Keluaran 1:14

1:14 They made their lives bitter ¹  by ²  hard service with mortar and bricks and by all kinds of service ³  in the fields. Every kind of service the Israelites were required to give was rigorous. ⁴ 

Keluaran 1:16

1:16 ⁵  “When you assist ⁶  the Hebrew women in childbirth, observe at the delivery: ⁷  If it is a son, kill him, ⁸  but if it is a daughter, she may live.” ⁹ 

Keluaran 5:8

5:8 But you must require ¹⁰  of them the same quota of bricks that they were making before. ¹¹  Do not reduce it, for they are slackers. ¹²  That is why they are crying, ‘Let us go sacrifice to our God.’

Keluaran 10:5

10:5 They will cover ¹³  the surface ¹⁴  of the earth, so that you ¹⁵  will be unable to see the ground. They will eat the remainder of what escaped ¹⁶  – what is left over ¹⁷  for you – from the hail, and they will eat every tree that grows for you from the field.

Keluaran 12:4

12:4 If any household is too small ¹⁸  for a lamb, ¹⁹  the man ²⁰  and his next-door neighbor ²¹  are to take ²²  a lamb according to the number of people – you will make your count for the lamb according to how much each one can eat. ²³ 

Keluaran 12:19

12:19 For seven days ²⁴  yeast must not be found in your houses, for whoever eats what is made with yeast – that person ²⁵  will be cut off from the community of Israel, whether a foreigner ²⁶  or one born in the land.

Keluaran 16:12

16:12 “I have heard the murmurings of the Israelites. Tell them, ‘During the evening ²⁷  you will eat meat, ²⁸  and in the morning you will be satisfied ²⁹  with bread, so that you may know ³⁰  that I am the Lord your God.’” ³¹ 

Keluaran 16:29

16:29 See, because the Lord has given you the Sabbath, that is why ³²  he is giving you food for two days on the sixth day. Each of you stay where you are; ³³  let no one ³⁴  go out of his place on the seventh day.”

Keluaran 17:6

17:6 I will be standing ³⁵  before you there on ³⁶  the rock in Horeb, and you will strike ³⁷  the rock, and water will come out of it so that the people may drink.” ³⁸  And Moses did so in plain view ³⁹  of the elders of Israel.

Keluaran 19:2

19:2 After they journeyed ⁴⁰  from Rephidim, they came to the Desert of Sinai, and they camped in the desert; Israel camped there in front of the mountain. ⁴¹ 

Keluaran 19:9

19:9 The Lord said to Moses, “I am going to come ⁴²  to you in a dense cloud, ⁴³  so that the people may hear when I speak with you and so that they will always believe in you.” ⁴⁴  And Moses told the words of the people to the Lord.

Keluaran 25:33

25:33 Three cups shaped like almond flowers with buds and blossoms are to be on one branch, and three cups shaped like almond flowers with buds and blossoms are to be on the next ⁴⁵  branch, and the same ⁴⁶  for the six branches extending from the lampstand.

Keluaran 25:35

25:35 with a bud under the first ⁴⁷  two branches from it, and a bud under the next ⁴⁸  two branches from it, and a bud under the third ⁴⁹  two branches from it, according to the six branches that extend from the lampstand.

Keluaran 26:19

26:19 and you are to make forty silver bases to go under the twenty frames – two bases under the first frame for its two projections, and likewise ⁵⁰  two bases under the next frame for its two projections;

Keluaran 28:12

28:12 You are to put the two stones on the shoulders of the ephod, stones of memorial for the sons of Israel, and Aaron will bear their names before the Lord on his two shoulders for a memorial. ⁵¹ 

Keluaran 28:38

28:38 It will be on Aaron’s forehead, and Aaron will bear the iniquity of the holy things, ⁵²  which the Israelites are to sanctify by all their holy gifts; ⁵³  it will always be on his forehead, for their acceptance ⁵⁴  before the Lord.

