Skip to Content
intertextual.bible
Go to Related Reading
About this book

Samaritan Exodus

Samaritan Pentateuch

About this book

Shema’s Passover

Chapter 12

1 And Shema spoke to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt, saying, 2 “This month shall be the beginning of months for you; it shall be the first month of the year to you. 3 Speak now to all the congregation of the children of Israel, saying, ‘On the tenth day of this month each man shall take a lamb, according to their fathers’ houses, a lamb for a household. 4 And if the household is too small for a lamb, then he and his neighbor next to his house shall take one according to the number of persons; you shall count them for the lamb according to how much each person eats.

5 “‘Your lamb shall be without blemish, a male a year old; you shall take it from the sheep, or from the goats. 6 And you shall keep it until the fourteenth day of the same month, and the whole assembly of the congregation of the children of Israel shall kill it at twilight. 7 And they shall take some of the blood, and put it on the two doorposts and on the lintel, on the houses where they shall eat it.

8 “‘And they shall eat the flesh that night, roasted on the fire, they shall eat it with unleavened bread and bitter herbs. 9 Do not eat of it raw or boiled at all with water, but roasted with fire; its head with its legs and with its inner parts. 10 And you shall let nothing of it remain until the morning, and anything that remains until the morning you shall burn with fire. 11 And you shall eat it this way: with your clothes fastened around your waist, your shoes on your feet, and your staffs in your hands; and you shall eat it in a hurry. It is Shema’s Passover.

12 “‘For I will go through the land of Egypt that night, and will strike all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both people and animals. And against all the gods of Egypt I will carry out judgments. I am Shema.

13 “‘And the blood shall be a sign for you on the houses where you are; and when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and the plague shall not be on you to destroy you, when I strike the land of Egypt.

Shema’s “Reminder”: Unleavened Bread

14 “‘And this day shall be a day of remembrance for you, and you shall celebrate it as a festival to Shema; throughout your generations you shall observe it as a statute forever. 15 Seven days you shall eat unleavened bread. But on the first day you shall remove leaven from your houses, for if anyone eats leavened bread from the first day until the seventh day, that person shall be cut off from Israel. 16 And on the first day you shall have a sacred assembly, and on the seventh day a sacred assembly. No kind of work shall be done on those days, except preparing what each person must eat; only that may be done by you. 17 And you shall observe the commandment, for on this very day I have brought your organized groups out of the land of Egypt. Therefore you shall observe and celebrate this day throughout your generations by a statute forever. 18 In the first month, on the fourteenth day of the month at evening, you shall eat unleavened bread, until the twenty-first day of the month at evening. 19 For seven days no leaven shall be found in your houses, for if anyone eats anything leavened, that person shall be cut off from the congregation of Israel, whether he is a foreign resident or a native of the land. 20 You shall eat nothing leavened; in all your homes you shall eat unleavened bread.’”

Israel’s Protection

21 Then Moses called for all the elders of Israel, and said to them, “Choose and take lambs according to your families, and kill the Passover lamb. 22 And you shall take a bunch of hyssop, and dip it in the blood that is in the basin, and sprinkle on the lintel and on the two doorposts from the blood that is in the basin; and none of you shall go out of the door of his house until the morning. 23 For Shema will pass through to strike the Egyptians, and when he sees the blood on the lintel and on the two doorposts, Shema will pass over the door, and will not allow the destroyer to come in to your houses to strike you. 24 And you shall observe this thing as a rule for you and to your sons forever. 25 And when you come to the land which Shema will give you, as he has promised, you shall keep this service in this month. 26 And when your children say to you, ‘What do you mean by this service?’ 27 you shall say, ‘It is the sacrifice of Shema’s Passover, who passed over the houses of the children of Israel in Egypt, when he struck the Egyptians, and saved our houses.’” And the people bowed down and worshiped. 28 And the children of Israel went and did as Shema had commanded Moses and Aaron; that is what they did.

