Read Parshat Bo in English

And the Lord said unto Moses: “Go in unto Pharaoh; for I have hardened his heart, and the heart of his servants, that I might show these My signs in the midst of them;

and that thou mayest tell in the ears of thy son, and of thy son's son, what I have wrought upon Egypt, and My signs which I have done among them; that ye may know that I am the Lord.’’

And Moses and Aaron went in unto Pharaoh, and said unto him: “Thus saith the Lord, the God of the Hebrews: How long wilt thou refuse to humble thyself before Me? let My people go, that they may serve Me.

Else, if thou refuse to let My people go, behold, to-morrow will I bring locusts into thy border;

and they shall cover the face of the earth, that one shall not be able to see the earth; and they shall eat the residue of that which is escaped, which remaineth unto you from the hail, and shall eat every tree which groweth for you out of the field;

and thy houses shall be filled, and the houses of all thy servants, and the houses of all the Egyptians; as neither thy fathers nor thy fathers' fathers have seen, since the day that they were upon the earth unto this day.’’ And he turned, and went out from Pharaoh.

And Pharaoh's servants said unto him: “How long shall this man be a snare unto us? let the men go, that they may serve the Lord their God, knowest thou not yet that Egypt is destroyed?'

And Moses and Aaron were brought again unto Pharaoh; and he said unto them: “Go, serve the Lord your God; but who are they that shall go?'

And Moses said: “We will go with our young and with our old, with our sons and with our daughters, with our flocks and with our herds we will go; for we must hold a feast unto the Lord.’’

And he said unto them: “So be the Lord with you, as I will let you go, and your little ones; see ye that evil is before your face.

Not so; go now ye that are men, and serve the Lord; for that is what ye desire.’’ And they were driven out from Pharaoh's presence. {S}

And the Lord said unto Moses: “Stretch out thy hand over the land of Egypt for the locusts, that they may come up upon the land of Egypt, and eat every herb of the land, even all that the hail hath left.’’

And Moses stretched forth his rod over the land of Egypt, and the Lord brought an east wind upon the land all that day, and all the night; and when it was morning, the east wind brought the locusts.

And the locusts went up over all the land of Egypt, and rested in all the borders of Egypt; very grievous were they; before them there were no such locusts as they, neither after them shall be such.

For they covered the face of the whole earth, so that the land was darkened; and they did eat every herb of the land, and all the fruit of the trees which the hail had left; and there remained not any green thing, either tree or herb of the field, through all the land of Egypt.

Then Pharaoh called for Moses and Aaron in haste; and he said: “I have sinned against the Lord your God, and against you.

Now therefore forgive, I pray thee, my sin only this once, and entreat the Lord your God, that He may take away from me this death only.’’

And he went out from Pharaoh, and entreated the Lord.

And the Lord turned an exceeding strong west wind, which took up the locusts, and drove them into the Red Sea; there remained not one locust in all the border of Egypt.

But the Lord hardened Pharaoh's heart, and he did not let the children of Israel go.

And the Lord said unto Moses: “Stretch out thy hand toward heaven, that there may be darkness over the land of Egypt, even darkness which may be felt.’’

And Moses stretched forth his hand toward heaven; and there was a thick darkness in all the land of Egypt three days;

they saw not one another, neither rose any from his place for three days; but all the children of Israel had light in their dwellings.

And Pharaoh called unto Moses, and said: “Go ye, serve the Lord; only let your flocks and your herds be stayed; let your little ones also go with you.’’

And Moses said: “Thou must also give into our hand sacrifices and burnt-offerings, that we may sacrifice unto the Lord our God.

Our cattle also shall go with us; there shall not a hoof be left behind; for thereof must we take to serve the Lord our God; and we know not with what we must serve the Lord, until we come thither.’’

But the Lord hardened Pharaoh's heart, and he would not let them go.

And Pharaoh said unto him: “Get thee from me, take heed to thyself, see my face no more; for in the day thou seest my face thou shalt die.’’

And Moses said: “Thou hast spoken well; I will see thy face again no more.’’

And the Lord said unto Moses: “Yet one plague more will I bring upon Pharaoh, and upon Egypt; afterwards he will let you go hence; when he shall let you go, he shall surely thrust you out hence altogether.

Speak now in the ears of the people, and let them ask every man of his neighbour, and every woman of her neighbour, jewels of silver, and jewels of gold.’’

And the Lord gave the people favour in the sight of the Egyptians. Moreover the man Moses was very great in the land of Egypt, in the sight of Pharaoh's servants, and in the sight of the people. {S}

And Moses said: “Thus saith the Lord: About midnight will I go out into the midst of Egypt;

and all the first-born in the land of Egypt shall die, from the first-born of Pharaoh that sitteth upon his throne, even unto the first-born of the maid-servant that is behind the mill; and all the first-born of cattle.

