14 Then the Lord said to Moses, 2 “Tell the Israelites to turn back and encamp near Pi Hahiroth, between Migdoll and the sea. They are to encamp by the sea, directly opposite Baal Zephon.m 3 Pharaoh will think, ‘The Israelites are wandering around the land in confusion, hemmed in by the desert.’ 4 And I will harden Pharaoh’s heart,n and he will pursue them.o But I will gain gloryp for myself through Pharaoh and all his army, and the Egyptians will know that I am the Lord.”q So the Israelites did this.

5 When the king of Egypt was told that the people had fled,r Pharaoh and his officials changed their mindss about them and said, “What have we done? We have let the Israelites go and have lost their services!” 6 So he had his chariot made ready and took his army with him. 7 He took six hundred of the best chariots,t along with all the other chariots of Egypt, with officers over all of them. 8 The Lord hardened the heartu of Pharaoh king of Egypt, so that he pursued the Israelites, who were marching out boldly.v 9 The Egyptians—all Pharaoh’s horsesw and chariots, horsemena and troopsx—pursued the Israelites and overtooky them as they camped by the sea near Pi Hahiroth, opposite Baal Zephon.z

10 As Pharaoh approached, the Israelites looked up, and there were the Egyptians, marching after them. They were terrified and crieda out to the Lord. 11 They said to Moses, “Was it because there were no graves in Egypt that you brought us to the desert to die?b What have you done to us by bringing us out of Egypt? 12 Didn’t we say to you in Egypt, ‘Leave us alone; let us serve the Egyptians’? It would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the desert!”c

13 Moses answered the people, “Do not be afraid.d Stand firm and you will seee the deliverance the Lord will bring you today. The Egyptians you see today you will never seef again. 14 The Lord will fightg for you; you need only to be still.”h

15 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Why are you crying out to me?i Tell the Israelites to move on. 16 Raise your staffj and stretch out your hand over the sea to divide the waterk so that the Israelites can go through the sea on dry ground. 17 I will harden the heartsl of the Egyptians so that they will go in after them.m And I will gain glory through Pharaoh and all his army, through his chariots and his horsemen. 18 The Egyptians will know that I am the Lordn when I gain glory through Pharaoh, his chariots and his horsemen.”

19 Then the angel of God,o who had been traveling in front of Israel’s army, withdrew and went behind them. The pillar of cloudp also moved from in front and stood behindq them, 20 coming between the armies of Egypt and Israel. Throughout the night the cloud brought darknessr to the one side and light to the other side; so neither went near the other all night long.

21 Then Moses stretched out his hands over the sea,t and all that night the Lord drove the sea back with a strong east windu and turned it into dry land.v The waters were divided,w 22 and the Israelites went through the seax on dry ground,y with a wallz of water on their right and on their left.

23 The Egyptians pursued them, and all Pharaoh’s horses and chariots and horsemena followed them into the sea. 24 During the last watch of the night the Lord looked down from the pillar of fire and cloudb at the Egyptian army and threw it into confusion.c 25 He jammedb the wheels of their chariots so that they had difficulty driving. And the Egyptians said, “Let’s get away from the Israelites! The Lord is fightingd for them against Egypt.”e

26 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand over the sea so that the waters may flow back over the Egyptians and their chariots and horsemen.” 27 Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and at daybreak the sea went back to its place.f The Egyptians were fleeing towardc it, and the Lord swept them into the sea.g 28 The water flowed back and covered the chariots and horsemen—the entire army of Pharaoh that had followed the Israelites into the sea.h Not one of them survived.i

29 But the Israelites went through the sea on dry ground,j with a wallk of water on their right and on their left. 30 That day the Lord savedl Israel from the hands of the Egyptians, and Israel saw the Egyptians lying dead on the shore. 31 And when the Israelites saw the mighty handm of the Lord displayed against the Egyptians, the people fearedn the Lord and put their trusto in him and in Moses his servant.

The Priestly Garments

39 From the blue, purple and scarlet yarni they made woven garments for ministering in the sanctuary.j They also made sacred garmentsk for Aaron, as the Lord commanded Moses.

