Exodus — Chapter 1
King James Version (KJV)
📖 Read the complete KJV chapter below. After verse 22, continue to 📚 Study This Chapter for explanations and memory checks.
Scripture source: Project Gutenberg KJV, ebook 10.
Exodus 1:1 Now these are the names of the children of Israel, which came into Egypt; every man and his household came with Jacob.
Exodus 1:2 RReuben, Simeon, Levi, and Judah,
Exodus 1:3 RIssachar, Zebulun, and Benjamin,
Exodus 1:4 Dan, and Naphtali, Gad, and Asher.
Exodus 1:5 And all the souls that came out of the RTloins of Jacob were seventy souls: for Joseph was in Egypt already.
Exodus 1:6 RAnd Joseph died, and all his brethren, and all that generation.
Exodus 1:7 And the children of Israel were Rfruitful, and increased abundantly, and multiplied, and waxed exceeding mighty; and the land was filled with them.
Exodus 1:8 Now there arose up Ra new king over Egypt, which knew not Joseph.
Exodus 1:9 And he said unto his people, Behold, Rthe people of the children of Israel are more and mightier than we:
Exodus 1:10 RCome on, let us deal wisely with them; lest they multiply, and it come to pass, that, when there falleth out any war, they join also unto our enemies, and fight against us, and so get them up out of the land.
Exodus 1:11 Therefore they did set over them taskmasters Rto afflict them with their burdens. And they built for Pharaoh treasure cities, Pithom and Raamses.
Exodus 1:12 RTBut the more they afflicted them, the more they multiplied and grew. And they were grieved because of the children of Israel.
Exodus 1:13 And the Egyptians made the children of Israel to serve with rigour:
Exodus 1:14 And they made Rtheir lives bitter with hard bondage, in morter, and in brick, and in all manner of service in the field: all their service, wherein they made them serve, was with rigour.
Exodus 1:15 And the king of Egypt spake to the Hebrew midwives, of which the name of the one was Shiphrah, and the name of the other Puah:
Exodus 1:16 And he said, When ye do the office of a midwife to the Hebrew women, and see them upon the stools; if it be a son, Rthen ye shall kill him: but if it be a daughter, then she shall live.
Exodus 1:17 But the midwives Rfeared God, and did not as the king of Egypt commanded them, but saved the men children alive.
Exodus 1:18 And the king of Egypt called for the midwives, and said unto them, RWhy have ye done this thing, and have saved the men children alive?
Exodus 1:19 And the midwives said unto Pharaoh, Because the Hebrew women are not as the Egyptian women; for they are lively, and are delivered ere the midwives come in unto them.
Exodus 1:20 Therefore RGod dealt well with the midwives: and the people multiplied, and waxed very mighty.
Exodus 1:21 And it came to pass, because the midwives feared God, that he Rmade them houses.
Exodus 1:22 And Pharaoh charged all his people, saying, REvery son that is born ye shall cast into the river, and every daughter ye shall save alive.
📚 Study This Chapter
📖 What We’re Reading
Exodus 1:1–7 — Israel Multiplies in Egypt
🌱 What These Verses Teach Us
Exodus opens by connecting the story directly to Jacob’s family in Genesis. Joseph and his generation die, but the children of Israel multiply greatly in Egypt.
Key Truth: God’s people continue to grow even after the generation that first entered Egypt has passed away.
Check What You Remember
1. How many descendants of Jacob came into Egypt? (Exodus 1:5)
Find it in Exodus 1:5 (KJV).
2. Who was already in Egypt? (Exodus 1:5)
Find it in Exodus 1:5 (KJV).
3. What happened to Joseph and his generation? (Exodus 1:6)
Find it in Exodus 1:6 (KJV).
📖 What We’re Reading
Exodus 1:8–14 — A New King Oppresses Israel
🌱 What These Verses Teach Us
A new king who does not know Joseph sees Israel’s growing population as a threat. The Egyptians place taskmasters over the Israelites and make their lives bitter with hard bondage, yet affliction does not stop their multiplication.
Key Truth: Oppression increases, but it does not prevent the children of Israel from multiplying.
Check What You Remember
1. Did the new king know Joseph? (Exodus 1:8)
Find it in Exodus 1:8 (KJV).
2. Name both treasure cities Israel built for Pharaoh. (Exodus 1:11)
Find it in Exodus 1:11 (KJV).
3. As Israel was afflicted more, did they increase or decrease? (Exodus 1:12)
Find it in Exodus 1:12 (KJV).
📖 What We’re Reading
Exodus 1:15–22 — The Hebrew Midwives Fear God
🌱 What These Verses Teach Us
Pharaoh commands the Hebrew midwives to kill the male children, but Shiphrah and Puah fear God and do not obey the king’s command. Pharaoh then orders his people to cast every newborn Hebrew son into the river.
Key Truth: The chapter specifically records that the midwives feared God and preserved the children alive.
Check What You Remember
1. Name both Hebrew midwives. (Exodus 1:15)
Find it in Exodus 1:15 (KJV).
2. Whom did the midwives fear? (Exodus 1:17)
Find it in Exodus 1:17 (KJV).
3. Where did Pharaoh order newborn sons to be cast? (Exodus 1:22)
Find it in Exodus 1:22 (KJV).
Advanced Questions and Answers
Study this chapter’s wording, patterns, contrasts, and meaning in greater depth.
1. Why does the king treat Israel’s growth as a threat?
2. How does the result of affliction differ from its intended restraint?
3. What makes the midwives’ conduct a refusal of royal policy?
4. How does the final command broaden the earlier attempt against Hebrew sons?
5. What explanation does the chapter give for God making the midwives houses?
Notes
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