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he introduces Moses conversing with God in alternating parts. And Moses says: “Ha! What is this sign from a bush to me, both a wonder and an object of disbelief to mortals? Suddenly a bush is burning with much fire, but all its foliage remains green. What is this? I will go forward and see this greatest wonder; for it does not bring belief to men.” 9.29.8 Then God addresses him: “Stop, O best of men, do not approach, Moses, before you loose the bonds from your feet; for the ground on which you stand is holy, and the divine word shines out to you from the bush. Take courage, O child, and hear my words; for it is impossible for one born a mortal to see my face, but you are permitted to hear my words, for which I have come. I am the God of your fathers, whom you speak of, of Abraham and Isaac and Jacob the third. Remembering them and still my gifts, I am here to save my people, the Hebrews, having seen the affliction and toil of my servants. But go and declare with my words first to all the Hebrews together, then to the king the things commanded by me, so that you may lead my people out of the land.” 9.29.9 Then, taking up some alternating lines, Moses himself says: “I am not eloquent of speech, my tongue is slow of speech and of a feeble voice, so that my words may not come before the king.” 9.29.10 Then to these things God answers him: “I will quickly send Aaron your brother, to whom you will say all that has been said by me, and he will speak before the king, you to us, and he, having received them from you.” 9.29.11 And concerning the rod and the other wonders, he spoke thus in alternating parts: “Th. What is this you have in your hands? Speak quickly. M. A rod for punishing four-footed beasts and mortals. Th. Throw it to the ground and step back quickly. For it will be a fearful serpent, so as to cause wonder. M. Behold, it is thrown; Lord, be merciful; how fearful, how monstrous; pity me; I shudder at the sight, and the members of my body tremble. Th. Fear not, but stretch out your hand and take its tail, and it will be a rod again as it was. And put your hand into your bosom and bring it out. M. Behold what was commanded, it has become as snow. Th. Put it back into your bosom, and it will be as it was.”“ 9.29.12 To these he adds, after certain things spoken by him in between, saying: “And Ezekiel says these things thus in the *Exagoge*, saying, introducing God speaking thus concerning the signs: “With this rod you will do all evils; first, the river will flow with blood, and all the springs and bodies of water; and I will cast upon the land a multitude of frogs and gnats. Then I will sprinkle furnace ash on them, and bitter boils will break out