Keluaran 1:22

1:22 Then Pharaoh commanded all his people, “All sons ¹  that are born you must throw ²  into the river, but all daughters you may let live.” ³ 

Keluaran 5:10

5:10 So the slave masters of the people and their foremen went to the Israelites and said, ⁴  “Thus says Pharaoh: ‘I am not giving ⁵  you straw.

Keluaran 5:19

5:19 The Israelite foremen saw ⁶  that they ⁷  were in trouble when they were told, ⁸  “You must not reduce the daily quota of your bricks.”

Keluaran 6:12

6:12 But Moses replied to ⁹  the Lord, “If the Israelites did not listen to me, then ¹⁰  how will Pharaoh listen to me, since ¹¹  I speak with difficulty?” ¹² 

Keluaran 6:29

6:29 he said to him, ¹³  “I am the Lord. Tell ¹⁴  Pharaoh king of Egypt all that ¹⁵  I am telling ¹⁶  you.”

Keluaran 7:16

7:16 Tell him, ‘The Lord, the God of the Hebrews, has sent me to you to say, ¹⁷  “Release my people, that they may serve me ¹⁸  in the desert!” But until now ¹⁹  you have not listened. ²⁰ 

Keluaran 12:3

12:3 Tell the whole community of Israel, ‘In the tenth day of this month they each ²¹  must take a lamb ²²  for themselves according to their families ²³  – a lamb for each household. ²⁴ 

Keluaran 13:14

13:14 ²⁵ In the future, ²⁶  when your son asks you ²⁷  ‘What is this?’ ²⁸  you are to tell him, ‘With a mighty hand ²⁹  the Lord brought us out from Egypt, from the land of slavery. ³⁰ 

Keluaran 19:3

19:3 Moses ³¹  went up to God, and the Lord called to him from the mountain, “Thus you will tell the house of Jacob, and declare to the people ³²  of Israel:

Keluaran 19:12

19:12 You must set boundaries ³³  for the people all around, saying, ‘Take heed ³⁴  to yourselves not to go up on the mountain nor touch its edge. Whoever touches the mountain will surely be put to death!

Keluaran 36:5-6

36:5 and told Moses, “The people are bringing much more than ³⁵  is needed for the completion ³⁶  of the work which the Lord commanded us to do!” ³⁷ 

36:6 Moses instructed them to take ³⁸  his message ³⁹  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. ⁴⁰ 

[1:22]  ¹ tn The substantive כֹּל (kol) followed by the article stresses the entirety – “all sons” or “all daughters” – even though the nouns are singular in Hebrew (see GKC 411 §127.b).

[1:22]  ² tn The form includes a pronominal suffix that reiterates the object of the verb: “every son…you will throw it.”

[1:22]  ³ tn The first imperfect has the force of a definite order, but the second, concerning the girls, could also have the nuance of permission, which may fit better. Pharaoh is simply allowing the girls to live.

[1:22]  sn Verse 22 forms a fitting climax to the chapter, in which the king continually seeks to destroy the Israelite strength. Finally, with this decree, he throws off any subtlety and commands the open extermination of Hebrew males. The verse forms a transition to the next chapter, in which Moses is saved by Pharaoh’s own daughter. These chapters show that the king’s efforts to destroy the strength of Israel – so clearly a work of God – met with failure again and again. And that failure involved the efforts of women, whom Pharaoh did not consider a threat.

[5:10]  ⁴ tn Heb “went out and spoke to the people saying.” Here “the people” has been specified as “the Israelites” for clarity.

[5:10]  ⁵ tn The construction uses the negative particle combined with a subject suffix before the participle: אֵינֶנִּי נֹתֵן (’enenni noten, “there is not I – giving”).

[5:19]  ⁶ tn The common Hebrew verb translated “saw,” like the common English verb for seeing, is also used to refer to mental perception and understanding, as in the question “See what I mean?” The foremen understood how difficult things would be under this ruling.

[5:19]  ⁷ tn The text has the sign of the accusative with a suffix and then a prepositional phrase: אֹתָם בְּרָע (’otam bÿra’), meaning something like “[they saw] them in trouble” or “themselves in trouble.” Gesenius shows a few examples where the accusative of the reflexive pronoun is represented by the sign of the accusative with a suffix, and these with marked emphasis (GKC 439 §135.k).

[5:19]  ⁸ tn The clause “when they were told” translates לֵאמֹר (le’mor), which usually simply means “saying.” The thing that was said was clearly the decree that was given to them.

[6:12]  ⁹ tn Heb “And Moses spoke before.”

[6:12]  ¹⁰ sn This analogy is an example of a qal wahomer comparison. It is an argument by inference from the light (qal) to the heavy (homer), from the simple to the more difficult. If the Israelites, who are Yahwists, would not listen to him, it is highly unlikely Pharaoh would.

[6:12]  ¹¹ tn The final clause begins with a disjunctive vav (ו), a vav on a nonverb form – here a pronoun. It introduces a circumstantial causal clause.

