Moses and Aaron Before Pharaoh
Exodus 5:1-21
Exo.5.1 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- ואחר: CONJ
- באו: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,pl
- משה: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- ואהרן: CONJ+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- ויאמרו: VERB,qal,wayyiqtol,3,pl
- אל: NEG
- פרעה: NOUN,m,sg,def
- כה: ADV
- אמר: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- יהוה: NOUN,prop,m,sg,abs
- אלהי: NOUN,m,sg,cons
- ישראל: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- שלח: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- את: PRT,acc
- עמי: NOUN,m,sg,abs+1s
- ויחגו: VERB,qal,wayyiqtol,3,m,pl
- לי: PREP+PRON,1,sg
- במדבר: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
Parallels
- Exodus 3:18 (verbal): God instructs Moses to tell Pharaoh to 'let my people go' — the same demand Moses and Aaron deliver in Exod 5:1; establishes the original command behind their petition.
- Exodus 4:23 (thematic): God declares Israel to be his son and demands, 'Let my son go,' framing the freedom demand in familial/ theological terms that underlie the appeal in Exod 5:1.
- Exodus 7:16 (verbal): Part of the repeated formula used during the plague narratives: 'Thus saith the LORD God of the Hebrews, Let my people go' — a near-quotation of the message Moses and Aaron deliver in Exod 5:1.
- Exodus 8:1 (thematic): Another reiteration of the demand framed explicitly as release so the people may worship/serve the LORD ('that they may serve me'), echoing the purpose given in Exod 5:1 ('that they may hold a feast unto me in the wilderness').
Alternative generated candidates
- And afterward Moses and Aaron came and said to Pharaoh, "Thus says YHWH, the God of Israel: Send my people, that they may hold a festival to me in the wilderness."
- And afterward Moses and Aaron came and said to Pharaoh, "Thus says YHWH, the God of Israel: Send my people, that they may hold a festival to me in the wilderness."
Exo.5.2 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- ויאמר: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- פרעה: NOUN,m,sg,def
- מי: PRON,interr,sg
- יהוה: NOUN,prop,m,sg,abs
- אשר: PRON,rel
- אשמע: VERB,qal,impf,1,_,sg
- בקלו: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs+3,m,sg
- לשלח: VERB,qal,infc,_,_,_
- את: PRT,acc
- ישראל: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- לא: PART_NEG
- ידעתי: VERB,qal,perf,1,?,sg
- את: PRT,acc
- יהוה: NOUN,prop,m,sg,abs
- וגם: CONJ
- את: PRT,acc
- ישראל: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- לא: PART_NEG
- אשלח: VERB,qal,imperf,1,_,sg
Parallels
- Exod.9:27-28 (structural): Same narrative arc: Pharaoh first refuses or denies recognition of Yahweh (Exod 5:2) but later admits his sin and acknowledges the Lord’s righteousness — a pivotal reversal in the Exodus story.
- Ps.81:11-12 (thematic): God laments that his people would not listen to his voice and so he 'gave them over' — thematically parallels Pharaoh’s blunt refusal to heed Yahweh’s command to release Israel.
- Rom.1:21-23 (thematic): Paul describes people who knew God yet did not honor or acknowledge him, exchanging knowledge of God for ignorance/idolatry — echoes the refusal to recognize or obey Yahweh in Exod 5:2.
- Acts 7:27-36 (allusion): Stephen’s retelling of Moses’ commission and the people’s/Pharaoh’s resistance alludes to the Exodus confrontation: God's sending of a deliverer is met by rejection and denial of Israel’s God (parallels Moses–Pharaoh exchange).
Alternative generated candidates
- And Pharaoh said, "Who is YHWH, that I should heed his voice to send Israel? I do not know YHWH; and moreover, I will not send Israel."
- And Pharaoh said, "Who is YHWH, that I should listen to his voice to send Israel? I do not know YHWH, and moreover I will not send Israel."
Exo.5.3 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- ויאמרו: VERB,qal,wayyiqtol,3,pl
- אלהי: NOUN,m,sg,cons
- העברים: NOUN,m,pl,def
- נקרא: VERB,niphal,perf,3,m,sg
- עלינו: PREP+PRON,1,pl
- נלכה: VERB,qal,cohort,1,_,pl
- נא: PART
- דרך: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- שלשת: NUM,m,pl,abs
- ימים: NOUN,m,pl,abs
- במדבר: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- ונזבחה: VERB,qal,cohort,1,pl
- ליהוה: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,def
- אלהינו: NOUN,m,sg,def+PRON,1,pl
- פן: CONJ
- יפגענו: VERB,qal,impf,3,m,sg+PRON,1,pl
- בדבר: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- או: CONJ
- בחרב: PREP+NOUN,f,sg,abs
Parallels
- Exodus 5:1 (structural): Immediate parallel in the narrative: God’s command through Moses to Pharaoh, “Let my people go, that they may hold a feast unto me in the wilderness,” which is the demand that prompts the elders’ request in 5:3.
