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1 These are the names of the children of Israel, who went into Egypt with Jacob, every man with his household:

2 Reuben, Simeon, Levi, and Judah,

3 Issachar, Zebulun, and Benjamin,

4 Dan and Naphtali, Gad and Asher.

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

6 And Joseph died, and all his brethren, and all their generation;

7 And the children of Israel were fruitful and multiplied, and increased and increased exceedingly, and the land was filled with them.

8 And there arose in Egypt a new king, who knew not Joseph,

9 And he said to his people, Behold, the people of the children of Israel are many in number, and stronger than we.

10 Let us outwit him, that he may not multiply; Otherwise, when war comes, he will unite with our enemies, and take up arms against us, and come out of [our] land.

11 And they appointed superintendent labourers over him, that they might weary him with hard labour. And he built Pharaoh Pithom and Ramesses, cities for stores, [and He, otherwise Heliopolis].

12 But the more they wore it out, the more it multiplied, and the more it increased, so that they feared the children of Israel.

13 And therefore the Egyptians cruelly compelled the children of Israel to work

14 And they made their life bitter because of the hard work of clay and bricks, and because of all the work of the field, because of every work to which they were forced with cruelty.

15 And the king of Egypt commanded the midwives of the Hebrew women, of whom the name of one was Shifra, and the other of Phua,

16 And he said to them, 'When you are going to give birth to a Hebrew woman, see that if there is a son, kill him, and if there is a daughter, let him live.'

17 But the midwives feared God, and did not do as the king of Egypt told them, and let the children live.

18 The king of Egypt called the midwives and said to them, "Why do you do such a thing, that you let the children live?"

19 The midwives said to Pharaoh, "Hebrew women are not like those of Egypt; they are well, for before the midwife comes to them, they are already giving birth.