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¹ And there went a man out of the house of Leui, and toke to wyfe a daughter of Leui.² And the wyfe conceaued and bare a sonne: and when she sawe that it was a proper childe, she hyd him three monethes.³ And when she coulde no longer hyde hym, she toke a basket [made] of bull russhes, and dawbed it with slyme and pitche, and layed the chylde therein, and put it in the flagges by the riuers brinke⁴ And his sister stoode a farre of, to wit what woulde come of it.

⁵ And the daughter of Pharao came downe to wasshe her selfe in the ryuer, and her maydens walked along by the ryuers syde: And when she sawe the basket among the flagges, she sent her mayde to fetch it.⁶ And when she had opened it, she sawe it was a chylde: and beholde, the babe wept. And she had compassion on it, and sayde: it is one of the Hebrues chyldren.⁷ Then sayde his sister to Pharaos daughter: shall I go and call to thee a nurse of the Hebrues women, to nurse thee the chylde?⁸ Pharaos daughter aunswered her: go. And the mayde ranne and called the chyldes mother.⁹ To whom Pharaos daughter sayde: Take this chylde away, and nurse it for me, and I wyll rewarde thee. And the woman toke the chylde, & nursed it vp.¹⁰ The chylde grewe, and she brought it vnto Pharaos daughter, and it was made her sonne. And she called ye name of it Moyses: because [sayde she] I toke hym out of the water.

¹¹ And in those dayes, when Moyses was waxed great, he went out vnto his brethren, & loked on their burdens, and spyed an Egyptian smytyng an Hebrue which was one of his brethren.¹² And he loked rounde about, and when he sawe no man by, he slewe the Egyptian, and hyd hym in the sande.¹³ And when he was gone out another day, beholde, two men of the Hebrues stroue together: And he saide vnto him that dyd the wrong, Wherefore smytest thou thy felowe?¹⁴ He aunswered: Who made thee a man of aucthoritie and a iudge ouer vs? intendest thou to kyll me, as thou kylledst the Egyptian? And Moyses feared and sayde: Of a suretie this thyng is knowen.¹⁵ And Pharao heard of it, and went about to slaye Moyses. And Moyses fleyng from the face of Pharao, dwelt in the lande of Madian: and he sate downe by the welles syde.

¹⁶ The priest of Madian had vij. daughters, which came and drewe [water] and filled the troughes for to water their fathers sheepe.¹⁷ And the shepheardes came and droue them away: but Moyses stoode vp and helped them, and watred their sheepe.¹⁸ And when they came to Raguel their father, he sayde: Howe came it to passe that ye are come so soone to day?¹⁹ And they aunswered: A man of Egypt deliuered vs from the handes of the shepheardes, and so drewe vs water, and watered the sheepe.²⁰ He saide vnto his daughters: & where is he? why haue ye so left the man? Call hym, that he may eate bread.²¹ And Moyses was content to dwell with the man: & he gaue Moyses Sephora his daughter:²² Which bare him a sonne, and he called his name Gershom: For he saide, I haue ben a straunger in a straunge land.

²³ And in processe of tyme the kyng of Egypt dyed, and the chyldren of Israel syghed by the reason of bondage, and cryed.²⁴ And their complaynt came vp vnto God from the bondage: and God heard their mone, and God remembred his couenaunt with Abraham, Isahac, and Iacob.²⁵ And God loked vpon the chyldren of Israel, and God had respecte vnto them.