¶ The chyldren of Iacob are nombred. The new Pharao oppresseth them. The acte of the godlye mydwyues.
CAPITVLO. I.
[ A] THESE ARE THE NA∣mes of the chyldren of Israel, whiche came to Egypte with Ia∣cob, euerye man with his hous∣holde: Ruben, Simeon, Leui, Iuda, Isachar, Zabulon, BenIamin, Dan, Nephtali, Gad and Aser. All these soules pro∣cedinge out of the loynes of Iacob, were .lxx. where as Ioseph was in Egypte all redye. When Ioseph was dead, and al his brethern and all the generation: the children of Is∣rael grewe, encreased, multyplyed, and wa∣xed very myghtye: so that the lande was full of them.
[ B] Then there rose vp a newe kynge in Egypt whiche knewe not Ioseph. And he sayde vn∣to his folke: beholde the people of the childrē of Israel are mō & myghtyer than we. Come, let vs playe wysely with them: lest they mul∣tiplye, and so (yf there chaunce any warre) they ioyne them selues to oure ennemyes and fyghte agaynste vs, and so gette them oute of the lande.
[ C] And he set taskemasters ouer them, to kepe them vnder with burdens. And they buylt vn∣to Pharao cyties of defense: Phiton and Ra∣meses. But the more they vexed thē, the more they multyplyed and grewe: so that they ab∣horred the children of Israel. And the Egyp∣tians helde the children of Israel in bondage withoute mercye, and made their lyues bitter vnto theym, with cruell laboure in claye, and brycke, and all maner worke in the feldes, and in all maner seruice, whiche they caused them to worke, cruelly.
And the kynge of Egypte sayde vnto the mydwyues of the Ebrueswomen, of whiche the ones name was Sephora, and the other Phua: When ye do the office of a mydwyfe, to the women of the Ebrues, & se in the byrth tyme that it is a boye, kyll it. But yf it be a mayde, let it lyue. Notwithstanding the myd∣wyues feared God, and dyd not as the kynge of Egypte commaunded them: but saued the men children.
Then the kynge of Egypte called for the [ D] mydwyues, and sayde vnto them: why haue ye delt on this maner, and haue saued the mē∣children? And the mydwyues answered Pha∣rao / that the Ebrues wemen were not as the wemen of Egypte: but were sturdy women, and were delyuered afore the midwyues came at them. And god therfore delt well with the mydwyues. And the people multiplyed and waxed very myghty. And because the mydwy∣ues feared God, he made them houses.
Then Pharao charged all his people, say∣enge. All the menchildren that are borne, caste into the ryuer, and saue the maydechildren a lyue.