Keluaran 4:30

4:30 Aaron spoke ¹  all the words that the Lord had spoken to Moses and did the signs in the sight of the people,

Keluaran 7:3

7:3 But I will harden ²  Pharaoh’s heart, and although I will multiply ³  my signs and my wonders in the land of Egypt,

Keluaran 9:19

9:19 So now, send instructions ⁴  to gather ⁵  your livestock and all your possessions in the fields to a safe place. Every person ⁶  or animal caught ⁷  in the field and not brought into the house – the hail will come down on them, and they will die!”’”

Keluaran 10:15

10:15 They covered ⁸  the surface ⁹  of all the ground, so that the ground became dark with them, ¹⁰  and they ate all the vegetation of the ground and all the fruit of the trees that the hail had left. Nothing green remained on the trees or on anything that grew in the fields throughout the whole land of Egypt.

Keluaran 12:7

12:7 They will take some of the blood and put it on the two side posts and top of the doorframe of the houses where they will eat it.

Keluaran 12:34

12:34 So the people took their dough before the yeast was added, ¹¹  with their kneading troughs bound up in their clothing on their shoulders.

Keluaran 15:25

15:25 He cried out to the Lord, and the Lord showed him ¹²  a tree. ¹³  When Moses ¹⁴  threw it into the water, the water became safe to drink. There the Lord ¹⁵  made for them ¹⁶  a binding ordinance, ¹⁷  and there he tested ¹⁸  them.

Keluaran 16:14

16:14 When ¹⁹  the layer of dew had evaporated, ²⁰  there on the surface of the desert was a thin flaky substance, ²¹  thin like frost on the earth.

Keluaran 18:3

18:3 and her two sons, one of whom was named Gershom (for Moses ²²  had said, “I have been a foreigner in a foreign land”),

Keluaran 18:13

18:13 On the next day ²³  Moses sat to judge ²⁴  the people, and the people stood around Moses from morning until evening.

Keluaran 19:1

Israel at Sinai

19:1 ²⁵ In the third month after the Israelites went out ²⁶  from the land of Egypt, on the very day, ²⁷  they came to the Desert of Sinai.

Keluaran 23:26

23:26 No woman will miscarry her young ²⁸  or be barren in your land. I will fulfill ²⁹  the number of your days.

Keluaran 25:11

25:11 You are to overlay ³⁰  it with pure gold – both inside and outside you must overlay it, ³¹  and you are to make a surrounding border ³²  of gold over it.

Keluaran 27:7

27:7 The poles are to be put ³³  into the rings so that the poles will be on two sides of the altar when carrying it. ³⁴ 

Keluaran 28:10

28:10 six ³⁵  of their names on one stone, and the six remaining names on the second stone, according to the order of their birth. ³⁶ 

Keluaran 29:14

29:14 But the meat of the bull, its skin, and its dung you are to burn up ³⁷  outside the camp. ³⁸  It is the purification offering. ³⁹ 

Keluaran 29:26

29:26 You are to take the breast of the ram of Aaron’s consecration; you are to wave it as a wave offering before the Lord, and it is to be your share.

Keluaran 32:5

32:5 When ⁴⁰  Aaron saw this, ⁴¹  he built an altar before it, ⁴²  and Aaron made a proclamation ⁴³  and said, “Tomorrow will be a feast ⁴⁴  to the Lord.”

Keluaran 33:9

33:9 And ⁴⁵  whenever Moses entered the tent, the pillar of cloud would descend and stand at the entrance of the tent, and the Lord ⁴⁶  would speak with Moses. ⁴⁷ 

Keluaran 34:5

34:5 The Lord descended in the cloud and stood with him there and proclaimed the Lord by name. ⁴⁸ 

Keluaran 40:35

40:35 Moses was not able to enter the tent of meeting because the cloud settled on it and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle.

[4:30]  ¹ tn Heb “And Aaron spoke.”

[7:3]  ² tn The clause begins with the emphatic use of the pronoun and a disjunctive vav (ו) expressing the contrast “But as for me, I will harden.” They will speak, but God will harden.

[7:3]  sn The imperfect tense of the verb קָשָׁה (qasha) is found only here in these “hardening passages.” The verb (here the Hiphil for “I will harden”) summarizes Pharaoh’s resistance to what God would be doing through Moses – he would stubbornly resist and refuse to submit; he would be resolved in his opposition. See R. R. Wilson, “The Hardening of Pharaoh’s Heart,” CBQ 41 (1979): 18-36.

