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<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><head><meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8" /><meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width; initial-scale=1.0; maximum-scale=1.0; user-scalable=0;"/><title>Exodus 4 New American Bible</title><link rel="stylesheet" href="/chapnew2.css" type="text/css" media="Screen" /><link rel="stylesheet" href="../spec.css" type="text/css" media="Screen" /><link rel="stylesheet" href="/print.css" type="text/css" media="Print" /></head><body><div id="fx"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" id="fx2"><tr><td><iframe width="100%" height="30" scrolling="no" src="../cmenus/exodus/4.htm" align="left" frameborder="0"></iframe></td></tr></table></div><div id="blnk"></div><div align="center"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" class="maintable"><tr><td><div id="fx5"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" id="fx6"><tr><td><iframe width="100%" height="245" scrolling="no" src="/bmcc/exodus/4-1.htm" frameborder="0"></iframe></td></tr></table></div></td></tr></table></div><div align="center"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" class="maintable3"><tr><td><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" align="center" id="announce"><tr><td><div id="l1"><div id="breadcrumbs"><a href="http://biblehub.com/catholic">Bible</a> > <a href="../">NABRE</a> > Exodus 4</div><div id="anc"><iframe src="/anc.htm" width="100%" height="27" scrolling="no" frameborder="0"></iframe></div><div id="anc2"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" align="center"><tr><td><iframe src="/anc2.htm" width="100%" height="27" scrolling="no" frameborder="0"></iframe></td></tr></table></div></div></td></tr></table><div id="movebox2"><table border="0" align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0"><tr><td><div id="topheading"><a href="../exodus/3.htm" title="Exodus 3">◄</a> Exodus 4 <a href="../exodus/5.htm" title="Exodus 5">►</a></div></td></tr></table></div><div align="center" class="maintable2"><table border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" align="center"><tr><td><div id="leftbox"><div class="padleft"><div class="vheading"><table width="100%"><tr><td width="99%" valign="top">New American Bible Revised Edition</td><td width="1%" valign="top"></td></tr></table></div><div class="chap"><section id="ch02004" class="chapter"> <h1 id="cn02004" class="cn"></h1> <p class="pf"><span id="v02004001" class="ver">1</span>“But,” objected Moses, “suppose they do not believe me or listen to me? For they may say, ‘The <span class="tetr">Lord</span> did not appear to you.’ ” <span id="v02004002" class="ver">2</span>The <span class="tetr">Lord</span> said to him: What is in your hand? “A staff,” he answered. <span id="v02004003" class="ver">3</span>God said: Throw it on the ground. So he threw it on the ground and it became a snake,<a id="ren02004003-a" class="enref" href="footnotes.htm#en02004003-a">a</a> and Moses backed away from it. <span id="v02004004" class="ver">4</span>Then the <span class="tetr">Lord</span> said to Moses: Now stretch out your hand and take hold of its tail. So he stretched out his hand and took hold of it, and it became a staff in his hand. <span id="v02004005" class="ver">5</span>That is so they will believe that the <span class="tetr">Lord</span>, the God of their ancestors, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, did appear to you.</p> <p><span id="v02004006" class="ver">6</span>Again the <span class="tetr">Lord</span> said to him: Put your hand into the fold of your garment. So he put his hand into the fold of his garment, and when he drew it out, there was his hand covered with scales, like snowflakes. <span id="v02004007" class="ver">7</span>Then God said: Put your hand back into the fold of your garment. So he put his hand back into the fold of his garment, and when he drew it out, there it was again like his own flesh. <span id="v02004008" class="ver">8</span>If they do not believe you or pay attention to the message of the first sign, they should believe the message of the second sign. <span id="v02004009" class="ver">9</span>And if they do not believe even these two signs and do not listen to you, take some water from the Nile and pour it on the dry land. The water you take from the Nile will become blood on the dry land.<a id="ren02004009-b" class="enref" href="footnotes.htm#en02004009-b">b</a></p> <p class="psec"><span class="hemb">Aaron’s Office as Assistant.</span> <span id="v02004010" class="ver">10</span>Moses, however, said to the <span class="tetr">Lord</span>, “If you please, my Lord, I have never been eloquent, neither in the past nor now that you have spoken to your servant; but I am slow of speech and tongue.”<a id="ren02004010-c" class="enref" href="footnotes.htm#en02004010-c">c</a> <span id="v02004011" class="ver">11</span>The <span class="tetr">Lord</span> said to him: Who gives one person speech? Who makes another mute or deaf, seeing or blind? Is it not I, the <span class="tetr">Lord</span>? <span id="v02004012" class="ver">12</span>Now go, I will assist you in speaking<a id="rfn02004012-1" class="fnref" href="footnotes.htm#fn02004012-1">*</a> and teach you what you are to say. <span id="v02004013" class="ver">13</span>But he said, “If you please, my Lord, send someone else!”