And Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying, "Consecrate to me every firstborn, the first offspring of every womb among the Israelites, among humans and among domestic animals; it belongs to me." And Moses said to the people, "Remember this day when you went out from Egypt, from a house of slaves, because with strength of hand Yahweh brought you out from here, and food with yeast will not be eaten. Today you are going out in the month of Abib. And when Yahweh brings you to the land of the Canaanites and the Hittites and the Amorites and the Hivites and the Jebusites—which he swore to your ancestors to give to you, a land flowing with milk and honey—you will perform this service in this month. Seven days you will eat unleavened bread, and on the seventh day will be a feast for Yahweh. Unleavened bread will be eaten the seven days; food with yeast will not be seen for you; and yeast will not be seen for you in all your territory. And you shall tell your son on that day, saying, ‘This is because of what Yahweh did for me when I came out from Egypt.’ And it will be as a sign on your hand and as a memorial between your eyes so that the law of Yahweh will be in your mouth, that with a strong hand Yahweh brought you out from Egypt. And you will keep this statute at its appointed time from year to year.

"And when Yahweh brings you to the land of the Canaanite, as he swore to you and to your ancestors, and he gives it to you, you will hand over every first offspring of a womb to Yahweh, and every first offspring dropped by a domestic animal that will belong to you, the males will be for Yahweh. And every first offspring of a donkey you will redeem with small livestock, and if you will not redeem it, then you will break its neck, and every firstborn human among your sons you will redeem. And when your son asks you in the future, saying, ‘What is this?’ you will say to him, ‘With strength of hand Yahweh brought us out from Egypt, from a house of slaves. And when Pharaoh was stubborn to release us, Yahweh killed every firstborn in the land of Egypt, from firstborn human to firstborn domestic animal. Therefore I am sacrificing to Yahweh every first offspring of a womb, the males, and every firstborn of my sons I redeem.’ And it will be as a sign on your hand and as symbolic ornaments between your eyes that with strength of hand Yahweh brought us out from Egypt."

And when Pharaoh released the people, God did not lead them the way of the land of the Philistines, though it was nearer, because God said, "Lest the people change their mind when they see war and return to Egypt." So God led the people around by the way of the desert to the Red Sea, and the Israelites went up in battle array from the land of Egypt. And Moses took the bones of Joseph with him because Joseph had made the Israelites solemnly swear an oath, saying, "God will surely attend to you, and you will take up my bones from here with you." And they set out from Succoth, and they encamped at Etham on the edge of the desert. And Yahweh was going before them by day in a column of cloud to lead them on the way and by night in a column of fire to give light to them to go by day and night. The column of cloud by day and the column of fire by night did not depart from before the people.

And Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying, "Speak to the Israelites so that they turn and encamp before Pi-hahiroth, between Migdol and the sea; before Baal Zephon, which is opposite it, you will camp by the sea. And Pharaoh will say of the Israelites, ‘They are wandering around in the land. The desert has closed in on them.’ And I will harden the heart of Pharaoh, and he will chase after them, and I will be glorified through Pharaoh and through all his army, and the Egyptians will know that I am Yahweh." And they did so.

And it was told to the king of Egypt that the people fled, and the heart of Pharaoh was changed and that of his servants toward the people, and they said, "What is this we have done, that we have released Israel from serving us!" And he harnessed his chariot and took with him his people. And he took six hundred select chariots and all the chariots of Egypt and officers over all of them. And Yahweh hardened the heart of Pharaoh the king of Egypt, and he chased after the Israelites. (Now the Israelites were going out boldly.) And the Egyptians chased after them, and they overtook them encamped at the sea—all the horses of the chariots of Pharaoh and his charioteers and his army—at Pi-hahiroth before Baal Zephon.

And Pharaoh approached, and the Israelites lifted their eyes, and there were the Egyptians traveling after them! And they were very afraid, and the Israelites cried out to Yahweh. And they said to Moses, "Because there are no graves in Egypt? Is that why you have taken us to die in the desert? What is this you have done to us by bringing us out from Egypt! Isn’t this the word we spoke to you in Egypt, saying, ‘Leave us alone so that we can serve Egypt!’ because serving Egypt is better for us than our dying in the desert." And Moses said to the people, "You must not be afraid. Stand still and see the salvation of Yahweh, which he will accomplish for you today, because the Egyptians whom you see today you will see never again. Yahweh will fight for you, and you must be quiet."