- Exodus 8:27 (verbal): After the plague of frogs Pharaoh tells Moses and Aaron to “go, sacrifice to your God in the land,” offering a rival solution to the Israelites’ request to go into the wilderness to sacrifice.
- Exodus 10:8–11 (thematic): Later in the plague cycle Pharaoh again permits the people to ‘go, serve the LORD’ but asks them to leave their flocks and herds behind; Moses refuses because animals are needed for sacrificial worship—reflects the same concern about going out to sacrifice raised in 5:3.
- Deuteronomy 28:22 (verbal): Part of the covenant curses that warn God’s punishment by disease and the sword—parallels the elders’ fear in 5:3 that, if they do not sacrifice, God may strike them with pestilence or the sword.
Alternative generated candidates
- And they said, "The God of the Hebrews has met with us. Let us, please, go a journey of three days into the wilderness and sacrifice to YHWH our God, lest he strike us with pestilence or with the sword."
- And they said, "The God of the Hebrews has met with us; let us please go a journey of three days into the wilderness, and let us sacrifice to YHWH our God, lest he fall upon us with pestilence or with the sword."
Exo.5.4 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- ויאמר: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- אלהם: PREP+PRON,3,m,pl
- מלך: NOUN,m,sg,cons
- מצרים: NOUN,f,pl,abs
- למה: ADV
- משה: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- ואהרן: CONJ+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- תפריעו: VERB,qal,impf,2,m,pl
- את: PRT,acc
- העם: NOUN,m,sg,def
- ממעשיו: PREP+NOUN,cons,m,sg+PRON,3,m,sg
- לכו: VERB,qal,imp,2,m,pl
- לסבלתיכם: PREP+NOUN,cons,m,sg+PRON,2,m,pl
Parallels
- Exod.5.1-2 (structural): Immediate narrative context: Moses and Aaron request Pharaoh to let the people go, and Pharaoh refuses — setting for Pharaoh’s rebuke that they are disturbing the people’s work.
- Exod.5.8-9 (verbal): Pharaoh orders the taskmasters to increase the Israelites’ burdens and explicitly blames Moses and Aaron for making the people idle—a direct continuation and amplification of the complaint in 5:4.
- Exod.1.11 (thematic): Early description of Egyptian forced labour (taskmasters and heavy burdens) provides background to the theme of oppressive work and Pharaoh’s control over Israelite labor.
- Acts 7:34-36 (allusion): Stephen’s retelling of Moses before Pharaoh alludes to the same confrontation and Pharaoh’s opposition to Israel’s release, treating Exodus’ exchange as part of the larger deliverance motif.
Alternative generated candidates
- And the king of Egypt said to them, "Why, Moses and Aaron, do you distract the people from its works? Go to your burdens."
- And the king of Egypt said to them, "Why, Moses and Aaron, do you make the people cease from their works? Go to your burdens!"
Exo.5.5 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- ויאמר: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- פרעה: NOUN,m,sg,def
- הן: PART
- רבים: ADJ,m,pl,abs
- עתה: ADV
- עם: PREP
- הארץ: NOUN,f,sg,def
- והשבתם: VERB,hif,perf,2,m,pl
- אתם: PRON,2,m,pl
- מסבלתם: PREP+NOUN,m,pl,abs+SUFF,3,m,pl
Parallels
- Exod.1:9-11 (verbal): Pharaoh's earlier declaration that 'the people are many and mightier than we' leads to instituting forced labor—same rationale (fear of numbers) and language about subjecting Israel to taskmasters.
- Exod.5:6-14 (structural): Immediate narrative continuation: Pharaoh responds by increasing the Israelites' quotas and harshening their burdens—directly implements the refusal and accusation in 5:5.
- 1 Sam.8:11-18 (thematic): Samuel's warning that a human king will impose heavy demands (sons, daughters, fields, servants, taxes) parallels the motif of rulers increasing burdens on a people for control.
- Deut.24:14-15 (thematic): The law's prohibition against oppressing hired workers and withholding wages contrasts with Pharaoh's policy of intensifying labor and mistreatment of Israelite workers.
- Acts 7:18-19 (allusion): Stephen's retelling recalls a later Egyptian king who, seeing Israel multiply, oppressed them—an apostolic summary that echoes the same cause (multiplication leading to harsher service) as in Exod 5:5.
Alternative generated candidates
- And Pharaoh said, "Look now, the people of the land are many, and you make them rest from their burdens."
- And Pharaoh said, "Look, the people of the land are now many, and you make them rest from their burdens."
Exo.5.6 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- ויצו: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- פרעה: NOUN,m,sg,def
- ביום: PREP
- ההוא: DEM,ms,sg
- את: PRT,acc
- הנגשים: NOUN,m,pl,def
- בעם: PREP
- ואת: CONJ
- שטריו: NOUN,m,pl,abs+PRON,3,m,sg
- לאמר: INF,qal,infc
Parallels
- Exod.1:11 (verbal): Earliest statement that taskmasters were appointed over Israel to oppress them—parallels Exod 5:6’s appointment of overseers.
