Exodus 3:10

3:10 So now go, and I will send you ¹  to Pharaoh to bring my people, the Israelites, out of Egypt.”

Exodus 6:11

6:11 “Go, tell Pharaoh king of Egypt that he must release ²  the Israelites from his land.”

Exodus 7:14

The First Blow: Water to Blood

7:14 ³ The Lord said to Moses, “Pharaoh’s heart is hard; ⁴  he refuses to release ⁵  the people.

Exodus 8:2

8:2 But if you refuse to release them, then I am going to plague ⁶  all your territory with frogs. ⁷ 

Exodus 10:4

10:4 But if you refuse to release my people, I am going to bring ⁸  locusts ⁹  into your territory ¹⁰  tomorrow.

Exodus 10:20

10:20 But the Lord hardened Pharaoh’s heart, and he did not release the Israelites.

Exodus 12:33

12:33 The Egyptians were urging ¹¹  the people on, in order to send them out of the land quickly, ¹²  for they were saying, “We are all dead!”

Exodus 21:27

21:27 If he knocks out the tooth of his male servant or his female servant, he will let the servant ¹³  go free as compensation for the tooth.

Exodus 23:20

The Angel of the Presence

23:20 ¹⁴ “I am going to send ¹⁵  an angel ¹⁶  before you to protect you as you journey ¹⁷  and to bring you into the place that I have prepared. ¹⁸ 

Exodus 23:28

23:28 I will send ¹⁹  hornets before you that will drive out the Hivite, the Canaanite, and the Hittite before you.

Exodus 24:5

24:5 He sent young Israelite men, ²⁰  and they offered burnt offerings and sacrificed young bulls for peace offerings ²¹  to the Lord.

Exodus 24:11

24:11 But he did not lay a hand ²²  on the leaders of the Israelites, so they saw God, ²³  and they ate and they drank. ²⁴ 

Exodus 33:2

33:2 I will send an angel ²⁵  before you, and I will drive out the Canaanite, the Amorite, the Hittite, the Perizzite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite. ²⁶ 

[3:10]  ¹ tn The verse has a sequence of volitives. The first form is the imperative לְכָה (lÿkha, “go”). Then comes the cohortative/imperfect form with the vav (ו), “and I will send you” or more likely “that I may send you” (וְאֶשְׁלָחֲךָ, vÿ’eshlakhakha), which is followed by the imperative with the vav, “and bring out” or “that you may bring out” (וְהוֹצֵא, vÿhotse’). The series of actions begins with Moses going. When he goes, it will be the Lord who sends him, and if the Lord sends him, it will be with the purpose of leading Israel out of Egypt.

[6:11]  ² tn The form וִישַׁלַּח (vishallakh) is the Piel imperfect or jussive with a sequential vav; following an imperative it gives the imperative’s purpose and intended result. They are to speak to Pharaoh, and (so that as a result) he will release Israel. After the command to speak, however, the second clause also indirectly states the content of the speech (cf. Exod 11:2; 14:2, 15; 25:2; Lev 16:2; 22:2). As the next verse shows, Moses doubts that what he says will have the intended effect.

[7:14]  ³ sn With the first plague, or blow on Pharaoh, a new section of the book unfolds. Until now the dominant focus has been on preparing the deliverer for the exodus. From here the account will focus on preparing Pharaoh for it. The theological emphasis for exposition of the entire series of plagues may be: The sovereign Lord is fully able to deliver his people from the oppression of the world so that they may worship and serve him alone. The distinct idea of each plague then will contribute to this main idea. It is clear from the outset that God could have delivered his people simply and suddenly. But he chose to draw out the process with the series of plagues. There appear to be several reasons: First, the plagues are designed to judge Egypt. It is justice for slavery. Second, the plagues are designed to inform Israel and Egypt of the ability of Yahweh. Everyone must know that it is Yahweh doing all these things. The Egyptians must know this before they are destroyed. Third, the plagues are designed to deliver Israel. The first plague is the plague of blood: God has absolute power over the sources of life. Here Yahweh strikes the heart of Egyptian life with death and corruption. The lesson is that God can turn the source of life into the prospect of death. Moreover, the Nile was venerated; so by turning it into death Moses was showing the superiority of Yahweh.

[7:14]  ⁴ tn Or “unresponsive” (so HALOT 456 s.v. I כָּבֵד).

[7:14]  ⁵ tn The Piel infinitive construct לְשַׁלַּח (lÿshallakh) serves as the direct object of מֵאֵן (me’en), telling what Pharaoh refuses (characteristic perfect) to do. The whole clause is an explanation (like a metonymy of effect) of the first clause that states that Pharaoh’s heart is hard.

[8:2]  ⁴ tn The construction here uses the deictic particle and the participle to convey the imminent future: “I am going to plague/about to plague.” The verb נָגַף (nagaf) means “to strike, to smite,” and its related noun means “a blow, a plague, pestilence” or the like. For Yahweh to say “I am about to plague you” could just as easily mean “I am about to strike you.” That is why these “plagues” can be described as “blows” received from God.

