¹ Da Jetro, Præsten i Midjan, Moses's Svigerfader, hørte om alt, hvad Gud havde gjort for Moses og hans Folk Israel, hvorledes HE EN havde ført Israel ud af Ægypten,

² tog Jetro, Moses's Svigerfader, Zippora, Moses's Hustru, som han havde sendt hjem,

³ tillige med hendes to Sønner. Af dem hed den ene Gersom; "thi", havde han sagt, "jeg er blevet Gæst i et fremmed Land";

⁴ og den anden hed Eliezer; "thi", havde han sagt, "min Faders Gud har været min Hjælp og frelst mig fra Faraos Sværd!"

⁵ Og Jetro, Moses's Svigerfader, kom med hans Sønner og Hustru til Moses i Ørkenen, hvor han havde slået Lejr ved Guds Bjerg,

⁶ og han lod Moses melde: "Jetro, din Svigerfader, kommer til dig med din Hustru og hendes to Sønner!"

⁷ Da gik Moses sin Svigerfader i Møde, bøjede sig for ham og kyssede ham; og da de havde hilst på hinanden, gik de ind i Teltet.

⁸ Moses fortalte sin Svigerfader om alt, hvad HE EN havde gjort ved Farao og Ægypten for Israels Skyld, og om alle de Besværligheder, der havde mødt dem undervejs, og hvorledes HE EN havde frelst dem.

⁹ Da glædede Jetro sig over alt det gode, HE EN havde gjort mod Israel, idet han havde frelst dem af Ægypternes Hånd.

¹⁰ Og Jetro sagde: "Lovet være HE EN, som har frelst eder af Ægypternes og Faraos. Hånd!"

¹¹ Nu ved jeg, at HE EN er større end alle Guder, thi netop ved det, de i deres Overmod foretog sig imod dem, frelste han Folket af Ægypternes Hånd.

¹² Derpå udtog Jetro, Moses's Svigerfader, Brændofre og Slagtofre til Gud; og Aron og alle Israels Ældste kom for at holde Måltid for Guds Åsyn med Moses's Svigerfader.

¹³ Næste Morgen tog Moses Sæde for at holde et for Folket, og Folket stod omkring Moses fra Morgen til Aften.

¹⁴ Men da Moses's Svigerfader så alt det Arbejde, han havde med Folket, sagde han: "Hvad er dog det for et Arbejde, du har med Folket? Hvorfor sidder du alene til Doms, medens alt Folket står omkring dig fra Morgen til Aften?"

¹⁵ Moses svarede sin Svigerfader: "Jo, Folket kommer til mig for at rådspørge Gud;

¹⁶ når de har en etssag, kommer de til mig, og jeg dømmer Parterne imellem og kundgør dem Guds Anordninger og Love."

¹⁷ Da sagde Moses's Svigerfader til ham: "Det er ikke klogt, som du bærer dig ad med det.

¹⁸ På den Måde bliver jo både du selv og Folket der omkring dig ganske udmattet, thi det Arbejde er dig for anstrengende, du kan ikke overkomme det alene.

¹⁹ Læg dig nu på Sinde, hvad jeg siger; jeg vil give dig et åd, og Gud skal være med dig: Du skal. selv træde frem for Gud på Folkets Vegne og forelægge Gud de forefaldende Sager;

²⁰ og du skal indskærpe dem Anordningerne og Lovene og lære dem den Vej, de skal vandre, og hvad de har at gøre.

²¹ Men du skal af hele Folket udvælge dig dygtige Mænd, som frygter Gud, Mænd, som er til at lide på og hader uretfærdig Vinding, og dem skal du sætte over dem som Forstandere, nogle over tusinde, andre over hundrede, andre over halvtredsindstyve, andre over ti;

²² lad dem til Stadighed holde et for Folket. Alle vigtigere Sager skal de forebringe dig, men alle mindre Sager skal de selv afgøre. Let dig således Arbejdet og lad dem komme til at bære Byrden med dig.

²³ Dersom du handler således og Gud vil det så, kan du holde ud, og alt Folket der kan gå tilfreds hjem."

²⁴ Moses fulgte sin Svigerfaders åd og gjorde alt, hvad han foreslog.

²⁵ Og Mose's udvalgte dygtige Mænd af hele Israel og gjorde dem til Øverster over Folket, til Forstandere, nogle over tusinde, andre over hundrede, andre over halvtredsindstyve, andre over ti.