- Exod.1:14 (thematic): Describes the harsh corvée and bitter labor imposed on Israel—background to Pharaoh’s commands to his taskmasters in ch. 5.
- Exod.5:7-9 (structural): Immediate literary continuation: the officers and taskmasters confront the Israelites and Pharaoh orders intensified labor—directly connected to v.6.
- 1 Kings 12:4-5 (thematic): Rehoboam’s reference to Solomon’s heavy yoke and the threat to make it heavier echoes the motif of royal oppression and forced labor found in Exod 5:6–9.
- Acts 7:19 (allusion): Stephen’s retelling of Israel’s history states that the Egyptians dealt harshly and imposed burdens—New Testament allusion to the same oppression by Egyptian authorities.
Alternative generated candidates
- And Pharaoh commanded on that day the taskmasters over the people and its foremen, saying:
- And Pharaoh commanded on that day the taskmasters over the people and their overseers, saying:
Exo.5.7 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- לא: PART_NEG
- תאספון: VERB,qal,impf,2,m,pl
- לתת: VERB,qal,inf
- תבן: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- לעם: PREP
- ללבן: PREP+NOUN,prop,m,sg,abs
- הלבנים: ART+NOUN,m,pl,def
- כתמול: ADV
- שלשם: ADV
- הם: PRON,personal,3,m,pl
- ילכו: VERB,qal,impf,3,m,pl
- וקששו: CONJ+VERB,qal,impf,3,m,pl
- להם: PREP+PRON,3,m,pl
- תבן: NOUN,m,sg,abs
Parallels
- Exod.1:11-14 (structural): Earlier depiction of Egyptian taskmasters imposing harsh forced labor (building store cities) — sets the background for Pharaoh’s later refusal and intensified oppression in 5:7.
- Exod.5:15-19 (structural): Immediate narrative continuation: Israelite foremen are beaten and the people reproached because straw was withheld while brick quotas remained the same — direct consequence of Pharaoh’s command in 5:7.
- Deut.28:48 (thematic): Part of the covenant curses describing servitude and hard labor under foreign masters — parallels the theme of people being forced to toil without needed resources.
- Nehemiah 5:1-5 (thematic): Accounts of the poor being crushed by onerous demands, forced labor, and loss of necessities — thematically similar to Pharaoh’s withholding of straw and harsh treatment of Israel.
Alternative generated candidates
- "You shall no longer continue to give straw to the people to make bricks as yesterday and the day before; let them go and gather straw for themselves.
- You shall no longer give straw to the people to make bricks as yesterday and the day before; let them go and gather straw for themselves.
Exo.5.8 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- ואת: CONJ
- מתכנת: NOUN,f,sg,cs
- הלבנים: NOUN,m,pl,def
- אשר: PRON,rel
- הם: PRON,personal,3,m,pl
- עשים: VERB,qal,inf
- תמול: ADV
- שלשם: ADV
- תשימו: VERB,qal,imp,2,pl
- עליהם: PREP,3,m,pl
- לא: PART_NEG
- תגרעו: VERB,qal,impf,2,m,pl
- ממנו: PREP+PRON,3,m,sg
- כי: CONJ
- נרפים: VERB,niphal,part,3,m,pl
- הם: PRON,personal,3,m,pl
- על: PREP
- כן: ADV
- הם: PRON,personal,3,m,pl
- צעקים: VERB,qal,part,3,m,pl
- לאמר: INF,qal,infc
- נלכה: VERB,qal,cohort,1,_,pl
- נזבחה: VERB,qal,cohort,1,pl
- לאלהינו: NOUN,m,sg,poss,1,pl
Parallels
- Exod.5.9 (structural): Immediate continuation: Pharaoh's officers order that the people be denied straw so they must gather it themselves, directly escalating the brickmakers' burden described in 5:8.
- Exod.1.14-15 (thematic): Early summary of Israelite oppression in Egypt—forced labor making bricks with mortar—establishes the same theme of harsh brickmaking labor found in 5:8.
- Exod.1.11 (thematic): Pharaoh's use of Israelite forced labor to build store cities (Pithom and Rameses) provides background for the brickmaking taskmasters and labor policies alluded to in 5:8.
- Exod.5.20-21 (thematic): The Israelites' reaction to the increased labor—blaming Moses and Aaron and lamenting that their situation worsened—echoes the complaint and crying out mentioned in 5:8.
- Exod.3.7 (allusion): God's declaration that He has 'seen the affliction' and 'heard their cry' connects to the Israelites' crying out in 5:8 and frames divine awareness of their harsh labor.
Alternative generated candidates
- But the quota of bricks that they made yesterday and the day before you shall impose upon them; you shall not diminish from it, for they are idle. Therefore they cry out, saying, ‘Let us go and sacrifice to our God.’
