Exodus 13

God claims all of Israel’s first-borns

Then the Existing One told Moses,

“Whenever an Israelite has their first child, they need to dedicate that child to me. Whenever an Israelite woman or animal gives birth for the first time, that child belongs to me.”

Moses told the people,

“Look back at this day and remember when the Existing One’s strong hand brought you out of Egypt and the house of slavery. Don’t eat anything made with yeast. You are leaving on this day in the month of Abib [March or April] and the Existing One will start taking you to the region where the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Hivites, and Jebusites live. I promised your forefathers to give you that region which gushes out honey and milk. This is the act of service you’ll need to perform every year during this month. You’ll eat yeast-free bread for seven days and on the seventh day you’ll hold a feast to the Existing One. Don’t have anything made with yeast near you, and you shouldn’t have any yeast within your borders. On this holiday tell your descendants that you celebrate it because of what the Existing One did for you when you left Egypt. This holiday will be like a mark on your hand or forehead that reminds you to talk about the Existing One’s instructions since he brought you out of Egypt with a strong hand. So keep this mandate at its appointed time every year. 

“Now when the Existing One brings you to the Canaanite’s land and gives it to you like he swore to you and your forefathers, you should pass over all of your firstborns to him. The first male born from all your women and female animals belongs to the Existing One. Every time a donkey gives birth to its first offspring, you’ll need to either buy it back with a lamb or break its neck. And every time a woman gives birth to her first child, you’ll need to buy back that child. When your children ask you why you do this, you can tell them: 

‘The Existing One’s strong hand brought us out of the slave house in Egypt. Even though Pharaoh harshly refused to release us, the Existing One killed every Egyptian person and animal that was born first. That’s why we sacrifice all the male animals that are born first to the Existing One, and that’s why we buy back all our sons who are born first.’

“It will be like a mark on your hand or forehead because the Existing One brought us out of Egypt with a strong hand.”

God led Israel through a column of cloud and of fire

After Pharaoh released them from Egypt, God avoided routing them through Philistine territory. Even though that route would have been shorter, God said that the people might regret leaving Egypt once they saw war, causing them to go back to Egypt. So God led them along the outskirts through the uninhabited regions to the Red Sea. The Israelites wore battle armor as they climbed out of Egypt, and Moses took Joseph’s bones with him since Joseph swore that God would watch over Israel and that they’d carry his bones out of Egypt with them. So the Israelites left Succoth and camped in Etham on the outskirts of the uninhabited regions.

The Existing One led them on their journey in a column of clouds during the day and in a column of fire at night so they could travel by both day and night. He always kept the column in front of the people.

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Exodus 14

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Exodus 12