34:19 “Every firstborn of the womb 9 belongs to me, even every firstborn 10 of your cattle that is a male, 11 whether ox or sheep.
1 tn The verb “sanctify” is the Piel imperative of קָדַשׁ (qadash). In the Qal stem it means “be holy, be set apart, be distinct,” and in this stem “sanctify, set apart.”
2 tn The word פֶּטֶּר (petter) means “that which opens”; this construction literally says, “that which opens every womb,” which means “the first offspring of every womb.” Verses 12 and 15 further indicate male offspring.
3 tn Heb “to me it.” The preposition here expresses possession; the construction is simply “it [is, belongs] to me.”
4 tn The unusual choice of words in this passage reflects the connection with the deliverance of the firstborn in the exodus when the Lord passed over the Israelites (12:12, 23). Here the Law said, “you will cause to pass over (וְהַעֲבַרְתָּ, vÿha’avarta) to Yahweh.” The Hiphil perfect with the vav (ו) provides the main clause after the temporal clauses. Yahweh here claimed the firstborn as his own. The remarkable thing about this is that Yahweh did not keep the firstborn that was dedicated to him, but allowed the child to be redeemed by his father. It was an acknowledgment that the life of the child belonged to God as the one redeemed from death, and that the child represented the family. Thus, the observance referred to the dedication of all the redeemed to God.
5 tn Heb “every opener of a womb,” that is, the firstborn from every womb.
6 tn The descriptive noun שֶׁגֶר (sheger) is related to the verb “drop, cast”; it refers to a newly born animal that is dropped or cast from the womb. The expression then reads, “and all that first open [the womb], the casting of a beast.”
7 tn Heb “that is to you.” The preposition expresses possession.
8 tn The Hebrew text simply has “the males to Yahweh.” It indicates that the
9 tn Heb “everything that opens the womb.”
10 tn Here too: everything that “opens [the womb].”
11 tn The verb basically means “that drops a male.” The verb is feminine, referring to the cattle.