Exodus 18:17
in Exodus 18But Moses’ father-in-law said to him, “What you are doing is not good.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And Moses’ father-in-law said unto him, The thing that thou doest is not good.
KJV
And Moses’ father in law said unto him, The thing that thou doest is not good.
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This verse in Exodus 18
Commentary
5 notes on this verseThis site's exposition
The thing that thou doest is not good
on Exodus 18:17-18
The correction is delivered to Moses by a man outside Israel and outside the covenant, and it is blunt. The Hebrew at verse 18 doubles the verb, which Adam Clarke renders as in wearing away thou wilt wear away, and Jethro applies the wearing to the people standing in line as much as to the man on the seat. The chapter records no word from God prompting any of this, and it stands one chapter before Sinai.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
Wisdom is profitable to direct, that we may neither content ourselves with less than our duty nor over-task ourselves with that which is beyond our strength. He advised him to such a model of government as would better answer the intention, which was, (1.) That he should reserve to himself all applications to God (
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — unbalanced-parens
And Moses's father in law said unto him,....
The Nineteenth Century2 voices
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
proposed
Moses' father-in-law said unto him, The thing . . . is not good--not good either for Moses himself, for the maintenance of justice, or for the satisfaction and interests of the people.
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
proposed
Moses sat to judge the people, &c.--We are here presented with a specimen of his daily morning occupations; and among the multifarious duties his divine legation imposed, it must be considered only a small portion of his official employments.
The words behind it
10 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וַיֹּ֛אמֶר | vaiyomer | and he said | H559 → | 5305 times |
| חֹתֵ֥ן | choten | [the] father-in-law of | H2859 → | 33 times |
| מֹשֶׁ֖ה | mosheh | Moses | H4872 → | 765 times |
| אֵלָ֑יו | ʾelav | to him | H413 → | 5510 times |
| לֹא־ | lo'- | not | H3808 → | 5168 times |
| טוֹב֙ | tov | [is] good | H2896 → | 538 times |
| הַדָּבָ֔ר | hadavar | the thing | H1697 → | 1440 times |
| אֲשֶׁ֥ר | ʾasher | which | H834 → | 5497 times |
| אַתָּ֖ה | ʾatah | you | H859 → | 1094 times |
| עֹשֶֽׂה׃ | ʾoseh | [are] doing | H6213 → | 2628 times |
וַיֹּ֛אמֶרand he said
vaiyomerH559 →5305 times
חֹתֵ֥ן[the] father-in-law of
chotenH2859 →33 times
מֹשֶׁ֖הMoses
moshehH4872 →765 times
אֵלָ֑יוto him
ʾelavH413 →5510 times
לֹא־not
lo'-H3808 →5168 times
טוֹב֙[is] good
tovH2896 →538 times
הַדָּבָ֔רthe thing
hadavarH1697 →1440 times
אֲשֶׁ֥רwhich
ʾasherH834 →5497 times
אַתָּ֖הyou
ʾatahH859 →1094 times
עֹשֶֽׂה׃[are] doing
ʾosehH6213 →2628 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
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; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.