Keluaran 8:8

8:8 Then Pharaoh summoned ¹  Moses and Aaron and said, “Pray ²  to the Lord that he may take the frogs away ³  from me and my people, and I will release ⁴  the people that they may sacrifice ⁵  to the Lord.”

Keluaran 8:29

8:29 Moses said, “I am going to go out ⁶  from you and pray to the Lord, and the swarms of flies will go away from Pharaoh, from his servants, and from his people tomorrow. Only do not let Pharaoh deal falsely again ⁷  by not releasing ⁸  the people to sacrifice to the Lord.”

Keluaran 13:3

13:3 Moses said to the people, “Remember ⁹  this day on which you came out from Egypt, from the place where you were enslaved, ¹⁰  for the Lord brought you out of there ¹¹  with a mighty hand – and no bread made with yeast may be eaten. ¹² 

Keluaran 13:9

13:9 ¹³  It ¹⁴  will be a sign ¹⁵  for you on your hand and a memorial ¹⁶  on your forehead, ¹⁷  so that the law of the Lord may be ¹⁸  in your mouth, ¹⁹  for ²⁰  with a mighty hand the Lord brought you out of Egypt.

Keluaran 15:25-26

15:25 He cried out to the Lord, and the Lord showed him ²¹  a tree. ²²  When Moses ²³  threw it into the water, the water became safe to drink. There the Lord ²⁴  made for them ²⁵  a binding ordinance, ²⁶  and there he tested ²⁷  them. 15:26 He said, “If you will diligently obey ²⁸  the Lord your God, and do what is right ²⁹  in his sight, and pay attention ³⁰  to his commandments, and keep all his statutes, then all ³¹  the diseases ³²  that I brought on the Egyptians I will not bring on you, for I, the Lord, am your healer.” ³³ 

Keluaran 33:12

33:12 Moses said to the Lord, “See, you have been saying to me, ‘Bring this people up,’ ³⁴  but you have not let me know whom you will send with me. But you said, ‘I know you by name, ³⁵  and also you have found favor in my sight.’

Keluaran 34:7

34:7 keeping loyal love for thousands, ³⁶  forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin. But he by no means leaves the guilty unpunished, responding to the transgression ³⁷  of fathers by dealing with children and children’s children, to the third and fourth generation.”

[8:8]  ¹ tn The verb קָרָא (qara’) followed by the lamed (ל) preposition has the meaning “to summon.”

[8:8]  ² tn The verb הַעְתִּירוּ (ha’tiru) is the Hiphil imperative of the verb עָתַר (’atar). It means “to pray, supplicate,” or “make supplication” – always addressed to God. It is often translated “entreat” to reflect that it is a more urgent praying.

[8:8]  ³ tn This form is the jussive with a sequential vav that provides the purpose of the prayer: pray…that he may turn away the frogs.

[8:8]  sn This is the first time in the conflict that Pharaoh even acknowledged that Yahweh existed. Now he is asking for prayer to remove the frogs and is promising to release Israel. This result of the plague must have been an encouragement to Moses.

[8:8]  ⁴ tn The form is the Piel cohortative וַאֲשַׁלְּחָה (va’ashallÿkhah) with the vav (ו) continuing the sequence from the request and its purpose. The cohortative here stresses the resolve of the king: “and (then) I will release.”

[8:8]  ⁵ tn Here also the imperfect tense with the vav (ו) shows the purpose of the release: “that they may sacrifice.”

[8:29]  ⁶ tn The deictic particle with the participle usually indicates the futur instans nuance: “I am about to…,” or “I am going to….” The clause could also be subordinated as a temporal clause.

[8:29]  ⁷ tn The verb תָּלַל (talal) means “to mock, deceive, trifle with.” The construction in this verse forms a verbal hendiadys. The Hiphil jussive אַל־יֹסֵף (’al-yosef, “let not [Pharaoh] add”) is joined with the Hiphil infinitive הָתֵל (hatel, “to deceive”). It means: “Let not Pharaoh deceive again.” Changing to the third person in this warning to Pharaoh is more decisive, more powerful.

[8:29]  ⁸ tn The Piel infinitive construct after lamed (ל) and the negative functions epexegetically, explaining how Pharaoh would deal falsely – “by not releasing.”

[13:3]  ⁹ 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]  ¹⁰ 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]  ¹¹ tn Heb “from this” [place].

[13:3]  ¹² 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.

