Exodus 5

1 Then Aaron and Moses/I went to the king and [one of them/us] said, “Yahweh God, whom [we] Israeli people [worship], says this [to you]: ‘Let my people go to the desert, in order that they may have a feast to [honor] me!’”

And afterward Moses and Aaron went in, and told Pharaoh, Thus saith YHWH Elohim of Israel, Let my people go, that they may hold a feast unto me in the wilderness.

2 But the king said, “Who is Yahweh? Why should I pay attention to what he says and let the Israeli [people] [MTY] go? I do not know Yahweh! And furthermore, I will not let the Israeli [people] go!”

And Pharaoh said, Who is YHWH, that I should obey his voice to let Israel go? I know not YHWH, neither will I let Israel go.

3 They/we replied, “Yahweh God, the one we Hebrews [worship], has (revealed himself/appeared) to us [and told us what to tell you]. So we ask you to [please] let us go on a three day journey into the desert. We must offer sacrifices to Yahweh God [there]. [If we do] not do that, he will cause us to die [IDM] from diseases or from attacks [by our enemies] [MTY].”

And they said, The Elohim of the Hebrews hath met with us: let us go, we pray thee, three days' journey into the desert, and sacrifice unto YHWH our Elohim; lest he fall upon us with pestilence, or with the sword.

4 But the king of Egypt said to them/us, “Moses and Aaron, (stop trying to keep the Israeli people from working/why are you preventing the Israeli people from working?) [RHQ] [Tell those slaves] to return to work!”

And the king of Egypt said unto them, Wherefore do ye, Moses and Aaron, let the people from their works? get you unto your burdens.

5 The king also said, “Listen [to me! You] people [who now live] in this land are now [more] numerous, and you want them [to stop working and] rest!”

And Pharaoh said, Behold, the people of the land now are many, and ye make them rest from their burdens.

6 That same day the king commanded the Egyptian slave bosses and the [Israeli] men supervising the slaves,

And Pharaoh commanded the same day the taskmasters of the people, and their officers, saying,

7 “Do not continue to give the [Israeli] people straw for making bricks, as you have done previously. Make them go [into the fields] and gather straw for themselves.

Ye shall no more give the people straw to make brick, as heretofore: let them go and gather straw for themselves.

8 But require them to make the same number of bricks that they did before. Do not decrease the number at all. They (are lazy/do not have enough work to do). That is the reason they are asking me to let them go [into the desert] to offer sacrifices to their god.

And the tale of the bricks, which they did make heretofore, ye shall lay upon them; ye shall not diminish ought thereof: for they be idle; therefore they cry, saying, Let us go and sacrifice to our Elohim.

9 Force the men to work harder, so that they will not [have time] to listen to lies [from their leaders]!”

Let there more work be laid upon the men, that they may labour therein; and let them not regard vain words.

10 So the slave bosses and supervisors of the slaves went to where the [Israeli] people were and said to them, “The king has said that he will no longer give you any straw.

And the taskmasters of the people went out, and their officers, and they spake to the people, saying, Thus saith Pharaoh, I will not give you straw.

11 [So] you yourselves must go and get straw wherever you can find it. But you must still keep working to make the same number of bricks as before.” [LIT]

Go ye, get you straw where ye can find it: yet not ought of your work shall be diminished.

12 So the Israeli people went all over Egypt to find straw.

So the people were scattered abroad throughout all the land of Egypt to gather stubble instead of straw.

13 The slave bosses kept telling them insistently, “Finish the work you are required to do each day, [making the same amount of bricks] as you did [before, when we gave you] straw!”

And the taskmasters hasted them, saying, Fulfil your works, your daily tasks, as when there was straw.

14 [When they were not able to do that], the slave bosses had the [Israeli supervisors] beaten [with sticks], and they asked them, “Why have [all the men you are supervising] not been able to make [the same number] of bricks today/now as [they did] before [RHQ]?”

And the officers of the children of Israel, which Pharaoh's taskmasters had set over them, were beaten, and demanded, Wherefore have ye not fulfilled your task in making brick both yesterday and to day, as heretofore?

15 Then the Israeli supervisors went to the king and complained, saying “[Your Majesty], why are you treating us this way?

Then the officers of the children of Israel came and cried unto Pharaoh, saying, Wherefore dealest thou thus with thy servants?

16 [Now] they are not giving us any straw [for making bricks], but they keep commanding us to make bricks. And now sometimes they beat us. But it is the fault of your own slave bosses [that we cannot make as many bricks as before]!”

There is no straw given unto thy servants, and they say to us, Make brick: and, behold, thy servants are beaten; but the fault is in thine own people.

17 But the king said, “You are lazy and do not [want to] work! That is why you keep saying, ‘Allow us to go [to the desert] and offer sacrifices to Yahweh.’

But he said, Ye are idle, ye are idle: therefore ye say, Let us go and do sacrifice to YHWH.

18 So go and get back to work! [We] are not going to give you any straw, but you must keep making the same number of bricks!”

Go therefore now, and work; for there shall no straw be given you, yet shall ye deliver the tale of bricks.

19 The Israeli supervisors realized that they were in a difficult situation, because they had been told, “We are not going to decrease the number of bricks [you must make] each day.”

And the officers of the children of Israel did see that they were in evil case, after it was said, Ye shall not minish ought from your bricks of your daily task.

20 As they left the king’s [palace], they met Aaron and Moses/me, who were waiting for them [there].

And they met Moses and Aaron, who stood in the way, as they came forth from Pharaoh:

21 They said to Aaron and Moses/me, “Yahweh has seen [what] you two [have done] He will punish you [MTY], because you have caused the king and his officials to despise us! You have given them an excuse [MTY] to kill us!”

And they said unto them, YHWH look upon you, and judge; because ye have made our savour to be abhorred in the eyes of Pharaoh, and in the eyes of his servants, to put a sword in their hand to slay us.

22 Moses/I left them and prayed to Yahweh again, saying, “O Yahweh, why have you caused all these evil things to happen to your people [RHQ]? And why did you send me [here] [RHQ]?

And Moses returned unto YHWH, and said, YHWH, wherefore hast thou so evil entreated this people? why is it that thou hast sent me?

23 Ever since I went to the king and told him what you told me to say [MTY], he has treated your people very cruelly, and you have not done anything to help/rescue them!”

For since I came to Pharaoh to speak in thy name, he hath done evil to this people; neither hast thou delivered thy people at all.