© Charles Chandler

 

Exodus 4

 

^{22 (E)} Then you shall say to Pharaoh, 'Thus says the Lord, Israel is my firstborn son, ^{23 (E)} and I say to you, "Let my son go that he may serve me." If you refuse to let him go, behold, I will kill your firstborn son.'"

Exodus 5

 

^{1 (J)} Afterward Moses and Aaron went and said to Pharaoh, "Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, 'Let my people go, that they may hold a feast to me in the wilderness.'" ^{2 (J)} But Pharaoh said, "Who is the Lord, that I should obey his voice and let Israel go? I do not know the Lord, and moreover, I will not let Israel go." ^{3 (E)} Then they said, "The God of the Hebrews has met with us. Please let us go a three days' journey into the wilderness that we may sacrifice to the Lord our God, lest he fall upon us with pestilence or with the sword."

Exodus 8

 

^{25 (J)} Then Pharaoh called Moses and Aaron and said, "Go, sacrifice to your God within the land." ^{26 (J)} But Moses said, "It would not be right to do so, for the offerings we shall sacrifice to the Lord our God are an abomination to the Egyptians. If we sacrifice offerings abominable to the Egyptians before their eyes, will they not stone us? ^{27 (J)} We must go three days' journey into the wilderness and sacrifice to the Lord our God as he tells us."

Moses was not petitioning the pharaoh to let the people go forever — rather, he was requesting that they be allowed to venture into the wilderness for a religious festival.