Keluaran 23:14-17

23:14 “Three times ¹  in the year you must make a pilgrim feast ²  to me. 23:15 You are to observe the Feast of Unleavened Bread; seven days ³  you must eat bread made without yeast, as I commanded you, at the appointed time of the month of Abib, for at that time ⁴  you came out of Egypt. No one may appear before ⁵  me empty-handed.

23:16 “You are also to observe ⁶  the Feast of Harvest, the firstfruits of your labors that you have sown in the field, and the Feast of Ingathering at the end of the year ⁷  when you have gathered in ⁸  your harvest ⁹  out of the field. 23:17 At ¹⁰  three times in the year all your males will appear before the Lord God. ¹¹ 

Keluaran 34:18-23

34:18 “You must keep the Feast of Unleavened Bread. For seven days ¹²  you must eat bread made without yeast, as I commanded you; do this ¹³  at the appointed time of the month Abib, for in the month Abib you came out of Egypt.

34:19 “Every firstborn of the womb ¹⁴  belongs to me, even every firstborn ¹⁵  of your cattle that is a male, ¹⁶  whether ox or sheep. 34:20 Now the firstling ¹⁷  of a donkey you may redeem with a lamb, but if you do not redeem it, then break its neck. ¹⁸  You must redeem all the firstborn of your sons.

“No one will appear before me empty-handed. ¹⁹ 

34:21 “On six days ²⁰  you may labor, but on the seventh day you must rest; ²¹  even at the time of plowing and of harvest ²²  you are to rest. ²³ 

34:22 “You must observe ²⁴  the Feast of Weeks – the firstfruits of the harvest of wheat – and the Feast of Ingathering at the end ²⁵  of the year. 34:23 At three times ²⁶  in the year all your men ²⁷  must appear before the Lord God, ²⁸  the God of Israel.

[23:14]  ¹ tn The expression rendered “three times” is really “three feet,” or “three foot-beats.” The expression occurs only a few times in the Law. The expressing is an adverbial accusative.

[23:14]  ² tn This is the word תָּחֹג (takhog) from the root חָגַג (khagag); it describes a feast that was accompanied by a pilgrimage. It was first used by Moses in his appeal that Israel go three days into the desert to hold such a feast.

[23:15]  ³ tn This is an adverbial accusative of time.

[23:15]  ⁴ tn Heb “in it.”

[23:15]  ⁵ tn The verb is a Niphal imperfect; the nuance of permission works well here – no one is permitted to appear before God empty (Heb “and they will not appear before me empty”).

[23:16]  ⁶ tn The words “you are also to observe” are not in the Hebrew text, but are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[23:16]  ⁷ tn An infinitive construct with a preposition and a pronominal suffix is used to make a temporal clause: “in the going in of the year.” The word “year” is the subjective genitive, the subject of the clause.

[23:16]  ⁸ tn An infinitive construct with a preposition and a pronominal suffix is used to make a temporal clause: “in the ingathering of you.”

[23:16]  ⁹ tn Heb “gathered in your labors.” This is a metonymy of cause put for the effect. “Labors” are not gathered in, but what the labors produced – the harvest.

[23:17]  ¹⁰ tn Adverbial accusative of time: “three times” becomes “at three times.”

[23:17]  ¹¹ tn Here the divine Name reads in Hebrew הָאָדֹן יְהוָה (ha’adon yÿhvah), which if rendered according to the traditional scheme of “Lord” for “Yahweh” would result in “Lord Lord.” A number of English versions therefore render this phrase “Lord God,” and that convention has been followed here.

[34:18]  ¹² tn This is an adverbial accusative of time.

[34:18]  ¹³ tn The words “do this” have been supplied.

[34:19]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “everything that opens the womb.”

[34:19]  ¹⁵ tn Here too: everything that “opens [the womb].”

[34:19]  ¹⁶ tn The verb basically means “that drops a male.” The verb is feminine, referring to the cattle.

[34:20]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “and the one that opens [the womb of] the donkey.”

[34:20]  ¹⁸ sn See G. Brin, “The Firstling of Unclean Animals,” JQR 68 (1971): 1-15.

[34:20]  ¹⁹ tn The form is the adverb “empty.”

[34:21]  ²⁰ tn This is an adverbial accusative of time.

[34:21]  ²¹ tn Or “cease” (i.e., from the labors).

[34:21]  ²² sn See M. Dahood, “Vocative lamed in Exodus 2,4 and Merismus in 34,21,” Bib 62 (1981): 413-15.

[34:21]  ²³ tn The imperfect tense expresses injunction or instruction.

[34:22]  ²⁴ tn The imperfect tense means “you will do”; it is followed by the preposition with a suffix to express the ethical dative to stress the subject.

[34:22]  ²⁵ tn The expression is “the turn of the year,” which is parallel to “the going out of the year,” and means the end of the agricultural season.

[34:23]  ²⁶ tn “Three times” is an adverbial accusative.

[34:23]  ²⁷ tn Heb “all your males.”

[34:23]  ²⁸ tn Here the divine name reads in Hebrew הָאָדֹן יְהוָה (ha’adon yÿhvah), which if rendered according to the traditional scheme of “Lord” for “Yahweh” would result in “Lord Lord.” A number of English versions therefore render this phrase “Lord God,” and that convention has been followed here.

[34:23]  sn The title “Lord” is included here before the divine name (translated “God” here; see Exod 23:17), perhaps to form a contrast with Baal (which means “lord” as well) and to show the sovereignty of Yahweh. But the distinct designation “the God of Israel” is certainly the point of the renewed covenant relationship.