Acts 15:13-34

Acts 15

¹³ After they finished speaking, James responded, “Gentlemen, brothers, listen to me. ¹⁴ Simon has reported how God for the first time has visited the Gentiles, to take from them a people for his name. ¹⁵ The words of the prophets agree with this, as it is written:

¹⁸ “Long ago he made these things known. ¹⁹ So it is my judgment that we should not cause extra difficulty for those among the Gentiles who are turning to God. ²⁰ Instead we should write a letter telling them to abstain from things polluted by idols, from sexual immorality, from what is strangled, and from blood. ²¹ For from ancient times Moses has had those who proclaim him in every city, since he is being read in the synagogues every Sabbath.”

²² Then the apostles and the elders, together with the whole church, thought it would be best to choose men from their group to send to Antioch along with Paul and Barnabas, namely, Judas, called Barsabbas, and Silas, who were leading men among the brothers.

²³ They wrote this letter for them to deliver:

To the Gentile brothers in Antioch, Syria, and Cilicia:

Greetings.

²⁴ We heard that there were some who came from us without our authorization and caused you distress by unsettling your minds with what they said. ^{[2] 25} So it seemed best to us, since we are of one mind, to choose some men to send to you, along with our dear friends Barnabas and Paul, ²⁶ men who have risked their lives for the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. ²⁷ Therefore we have sent Judas and Silas, who will report these same things by word of mouth. ²⁸ For it seemed best to the Holy Spirit and to us to put no greater burden on you than these essentials: ²⁹ You are to abstain from food sacrificed to idols, from blood, from what has been strangled, and from sexual immorality. If you carefully avoid these things, you will do well.

Farewell.

³⁰ After they were sent on their way, they went down to Antioch. They gathered the congregation together and delivered the letter. ³¹ The people read it and rejoiced over its encouraging message. ³² Judas and Silas, who were prophets themselves, also said much that encouraged and strengthened the brothers. ³³ After they had spent some time there, they were sent off by the brothers with the greeting of peace to those who had sent them. ^[3]

Acts 15:1-12

Acts 15

The Council at Jerusalem

¹ Some men came down from Judea and began to teach the brothers: “Unless you are circumcised according to the law handed down by Moses, you cannot be saved.” ² Because this brought about a serious argument and debate between Paul and Barnabas and these men, they appointed Paul and Barnabas and some other men from the church to go up to Jerusalem, to see the apostles and the elders concerning this controversy.

³ After they were sent on their way by the church, and as they passed through both Phoenicia and Samaria, they described in detail the conversion of the Gentiles and brought great joy to all the brothers. ⁴ When they arrived at Jerusalem, they were welcomed by the church, the apostles, and the elders, and they reported everything God had done through them.

⁵ But some of the believers from the party of the Pharisees stood up and said, “It is necessary to circumcise the Gentiles and to command them to keep the Law of Moses.”

⁶ The apostles and the elders gathered together to look into this matter. ⁷ After there had been much discussion, Peter stood up and said to them, “Gentlemen, brothers, you know that some time ago God made a choice among you, that through my mouth the Gentiles would hear the message of the gospel and believe. ⁸ God, who knows the heart, testified on their behalf by giving them the Holy Spirit, exactly as he gave him to us. ⁹ He also showed that there is no distinction between us and them, cleansing their hearts by faith. ¹⁰ Now then, why are you testing God by putting on the necks of the disciples a yoke, which neither our fathers nor we have been able to bear? ¹¹ On the contrary! We believe that we are saved in the same way they are—through the grace of our Lord Jesus.”

¹² The whole assembly fell silent and listened to Barnabas and Paul, who reported all the signs and wonders God had done among the Gentiles through them.

Acts 14:13-28

Acts 14

¹³ The priest of Zeus, whose temple was just outside the city, brought bulls and garlands to the city gates, because he wanted to offer sacrifices along with the crowds.

