Keluaran 2:1

The Birth of the Deliverer

2:1 ¹ A man from the household ²  of Levi married ³  a woman who was a descendant of Levi. ⁴ 

Keluaran 4:30

4:30 Aaron spoke ⁵  all the words that the Lord had spoken to Moses and did the signs in the sight of the people,

Keluaran 14:18

14:18 And the Egyptians will know ⁶  that I am the Lord when I have gained my honor ⁷  because of Pharaoh, his chariots, and his horsemen.”

Keluaran 17:4

17:4 Then Moses cried out to the Lord, “What will I do with ⁸  this people? – a little more ⁹  and they will stone me!” ¹⁰ 

Keluaran 19:11

19:11 and be ready for the third day, for on the third day the Lord will come down on Mount Sinai in the sight of all the people.

Keluaran 35:30

35:30 Moses said to the Israelites, “See, the Lord has chosen ¹¹  Bezalel son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah.

[2:1]  ¹ sn The chapter records the exceptional survival of Moses under the decree of death by Pharaoh (vv. 1-10), the flight of Moses from Pharaoh after killing the Egyptian (vv. 11-15), the marriage of Moses (vv. 16-22), and finally a note about the Lord’s hearing the sighing of the people in bondage (vv. 23-25). The first part is the birth. The Bible has several stories about miraculous or special births and deliverances of those destined to lead Israel. Their impact is essentially to authenticate the individual’s ministry. If the person’s beginning was providentially provided and protected by the Lord, then the mission must be of divine origin too. In this chapter the plot works around the decree for the death of the children – a decree undone by the women. The second part of the chapter records Moses’ flight and marriage. Having introduced the deliverer Moses in such an auspicious way, the chapter then records how this deliverer acted presumptuously and had to flee for his life. Any deliverance God desired had to be supernatural, as the chapter’s final note about answering prayer shows.

[2:1]  ² tn Heb “house.” In other words, the tribe of Levi.

[2:1]  ³ tn Heb “went and took”; NASB “went and married.”

[2:1]  ⁴ tn Heb “a daughter of Levi.” The word “daughter” is used in the sense of “descendant” and connects the new account with Pharaoh’s command in 1:22. The words “a woman who was” are added for clarity in English.

[2:1]  sn The first part of this section is the account of hiding the infant (vv. 1-4). The marriage, the birth, the hiding of the child, and the positioning of Miriam, are all faith operations that ignore the decree of Pharaoh or work around it to preserve the life of the child.

[4:30]  ⁵ tn Heb “And Aaron spoke.”

[14:18]  ⁶ tn The construction is unusual in that it says, “And Egypt will know.” The verb is plural, and so “Egypt” must mean “the Egyptians.” The verb is the perfect tense with the vav consecutive, showing that this recognition or acknowledgment by Egypt will be the result or purpose of the defeat of them by God.

[14:18]  ⁷ tn The form is בְּהִכָּבְדִי (bÿhikkavÿdi), the Niphal infinitive construct with a preposition and a suffix. For the suffix on a Niphal, see GKC 162-63 §61.c. The word forms a temporal clause in the line.

[17:4]  ⁸ tn The preposition lamed (ל) is here specification, meaning “with respect to” (see R. J. Williams, Hebrew Syntax, 49, §273).

[17:4]  ⁹ tn Or “they are almost ready to stone me.”

[17:4]  ¹⁰ tn The perfect tense with the vav (ו) consecutive almost develops an independent force; this is true in sentences where it follows an expression of time, as here (see GKC 334 §112.x).

[35:30]  ¹¹ tn Heb “called by name” (so KJV, ASV, NASB, NRSV). This expression means that the person was specifically chosen for some important task (S. R. Driver, Exodus, 342). See the expression with Cyrus in Isa 45:3-4.