Keluaran 13:11

13:11 When the Lord brings you ¹  into the land of the Canaanites, ²  as he swore to you and to your fathers, and gives it ³  to you,

Keluaran 13:13

13:13 Every firstling ⁴  of a donkey you must redeem ⁵  with a lamb, and if you do not redeem it, then you must break its neck. ⁶  Every firstborn of ⁷  your sons you must redeem.

[13:11]  ¹ tn Heb “and it will be when Yahweh brings (will bring) you.”

[13:11]  ² sn The name “the Canaanite” (and so collective for “Canaanites”) is occasionally used to summarize all the list of Canaanitish tribes that lived in the land.

[13:11]  ³ tn The verb וּנְתָנָהּ (unÿtanah) is the Qal perfect with the vav (ו) consecutive; this is in sequence to the preceding verb, and forms part of the protasis, the temporal clause. The main clause is the instruction in the next verse.

[13:13]  ⁴ tn Heb “and every opener [of a womb].”

[13:13]  ⁵ tn The verb תִּפְדֶּה (tifdeh), the instructional imperfect, refers to the idea of redemption by paying a cost. This word is used regularly of redeeming a person, or an animal, from death or servitude (S. R. Driver, Exodus, 109).

[13:13]  ⁶ tn The conditional clause uses an imperfect tense; this is followed by a perfect tense with the vav consecutive providing the obligation or instruction. The owner might not redeem the donkey, but if he did not, he could not keep it, he had to kill it by breaking its neck (so either a lamb for it, or the donkey itself). The donkey could not be killed by shedding blood because that would make it a sacrifice, and that was not possible with this kind of animal. See G. Brin, “The Firstling of Unclean Animals,” JQR 68 (1977): 1-15.

[13:13]  ⁷ tn Heb “and every firstborn of man among your sons.” The addition of “man” is clearly meant to distinguish firstborn humans from animals.

[13:13]  sn One was to sacrifice the firstborn animals to Yahweh, but the children were to be redeemed by their fathers. The redemption price was five shekels (Num 18:15-16).