About This Text
Exodus (“Shemot”) is the second book of the Torah, Judaism’s foundational text. It describes the Israelites’ enslavement in Egypt, their miraculous redemption through ten plagues, and the splitting of the Red Sea. Under Moses' leadership, they begin their travels in the desert, where they experience God’s revelation, receive the Ten Commandments at Mount Sinai, and build the mishkan (tabernacle). Interspersed throughout the book are more than one hundred mitzvot (commandments).