¹ 有一個利未家的人娶了一個利未女子為妻。

² 那女人懷孕，生一個兒子，見他俊美，就藏了他三個月，

³ 後來不能再藏，就取了一個蒲草箱，抹上石漆和石油，將孩子放在裡頭，把箱子擱在河邊的蘆荻中。

⁴ 孩子的姊姊遠遠站著，要知道他究竟怎麼樣。

⁵ 法老的女兒來到河邊洗澡，他的使女們在河邊行走。他看見箱子在蘆荻中，就打發一個婢女拿來。

⁶ 他打開箱子，看見那孩子。孩子哭了，他就可憐他，說：「這是希伯來人的一個孩子。」

⁷ 孩子的姊姊對法老的女兒說：「我去在希伯來婦人中叫一個奶媽來，為你奶這孩子，可以不可以？」

⁸ 法老的女兒說：「可以。」童女就去叫了孩子的母親來。

⁹ 法老的女兒對他說：「你把這孩子抱去，為我奶他，我必給你工價。」婦人就抱了孩子去奶他。

¹⁰ 孩子漸長，婦人把他帶到法老的女兒那裡，就作了他的兒子。他給孩子起名叫摩西，意思說：因我把他從水裡拉出來。

¹¹ 後來，摩西長大，他出去到他弟兄那裡，看他們的重擔，見一個埃及人打希伯來人的一個弟兄。

¹² 他左右觀看，見沒有人，就把埃及人打死了，藏在沙土裡。

¹³ 第二天他出去，見有兩個希伯來人爭鬥，就對那欺負人的說：「你為甚麼打你同族的人呢？」

¹⁴ 那人說：「誰立你作我們的首領和審判官呢？難道你要殺我，像殺那埃及人麼？」摩西便懼怕，說：「這事必是被人知道了。」

¹⁵ 法老聽見這事，就想殺摩西，但摩西躲避法老，逃往米甸地居住。

¹⁶ 一日，他在井旁坐下。米甸的祭司有七個女兒；他們來打水，打滿了槽，要飲父親的群羊。

¹⁷ 有牧羊的人來，把他們趕走了，摩西卻起來幫助他們，又飲了他們的群羊。

¹⁸ 他們來到父親流珥那裡；他說：「今日你們為何來得這麼快呢？」

¹⁹ 他們說：「有一個埃及人救我們脫離牧羊人的手，並且為我們打水飲了群羊。」

²⁰ 他對女兒們說：「那個人在那裡？你們為甚麼撇下他呢？你們去請他來吃飯。」

²¹ 摩西甘心和那人同住；那人把他的女兒西坡拉給摩西為妻。

²² 西坡拉生了一個兒子，摩西給他起名叫革舜，意思說：「因我在外邦作了寄居的。」

²³ 過了多年，埃及王死了。以色列人因做苦工，就歎息哀求，他們的哀聲達於神。

²⁴ 神聽見他們的哀聲，就記念他與亞伯拉罕、以撒、雅各所立的約。

²⁵ 神看顧以色列人，也知道他們的苦情。

¹ A man of the house of Levi went and took a daughter of Levi as his wife.

² The woman conceived, and bore a son. When she saw that he was a fine child, she hid him three months.

³ When she could no longer hide him, she took a papyrus basket for him, and coated it with tar and with pitch. She put the child in it, and laid it in the reeds by the river's bank.

⁴ His sister stood far off, to see what would be done to him.

⁵ Pharaoh's daughter came down to bathe at the river. Her maidens walked along by the riverside. She saw the basket among the reeds, and sent her handmaid to get it.

⁶ She opened it, and saw the child, and behold, the baby cried. She had compassion on him, and said, "This is one of the Hebrews' children."

⁷ Then his sister said to Pharaoh's daughter, "Should I go and call a nurse for you from the Hebrew women, that she may nurse the child for you?"

⁸ Pharaoh's daughter said to her, "Go." The maiden went and called the child's mother.

⁹ Pharaoh's daughter said to her, "Take this child away, and nurse him for me, and I will give you your wages." The woman took the child, and nursed it.

¹⁰ The child grew, and she brought him to Pharaoh's daughter, and he became her son. She named him Moses, and said, "Because I drew him out of the water."

¹¹ It happened in those days, when Moses had grown up, that he went out to his brothers, and looked at their burdens. He saw an Egyptian striking a Hebrew, one of his brothers.

¹² He looked this way and that way, and when he saw that there was no one, he killed the Egyptian, and hid him in the sand.

¹³ He went out the second day, and behold, two men of the Hebrews were fighting with each other. He said to him who did the wrong, "Why do you strike your fellow?"

¹⁴ He said, "Who made you a prince and a judge over us? Do you plan to kill me, as you killed the Egyptian?" Moses was afraid, and said, "Surely this thing is known."

¹⁵ Now when Pharaoh heard this thing, he sought to kill Moses. But Moses fled from the face of Pharaoh, and lived in the land of Midian, and he sat down by a well.

¹⁶ Now the priest of Midian had seven daughters. They came and drew water, and filled the troughs to water their father's flock.

¹⁷ The shepherds came and drove them away; but Moses stood up and helped them, and watered their flock.

¹⁸ When they came to Reuel, their father, he said, "How is it that you have returned so early today?"

¹⁹ They said, "An Egyptian delivered us out of the hand of the shepherds, and moreover he drew water for us, and watered the flock."

²⁰ He said to his daughters, "Where is he? Why is it that you have left the man? Call him, that he may eat bread."

²¹ Moses was content to dwell with the man. He gave Moses Zipporah, his daughter.

²² She bore a son, and he named him Gershom, for he said, "I have lived as a foreigner in a foreign land."

²³ It happened in the course of those many days, that the king of Egypt died, and the children of Israel sighed because of the bondage, and they cried, and their cry came up to God because of the bondage.

²⁴ God heard their groaning, and God remembered his covenant with Abraham, with Isaac, and with Jacob.

²⁵ God saw the children of Israel, and God was concerned about them.