Keluaran 30:12

30:12 “When you take a census ⁵⁵  of the Israelites according to their number, ⁵⁶  then each man is to pay a ransom ⁵⁷  for his life to the Lord when you number them, ⁵⁸  so that there will be no plague among them when you number them.

Keluaran 30:23

30:23 “Take ⁵⁹  choice spices: ⁶⁰  twelve and a half pounds ⁶¹  of free-flowing myrrh, ⁶²  half that – about six and a quarter pounds – of sweet-smelling cinnamon, six and a quarter pounds of sweet-smelling cane,

Keluaran 31:13

31:13 “Tell the Israelites, ‘Surely you must keep my Sabbaths, ⁶³  for it is a sign between me and you throughout your generations, that you may know that I am the Lord who sanctifies you. ⁶⁴ 

Keluaran 36:2

36:2 Moses summoned ⁶⁵  Bezalel and Oholiab and every skilled person in whom ⁶⁶  the Lord had put skill – everyone whose heart stirred him ⁶⁷  to volunteer ⁶⁸  to do the work,

Keluaran 36:6

36:6 Moses instructed them to take ⁶⁹  his message ⁷⁰  throughout the camp, saying, “Let no man or woman do any more work for the offering for the sanctuary.” So the people were restrained from bringing any more. ⁷¹ 

Keluaran 37:21

37:21 with a bud under the first two branches from it, and a bud under the next two branches from it, and a bud under the third two branches from it; according to the six branches that extended from it. ⁷² 

Keluaran 37:25

The Making of the Altar of Incense

37:25 He made the incense altar of acacia wood. Its length was a foot and a half and its width a foot and a half – a square – and its height was three feet. Its horns were of one piece with it. ⁷³ 

Keluaran 39:5

39:5 The artistically woven waistband of the ephod that was on it was like it, of one piece with it, ⁷⁴  of gold, blue, purple, and scarlet yarn and fine twisted linen, just as the Lord had commanded Moses.

Keluaran 39:25

39:25 They made bells of pure gold and attached the bells between the pomegranates around the hem of the robe between the pomegranates.

Keluaran 39:40

39:40 the hangings of the courtyard, its posts and its bases, and the curtain for the gateway of the courtyard, its ropes and its tent pegs, and all the furnishings ⁷⁵  for the service of the tabernacle, for the tent of meeting;

[1:14]  ¹ sn The verb מָרַר (marar) anticipates the introduction of the theme of bitterness in the instructions for the Passover.

[1:14]  ² tn The preposition bet (ב) in this verse has the instrumental use: “by means of” (see GKC 380 §119.o).

[1:14]  ³ tn Heb “and in all service.”

[1:14]  ⁴ tn The line could be more literally translated, “All their service in which they served them [was] with rigor.” This takes the referent of בָּהֶם (bahem) to be the Egyptians. The pronoun may also resume the reference to the kinds of service and so not be needed in English: “All their service in which they served [was] with rigor.”

[1:16]  ⁵ tn The verse starts with the verb that began the last verse; to read it again seems redundant. Some versions render it “spoke” in v. 15 and “said” in v. 16. In effect, Pharaoh has been delayed from speaking while the midwives are named.

[1:16]  ⁶ tn The form is the Piel infinitive construct serving in an adverbial clause of time. This clause lays the foundation for the next verb, the Qal perfect with a vav consecutive: “when you assist…then you will observe.” The latter carries an instructional nuance (= the imperfect of instruction), “you are to observe.”

[1:16]  ⁷ tn Heb “at the birthstool” (cf. ASV, NASB, NRSV), but since this particular item is not especially well known today, the present translation simply states “at the delivery.” Cf. NIV “delivery stool.”

[1:16]  ⁸ sn The instructions must have been temporary or selective, otherwise the decree from the king would have ended the slave population of Hebrews. It is also possible that the king did not think through this, but simply took steps to limit the population growth. The narrative is not interested in supplying details, only in portraying the king as a wicked fool bent on destroying Israel.