- And the quota of bricks that they were making yesterday and the day before you shall impose on them; you shall not lessen it. For they are lazy; therefore they cry, saying, Let us go, let us sacrifice to our God.
Exo.5.9 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- תכבד: VERB,hif,impf,3,m,sg
- העבדה: NOUN,f,sg,def
- על: PREP
- האנשים: NOUN,m,pl,def
- ויעשו: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,pl
- בה: PREP+PRON,3,f,sg
- ואל: CONJ+PREP
- ישעו: VERB,qal,impf,3,m,pl
- בדברי: PREP+NOUN,m,pl,const
- שקר: NOUN,m,sg,abs
Parallels
- Exodus 1:14 (verbal): Describes the Egyptians making Israelite lives bitter with hard service in mortar and brick—directly parallels the imposition of heavier forced labor mentioned in Exod 5:9.
- 1 Kings 12:4-11 (thematic): Rehoboam's decision to increase his predecessors' burdens after the people ask for relief echoes Pharaoh's deliberate policy to make the people's work heavier.
- Matthew 23:4 (thematic): Jesus condemns religious leaders who 'load people with burdens hard to bear'—a later moral critique that parallels the motif of authorities imposing heavy, oppressive labor.
- Nehemiah 5:1-5 (thematic): Gentry and moneylenders exact usury and enslave their fellow Jews, producing bitter hardship—an instance of leaders or officials intensifying burdens on the vulnerable, thematically similar to Exod 5:9.
Alternative generated candidates
- Let the work be heavy upon the men, and let them do it, and let them not pay heed to lying words."
- Let the work be heavy upon the men, and let them do it, and let them not pay attention to lying words.
Exo.5.10 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- ויצאו: VERB,qal,impf,3,m,pl
- נגשי: NOUN,m,pl,construct
- העם: NOUN,m,sg,def
- ושטריו: NOUN,m,pl,poss
- ויאמרו: VERB,qal,wayyiqtol,3,pl
- אל: NEG
- העם: NOUN,m,sg,def
- לאמר: INF,qal,infc
- כה: ADV
- אמר: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- פרעה: NOUN,m,sg,def
- אינני: PART,neg,1,sg
- נתן: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- לכם: PREP,2,m,pl
- תבן: NOUN,m,sg,abs
Parallels
- Exodus 5:6-9 (verbal): Pharaoh's earlier command to the taskmasters not to give the Israelites straw and yet require the same brick quota — same directive that the officers report to the people here.
- Exodus 5:11-14 (structural): Immediate narrative consequence of the decree: Israelites must gather straw themselves, quotas remain, and the foremen are beaten — continues the same episode begun in v.10.
- Exodus 1:13-14 (thematic): Earlier account of Egyptian oppression by taskmasters and forced labor, providing the background context for Pharaoh's harsh treatment and refusal to accommodate the people.
- Psalm 105:23-27 (allusion): Liturgical retelling of Israel's affliction in Egypt that echoes the Exodus narrative of oppressive labor and Pharaoh's hard heart, recalling the same pattern of burdens imposed by Egyptian rulers.
Alternative generated candidates
- And the taskmasters of the people and its foremen went out and spoke to the people, saying, "Thus says Pharaoh: I am not giving you straw.
- And the taskmasters of the people and their overseers went out and spoke to the people, saying, "Thus says Pharaoh: I am not giving you straw."
Exo.5.11 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- אתם: PRON,2,m,pl
- לכו: VERB,qal,imp,2,m,pl
- קחו: VERB,qal,impv,2,pl
- לכם: PREP,2,m,pl
- תבן: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- מאשר: PREP+REL
- תמצאו: VERB,qal,impf,2,m,pl
- כי: CONJ
- אין: PART,neg
- נגרע: VERB,niphal,impf,1,_,pl
- מעבדתכם: PREP+NOUN,f,sg,cons+SUF,2,m,pl
- דבר: NOUN,m,sg,abs
Parallels
- Exodus 1:14 (verbal): Describes the Israelites' forced labor 'in mortar and brick' and 'hard service,' providing background to Pharaoh's later demand that they make bricks under harsher conditions.
- Exodus 1:11 (thematic): Earliest mention of Israelite conscription to build store-cities (Pithom and Rameses); thematically parallels Pharaoh's use of Israelite labor for state projects and oppression.
- Exodus 5:12 (structural): Immediate continuation of the same episode: officials beat the Israelite supervisors because they could not meet the brick quota when straw was withheld, directly echoing the condition set in v.11.
- Exodus 5:19–21 (thematic): Records the Israelites' complaint to Moses after their workload was increased and straw withheld; shows the social and emotional consequences of Pharaoh's order in v.11.
Alternative generated candidates
- You yourselves go, get straw for yourselves wherever you find it, for nothing of your work will be reduced."
- "You yourselves go, get straw for yourselves from wherever you find it, for nothing will be reduced from your work."
