Exodus 17:15
in Exodus 17And Moses built an altar and named it The LORD Is My Banner.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And Moses built an altar, and called the name of it Jehovah-nissi;
KJV
And Moses built an altar, and called the name of it JEHOVAH–nissi:
⋯
This verse in Exodus 17
Commentary
7 notes on this verseA commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
Jehovah-nissi - See the margin, “Jehovah my banner.” As a proper name the Hebrew word is rightly preserved. The meaning is evidently that the name of Yahweh is the true banner under which victory is certain; so to speak, the motto or inscription on the banners of the host. Inscriptions on the royal standard were well known. Each of the Pharaohs on his accession adopted one in addition to his official name.
This site's exposition
And Moses built an altar
on Exodus 17:15-16
The name is given to the altar rather than to the place, and the name is Jehovah-nissi, the LORD my banner. Verse 16 is one of the hardest lines in the book to render, since the Hebrew reads a hand upon the throne of the LORD, and translators differ over whose hand it is. The King James takes it as an oath sworn by God, while Adam Clarke reads it as the hand of Amalek set against the throne of God. Both readings leave the same result standing, that the war runs from generation to generation, and the rest of the Old Testament treats it as still open.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening3 voices
And Moses built an altar,....
And these things which happened to them are written for our instruction in our spiritual journey and warfare. The Israelites Murmur for Water. 1 And all the congregation of the children of Israel journeyed from the wilderness of Sin, after their journeys, according to the commandment of the L ORD , and pitched in Rephidim: and there was no water for the people to drink.
The presence and power of Jehovah were the banner under which they enlisted, by which they were animated and kept together, and therefore which they erected in the day of their triumph. In the name of our God we must always lift up our banners, Ps. xx. It is fit that he who does all the work should have all the praise.
The Nineteenth Century2 voices
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
Write this for a memorial--If the bloody character of this statute seems to be at variance with the mild and merciful character of God, the reasons are to be sought in the deep and implacable vengeance they meditated against Israel (Ps 83:4).
Jehovah-nissi - Jehovah is my ensign or banner. The hands and rod of Moses were held up as soldiers are wont to hold up their standards in the time of battle; and as these standards bear the arms of the country, the soldiers are said to fight under that banner, i.e., under the direction and in the defense of that government. Thus the Israelites fought under the direction of God, and in the defense of his truth; and therefore the name of Jehovah became the armorial bearing of the whole congregation. By his direction they fought, and in his name and strength they conquered; each one feeling himself, not his own, but the Lord’s soldier.
How the passage was read
What the Jewish commentators add
On the verses either side of this one
Rabbi Abraham ibn Ezra commented. This quote from Ibn Ezra is found in his commentary to Numbers:14. Part of it is also found here. that “this was a known book, namely, the book of the wars of the Eternal, 472 Numbers:14.
This section is reception history: how the passage was read and kept in the Jewish tradition. Where a reading parts from an essential of the Christian faith, the section says so at that point.
Texts and citation data: Sefaria; each excerpt follows its version’s licence. 2 further sources are cited on this chapter that carry no English text this site may quote or only restate the verse.
The words behind it
7 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וַיִּ֥בֶן | vaiyiven | and he built | H1129 → | 376 times |
| מֹשֶׁ֖ה | mosheh | Moses | H4872 → | 765 times |
| מִזְבֵּ֑חַ | mizbeach | an altar | H4196 → | 401 times |
| וַיִּקְרָ֥א | vaiyikra' | and he called | H7121 → | 733 times |
| שְׁמ֖וֹ | shemo | name its | H8034 → | 864 times |
| יְהוָ֥ה׀ | yahweh | Yahweh | H3068 → | 6520 times |
| נִסִּֽי׃ | nisi | [is] standard my | H5251 → |
וַיִּ֥בֶןand he built
vaiyivenH1129 →376 times
מֹשֶׁ֖הMoses
moshehH4872 →765 times
מִזְבֵּ֑חַan altar
mizbeachH4196 →401 times
וַיִּקְרָ֥אand he called
vaiyikra'H7121 →733 times
שְׁמ֖וֹname its
shemoH8034 →864 times
יְהוָ֥ה׀Yahweh
yahwehH3068 →6520 times
נִסִּֽי׃[is] standard my
nisiH5251 →
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Judges 6:24So Gideon built an altar to the LORD there and called it The LORD Is Peace. To this day it stands in Ophrah of the Abiezrites.
it leads to
- Genesis 22:14
And Abraham called that place The LORD Will Provide. So to this day it is said, “On the mountain of the LORD it will be provided.”
- Genesis 22:14
Through
Genesis 22:14And Abraham called that place The LORD Will Provide. So to this day it is said, “On the mountain of the LORD it will be provided.”
it leads to
- Genesis 22:13
Then Abraham looked up and saw behind him a ram in a thicket, caught by its horns. So he went and took the ram and offered it as a burnt offering in place of…
- Judges 6:24
So Gideon built an altar to the LORD there and called it The LORD Is Peace. To this day it stands in Ophrah of the Abiezrites.
- Genesis 22:8
Abraham answered, “God Himself will provide the lamb for the burnt offering, my son.” And the two walked on together.
- Genesis 16:13–14
So Hagar gave this name to the LORD who had spoken to her: “You are the God who sees me,” for she said, “Here I have seen the One who sees me!”
- Psalms 22:4–5
In You our fathers trusted; they trusted and You delivered them.
- Genesis 22:13
Through
Psalms 60:4You have raised a banner for those who fear You, that they may flee the bow. Selah
it leads to
- Psalms 20:5
May we shout for joy at your victory and raise a banner in the name of our God. May the LORD grant all your petitions.
- Isaiah 11:12
He will raise a banner for the nations and gather the exiles of Israel; He will collect the scattered of Judah from the four corners of the earth.
- Psalms 20:5
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies5
About Exodus
Who and where
1 name in this verse with a page on the site.
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.