Keluaran 8:9

8:9 Moses said to Pharaoh, “You may have the honor over me ¹  – when shall I pray for you, your servants, and your people, for the frogs to be removed ²  from you and your houses, so that ³  they will be left ⁴  only in the Nile?”

Keluaran 10:7

10:7 Pharaoh’s servants said to him, “How long ⁵  will this man be a menace ⁶  to us? Release the people so that they may serve the Lord their God. Do you not know ⁷  that Egypt is destroyed?”

[8:9]  ¹ tn The expression הִתְפָּאֵר עָלַי (hitpa’er ’alay) is problematic. The verb would be simply translated “honor yourself” or “deck yourself with honor.” It can be used in the bad sense of self-exaltation. But here it seems to mean “have the honor or advantage over me” in choosing when to remove the frogs. The LXX has “appoint for me.” Moses is doing more than extending a courtesy to Pharaoh; he is giving him the upper hand in choosing the time. But it is also a test, for if Pharaoh picked the time it would appear less likely that Moses was manipulating things. As U. Cassuto puts it, Moses is saying “my trust in God is so strong you may have the honor of choosing the time” (Exodus, 103).

[8:9]  ² tn Or “destroyed”; Heb “to cut off the frogs.”

[8:9]  ³ tn The phrase “so that” is implied.

[8:9]  ⁴ tn Or “survive, remain.”

[10:7]  ⁵ sn The question of Pharaoh’s servants echoes the question of Moses – “How long?” Now the servants of Pharaoh are demanding what Moses demanded – “Release the people.” They know that the land is destroyed, and they speak of it as Moses’ doing. That way they avoid acknowledging Yahweh or blaming Pharaoh.

[10:7]  ⁶ tn Heb “snare” (מוֹקֵשׁ, moqesh), a word used for a trap for catching birds. Here it is a figure for the cause of Egypt’s destruction.

[10:7]  ⁷ tn With the adverb טֶרֶם (terem), the imperfect tense receives a present sense: “Do you not know?” (See GKC 481 §152.r).