Keluaran 14:27

14:27 So Moses extended his hand toward the sea, and the sea returned to its normal state ¹  when the sun began to rise. ²  Now the Egyptians were fleeing ³  before it, but the Lord overthrew ⁴  the Egyptians in the middle of the sea.

Keluaran 30:13

30:13 Everyone who crosses over to those who are numbered ⁵  is to pay this: a half shekel ⁶  according to the shekel of the sanctuary ⁷  (a shekel weighs twenty gerahs). The half shekel is to be an offering ⁸  to the Lord.

[14:27]  ¹ tn The Hebrew term לְאֵיתָנוֹ (lÿ’etano) means “to its place,” or better, “to its perennial state.” The point is that the sea here had a normal level, and now when the Egyptians were in the sea on the dry ground the water would return to that level.

[14:27]  ² tn Heb “at the turning of the morning”; NASB, NIV, TEV, CEV “at daybreak.”

[14:27]  ³ tn The clause begins with the disjunctive vav (ו) on the noun, signaling either a circumstantial clause or a new beginning. It could be rendered, “Although the Egyptians…Yahweh…” or “as the Egyptians….”

[14:27]  ⁴ tn The verb means “shake out” or “shaking off.” It has the significance of “throw downward.” See Neh 5:13 or Job 38:13.

[30:13]  ⁵ sn Each man was to pass in front of the counting officer and join those already counted on the other side.

[30:13]  ⁶ sn The half shekel weight of silver would be about one-fifth of an ounce (6 grams).

[30:13]  ⁷ sn It appears that some standard is in view for the amount of a shekel weight. The sanctuary shekel is sometimes considered to be twice the value of the ordinary shekel. The “gerah,” also of uncertain meaning, was mentioned as a reference point for the ancient reader to understand the value of the required payment. It may also be that the expression meant “a sacred shekel” and looked at the purpose more – a shekel for sanctuary dues. This would mean that the standard of the shekel weight was set because it was the traditional amount of sacred dues (S. R. Driver, Exodus, 333). “Though there is no certainty, the shekel is said to weigh about 11,5 grams…Whether an official standard is meant [by ‘sanctuary shekel’] or whether the sanctuary shekel had a different weight than the ‘ordinary’ shekel is not known” (C. Houtman, Exodus, 3:181).

[30:13]  ⁸ tn Or “contribution” (תְּרוּמָה, tÿrumah).