Samaritan Torah, פַּרְשַׁת וָאֵרָא

[lethargic_man]

In Exodus 6, God tells Moses to tell the Israelites, "I have heard the groaning of the children of Israel, whom the Egyptians keep in bondage; and I have remembered my covenant. Therefore say unto the children of Israel, 'I am the Lord, and I will bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians, and I will rid you out of their bondage, and I will redeem you with a stretched out arm, and with great judgments.'"

Exodus 6:3-9	שמות ו ג-ט
Moses spoke so unto the children of Israel: but they did not hear him on account of their anguish of spirit and hard labour.	וַיְדַבֵּר מֹשֶׁה כֵּן אֶל־בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל וְלֹא שָׁמְעוּ אֶל־מֹשֶׁה מִקֹּצֶר רוּחַ וּמֵעֲבֹדָה קָשָׁה׃

The Samaritan text then adds:

They said to Moses, "Please, cease [bothering] us, and we shall serve Egypt, for it is better for us to serve Egypt than that we die in the wilderness."

וַיאֹמְוּ אֶל מֹשֶה חֲדַל־נָא מִמֶנוּ וְנַעֲבֹדָה אֶת־מִצְרָיִם כִּי טוֹב לָנוּ עֲבֹד אֶת־מִצְרַיִם מִמוֹתְנוּ בַּמִדְבָּר׃

This is typical of the Samaritan text, which fills in implied but absent speeches like this. There's a lot of these throughout the next two sidros, in which the God's instructions to Moses to say X to Pharaoh are followed by Moses saying exactly the same words to Pharaoh, for example:

Exodus 7:14-18

שמות ז יד-יח

The Lord said to Moses, "Pharaoh's heart is hardened, he refuses to let the people go. Go to Pharaoh in the morning, when he goes out to the water. Stand on the bank of the Nile to greet him, with the staff which was turned to a serpent in your hand, and say to him, 'The Lord God of the Hebrews has sent me unto you, to say, "Let my people go, that they may serve me in the wilderness", but you have not heard until now. Thus says the Lord, "In this you shall know that I am the Lord: Behold, I will strike the Nile's waters with the staff in my hand, and they shall be turned to blood. The fish in the Nile shall die, and the Nile shall stink; and the Egyptians shall loathe to drink of the water of the Nile."'" Moses and Aaron went to Pharaoh, and said to him: "The Lord God of the Hebrews has sent me unto you, to say, "Let my people go, that they may serve me in the wilderness", but you have not heard until now. Thus says the Lord, "In this you shall know that I am the Lord: Behold, I will strike the Nile's waters with the staff in my hand, and they shall be turned to blood. The fish in the Nile shall die, and the Nile shall stink; and the Egyptians shall loathe to drink of the water of the Nile."'" The Lord spoke unto Moses, "Say to Aaron, 'Take your staff, and stretch out your hand upon the waters of Egypt, upon their streams, and upon their rivers, and upon their ponds, and upon all their pools of water, that they may become blood; and that there may be blood throughout all the land of Egypt, both in vessels of wood, and in vessels of stone.'" Moses and Aaron did so, as the Lord commanded: He lifted up the staff, and struck the waters that were in the river, in the sight of Pharaoh, and in the sight of his servants; and all the waters that were in the river were turned to blood. The fish in the river died; and the river stank, and the Egyptians could not drink of the water of the river; and there was blood throughout all the land of Egypt.