Exo.5.12 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- ויפץ: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- העם: NOUN,m,sg,def
- בכל: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- ארץ: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- מצרים: NOUN,f,pl,abs
- לקשש: VERB,qal,inf,NA,NA,NA,NA
- קש: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- לתבן: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
Parallels
- Exod.5.8 (verbal): Immediate context: Pharaoh commands that no more straw be given for brick‑making, forcing the people to fetch their own stubble — the direct cause of the people 'scattering through all the land of Egypt to gather stubble.'
- Exod.1.14 (thematic): Background description of Israelite oppression in Egypt — making bricks with mortar and forced labour — situates 5:12 within the longer theme of brick production and harsh slave labour imposed on Israel.
- Exod.5.19-21 (structural): Immediate aftermath: the Israelite slave‑overseers are beaten because the people cannot meet the brick quota after straw is withheld. These verses complete the episode begun in 5:12, showing consequence of fetching stubble.
- Ps.105:23-27 (allusion): Psalmic retelling of Israel’s sojourn in Egypt and the affliction they suffered under Egyptian rule; the psalm recalls the people’s oppression and the events that led to their eventual deliverance, echoing the theme of forced labour found in Exod.5:12.
Alternative generated candidates
- And the people scattered throughout all the land of Egypt to gather stubble for straw.
- And the people scattered throughout all the land of Egypt to gather stubble for straw.
Exo.5.13 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- והנגשים: CONJ+NOUN,m,pl,def
- אצים: VERB,pi,part,0,m,pl
- לאמר: INF,qal,infc
- כלו: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,pl
- מעשיכם: NOUN,m,pl,abs,2,m,pl
- דבר: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- יום: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- ביומו: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs+3ms
- כאשר: CONJ
- בהיות: PREP+VERB,qal,ptc
- התבן: NOUN,m,sg,def
Parallels
- Exodus 5:6-9 (structural): Immediate context — Pharaoh orders harsher quotas and taskmasters press the people, the same scene of increased labor and enforcement described in 5:13.
- Exodus 1:11-14 (verbal): Earlier account of Israelite oppression: forced brick-making, hard labor, and rigorous service — background and verbal parallels (bricks/mortar, harsh taskmasters).
- Deuteronomy 24:14-15 (thematic): Legal prohibition against oppressing or withholding wages from hired workers; addresses the ethical issue of daily labor and exploitation reflected in Exod 5:13.
- Jeremiah 22:13 (thematic): Prophetic condemnation of building by unjust gain and making a neighbor work without pay — similar moral critique of exploiting laborers.
- Nehemiah 5:1-5 (allusion): Narrative of social abuse where the wealthy exact grain, interest and force people into servitude — parallels the theme of oppression and imposed labor quotas.
Alternative generated candidates
- And the taskmasters pressed them, saying, "Complete your work, each day’s task in its day, as when there was straw."
- And the taskmasters pressed them, saying, "Complete your work, the task of each day in its day, as when there was straw."
Exo.5.14 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- ויכו: VERB,qal,imf,3,m,pl
- שטרי: NOUN,m,pl,abs
- בני: NOUN,m,pl,construct
- ישראל: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- אשר: PRON,rel
- שמו: NOUN,m,sg,abs+PRON,3,m,sg
- עלהם: PREP+PRON,3,m,pl
- נגשי: NOUN,m,pl,const
- פרעה: NOUN,m,sg,def
- לאמר: INF,qal,infc
- מדוע: ADV
- לא: PART_NEG
- כליתם: VERB,qal,perf,2,m,pl
- חקכם: NOUN,m,sg,abs+PRON,2,m,pl
- ללבן: PREP+NOUN,prop,m,sg,abs
- כתמול: ADV
- שלשם: ADV
- גם: ADV
- תמול: ADV,temporal
- גם: ADV
- היום: NOUN,m,sg,def
Parallels
- Exod.1:11-14 (verbal): Same setting of Egyptian taskmasters and forced brick-making; language and theme of harsh labor and the people’s bitter toil parallel the complaint about unmet brick quotas.
- Exod.5:6-9 (structural): Immediate context: Pharaoh’s order to stop providing straw and to increase production, which directly causes the overseers to be beaten for failing to meet the quotas.
- Exod.5:15-19 (verbal): Direct continuation of the scene—Israelite foremen (shatrei) are beaten and complain to Pharaoh; mirrors the action and dialogue of 5:14 within the same episode.
- Acts 7:19-20 (thematic): Stephen’s retelling of Israel’s experience in Egypt emphasizes their affliction and hard bondage under oppressive rulers, echoing the Exodus depiction of forced labor and harsh treatment.
- Deut.24:14-15 (thematic): Legal/ethical parallel regarding the protection of laborers from abuse and exploitation—provides a broader scriptural counterpoint to the mistreatment of Israelite workers in Egypt.
Alternative generated candidates
- And the foremen of the sons of Israel, whom Pharaoh’s taskmasters had set over them, were beaten, saying, "Why have you not completed your quota in making bricks yesterday and the day before—both yesterday and today?"