[6:12]  ¹² tn Heb “and [since] I am of uncircumcised lips.” The “lips” represent his speech (metonymy of cause). The term “uncircumcised” makes a comparison between his speech and that which Israel perceived as unacceptable, unprepared, foreign, and of no use to God. The heart is described this way when it is impervious to good impressions (Lev 26:41; Jer 9:26) and the ear when it hears imperfectly (Jer 6:10). Moses has here returned to his earlier claim – he does not speak well enough to be doing this.

[6:29]  ¹³ tn Heb “and Yahweh spoke to Moses saying.” This has been simplified in the translation as “he said to him” for stylistic reasons.

[6:29]  ¹⁴ tn The verb is דַּבֵּר (dabber), the Piel imperative. It would normally be translated “speak,” but in English that verb does not sound as natural with a direct object as “tell.”

[6:29]  ¹⁵ tn The clause begins with אֵת כָּל־אֲשֶׁר (’et kol-’asher) indicating that this is a noun clause functioning as the direct object of the imperative and providing the content of the commanded speech.

[6:29]  ¹⁶ tn דֹּבֵר (dover) is the Qal active participle; it functions here as the predicate in the noun clause: “that I [am] telling you.” This one could be rendered, “that I am speaking to you.”

[7:16]  ¹⁷ tn The form לֵאמֹר (le’mor) is the Qal infinitive construct with the lamed (ל) preposition. It is used so often epexegetically that it has achieved idiomatic status – “saying” (if translated at all). But here it would make better sense to take it as a purpose infinitive. God sent him to say these words.

[7:16]  ¹⁸ tn The imperfect tense with the vav (וְיַעַבְדֻנִי, vÿya’avduni) following the imperative is in volitive sequence, showing the purpose – “that they may serve me.” The word “serve” (עָבַד, ’avad) is a general term to include religious observance and obedience.

[7:16]  ¹⁹ tn The final עַד־כֹּה (’ad-koh, “until now”) narrows the use of the perfect tense to the present perfect: “you have not listened.” That verb, however, involves more than than mere audition. It has the idea of responding to, hearkening, and in some places obeying; here “you have not complied” might catch the point of what Moses is saying, while “listen” helps to maintain the connection with other uses of the verb.

[7:16]  ²⁰ tn Or “complied” (שָׁמַעְתָּ, shama’ta).

[12:3]  ²¹ tn Heb “and they will take for them a man a lamb.” This is clearly a distributive, or individualizing, use of “man.”

[12:3]  ²² tn The שֶּׂה (seh) is a single head from the flock, or smaller cattle, which would include both sheep and goats.

[12:3]  ²³ tn Heb “according to the house of their fathers.” The expression “house of the father” is a common expression for a family.

[12:3]  sn The Passover was to be a domestic institution. Each lamb was to be shared by family members.

[12:3]  ²⁴ tn Heb “house” (also at the beginning of the following verse).

[13:14]  ²⁵ sn As with v. 8, the Law now requires that the children be instructed on the meaning of this observance. It is a memorial of the deliverance from bondage and the killing of the firstborn in Egypt.

[13:14]  ²⁶ tn Heb “tomorrow.”

[13:14]  ²⁷ tn Heb “and it will be when your son will ask you.”

[13:14]  ²⁸ tn The question is cryptic; it simply says, “What is this?” but certainly refers to the custom just mentioned. It asks, “What does this mean?” or “Why do we do this?”

[13:14]  ²⁹ tn The expression is “with strength of hand,” making “hand” the genitive of specification. In translation “strength” becomes the modifier, because “hand” specifies where the strength was. But of course the whole expression is anthropomorphic for the power of God.

[13:14]  ³⁰ tn Heb “house of slaves.”

[19:3]  ³¹ tn Heb “and Moses went up.”

[19:3]  ³² tn This expression is normally translated as “Israelites” in this translation, but because in this place it is parallel to “the house of Jacob” it seemed better to offer a fuller rendering.

[19:12]  ³³ tn The verb is a Hiphil perfect (“make borders”) with vav (ו) consecutive, following the sequence of instructions.

[19:12]  ³⁴ tn The Niphal imperative (“guard yourselves, take heed to yourselves”) is followed by two infinitives construct that provide the description of what is to be avoided – going up or touching the mountain.

[36:5]  ³⁵ tn The construction uses the verbal hendiadys: מַרְבִּים לְהָבִיא (marbim lÿhavi’) is the Hiphil participle followed (after the subject) by the Hiphil infinitive construct. It would read, “they multiply…to bring,” meaning, “they bring more” than is needed.

[36:5]  ³⁶ tn Heb “for the service” (so KJV, ASV).

[36:5]  ³⁷ tn The last clause is merely the infinitive with an object – “to do it.” It clearly means the skilled workers are to do it.

[36:6]  ³⁸ 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]  ³⁹ tn Heb “voice.”

[36:6]  ⁴⁰ tn The verse ends with the infinitive serving as the object of the preposition: “from bringing.”