3. Then Aaron and Moses said, “The God of the Hebrews has talked with us. So we beg you to let us travel three days into the desert. There we will offer a sacrifice to the Lord our God. If we don’t do this, he might become angry and destroy us. He might make us die from sickness or war.”
4. But Pharaoh said to them, “Moses and Aaron, you are bothering the workers. Let them do their work. Go back to your own work!
5. There are very many workers, and you are keeping them from doing their jobs.”
6. That same day Pharaoh gave a command to the slave masters and Hebrew foremen.
7. He said, “You have always given the people straw to use to make bricks. But now, tell them they have to go and find their own straw to make bricks.
8. But they must still make the same number of bricks as they did before. They have gotten lazy. That is why they are asking me to let them go. They don’t have enough work to do. That is why they asked me to let them make sacrifices to their God.
9. So make these people work harder. Keep them busy. Then they will not have enough time to listen to the lies of Moses.”
10. So the Egyptian slave masters and the Hebrew foremen went to the Israelites and said, “Pharaoh has decided that he will not give you straw for your bricks.
11. You must go and get the straw for yourselves. So go and find straw, but you must still make as many bricks as you made before.”
12. So the people went everywhere in Egypt looking for straw.