[7:3]  ³ tn The form beginning the second half of the verse is the perfect tense with vav (ו) consecutive, הִרְבֵּיתִי (hirbeti). It could be translated as a simple future in sequence after the imperfect preceding it, but the logical connection is not obvious. Since it carries the force of an imperfect due to the sequence, it may be subordinated as a temporal clause to the next clause that begins in v. 4. That maintains the flow of the argument.

[9:19]  ⁴ tn The object “instructions” is implied in the context.

[9:19]  ⁵ tn הָעֵז (ha’ez) is the Hiphil imperative from עוּז (’uz, “to bring into safety” or “to secure”). Although there is no vav (ו) linking the two imperatives, the second could be subordinated by virtue of the meanings. “Send to bring to safety.”

[9:19]  ⁶ tn Heb “man, human.”

[9:19]  ⁷ tn Heb “[who] may be found.” The verb can be the imperfect of possibility.

[10:15]  ⁸ tn Heb “and they covered.”

[10:15]  ⁹ tn Heb “eye,” an unusual expression (see v. 5; Num 22:5, 11).

[10:15]  ¹⁰ tn The verb is וַתֶּחְשַׁךְ (vattekhshakh, “and it became dark”). The idea is that the ground had the color of the swarms of locusts that covered it.

[12:34]  ¹¹ tn The imperfect tense after the adverb טֶרֶם (terem) is to be treated as a preterite: “before it was leavened,” or “before the yeast was added.” See GKC 314-15 §107.c.

[15:25]  ¹² 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]  ¹³ 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]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “he”; the referent (Moses) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

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

[15:25]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “for him” (referring to Israel as a whole).

[15:25]  ¹⁷ tn This translation interprets the two nouns as a hendiadys: “a statute and an ordinance” becomes “a binding ordinance.”

[15:25]  ¹⁸ 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.

[16:14]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “and [the dew…] went up.”

[16:14]  ²⁰ tn The preterite with vav (ו) consecutive is here subordinated as a temporal clause to the main clause; since that clause calls special attention to what was there after the dew evaporated.

[16:14]  ²¹ sn Translations usually refer to the manna as “bread.” In fact it appears to be more like grain, because it could be ground in hand-mills and made into cakes. The word involved says it is thin, flakelike (if an Arabic etymological connection is correct). What is known about it from the Bible in Exodus is that it was a very small flakelike substance, it would melt when the sun got hot, if left over it bred worms and became foul, it could be ground, baked, and boiled, it was abundant enough for the Israelites to gather an omer a day per person, and they gathered it day by day throughout the wilderness sojourn. Num 11 says it was like coriander seed with the appearance of bdellium, it tasted like fresh oil, and it fell with the dew. Deut 8:3 says it was unknown to Israel or her ancestors; Psalm 78:24 parallels it with grain. Some scholars compare ancient references to honeydew that came from the heavens. F. S. Bodenheimer (“The Manna of Sinai,” BA 10 [1947]: 2) says that it was a sudden surprise for the nomadic Israelites because it provided what they desired – sweetness. He says that it was a product that came from two insects, making the manna a honeydew excretion from plant lice and scale insects. The excretion hardens and drops to the ground as a sticky solid. He notes that some cicadas are called man in Arabic. This view accounts for some of the things in these passages: the right place, the right time, the right description, and a similar taste. But there are major difficulties: Exodus requires a far greater amount, it could breed worms, it could melt away, it could be baked into bread, it could decay and stink. The suggestion is in no way convincing. Bodenheimer argues that “worms” could mean “ants” that carried them away, but that is contrived – the text could have said ants. The fact that the Bible calls it “bread” creates no problem. לֶחֶם (lekhem) is used in a wide range of meanings from bread to all kinds of food including goats (Judg 13:15-16) and honey (1 Sam 14:24-28). Scripture does not say that manna was the only thing that they ate for the duration. But they did eat it throughout the forty years. It simply must refer to some supernatural provision for them in their diet. Modern suggestions may invite comparison and analysis, but they do not satisfy or explain the text.

[18:3]  ²² tn Heb “he”; the referent (Moses) has been specified in the translation for clarity (also in the following verse).

[18:13]  ²³ tn Heb “and it was/happened on the morrow.”

[18:13]  ²⁴ sn This is a simple summary of the function of Moses on this particular day. He did not necessarily do this every day, but it was time now to do it. The people would come to solve their difficulties or to hear instruction from Moses on decisions to be made. The tradition of “sitting in Moses’ seat” is drawn from this passage.

