Exodus 18:26

18:26 They judged the people under normal circumstances; the difficult cases they would bring ¹  to Moses, but every small case they would judge themselves.

Exodus 13:15

13:15 When Pharaoh stubbornly refused ²  to release us, the Lord killed all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, from the firstborn of people to the firstborn of animals. ³  That is why I am sacrificing ⁴  to the Lord the first male offspring of every womb, but all my firstborn sons I redeem.’

¹ tn This verb and the verb in the next clause are imperfect tenses. In the past tense narrative of the verse they must be customary, describing continuous action in past time.

² tn Heb “dealt hardly in letting us go” or “made it hard to let us go” (see S. R. Driver, Exodus, 110). The verb is the simple Hiphil perfect הִקְשָׁה (hiqshah, “he made hard”); the infinitive construct לְשַׁלְּחֵנוּ (lÿshallÿkhenu, “to release us”) could be taken epexegetically, meaning “he made releasing us hard.” But the infinitive more likely gives the purpose or the result after the verb “hardened himself.” The verb is figurative for “be stubborn” or “stubbornly refuse.”

³ tn The text uses “man” and “beast.”

⁴ tn The form is the active participle.