¹⁴ But when the apostles Paul and Barnabas heard about this, they tore their clothes and rushed into the crowd, shouting, ¹⁵ “Men, why are you doing these things? We too are men with the same nature as you. We are preaching the good news to you so that you turn from these worthless things to the living God, who made the heaven, the earth, the sea, and everything in them. ¹⁶ In past generations he allowed all the nations to go their own ways. ¹⁷ Yet he did not leave himself without testimony of the good he does. He gives you rain from heaven and crops in their seasons. He fills you with food and fills your hearts with gladness.” ¹⁸ Even though they said these things, they had a hard time stopping the crowds from sacrificing to them.

¹⁹ Then some Jews came from Antioch and Iconium and persuaded the crowds to stone Paul. When they thought he was dead, they dragged him out of the city. ²⁰ But after the disciples had gathered around him, he stood up and went into the city. The next day, he left with Barnabas for Derbe.

The Return to Antioch

²¹ After they preached the good news in that city and had gathered many disciples, they returned to Lystra, Iconium, and Antioch, ²² strengthening the souls of the disciples and encouraging them to continue in the faith. They told them, “We must go through many troubles on our way to the kingdom of God.” ²³ They had elders elected ^[1] for them in every church, and with prayer and fasting they entrusted them to the Lord, in whom they believed. ²⁴ When they had passed through Pisidia, they came to Pamphylia. ²⁵ When they had spoken the Word in Perga, they went down to Attalia.

²⁶ From there they sailed back to Antioch, where they had been entrusted to the grace of God for the work they had just completed. ²⁷ When they arrived and called the church together, they reported everything God had done with them and how he had opened the door of faith for the Gentiles. ²⁸ Then they stayed there a long time with the disciples.

Acts 14:1-12

Acts 14

In Iconium

¹ The same thing happened in Iconium. Paul and Barnabas entered the Jewish synagogue and spoke in such a way that a great number of both Jews and Greeks believed. ² But the Jews who refused to believe stirred up the Gentiles and poisoned their minds against the brothers.

³ Paul and Barnabas stayed there a long time, speaking boldly for the Lord, who confirmed the message of his grace by granting them the ability to perform miraculous signs and wonders. ⁴ But the people of the city were divided. Some sided with the Jews and some with the apostles.

⁵ When there was a plot by both Gentiles and Jews, together with their rulers, to mistreat and stone them, ⁶ they found out about it and fled to the Lycaonian cities of Lystra and Derbe and to the surrounding countryside. ⁷ There they kept on preaching the good news.

In Lystra and Derbe

⁸ In Lystra there was a man who was sitting down because he had no strength in his feet. He had never walked because he was lame from birth. ⁹ When he was listening to Paul as he was speaking, Paul looked at him closely and saw that he had faith to be healed. ¹⁰ Paul said in a loud voice, “Stand up on your feet!” And the man jumped up and began to walk.

¹¹ When the crowds saw what Paul had done, they raised their voices, saying in the Lycaonian language, “The gods have come down to us in human form.” ¹² Barnabas they called Zeus, and Paul they called Hermes, because he was the main speaker.

Acts 13:44-52

Acts 13

⁴⁴ On the next Sabbath almost the whole city gathered to hear the word of God. ^{[1] 45} But when the Jews saw the crowds, they were filled with envy and began to contradict what Paul was saying by slandering him. ^[2]

⁴⁶ Then Paul and Barnabas responded fearlessly, “It was necessary that God’s word be spoken to you first. But since you reject it and consider yourselves unworthy of eternal life, look: We are now turning to the Gentiles! ⁴⁷ For this is what the Lord has instructed us:

⁴⁸ When the Gentiles heard this, they were rejoicing and praising the word of the Lord. All who had been appointed for eternal life believed.

⁴⁹ And the word of the Lord was being carried through the whole region. ⁵⁰ But the Jews incited the God-fearing women of high standing and the leading men of the city. They stirred up persecution against Paul and Barnabas and expelled them from their district. ⁵¹ So they shook the dust off their feet against them and went to Iconium. ⁵² The disciples continued to be filled with joy and the Holy Spirit.