And Yahweh said to Moses, "Why do you cry out to me? Speak to the Israelites so that they set out. And you, lift up your staff and stretch out your hand over the sea and divide it so that the Israelites can go in the middle of the sea on the dry land. And as for me, look, I am about to harden the heart of the Egyptians so that they come after them, and I will display my glory through Pharaoh and through all of his army, through his chariots and through his charioteers. And the Egyptians will know that I am Yahweh when I display my glory through Pharaoh, through his chariots, and through his charioteers."

And the angel of God who was going before the camp of Israel set out and went behind them. And the column of cloud set out ahead of them, and it stood still behind them, so that it came between the camp of Egypt and the camp of Israel. And it was a dark cloud, but it gave light to the night, so that neither approached the other all night.

And Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and Yahweh moved the sea with a strong east wind all night, and he made the sea become dry ground, and the waters were divided. And the Israelites entered the middle of the sea on the dry land. The waters were a wall for them on their right and on their left. And the Egyptians gave chase and entered after them—all the horses of Pharaoh, his chariots, and his charioteers—into the middle of the sea. And during the morning watch, Yahweh looked down to the Egyptian camp from in the column of fire and cloud, and he threw the Egyptian camp into a panic. And he removed the wheels of their chariots so that they drove them with difficulty, and the Egyptians said, "We must flee away from Israel because Yahweh is fighting for them against Egypt."

And Yahweh said to Moses, "Stretch out your hand over the sea, and let the waters return over the Egyptians, over their chariots, and over their charioteers." And Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and the sea returned at daybreak to its normal level, and the Egyptians were fleeing because of it, and Yahweh swept the Egyptians into the middle of the sea. And the waters returned and covered the chariots and the charioteers—all the army of Pharaoh coming after them into the sea. Not even one survived among them. But the Israelites walked on the dry land in the middle of the sea. The waters were a wall for them on their right and on their left. And Yahweh saved Israel on that day from the hand of Egypt, and Israel saw the Egyptians dead on the shore of the sea. And Israel saw the great hand that Yahweh displayed against Egypt, and the people feared Yahweh, and they believed in Yahweh and in Moses his servant.

Then Moses and the Israelites sang this song to Yahweh, and they said,

When the horses of Pharaoh came into the sea with his chariots and with his charioteers, Yahweh brought back upon them the waters of the sea, and the Israelites traveled on dry ground through the middle of the sea. And Miriam the prophetess, the sister of Aaron, took her tambourine in her hand, and all of the women went out after her with tambourines and with dances. And Miriam answered, "Sing to Yahweh because he is highly exalted; the horse and its rider he hurled into the sea."

And Moses caused Israel to set out from the Red Sea, and they went out into the desert of Shur, and they traveled three days in the desert, and they did not find water. And they came to Marah, and they were not able to drink water from Marah because it was bitter. Therefore it was named Marah. And the people grumbled against Moses, saying, "What shall we drink?" And he cried out to Yahweh, and Yahweh showed him a piece of wood, and he threw it into the water, and the water became sweet. There he made a rule and regulation for them, and there he tested them. And he said, "If you carefully listen to the voice of Yahweh your God and you do what is right in his eyes and give heed to his commands and you keep all his rules, then I will not bring about on you any of the diseases that I brought about on Egypt, because I am Yahweh your healer.

And they came to Elim, and twelve springs of water and seventy palm trees were there, and they encamped there at the water.

On account of this I, Paul, the prisoner of Christ Jesus for the sake of you Gentiles —if indeed you have heard about the stewardship of God’s grace given to me for you. According to revelation the mystery was made known to me, just as I wrote beforehand in brief, so that you may be able when you read to understand my insight into the mystery of Christ (which in other generations was not made known to the sons of men as it has now been revealed to his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit): that the Gentiles are fellow heirs, and fellow members of the body, and fellow sharers of the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel, of which I became a servant, according to the gift of God’s grace given to me, according to the working of his power.

To me, the least of all the saints, was given this grace: to proclaim the good news of the fathomless riches of Christ to the Gentiles, and to enlighten everyone as to what is the administration of the mystery hidden from the ages by God, who created all things, in order that the many-sided wisdom of God might be made known now to the rulers and the authorities in the heavenly places through the church, according to the purpose of the ages which he carried out in Christ Jesus our Lord, in whom we have boldness and access in confidence through faith in him. Therefore I ask you not to be discouraged at my afflictions on behalf of you, which are your glory.

On account of this, I bend my knees before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named, that he may grant you according to the riches of his glory to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in the inner person, that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith (you having been firmly rooted and established in love), in order that you may be strong enough to grasp together with all the saints what is the breadth, and length, and height, and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, in order that you may be filled up to all the fullness of God.

Now to the one who is able to do beyond all measure more than all that we ask or think, according to the power that is at work in us, to him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever. Amen.