²⁶ De holdt derpå til Stadighed et for Folket; de vanskelige Sager forebragte de Moses, men alle mindre Sager afgjorde de selv.

²⁷ Derpå tog Moses Afsked med sin Svigerfader, og denne begav sig til sit Land.

¹ For Yahweh will have compassion on Jacob, and will yet choose Israel, and set them in their own land. The foreigner will join himself with them, and they will unite with the house of Jacob.

² The peoples will take them, and bring them to their place. The house of Israel will possess them in Yahweh's land for servants and for handmaids. They will take as captives those whose captives they were; and they shall rule over their oppressors.

³ It will happen in the day that Yahweh will give you rest from your sorrow, from your trouble, and from the hard service in which you were made to serve,

⁴ that you will take up this parable against the king of Babylon, and say, "How the oppressor has ceased! The golden city has ceased!"

⁵ Yahweh has broken the staff of the wicked, the scepter of the rulers,

⁶ who struck the peoples in wrath with a continual stroke, who ruled the nations in anger, with a persecution that none restrained.

⁷ The whole earth is at rest, and is quiet. They break out song.

⁸ Yes, the fir trees rejoice with you, with the cedars of Lebanon, saying, "Since you are humbled, no lumberjack has come up against us."

⁹ Sheol from beneath has moved for you to meet you at your coming. It stirs up the dead for you, even all the rulers of the earth. It has raised up from their thrones all the kings of the nations.

¹⁰ They all will answer and ask you, "Have you also become as weak as we are? Have you become like us?"

¹¹ Your pomp is brought down to Sheol, with the sound of your stringed instruments. Maggots are spread out under you, and worms cover you.

¹² How you have fallen from heaven, morning star, son of the dawn! How you are cut down to the ground, who laid the nations low!

¹³ You said in your heart, "I will ascend into heaven! I will exalt my throne above the stars of God! I will sit on the mountain of assembly, in the far north!

¹⁴ I will ascend above the heights of the clouds! I will make myself like the Most High!"

¹⁵ Yet you shall be brought down to Sheol, to the depths of the pit.

¹⁶ Those who see you will stare at you. They will ponder you, saying, "Is this the man who made the earth to tremble, who shook kingdoms;

¹⁷ who made the world like a wilderness, and overthrew its cities; who didn't release his prisoners to their home?"

¹⁸ All the kings of the nations, sleep in glory, everyone in his own house.

¹⁹ But you are cast away from your tomb like an abominable branch, clothed with the slain, who are thrust through with the sword, who go down to the stones of the pit; like a dead body trodden under foot.

²⁰ You will not join them in burial, because you have destroyed your land. You have killed your people. The seed of evildoers will not be named forever.

²¹ Prepare for slaughter of his children because of the iniquity of their fathers, that they not rise up and possess the earth, and fill the surface of the world with cities.

²² "I will rise up against them," says Yahweh of Armies, "and cut off from Babylon name and remnant, and son and son's son," says Yahweh.

²³ "I will also make it a possession for the porcupine, and pools of water. I will sweep it with the broom of destruction," says Yahweh of Armies.

²⁴ Yahweh of Armies has sworn, saying, "Surely, as I have thought, so shall it happen; and as I have purposed, so shall it stand:

²⁵ that I will break the Assyrian in my land, and tread him under foot on my mountains. Then his yoke will leave them, and his burden leave their shoulders.

²⁶ This is the plan that is determined for the whole earth. This is the hand that is stretched out over all the nations.

²⁷ For Yahweh of Armies has planned, and who can stop it? His hand is stretched out, and who can turn it back?"

²⁸ This burden was in the year that king Ahaz died.

²⁹ Don't rejoice, O Philistia, all of you, because the rod that struck you is broken; for out of the serpent's root an adder will emerge, and his fruit will be a fiery flying serpent.

³⁰ The firstborn of the poor will eat, and the needy will lie down in safety; and I will kill your root with famine, and your remnant will be killed.

³¹ Howl, gate! Cry, city! You are melted away, Philistia, all of you; for smoke comes out of the north, and there is no straggler in his ranks.

³² What will they answer the messengers of the nation? That Yahweh has founded Zion, and in her the afflicted of his people will take refuge.