Acts 13:13-43

Acts 13

At Pisidian Antioch

¹³ Paul and his companions set sail from Paphos and came to Perga in Pamphylia. John, however, left them and returned to Jerusalem. ¹⁴ But they went on from Perga and arrived at Antioch in Pisidia. They went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day and sat down. ¹⁵ After the reading of the Law and the Prophets, the leaders of the synagogue sent a message to them, saying, “Gentlemen, ^[1] brothers, if you have a word of encouragement for the people, say it.”

¹⁶ Then Paul stood up, motioned with his hand, and said, “Men of Israel and you who fear God, listen. ¹⁷ The God of the people of Israel chose our fathers and made them a great people during their stay in the land of Egypt, and with his uplifted arm, he led them out of it. ¹⁸ He put up with them ^[2] for about forty years in the wilderness. ¹⁹ Then he destroyed seven nations in the land of Canaan, and he gave their land to his people as an inheritance. ²⁰ All this took about 450 years. After that, he gave them judges ^[3] until the time of Samuel the prophet.

²¹ “Then the people asked for a king, and God gave them Saul, son of Kish, a man of the tribe of Benjamin, for forty years. ²² After removing him, he raised up David as their king. God testified about him: ‘I have found David the son of Jesse to be a man after my own heart. He will do all that I want him to do.’ ^[4]

²³ “From this man’s descendants ^[5] God brought the Savior Jesus to Israel, in keeping with his promise. ²⁴ Before he appeared publicly, John had preached a baptism of repentance to all the people of Israel. ²⁵ As John was finishing his course, he said, ‘Who do you suppose I am? I am not that One. But look! That One is coming after me, and I am not worthy to untie the sandals on his feet.’ ^[6]

²⁶ “Gentlemen, brothers, sons of Abraham’s family, and those among you who fear God, this message of salvation has been sent to you. ^{[7] 27} The people of Jerusalem and their rulers did not recognize him, and by condemning him they fulfilled the statements of the prophets that are read every Sabbath. ²⁸ Though they found no grounds for a death sentence, they asked Pilate to have him executed. ²⁹ When they carried out everything that was written about him, they took him down from the cross ^[8] and laid him in a tomb. ³⁰ But God raised him from the dead, ³¹ and for many days he was seen by those who had come up with him from Galilee to Jerusalem. These same individuals are now his witnesses to the people.

³² “We are preaching to you the good news about the promise that was made to our fathers. ³³ God has fulfilled this promise for us, their children, by raising up Jesus. As it is also written in the second Psalm:

³⁴ “That God would raise him from the dead never again to be subject to decay, God said in this way:

³⁵ “Therefore he also says in another place:

³⁶ “For David, after he had served God’s purpose in his own generation, fell asleep, was laid to rest with his fathers, and saw decay. ³⁷ But the One God raised did not see decay.

³⁸ “So, gentlemen, brothers, let it be known to you that through this Jesus forgiveness of sins is being proclaimed to you, also forgiveness from everything from which you could not be justified through the law of Moses. ³⁹ In this Jesus, everyone who believes is justified. ⁴⁰ So watch out that what is said in the prophets does not happen to you:

⁴² As Paul and Barnabas were leaving, the people kept begging them to speak again on this same subject on the next Sabbath. ⁴³ When the meeting of the synagogue had been dismissed, many of the Jews and devout converts to Judaism followed Paul and Barnabas, who talked with them and urged them to continue in the grace of God.

Exodus 18

Jethro Visits Moses

¹ Now Moses’ father-in-law Jethro, priest of Midian, heard about everything that God had done for Moses and for his people Israel and how the Lord had brought Israel out of Egypt.

² After Moses had sent his wife Zipporah away, his father-in-law Jethro had taken her in, ³ along with her two sons. The name of one son was Gershom, ^[1] for Moses had said, “I have become an alien in a foreign land.” ⁴ The name of the other was Eliezer, ^[2] for he had said, “My father’s God was my helper, and he has delivered me from Pharaoh’s sword.”