The Tenth Mighty Act

29 And at midnight Shema struck down all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, from the firstborn of Pharaoh that sat on his throne to the firstborn of the captive that was in the dungeon, and all the firstborn of cattle. 30 And Pharaoh got up in the night, he and all his servants, and all the Egyptians, and there was a great cry in Egypt, for there was no house without someone dead. 31 And he called for Moses and Aaron by night, and said, “Get up, go out from among my people, both you and the children of Israel; and go, serve Shema, as you have said. 32 Take both your flocks and your herds, as you have said, and leave; and bless me also.” 33 And the Egyptians pressed the people to leave the land quickly; for they said, “We are all dead men.” 34 And the people took their dough before it was leavened, with their kneading bowls wrapped in their clothes on their shoulders. 35 And the children of Israel did according to the words of Moses, and they asked the Egyptians for vessels of silver, and vessels of gold, and clothing. 36 And Shema gave the people favor in the sight of the Egyptians, so that they let them have what they asked. In this way they plundered the Egyptians.

The Exodus from Egypt

37 And the children of Israel traveled from Rameses to Sukkoth, about six hundred thousand men on foot, besides children. 38 And a mixed crowd went up also with them, and flocks, and herds, a great many cattle. 39 And they baked unleavened cakes of the dough, which they brought out of Egypt, for it was not leavened, because the Egyptians drove them out, and they could not delay, and they had not prepared any provisions for themselves. 40 Now the time that the children of Israel and their ancestors lived in the land of Canaan and in the land of Egypt⁠ was four hundred and thirty years.⁠ 41 And at the end of four hundred and thirty years, on that very day, all the organized groups of Shema went out from the land of Egypt 42 at night. It is a night to be carefully observed for Shema for bringing them out from the land of Egypt. This is that night of Shema, to be carefully observed by all the children of Israel throughout their generations.

43 And Shema said to Moses and to Aaron, “This is the rule of the Passover: no foreigner shall eat of it; 44 but every man’s servant that is bought for his money, when you have circumcised him, then he shall eat of it. 45 A foreign resident and a hired servant shall not eat of it. 46 It shall be eaten in one house; you shall not take any of the flesh outside of the house; and you shall not break a bone of it. 47 All the congregation of Israel shall keep it. 48 And when a foreigner lives among you and wants to keep the Passover to Shema, let all his males be circumcised, and then let him come near and keep it; and he shall be like a native of the land, but no uncircumcised person shall eat of it. 49 The same law shall apply to the native and to the foreigner who lives among you.” 50 And all the children of Israel did as Shema commanded Moses and Aaron; that is what they did. 51 And on that very day Shema did bring the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt in their organized groups.

Continue to Samaritan Targum Exodus

Texts in conversation

Compare Samaritan Exodus 12:40 and Mekhilta d'Rabbi Ishmael, Pisha 14

Samaritan · Rabbinic

Share:

Summary

In the Samaritan Pentateuch, Israel’s four hundred and thirty years include the time in Canaan as well as in Egypt. Rabbinic tradition in Mekhilta de-Rabbi Ishmael counts the years differently and lists this among the elders’ changes for King Ptolemy.

Passages

Samaritan Exodus 12:40

Samaritan · Samaritan Pentateuch
39 And they baked unleavened cakes of the dough, which they brought out of Egypt, for it was not leavened, because the Egyptians drove them out, and they could not delay, and they had not prepared any provisions for themselves. 40 Now the time that the children of Israel and their ancestors lived in the land of Canaan and in the land of Egypt was four hundred and thirty years. 41 And at the end of four hundred and thirty years, on that very day, all the organized groups of Shema went out from the land of Egypt
200–101 BCE Read in Samaritan Exodus