[1:16]  ⁹ tn The last form וָחָיָה (vakhaya) in the verse is unusual; rather than behaving as a III-Hey form, it is written as a geminate but without the daghesh forte in pause (GKC 218 §76.i). In the conditional clause, following the parallel instruction (“kill him”), this form should be rendered “she may live” or “let her live.”

[5:8]  ¹⁰ tn The verb is the Qal imperfect of שִׂים (sim, “place, put”). The form could be an imperfect of instruction: “You will place upon them the quota.” Or, as here, it may be an obligatory imperfect: “You must place.”

[5:8]  ¹¹ tn Heb “yesterday and three days ago” or “yesterday and before that” is idiomatic for “previously” or “in the past.”

[5:8]  ¹² tn Or “loafers.” The form נִרְפִּים (nirpim) is derived from the verb רָפָה (rafah), meaning “to be weak, to let oneself go.” They had been letting the work go, Pharaoh reasoned, and being idle is why they had time to think about going to worship.

[10:5]  ¹³ tn The verbs describing the locusts are singular because it is a swarm or plague of locusts. This verb (וְכִסָּה, vÿkhissah, “cover”) is a Piel perfect with a vav consecutive; it carries the same future nuance as the participle before it.

[10:5]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “eye,” an unusual expression (see v. 15; Num 22:5, 11).

[10:5]  ¹⁵ tn The text has לִרְאֹת וְלֹא יוּכַל (vÿlo’ yukhal lir’ot, “and he will not be able to see”). The verb has no expressed subjects. The clause might, therefore, be given a passive translation: “so that [it] cannot be seen.” The whole clause is the result of the previous statement.

[10:5]  ¹⁶ sn As the next phrase explains “what escaped” refers to what the previous plague did not destroy. The locusts will devour everything, because there will not be much left from the other plagues for them to eat.

[10:5]  ¹⁷ tn הַנִּשְׁאֶרֶת (hannish’eret) parallels (by apposition) and adds further emphasis to the preceding two words; it is the Niphal participle, meaning “that which is left over.”

[12:4]  ¹⁸ sn Later Judaism ruled that “too small” meant fewer than ten (S. R. Driver, Exodus, 88).

[12:4]  ¹⁹ tn The clause uses the comparative min (מִן) construction: יִמְעַט הַבַּיִת מִהְיֹת מִשֶּׂה (yim’at habbayit mihyot miseh, “the house is small from being from a lamb,” or “too small for a lamb”). It clearly means that if there were not enough people in the household to have a lamb by themselves, they should join with another family. For the use of the comparative, see GKC 430 §133.c.

[12:4]  ²⁰ tn Heb “he and his neighbor”; the referent (the man) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[12:4]  ²¹ tn Heb “who is near to his house.”

[12:4]  ²² tn The construction uses a perfect tense with a vav (ו) consecutive after a conditional clause: “if the household is too small…then he and his neighbor will take.”

[12:4]  ²³ tn Heb “[every] man according to his eating.”

[12:4]  sn The reference is normally taken to mean whatever each person could eat. B. Jacob (Exodus, 299) suggests, however, that the reference may not be to each individual person’s appetite, but to each family. Each man who is the head of a household was to determine how much his family could eat, and this in turn would determine how many families shared the lamb.

[12:19]  ²⁴ tn “Seven days” is an adverbial accusative of time (see R. J. Williams, Hebrew Syntax, 12, §56).

[12:19]  ²⁵ tn The term is נֶפֶשׁ (nefesh), often translated “soul.” It refers to the whole person, the soul within the body. The noun is feminine, agreeing with the feminine verb “be cut off.”

[12:19]  ²⁶ tn Or “alien”; or “stranger.”

[16:12]  ²⁷ tn Heb “during the evenings”; see Exod 12:6.

