Side by side
Exodus 1
Our retelling next to the Bible text it comes from. Each row lines up one scene with the verses it retells.
Between scenesVerses 1 to 7
This part isn't retold as its own scene.
1These are the names of the sons of Israel who went to Egypt with Jacob, each with his family: 2Reuben, Simeon, Levi, and Judah; 3Issachar, Zebulun, and Benjamin; 4Dan and Naphtali; Gad and Asher. 5The descendants of Jacob numbered seventy in all, including Joseph, who was already in Egypt. 6Now Joseph and all his brothers and all that generation died, 7but the Israelites were fruitful and increased rapidly; they multiplied and became exceedingly numerous, so that the land was filled with them.
Scene 1: A New KingVerses 8 to 14
Mud bricks dried in the hot sun. Israelite slaves carried them to build cities for the king.
It had not always been this way. A new king had come to power in Egypt. He "did not know Joseph" (1:8). One likely meaning: he did not remember or care what Joseph had done for Egypt.
The king looked at the Israelites and felt afraid. There were so many of them. He told his people that if a war came, the Israelites might join the enemy.
So the Egyptians made the Israelites slaves. They put bosses over them called taskmasters. The slaves built two store cities for Pharaoh, named Pithom and Rameses.
But the harder the Egyptians pushed them, the more the Israelites grew. Now the Egyptians were afraid too. They worked the slaves without mercy. They "made their lives bitter with hard labor in brick and mortar" (1:14).
8Then a new king, who did not know Joseph, came to power in Egypt. 9“Look,” he said to his people, “the Israelites have become too numerous and too powerful for us. 10Come, let us deal shrewdly with them, or they will increase even more; and if a war breaks out, they may join our enemies, fight against us, and leave the country.” 11So the Egyptians appointed taskmasters over the Israelites to oppress them with forced labor. As a result, they built Pithom and Rameses as store cities for Pharaoh. 12But the more they were oppressed, the more they multiplied and flourished; so the Egyptians came to dread the Israelites. 13They worked the Israelites ruthlessly 14and made their lives bitter with hard labor in brick and mortar, and with all kinds of work in the fields. Every service they imposed was harsh.
Scene 2: Two Brave MidwivesVerses 15 to 21
Then the king called two Hebrew midwives. Their names were Shiphrah and Puah.
The king gave them a terrible order. When a Hebrew baby was born, they had to watch. If it was a boy, they had to kill him. If it was a girl, she could live.
Shiphrah and Puah did not obey. "The midwives, however, feared God and did not do as the king of Egypt had instructed; they let the boys live" (1:17). To fear God means to honor God above everyone, even a king.
The king called them back. He asked why they had let the boys live.
The midwives told him that Hebrew women were not like Egyptian women. They said Hebrew women were strong. Their babies were born before a midwife could get there.
"So God was good to the midwives" (1:20). The people kept growing. Because the midwives feared God, God gave Shiphrah and Puah families of their own.
The Bible gives the midwives' names. It does not give the king's name.
15Then the king of Egypt said to the Hebrew midwives, whose names were Shiphrah and Puah, 16“When you help the Hebrew women give birth, observe them on the birthstools. If the child is a son, kill him; but if it is a daughter, let her live.” 17The midwives, however, feared God and did not do as the king of Egypt had instructed; they let the boys live. 18So the king of Egypt summoned the midwives and asked them, “Why have you done this? Why have you let the boys live?” 19The midwives answered Pharaoh, “The Hebrew women are not like the Egyptian women, for they are vigorous and give birth before a midwife arrives.” 20So God was good to the midwives, and the people multiplied and became even more numerous. 21And because the midwives feared God, He gave them families of their own.
Scene 3: The OrderVerses 22 to the end
The king's plan with the midwives had not worked. So he gave a new order, this time to all his people. "Every son born to the Hebrews you must throw into the Nile, but every daughter you may allow to live" (1:22).
The Nile is the great river that runs through Egypt.
Around this time, a man and a woman from the family of Levi got married. The woman had a baby boy.
She saw that he was a beautiful child. So she hid him. For three months, she kept him a secret.
The Bible doesn't say how she hid him, or why she could not hide him longer. One likely reason: babies cry, and babies grow.
22Then Pharaoh commanded all his people: “Every son born to the Hebrews you must throw into the Nile, but every daughter you may allow to live.”
Your pair of translations is remembered on this device for other chapters.