[8:2]  ⁵ tn Heb “plague all your border with frogs.” The expression “all your border” is figurative for all the territory of Egypt and the people and things that are within the borders (also used in Exod 10:4, 14, 19; 13:7).

[10:4]  ⁵ tn הִנְנִי (hinni) before the active participle מֵבִיא (mevi’) is the imminent future construction: “I am about to bring” or “I am going to bring” – precisely, “here I am bringing.”

[10:4]  ⁶ tn One of the words for “locusts” in the Bible is אַרְבֶּה (’arbeh), which comes from רָבָה (ravah, “to be much, many”). It was used for locusts because of their immense numbers.

[10:4]  ⁷ tn Heb “within your border.”

[12:33]  ⁶ tn The verb used here (חָזַק, khazaq) is the same verb used for Pharaoh’s heart being hardened. It conveys the idea of their being resolved or insistent in this – they were not going to change.

[12:33]  ⁷ tn The phrase uses two construct infinitives in a hendiadys, the first infinitive becoming the modifier.

[21:27]  ⁷ tn Heb “him”; the referent (the male or female servant) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[23:20]  ⁸ sn This passage has some of the most interesting and perplexing expressions and constructions in the book. It is largely promise, but it is part of the Law and so demands compliance by faith. Its points are: God promises to send his angel to prepare the way before his obedient servants (20-23); God promises blessing for his loyal servants (24-33). So in the section one learns that God promises his protection (victory) and blessing (through his angel) for his obedient and loyal worshipers.

[23:20]  ⁹ tn The particle הִנֵּה (hinneh) with the active participle indicates imminent future, something God is about to do.

[23:20]  ¹⁰ sn The word is מַלְאָךְ (mal’akh, “messenger, angel”). This angel is to be treated with the same fear and respect as Yahweh, for Yahweh will be speaking in him. U. Cassuto (Exodus, 305-6) says that the words of the first clause do not imply a being distinct from God, for in the ancient world the line of demarcation between the sender and the sent is liable easily to be blurred. He then shows how the “Angel of Yahweh” in Genesis is Yahweh. He concludes that the words here mean “I will guide you.” Christian commentators tend to identify the Angel of Yahweh as the second person of the Trinity (W. C. Kaiser, Jr., “Exodus,” EBC 2:446). However, in addition to being a preincarnate appearance, the word could refer to Yahweh – some manifestation of Yahweh himself.

[23:20]  ¹¹ tn Heb “protect you in the way.”

[23:20]  ¹² tn The form is the Hiphil perfect of the verb כּוּן (kun, “to establish, prepare”).

[23:28]  ⁹ tn Heb “and I will send.”

[24:5]  ¹⁰ tn The construct has “young men of the Israelites,” and so “Israelite” is a genitive that describes them.

[24:5]  ¹¹ tn The verbs and their respective accusatives are cognates. First, they offered up burnt offerings (see Lev 1), which is וַיַּעֲלוּ עֹלֹת (vayya’alu ’olot); then they sacrificed young bulls as peace sacrifices (Lev 3), which is in Hebrew וַיִּזְבְּחוּ זְבָחִים (vayyizbÿkhu zÿvakhim). In the first case the cognate accusative is the direct object; in the second it is an adverbial accusative of product. See on this covenant ritual H. M. Kamsler, “The Blood Covenant in the Bible,” Dor le Dor 6 (1977): 94-98; E. W. Nicholson, “The Covenant Ritual in Exodus 24:3-8,” VT 32 (1982): 74-86.

[24:11]  ¹¹ tn Heb “he did not stretch out his hand,” i.e., to destroy them.

[24:11]  ¹² tn The verb is חָזָה (khazah); it can mean “to see, perceive” or “see a vision” as the prophets did. The LXX safeguarded this by saying, “appeared in the place of God.” B. Jacob says they beheld – prophetically, religiously (Exodus, 746) – but the meaning of that is unclear. The fact that God did not lay a hand on them – to kill them – shows that they saw something that they never expected to see and live. Some Christian interpreters have taken this to refer to a glorious appearance of the preincarnate Christ, the second person of the Trinity. They saw the brilliance of this manifestation – but not the detail. Later, Moses will still ask to see God’s glory – the real presence behind the phenomena.

[24:11]  ¹³ sn This is the covenant meal, the peace offering, that they are eating there on the mountain. To eat from the sacrifice meant that they were at peace with God, in covenant with him. Likewise, in the new covenant believers draw near to God on the basis of sacrifice, and eat of the sacrifice because they are at peace with him, and in Christ they see the Godhead revealed.

[33:2]  ¹² sn This seems not to be the same as the Angel of the Presence introduced before.

[33:2]  ¹³ sn See T. Ishida, “The Structure and Historical Implications of Lists of Pre-Israelite Nations,” Bib (1979): 461-90.