Exodus 1:10-12

Expanded Bible

¹⁰ If we don’t ·make plans against [deal wisely/shrewdly with] them, the number of their people will grow even more. Then if there is a war, they might join ·our enemies [^Lthose who hate us] and fight us and ·escape [^Lgo up] from the country!”

¹¹ So ·the Egyptians made life hard for the Israelites [^Lthey afflicted/oppressed them with hard labor]. They put slave masters over them, who forced the Israelites to build the cities Pithom and Rameses as ·supply centers [storage cities] for ·the king [^LPharaoh]. ¹² But the harder ·the Egyptians forced the Israelites to work [^Lthey afflicted/oppressed them], the more ·the Israelites grew in number [they multiplied] and spread out. So ·the Egyptians became very afraid of them [^Lthey dreaded the sons/^Tchildren of Israel]