Exodus 13
1MOREOVER the Lord spoke to Moses saying,
2Consecrate to Me every first-born. Every first-born among the children of Israel, whether man or beast, is mine.
3Therefore Moses said to the people, Remember this day, in which you came out from the land of Egypt—from the house of bondage. For with a strong hand the Lord hath brought you out from this place; and let no leaven be eaten,
4for on this day you are marching out in the month of new things.
5And when the Lord thy God shall have brought thee into the land of the Chananites and the Chettites and the Amorites, and the Evites and the Jebusites and the Gergasites and the Pherezites which the Lord with an oath promised to thy fathers that he would give thee—a land flowing with milk and honey, thou shalt perform this religious service in this month.
6Six days you shall eat unleavened bread, and on the seventh day there shall be a festival to the Lord.
7Seven days you shall eat unleavened bread. Nothing that is leavened shall be seen with thee; nor shalt thou have leaven in all thy borders.
8And on that day thou shalt tell thy son and say, This is on the account of what the Lord God did for me, when I came out of Egypt.
9And it shall be to thee for a sign on thy hand and for a memorial before thy eyes, that the law of the Lord may be in thy mouth; for with a strong hand the Lord thy God hath brought thee out of Egypt;
10therefore you shall observe this law in revolving seasons from year to year.
11And when the Lord thy God shall have brought thee into the land of the Chananites, as he swore to thy fathers, and shall give it to thee,
12thou shalt set apart every first-born—all the males for the Lord.
13Every firstling of the kine or among the cattle which thou mayst have, even all the males thou shalt consecrate to the Lord. Every firstling of an ass thou shalt exchange for a sheep, and if thou wilt not exchange it thou must redeem it. And every male first-born of thy children thou shalt redeem.
14And if at any time hereafter, thy son should ask thee saying, What is the meaning of this? thou shalt say to him, Because with a strong hand the Lord brought us out of the land of Egypt—from the house of bondage;
15and, when Pharao hardened himself against sending us away, the Lord slew every first-born in the land of Egypt, both the first-born of men and the first-born of cattle, therefore I sacrifice all firstlings—all the males to the Lord: and every male first-born of my children I must redeem.
16And it shall be for a sign on thy hand, and immovably before thy eyes. For with a strong hand the Lord brought thee out of Egypt.
17Now when Pharao sent away the people, God did not lead them by the way to the land of the Philistines, because it was near. For God said, Perhaps the people will repent when they see war and will return to Egypt:
18therefore God led the people by a circuitous march to the wilderness—to the Red Sea. And in the fifth generation the Israelites went up out of the land of Egypt.
19And Moses took with him the bones of Joseph. For with an oath he had adjured the Israelites saying, The Lord will assuredly visit you and you shall carry hence my bones with you.
20And the children of Israel removed fromucchoth and encamped at Otham on the edge of the wilderness.
21And God went before them, by day in a pillar of a cloud to shew them the way, and at night in a pillar of fire.
22And there was no failure of the pillar of a cloud by day, and of the pillar of fire by night before all the people.