[13:9]  ¹³ 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]  ¹⁴ tn That is, this ceremony.

[13:9]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “for a sign.”

[13:9]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “for a memorial.”

[13:9]  ¹⁷ 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]  ¹⁸ 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]  ¹⁹ 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]  ²⁰ 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.

[15:25]  ²¹ tn The verb is וַיּוֹרֵהוּ (vayyorehu, “and he showed him”). It is the Hiphil preterite from יָרָה (yarah), which has a basic meaning of “to point, show, direct.” It then came to mean “to teach”; it is the verb behind the noun “Law” (תּוֹרָה, torah).

[15:25]  sn U. Cassuto notes that here is the clue to the direction of the narrative: Israel needed God’s instruction, the Law, if they were going to enjoy his provisions (Exodus, 184).

[15:25]  ²² tn Or “a [piece of] wood” (cf. NAB, NIV, NRSV, TEV, CEV); NLT “a branch.”

[15:25]  sn S. R. Driver (Exodus, 143) follows some local legends in identifying this tree as one that is supposed to have – even to this day – the properties necessary for making bitter water sweet. B. Jacob (Exodus, 436) reports that no such tree has ever been found, but then he adds that this does not mean there was not such a bush in the earlier days. He believes that here God used a natural means (“showed, instructed”) to sweeten the water. He quotes Ben Sira as saying God had created these things with healing properties in them.

[15:25]  ²³ tn Heb “he”; the referent (Moses) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[15:25]  ²⁴ tn Heb “there he”; the referent (the Lord) is supplied for clarity.

[15:25]  ²⁵ tn Heb “for him” (referring to Israel as a whole).

[15:25]  ²⁶ tn This translation interprets the two nouns as a hendiadys: “a statute and an ordinance” becomes “a binding ordinance.”

[15:25]  ²⁷ tn The verb נִסָּהוּ (nissahu, “and he tested him [them]”) is from the root נָסָה (nasah). The use of this word in the Bible indicates that there is question, doubt, or uncertainty about the object being tested.

[15:25]  sn The whole episode was a test from God. He led them there through Moses and let them go hungry and thirsty. He wanted to see how great their faith was.

[15:26]  ²⁸ tn The construction uses the infinitive absolute and the imperfect tense of שָׁמַע (shama’). The meaning of the verb is idiomatic here because it is followed by “to the voice of Yahweh your God.” When this is present, the verb is translated “obey.” The construction is in a causal clause. It reads, “If you will diligently obey.” Gesenius points out that the infinitive absolute in a conditional clause also emphasizes the importance of the condition on which the consequence depends (GKC 342-43 §113.o).

[15:26]  ²⁹ tn The word order is reversed in the text: “and the right in his eyes you do,” or, “[if] you do what is right in his eyes.” The conditional idea in the first clause is continued in this clause.

[15:26]  ³⁰ tn Heb “give ear.” This verb and the next are both perfect tenses with the vav (ו) consecutive; they continue the sequence of the original conditional clause.

[15:26]  ³¹ tn The substantive כָּל־ (kol, “all of”) in a negative clause can be translated “none of.”

[15:26]  ³² sn The reference is no doubt to the plagues that Yahweh has just put on them. These will not come on God’s true people. But the interesting thing about a conditional clause like this is that the opposite is also true – “if you do not obey, then I will bring these diseases.”

[15:26]  ³³ tn The form is רֹפְאֶךָ (rofÿ’ekha), a participle with a pronominal suffix. The word is the predicate after the pronoun “I”: “I [am] your healer.” The suffix is an objective genitive – the Lord heals them.

[15:26]  sn The name I Yahweh am your healer comes as a bit of a surprise. One might expect, “I am Yahweh who heals your water,” but it was the people he came to heal because their faith was weak. God lets Israel know here that he can control the elements of nature to bring about a spiritual response in Israel (see Deut 8).

[33:12]  ³⁴ tn The Hiphil imperative is from the same verb that has been used before for bringing the people up from Egypt and leading them to Canaan.

[33:12]  ³⁵ tn That is, “chosen you.”

[34:7]  ³⁶ tn That is, “for thousands of generations.”

[34:7]  ³⁷ sn As in the ten commandments (20:5-6), this expression shows that the iniquity and its punishment will continue in the family if left unchecked. This does not go on as long as the outcomes for good (thousands versus third or fourth generations), and it is limited to those who hate God.