Exodus 13:14

13:14 ¹ In the future, ²  when your son asks you ³  ‘What is this?’ ⁴  you are to tell him, ‘With a mighty hand ⁵  the Lord brought us out from Egypt, from the land of slavery. ⁶ 

Exodus 14:5

14:5 When it was reported ⁷  to the king of Egypt that the people had fled, ⁸  the heart of Pharaoh and his servants was turned against the people, and the king and his servants said, ⁹  “What in the world have we done? ¹⁰  For we have released the people of Israel ¹¹  from serving us!”

[13:14]  ¹ sn As with v. 8, the Law now requires that the children be instructed on the meaning of this observance. It is a memorial of the deliverance from bondage and the killing of the firstborn in Egypt.

[13:14]  ² tn Heb “tomorrow.”

[13:14]  ³ tn Heb “and it will be when your son will ask you.”

[13:14]  ⁴ tn The question is cryptic; it simply says, “What is this?” but certainly refers to the custom just mentioned. It asks, “What does this mean?” or “Why do we do this?”

[13:14]  ⁵ tn The expression is “with strength of hand,” making “hand” the genitive of specification. In translation “strength” becomes the modifier, because “hand” specifies where the strength was. But of course the whole expression is anthropomorphic for the power of God.

[13:14]  ⁶ tn Heb “house of slaves.”

[14:5]  ⁷ tn Heb “and it was told.” The present translation uses “reported,” since this involves information given to a superior.

[14:5]  ⁸ tn The verb must be given a past perfect translation because the fleeing occurred before the telling.

[14:5]  ⁹ tn Heb “and they said.” The referent (the king and his servants) is supplied for clarity.

[14:5]  ¹⁰ tn The question literally is “What is this we have done?” The demonstrative pronoun is used as an enclitic particle for emphasis (R. J. Williams, Hebrew Syntax, 24, §118).

[14:5]  ¹¹ tn Heb “released Israel.” By metonymy the name of the nation is used collectively for the people who constitute it (the Israelites).