- And the overseers of the sons of Israel, whom the taskmasters of Pharaoh had set over them, were beaten, saying, "Why have you not completed your quota of making bricks as yesterday and the day before—both yesterday and today?"
Exo.5.15 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- ויבאו: VERB,qal,impf,3,m,pl
- שטרי: NOUN,m,pl,construct
- בני: NOUN,m,pl,construct
- ישראל: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- ויצעקו: VERB,qal,impf,3,m,pl
- אל: NEG
- פרעה: NOUN,m,sg,def
- לאמר: INF,qal,infc
- למה: ADV
- תעשה: VERB,qal,imf,2,m,sg
- כה: ADV
- לעבדיך: PREP+NOUN,m,pl,abs+PRON,2,ms
Parallels
- Exod.5:6-14 (structural): Immediate context: Pharaoh orders increased labor and the taskmasters beat the Israelite workmen — the background that provokes the officers’ complaint in v.15.
- Exod.5:21 (structural): Later in the same scene the Israelite overseers and people confront Moses and Aaron, blaming them for making the people abhorrent to Pharaoh — a direct thematic continuation of the complaint motif.
- Exod.3:9 (thematic): God’s account of the situation: ‘the cry of the children of Israel is come unto me’ — frames the same phenomenon of Israelite suffering and complaint under Egyptian oppression.
- Exod.2:23 (thematic): ‘And the children of Israel sighed by reason of the bondage’ — an earlier summary description of Israel’s anguished cry under Egyptian oppression, thematically parallel to the officers’ outcry in 5:15.
Alternative generated candidates
- And the foremen of the sons of Israel came and cried out to Pharaoh, saying, "Why do you do thus to your servants?
- Then the overseers of the sons of Israel came and cried out to Pharaoh, saying, "Why do you do thus to your servants?"
Exo.5.16 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- תבן: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- אין: PART,neg
- נתן: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- לעבדיך: PREP+NOUN,m,pl,abs+PRON,2,ms
- ולבנים: CONJ+PREP+NOUN,m,pl,abs
- אמרים: NOUN,m,pl,abs
- לנו: PREP+PRON,1,pl
- עשו: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,pl
- והנה: ADV
- עבדיך: NOUN,m,pl,abs,2ms
- מכים: VERB,qal,ptcp,m,pl
- וחטאת: CONJ+NOUN,f,sg,abs
- עמך: NOUN,m,sg,suff-2m
Parallels
- Exodus 5:6-8 (verbal): Same scene and language: Pharaoh commands that no more straw be given yet the brick quota remain — the immediate context that produces the complaint in 5:16.
- Exodus 5:9 (verbal): Pharaoh's order to increase the labor and make work heavier; explains why the Israelite overseers are beaten and accused in 5:16.
- Exodus 1:13-14 (thematic): Earlier summary of Egyptian oppression — forced labor, harsh treatment and rigorous service — provides the broader background for the complaint about beatings and impossible demands.
- Psalm 105:23-25 (thematic): Liturgical retelling of Israel's affliction in Egypt, including their harsh bondage under Egyptian rulers; echoes the theme of cruel labor and suffering found in Exod 5:16.
- Acts 7:19 (allusion): Stephen's New Testament retelling of Israel's history: the Egyptians afflicted the people and subjected them to harsh labor — an early Christian summary alluding to episodes like Exod 5:16.
Alternative generated candidates
- Straw is not being given to your servants, and they say to us, ‘Make bricks!’ And behold, your servants are being beaten, and the fault is with your people."
- "Straw is not being given to your servants, yet they say to us, Make bricks; and now your servants are beaten, and the fault is in your own people."
Exo.5.17 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- ויאמר: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- נרפים: VERB,nip,part,3,m,pl
- אתם: PRON,2,m,pl
- נרפים: VERB,nip,part,3,m,pl
- על: PREP
- כן: ADV
- אתם: PRON,2,m,pl
- אמרים: NOUN,m,pl,abs
- נלכה: VERB,qal,cohort,1,_,pl
- נזבחה: VERB,qal,cohort,1,n/a,pl
- ליהוה: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,def
Parallels
- Exod.5:1-4 (structural): Immediate narrative context: Moses and Aaron demand that Pharaoh let Israel go to sacrifice to YHWH — the request that provokes Pharaoh’s rebuke (‘You are lazy…’) in 5:17.
- Exod.5:19-23 (structural): Direct aftermath in the same scene: Israelite overseers and the people suffer increased burdens and complain to Moses and Aaron, showing the practical consequence of Pharaoh’s charge that they used worship as a pretext.
- Neh.4:1-3 (thematic): Opponents deride and mock the builders (calling their work foolish/weak) — similar rhetorical tactic of belittling religious or communal reconstruction as a pretext or folly.
- Neh.13:15-22 (thematic): Conflict between demands of labor and observance of sacred time: people compelled to work on the Sabbath and leaders enforce labor over worship, paralleling Pharaoh’s prioritizing forced labor over Israel’s desire to worship.