וַיֹּאמֶר ה׳ אֶל־מֹשֶׁה כָּבֵד לֵב פַּרְעֹה מֵאֵן לְשַׁלַּח הָעָם׃ לֵךְ אֶל־פַּרְעֹה בַּבֹּקֶר הִנֵּה יֹצֵא הַמַּיְמָה וְנִצַּבְתָּ לִקְרָאתוֹ עַל־שְׂפַת הַיְאֹר וְהַמַּטֶּה אֲשֶׁר־נֶהְפַּךְ לְנָחָשׁ תִּקַּח בְּיָדֶךָ׃ וְאָמַרְתָּ אֵלָיו ה׳ אֱלֹהֵי הָעִבְרִים שְׁלָחַנִי אֵלֶיךָ לֵאמֹר שַׁלַּח אֶת־עַמִּי וְיַעַבְדֻנִי בַּמִּדְבָּר וְהִנֵּה לֹא־שָׁמַעְתָּ עַד־כֹּה׃ כֹּה אָמַר ה׳ בְּזֹאת תֵּדַע כִּי אֲנִי ה׳ הִנֵּה אָנֹכִי מַכֶּה בַּמַּטֶּה אֲשֶׁר־בְּיָדִי עַל־הַמַּיִם אֲשֶׁר בַּיְאֹר וְנֶהֶפְכוּ לְדָם׃ וְהַדָּגָה אֲשֶׁר־בַּיְאֹר תָּמוּת וּבָאַשׁ הַיְאֹר וְנִלְאוּ מִצְרַיִם לִשְׁתּוֹת מַיִם מִן־הַיְאֹר׃ וַיֵלֶךְ מֹשֶׁה וְאַהֲרֹן אֶל פַּרְעֹה וִַיאֹמְרוּ אֵלָיו ה׳ אֱלֹהֵי הָעִבְרִים שְׁלָחַנִי אֵלֶיךָ לֵאמֹר שַׁלַּח אֶת־עַמִּי וְיַעַבְדֻנִי בַּמִּדְבָּר וְהִנֵּה לֹא־שָׁמַעְתָּ עַד־כֹּה׃ כֹּה אָמַר ה׳ בְּזֹאת תֵּדַע כִּי אֲנִי ה׳ הִנֵּה אָנֹכִי מַכֶּה בַּמַּטֶּה אֲשֶׁר־בְּיָדִי עַל־הַמַּיִם אֲשֶׁר בַּיְאֹר וְנֶהֶפְכוּ לְדָם׃ וְהַדָּגָה אֲשֶׁר־בַּיְאֹר תָּמוּת וּבָאַשׁ הַיְאֹר וְנִלְאוּ מִצְרַיִם לִשְׁתּוֹת מַיִם מִן־הַיְאֹר׃ וַיֹּאמֶר ה׳ אֶל־מֹשֶׁה אֱמֹר אֶל־אַהֲרֹן קַח אֶת־מַטְּךָ וּנְטֵה אֶת־יָדְךָ עַל־מֵימֵי מִצְרַיִם עַל־נַהֲרוֹתָם וְעַל־יְאֹרֵיהֶם וְעַל־אַגְמֵיהֶם וְעַל כָּל־מִקְוֵה מֵימֵיהֶם וְיִהְיוּ־דָם וְהָיָה דָם בְּכָל־אֶרֶץ מִצְרַיִם וּבָעֵצִים וּבָאֲבָנִים׃ וַיַּעֲשׂוּ־כֵן מֹשֶׁה וְאַהֲרֹן כַּאֲשֶׁר צִוָּה ה׳ וַיָּרֶם בַּמַּטֶּה וַיַּךְ אֶת־הַמַּיִם אֲשֶׁר בַּיְאֹר לְעֵינֵי פַרְעֹה וּלְעֵינֵי עֲבָדָיו וַיֵּהָפְכוּ כָּל־הַמַּיִם אֲשֶׁר־בַּיְאֹר לְדָם׃ וְהַדָּגָה אֲשֶׁר־בַּיְאֹר מֵתָה וַיִּבְאַשׁ הַיְאֹר וְלֹא־יָכְלוּ מִצְרַיִם לִשְׁתּוֹת מַיִם מִן־הַיְאֹר וַיְהִי הַדָּם בְּכָל־אֶרֶץ מִצְרָיִם׃

There's a few other minor differences in the above text, but I got bored of typing them all in. As you see, it's rather boring repetition, and I won't be typing any more of these in. As well as Moses repeating what God has told him to say word-for-word to Pharaoh, he also does this for what God has told him to say to Aaron, e.g. Ex. 8:1.

Samaritan Torah notes         Jewish learning notes index