Exodus 19:15
in Exodus 19“Be prepared for the third day,” he said to the people. “Do not draw near to a woman.”
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And he said unto the people, Be ready against the third day: come not near a woman.
KJV
And he said unto the people, Be ready against the third day: come not at your wives.
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This verse in Exodus 19
Commentary
3 notes on this verseThis site's exposition
Moses came down from the mountain
on Exodus 19:14-15
Moses carries out the order in its own words, consecrating the people while they wash their clothes. Verse 15 adds a third instruction the chapter does not record God giving, to keep away from women, which stands as Moses' own word.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
And he said unto the people, be ready against the third day,....
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
proposed
The Lord said unto Moses, Lo, I come . . . in a thick cloud, &c.--The deepest impressions are made on the mind through the medium of the senses; and so He who knew what was in man signalized His descent at the inauguration of the ancient church, by all the sensible tokens of august majesty that were fitted to produce the conviction that He is the great and terrible God.
How the passage was read
What the Jewish commentators add
On the verses either side of this one
This verse teaches that the command expressed in the [above] verse, And the Eternal said unto Moses: Go unto the people and sanctify them, 217 Above, Verse. was also given to him on the mountain which Moses ascended everytime that he was about to speak to Him.
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. 1 further source is cited on this chapter that carry no English text this site may quote or only restate the verse.
The words behind it
11 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וַיֹּ֙אמֶר֙ | vaiyomer | and he said | H559 → | 5305 times |
| אֶל־ | ʾel- | to | H413 → | 5510 times |
| הָעָ֔ם | haam | the people | H5971 → | 1873 times |
| הֱי֥וּ | heyu | be | H1961 → | 3559 times |
| נְכֹנִ֖ים | nekhonim | prepared | H3559 → | 217 times |
| לִשְׁלֹ֣שֶׁת | lishloshet | to three | H7969 → | 432 times |
| יָמִ֑ים | yamim | days | H3117 → | 2304 times |
| אַֽל־ | ʾal- | may not | H408 → | 724 times |
| תִּגְּשׁ֖וּ | tigeshu | you draw near | H5066 → | 125 times |
| אֶל־ | ʾel- | to | H413 → | 5510 times |
| אִשָּֽׁה׃ | ʾishah | a woman | H802 → | 781 times |
וַיֹּ֙אמֶר֙and he said
vaiyomerH559 →5305 times
אֶל־to
ʾel-H413 →5510 times
הָעָ֔םthe people
haamH5971 →1873 times
הֱי֥וּbe
heyuH1961 →3559 times
נְכֹנִ֖יםprepared
nekhonimH3559 →217 times
לִשְׁלֹ֣שֶׁתto three
lishloshetH7969 →432 times
יָמִ֑יםdays
yamimH3117 →2304 times
אַֽל־may not
ʾal-H408 →724 times
תִּגְּשׁ֖וּyou draw near
tigeshuH5066 →125 times
אֶל־to
ʾel-H413 →5510 times
אִשָּֽׁה׃a woman
ʾishahH802 →781 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
Zechariah 6:3the third white horses, and the fourth dappled horses—all of them strong.
it leads to
- Revelation 6:2
So I looked and saw a white horse, and its rider held a bow. And he was given a crown, and he rode out to overcome and conquer.
- Revelation 6:8
Then I looked and saw a pale green horse. Its rider’s name was Death, and Hades followed close behind. And they were given authority over a fourth of the earth, to kill by sword,…
- Revelation 6:2
Through
Joel 2:16Gather the people, sanctify the congregation, assemble the aged, gather the children, even those nursing at the breast. Let the bridegroom leave his room, and the bride her chamber.
it leads to
- 2 Chronicles 29:5
“Listen to me, O Levites,” he said. “Consecrate yourselves now and consecrate the house of the LORD, the God of your fathers. Remove from the Holy Place every impurity.
- 2 Chronicles 20:13
Meanwhile all the men of Judah, with their wives and children and little ones, were standing before the LORD.
- 1 Corinthians 7:5
Do not deprive each other, except by mutual consent and for a time, so you may devote yourselves to prayer. Then come together again, so that Satan will not tempt you through your lack…
- 2 Chronicles 29:5
Through
1 Corinthians 7:5Do not deprive each other, except by mutual consent and for a time, so you may devote yourselves to prayer. Then come together again, so that Satan will not tempt you through your lack…
it leads to
- Joel 2:16
Gather the people, sanctify the congregation, assemble the aged, gather the children, even those nursing at the breast. Let the bridegroom leave his room, and the bride her chamber.
- Joel 2:16
Through
Exodus 19:11and be prepared by the third day, for on the third day the LORD will come down on Mount Sinai in the sight of all the people.
it leads to
- Exodus 19:16
On the third day, when morning came, there was thunder and lightning. A thick cloud was upon the mountain, and a very loud blast of the ram’s horn went out, so that all the…
- John 3:13
No one has ascended into heaven except the One who descended from heaven—the Son of Man.
- Exodus 19:16
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies16
About Exodus
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 and John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763).