⁵ Moses’ father-in-law Jethro, Moses’ sons, and his wife were coming to Moses in the wilderness where he had camped at the mountain of God. ⁶ He sent word to Moses, “I, your father-in-law Jethro, your wife, and her two sons are coming to you.”

⁷ Moses went out to meet his father-in-law, and he bowed down and kissed him. They asked each other how they had been, ^[3] and they went into the tent. ⁸ Moses told his father-in-law about everything that the Lord had done to Pharaoh and the Egyptians for Israel’s sake, about all the hardships that had confronted them along the way, and how the Lord had delivered them. ⁹ Jethro rejoiced over all the good things that the Lord had done for Israel when he delivered them from the hand of the Egyptians.

¹⁰ Jethro said, “Blessed be the Lord, who has delivered you from the hand of the Egyptians and the hand of Pharaoh. Blessed be the Lord, who has delivered the people out of the hand of the Egyptians. ¹¹ Now I know that the Lord is greater than all gods because he did this to those who acted arrogantly against the Israelites.”

¹² Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law, brought a burnt offering and sacrifices to God. Aaron and all the elders of Israel came to eat a meal with Moses’ father-in-law in the presence of God.

¹³ The next day Moses sat down to serve as a judge for the people, and the people stood around Moses from morning till evening. ¹⁴ When Moses’ father-in-law saw everything that he did for the people, he said, “What is this that you are doing for the people? Why do you alone sit as judge with all the people standing around you from morning till evening?”

¹⁵ Moses said to his father-in-law, “Because the people come to me to inquire of God. ¹⁶ Whenever there is a dispute between them, they come to me, and I judge between the two sides, and I reveal the regulations of God and his laws.”

¹⁷ Moses’ father-in-law said to him, “What you are doing is not good. ¹⁸ You will certainly wear out both yourself and these people who are with you, for the work is too much for you. You are not able to handle this alone. ¹⁹ Listen to me now. I will give you advice, and may God be with you. Represent the people before God, and bring their disputes to God. ²⁰ Instruct them about the regulations and laws, and show them the way they are to live and the things that they are to do. ²¹ But you should select capable men from among all the people, God-fearing, trustworthy men, who hate dishonest gain. Then place them over the people as officials over groups of a thousand, a hundred, fifty, or ten. ²² Have them judge all the disputes of the people at the first level. They can refer any difficult case to you, but every easy case they can judge themselves. Make your load lighter; they can carry it with you. ²³ If you will do this, and God so commands you, then you will be able to endure, and all these people will also return home satisfied.”

²⁴ Moses listened to his father-in-law and did everything that he had said. ²⁵ Moses chose capable men from all of Israel and made them leaders over the people: officials over thousands, hundreds, fifties, and tens. ²⁶ They judged all the cases of the people initially. They brought the difficult cases to Moses, but every easy case they judged themselves. ²⁷ Then Moses sent his father-in-law on his way, and he returned to his own land.

Exodus 17

Water From the Rock

¹ The entire Israelite community set out on their journey from the Wilderness of Sin ^[1] as the Lord had commanded. They camped at Rephidim, but there was no water for the people to drink. ² So the people quarreled with Moses and said, “Give us water to drink.”

Moses said to them, “Why are you quarreling with me? Why are you testing the Lord?”

³ But the people were thirsty for water there, so they grumbled against Moses. They said, “Why did you ever bring us up out of Egypt to let us, our children, and our livestock die of thirst?”

⁴ Moses cried out to the Lord, “What shall I do with these people? They are almost ready to stone me!”

⁵ The Lord said to Moses, “Go in front of the people, and take the elders of Israel with you. Also take in your hand the staff with which you struck the Nile, and go. ⁶ Watch me. I will stand there in front of you on the rock in Horeb. You are to strike the rock. Water will come out of it, and the people will drink.” Moses did that in the sight of the elders of Israel. ⁷ He named the place Massah ^[2] and Meribah, ^[3] because the Israelites quarreled, and because they tested the Lord by saying, “Is the Lord among us or not?”

