The Early Church

And he gave him the covenant of circumcision: and so Abraham begat Isaac, and circumcised him the eighth day; and Isaac begat Jacob, and Jacob the twelve patriarchs.

And the patriarchs, moved with jealousy against Joseph, sold him into Egypt: and God was with him,

and delivered him out of all his afflictions, and gave him favor and wisdom before Pharaoh king of Egypt; and he made him governor over Egypt and all his house.

Now there came a famine over all Egypt and Canaan, and great affliction: and our fathers found no sustenance.

But when Jacob heard that there was grain in Egypt, he sent forth our fathers the first time.

And at the second time Joseph was made known to his brethren; and Joseph’s race became manifest unto Pharaoh.

And Joseph sent, and called to him Jacob his father, and all his kindred, threescore and fifteen souls.

And Jacob went down into Egypt; and he died, himself and our fathers;

and they were carried over unto Shechem, and laid in the tomb that Abraham bought for a price in silver of the sons of Hamor in Shechem.

But as the time of the promise drew nigh which God vouchsafed unto Abraham, the people grew and multiplied in Egypt,

till there arose another king over Egypt, who knew not Joseph.

The same dealt craftily with our race, and ill-treated our fathers, that they should cast out their babes to the end they might not live.

At which season Moses was born, and was exceeding fair; and he was nourished three months in his father’s house:

and when he was cast out, Pharaoh’s daughter took him up, and nourished him for her own son.

And Moses was instructed in all the wisdom of the Egyptians; and he was mighty in his words and works.

But when he was well-nigh forty years old, it came into his heart to visit his brethren the children of Israel.

And seeing one of them suffer wrong, he defended him, and avenged him that was oppressed, smiting the Egyptian:

and he supposed that his brethren understood that God by his hand was giving them deliverance; but they understood not.

And the day following he appeared unto them as they strove, and would have set them at one again, saying, Sirs, ye are brethren; why do ye wrong one to another?

But he that did his neighbor wrong thrust him away, saying, Who made thee a ruler and a judge over us?

Wouldest thou kill me, as thou killedst the Egyptian yesterday?

And Moses fled at this saying, and became a sojourner in the land of Midian, where he begat two sons.

And when forty years were fulfilled, an angel appeared to him in the wilderness of mount Sinai, in a flame of fire in a bush.

And when Moses saw it, he wondered at the sight: and as he drew near to behold, there came a voice of the Lord,

I am the God of thy fathers, the God of Abraham, and of Isaac, and of Jacob. And Moses trembled, and durst not behold.