chapter 6
So Jehovah said to Moses: “Now you will see what I will do to Phar′aoh.+ A mighty hand will force him to send them away, and a mighty hand will force him to drive them out of his land.”+
2 Then God said to Moses: “I am Jehovah. 3 And I used to appear to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob as God Almighty,+ but with regard to my name Jehovah+ I did not make myself known to them.+ 4 I also established my covenant with them to give them the land of Ca′naan, the land in which they lived as foreigners.+ 5 Now I myself have heard the groaning of the people of Israel, whom the Egyptians are enslaving, and I remember my covenant.+
6 “Therefore, say to the Israelites: ‘I am Jehovah, and I will bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians and rescue you from their slavery,+ and I will reclaim you with an outstretched* arm and with great judgments.+ 7 And I will take you in as my people, and I will be your God,+ and you will certainly know that I am Jehovah your God who is bringing you out from under the burdens of Egypt. 8 And I will bring you into the land that I swore with an oath* to give to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; and I will give it to you as something to possess.+ I am Jehovah.’”+
9 Moses later gave this message to the Israelites, but they did not listen to Moses because of their discouragement and because of the harsh slavery.+
10 Then Jehovah spoke to Moses, saying: 11 “Go in and tell Phar′aoh, Egypt’s king, that he should send the Israelites away out of his land.” 12 However, Moses replied to Jehovah: “Look! The Israelites have not listened to me;+ how will Phar′aoh ever listen to me, as I speak with difficulty?”*+ 13 But Jehovah again told Moses and Aaron what commands to give to the Israelites and to Phar′aoh, Egypt’s king, in order to bring the Israelites out of the land of Egypt.
14 These are the heads of the house of their fathers: The sons of Reu′ben, Israel’s firstborn,+ were Ha′noch, Pal′lu, Hez′ron, and Car′mi.+ These are the families of Reu′ben.
15 The sons of Sim′e·on were Jem·u′el, Ja′min, O′had, Ja′chin, Zo′har, and Sha′ul, the son of a Ca′naan·ite woman.+ These are the families of Sim′e·on.
16 These are the names of the sons of Le′vi,+ according to their family descents: Ger′shon, Ko′hath, and Me·rar′i.+ The length of Le′vi’s life was 137 years.
17 The sons of Ger′shon were Lib′ni and Shim′e·i, according to their families.+
18 The sons of Ko′hath were Am′ram, Iz′har, Heb′ron, and Uz′zi·el.+ The length of Ko′hath’s life was 133 years.
19 The sons of Me·rar′i were Mah′li and Mu′shi.
These were the families of the Levites, according to their family descents.+
20 Now Am′ram took Joch′e·bed, his father’s sister, as his wife.+ She bore him Aaron and Moses.+ The length of Am′ram’s life was 137 years.
21 The sons of Iz′har were Kor′ah,+ Ne′pheg, and Zich′ri.
22 The sons of Uz′zi·el were Mish′a·el, El·za′phan,+ and Sith′ri.
23 Now Aaron took E·li′she·ba, Am·min′a·dab’s daughter, the sister of Nah′shon,+ as his wife. She bore him Na′dab, A·bi′hu, El·e·a′zar, and Ith′a·mar.+
24 The sons of Kor′ah were As′sir, El·ka′nah, and A·bi′a·saph.+ These were the families of the Kor′ah·ites.+
25 El·e·a′zar,+ Aaron’s son, took one of the daughters of Pu′ti·el as his wife. She bore him Phin′e·has.+
These are the heads of the paternal houses of the Levites, according to their families.+
26 This is the Aaron and Moses to whom Jehovah said: “Bring the people of Israel out of the land of Egypt, company by company.”*+ 27 It was they who spoke to Phar′aoh, Egypt’s king, to bring the people of Israel out of Egypt. It was this Moses and Aaron.+
28 On that day when Jehovah spoke to Moses in the land of Egypt, 29 Jehovah told Moses: “I am Jehovah. Speak to Phar′aoh, king of Egypt, everything I am speaking to you.” 30 Then Moses said before Jehovah: “Look! I speak with difficulty,* so how will Phar′aoh ever listen to me?”+