Battle With the Amalekites

⁸ Then the Amalekites came and fought against the Israelites at Rephidim. ⁹ Moses said to Joshua, “Select some men for us, and go out and fight against the Amalekites. Tomorrow I will stand on the hilltop, and God’s staff will be in my hand.” ¹⁰ So Joshua did just as Moses told him.

While Joshua was fighting against the Amalekites, Moses, Aaron, and Hur went up to the hilltop. ¹¹ Whenever Moses held up his hand, the Israelites would start winning, but whenever he lowered his hand, ^[4] the Amalekites would start winning. ¹² When Moses’ arms became tired, they took a stone and placed it under him, and he sat on it. Aaron and Hur held up his hands—one on one side, and one on the other side. In this way his hands were steady until sunset. ¹³ So Joshua defeated the Amalekite army with the sword.

¹⁴ The Lord then said to Moses, “Write this on a scroll as a memorial, and make sure that Joshua hears it, because I will completely erase the memory of the Amalekites from under heaven.” ¹⁵ Moses built an altar and named it “The Lord Is My Banner,” ¹⁶ because he had said, “Since a hand was raised against the throne of the Lord, ^[5] the Lord will be at war with the Amalekites from generation to generation.”

Exodus 15:22 – 16:36

Exodus 15

The Waters of Marah and Elim

²² Then Moses led Israel on from the Red Sea, and they went out to the Wilderness of Shur. They traveled for three days in the wilderness but found no water. ²³ When they came to Marah, they were not able to drink the waters of Marah, because they were bitter. That is why they named the place Marah. ^{[1] 24} The people grumbled against Moses, and they said, “What will we drink?” ²⁵ Then Moses cried out to the Lord, and the Lord showed him some wood. Moses threw it into the water, and the water became fit to drink.

There the Lord made a decree and ruling for them, and there he tested them. ²⁶ So he said, “If only you would listen to the voice of the Lord your God, and do what is right in his eyes, and pay attention to his commandments, and keep all his regulations, I would not place on you any of the diseases that I placed on the Egyptians, for I am the Lord, who heals you.”

²⁷ Then they came to Elim where there were twelve springs of water and seventy palm trees, and they camped there by the waters.

The Lord Provides Manna and Quail

Exodus 16

¹ On the fifteenth day of the second month after they had left the land of Egypt, the entire Israelite community set out from Elim and came to the Wilderness of Sin, ^[2] which is between Elim and Sinai. ² The entire Israelite community grumbled against Moses and Aaron in the wilderness. ³ The Israelites said to them, “If only we had died by the Lord’s hand in the land of Egypt, when we sat around pots of meat and ate as much food as we wanted, but now you have brought us out into this wilderness to have this whole community die of hunger.”

⁴ Then the Lord said to Moses, “Watch what I will do. I will rain down bread from heaven for you, and the people will go out each day and gather enough for that day. In this way I will test whether they will follow my instructions or not. ⁵ On the sixth day they will prepare what they bring in, and it will be twice as much as they gather on the other days.”

⁶ So Moses and Aaron said to all the Israelites, “At evening you will know that it was the Lord who brought you out of the land of Egypt, ⁷ and in the morning you will see the Glory of the Lord, because he has heard your constant grumbling against the Lord. Who are we that you should grumble against us?”

⁸ Moses said, “Now the Lord will give you meat to eat in the evening and as much bread as you want in the morning, because the Lord has heard your grumbling against him. Who are we? Your grumbling is not against us but against the Lord.”

⁹ Then Moses said to Aaron, “Tell the entire Israelite community, ‘Come before the Lord, because he has heard your grumbling.’” ¹⁰ As Aaron spoke to the entire Israelite community, they turned toward the wilderness, and suddenly the Glory of the Lord appeared in the cloud.