on mortals. And the dog-fly will come and afflict many of the Egyptian mortals. And after these things there will be a plague again, and those in whom there is a hard heart will die. And I will embitter the heaven; hail with fire will now fall and will make mortals corpses. And the fruits will be destroyed and the bodies of the four-footed beasts; and I will make darkness for three whole days and I will send locusts, and they will consume all the remaining food and the greenness of the fruit. On top of all these things I will kill the firstborn children of mortals. And I will stop the insolence of evil men. But Pharaoh the king will not be persuaded by any of what I say, except he will have his firstborn child as a corpse; and then, being afraid, he will quickly send the people out; in addition to these things, you will say to all the Hebrews together: This month is the first of the years for you; in this I will lead the people to another land, to which I promised the fathers of the Hebrew race. And you will tell all the people, in the middle of the month I speak of, having sacrificed the Passover to God on the night before, to touch the doors with blood, so that the dread angel may pass by the sign. And you shall feast on roasted meats by night. And in haste the king will cast out the entire crowd. And when you are about to depart, I will give favor to the people, and a woman shall receive from a woman vessels and all the adornment that a person wears, both gold and silver and also garments, so that they may give back to the mortals the wages for what they did. And when you enter your own land, so that from the very dawn you fled from Egypt, journeying for seven days, all of you for so many days each year shall eat unleavened bread and worship God, the first-born animals

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παρεισάγει δι' ἀμοιβαίων τὸν Μωσῆν τῷ θεῷ διαλεγόμενον. φησὶ δὲ ὁ Μωσῆς· «Ἔα· τί μοι σημεῖον ἐκ βάτου τόδε, τεράστιόν τε καὶ βροτοῖς ἀπιστία; ἄφνω βάτος μὲν καίεται πολλῷ πυρί, αὐτοῦ δὲ χλωρὸν πᾶν μένει τὸ βλαστάνον. τί δή; προελθὼν ὄψομαι τεράστιον μέγιστον· οὐ γὰρ πίστιν ἀνθρώποις φέρει.» 9.29.8 εἶτα ὁ θεὸς αὐτῷ προσομιλεῖ· «Ἔπισχες, ὦ φέριστε, μὴ προσεγγίσῃς, Μωσῆ, πρὶν ἢ τῶν σῶν ποδῶν λῦσαι δέσιν· ἁγία γὰρ ἧς σὺ γῆς ἐφέστηκας πέλει, ὁ δ' ἐκ βάτου σοι θεῖος ἐκλάμπει λόγος. θάρσησον, ὦ παῖ, καὶ λόγων ἄκου' ἐμῶν· ἰδεῖν γὰρ ὄψιν τὴν ἐμὴν ἀμήχανον θνητὸν γεγῶτα, τῶν λόγων δ' ἔξεστί σοι ἐμῶν ἀκούειν, τῶν ἕκατ' ἐλήλυθα. ἐγὼ θεὸς σῶν, ὧν λέγεις, γεννητόρων, Ἁβραάμ τε καὶ Ἰσαὰκ καὶ Ἰακώβου τρίτου. μνησθεὶς δ' ἐκείνων καὶ ἔτ' ἐμῶν δωρημάτων πάρειμι σῶσαι λαὸν Ἑβραίων ἐμόν, ἰδὼν κάκωσιν καὶ πόνον δούλων ἐμῶν. ἀλλ' ἕρπε καὶ σήμαινε τοῖς ἐμοῖς λόγοις πρῶτον μὲν αὐτοῖς πᾶσιν Ἑβραίοις ὁμοῦ, ἔπειτα βασιλεῖ τὰ ὑπ' ἐμοῦ τεταγμένα, ὅπως σὺ λαὸν τὸν ἐμὸν ἐξάγοις χθονός.» 