1
At that time died Hadad the son of Bedad king of Edom, and Samlah from Mesrekah, from the country of the children of the east, reigned in his place.
2
In the thirteenth year of the reign of Par’oh king of Mitsrayim, which was the hundred and twenty-fifth year of the Yis’ra’eliym going down into Mitsrayim, Samlah had reigned over Edom eighteen years.
3
And when he reigned, he drew forth his hosts to go and fight against Zepho the son of Eliphaz and the children of Chittim, because they had made war against Angeas king of Africa, and they destroyed his whole army.
4
But he did not engage with him, for the children of Esav prevented him, saying, He was their brother, so Samlah listened to the voice of the children of Esav, and turned back with all his forces to the land of Edom, and did not proceed to fight against Zepho the son of Eliphaz.
5
And Par’oh king of Mitsrayim heard this thing, saying, Samlah king of Edom has resolved to fight the children of Chittim, and afterward he will come to fight against Mitsrayim.
6
And when the Mitsriym heard this matter, they increased the labor upon the children of Yis’rael, lest the Yis’ra’eliym should do to them as they did to them in their war with the children of Esav in the days of Hadad.
7
So the Mitsriym said to the children of Yis’rael, Hasten and do your work, and finish your task, and strengthen the land, lest the children of Esav your brethren should come to fight against us, for on your account will they come against us.
8
And the children of Yis’rael did the work of the men of Mitsrayim day by day, and the Mitsriym afflicted the children of Yis’rael in order to lessen them in the land.
9
But as the Mitsriym increased the labor upon the children of Yis’rael, so did the children of Yis’rael increase and multiply, and all Mitsrayim was filled with the children of Yis’rael.
10
And in the hundred and twenty-fifth year of Yis’rael's going down into Mitsrayim, all the Mitsriym saw that their counsel did not succeed against Yis’rael, but that they increased and grew, and the land of Mitsrayim and the land of Goshen were filled with the children of Yis’rael.
11
So all the elders of Mitsrayim and its wise men came before the king and bowed down to him and sat before him.
12
And all the elders of Mitsrayim and the wise men of it said to the king, May the king live forever; you did counsel us the counsel against the children of Yis’rael, and we did to them according to the word of the king.
13
But in proportion to the increase of the labor so do they increase and grow in the land, and behold the whole country is filled with them.
14
Now therefore our lord and king, the eyes of all Mitsrayim are upon you to give them advice with your wisdom, by which they may prevail over Yis’rael to destroy them, or to diminish them from the land; and the king answered them saying, Give you counsel in this matter that we may know what to do to them.
15
And an officer, one of the king's counsellors, whose name was Iyov, from Mesopotamia, in the land of Uz, answered the king, saying,
16
If it please the king, let him hear the counsel of his servant; and the king said to him, Speak.
17
And Iyov spoke before the king, the princes, and before all the elders of Mitsrayim, saying,
18
Behold the counsel of the king which he advised formerly respecting the labor of the children of Yis’rael is very good, and you must not remove from them that labor forever.
19
But this is the advice counselled by which you may lessen them, if it seems good to the king to afflict them.
20
Behold we have feared war for a long time, and we said, When Yis’rael becomes fruitful in the land, they will drive us from the land if a war should take place.
21
If it please the king, let a royal decree go forth, and let it be written in the laws of Mitsrayim which shall not be revoked, that every male child born to the Yis’ra’eliym, his blood shall be spilled upon the ground.
22
And by your doing this, when all the male children of Yis’rael shall have died, the evil of their wars will cease; let the king do so and send for all the Ivri midwives and order them in this matter to execute it; so the thing pleased the king and the princes, and the king did according to the word of Iyov.
23
And the king sent for the Ivri midwives to be called, of which the name of one was Shephrah, and the name of the other Puah.
24
And the midwives came before the king, and stood in his presence.
25
And the king said to them, When you do the office of a midwife to the Ivri women, and see them upon the stools, if it be a son, then you shall kill him, but if it be a daughter, then she shall live.
26
But if you will not do this thing, then will I burn you up and all your houses with fire.
27
But the midwives feared Elohim and did not hearken to the king of Mitsrayim nor to his words, and when the Ivri women brought forth to the midwife son or daughter, then did the midwife do all that was necessary to the child and let it live; thus did the midwives all the days.
28
And this thing was told to the king, and he sent and called for the midwives and he said to them, Why have you done this thing and have saved the children alive?
29
And the midwives answered and spoke together before the king, saying,
30
Let not the king think that the Ivri women are as the Mitsri women, for all the children of Yis’rael are hale, and before the midwife comes to them they are delivered, and as for us your handmaids, for many days no Ivri woman has brought forth upon us, for all the Ivri women are their own midwives, because they are hale.
31
And Par’oh heard their words and believed them in this matter, and the midwives went away from the king, and Elohim dealt well with them, and the people multiplied and grew exceedingly.