The Exodus

00:00:00 Speaker 1: Previously on the chosen people. 00:00:03 Speaker 2: I will have monuments built to my glory long after your unnamed god has forgotten. 00:00:12 Speaker 1: And Pharaoh sat alone in the pitch black, simmering in his hatred, his pride refusing to bend. He wanted vengeance, wanted blood, but he would not have the chance. The Lord would strike him down soon enough, for Pharaoh was the last god left to fall. 00:00:34 Speaker 2: Pharaoh has refused. 00:00:37 Speaker 1: The Lord will be sending a final plague. 00:00:41 Speaker 3: The whole assembly shall kill their lambs at twilight. Then they shall take some of the blood and put it on the two doorposts and the lintel of their houses. The blood of the Lamb will cover your household for the raft to come. 00:00:58 Speaker 1: A shadow passed through the streets of Egypt, unseen yet felt. It moved with purpose, slipping through doors that were left unmarked, where no Lamb's blood clung to the lintel. Beyond the palace walls, the whales began to rise, one by one, like the growing roar of the sea in a storm. In every house untouched by the blood of the lamb, the first born were found cold in their beds, From the eldest son of the lowliest farmer to the first born calf in the fields. 00:01:33 Speaker 2: Go go and take your people, leave this land, take your flocks, your herds, your children, and be gone. Frenzies, What Moses, you're sorry for my loss? 00:02:07 Speaker 1: Are? 00:02:07 Speaker 2: You? Said, with the death of a generation. 00:02:13 Speaker 1: Without a word, he turned and departed, leaving Pharaoh in the silence of his broken kingdom, a king brought to his knees not by armies, but by a plague of death sent by a god he could neither see nor challenge. 00:02:30 Speaker 3: My brethren, remember tonight this day shall be a memorial for us. We will repeat this feast throughout the generations. It shall be a day of remembrance. Hundreds even thousands of years from now, our children will remember the deliverance. 00:02:50 Speaker 4: Spot and one by the god of all creation. 00:02:58 Speaker 1: The dawn was accompanied by by a phrenetic energy, a mixture of excitement and fear that electrified the air like a brewing storm. Every Egyptian, from the lowliest servant to the generals of Pharaoh's court, urgently demanded that the Israelites leave immediately. Their very presence had become a scourge on the land of Egypt, a cursed mark upon its soil. No longer were they merely slaves? Now they were harbingers of death. The torment of the night's slaughter still hung in the air. The first borns of Egypt had fallen, and the specter of the final plague haunted the streets. Mourning wailed from every household. Even the most hardened soldiers shuddered with fear. The Israelites, once a people oppressed and invisible, now moved through the streets like an unstoppable tide. Every step they took was laden with the weight of four hundred and thirty years of suffering. Their chains, invisible though they might have been, were now broken by the hand of the Almighty. 00:04:11 Speaker 4: I order a peril every Israelites. She departs from this land and go into the wilderness. 00:04:20 Speaker 1: His voice was harsh, but there was something deeper in it, a quiver at the edges. 00:04:26 Speaker 4: Get out, live now, or face the tip of our spears. 00:04:32 Speaker 1: The threat was as empty as the Egyptian's hearts. They wanted no more blood, no more death. The spear points glittered beneath the pale light of dawn, but there was no will behind them. The streets of gash And hummed with frantic urgency. A current of hope laced with the sharp sting of fear. Like cattle set loops from their pens. The Israelites scattered through the narrow streets, gathering what little they could carry. Miriam and Aaron moved through the throngs of people with determination. 00:05:07 Speaker 3: The time has come. 00:05:08 Speaker 4: Quickly, gather your belongings before the Egyptians come after us. 00:05:12 Speaker 1: She pressed forward, hands gripping the door frames of every house she passed. Miriam's heart thundered in her chest. She had waited for this day her entire life, Yet now that it had arrived, the enormity of it left her trembling. This was no simple departure. It was an exodus, the tearing of one people from another, like flesh from bone. 00:05:38 Speaker 4: There is no time to waste. 00:05:40 Speaker 3: Everyone leave at once, Bring only what you can carry. 