Exodus 7:4-5

7:4 Pharaoh will not listen to you. ¹  I will reach into ²  Egypt and bring out my regiments, ³  my people the Israelites, from the land of Egypt with great acts of judgment. 7:5 Then ⁴  the Egyptians will know that I am the Lord, when I extend my hand ⁵  over Egypt and bring the Israelites out from among them.

¹ tn Heb “and Pharaoh will not listen.”

² tn Heb “put my hand into.” The expression is a strong anthropomorphism to depict God’s severest judgment on Egypt. The point is that neither the speeches of Moses and Aaron nor the signs that God would do will be effective. Consequently, God would deliver the blow that would destroy.

³ tn See the note on this term in 6:26.

⁴ tn The emphasis on sequence is clear because the form is the perfect tense with the vav consecutive.

⁵ sn This is another anthropomorphism, parallel to the preceding. If God were to “put” (נָתַן, natan), “extend” (נָטָה, nata), or “reach out” (שָׁלַח, shalakh) his hand against them, they would be destroyed. Contrast Exod 24:11.