Exodus 4:19
in Exodus 4Now the LORD had said to Moses in Midian, “Go back to Egypt, for all the men who sought to kill you are dead.”
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And Jehovah said unto Moses in Midian, Go, return into Egypt; for all the men are dead that sought thy life.
KJV
And the Lord said unto Moses in Midian, Go, return into Egypt: for all the men are dead which sought thy life.
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This verse in Exodus 4
Commentary
6 notes on this verseIn Midian - This was a new revelation, and appears to have taken place after Moses returned to his father-in-law previous to his departure for Egypt.
This site's exposition
returned to Jethro his father in law
on Exodus 4:18-19
Moses asks his father in law for leave and gives him a part of the reason, that he will see whether his brethren are yet alive. God's word in verse 19 settles the danger by telling him that all the men are dead which sought thy life. Matthew 2:20 puts nearly the same words to Joseph about Herod, they are dead which sought the young child's life, and commentators have long read the two side by side.
This site's exposition
all the men who sought to kill you are dead
Moses had fled Egypt because Pharaoh sought his life after the killing of the Egyptian in chapter 2. The LORD now removes that fear by telling him his pursuers have died, which echoes 2:23, where the king of Egypt died. Adam Clarke takes this as a fresh word given in Midian after Moses had asked Jethro's leave to go.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
And the Lord said unto Moses in Midian,....
Perhaps some secret fear of falling into their hands was at the bottom of Moses's backwardness to go to Egypt, though he was not willing to own it, but pleaded unworthiness, insufficiency, want of elocution, &c.
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
proposed
all the men are dead which sought thy life--The death of the Egyptian monarch took place in the four hundred and twenty-ninth year of the Hebrew sojourn in that land, and that event, according to the law of Egypt, took off his proscription of Moses, if it had been publicly issued.
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — starts-lowercase
The words behind it
15 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וַיֹּ֨אמֶר | vaiyomer | and he said | H559 → | 5305 times |
| יְהוָ֤ה | yahweh | Yahweh | H3068 → | 6520 times |
| אֶל־ | ʾel- | to | H413 → | 5510 times |
| מֹשֶׁה֙ | mosheh | Moses | H4872 → | 765 times |
| בְּמִדְיָ֔ן | bemidyan | in Midian | H4080 → | 59 times |
| לֵ֖ךְ | lekh | go | H1980 → | 1546 times |
| שֻׁ֣ב | shuv | return | H7725 → | 1056 times |
| מִצְרָ֑יִם | mitzrayim | Egypt | H4714 → | 641 times |
| כִּי־ | ki- | for | H3588 → | 4482 times |
| מֵ֙תוּ֙ | metu | they have died | H4191 → | 839 times |
| כָּל־ | kol- | all | H3605 → | 5413 times |
| הָ֣אֲנָשִׁ֔ים | haanashim | the men | H582 → | 566 times |
| הַֽמְבַקְשִׁ֖ים | hamvakshim | who sought | H1245 → | 225 times |
| אֶת־ | ʾet- | <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| נַפְשֶֽׁךָ׃ | nafshekha | life your | H5315 → | 754 times |
וַיֹּ֨אמֶרand he said
vaiyomerH559 →5305 times
יְהוָ֤הYahweh
yahwehH3068 →6520 times
אֶל־to
ʾel-H413 →5510 times
מֹשֶׁה֙Moses
moshehH4872 →765 times
בְּמִדְיָ֔ןin Midian
bemidyanH4080 →59 times
לֵ֖ךְgo
lekhH1980 →1546 times
שֻׁ֣בreturn
shuvH7725 →1056 times
מִצְרָ֑יִםEgypt
mitzrayimH4714 →641 times
כִּי־for
ki-H3588 →4482 times
מֵ֙תוּ֙they have died
metuH4191 →839 times
כָּל־all
kol-H3605 →5413 times
הָ֣אֲנָשִׁ֔יםthe men
haanashimH582 →566 times
הַֽמְבַקְשִׁ֖יםwho sought
hamvakshimH1245 →225 times
אֶת־<obj.>
ʾet-H853 →10935 times
נַפְשֶֽׁךָ׃life your
nafshekhaH5315 →754 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
Exodus 2:23After a long time, the king of Egypt died. The Israelites groaned and cried out under their burden of slavery, and their cry for deliverance from bondage ascended to God.
it leads to
- Genesis 18:20–21
Then the LORD said, “The outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah is great. Because their sin is so grievous,
- James 5:4
Look, the wages you withheld from the workmen who mowed your fields are crying out against you. The cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord of Hosts.
- Exodus 3:7–9
The LORD said, “I have indeed seen the affliction of My people in Egypt. I have heard them crying out because of their oppressors, and I am aware of their sufferings.
- Deuteronomy 26:6–7
But the Egyptians mistreated us and afflicted us, putting us to hard labor.
- Exodus 22:22–27
You must not mistreat any widow or orphan.
- Genesis 18:20–21
Through
Exodus 2:15When Pharaoh heard about this matter, he sought to kill Moses. But Moses fled from Pharaoh and settled in the land of Midian, where he sat down beside a well.
it leads to
- Acts 7:29
At this remark, Moses fled to the land of Midian, where he lived as a foreigner and had two sons.
- Hebrews 11:27
By faith Moses left Egypt, not fearing the king’s anger; he persevered because he saw Him who is invisible.
- Genesis 24:11
As evening approached, he made the camels kneel down near the well outside the town at the time when the women went out to draw water.
- Acts 7:29
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies2
On this verse
On this chapter
About Exodus
Who and where
2 names 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.