Moses’ Staff
1 Moses answered, “But they will not believe me, nor listen to my voice, for they will say, ‘The Lord has not appeared to you.’ ”
2 The Lord said to him, “What is that in your hand?”
He said, “A staff”.
3 He said, “Throw it on the ground.”
He threw it on the ground, and it became a snake, and Moses ran away from it.
4 The Lord said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand and take it by the tail.”
He stretched out his hand and took hold of it, and it became a staff in his hand.
5 “This is so that they may believe that the Lord God of their fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has appeared to you.”
Moses’ Leprous Hand Restored
6 The Lord said furthermore to him, “Now put your hand inside your cloak.”
He put his hand inside his cloak, and when he took it out his hand was leprous, as white as snow.
7 He said, “Put your hand inside your cloak again.”
He put his hand inside his cloak again, and when he took it out of his cloak it was restored like the rest of his skin.
8 “It will happen, if they will not believe you or take heed to the voice of the first sign, that they will believe the voice of the latter sign. 9 It will happen, if they will not believe even these two signs or listen to your voice, that you shall take water from the river and pour it on the dry land. The water which you take from the river will become blood on the dry land.”
The Appointment of Aaron
10 Moses said to the Lord, “O Lord, I am not eloquent, neither before now, nor since you have spoken to your servant, for I am slow of speech and slow of tongue.”
11 The Lord said to him, “Who made man’s mouth? Or who makes one mute, or deaf, or seeing, or blind? Is it not I, the Lord?
12 Now therefore go, and I will be with your mouth and teach you what you shall speak.”
13 Moses said, “Oh, Lord, please send someone else.”
Moses Leaves for Egypt
14 The Lord’s anger burned against Moses, and he said, “What about Aaron, your brother, the Levite? I know that he can speak well. Also he is coming out to meet you. When he sees you, his heart will rejoice.
15 You shall speak to him and put the words in his mouth. I will be with your mouth and with his mouth, and I will teach you both what to do. 16 He will be your spokesman to the people. It will happen that he will be for you, a mouth, and you will be to him as God. 17 You shall take this staff in your hand with which you shall perform the signs.”
18 Moses went and returned to Jethro his father-in-law and said to him, “Please let me go and return to my brothers who are in Egypt, and see whether they are still alive.”
Jethro said to Moses, “Go in peace.”
19 The Lord said to Moses in Midian, “Go, return to Egypt, for all the men who sought your life are dead.”
20 Moses took his wife and his sons and set them on a donkey, and he returned to the land of Egypt. Moses took God’s staff in his hand. 21 The Lord said to Moses, “When you go back into Egypt, see that you do before Pharaoh all the wonders which I have put in your hand, but I will harden his heart, and he will not let the people go. 22 You shall tell Pharaoh, ‘The Lord says, Israel is my son, my firstborn, 23 and I have said to you, “Let my son go, that he may serve me.” But you have refused to let him go, so watch now, I will kill your firstborn son.’ ”
24 On the way at a lodging place, the Lord met Moses and wanted to kill him. 25 Then Zipporah took a flint and cut off the foreskin of her son and cast it at his feet, and she said, “Surely you are a bridegroom of blood to me.”
26 So the Lord let him alone. Then she said, “You are a bridegroom of blood,” because of the circumcision.
The People Believe Moses and Aaron
27 The Lord said to Aaron, “Go into the wilderness to meet Moses.”
He went and met him at the mountain of God and kissed him. 28 Moses told Aaron all the words of the Lord with which he had sent him and all the signs with which he had instructed him.
29 Moses and Aaron went and gathered together all the elders of the Israelites. 30 Aaron spoke all the words which the Lord had spoken to Moses and did the signs in the sight of the people. 31 The people believed, and when they heard that the Lord had visited the Israelites and that he had seen their affliction, then they bowed their heads and worshiped.