Exodus 1

1 Now these [are] the names of the children of Israel, which came into Egypt; every man and his household came with Jacob.

These were the names of the sons of Israel (Jacob) who came with him to Egypt along with their families:

2 Reuben, Simeon, Levi, and Judah,

Reuben, Simeon, Levi, and Judah;

3 Issachar, Zebulun, and Benjamin,

Issachar, Zebulun, and Benjamin;

4 Dan, and Naphtali, Gad, and Asher.

Dan and Naphtali, Gad and Asher.

5 And all the souls that came out of the loins of Jacob were seventy souls: for Joseph was in Egypt [already].

Jacob had 70 descendants there, including Joseph who was already in Egypt.

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

Eventually Joseph and all his brothers and all that generation died.

7 And the children of Israel were fruitful, and increased abundantly, and multiplied, and waxed exceeding mighty; and the land was filled with them.

However, the Israelites had many children and their numbers increased rapidly. In fact there were so many of them that they became very powerful—the country was full of them.

8 Now there arose up a new king over Egypt, which knew not Joseph.

Then a new king came to power who didn't know anything about Joseph.

9 And he said unto his people, Behold, the people of the children of Israel [are] more and mightier than we:

He conferred with his fellow Egyptians and said, “Look at these Israelites—there are more than them than us, and they're more powerful than us.

10 Come on, let us deal wisely with them; lest they multiply, and it come to pass, that, when there falleth out any war, they join also unto our enemies, and fight against us, and [so] get them up out of the land.

We've got to make plan to deal with them before they become so many that if there's a war they'll side with our enemies and fight us, and flee the country.”

11 Therefore they did set over them taskmasters to afflict them with their burdens. And they built for Pharaoh treasure cities, Pithom and Raamses.

So the Egyptians made them do forced labor and put taskmasters in charge of them. They used them to build the storage towns of Pithom and Rameses.

12 But the more they afflicted them, the more they multiplied and grew. And they were grieved because of the children of Israel.

But the more the Israelites were mistreated, the more they grew in numbers and spread out—and the more the Egyptians detested them.

13 And the Egyptians made the children of Israel to serve with rigour:

The Egyptians worked the Israelites brutally,

14 And they made their lives bitter with hard bondage, in morter, and in brick, and in all manner of service in the field: all their service, wherein they made them serve, [was] with rigour.

making their lives a misery. They made them do hard labor, building with mortar and brick, and all kind of heavy work in the fields. In all of this hard labor they treated them brutally.

15 And the king of Egypt spake to the Hebrew midwives, of which the name of the one [was] Shiphrah, and the name of the other Puah:

Then the king gave orders to the Hebrew midwives, Shiphrah and Puah.

16 And he said, When ye do the office of a midwife to the Hebrew women, and see [them] upon the stools; if it [be] a son, then ye shall kill him: but if it [be] a daughter, then she shall live.

He told them, “When you assist the Hebrew women during childbirth, if you see it's a boy, kill him; but if it's a girl, let her live.”

17 But the midwives feared God, and did not as the king of Egypt commanded them, but saved the men children alive.

But because the midwives revered God, they didn't do what the king of Egypt had ordered. They let the boys live as well.

18 And the king of Egypt called for the midwives, and said unto them, Why have ye done this thing, and have saved the men children alive?

The king of Egypt called the midwives in and demanded to know, “Why have you done this— letting the male children live?”

19 And the midwives said unto Pharaoh, Because the Hebrew women [are] not as the Egyptian women; for they [are] lively, and are delivered ere the midwives come in unto them.

“Hebrew women aren't like Egyptian women,” the midwives told Pharaoh. “They give birth more easily—they have them before we midwives arrive.”

20 Therefore God dealt well with the midwives: and the people multiplied, and waxed very mighty.

God treated the midwives well, and the people increased in number so there were even more of them.

21 And it came to pass, because the midwives feared God, that he made them houses.

Because the midwives revered God, he gave them families of their own.

22 And Pharaoh charged all his people, saying, Every son that is born ye shall cast into the river, and every daughter ye shall save alive.

Then Pharaoh issued this order to all his people: “Throw every Hebrew boy that's born into the Nile, but let every girl live.”