00:05:45 Speaker 1: His eyes darted from face to face, seeing the disbelief in their eyes. Some were too stunned to move, frozen by the suddenness of it all. 00:05:54 Speaker 4: What about food, Oh, we have no time to bake bread for our provisions. No, there's no time. Take the door before its leavened. 00:06:02 Speaker 5: We've been pat your leading horse, but there's no time to wait. 00:06:05 Speaker 4: For the bread. 00:06:06 Speaker 3: To rise. 00:06:07 Speaker 1: The urgency in her voice carried the weight of prophecy. This was the moment they had been waiting for. The people moved like a river through the streets, gathering their belongings with shaking hands. Sheep bleated nervously, sensing the tension in the air. Children clung to their mothers, their wide eyes reflecting the uncertainty of the moment. The elderly, who had known nothing but the cruel yoke of Egyptian oppression, looked back at their homes, their wrinkled faces edged with a mixture of hope and sorrow. This was all they had ever known, and now they were leaving it behind forever. In a final act of desperation, the Egyptians came not with swords, but with offerings. Gold, silver, and precious jewels were thrust into the hands of the departing Israelites. It was a strange sight, the conquerors of Egypt leaving not as rebels, but as victors, laden with the spoils of the land. The Lord had delivered his people by bringing Egypt to its knees. The great throng, over a million strong, surged out of Goshen. Six hundred thousand men and their wives, children, and herds poured forth like a flood from a broken dam. The cattle and sheep shuffled their feet, their bleating drowned out by the cries of the children, who held tightly to their mother's skirts. The elderly, their backs bent from decades of labor, moved with slow, deliberate steps, casting one final glance at the land of their bondage. Their exodus was one of triumphal and desperation, driven by the hand of God and the fear of Egypt's sword. On a jagged hill, overlooking the multitude, Moses stood alone, his staff rested firmly in his hand. The wind tugged at his robes, whipping them around him like a banner. His eyes scanned the mass of humanity below. These were his people, the children of Israel. For the first time, he allowed himself to feel the weight of their eyes upon him. Moses, once a man of Pharaoh's house, now stood as the chosen deliverer of God's people. Heavy as it was, the mantle of leadership sat upon him like a second skin. He had not sought this path, but it had found him. He had been a shepherd for forty years. But it was only now, with his people streaming out of Egypt like a river, that he truly became a lead to, a prophet, a deliverer. With an uncharacteristically bold shout, Moses raised his staff to the heavens, his voice booming across the plains. 00:09:13 Speaker 4: Step When, Oh, children of Israel, master Freedom. 00:09:18 Speaker 1: The words simple though they were, ignited something deep within the crowd. A cheer rose from the people, a roared, primal sound that shook the very earth beneath their feet. It was a cry born of centuries of oppression, and now, at last deliverance had come. The children of Israel moved as well, a tide of humanity, surging into the unknown wilderness. For days they traveled, their spirits buoyed by the knowledge that they had left Egypt behind. They journeyed to Succeth, the wilderness just beyond Goshen, and there they rested for the first time since the dawn of their exodus. The camp fires flickered beneath the darkening sky, casting long shadows across the barren land. Moses walked among the people, his heart heavy with the weight of what would come. They had escaped the land of their bondage. But freedom was not yet entirely theirs. He watched as the people gathered to eat, their faces weary but hopeful. None of them had had the time to bake their bread before leaving, and now they ate the unleavened dough, coarse, flat, and brittle when it reached their mouths. But even in this simple, unsatisfying meal, Moses saw the hand of the Lord. The bread, its flatness and its haste, carried a message. This bread would be remembered eaten, not just as food, but as a symbol of their deliverance. The Lord was forming them, binding them together as a people and a nation set apart for his glory. The voice of the Lord returned to Moses. He kept his eyes fixed on the people, but his heart attentive to the voice of the Lord. 00:11:22 Speaker 5: Be sure the people remember this day that you came out from Egypt, out of the house of slavery. For by a strong hand I he brought you out from this place. No leavened bread shall be eaten to day, in the month of a bib. You are going out. And when I bring you into the land that I swore to your father's, a lad flowing with milk and honey. You shall keep this service in this month seven days. You shall eat unleaven bread in On the seventh day there shall be a feast unto me. Unleavened bread shall be eaten. For seven days. No leaven bread shall be seen with you, and no leaven shall be found in your territory. You shall tell your son on that day it is because of what the Lord did for me when I came out from Egypt. 