| NET Bible | International Standard Version |
| 1Moses answered again, "And if they do not believe me or pay attention to me, but say, 'The LORD has not appeared to you'?" | 1Then Moses answered, "Look, they won't believe me and they won't listen to me. Instead, they'll say, 'The LORD didn't appear to you.'" |
| 2The LORD said to him, "What is that in your hand?" He said, "A staff." | 2"What's that in your hand?" the LORD asked him. Moses answered, "A staff." |
| 3The LORD said, "Throw it to the ground." So he threw it to the ground, and it became a snake, and Moses ran from it. | 3Then God said, "Throw it to the ground." He threw it to the ground and it became a snake. Moses ran away from it. |
| 4But the LORD said to Moses, "Put out your hand and grab it by the tail"--so he put out his hand and caught it, and it became a staff in his hand-- | 4Then God told Moses, "Reach out and grab its tail." So he reached out, grabbed it, and it became a staff in his hand. |
| 5"that they may believe that the LORD, the God of their fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has appeared to you." | 5God said, "I've done this so that they may believe that the LORD God of their ancestors—the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob—has appeared to you." |
| 6The LORD also said to him, "Put your hand into your robe." So he put his hand into his robe, and when he brought it out--there was his hand, leprous like snow! | 6Again the LORD told him, "Put your hand into your bosom." He put his hand into his bosom and as soon as he brought it out it was leprous, like snow. |
| 7He said, "Put your hand back into your robe." So he put his hand back into his robe, and when he brought it out from his robe--there it was, restored like the rest of his skin! | 7Then God said, "Put your hand back into your bosom." He returned it to his bosom and as soon as he brought it out, it was restored like the rest of his skin. |
| 8"If they do not believe you or pay attention to the former sign, then they may believe the latter sign. | 8"Then if they don't believe you and respond to the first sign, they may respond to the second sign. |
| 9And if they do not believe even these two signs or listen to you, then take some water from the Nile and pour it out on the dry ground. The water you take out of the Nile will become blood on the dry ground." | 9But if they don't believe even these two signs, and won't listen to you, then take some water out of the Nile River and pour it on the dry ground. The water you took from the Nile River will turn into blood on the dry ground." |
| 10Then Moses said to the LORD, "O my Lord, I am not an eloquent man, neither in the past nor since you have spoken to your servant, for I am slow of speech and slow of tongue." | 10Then Moses told the LORD, "Please, LORD, I'm not eloquent. I never was in the past nor am I now since you spoke to your servant. In fact, I talk too slowly and I have a speech impediment." |
| 11The LORD said to him, "Who gave a mouth to man, or who makes a person mute or deaf or seeing or blind? Is it not I, the LORD? | 11Then God asked him, "Who gives a person a mouth? Who makes him unable to speak, or deaf, or able to see, or blind, or lame? Is it not I, the LORD? |
| 12So now go, and I will be with your mouth and will teach you what you must say." | 12Now, go! I myself will help you with your speech, and I'll teach you what you are to say." |
| 13But Moses said, "O my Lord, please send anyone else whom you wish to send!" | 13Moses said, "Please, LORD, send somebody else." |
| 14Then the LORD became angry with Moses, and he said, "What about your brother Aaron the Levite? I know that he can speak very well. Moreover, he is coming to meet you, and when he sees you he will be glad in his heart. | 14Then the LORD was angry with Moses and said, "There is your brother Aaron, a descendant of Levi, isn't there? I know that he certainly is eloquent. Right now he's coming to meet you and he will be pleased to see you. |
| 15"So you are to speak to him and put the words in his mouth. And as for me, I will be with your mouth and with his mouth, and I will teach you both what you must do. | 15You're to speak to him and tell him what to say. I'll help both you and him with your speech, and I'll teach both of you what you are to do. |
| 16He will speak for you to the people, and it will be as if he were your mouth and as if you were his God. | 16He is to speak to the people for you as your spokesman and you are to act in the role of God for him. |
| 17You will also take in your hand this staff, with which you will do the signs." | 17Now pick up that staff with your hand. You'll use it to perform the signs." |
| 18So Moses went back to his father-in-law Jethro and said to him, "Let me go, so that I may return to my relatives in Egypt and see if they are still alive." Jethro said to Moses, "Go in peace." | 18Moses left and returned to his father-in-law Jethro. Moses told him, "Please let me go and return to my own people in Egypt so I can see whether they're still alive." Jethro told Moses, "Go in peace." |
| 19The LORD said to Moses in Midian, "Go back to Egypt, because all the men who were seeking your life are dead." | 19The LORD told Moses in Midian, "Go back to Egypt, because all the men who wanted to kill you are dead." |
| 20Then Moses took his wife and sons and put them on a donkey and headed back to the land of Egypt, and Moses took the staff of God in his hand. | 20So Moses took his wife and son, put them on donkeys, and headed back to the land of Egypt. Moses took the staff of God in his hand. |
| 21The LORD said to Moses, "When you go back to Egypt, see that you do before Pharaoh all the wonders I have put under your control. But I will harden his heart and he will not let the people go. | 21Then the LORD told Moses, "When you set out to return to Egypt, keep in mind all the wonders that I've put in your power, so that you may do them before Pharaoh. But I'll harden his heart so that he won't let the people go. |
| 22You must say to Pharaoh, 'Thus says the LORD, "Israel is my son, my firstborn, | 22You are to say to Pharaoh, 'This is what the LORD says: "Israel is my firstborn son. |
| 23and I said to you, 'Let my son go that he may serve me,' but since you have refused to let him go, I will surely kill your son, your firstborn!"'" | 23And I say to you, 'Let my son go so he may serve me. If you refuse to let him go, then I will kill your firstborn son.'"'" |
| 24Now on the way, at a place where they stopped for the night, the LORD met Moses and sought to kill him. | 24But later on, at the lodging place along the way, the LORD met Moses and was about to kill him. |
| 25But Zipporah took a flint knife, cut off the foreskin of her son and touched it to Moses' feet, and said, "Surely you are a bridegroom of blood to me." | 25Zipporah took a flint knife, cut off her son's foreskin, and touched Moses' feet with it, saying while doing so, "…because you are a bridegroom of blood to me." |
| 26So the LORD let him alone. (At that time she said, "A bridegroom of blood," referring to the circumcision.) | 26Then the LORD withdrew from him, and she said, "…a bridegroom of blood because of circumcision." |
| 27The LORD said to Aaron, "Go to the wilderness to meet Moses. So he went and met him at the mountain of God and greeted him with a kiss. | 27The LORD told Aaron, "Go meet Moses in the desert." So Aaron went, found him at the mountain of God, and embraced him. |
| 28Moses told Aaron all the words of the LORD who had sent him and all the signs that he had commanded him. | 28Moses told Aaron all of the LORD's messages that he had sent with Moses, and all of the signs that he commanded him to do. |
| 29Then Moses and Aaron went and brought together all the Israelite elders. | 29Later, Moses and Aaron brought together all the elders of the Israelis. |
| 30Aaron spoke all the words that the LORD had spoken to Moses and did the signs in the sight of the people, | 30Aaron spoke everything that the LORD had spoken to Moses, and Moses performed the miracles before the very eyes of the people. |
| 31and the people believed. When they heard that the LORD had attended to the Israelites and that he had seen their affliction, they bowed down close to the ground. | 31The people believed and understood that the LORD had paid attention to the Israelis and had seen their affliction. They bowed their heads and prostrated themselves in worship. |
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