Exodus 14:21

14:21 Moses stretched out his hand toward the sea, and the Lord drove the sea apart ¹  by a strong east wind all that night, and he made the sea into dry land, and the water was divided.

Exodus 14:26

14:26 The Lord said to Moses, “Extend your hand toward the sea, so that the waters may flow ²  back on the Egyptians, on their chariots, and on their horsemen!”

Exodus 4:2

4:2 The Lord said to him, “What is that in your hand?” He said, “A staff.” ³ 

Exodus 4:17

4:17 You will also take in your hand this staff, with which you will do the signs.” ⁴ 

Exodus 4:20

4:20 Then Moses took ⁵  his wife and sons ⁶  and put them on a donkey and headed back ⁷  to the land of Egypt, and Moses took the staff of God in his hand.

Exodus 7:9

7:9 “When Pharaoh says to you, ‘Do ⁸  a miracle,’ and you say to Aaron, ‘Take your staff and throw it down ⁹  before Pharaoh,’ it will become ¹⁰  a snake.”

Exodus 7:19

7:19 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Tell Aaron, ‘Take your staff and stretch out your hand over Egypt’s waters – over their rivers, over their canals, ¹¹  over their ponds, and over all their reservoirs ¹²  – so that it becomes ¹³  blood.’ There will be blood everywhere in ¹⁴  the land of Egypt, even in wooden and stone containers.”

¹ tn Or “drove the sea back” (NIV, NCV, NRSV, TEV). The verb is simply the Hiphil of הָלַךְ (halakh, “to walk, go”). The context requires that it be interpreted along the lines of “go back, go apart.”

² tn The verb, “and they will return,” is here subordinated to the imperative preceding it, showing the purpose of that act.

³ tn Or “rod” (KJV, ASV); NCV, CEV “walking stick”; NLT “shepherd’s staff.”

⁴ sn Mention of the staff makes an appropriate ending to the section, for God’s power (represented by the staff) will work through Moses. The applicable point that this whole section is making could be worded this way: The servants of God who sense their inadequacy must demonstrate the power of God as their sufficiency.

⁵ tn Heb “And Moses took.”

⁶ sn Only Gershom has been mentioned so far. The other son’s name will be explained in chapter 18. The explanation of Gershom’s name was important to Moses’ sojourn in Midian. The explanation of the name Eliezer fits better in the later chapter (18:2-4).

⁷ tn The verb would literally be rendered “and returned”; however, the narrative will record other happenings before he arrived in Egypt, so an ingressive nuance fits here – he began to return, or started back.

⁸ tn The verb is תְּנוּ (tÿnu), literally “give.” The imperative is followed by an ethical dative that strengthens the subject of the imperative: “you give a miracle.”

⁹ tn Heb “and throw it.” The direct object, “it,” is implied.

¹⁰ tn The form is the jussive יְהִי ( yÿhi). Gesenius notes that frequently in a conditional clause, a sentence with a protasis and apodosis, the jussive will be used. Here it is in the apodosis (GKC 323 §109.h).

¹¹ tn Or “irrigation rivers” of the Nile.

¹² sn The Hebrew term means “gathering,” i.e., wherever they gathered or collected waters, notably cisterns and reservoirs. This would naturally lead to the inclusion of both wooden and stone vessels – down to the smallest gatherings.

¹³ tn The imperfect tense with vav (ו) after the imperative indicates the purpose or result: “in order that they [the waters] be[come] blood.”

¹⁴ tn Or “in all.”