¹¹ The Lord spoke to Moses: ¹² “I have heard the grumbling of the Israelites. Say to them, ‘At evening you will eat meat, and in the morning you will eat bread until you are full. Then you will know that I am the Lord your God.’”

¹³ So in the evening quail came and covered the camp, and in the morning a layer of dew surrounded the camp. ¹⁴ When the layer of dew was gone, there were thin flakes on the surface of the wilderness, thin as frost on the ground. ¹⁵ When the Israelites saw it, they said to one another, “What is it?” ^[3] because they did not know what it was.

Moses said to them, “This is the bread which the Lord has given to you as food to eat. ¹⁶ This is what the Lord has commanded: All of them are to gather as much of it as they need to eat. You are to take an omer ^[4] per person based on the number of people each of you has in your tents.”

¹⁷ The Israelites did this, and some gathered more, some less. ¹⁸ When they measured it with an omer, the one who gathered more did not have too much, and the one who gathered less did not have too little. All of them gathered as much as they needed to eat. ¹⁹ Moses said to them, “No one is to leave any of it until morning.” ²⁰ However, they did not listen to Moses. Some of them left part of it until morning, and it became full of worms and stank. So Moses was angry with them.

²¹ They gathered it each morning. All of them gathered as much as they needed to eat. When the sun grew hot, it melted away. ²² On the sixth day they gathered twice as much food, two omers for each person, and all the leaders of the community came and reported to Moses. ²³ He said to them, “This is what the Lord has said: Tomorrow is a complete rest, a holy sabbath ^[5] to the Lord. Bake what you want to bake, and boil what you want to boil, but set aside for yourselves all the rest of it to be kept until morning.”

²⁴ So they set it aside until morning as Moses commanded, and it did not stink, and there were no worms in it. ²⁵ Moses said, “Today eat whatever is left over, for today is a sabbath to the Lord. Today you will not find any around the camp. ^{[6] 26} Six days you will gather it, but on the seventh day, the Sabbath, there will not be any.”

²⁷ On the seventh day some of the people went out to gather it, but they did not find any. ²⁸ The Lord said to Moses, “How long will you people refuse to keep my commandments and my instructions? ²⁹ Look, the Lord has given you the Sabbath. Therefore on the sixth day he will give you two days’ worth of bread. All of you are to stay where you are. None of you are to leave your places on the seventh day.” ³⁰ So the people rested on the seventh day.

³¹ The house of Israel called it manna. ^[7] It looked like white coriander seed, and it tasted like wafers made with honey. ³² Moses said, “This is what the Lord has commanded: A full omer ^[8] of it is to be kept throughout your generations so that they may see the bread which I fed you in the wilderness when I brought you out of the land of Egypt.”

³³ Moses said to Aaron, “Take a container, and put a full omer of manna in it. Place it before the Lord, to be kept throughout your generations.” ³⁴ To obey the Lord’s command to Moses, Aaron placed an omer before the Testimony, ^[9] to be preserved. ³⁵ The Israelites ate manna for forty years, until they came to a land that was inhabited. They ate manna until they came to the border of the land of Canaan. ³⁶ (An omer, by the way, is one-tenth of an ephah.)

Exodus 14:1 – 15:21

Crossing the Red Sea

Exodus 14

¹ Then the Lord spoke to Moses: ² “Tell the Israelites to turn back and camp in front of Pi Hahiroth, between Migdol and the sea. They are to camp by the sea, facing Baal Zephon. ³ Then Pharaoh will say about the Israelites, ‘They are wandering around in the land. The wilderness has shut them in.’ ⁴ I will harden Pharaoh’s heart so that he will pursue them, and I will gain glory through Pharaoh and his entire army. The Egyptians will know that I am the Lord.” So that is what the Israelites did.

