Exodus 32:11-13

32:11 But Moses sought the favor of the Lord his God and said, “O Lord, why does your anger burn against your people, whom you have brought out from the land of Egypt with great power and with a mighty hand? 32:12 Why should the Egyptians say, ‘For evil he led them out to kill them in the mountains and to destroy them from the face of the earth’? Turn from your burning anger, and relent of this evil against your people. 32:13 Remember Abraham, Isaac, and Israel your servants, to whom you swore by yourself and told them, ‘I will multiply your descendants like the stars of heaven, and all this land that I have spoken about I will give to your descendants, and they will inherit it forever.’”

Numbers 14:15-16

14:15 If you kill 10  this entire people at once, 11  then the nations that have heard of your fame will say, 14:16 ‘Because the Lord was not able to bring this people into the land that he swore to them, he killed them in the wilderness.’

Joshua 7:9

7:9 When the Canaanites and all who live in the land hear about this, they will turn against us and destroy the very memory of us 12  from the earth. What will you do to protect your great reputation?” 13 

Joshua 7:2

7:2 Joshua sent men from Jericho 14  to Ai (which is located near Beth Aven, east of Bethel 15 ) and instructed them, “Go up and spy on the land.” So the men went up and spied on Ai.

Joshua 18:1

The Tribes Meet at Shiloh

18:1 The entire Israelite community assembled at Shiloh and there they set up the tent of meeting. 16  Though they had subdued the land, 17 

Joshua 18:1

The Tribes Meet at Shiloh

18:1 The entire Israelite community assembled at Shiloh and there they set up the tent of meeting. 18  Though they had subdued the land, 19 

Joshua 19:10-12

Zebulun’s Tribal Lands

19:10 The third lot belonged to the tribe of Zebulun 20  by its clans. The border of their territory 21  extended to Sarid. 19:11 Their border went up westward to Maralah and touched Dabbesheth and the valley near 22  Jokneam. 19:12 From Sarid it turned eastward 23  to the territory of Kisloth Tabor, extended to Daberath, and went up to Japhia.

Jeremiah 33:24

33:24 “You have surely noticed what these people are saying, haven’t you? They are saying, 24  ‘The Lord has rejected the two families of Israel and Judah 25  that he chose.’ So they have little regard that my people will ever again be a nation. 26 

Daniel 3:15

3:15 Now if you are ready, when you hear the sound of the horn, flute, zither, trigon, harp, pipes, and all kinds of music, you must bow down and pay homage to the statue that I had made. If you don’t pay homage to it, you will immediately be thrown into the midst of the furnace of blazing fire. Now, who is that god who can rescue you from my power?” 27 

tn S. R. Driver (Exodus, 351) draws on Arabic to show that the meaning of this verb (חָלָה, khalah) was properly “make sweet the face” or “stroke the face”; so here “to entreat, seek to conciliate.” In this prayer, Driver adds, Moses urges four motives for mercy: 1) Israel is Yahweh’s people, 2) Israel’s deliverance has demanded great power, 3) the Egyptians would mock if the people now perished, and 4) the oath God made to the fathers.

tn The question is rhetorical; it really forms an affirmation that is used here as a reason for the request (see GKC 474 §150.e).

tn Heb “speak, saying.” This is redundant in English and has been simplified in the translation.

tn The word “evil” means any kind of life-threatening or fatal calamity. “Evil” is that which hinders life, interrupts life, causes pain to life, or destroys it. The Egyptians would conclude that such a God would have no good intent in taking his people to the desert if now he destroyed them.

tn The form is a Piel infinitive construct from כָּלָה (kalah, “to complete, finish”) but in this stem, “bring to an end, destroy.” As a purpose infinitive this expresses what the Egyptians would have thought of God’s motive.

tn The verb “repent, relent” when used of God is certainly an anthropomorphism. It expresses the deep pain that one would have over a situation. Earlier God repented that he had made humans (Gen 6:6). Here Moses is asking God to repent/relent over the judgment he was about to bring, meaning that he should be moved by such compassion that there would be no judgment like that. J. P. Hyatt observes that the Bible uses so many anthropomorphisms because the Israelites conceived of God as a dynamic and living person in a vital relationship with people, responding to their needs and attitudes and actions (Exodus [NCBC], 307). See H. V. D. Parunak, “A Semantic Survey of NHM,” Bib 56 (1975): 512-32.

tn Heb “your seed.”

tn “about” has been supplied.

tn Heb “seed.”

10 tn The verb is the Hiphil perfect of מוּת (mut), וְהֵמַתָּה (vÿhemattah). The vav (ו) consecutive makes this also a future time sequence verb, but again in a conditional clause.

11 tn Heb “as one man.”

12 tn Heb “and cut off our name.”

13 tn Heb “What will you do for your great name?”

14 map For location see Map5-B2; Map6-E1; Map7-E1; Map8-E3; Map10-A2; Map11-A1.

15 map For the location of Bethel see Map4-G4; Map5-C1; Map6-E3; Map7-D1; Map8-G3.

16 tn Heb “the tent of assembly.”

17 tn Heb “and the land was subdued before them.”

18 tn Heb “the tent of assembly.”

19 tn Heb “and the land was subdued before them.”

20 tn Heb “and the third lot came up for the sons of Zebulun.”

21 tn Or “inheritance.”

22 tn Heb “in front of”; perhaps “east of.”

23 tn Heb “eastward toward the rising of the sun.”

24 tn Heb “Have you not seen what this people have said, saying.” The question is rhetorical and expects a positive answer. The sentence has been broken in two to better conform with contemporary English style.

25 tn Heb “The two families which the Lord chose, he has rejected them.” This is an example of an object prepositioned before the verb and resumed by a redundant pronoun to throw emphasis of focus on it (called casus pendens in the grammars; cf. GKC 458 §143.d). Some commentators identify the “two families” as those of David and Levi mentioned in the previous verses, and some identify them as the families of the Israelites and of David mentioned in the next verse. However, the next clause in this verse and the emphasis on the restoration and regathering of Israel and Judah in this section (cf. 33:7, 14) show that the reference is to Israel and Judah (see also 30:3, 4; 31:27, 31 and 3:18).

26 tn Heb “and my people [i.e., Israel and Judah] they disdain [or look down on] from being again a nation before them.” The phrase “before them” refers to their estimation, their mental view (cf. BDB s.v. פָּנֶה II.4.a[g]). Hence it means they look with disdain on the people being a nation again (cf. BDB s.v. עוֹד 1.a[b] for the usage of עוֹד [’od] here).

27 tn Aram “hand.” So also in v. 17.