00:12:30 Speaker 1: The words seared themselves into moses heart. This was not just the beginning of a journey, but the beginning of a covenant. The Lord was not merely liberating slaves. He was shaping a people, forming a nation that would carry his name for generations to come. This was a moment that would echo through the ages. Moses turned and passed the Lord's message to Aaron and Miriam. The elders were gathered, their faces tense and drawn as they listened to the words of the Lord delivered through Moses. Slowly understanding dawned upon them. The Lord was forging them into a people, consecrating them through this exodus. Aaron, standing tall among the crowd, raised his hands and called out to the people. His voice full of power. 00:13:27 Speaker 3: When the Lord brings you into the promised land, you shall set upon. 00:13:32 Speaker 4: The firstborn from every womb. 00:13:35 Speaker 3: All the firstborn of your animals shall be taken and given. 00:13:40 Speaker 4: To the Lord. 00:13:41 Speaker 3: You shall kill a lamb for every firstborn son in the nation, redeem them all, and consecrate them unto the God who delivered us. 00:13:52 Speaker 1: As Aaron spoke, the heavens stirred, and a mighty wind began to howl across the wilderness. It was to storm that was coming, but something far greater. Moses turned toward the horizon, where the sky churned with power. The heavens were igniting with divine radiance, and its weight pressed down upon the earth. The air itself crackled with anticipation. Moses looked back at Aaron, who was still speaking with fervor. His brother, once a mere spokesman, now stood as a leader of men, fearless and free. Aaron's voice carried across the camp, and the people listened in awe, their hearts stirred by his words. 00:14:39 Speaker 3: Years from now, when your children ask why we did this, you shall tell them what you've witnessed here. 00:14:48 Speaker 4: You shall tell them of the mighty. 00:14:50 Speaker 3: Hand of the Lord and how he delivered us from the chains of Egypt. 00:14:55 Speaker 1: The wind picked up, swirling around the people like a living thing. Every soul in the camp felted the presence of something greater than themselves, something ancient and powerful. Moses felt his heart quickened, each beat pounding in his chest as Aaron's words ran through the air. 00:15:16 Speaker 3: When Pharaoh refused to bend our God broke him. The Lord killed every first born son in the land of Egypt for you. It is for this reason we redeem our suns. It is for this reason we were sacrifice to the Lord. We are a free people, We are a deemed people. 00:15:44 Speaker 4: We are the chosen people. 00:15:48 Speaker 1: And as his final words echoed across the camp, the skies erupted with thunder, the clouds bellowed like the trumpets of war, and lightning split the heavens in a blaze of holy fire. From the storm descended a pillar of fire, its radiance burning with the glory of the Almighty. The Lord had come among them, his presence like a roaring flame, ready to guide them into the unknown wilderness. And so the children of Israel stood in awe, their hearts swelling with the knowledge that they were not alone. The Lord had delivered them, and now by this pillar of fire he would lead them into their destiny. This preyed Door conproduction is only made possible by our dedicated team of creative talents. Steve Gattina, Max Bard, Zach Shellabager and Ben Gammon are the executive producers of The Chosen People. Narrated by Paul Caltafianu. Characters of voice by Jonathan Cotton, Aaron Salvado, Sarah Seltz, Mike Reagan, Stephen Ringwold, Sylvia Zaradoc, Thomas Copeland, Junior, Rosanna Pilcher, and Mitch Leshinsky. Music by Andrew Morgan Smith. Written by Aaron Salvato, bre Rosalie and Chris Baig. You can hear more Prey dot com productions on the Prey dot Com app, available on the Apple App Store and Google Play Store. If you enjoyed The Chosen People, please rate and leave a review.