⁵ When the king of Egypt was told that the people had fled, Pharaoh and his officials had a change of heart concerning the people. They said, “What have we done? We have let Israel go! They will not serve us anymore!” ⁶ So Pharaoh prepared his chariot and took his troops with him. ⁷ He also took six hundred of the best chariots and all the other chariots of Egypt with officers over all of them. ⁸ The Lord hardened the heart of Pharaoh, king of Egypt, so that he pursued the Israelites. The Israelites were going out defiantly. ^{[1] 9} The Egyptians pursued them. All the horses and chariots of Pharaoh, his charioteers, ^[2] and his army caught up with them where they were camping by the sea beside Pi Hahiroth, which faces Baal Zephon.

¹⁰ As Pharaoh approached, the Israelites looked up, and there were the Egyptians marching after them. The Israelites were terrified and cried out to the Lord. ¹¹ They said to Moses, “Was it because there were no graves in Egypt that you took us to die in the wilderness? What have you done to us by bringing us out of Egypt? ¹² Wasn’t this what we said to you in Egypt, ‘Leave us alone. Let us serve the Egyptians’? For it would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the wilderness.”

¹³ Moses said to the people, “Do not be afraid. Stand firm, and see the salvation from the Lord, which he will perform for you today. For the Egyptians you see today, you will never see again. ¹⁴ The Lord will fight for you. You must wait quietly.”

¹⁵ The Lord said to Moses, “Why are you crying out to me? Tell the Israelites to set out. ¹⁶ As for you, lift up your staff, stretch out your hand over the sea, and divide the sea so that the Israelites can go through the middle of the sea on dry ground. ¹⁷ I myself will harden the hearts of the Egyptians so that they will go into the sea after them, and I will gain glory through Pharaoh and his entire army, through his chariots and his charioteers. ¹⁸ The Egyptians will know that I am the Lord, when I have gained glory through Pharaoh, his chariots, and his charioteers.”

¹⁹ Then the Angel of God, who was going in front of the Israelite forces, moved and went behind them. The pillar of cloud moved from in front of them and stood behind them. ²⁰ It went between the Egyptian forces and the Israelite forces. The cloud was dark on one side, but it lit up the night on the other. Neither group approached the other all night long.

²¹ Then Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and all night long the Lord drove the sea back with a strong east wind and turned the sea into dry land. The waters were divided. ²² The Israelites went into the middle of the sea on dry ground. The waters were like a wall for them on their right and on their left. ²³ The Egyptians pursued them, and all of Pharaoh’s horses, his chariots, and his charioteers went after them into the middle of the sea. ²⁴ During the last watch of the night, the Lord looked down on the Egyptian forces from the pillar of fire and cloud. Then he confused the Egyptian forces. ²⁵ He jammed ^[3] their chariot wheels, and they had difficulty driving them. The Egyptians said, “We must flee from Israel, for the Lord is fighting for them against Egypt!”

²⁶ Then the Lord said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand over the sea, and the waters will come back over the Egyptians, over their chariots and their charioteers.” ²⁷ So Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and at daybreak the sea returned to its normal place. While the Egyptians were fleeing from it, the Lord threw the Egyptians into the middle of the sea. ²⁸ The waters came back and covered the chariots and the charioteers, the entire army of Pharaoh that went into the sea after the Israelites. Not even one of them survived.

²⁹ But the Israelites went through the middle of the sea on dry land, and the waters were like a wall for them on their right and on their left. ³⁰ On that day the Lord saved Israel from the hand of the Egyptians, and Israel saw the Egyptians dead on the seashore. ³¹ Israel saw the mighty hand which the Lord put into action against the Egyptians, and the people feared the Lord and believed in the Lord and in Moses, his servant.

The Song of Moses and Miriam

Exodus 15

¹ Then Moses and the Israelites sang this song to the Lord. They said:

¹⁹ When Pharaoh’s horses along with his chariots and charioteers went into the sea, the Lord brought the waters of the sea back on them, but the Israelites walked on dry land in the middle of the sea.

²⁰ Miriam the prophetess, the sister of Aaron, took a hand drum, and all the women followed her with drums and dancing. ²¹ Miriam sang to them,