And there shall be a great cry throughout all the land of Egypt, such as there hath been none like it, nor shall be like it any more.

But against any of the children of Israel shall not a dog whet his tongue, against man or beast; that ye may know how that the Lord doth put a difference between the Egyptians and Israel.

And all these thy servants shall come down unto me, and bow down unto me, saying: Get thee out, and all the people that follow thee; and after that I will go out.’’ And he went out from Pharaoh in hot anger. {S}

And the Lord said unto Moses: “Pharaoh will not hearken unto you; that My wonders may be multiplied in the land of Egypt.’’

And Moses and Aaron did all these wonders before Pharaoh; and the Lord hardened Pharaoh's heart, and he did not let the children of Israel go out of his land. {S}

And the Lord spoke unto Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt, saying:

'This month shall be unto you the beginning of months; it shall be the first month of the year to you.

Speak ye unto all the congregation of Israel, saying: In the tenth day of this month they shall take to them every man a lamb, according to their fathers' houses, a lamb for a household;

and if the household be too little for a lamb, then shall he and his neighbour next unto his house take one according to the number of the souls; according to every man's eating ye shall make your count for the lamb.

Your lamb shall be without blemish, a male of the first year; ye shall take it from the sheep, or from the goats;

and ye shall keep it unto the fourteenth day of the same month; and the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel shall kill it at dusk.

And they shall take of the blood, and put it on the two side-posts and on the lintel, upon the houses wherein they shall eat it.

And they shall eat the flesh in that night, roast with fire, and unleavened bread; with bitter herbs they shall eat it.

Eat not of it raw, nor sodden at all with water, but roast with fire; its head with its legs and with the inwards thereof.

And ye shall let nothing of it remain until the morning; but that which remaineth of it until the morning ye shall burn with fire.

And thus shall ye eat it: with your loins girded, your shoes on your feet, and your staff in your hand; and ye shall eat it in haste--it is the Lord’s passover.

For I will go through the land of Egypt in that night, and will smite all the first-born in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and against all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgments: I am the Lord.

And the blood shall be to you for a token upon the houses where ye are; and when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and there shall no plague be upon you to destroy you, when I smite the land of Egypt.

And this day shall be unto you for a memorial, and ye shall keep it a feast to the Lord; throughout your generations ye shall keep it a feast by an ordinance for ever.

Seven days shall ye eat unleavened bread; howbeit the first day ye shall put away leaven out of your houses; for whosoever eateth leavened bread from the first day until the seventh day, that soul shall be cut off from Israel.

And in the first day there shall be to you a holy convocation, and in the seventh day a holy convocation; no manner of work shall be done in them, save that which every man must eat, that only may be done by you.

And ye shall observe the feast of unleavened bread; for in this selfsame day have I brought your hosts out of the land of Egypt; therefore shall ye observe this day throughout your generations by an ordinance for ever.

In the first month, on the fourteenth day of the month at even, ye shall eat unleavened bread, until the one and twentieth day of the month at even.

Seven days shall there be no leaven found in your houses; for whosoever eateth that which is leavened, that soul shall be cut off from the congregation of Israel, whether he be a sojourner, or one that is born in the land.

Ye shall eat nothing leavened; in all your habitations shall ye eat unleavened bread.’’

Then Moses called for all the elders of Israel, and said unto them: “Draw out, and take you lambs according to your families, and kill the passover lamb.

And ye shall take a bunch of hyssop, and dip it in the blood that is in the basin, and strike the lintel and the two side-posts with the blood that is in the basin; and none of you shall go out of the door of his house until the morning.

For the Lord will pass through to smite the Egyptians; and when He seeth the blood upon the lintel, and on the two side-posts, the Lord will pass over the door, and will not suffer the destroyer to come in unto your houses to smite you.

And ye shall observe this thing for an ordinance to thee and to thy sons for ever.

And it shall come to pass, when ye be come to the land which the Lord will give you, according as He hath promised, that ye shall keep this service.

And it shall come to pass, when your children shall say unto you: What mean ye by this service?

that ye shall say: It is the sacrifice of the Lord’s passover, for that He passed over the houses of the children of Israel in Egypt, when He smote the Egyptians, and delivered our houses.’’ And the people bowed the head and worshipped.

And the children of Israel went and did so; as the Lord had commanded Moses and Aaron, so did they. {S}

And it came to pass at midnight, that the Lord smote all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, from the first-born of Pharaoh that sat on his throne unto the first-born of the captive that was in the dungeon; and all the first-born of cattle.

