Read the Bible

¹ Give thanks to the Lord and pray to him.
    Tell the nations what he has done.
² Sing to him; sing praises to him.
    Tell about all his miracles.
³ Be glad that you are his;
    let those who seek the Lord be happy.
⁴ Depend on the Lord and his strength;
    always go to him for help.
⁵ Remember the miracles he has done;
    remember his wonders and his decisions.
⁶ You are descendants of his servant Abraham,
    the children of Jacob, his chosen people.
⁷ He is the Lord our God.
    His laws are for all the world.

⁸ He will keep his agreement forever;
    he will keep his promises always.
⁹ He will keep the agreement he made with Abraham
    and the promise he made to Isaac.
¹⁰ He made it a law for the people of Jacob;
    he made it an agreement with Israel to last forever.
¹¹ The Lord said, "I will give you the land of Canaan,
    and it will belong to you."

¹² Then God's people were few in number.
    They were strangers in the land.
¹³ They went from one nation to another,
    from one kingdom to another.
¹⁴ But the Lord did not let anyone hurt them;
    he warned kings not to harm them.
¹⁵ He said, "Don't touch my chosen people,
    and don't harm my prophets."

¹⁶ God ordered a time of hunger in the land,
    and he destroyed all the food.
¹⁷ Then he sent a man ahead of them—
    Joseph, who was sold as a slave.
¹⁸ They put chains around his feet
    and an iron ring around his neck.
¹⁹ Then the time he had spoken of came,
    and the Lord's words proved that Joseph was right.
²⁰ The king of Egypt sent for Joseph and freed him;
    the ruler of the people set him free.
²¹ He made him the master of his house;
    Joseph was in charge of his riches.
²² He could order the princes as he wished.
    He taught the older men to be wise.
²³ Then his father Israel came to Egypt;
    Jacob^[a] lived in Egypt.^[b]
24 The Lord made his people grow in number,
    and he made them stronger than their enemies.
²⁵ He caused the Egyptians to hate his people
    and to make plans against his servants.
²⁶ Then he sent his servant Moses,
    and Aaron, whom he had chosen.
²⁷ They did many signs among the Egyptians
    and worked wonders in Egypt.
²⁸ The Lord sent darkness and made the land dark,
    but the Egyptians turned against what he said.
²⁹ So he changed their water into blood
    and made their fish die.
³⁰ Then their country was filled with frogs,
    even in the bedrooms of their rulers.
³¹ The Lord spoke and flies came,
    and gnats were everywhere in the country.
³² He made hail fall like rain
    and sent lightning through their land.
³³ He struck down their grapevines and fig trees,
    and he destroyed every tree in the country.
³⁴ He spoke and grasshoppers came;
    the locusts were too many to count.
³⁵ They ate all the plants in the land
    and everything the earth produced.
³⁶ The Lord also killed all the firstborn sons in the land,
    the oldest son of each family.

³⁷ Then he brought his people out,
    and they carried with them silver and gold.
    Not one of his people stumbled.
³⁸ The Egyptians were glad when they left,
    because the Egyptians were afraid of them.
³⁹ The Lord covered them with a cloud
    and lit up the night with fire.
⁴⁰ When they asked, he brought them quail
    and filled them with bread from heaven.
⁴¹ God split the rock, and water flowed out;
    it ran like a river through the desert.
⁴² He remembered his holy promise
    to his servant Abraham.

⁴³ So God brought his people out with joy,
    his chosen ones with singing.
⁴⁴ He gave them lands of other nations,
    so they received what others had worked for.
⁴⁵ This was so they would keep his orders
    and obey his teachings.

Praise the Lord!