Exodus 18:9
in Exodus 18And Jethro rejoiced over all the good things the LORD had done for Israel, whom He had rescued from the hand of the Egyptians.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And Jethro rejoiced for all the goodness which Jehovah had done to Israel, in that he had delivered them out of the hand of the Egyptians.
KJV
And Jethro rejoiced for all the goodness which the Lord had done to Israel, whom he had delivered out of the hand of the Egyptians.
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This verse in Exodus 18
Commentary
4 notes on this verseThis site's exposition
Jethro rejoiced for all the goodness
on Exodus 18:9-10
Jethro answers the report with gladness and then with a blessing spoken to the LORD by name. Israel's own answer through the same stretch of the book had been complaint, at the sea in 14:11, at Marah in 15:24, in the wilderness of Sin in 16:2 and at Rephidim in 17:2. Matthew Henry sets the two side by side and writes that while the Israelites were themselves murmuring, here was a Midianite rejoicing.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
And Jethro rejoiced for all the goodness which the Lord had done to Israel,....
Note, Public blessings are the joy of public spirits. While the Israelites were themselves murmuring, notwithstanding all God's goodness to them, here was a Midianite rejoicing. This was not the only time that the faith of the Gentiles shamed the unbelief of the Jews; see Matt. viii.
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
And Jethro rejoiced for all the goodness - Every part of Jethro’s conduct proves him to have been a religious man and a true believer. His thanksgiving to Jehovah (Exo 18:10) is a striking proof of it; he first blesses God for the preservation of Moses, and next for the deliverance of the people from their bondage.
How the passage was read
What the Jewish commentators add
On the verses either side of this one
BLESSED BE THE ETERNAL, WHO HATH DELIVERED YOU OUT OF THE HAND OF THE EGYPTIANS, AND OUT OF THE HAND OF PHARAOH; WHO HATH DELIVERED THE PEOPLE FROM UNDER THE HAND OF THE EGYPTIANS. 66 The text presents these difficulties: Why is the hand of the Egyptians mentioned twice?
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. 3 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
13 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וַיִּ֣חַדְּ | vaiyichad | and he rejoiced | H2302 → | |
| יִתְר֔וֹ | yitro | Jethro | H3503 → | 9 times |
| עַ֚ל | ʾal | on | H5921 → | 5755 times |
| כָּל־ | kol- | all | H3605 → | 5413 times |
| הַטּוֹבָ֔ה | hatovah | the good | H2896 → | 538 times |
| אֲשֶׁר־ | ʾasher- | which | H834 → | 5497 times |
| עָשָׂ֥ה | ʾasah | he had done | H6213 → | 2628 times |
| יְהוָ֖ה | yahweh | Yahweh | H3068 → | 6520 times |
| לְיִשְׂרָאֵ֑ל | leyisrael | to Israel | H3478 → | 2507 times |
| אֲשֶׁ֥ר | ʾasher | whom | H834 → | 5497 times |
| הִצִּיל֖וֹ | hitzilo | he had delivered it | H5337 → | 212 times |
| מִיַּ֥ד | miyad | from [the] hand of | H3027 → | 1618 times |
| מִצְרָֽיִם׃ | mitzrayim | Egypt | H4714 → | 641 times |
וַיִּ֣חַדְּand he rejoiced
vaiyichadH2302 →
יִתְר֔וֹJethro
yitroH3503 →9 times
עַ֚לon
ʾalH5921 →5755 times
כָּל־all
kol-H3605 →5413 times
הַטּוֹבָ֔הthe good
hatovahH2896 →538 times
אֲשֶׁר־which
ʾasher-H834 →5497 times
עָשָׂ֥הhe had done
ʾasahH6213 →2628 times
יְהוָ֖הYahweh
yahwehH3068 →6520 times
לְיִשְׂרָאֵ֑לto Israel
leyisraelH3478 →2507 times
אֲשֶׁ֥רwhom
ʾasherH834 →5497 times
הִצִּיל֖וֹhe had delivered it
hitziloH5337 →212 times
מִיַּ֥דfrom [the] hand of
miyadH3027 →1618 times
מִצְרָֽיִם׃Egypt
mitzrayimH4714 →641 times
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
Romans 12:15Rejoice with those who rejoice; weep with those who weep.
it leads to
- 1 Corinthians 12:26
If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored, every part rejoices with it.
- Hebrews 13:3
Remember those in prison as if you were bound with them, and those who are mistreated as if you were suffering with them.
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Psalms 35:13–14
Yet when they were ill, I put on sackcloth; I humbled myself with fasting, but my prayers returned unanswered.
- 1 Corinthians 12:26
Through
Romans 12:10Be devoted to one another in brotherly love. Outdo yourselves in honoring one another.
it leads to
- Philippians 2:3
Do nothing out of selfish ambition or empty pride, but in humility consider others more important than yourselves.
- John 13:34–35
A new commandment I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you also must love one another.
- Hebrews 13:1
Continue in brotherly love.
- 1 John 4:11
Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.
- 1 Peter 3:8–9
Finally, all of you, be like-minded and sympathetic, love as brothers, be tenderhearted and humble.
- Philippians 2:3
About Exodus
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.