[16:12]  ²⁸ sn One of the major interpretive difficulties is the comparison between Exod 16 and Num 11. In Numbers we find that the giving of the manna was about 24 months after the Exod 16 time (assuming there was a distinct time for this chapter), that it was after the erection of the tabernacle, that Taberah (the Burning) preceded it (not in Exod 16), that the people were tired of the manna (not that there was no bread to eat) and so God would send the quail, and that there was a severe tragedy over it. In Exod 16 both the manna and the quail are given on the same day, with no mention of quail on the following days. Contemporary scholarship generally assigns the accounts to two different sources because complete reconciliation seems impossible. Even if we argue that Exodus has a thematic arrangement and “telescopes” some things to make a point, there will still be difficulties in harmonization. Two considerations must be kept in mind: 1) First, they could be separate events entirely. If this is true, then they should be treated separately as valid accounts of things that appeared or occurred during the period of the wanderings. Similar things need not be the same thing. 2) Secondly, strict chronological order is not always maintained in the Bible narratives, especially if it is a didactic section. Perhaps Exod 16 describes the initiation of the giving of manna as God’s provision of bread, and therefore placed in the prologue of the covenant, and Num 11 is an account of a mood which developed over a period of time in response to the manna. Num 11 would then be looking back from a different perspective.

[16:12]  ²⁹ tn The verb means “to be sated, satisfied”; in this context it indicates that they would have sufficient bread to eat – they would be full.

[16:12]  ³⁰ tn The form is a Qal perfect with the vav (ו) consecutive; it is in sequence with the imperfect tenses before it, and so this is equal to an imperfect nuance. But, from the meanings of the words, it is clear that this will be the outcome of their eating the food, a divinely intended outcome.

[16:12]  ³¹ sn This verse supports the view taken in chap. 6 concerning the verb “to know.” Surely the Israelites by now knew that Yahweh was their God. Yes, they did. But they had not experienced what that meant; they had not received the fulfillment of the promises.

[16:29]  ³² sn Noting the rabbinic teaching that the giving of the Sabbath was a sign of God’s love – it was accomplished through the double portion on the sixth day – B. Jacob says, “God made no request unless He provided the means for its execution” (Exodus, 461).

[16:29]  ³³ tn Heb “remain, a man where he is.”

[16:29]  ³⁴ tn Or “Let not anyone go” (see GKC 445 §138.d).

[17:6]  ³⁵ tn The construction uses הִנְנִי עֹמֵד (hinni ’omed) to express the futur instans or imminent future of the verb: “I am going to be standing.”

[17:6]  sn The reader has many questions when studying this passage – why water from a rock, why Horeb, why strike the rock when later only speak to it, why recall the Nile miracles, etc. B. Jacob (Exodus, 479-80) says that all these are answered when it is recalled that they were putting God to the test. So water from the rock, the most impossible thing, cleared up the question of his power. Doing it at Horeb was significant because there Moses was called and told he would bring them to this place. Since they had doubted God was in their midst, he would not do this miracle in the camp, but would have Moses lead the elders out to Horeb. If people doubt God is in their midst, then he will choose not to be in their midst. And striking the rock recalled striking the Nile; there it brought death to Egypt, but here it brought life to Israel. There could be little further doubting that God was with them and able to provide for them.

[17:6]  ³⁶ tn Or “by” (NIV, NLT).

[17:6]  ³⁷ tn The form is a Hiphil perfect with the vav (ו) consecutive; it follows the future nuance of the participle and so is equivalent to an imperfect tense nuance of instruction.

[17:6]  ³⁸ tn These two verbs are also perfect tenses with vav (ו) consecutive: “and [water] will go out…and [the people] will drink.” But the second verb is clearly the intent or the result of the water gushing from the rock, and so it may be subordinated.

[17:6]  sn The presence of Yahweh at this rock enabled Paul to develop a midrashic lesson, an analogical application: Christ was present with Israel to provide water for them in the wilderness. So this was a Christophany. But Paul takes it a step further to equate the rock with Christ, for just as it was struck to produce water, so Christ would be struck to produce rivers of living water. The provision of bread to eat and water to drink provided for Paul a ready analogy to the provisions of Christ in the gospel (1 Cor 10:4).

[17:6]  ³⁹ tn Heb “in the eyes of.”

