first of al the months for you, the first month of your year.	2 "This month shall stand at the head of your calendar; you shall reckon it the first month of the year.
3 Speak to the whole community of Israel and say, "On the tenth day of this month each man must takean animal from the flock for his family: one animal for each household.	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.
4 If the household is too smal for the animal, he must join with his neighbour nearest to his house,depending on the number of persons. When you choose the animal, you wil take into account what each caneat.	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.
5 It must be an animal without blemish, a male one year old; you may choose it either from the sheep orfrom the goats.	5 The lamb must be a year-old male and without blemish. You may take it from either the sheep or the goats.
6 You must keep it til the fourteenth day of the month when the whole assembly of the community ofIsrael wil slaughter it at twilight.	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.
7 Some of the blood must then be taken and put on both door-posts and the lintel of the houses where itis eaten.	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.
8 That night, the flesh must be eaten, roasted over the fire; it must be eaten with unleavened bread andbitter herbs.	8 That same night they shall eat its roasted flesh with unleavened bread and bitter herbs.
9 Do not eat any of it raw or boiled in water, but roasted over the fire, with the head, feet and entrails.	9 It shall not be eaten raw or boiled, but roasted whole, with its head and shanks and inner organs.
10 You must not leave any of it over till the morning: whatever is left till morning you must burn.	10 None of it must be kept beyond the next morning; whatever is left over in the morning shall be burned up.
11 This is how you must eat it: with a belt round your waist, your sandals on your feet and your staff inyour hand. You must eat it hurriedly: it is a Passover in Yahweh's honour.	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.
12 That night, I shal go through Egypt and strike down all the first-born in Egypt, man and beast alike,and shal execute justice on al the gods of Egypt, I, Yahweh!	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!
13 The blood wil be a sign for you on the houses where you are. When I see the blood I shall pass overyou, and you wil escape the destructive plague when I strike Egypt.	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.
14 This day must be commemorated by you, and you must keep it as a feast in Yahweh's honour. Youmust keep it as a feast-day for al generations; this is a decree for al time.	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.
15 "For seven days you must eat unleavened bread. On the first day you must clean the leaven out ofyour houses, for anyone who eats leavened bread from the first to the seventh day must be outlawed from Israel.	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.
16 On the first day you must hold a sacred assembly, and on the seventh day a sacred assembly. Onthose days no work may be done; you wil prepare only what each requires to eat.	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.
17 You must keep the feast of Unleavened Bread because it was on that same day that I brought yourarmies out of Egypt. You wil keep that day, generation after generation; this is a decree for al time.	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.
18 In the first month, from the evening of the fourteenth day until the evening of the twenty-first day, youmust eat unleavened bread.	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.
19 For seven days there may be no leaven in your houses, since anyone, either stranger or citizen ofthe country, who eats leavened bread wil be outlawed from the community of Israel.	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.
20 You wil eat nothing with leaven in it; wherever you live, you will eat unleavened bread." '	20 Nothing leavened may you eat; wherever you dwell you may eat only unleavened bread."
21 Moses summoned al the elders of Israel and said to them, 'Go and choose a lamb or kid for yourfamilies, and kil the Passover victim.	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.
22 Then take a bunch of hyssop, dip it in the blood that is in the basin, and with the blood from the basintouch the lintel and both door-posts; then let none of you venture out of the house til morning.	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.
23 Then, when Yahweh goes through Egypt to strike it, and sees the blood on the lintel and on bothdoor-posts, he wil pass over the door and not al ow the Destroyer to enter your homes and strike.	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.
24 You wil observe this as a decree binding you and your children for al time,	24 "You shall observe this as a perpetual ordinance for yourselves and your descendants.
25 and when you have entered the country which Yahweh will give you, as he has promised, you wilobserve this ritual.	25 Thus, you must also observe this rite when you have entered the land which the LORD will give you as he promised.
26 And when your children ask you, "What does this ritual mean?"	26 When your children ask you, 'What does this rite of yours mean?'
