Keluaran 13:3

13:3 Moses said to the people, “Remember ¹  this day on which you came out from Egypt, from the place where you were enslaved, ²  for the Lord brought you out of there ³  with a mighty hand – and no bread made with yeast may be eaten. ⁴ 

Keluaran 13:5

13:5 When ⁵  the Lord brings you to the land of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Hivites, and Jebusites, which he swore to your fathers to give you, a land flowing with milk and honey, ⁶  then you will keep ⁷  this ceremony ⁸  in this month.

Keluaran 13:9

13:9 ⁹  It ¹⁰  will be a sign ¹¹  for you on your hand and a memorial ¹²  on your forehead, ¹³  so that the law of the Lord may be ¹⁴  in your mouth, ¹⁵  for ¹⁶  with a mighty hand the Lord brought you out of Egypt.

Keluaran 30:10

30:10 Aaron is to make atonement on its horns once in the year with some of the blood of the sin offering for atonement; ¹⁷  once in the year ¹⁸  he is to make atonement on it throughout your generations. It is most holy to the Lord.” ¹⁹ 

Keluaran 34:18

34:18 “You must keep the Feast of Unleavened Bread. For seven days ²⁰  you must eat bread made without yeast, as I commanded you; do this ²¹  at the appointed time of the month Abib, for in the month Abib you came out of Egypt.

[13:3]  ¹ tn The form is the infinitive absolute of זָכַר (zakhar, “remember”). The use of this form in place of the imperative (also found in the Decalogue with the Sabbath instruction) stresses the basic meaning of the root word, everything involved with remembering (emphatic imperative, according to GKC 346 §113.bb). The verb usually implies that there will be proper action based on what was remembered.

[13:3]  sn There is a pattern in the arrangement of vv. 3-10 and 11-16. Both sections contain commands based on the mighty deliverance as reminders of the deliverance. “With a mighty hand” occurs in vv. 3, 9, 14, 16. An explanation to the son is found in vv. 8 and 14. The emphases “sign on your hand” and “between your eyes” are part of the conclusions to both halves (vv. 9, 16).

[13:3]  ² tn Heb “from a house of slaves.” “House” is obviously not meant to be literal; it indicates a location characterized by slavery, a land of slaves, as if they were in a slave house. Egypt is also called an “iron-smelting furnace” (Deut 4:20).

[13:3]  ³ tn Heb “from this” [place].

[13:3]  ⁴ tn The verb is a Niphal imperfect; it could be rendered “must not be eaten” in the nuance of the instruction or injunction category, but permission fits this sermonic presentation very well – nothing with yeast may be eaten.

[13:5]  ⁵ tn Heb “and it will be when.”

[13:5]  ⁶ tn See notes on Exod 3:8.

[13:5]  ⁷ tn The verb is וְעָבַדְתָּ (vÿ’avadta), the Qal perfect with a vav (ו) consecutive. It is the equivalent of the imperfect tense of instruction or injunction; it forms the main point after the temporal clause – “when Yahweh brings you out…then you will serve.”

[13:5]  ⁸ tn The object is a cognate accusative for emphasis on the meaning of the service – “you will serve this service.” W. C. Kaiser notes how this noun was translated “slavery” and “work” in the book, but “service” or “ceremony” for Yahweh. Israel was saved from slavery to Egypt into service for God as remembered by this ceremony (“Exodus,” EBC 2:383).

[13:9]  ⁹ sn This passage has, of course, been taken literally by many devout Jews, and portions of the text have been encased in phylacteries and bound on the arm and forehead. B. Jacob (Exodus, 368), weighing the pros and cons of the literal or the figurative meaning, says that those who took it literally should not be looked down on for their symbolic work. In many cases, he continues, it is the spirit that kills and the letter makes alive – because people who argue against a literal usage do so to excuse lack of action. This is a rather interesting twist in the discussion. The point of the teaching was obviously meant to keep the Law of Yahweh in the minds of the people, to remind them of their duties.

[13:9]  ¹⁰ tn That is, this ceremony.

[13:9]  ¹¹ tn Heb “for a sign.”

[13:9]  ¹² tn Heb “for a memorial.”

[13:9]  ¹³ tn Heb “between your eyes” (KJV and ASV both similar); the same expression occurs in v. 16.

[13:9]  sn That these festivals and consecrations were to be signs and memorials is akin to the expressions used in the book of Proverbs (Prov 3:3, “bind them around your neck…write them on your heart”). The people were to use the festivals as outward and visible tokens to remind them to obey what the Law required.

[13:9]  ¹⁴ tn The purpose of using this ceremony as a sign and a memorial is that the Law might be in their mouth. The imperfect tense, then, receives the classification of final imperfect in the purpose clause.

[13:9]  ¹⁵ sn “Mouth” is a metonymy of cause; the point is that they should be ever talking about the Law as their guide as they go about their duties (see Deut 6:7; 11:19; Josh 1:8).

[13:9]  ¹⁶ tn This causal clause gives the reason for what has just been instructed. Because Yahweh delivered them from bondage, he has the strongest claims on their life.

[30:10]  ¹⁷ tn The word “atonements” (plural in Hebrew) is a genitive showing the result or product of the sacrifice made.

[30:10]  ¹⁸ sn This ruling presupposes that the instruction for the Day of Atonement has been given, or at the very least, is to be given shortly. That is the one day of the year that all sin and all ritual impurity would be removed.

[30:10]  ¹⁹ sn The phrase “most holy to the Lord” means that the altar cannot be used for any other purpose than what is stated here.

[34:18]  ²⁰ tn This is an adverbial accusative of time.

[34:18]  ²¹ tn The words “do this” have been supplied.