- Isa.58:3-4 (thematic): Prophetic critique of external religious acts when social obligations are violated — echoes the tension between claiming religious motives and the realities of oppression highlighted by Pharaoh’s accusation.
Alternative generated candidates
- And he said, "Idle you are, idle! Therefore you say, ‘Let us go, let us sacrifice to YHWH.’
- And he said, "Idle you are, idle! Therefore you say, Let us go, let us sacrifice to YHWH."
Exo.5.18 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- ועתה: CONJ
- לכו: VERB,qal,imp,2,m,pl
- עבדו: NOUN,m,sg,abs+3,m,sg
- ותבן: CONJ+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- לא: PART_NEG
- ינתן: VERB,niphal,impf,3,m,sg
- לכם: PREP,2,m,pl
- ותכן: VERB,qal,impf,3,f,sg
- לבנים: PREP+NOUN,m,pl,abs
- תתנו: VERB,qal,impf,2,m,pl
Parallels
- Exodus 1:11 (thematic): Taskmasters are set over the Israelites to afflict them and force them to build store-cities (Pithom and Rameses). Echoes the institution of coerced labor and brick-building that underlies 5:18.
- Exodus 1:14 (thematic): The Israelites are described as being made to serve with harsh labor and rigorous bondage—a clear thematic parallel emphasizing oppression and heavy work imposed by Egypt.
- Exodus 5:6-9 (structural): Immediate narrative context: Pharaoh commands the taskmasters to stop giving straw but to maintain the brick quota—this passage is the direct continuation and clarification of 5:18's command.
- Psalm 105:23-25 (thematic): A liturgical summary of Israel's affliction in Egypt, recounting their hard labor and suffering under Egyptian taskmasters, thematically reinforcing the Exodus depiction of forced labor.
- 1 Samuel 8:11-18 (thematic): Samuel's warning about a king who will conscript sons, daughters, and fields and make the people servants; thematically parallels the motif of rulers imposing heavy burdens and forced labor on a population.
Alternative generated candidates
- So now go, work; and straw shall not be given to you, yet the set quota of bricks you shall give."
- "And now go, work; and straw will not be given to you, and the quota of bricks you shall deliver."
Exo.5.19 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- ויראו: VERB,qal,impf,3,m,pl
- שטרי: NOUN,m,pl,cs
- בני: NOUN,m,pl,construct
- ישראל: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- אתם: PRON,2,m,pl
- ברע: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- לאמר: INF,qal,infc
- לא: PART_NEG
- תגרעו: VERB,qal,impf,2,m,pl
- מלבניכם: PREP+NOUN,f,pl,abs+PRON,2,m,pl
- דבר: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- יום: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- ביומו: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs+PRON,3,m,sg
Parallels
- Exodus 5:18 (structural): Immediate context: the preceding verse describes the taskmasters' orders to the Israelite overseers to make the brick quota despite removing their straw, directly connected to the overseers' report of the people's distress in 5:19.
- Exodus 1:13–14 (thematic): Early description of Israelite slavery — Egyptians made their lives bitter with hard labor and rigorous service — providing the broader theme of oppression that underlies the overseers' observation in 5:19.
- Exodus 2:23–24 (verbal): Reports that the Israelites sighed because of bondage and cried out, and that God heard their groaning — echoes the motif of the people's distress and its recognition (here by overseers, there by God).
- Exodus 3:9–10 (thematic): God's commission to Moses cites that 'the cry of the children of Israel has come to me' and that He has seen their oppression, thematically paralleling the recognition of Israel's suffering in 5:19 and linking it to divine intervention.
Alternative generated candidates
- And the foremen of the sons of Israel saw that they were in trouble when it was said, "You shall not reduce from your bricks the daily quota."
- And the overseers of the sons of Israel saw themselves in trouble when it was said, "You shall not diminish from your bricks your daily task."
Exo.5.20 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- ויפגעו: VERB,qal,imprf,3,m,pl
- את: PRT,acc
- משה: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- ואת: CONJ
- אהרן: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- נצבים: ADJ,masc,pl,abs
- לקראתם: PREP,3,m,pl
- בצאתם: PREP+NOUN,f,sg,const,3,m,pl
- מאת: PREP
- פרעה: NOUN,m,sg,def
Parallels
- Exod.5.21 (structural): Immediate continuation of the scene — after the Israelites 'met' Moses and Aaron they confront and rebuke them; same episode and actors, showing cause and effect with v.20.
- Exod.4.29-31 (thematic): Earlier scene in which Moses and Aaron assemble the elders and bring God’s word; both passages depict meetings between the leaders and the Israelite community on returning from official encounters.
- Exod.18.7-12 (verbal): Narrative uses the same meeting motif ('Moses went out to meet...') when others come to him after a major event; parallels the act of meeting and exchanging reports on behalf of the people.
- Exod.32.1-6 (thematic): Another crisis moment where the people confront/turn to leadership in the aftermath of failed guidance; thematically parallels the Israelites’ reaction to Moses and Aaron after Pharaoh’s harsh decree.