27 you will tel them, "It is the Passover sacrifice in honour of Yahweh who passed over the houses ofthe Israelites in Egypt, and struck Egypt but spared our houses." ' And the people bowed in worship.	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,
28 The Israelites then went away and did as Yahweh had ordered Moses and Aaron.	28 and the Israelites went and did as the LORD had commanded Moses and Aaron.
29 And at midnight Yahweh struck down al the first-born in Egypt from the first-born of Pharaoh, heir tohis throne, to the first-born of the prisoner in the dungeon, and the first-born of all the livestock.	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.
30 Pharaoh and al his officials and al the Egyptians got up in the night, and there was great wailing inEgypt, for there was not a house without its dead.	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.
31 It was stil dark when Pharaoh summoned Moses and Aaron and said, 'Up, leave my subjects, youand the Israelites! Go and worship Yahweh as you have asked!	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.
32 And take your flocks and herds as you have asked, and go! And bless me too!'	32 Take your flocks, too, and your herds, as you demanded, and be gone; and you will be doing me a favor."
33 The Egyptians urged the people on and hurried them out of the country because, they said,'Otherwise we shal al be dead.'	33 The Egyptians likewise urged the people on, to hasten their departure from the land; they thought that otherwise they would all die.
34 So the people carried off their dough stil unleavened, their bowls wrapped in their cloaks, on theirshoulders.	34 The people, therefore, took their dough before it was leavened, in their kneading bowls wrapped in their cloaks on their shoulders.
35 The Israelites did as Moses had told them and asked the Egyptians for silver and golden jewel ery,and clothing.	35 The Israelites did as Moses had commanded: they asked the Egyptians for articles of silver and gold and for clothing.
36 Yahweh made the Egyptians so much impressed with the people that they gave them what theyasked. So they despoiled the Egyptians.	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.
37 The Israelites left Rameses for Succoth, about six hundred thousand on the march-men, that is, notcounting their families.	37 The Israelites set out from Rameses for Succoth, about six hundred thousand men on foot, not counting the children.
38 A mixed crowd of people went with them, and flocks and herds, quantities of livestock.	38 A crowd of mixed ancestry also went up with them, besides their livestock, very numerous flocks and herds.
39 And with the dough which they had brought from Egypt they baked unleavened cakes, because thedough had not risen, since they had been driven out of Egypt without time to linger or to prepare food forthemselves.	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.
40 The time that the Israelites spent in Egypt was four hundred and thirty years.	40 The time the Israelites had stayed in Egypt was four hundred and thirty years.
41 And on the very day the four hundred and thirty years ended, al Yahweh's armies left Egypt.	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.
42 The night when Yahweh kept vigil to bring them out of Egypt must be kept as a vigil in honour ofYahweh by al Israelites, for al generations.	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.
43 Yahweh said to Moses and Aaron, 'This is the ritual for the Passover: no alien may eat it,	43 The LORD said to Moses and Aaron, "These are the regulations for the Passover. No foreigner may partake of it.
44 but any slave bought for money may eat it, once you have circumcised him.	44 However, any slave who has been bought for money may partake of it, provided you have first circumcised him.
45 No stranger and no hired servant may eat it.	45 But no transient alien or hired servant may partake of it.
46 It must be eaten in one house alone; you wil not take any of the meat out of the house; nor may youbreak any of its bones.	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.
47 'The whole community of Israel must keep it.	47 The whole community of Israel must keep this feast.
48 Should a stranger residing with you wish to keep the Passover in honour of Yahweh, al the males ofhis household must be circumcised: he wil then be al owed to keep it and wil count as a citizen of the country.But no uncircumcised person may eat it.	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.
49 The same law will apply to the citizen and the stranger resident among you.'	49 The law shall be the same for the resident alien as for the native."
50 The Israelites all did as Yahweh had ordered Moses and Aaron,	50 All the Israelites did just as the LORD had commanded Moses and Aaron.
51 and that same day Yahweh brought the Israelites out of Egypt in their armies.	51 On that same day the LORD brought the Israelites out of Egypt company by company.