Exodus 4:17
in Exodus 4But take this staff in your hand so you can perform signs with it.”
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And thou shalt take in thy hand this rod, wherewith thou shalt do the signs.
KJV
And thou shalt take this rod in thine hand, wherewith thou shalt do signs.
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This verse in Exodus 4
Commentary
4 notes on this verseThis site's exposition
take this staff in your hand
The call closes by handing back the staff Moses was holding at verse 2. The one instrument of the deliverance is a shepherd's staff he already owned. By verse 20 it is "the staff of God", and it divides the sea at 14:16 and strikes the rock at 17:6.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
18 And Moses went and returned to Jethro his father in law, and said unto him, Let me go, I pray thee, and return unto my brethren which are in Egypt, and see whether they be yet alive. And Jethro said to Moses, Go in peace. 19 And the L ORD said unto Moses in Midian, Go, return into Egypt: for all the men are dead which sought thy life.
quarantine:scripture (2026-07-29) — scripture-overlap:97%@v18-19
And thou shall take this rod in thine hand,.... Which he then had in his hand, and was no other than his shepherd's staff: wherewith thou shall do signs: wondrous things, meaning the ten plagues inflicted on Egypt.
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
Thou shalt take this rod - From the story of Moses’s rod the heathens have invented the fables of the thyrsus of Bacchus, and the caduceus of Mercury. Cicero reckons five Bacchuses, one of which, according to Orpheus, was born of the river Nile; but, according to the common opinion, he was born on the banks of that river. Bacchus is expressly said to have been exposed on the river Nile, hence he is called Nilus, both by Diodorus and Macrobius; and in the hymns of Orpheus he is named Myses, because he was drawn out of the water.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וְאֶת־ | veet | and <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| הַמַּטֶּ֥ה | hamateh | the staff | H4294 → | 252 times |
| הַזֶּ֖ה | hazeh | <the> this | H2088 → | 1180 times |
| תִּקַּ֣ח | tikach | you will take | H3947 → | 966 times |
| בְּיָדֶ֑ךָ | beyadekha | in hand your | H3027 → | 1618 times |
| אֲשֶׁ֥ר | ʾasher | which | H834 → | 5497 times |
| תַּעֲשֶׂה־ | taaseh- | you will do | H6213 → | 2628 times |
| בּ֖וֹ | bo | with <the> it | ||
| אֶת־ | ʾet- | <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| הָאֹתֹֽת׃ פ | haotot | the signs | H226 → | 80 times |
וְאֶת־and <obj.>
veetH853 →10935 times
הַמַּטֶּ֥הthe staff
hamatehH4294 →252 times
הַזֶּ֖ה<the> this
hazehH2088 →1180 times
תִּקַּ֣חyou will take
tikachH3947 →966 times
בְּיָדֶ֑ךָin hand your
beyadekhaH3027 →1618 times
אֲשֶׁ֥רwhich
ʾasherH834 →5497 times
תַּעֲשֶׂה־you will do
taaseh-H6213 →2628 times
בּ֖וֹwith <the> it
bo
אֶת־<obj.>
ʾet-H853 →10935 times
הָאֹתֹֽת׃ פthe signs
haototH226 →80 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
1 Corinthians 1:27But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong.
it leads to
- James 2:5
Listen, my beloved brothers: Has not God chosen the poor of this world to be rich in faith and to inherit the kingdom He promised those who love Him?
- Matthew 11:25
At that time Jesus declared, “I praise You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because You have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children.
- 1 Corinthians 1:20
Where is the wise man? Where is the scribe? Where is the philosopher of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world?
- Psalms 8:2
From the mouths of children and infants You have ordained praise on account of Your adversaries, to silence the enemy and avenger.
- Luke 21:15
For I will give you speech and wisdom that none of your adversaries will be able to resist or contradict.
- James 2:5
Through
Exodus 4:2And the LORD asked him, “What is that in your hand?” “A staff,” he replied.
it leads to
- Exodus 4:20
So Moses took his wife and sons, put them on a donkey, and headed back to Egypt. And he took the staff of God in his hand.
- Isaiah 11:4
but with righteousness He will judge the poor, and with equity He will decide for the lowly of the earth. He will strike the earth with the rod of His mouth and slay the…
- Psalms 110:2
The LORD extends Your mighty scepter from Zion: “Rule in the midst of Your enemies.”
- Exodus 4:20
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies9
On this verse
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About Exodus
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the 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.