Exodus 14:3

14:3 Pharaoh will think ¹  regarding the Israelites, ‘They are wandering around confused ²  in the land – the desert has closed in on them.’ ³ 

Exodus 32:24

32:24 So I said to them, ‘Whoever has gold, break it off.’ So they gave it ⁴  to me, and I threw it into the fire, and this calf came out.” ⁵ 

Exodus 3:17

3:17 and I have promised ⁶  that I will bring you up out of the affliction of Egypt to the land of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites, ⁷  to a land flowing with milk and honey.”’

Exodus 4:23

4:23 and I said to you, ‘Let my son go that he may serve ⁸  me,’ but since you have refused to let him go, ⁹  I will surely kill ¹⁰  your son, your firstborn!”’”

¹ tn Heb “and Pharaoh will say.”

² sn The word translated “wandering around confused” indicates that Pharaoh thought the Israelites would be so perplexed and confused that they would not know which way to turn in order to escape – and they would never dream of crossing the sea (S. R. Driver, Exodus, 115).

³ tn The expression has also been translated “the desert has shut [the way] for them,” and more freely “[the Israelites are] hemmed in by the desert.”

⁴ tn Here “it” has been supplied.

⁵ sn Aaron first tried to blame the people, and then he tried to make it sound like a miracle – was it to sound like one of the plagues where out of the furnace came life? This text does not mention it, but Deut 9:20 tells how angry God was with Aaron. Only intercession saved his life.

⁷ tn Heb “And I said.”

⁸ tn See the note on this list in 3:8.

¹⁰ tn The text uses the imperative, “send out” (שַׁלַּח, shallakh) followed by the imperfect or jussive with the vav (ו) to express purpose.

¹¹ tn The Piel infinitive serves as the direct object of the verb, answering the question of what Pharaoh would refuse to do. The command and refusal to obey are the grounds for the announcement of death for Pharaoh’s son.

¹² tn The construction is very emphatic. The particle הִנֵּה (hinneh) gives it an immediacy and a vividness, as if God is already beginning to act. The participle with this particle has the nuance of an imminent future act, as if God is saying, “I am about to kill.” These words are not repeated until the last plague.