[19:2]  ⁴⁰ tn The form is a preterite with vav (ו) consecutive, “and they journeyed.” It is here subordinated to the next clause as a temporal clause. But since the action of this temporal clause preceded the actions recorded in v. 1, a translation of “after” will keep the sequence in order. Verse 2 adds details to the summary in v. 1.

[19:2]  ⁴¹ sn The mountain is Mount Sinai, the mountain of God, the place where God had met and called Moses and had promised that they would be here to worship him. If this mountain is Jebel Musa, the traditional site of Sinai, then the plain in front of it would be Er-Rahah, about a mile and a half long by half a mile wide, fronting the mountain on the NW side (S. R. Driver, Exodus, 169). The plain itself is about 5000 feet above sea level. A mountain on the west side of the Arabian Peninsula has also been suggested as a possible site.

[19:9]  ⁴² tn The construction uses the deictic particle and the participle to express the imminent future, what God was about to do. Here is the first announcement of the theophany.

[19:9]  ⁴³ tn Heb “the thickness of the cloud”; KJV, ASV, NASB, NCV, TEV, CEV, NLT “in a thick cloud.”

[19:9]  ⁴⁴ tn Since “and also in you” begins the clause, the emphasis must be that the people would also trust Moses. See Exod 4:1-9, 31; 14:31.

[25:33]  ⁴⁵ tn The text uses “one” again; “the one…the one” means “the one…and the next” in the distributive sense.

[25:33]  ⁴⁶ tn Heb “thus.”

[25:35]  ⁴⁷ tn For clarity the phrase “the first” has been supplied.

[25:35]  ⁴⁸ tn For clarity the phrase “the next” has been supplied.

[25:35]  ⁴⁹ tn For clarity the phrase “the third” has been supplied.

[26:19]  ⁵⁰ tn The clause is repeated to show the distributive sense; it literally says, “and two bases under the one frame for its two projections.”

[28:12]  ⁵¹ sn This was to be a perpetual reminder that the priest ministers on behalf of the twelve tribes of Israel. Their names would always be borne by the priests.

[28:38]  ⁵² tn The construction “the iniquity of the holy things” is difficult. “Holy things” is explained in the passage by all the gifts the people bring and consecrate to Yahweh. But there will inevitably be iniquity involved. U. Cassuto explains that Aaron “will atone for all the transgressions committed in connection with the order of the service, the purity of the consecrated things, or the use of the holy gifts, for the declaration engraved on the plate will prove that everything was intended to be holy to the Lord, and if aught was done irregularly, the intention at least was good” (Exodus, 385).

[28:38]  ⁵³ tn The clause reads: “according to/by all the gifts of their holiness.” The genitive is an attributive genitive, the suffix on it referring to the whole bound construction – “their holy gifts.” The idea of the line is that the people will consecrate as holy things gifts they bring to the sanctuary.

[28:38]  ⁵⁴ tn This clause is the infinitive construct with the lamed preposition, followed by the prepositional phrase: “for acceptance for them.” This infinitive provides the purpose or result of the act of wearing the dedicatory frontlet – that they will be acceptable.

[30:12]  ⁵⁵ tn The expression is “when you take [lift up] the sum [head] of the Israelites.”

[30:12]  ⁵⁶ tn The form is לִפְקֻדֵיהֶם (lifqudehem, “according to those that are numbered of/by them”) from the verb פָּקַד (paqad, “to visit”). But the idea of this word seems more to be that of changing or determining the destiny, and so “appoint” and “number” become clear categories of meaning for the word. Here it simply refers to the census, but when this word is used for a census it often involves mustering an army for a military purpose. Here there is no indication of a war, but it may be laying down the principle that when they should do this, here is the price. B. Jacob (Exodus, 835) uses Num 31 as a good illustration, showing that the warrior was essentially a murderer, if he killed anyone in battle. For this reason his blood was forfeit; if he survived he must pay a כֹּפֶר (kofer) because every human life possesses value and must be atoned for. The payment during the census represented a “presumptive ransom” so that they could not be faulted for what they might do in war.

