The Bible tells us how God advises Moses to seek the help of his brother Aron, and how they together come to the Pharaoh to convey to him God's demand to free the Hebrews. As expected, the Pharaoh did not give in easily; worse, life for the Hebrews became even more difficult. To prove that he was God's messenger, Moses called down the ten plagues to be visited upon Egypt:

• 1. Blood

• 2. Frogs

• 3. Lice

• 4. Wild beasts

• 5. Pestilence

• 6. Boils

• 7. Hail

• 8. Locusts

• 9. Darkness

• 10. Slaying of the firstborn males

After each plague, Moses asked Pharaoh to change his mind, but the Pharaoh was stubborn. Finally, Moses threatened him with the tenth plague, the slaughter of firstborns, which would include the Pharaoh's own son. On the eve of the tenth plague, before the fifteenth day of Nisan, God instructed Moses to tell Israelite families to slaughter an unblemished lamb and smear its blood over the doorposts and thresholds of the Jewish homes.

According to Jewish oral tradition, the lamb was one of the Egyptian deities. By selecting a lamb for slaughter, the Israelites rejected pagan beliefs and demonstrated their devotion to God.

The Passover Meal

During the night, the Hebrews ate the roasted lamb, unleavened bread (because there was not sufficient time for the dough to rise), and maror (bitter herbs), a meal that was the original seder (Passover dinner). While they recounted the many miracles God had performed for them, at exactly midnight the Angel of Death swept through Egypt, killing all the male firstborns. Because he passed over the homes of the Israelites, which were marked with the smeared blood of the sacrificial lamb, the holiday that celebrates the Jews’ eventual liberation from Egypt is known as Pesach (Hebrew for “Passover”).

The Israelites Leave Egypt

The next day was the day of mourning for all Egyptians. The Pharaoh, in turmoil over the loss of his son, ordered the Israelites to immediately leave Egypt. Moses instructed the Israelites to visit all the Egyptians they knew and ask for their gold and jewelry, some of which would later be used to construct the Golden Calf. Rushed as they were, the Hebrews did not have time to bake their bread and the dough they kneaded did not have the opportunity to rise, which is one reason Jews eat matzah during Passover.

Under the leadership of Moses, it is believed that as many as two million descendants of Jacob/Israel emerged from Egypt on the fifteenth day of Nisan. However, Pharaoh soon regretted his decision. The Egyptian army set off to pursue the Israelites, catching up with them on the twenty-first day of Nisan at the Sea of Reeds (also known as the Red Sea).

Bedouin traveling on camels along the Red Sea.

With the sea directly ahead of them and Pharaoh's mighty army at their backs, the Israelites were trapped. It was then, according to the Book of Exodus, that a miracle happened. God parted the water and allowed the Israelites to cross over to the other side. When every single one of them finally reached the other shore, the water rushed back to reclaim its territory. The Egyptian soldiers were caught in the middle of the rushing waves and drowned. The Israelites were safe. Gathered together, they sang songs of praise to God.

Many scholars believe that Ramses II (1300–1234 B.C.E.), who was especially notorious for his deployment of slave labor to construct his building projects, was the Pharaoh who enslaved the Israelites. However, it is likely that it was Ramses’ son Merneptah who was the Pharaoh at the time of the plagues and the exodus of the Israelites from Egypt.