Alternative generated candidates
- And they met Moses and Aaron, standing to meet them, as they came out from Pharaoh.
- And they encountered Moses and Aaron standing to meet them, as they came out from Pharaoh.
Exo.5.21 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- ויאמרו: VERB,qal,wayyiqtol,3,pl
- אלהם: PREP+PRON,3,m,pl
- ירא: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- יהוה: NOUN,prop,m,sg,abs
- עליכם: PREP
- וישפט: VERB,qal,wayyiqtol,3,m,sg
- אשר: PRON,rel
- הבאשתם: VERB,hif,perf,2,pl
- את: PRT,acc
- ריחנו: NOUN,m,sg,abs+PRON,1,pl
- בעיני: PREP+NOUN,f,pl,abs
- פרעה: NOUN,m,sg,def
- ובעיני: CONJ+PREP+NOUN,f,pl,cstr
- עבדיו: NOUN,m,pl,abs+3ms
- לתת: VERB,qal,inf
- חרב: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- בידם: PREP+PRON,3,m,pl
- להרגנו: VERB,qal,inf,1,pl
Parallels
- Exod.6.9 (thematic): Same episode and response: the Israelites refuse to heed Moses 'for anguish of spirit and cruel bondage,' echoing their complaint that Moses has made them obnoxious to Pharaoh and brought harsher treatment.
- Num.16.41 (thematic): After Korah's rebellion the people murmur against Moses and Aaron, accusing them of killing the people—a comparable charge laid on leaders when calamity or violent threat falls on the community.
- Deut.1.26-28 (thematic): When Israel fears the Canaanite peoples will 'consume' them they blame leadership/God and refuse to proceed—parallels the fear of being handed over to death and the tendency to blame leaders for placing the people in danger.
- Ps.106.24 (allusion): The psalm recounts Israel's complaints and hostility toward Moses and Aaron ('they envied Moses also in the camp'), recalling the recurrent motif of the people rebuking their leaders for bringing trouble upon them.
Alternative generated candidates
- And they said to them, "May YHWH look upon you and judge, because you have made us a stench in the eyes of Pharaoh and in the eyes of his servants, to put a sword in their hand to kill us."
- And they said to them, "May YHWH look upon you and judge, for you have made our odor offensive in the eyes of Pharaoh and in the eyes of his servants, to put a sword in their hand to kill us."
Afterward Moses and Aaron came and said to Pharaoh, 'Thus says YHWH, the God of Israel: Let my people go, that they may hold a festival to me in the wilderness.' And Pharaoh said, 'Who is YHWH that I should obey his voice to let Israel go? I do not know YHWH, and moreover I will not let Israel go.' And they said, 'The God of the Hebrews has met with us. Please let us go a three-days' journey into the wilderness, and let us sacrifice to YHWH our God, lest he strike us with pestilence or with the sword.' And the king of Egypt said to them, 'Why, Moses and Aaron, do you hinder the people from their work? Go to your burdens.' And Pharaoh said, 'Behold, now the people of the land are many, and you make them rest from their burdens.' And Pharaoh commanded on that day the taskmasters over the people and their officers, saying:
'You shall no longer give straw to the people for making bricks as yesterday and the day before; let them go and gather straw for themselves.'
'But the quota of bricks that they were making yesterday and the day before you shall impose on them; you shall not reduce it, for they are idle. Therefore they cry out, saying, "Let us go, let us sacrifice to our God."'
'Let the work be heavier upon the men, and let them do it, and let them not pay attention to lying words.' So the taskmasters of the people and their officers went out and spoke to the people, saying, 'Thus says Pharaoh: I am not giving you straw.'
'You—go, take for yourselves straw from wherever you find it, for not a thing will be reduced from your work.' And the people scattered throughout all the land of Egypt to gather stubble for straw. And the taskmasters pressed them, saying, 'Finish your work, the task of each day in its day, as when there was straw.' And the officers of the sons of Israel, whom Pharaoh’s taskmasters had set over them, were beaten, saying, 'Why have you not completed your quota in making bricks as yesterday and the day before—also yesterday, also today?'
Then the officers of the sons of Israel came and cried out to Pharaoh, saying, 'Why do you do thus to your servants?'
'Straw is not given to your servants, and they say to us, "Make bricks!" And now your servants are being beaten, but the fault is with your own people.' But he said, 'Idle you are, idle! Therefore you are saying, "Let us go, let us sacrifice to YHWH."'
'So now go, work! And straw shall not be given to you, yet the quota of bricks you must deliver.' And the officers of the sons of Israel saw that they were in trouble when it was said, 'You shall not reduce from your bricks the quota of each day in its day.' And they met Moses and Aaron standing to meet them as they came out from Pharaoh. And they said to them, 'May YHWH look upon you and judge, because you have made us stink in the eyes of Pharaoh and in the eyes of his servants, to put a sword in their hand to kill us.'