<a id="rfn02004013-1" class="fnref" href="footnotes.htm#fn02004013-1">*</a> <span id="v02004014" class="ver">14</span>Then the <span class="tetr">Lord</span> became angry with Moses and said: I know there is your brother, Aaron the Levite, who is a good speaker; even now he is on his way to meet you. When he sees you, he will truly be glad. <span id="v02004015" class="ver">15</span>You will speak to him and put the words in his mouth. I will assist both you and him in speaking and teach you both what you are to do. <span id="v02004016" class="ver">16</span>He will speak to the people for you: he will be your spokesman,<a id="rfn02004016-1" class="fnref" href="footnotes.htm#fn02004016-1">*</a> and you will be as God to him.<a id="ren02004016-d" class="enref" href="footnotes.htm#en02004016-d">d</a> <span id="v02004017" class="ver">17</span>Take this staff<a id="rfn02004017-1" class="fnref" href="footnotes.htm#fn02004017-1">*</a> in your hand; with it you are to perform the signs.</p> <p class="psec"><span class="hemb">Moses’ Return to Egypt.</span> <span id="v02004018" class="ver">18</span>After this Moses returned to Jethro<a id="rfn02004018-1" class="fnref" href="footnotes.htm#fn02004018-1">*</a> his father-in-law and said to him, “Let me return to my kindred in Egypt, to see whether they are still living.” Jethro replied to Moses, “Go in peace.” <span id="v02004019" class="ver">19</span>Then the <span class="tetr">Lord</span> said to Moses in Midian: Return to Egypt, for all those who sought your life are dead. <span id="v02004020" class="ver">20</span>So Moses took his wife and his sons, mounted them on the donkey, and started back to the land of Egypt. Moses took the staff of God with him. <span id="v02004021" class="ver">21</span>The <span class="tetr">Lord</span> said to Moses: On your return to Egypt, see that you perform before Pharaoh all the wonders I have put in your power. But I will harden his heart<a id="rfn02004021-1" class="fnref" href="footnotes.htm#fn02004021-1">*</a> and he will not let the people go. <span id="v02004022" class="ver">22</span><a id="ren02004022-e" class="enref" href="footnotes.htm#en02004022-e">e</a> So you will say to Pharaoh, Thus says the <span class="tetr">Lord</span>: Israel is my son, my firstborn. <span id="v02004023" class="ver">23</span>I said to you: Let my son go, that he may serve me. Since you refused to let him go, I will kill your son, your firstborn.<a id="ren02004023-f" class="enref" href="footnotes.htm#en02004023-f">f</a></p> <p><span id="v02004024" class="ver">24</span><a id="rfn02004024-1" class="fnref" href="footnotes.htm#fn02004024-1">*</a> On the journey, at a place where they spent the night, the <span class="tetr">Lord</span> came upon Moses and sought to put him to death. <span id="v02004025" class="ver">25</span><a id="ren02004025-g" class="enref" href="footnotes.htm#en02004025-g">g</a> But Zipporah took a piece of flint and cut off her son’s foreskin and, touching his feet,<a id="rfn02004025-1" class="fnref" href="footnotes.htm#fn02004025-1">*</a> she said, “Surely you are a spouse of blood to me.” <span id="v02004026" class="ver">26</span>So God let Moses alone. At that time she said, “A spouse of blood,” in regard to the circumcision.</p> <p><span id="v02004027" class="ver">27</span>The <span class="tetr">Lord</span> said to Aaron: Go into the wilderness to meet Moses. So he went; when meeting him at the mountain of God, he kissed him. <span id="v02004028" class="ver">28</span>Moses told Aaron everything the <span class="tetr">Lord</span> had sent him to say, and all the signs he had commanded him to do. <span id="v02004029" class="ver">29</span>Then Moses and Aaron went and gathered all the elders of the Israelites. <span id="v02004030" class="ver">30</span>Aaron told them everything the <span class="tetr">Lord</span> had said to Moses, and he performed the signs before the people. <span id="v02004031" class="ver">31</span>The people believed, and when they heard that the <span class="tetr">Lord</span> had observed the Israelites and had seen their affliction,<a id="rfn02004031-1" class="fnref" href="footnotes.htm#fn02004031-1">*</a> they knelt and bowed down.</p> </section> <br /><h1 class="cn"><a class="xref" href="intro.htm"><span class="ac">Book Introduction</span></a></h1><h1 class="cn"><a class="xref" href="footnotes.htm"><span class="ac">Footnotes</span></a></h1></div></div><div id="botbox"><div class="padbot"><div align="center">Scripture texts, prefaces, introductions, footnotes and cross references used in this work are taken from the <i>New American Bible, revised edition</i> © 2010, 1991, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Inc., Washington, DC All Rights Reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="p"><br /><br /></span><a href="/">Bible Hub</a><span class="p"><br /><br /></span></div></div></div></div></td></tr></table></div><div id="left"><a href="../exodus/3.htm" onmouseover='lft.src="/leftgif.png"' onmouseout='lft.src="/left.png"' title="Exodus 3"><img src="/left.png" name="lft" border="0" alt="Exodus 3" /></a></div><div id="right"><a href="../exodus/5.htm" onmouseover='rght.src="/rightgif.png"' onmouseout='rght.src="/right.png"' title="Exodus 5"><img src="/right.png" name="rght" border="0" alt="Exodus 5" /></a></div><div id="botleft"><a href="#" onmouseover='botleft.src="/botleftgif.png"' onmouseout='botleft.src="/botleft.png"' title="Top of Page"><img src="/botleft.png" name="botleft" border="0" alt="Top of Page" /></a></div><div id="botright"><a href="#" onmouseover='botright.src="/botrightgif.png"' onmouseout='botright.src="/botright.png"' title="Top of Page"><img src="/botright.png" name="botright" border="0" alt="Top of Page" /></a></div><div id="bot"><iframe width="100%" height="1500" scrolling="no" src="/botmenubhchap.htm" frameborder="0"></iframe></div></td></tr></table></div></body></html>