Exodus 1:12

1:12 But the more the Egyptians ¹  oppressed them, the more they multiplied and spread. ²  As a result the Egyptians loathed ³  the Israelites,

Exodus 5:17

5:17 But Pharaoh replied, ⁴  “You are slackers! Slackers! ⁵  That is why you are saying, ‘Let us go sacrifice to the Lord.’

Exodus 7:6

7:6 And Moses and Aaron did so; they did just as the Lord commanded them.

Exodus 7:11

7:11 Then Pharaoh also summoned wise men and sorcerers, ⁶  and the magicians ⁷  of Egypt by their secret arts ⁸  did the same thing.

Exodus 8:7

8:7 The magicians did the same ⁹  with their secret arts and brought up frogs on the land of Egypt too. ¹⁰ 

Exodus 10:29

10:29 Moses said, “As you wish! ¹¹  I will not see your face again.” ¹² 

Exodus 12:28

12:28 and the Israelites went away and did exactly as the Lord had commanded Moses and Aaron. ¹³ 

Exodus 27:8

27:8 You are to make the altar hollow, out of boards. Just as it was shown you ¹⁴  on the mountain, so they must make it. ¹⁵ 

Exodus 40:16

40:16 This is what Moses did, according to all the Lord had commanded him – so he did.

¹ tn Heb “they”; the referent (the Egyptians) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

² tn The imperfect tenses in this verse are customary uses, expressing continual action in past time (see GKC 315 §107.e). For other examples of כַּאֲשֶׁר (ka’asher) with כֵּן (ken) expressing a comparison (“just as…so”) see Gen 41:13; Judg 1:7; Isa 31:4.

³ tn Heb “they felt a loathing before/because of”; the referent (the Egyptians) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

⁴ tn Heb “And he said.”

⁵ tn Or “loafers.” The form נִרְפִּים (nirpim) is derived from the verb רָפָה (rafah), meaning “to be weak, to let oneself go.”

⁷ sn For information on this Egyptian material, see D. B. Redford, A Study of the Biblical Story of Joseph (VTSup), 203-4.

⁸ tn The חַרְטֻּמִּים (kharttummim) seem to have been the keepers of Egypt’s religious and magical texts, the sacred scribes.

⁹ tn The term בְּלַהֲטֵיהֶם (bÿlahatehem) means “by their secret arts”; it is from לוּט (lut, “to enwrap”). The Greek renders the word “by their magic”; Tg. Onq. uses “murmurings” and “whispers,” and other Jewish sources “dazzling display” or “demons” (see further B. Jacob, Exodus, 253-54). They may have done this by clever tricks, manipulation of the animals, or demonic power. Many have suggested that Aaron and the magicians were familiar with an old trick in which they could temporarily paralyze a serpent and then revive it. But here Aaron’s snake swallows up their snakes.

¹⁰ tn Heb “thus, so.”

¹¹ sn In these first two plagues the fact that the Egyptians could and did duplicate them is ironic. By duplicating the experience, they added to the misery of Egypt. One wonders why they did not use their skills to rid the land of the pests instead, and the implication of course is that they could not.

¹³ tn Heb “Thus you have spoken.”

¹⁴ tn This is a verbal hendiadys construction: “I will not add again [to] see.”

¹⁶ tn Heb “went away and did as the Lord had commanded Moses and Aaron, so they did.” The final phrase “so they did,” which is somewhat redundant in English, has been represented in the translation by the adverb “exactly.”

¹⁹ tn The verb is used impersonally; it reads “just as he showed you.” This form then can be made a passive in the translation.

²⁰ tn Heb “thus they will make.” Here too it could be given a passive translation since the subject is not expressed. But “they” would normally refer to the people who will be making this and so can be retained in the translation.