Mısır’dan Çıkış 1

¹Babaları Yakup ile birlikte her biri kendi ev halkıyla Mısır'a gelmiş olan İsrail oğullarının adları şunlardır:

²Ruben, Şimon, Levi, Yahuda,

³İssakar, Zevulun ve Benyamin,

⁴Dan ve Neftali, Gad ve Aşer.

⁵Yusuf zaten Mısır'daydı; Yakup'un soyundan gelenlerin hepsi yetmiş beş can idi.

⁶Zamanla Yusuf, bütün kardeşleri ve o kuşağın hepsi öldü.

⁷Ama İsrail oğulları çoğaldılar, üreyip yayıldılar ve son derece güçlendiler; ülke onları çoğalttı.

⁸Derken Mısır üzerinde, Yusuf'u tanımayan başka bir kral ortaya çıktı.

⁹Bu kral kendi halkına, "Bakın," dedi, "İsrail oğullarının soyu büyük bir kalabalık ve bizden daha güçlü.

¹⁰Gelin, onlara karşı kurnazca davranalım; yoksa daha da çoğalırlar ve bir savaş çıkarsa onlar da düşmanlarımıza katılarak bize karşı savaşır ve bu ülkeden çıkıp giderler."

¹¹Böylece ağır işlerle onları ezsinler diye başlarına iş denetçileri atadılar; onlar da Firavun için ambarlı müstahkem kentler olarak Pithom, Ramesses ve Heliopolis olan On kentlerini inşa ettiler.

¹²Fakat onları ne kadar ezdilerse, o kadar çoğaldılar ve son derece güçlendiler; bu yüzden Mısırlılar İsrail oğullarından tiksinir oldular.

¹³Mısırlılar İsrail oğullarını şiddet ve zorbalıkla köleleştirdiler.

¹⁴Çamur, tuğla yapımı ve tarlalardaki her türlü ağır işle, onları zorla köle ettikleri tüm bu işler aracılığıyla yaşamlarını acıttılar.

¹⁵Mısır kralı, İbrani ebelerden adı Sepphora olan birincisine ve adı Phoua olan ikincisine şöyle dedi:

¹⁶"İbrani kadınlarını doğurturken ve onlar doğum anında olduklarında, eğer çocuk erkekse onu öldürün, kızsa kendiniz için yaşatın."

¹⁷Ama ebeler Tanrı'dan korktular ve Mısır kralının kendilerine buyurduğu gibi yapmayıp erkek çocukları yaşattılar.

¹⁸Bunun üzerine Mısır kralı ebeleri çağırıp onlara, "Neden bu işi yaptınız ve erkek çocukları yaşattınız?" diye sordu.

¹⁹Ebeler Firavun'a, "İbrani kadınları Mısırlı kadınlar gibi değil," diye yanıt verdiler, "Çünkü onlar çok güçlü; ebe daha yanlarına varmadan doğuruyorlar." Ve doğuruyorlardı.

²⁰Bu yüzden Tanrı ebelere iyi davrandı; halk da çoğaldı ve son derece güçlendi.

²¹Ebeler Tanrı'dan korktukları için, kendilerine evler kurdular.

²²Bunun üzerine Firavun bütün halkına şöyle buyurdu: "İbranilere doğan her erkek çocuğu nehre atın, ama her kız çocuğu yaşatın."

¹ΤΑΥΤΑ τὰ ὀνόματα τῶν υἱῶν ᾿Ισραὴλ τῶν εἰσπεπορευμένων εἰς Αἴγυπτον ἅμα ᾿Ιακὼβ τῷ πατρὶ αὐτῶν, ἕκαστος πανοικὶ αὐτῶν εἰσήλθοσαν.

²Ῥουβήν, Συμεών, Λευΐ, ᾿Ιούδας,

³᾿Ισσάχαρ, Ζαβουλὼν καὶ Βενιαμίν,

⁴Δὰν καὶ Νεφαθλείμ, Γὰδ καὶ ᾿Ασήρ.