[19:1]  ²⁵ sn This chapter is essentially about mediation. The people are getting ready to meet with God, receive the Law from him, and enter into a covenant with him. All of this required mediation and preparation. Through it all, Israel will become God’s unique possession, a kingdom of priests on earth – if they comply with his Law. The chapter can be divided as follows: vv. 1-8 tell how God, Israel’s great deliverer promised to make them a kingdom of priests; this is followed by God’s declaration that Moses would be the mediator (v. 9); vv. 10-22 record instructions for Israel to prepare themselves to worship Yahweh and an account of the manifestation of Yahweh with all the phenomena; and the chapter closes with the mediation of Moses on behalf of the people (vv. 23-25). Having been redeemed from Egypt, the people will now be granted a covenant with God. See also R. E. Bee, “A Statistical Study of the Sinai Pericope,” Journal of the Royal Statistical Society 135 (1972): 406-21.

[19:1]  ²⁶ tn The construction uses the infinitive construct followed by the subjective genitive to form a temporal clause.

[19:1]  ²⁷ tn Heb “on this day.”

[23:26]  ²⁸ tn Or “abort”; Heb “cast.”

[23:26]  ²⁹ sn No one will die prematurely; this applies to the individual or the nation. The plan of God to bless was extensive, if only the people would obey.

[25:11]  ³⁰ tn The verbs throughout here are perfect tenses with the vav (ו) consecutives. They are equal to the imperfect tense of instruction and/or injunction.

[25:11]  ³¹ tn Here the verb is an imperfect tense; for the perfect sequence to work the verb would have to be at the front of the clause.

[25:11]  ³² tn The word זֵר (zer) is used only in Exodus and seems to describe something on the order of a crown molding, an ornamental border running at the top of the chest on all four sides. There is no indication of its appearance or function.

[27:7]  ³³ tn The verb is a Hophal perfect with vav consecutive: וְהוּבָא (vÿhuva’, “and it will be brought”). The particle אֶת (’et) here introduces the subject of the passive verb (see a similar use in 21:28, “and its flesh will not be eaten”).

[27:7]  ³⁴ tn The construction is the infinitive construct with bet (ב) preposition: “in carrying it.” Here the meaning must be that the poles are not left in the rings, but only put into the rings when they carried it.

[28:10]  ³⁵ tn This is in apposition to the direct object of the verb “engrave.” It further defines how the names were to be engraved – six on one and the other six on the other.

[28:10]  ³⁶ tn Heb “according to their begettings” (the major word in the book of Genesis). What is meant is that the names would be listed in the order of their ages.

[29:14]  ³⁷ tn Heb “burn with fire.”

[29:14]  ³⁸ sn This is to be done because there is no priesthood yet. Once they are installed, then the sin/purification offering is to be eaten by the officiating priests as a sign that the offering was received. But priests could not consume their own sin offering.

[29:14]  ³⁹ sn There were two kinds of “purification offering,” those made with confession for sin and those made without. The title needs to cover both of them, and if it is called in the traditional way “the sin offering,” that will convey that when people offered it for skin diseases, menstruation, or having babies, they had sinned. That was not the case. Moreover, it is usual to translate the names of the sacrifices by what they do more than what they cover – so peace offering, reparation offering, and purification offering.

[32:5]  ⁴⁰ tn The preterite with the vav (ו) consecutive is subordinated as a temporal clause to the next preterite.

[32:5]  ⁴¹ tn The word “this” has been supplied.

[32:5]  ⁴² tn “Before it” means before the deity in the form of the calf. Aaron tried to redirect their worship to Yahweh, but the people had already broken down the barrier and were beyond control (U. Cassuto, Exodus, 413).

[32:5]  ⁴³ tn Heb “called.”

[32:5]  ⁴⁴ sn The word is חַג (khag), the pilgrim’s festival. This was the word used by Moses for their pilgrimage into the wilderness. Aaron seems here to be trying to do what Moses had intended they do, make a feast to Yahweh at Sinai, but his efforts will not compete with the idol. As B. Jacob says, Aaron saw all this happening and tried to rescue the true belief (Exodus, 941).

[33:9]  ⁴⁵ tn Heb “and it was when.”

[33:9]  ⁴⁶ tn Heb “and he”; the referent (the Lord) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[33:9]  ⁴⁷ tn Both verbs, “stand” and “speak,” are perfect tenses with vav (ו) consecutive.

[34:5]  ⁴⁸ tn Some commentaries wish to make Moses the subject of the second and the third verbs, the first because he was told to stand there and this verb suggests he did it, and the last because it sounds like he was worshiping Yahweh (cf. NASB). But it is clear from v. 6 that Yahweh was the subject of the last clause of v. 5 – v. 6 tells how he did it. So if Yahweh is the subject of the first and last clauses of v. 5, it seems simpler that he also be the subject of the second. Moses took his stand there, but God stood by him (B. Jacob, Exodus, 981; U. Cassuto, Exodus, 439). There is no reason to make Moses the subject in any of the verbs of v. 5.