And Pharaoh rose up in the night, he, and all his servants, and all the Egyptians; and there was a great cry in Egypt; for there was not a house where there was not one dead.

And he called for Moses and Aaron by night and said: “Rise up, get you forth from among my people, both ye and the children of Israel; and go, serve the Lord, as ye have said.

Take both your flocks and your herds, as ye have said, and be gone; and bless me also.’’

And the Egyptians were urgent upon the people, to send them out of the land in haste; for they said: “We are all dead men.’’

And the people took their dough before it was leavened, their kneading-troughs being bound up in their clothes upon their shoulders.

And the children of Israel did according to the word of Moses; and they asked of the Egyptians jewels of silver, and jewels of gold, and raiment.

And the Lord gave the people favour in the sight of the Egyptians, so that they let them have what they asked. And they despoiled the Egyptians.

And the children of Israel journeyed from Rameses to Succoth, about six hundred thousand men on foot, beside children.

And a mixed multitude went up also with them; and flocks, and herds, even very much cattle.

And they baked unleavened cakes of the dough which they brought forth out of Egypt, for it was not leavened; because they were thrust out of Egypt, and could not tarry, neither had they prepared for themselves any victual.

Now the time that the children of Israel dwelt in Egypt was four hundred and thirty years.

And it came to pass at the end of four hundred and thirty years, even the selfsame day it came to pass, that all the host of the Lord went out from the land of Egypt.

It was a night of watching unto the Lord for bringing them out from the land of Egypt; this same night is a night of watching unto the Lord for all the children of Israel throughout their generations.

And the Lord said unto Moses and Aaron: “This is the ordinance of the passover: there shall no alien eat thereof;

but every man's servant that is bought for money, when thou hast circumcised him, then shall he eat thereof.

A sojourner and a hired servant shall not eat thereof.

In one house shall it be eaten; thou shalt not carry forth aught of the flesh abroad out of the house; neither shall ye break a bone thereof.

All the congregation of Israel shall keep it.

And when a stranger shall sojourn with thee, and will keep the passover to the Lord, let all his males be circumcised, and then let him come near and keep it; and he shall be as one that is born in the land; but no uncircumcised person shall eat thereof.

One law shall be to him that is homeborn, and unto the stranger that sojourneth among you.’’

Thus did all the children of Israel; as the Lord commanded Moses and Aaron, so did they. {S}

And it came to pass the selfsame day that the Lord did bring the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt by their hosts.

And the Lord spoke unto Moses, saying:

'Sanctify unto Me all the first-born, whatsoever openeth the womb among the children of Israel, both of man and of beast, it is Mine.’’

And Moses said unto the people: “Remember this day, in which ye came out from Egypt, out of the house of bondage; for by strength of hand the Lord brought you out from this place; there shall no leavened bread be eaten.

This day ye go forth in the month Abib.

And it shall be when the Lord shall bring thee into the land of the Canaanite, and the Hittite, and the Amorite, and the Hivite, and the Jebusite, which He swore unto thy fathers to give thee, a land flowing with milk and honey, that thou shalt keep this service in this month.

Seven days thou shalt eat unleavened bread, and in the seventh day shall be a feast to the Lord.

Unleavened bread shall be eaten throughout the seven days; and there shall no leavened bread be seen with thee, neither shall there be leaven seen with thee, in all thy borders.

And thou shalt tell thy son in that day, saying: It is because of that which the Lord did for me when I came forth out of Egypt.

And it shall be for a sign unto thee upon thy hand, and for a memorial between thine eyes, that the law of the Lord may be in thy mouth; for with a strong hand hath the Lord brought thee out of Egypt.

Thou shalt therefore keep this ordinance in its season from year to year.

And it shall be when the Lord shall bring thee into the land of the Canaanite, as He swore unto thee and to thy fathers, and shall give it thee,

that thou shalt set apart unto the Lord all that openeth the womb; every firstling that is a male, which thou hast coming of a beast, shall be the Lord’s.

And every firstling of an ass thou shalt redeem with a lamb; and if thou wilt not redeem it, then thou shalt break its neck; and all the first-born of man among thy sons shalt thou redeem.

And it shall be when thy son asketh thee in time to come, saying: What is this? that thou shalt say unto him: By strength of hand the Lord brought us out from Egypt, from the house of bondage;

and it came to pass, when Pharaoh would hardly let us go that the Lord slew all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both the first-born of man, and the first-born of beast; therefore I sacrifice to the Lord all that openeth the womb, being males; but all the first-born of my sons I redeem.

And it shall be for a sign upon thy hand, and for frontlets between thine eyes; for by strength of hand the Lord brought us forth out of Egypt.’’ {S}