1 These are the names of the Israelites who went with Jacob to Egypt, each of them went with his family:
2 Reuben, Simeon, Levi and Judah,
3 Issachar, Zebulun and Benjamin,
4 Dan and Naphtali, Gad and Asher.
5 In all, the descendants of Jacob numbered seventy persons. Joseph was in Egypt already.
6 Then Joseph died, and his brothers, and all that generation.
7 But the Israelites were fruitful and prolific; they became so numerous and powerful that eventually the whole land was full of them.
8 Then there came to power in Egypt a new king who had never heard of Joseph.
9 ‘Look,’ he said to his people, ‘the Israelites are now more numerous and stronger than we are.
10 We must take precautions to stop them from increasing any further, or if war should break out, they might join the ranks of our enemies. They might take arms against us and then escape from the country.’
11 Accordingly they put taskmasters over the Israelites to wear them down by forced labour. In this way they built the store-cities of Pithom and Rameses for Pharaoh.
12 But the harder their lives were made, the more they increased and spread, until people came to fear the Israelites.
13 So the Egyptians gave them no mercy in the demands they made,
14 making their lives miserable with hard labour: with digging clay, making bricks, doing various kinds of field — work — all sorts of labour that they imposed on them without mercy.
15 The king of Egypt then spoke to the Hebrew midwives, one of whom was called Shiphrah, and the other Puah.
16 ‘When you attend Hebrew women in childbirth,’ he said, ‘look at the two stones. If it is a boy, kill him; if a girl, let her live.’
17 But the midwives were God-fearing women and did not obey the orders of the king of Egypt, but allowed the boys to live.
18 So the king of Egypt summoned the midwives and said to them, ‘What do you mean by allowing the boys to live?’
19 The midwives said to Pharaoh, ‘Hebrew women are not like Egyptian women, they are hardy and give birth before the midwife can get to them.’
20 For this, God was good to the midwives, and the people went on increasing and growing more powerful;
21 and since the midwives feared God, he gave them families of their own.
22 Pharaoh then gave all his people this command: ‘Throw every new-born boy into the river, but let all the girls live.’
A Brief Summary of Exodus Chapter 1
This chapter of the Bible begins by listing the names of Jacob’s descendants, the Israelites, who traveled with him to Egypt. In total, 70 people from Jacob’s family went, including his sons Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, Zebulun, Benjamin, Dan, Naphtali, Gad, and Asher. At this point, Joseph was already living in Egypt.
Over time, the Israelites thrived in Egypt, growing in numbers and strength. After Joseph and his generation passed away, a new Egyptian king came to power, one who didn’t know Joseph or his contributions to Egypt’s prosperity. The new Pharaoh saw the rapidly growing Israelite population as a threat. He feared they might align with Egypt’s enemies during wartime and possibly leave Egypt, causing disruption.
In response, Pharaoh enslaved the Israelites and forced them into hard labor, making them build storage cities like Pithom and Rameses. Despite this harsh treatment, the Israelites continued to multiply, which frightened the Egyptians even more. To control the growing population, the Egyptians made their lives even more miserable by forcing them into backbreaking work with no mercy.
Pharaoh then instructed the Hebrew midwives, Shiphrah and Puah, to kill any Hebrew boys born during childbirth, but to let the girls live. However, the midwives feared God and chose not to follow Pharaoh’s orders, allowing the boys to live. When Pharaoh confronted them, they explained that Hebrew women gave birth so quickly that the midwives couldn’t get there in time to intervene.
Because of their faithfulness, God blessed these midwives, giving them families of their own. Frustrated that his plan had failed, Pharaoh gave a new order to his people: every newborn Hebrew boy must be thrown into the river, while the girls could live.
This chapter sets the stage for the oppression of the Israelites in Egypt, which ultimately leads to the story of Moses and the Exodus. It highlights the resilience of the Israelites and the courage of the midwives, who defied a powerful king to protect innocent lives.