⁵᾿Ιωσὴφ δὲ ἦν ἐν Αἰγύπτῳ. ἦσαν δὲ πᾶσαι ψυχαὶ ἐξ ᾿Ιακὼβ πέντε καὶ ἑβδομήκοντα.

⁶ἐτελεύτησε δὲ ᾿Ιωσὴφ καὶ πάντες οἱ ἀδελφοὶ αὐτοῦ καὶ πᾶσα ἡ γενεὰ ἐκείνη.

⁷οἱ δὲ υἱοὶ ᾿Ισραὴλ ηὐξήθησαν καὶ ἐπληθύνθησαν καὶ χυδαῖοι ἐγένοντο. καὶ κατίσχυον σφόδρα σφόδρα, ἐπλήθυνε δὲ ἡ γῆ αὐτούς.

⁸᾿Ανέστη δὲ βασιλεὺς ἕτερος ἐπ᾿ Αἴγυπτον, ὃς οὐκ ᾔδει τὸν ᾿Ιωσήφ.

⁹εἶπε δὲ τῷ ἔθνει αὐτοῦ· ἰδοὺ τὸ γένος τῶν υἱῶν ᾿Ισραὴλ μέγα πλῆθος καὶ ἰσχύει ὑπὲρ ἡμᾶς·

¹⁰δεῦτε οὖν κατασοφισώμεθα αὐτούς, μή ποτε πληθυνθῇ, καὶ ἡνίκα ἂν συμβῇ ἡμῖν πόλεμος, προστεθήσονται καὶ οὗτοι πρὸς τοὺς ὑπεναντίους καὶ ἐκπολεμήσαντες ἡμᾶς ἐξελεύσονται ἐκ τῆς γῆς.

¹¹καὶ ἐπέστησεν αὐτοῖς ἐπιστάτας τῶν ἔργων, ἵνα κακώσωσιν αὐτοὺς ἐν τοῖς ἔργοις· καὶ ᾠκοδόμησαν πόλεις ὀχυρὰς τῷ Φαραώ, τήν τε Πειθὼ καὶ Ῥαμεσσῆ καὶ ῎Ων, ἥ ἐστιν ῾Ηλιούπολις.

¹²καθότι δὲ αὐτοὺς ἐταπείνουν, τοσούτῳ πλείους ἐγίγνοντο, καὶ ἴσχυον σφόδρα σφόδρα· καὶ ἐβδελύσσοντο οἱ Αἰγύπτιοι ἀπὸ τῶν υἱῶν ᾿Ισραήλ.

¹³καὶ κατεδυνάστευον οἱ Αἰγύπτιοι τοὺς υἱοὺς ᾿Ισραὴλ βίᾳ

¹⁴καὶ κατωδύνων αὐτῶν τὴν ζωὴν ἐν τοῖς ἔργοις τοῖς σκληροῖς, τῷ πηλῷ καὶ τῇ πλινθείᾳ καὶ πᾶσι τοῖς ἔργοις τοῖς ἐν τοῖς πεδίοις, κατὰ πάντα τὰ ἔργα, ὧν κατεδουλοῦντο αὐτοὺς μετὰ βίας.

¹⁵Καὶ εἶπεν ὁ βασιλεὺς τῶν Αἰγυπτίων ταῖς μαίαις τῶν ῾Εβραίων· τῇ μιᾷ αὐτῶν ὄνομα Σεπφώρα, καὶ τὸ ὄνομα τῆς δευτέρας Φουά,

¹⁶καὶ εἶπεν· ὅταν μαιοῦσθε τὰς ῾Εβραίας καὶ ὦσι πρὸς τῷ τίκτειν, ἐὰν μὲν ἄρσεν ᾖ, ἀποκτείνατε αὐτό, ἐὰν δὲ θῆλυ, περιποιεῖσθε αὐτό.