9.29.9 εἶτα ὑποβάς τινα ἀμοιβαῖα αὐτὸς ὁ Μωσῆς λέγει· «Οὐκ εὔλογος πέφυκα, γλῶσσα δ' ἐστί μοι δύσφραστος, ἰσχνόφωνος, ὥστε μὴ λόγους ἐμοὺς γενέσθαι βασιλέως ἐναντίον.» 9.29.10 εἶτα πρὸς ταῦτα ὁ θεὸς αὐτῷ ἀποκρίνεται· «Ἀάρωνα πέμψω σὸν κασίγνητον ταχύ, ᾧ πάντα λέξεις τἀξ ἐμοῦ λελεγμένα, καὶ αὐτὸς λαλήσει βασιλέως ἐναντίον, σὺ μὲν πρὸς ἡμᾶς, ὁ δὲ λαβὼν σέθεν πάρα.» 9.29.11 περὶ δὲ τῆς ῥάβδου καὶ τῶν ἄλλων τεράτων οὕτω δι' ἀμοιβαίων εἴρηκε· «Θ. τί δ' ἐν χεροῖν σοῖν τοῦτ' ἔχεις; λέξον τάχος. Μ. ῥάβδον τετραπόδων καὶ βροτῶν κολάστριαν. Θ. ῥῖψον πρὸς οὖδας καὶ ἀποχώρησον ταχύ. δράκων γὰρ ἔσται φοβερός, ὥστε θαυμάσαι. Μ. ἰδοὺ βέβληται· δέσποθ', ἵλεως γενοῦ· ὡς φοβερός, ὡς πέλωρος· οἴκτειρον σύ με· πέφρικ' ἰδών, μέλη δὲ σώματος τρέμει. Θ. μηδὲν φοβηθῇς, χεῖρα δ' ἐκτείνας λαβὲ οὐράν, πάλιν δὲ ῥάβδος ἔσσεθ' ὥσπερ ἦν. ἔνθες δὲ χεῖρ' εἰς κόλπον ἐξένεγκέ τε. Μ. ἰδοὺ τὸ ταχθέν, γέγονεν ὡσπερεὶ χιών. Θ. ἔνθες πάλιν δ' εἰς κόλπον, ἔσται δ' ὥσπερ ἦν.»« 9.29.12 Τούτοις ἐπάγει, μετά τινα τὰ μεταξὺ αὐτῷ εἰρημένα, λεγών· «Ταῦτα δέ φησιν οὕτως καὶ Ἐζεκιῆλος ἐν τῇ Ἐξαγωγῇ λέγων, περὶ μὲν τῶν σημείων τὸν θεὸν παρεισάγων λέγοντα οὕτως· «Ἐν τῇδε ῥάβδῳ πάντα ποιήσεις κακά· πρῶτον μὲν αἷμα ποτάμιον ῥυήσεται πηγαί τε πᾶσαι καὶ ὑδάτων συστήματα· βατράχων τε πλῆθος καὶ σκνίπας ἐμβαλῶ χθονί. ἔπειτα τέφραν οἷς καμιναίαν πάσω, ἀναβρυήσει δ' ἐν βροτοῖς ἕλκη πικρά. κυνόμυια δ' ἥξει καὶ βροτοὺς Αἰγυπτίων πολλοὺς κακώσει. μετὰ δὲ ταῦτ' ἔσται πάλιν λοιμός, θανοῦνται δ' οἷς ἔνεστι καρδία σκληρά. πικράνω δ' οὐρανόν· χάλαζα νῦν σὺν πυρὶ πεσεῖται καὶ νεκροὺς θήσει βροτούς. καρποί τ' ὀλοῦνται τετραπόδων τε σώματα· σκότος τε θήσω τρεῖς ἐφ' ἡμέρας ὅλας ἀκρίδας τε πέμψω, καὶ περισσὰ βρώματα ἅπαντ' ἀναλώσουσι καὶ καρποῦ χλόην. ἐπὶ πᾶσι τούτοις τέκν' ἀποκτενῶ βροτῶν πρωτόγονα. παύσω δ' ὕβριν ἀνθρώπων κακῶν. Φαραὼ δὲ βασιλεὺς πείσετ' οὐδὲν ὧν λέγω, πλὴν τέκνον αὐτοῦ πρωτόγονον ἕξει νεκρόν· καὶ τότε φοβηθεὶς λαὸν ἐκπέμψει ταχύ· πρὸς τοῖσδε λέξεις πᾶσιν Ἑβραίοις ὁμοῦ· Ὁ μεὶς ὅδ' ὑμῖν πρῶτος ἐνιαυτῶν πέλει· ἐν τῷδ' ἀπάξω λαὸν εἰς ἄλλην χθόνα, εἰς ἣν ὑπέστην πατράσιν Ἑβραίων γένους. λέξεις δὲ λαῷ παντί, μηνὸς οὗ λέγω διχομηνία τὸ πάσχα θύσαντας θεῷ τῇ πρόσθε νυκτὶ αἵματι ψαῦσαι θύρας, ὅπως παρέλθῃ σῆμα δεινὸς ἄγγελος. ὑμεῖς δὲ νυκτὸς ὀπτὰ δαίσεσθε κρέα. σπουδῇ δὲ βασιλεὺς ἐκβαλεῖ πρόπαντ' ὄχλον. ὅταν δὲ μέλλητ' ἀποτρέχειν, δώσω χάριν λαῷ, γυνή τε παρὰ γυναικὸς λήψεται σκεύη κόσμον τε πάνθ', ὃν ἄνθρωπος φέρει, χρυσόν τε καὶ τὸν ἄργυρον ἠδὲ καὶ στολάς, ἵν' ὧν ἔπραξαν μισθὸν ἀποδῶσι βροτοῖς. ὅταν δ' ἐς ἴδιον χῶρον εἰσέλθηθ', ὅπως ἀφ' ἧσπερ ἠοῦς ἐφύγετ', Αἰγύπτου δ' ἄπο ἑπτὰ διοδοιποροῦντες ἡμέρας ὁδόν, πάντες τοσαύτας ἡμέρας ἔτος κάτα ἄζυμα ἔδεσθε καὶ θεῷ λατρεύσετε, τὰ πρωτότευκτα ζῷα