[30:12]  ⁵⁷ tn The “ransom” is כֹּפֶר (kofer), a word related to words translated “atone” and “atonement.” Here the noun refers to what is paid for the life. The idea is that of delivering or redeeming by a substitute – here the substitute is the money. If they paid the amount, their lives would be safe (W. C. Kaiser, Jr., “Exodus,” EBC 2:473).

[30:12]  ⁵⁸ tn The temporal clause uses a preposition, an infinitive construct, and then an accusative. The subject is supplied: “in numbering them” means “when [you] number them.” The verb could also be rendered “when you muster them.”

[30:23]  ⁵⁹ tn The construction uses the imperative “take,” but before it is the independent pronoun to add emphasis to it. After the imperative is the ethical dative (lit. “to you”) to stress the task to Moses as a personal responsibility: “and you, take to yourself.”

[30:23]  ⁶⁰ tn Heb “spices head.” This must mean the chief spices, or perhaps the top spice, meaning fine spices or choice spices. See Song 4:14; Ezek 27:22.

[30:23]  ⁶¹ tn Or “500 shekels.” Verse 24 specifies that the sanctuary shekel was the unit for weighing the spices. The total of 1500 shekels for the four spices is estimated at between 77 and 100 pounds, or 17 to 22 kilograms, depending on how much a shekel weighed (C. Houtman, Exodus, 3:576).

[30:23]  ⁶² sn Myrrh is an aromatic substance that flows from the bark of certain trees in Arabia and Africa and then hardens. “The hardened globules of the gum appear also to have been ground into a powder that would have been easy to store and would have been poured from a container” (J. Durham, Exodus [WBC], 3:406).

[31:13]  ⁶³ sn The instruction for the Sabbath at this point seems rather abrupt, but it follows logically the extended plans of building the sanctuary. B. Jacob, following some of the earlier treatments, suggests that these are specific rules given for the duration of the building of the sanctuary (Exodus, 844). The Sabbath day is a day of complete cessation; no labor or work could be done. The point here is that God’s covenant people must faithfully keep the sign of the covenant as a living commemoration of the finished work of Yahweh, and as an active part in their sanctification. See also H. Routtenberg, “The Laws of Sabbath: Biblical Sources,” Dor le Dor 6 (1977): 41-43, 99-101, 153-55, 204-6; G. Robinson, “The Idea of Rest in the OT and the Search for the Basic Character of Sabbath,” ZAW 92 (1980): 32-42; M. Tsevat, “The Basic Meaning of the Biblical Sabbath, ZAW 84 (1972): 447-59; M. T. Willshaw, “A Joyous Sign,” ExpTim 89 (1978): 179-80.

[31:13]  ⁶⁴ tn Or “your sanctifier.”

[36:2]  ⁶⁵ tn The verb קָרָא (qara’) plus the preposition “to” – “to call to” someone means “to summon” that person.

[36:2]  ⁶⁶ tn Here there is a slight change: “in whose heart Yahweh had put skill.”

[36:2]  ⁶⁷ tn Or “whose heart was willing.”

[36:2]  ⁶⁸ sn The verb means more than “approach” or “draw near”; קָרַב (qarav) is the word used for drawing near the altar as in bringing an offering. Here they offer themselves, their talents and their time.

[36:6]  ⁶⁹ tn The verse simply reads, “and Moses commanded and they caused [a voice] to cross over in the camp.” The second preterite with the vav may be subordinated to the first clause, giving the intent (purpose or result).

[36:6]  ⁷⁰ tn Heb “voice.”

[36:6]  ⁷¹ tn The verse ends with the infinitive serving as the object of the preposition: “from bringing.”

[37:21]  ⁷² tn As in Exod 26:35, the translation of “first” and “next” and “third” is interpretive, because the text simply says “under two branches” in each of three places.

[37:25]  ⁷³ tn Heb “from it were its horns,” meaning that they were made from the same piece.

[39:5]  ⁷⁴ tn Heb “from it” or the same.

[39:40]  ⁷⁵ tn Heb “utensils, vessels.”