The Ephod

39:2–7pp—Ex 28:6–14

2 Theya made the ephod of gold, and of blue, purple and scarlet yarn, and of finely twisted linen. 3 They hammered out thin sheets of gold and cut strands to be worked into the blue, purple and scarlet yarn and fine linen—the work of skilled hands. 4 They made shoulder pieces for the ephod, which were attached to two of its corners, so it could be fastened. 5 Its skillfully woven waistband was like it—of one piece with the ephod and made with gold, and with blue, purple and scarlet yarn, and with finely twisted linen, as the Lord commanded Moses.

6 They mounted the onyx stones in gold filigree settings and engraved them like a seal with the names of the sons of Israel. 7 Then they fastened them on the shoulder pieces of the ephod as memoriall stones for the sons of Israel, as the Lord commanded Moses.

The Breastpiece

39:8–21pp—Ex 28:15–28

8 They fashioned the breastpiecem—the work of a skilled craftsman. They made it like the ephod: of gold, and of blue, purple and scarlet yarn, and of finely twisted linen. 9 It was square—a spanb long and a span wide—and folded double. 10 Then they mounted four rows of precious stones on it. The first row was carnelian, chrysolite and beryl; 11 the second row was turquoise, lapis lazuli and emerald; 12 the third row was jacinth, agate and amethyst; 13 the fourth row was topaz, onyx and jasper.c They were mounted in gold filigree settings. 14 There were twelve stones, one for each of the names of the sons of Israel, each engraved like a seal with the name of one of the twelve tribes.n

15 For the breastpiece they made braided chains of pure gold, like a rope. 16 They made two gold filigree settings and two gold rings, and fastened the rings to two of the corners of the breastpiece. 17 They fastened the two gold chains to the rings at the corners of the breastpiece, 18 and the other ends of the chains to the two settings, attaching them to the shoulder pieces of the ephod at the front. 19 They made two gold rings and attached them to the other two corners of the breastpiece on the inside edge next to the ephod. 20 Then they made two more gold rings and attached them to the bottom of the shoulder pieces on the front of the ephod, close to the seam just above the waistband of the ephod. 21 They tied the rings of the breastpiece to the rings of the ephod with blue cord, connecting it to the waistband so that the breastpiece would not swing out from the ephod—as the Lord commanded Moses.

Other Priestly Garments

39:22–31pp—Ex 28:31–43

22 They made the robe of the ephod entirely of blue cloth—the work of a weaver—23 with an opening in the center of the robe like the opening of a collar,d and a band around this opening, so that it would not tear. 24 They made pomegranates of blue, purple and scarlet yarn and finely twisted linen around the hem of the robe. 25 And they made bells of pure gold and attached them around the hem between the pomegranates. 26 The bells and pomegranates alternated around the hem of the robe to be worn for ministering, as the Lord commanded Moses.

27 For Aaron and his sons, they made tunics of fine lineno—the work of a weaver—28 and the turbanp of fine linen, the linen caps and the undergarments of finely twisted linen. 29 The sash was made of finely twisted linen and blue, purple and scarlet yarn—the work of an embroiderer—as the Lord commanded Moses.

30 They made the plate, the sacred emblem, out of pure gold and engraved on it, like an inscription on a seal: holy to the Lord.q 31 Then they fastened a blue cord to it to attach it to the turban,r as the Lord commanded Moses.

Moses Inspects the Tabernacle

39:32–41pp—Ex 35:10–19

32 So all the work on the tabernacle, the tent of meeting, was completed. The Israelites did everything just as the Lord commanded Moses.s 33 Then they brought the tabernaclet to Moses: the tent and all its furnishings, its clasps, frames, crossbars, posts and bases; 34 the covering of ram skins dyed red and the covering of another durable leathere and the shielding curtain; 35 the ark of the covenant lawu with its poles and the atonement cover; 36 the tablev with all its articles and the bread of the Presence;w 37 the pure gold lampstandx with its row of lamps and all its accessories,y and the olive oilz for the light; 38 the gold altar,a the anointing oil,b the fragrant incense,c and the curtaind for the entrance to the tent; 39 the bronze altare with its bronze grating, its poles and all its utensils; the basinf with its stand; 40 the curtains of the courtyard with its posts and bases, and the curtain for the entrance to the courtyard;g the ropes and tent pegs for the courtyard; all the furnishings for the tabernacle, the tent of meeting; 41 and the woven garmentsh worn for ministering in the sanctuary, both the …