¹⁷ἐφοβήθησαν δὲ αἱ μαῖαι τὸν Θεὸν καὶ οὐκ ἐποίησαν καθότι συνέταξεν αὐταῖς ὁ βασιλεὺς Αἰγύπτου, καὶ ἐζωογόνουν τὰ ἄρσενα.

¹⁸ἐκάλεσε δὲ ὁ βασιλεὺς Αἰγύπτου τὰς μαίας καὶ εἶπεν αὐταῖς· τί ὅτι ἐποιήσατε τὸ πρᾶγμα τοῦτο καὶ ἐζωογονεῖτε τὰ ἄρσενα;

¹⁹εἶπαν δὲ αἱ μαῖαι τῷ Φαραώ· οὐχ ὡς γυναῖκες Αἰγύπτου αἱ ῾Εβραῖαι, τίκτουσι γὰρ πρὶν ἢ εἰσελθεῖν πρὸς αὐτὰς τὰς μαίας· καὶ ἔτικτον.

²⁰εὖ δὲ ἐποίει ὁ Θεὸς τὰς μαίας, καὶ ἐπλήθυνεν ὁ λαὸς καὶ ἴσχυε σφόδρα.

²¹ἐπεὶ δὲ ἐφοβοῦντο αἱ μαῖαι τὸν Θεόν, ἐποίησαν ἑαυταῖς οἰκίας.

²²συνέταξε δὲ Φαραὼ παντὶ τῷ λαῷ αὐτοῦ λέγων· πᾶν ἄρσεν, ὃ ἐὰν τεχθῇ τοῖς ῾Εβραίοις, εἰς τὸν ποταμὸν ῥίψατε· καὶ πᾶν θῆλυ, ζωογονεῖτε αὐτό.

¹These are the names of the sons of Israel that came into Egypt together with Jacob their father; they came in each with their whole family.

²Ruben, Simeon, Levi, Judas,

³Issachar, Zabulon, Benjamin,

⁴Dan and Nephthalim, Gad and Aser.

⁵But Joseph was in Egypt. And all the souls [born] of Jacob were seventy-five.

⁶And Joseph died, and all his brethren, and all that generation.

⁷And the children of Israel increased and multiplied, and became numerous and grew exceedingly strong, and the land multiplied them.

⁸And there arose up another king over Egypt, who knew not Joseph.

⁹And he said to his nation, Behold, the race of the children of Israel is a great multitude, and is stronger than we:

¹⁰come then, let us deal craftily with them, lest at any time they be increased, and whensoever war shall happen to us, these also shall be added to our enemies, and having prevailed against us in war, they will depart out of the land.

¹¹And he set over them task-masters, who should afflict them in their works; and they built strong cities for Pharao, both Pitho, and Ramesses, and On, which is Heliopolis.

¹²But as they humbled them, by so much they multiplied, and grew exceedingly strong; and the Egyptians greatly abhorred the children of Israel.

¹³And the Egyptians tyrannised over the children of Israel by force.

¹⁴And they embittered their life by hard labours, in the clay and in brick-making, and all the works in the plains, according to all the works, wherein they caused them to serve with violence.

¹⁵And the king of the Egyptians spoke to the midwives of the Hebrews; the name of the one was, Sepphora; and the name of the second, Phua.

¹⁶And he said, When ye do the office of midwives to the Hebrew women, and they are about to be delivered, if it be a male, kill it; but if a female, save it.

¹⁷But the midwives feared God, and did not as the king of Egypt appointed them; and they saved the male children alive.

¹⁸And the king of Egypt called the midwives, and said to them, Why is it that ye have done this thing, and saved the male children alive?

¹⁹And the midwives said to Pharao, The Hebrew women are not as the women of Egypt, for they are delivered before the midwives go in to them. So they bore children.

²⁰And God did well to the midwives, and the people multiplied, and grew very strong.

²¹And as the midwives feared God, they established for themselves families.

²²And Pharao charged all his people, saying, Whatever male [child] shall be born to the Hebrews, cast into the river; and every female, save it alive.