Mekhilta d'Rabbi Ishmael, Pisha 14

Rabbinic · Halakhic Midrash
15 (One verse (Exodus 12:40) states "And the habitation of the children of Israel in the land of Egypt was four hundred and thirty years," and another, (Genesis 15:13) "and they shall serve them and they shall afflict them four hundred years." How are these two verses to be reconciled? Thirty years before the birth of Isaac, the covenant between the pieces (at which the above was said) was made, (and after his birth until the exodus four hundred years elapsed.) 16 Rebbi says: One verse states: "and they shall serve them and they shall afflict them four hundred years," and another, (Ibid. 16) "and the fourth generation will return here." How are these two verses to be reconciled? If they repent, I will redeem them by generations (Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and the tribes). If not, I will redeem them by years. 17 "And the habitation of the children of Israel in Egypt and in other lands was four hundred and thirty years." This is one of the verses that they (the seventy-two elders changed) in transcribing (the Torah) for King Ptolemy, viz. (Megillah 9a): Once King Ptolemy assembled seventy-two elders and placed each in a separate house (without telling them why he was doing so), and he said to each of them: "Transcribe for me [into Greek] the Torah of Moses your teacher." The Holy One Blessed be He placed goodly counsel in the heart of each, and they all wrote as one (Genesis 1:1): "G–d created in the beginning" [so that Ptolemy could not structure the words as: "In the beginning, god was created."] [They wrote] (Ibid. 1:26): "I will make a man in image and form" [and not, literally: "Let us make a man, etc.", so that he would not be able to argue for a plurality of gods]. [They wrote] (Ibid. 2:2): "And He finished on the sixth day, and He rested on the seventh day" [and not, literally: "And G–d finished His work on the seventh day," so that he could not argue that G–d worked on the seventh day]. [They wrote] (Ibid. 5:2): "Male and female He created him" [and not, literally: "Male and female He created them" (which Ptolemy could use as an argument for the creation of two separate bodies)]. [They wrote] (Ibid. 11:7): "Let Me go down and confound their tongue" [and not, literally: "Let us go down", so that he would not find support for his polytheistic views]. [They wrote] (Ibid. 18:12): "And Sarah laughed bikrovehah" ["among her neighbors", and not, literally: "bekirbah" ("within her"), so that Ptolemy would not question why Sarah should be punished for laughing, and not Abraham, if they both laughed inwardly]. [They wrote] (Ibid. 49:7): "For in their wrath they killed an ox" [instead of: "a man" (so as not to give Ptolemy a pretext to call Jews murderers)], "and in their willfulness they razed a manger" [instead of: "an ox"]. [They wrote] (Exodus 4:20): "And Moses took his wife and his sons and he rode them on the bearer of men" [instead of "on the ass" (so that he not say that Moses lacked a horse or a camel)]. [They wrote] (Ibid. 12:40): "And the sojourning of the Jews, their dwelling in Egypt and in other lands was four hundred years." [(and not just: "their dwelling in Egypt," as per the verse, which would be open to dispute by Ptolemy's reckoning)]. [They wrote] (Ibid. 24:5): "And he sent the dignitaries of the children of Israel" [lest "youths" be taken demeaningly]; (Ibid. 11): "And to the dignitaries of the children of Israel, He did not stretch forth His hand." [They wrote] (Numbers 16:15): "Not one desirable object of theirs" [(instead of, literally: "Not one ass of theirs")] have I taken" [thus preventing Ptolemy from contending that it was only an ass that Moses had not taken]. [They wrote] (Deuteronomy 4:19): ["all the host of heaven …] which the L–rd your G–d bequeathed for illumination to all the peoples under the heavens" [and not, as in the verse: "which the L–rd your G–d bequeathed to all the peoples under the heavens," thus preventing him from construing this verse as a license for idolatry]. [They wrote] (Ibid. 17:3): "and he go and serve other gods … which I did not command to serve" [instead of, as per the verse: "which I did not command", lest he misconstrue it as: "which I did not command to exist" (and which "forced themselves" into creation against My will)]. And instead of (Leviticus 11:6): "And the arneveth (hare) […it is unclean to you"], they wrote: "the slender-legged"; for Ptolemy's wife was called "Arneveth", and Ptolemy would [otherwise] say: "The Jews have poked fun at me and put my wife's name in the Torah!" (Megillah 9a) 18 (Exodus 12:41) "and it was at the end of four hundred and thirty years": We are hereby apprised that when the time arrived, the L–rd did not delay them for one moment. On the fifteenth of Nissan the ministering angels came to Abraham to apprise him (that Isaac would be born); (on the fifteenth of Nissan he was born) and on the fifteenth of Nissan the decree went forth (in the covenant) between the pieces, it being written "And it was at the end" — there was one end for all of them. "and it was on this very same day that all the hosts of the L–rd went forth": (The Shechinah, too, went forth with them.) 19 And thus do you find, that whenever Israel is in bondage, the Shechinah is with them, viz. (Exodus 24:10) "And they saw the G–d of Israel, and under His feet, as the work of a sapphire brick" (the sign of that bondage). And what is written of their redemption? (Ibid.) "and as the appearance of the heavens in brightness." And it is written (Isaiah 63:9) "In all of their sorrows, He sorrowed." This tells me only of communal sorrows. Whence do I derive (the same for) those of the individual? From (Psalms 91:15) "He will call upon Me and I will answer Him; I am with him in sorrow," and (Genesis 39:20-21) "And Joseph's master took him and placed him in the prison house … and the L–rd was with Joseph, etc.", and (II Samuel 7:23) "… before Your people whom You have redeemed from Egypt, a nation and its G–d." 20 R. Eliezer says: Idolatry passed with Israel in the sea, viz. (Zechariah 10:11) "And a 'rival' passed in the sea, and struck waves in the sea." Which was that? The idol of Michah (viz. Shoftim 17:4). 21 R. Akiva said (on II Samuel 7:23): Were it not explicitly written, it would be impossible to say it, Israel saying before the L–rd, as it were, "You redeemed Yourself!" 22 And thus do you find, that wherever they were exiled, the Shechinah was with them. They were exiled to Egypt — the Shechinah was with them, viz. (I Samuel 2:27) "Did I not reveal Myself to your father's house when they were in Egypt? They were exiled to Bavel — the Shechinah was with them, viz. (Isaiah 43:14) "For your sake I was exiled to Bavel." They were exiled to Eilam — the Shechinah was with them, viz. (Jeremiah 49:38) "and I set My throne in Eilam." They were exiled to Edom — the Shechinah was with them, viz. (Isaiah 63:1) "Who is This coming from Edom, His garments crimsoned, from Batzrah?" 23 And when they return in the future, the Shechinah will be with them, viz. (Devarim 30:3) "And veshav the L–rd your G–d." It is not written "veheshiv" ("He will return" [you]), but "veshav" ("He [Himself] will return.") and it is written (Song of Songs 4:8) "With Me from Levanon (the Temple), My bride (Israel); with Me from Levanon come." Now is she (Israel) coming from Levanon? Is she not ascending to Levanon? (The intent is: You and I were exiled from Levanon) and we will ascend) together) to Levanon.
250–300 CE Read in the Mekhilta d'Rabbi Ishmael

References

... The well known explanation that the period of four hundred years, or four hundred and thirty years, is to be reckoned from the time of Isaac's birth or of the 'Covenant between the Pieces' is Midrashic; likewise the addition found in the Samaritan Pentateuch and in the Septuagint in Exodus 12:40 (the Samaritan reads: 'in the land of Canaan and in the land of Egypt'; the Septuagint: 'in the land of Egypt and in the land of Canaan', supplemented in several manuscripts by: 'they and their ancestors') reflects a similar Midrashic exegesis. According to the simple meaning of the Biblical text, the passages in question have to be explained differently. ...
Umberto Cassuto, A Commentary on the Book of Exodus, trans. Israel Abrahams (Jerusalem: Hebrew University Magnes, 1967), 86.

References are not endorsements of their contents. Read each reference in full to understand its author's intentions in using these texts.

Your feedback

Last updated

Samaritan Exodus 12:40 and Mekhilta d'Rabbi Ishmael, Pisha 14

Leave a comment

Your questions and comments are welcome!

Comments

Glossary

Search the Library