Exodus 9:1
in Exodus 9Then the LORD said to Moses, “Go to Pharaoh and tell him that this is what the LORD, the God of the Hebrews, says: ‘Let My people go, so that they may worship Me.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
Then Jehovah said unto Moses, Go in unto Pharaoh, and tell him, Thus saith Jehovah, the God of the Hebrews, Let my people go, that they may serve me.
KJV
Then the Lord said unto Moses, Go in unto Pharaoh, and tell him, Thus saith the Lord God of the Hebrews, Let my people go, that they may serve me.
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This verse in Exodus 9
Commentary
5 notes on this verseThe Lord God of the Hebrews - It is very likely that the term Lord, יויה Yehovah, is used here to point out particularly his eternal power and Godhead; and that the term God, אלהי Elohey, is intended to be understood in the sense of Supporter, Defender, Protector, etc. Thus saith the self-existent, omnipotent, and eternal Being, the Supporter and Defender of the Hebrews, “Let my people go, that they may worship me.”
This site's exposition
Go to Pharaoh and tell him
on Exodus 9:1-2
The demand “Let My people go, so that they may worship Me” falls seven times in the book. The Hebrew root behind worship is the one 1:13 and 1:14 use five times for the bondage. The question is whom Israel will serve.
The record, by era
The Reformation1 voice
No complaint or expostulation of Moses is here recounted; and it is possible that he was quiet and silent, whilst God foresaw what it was necessary to do, and even commanded what He would have done. But since he only gives a brief summary of occurrences, we may probably conjecture that, as the evil grew worse, he had recourse from time to time to the remedy.
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
Then the Lord said unto Moses,....
When the year of his redeemed has come, he will give Egypt for their ransom; that kingdom shall be ruined, rather than Israel shall not be delivered. See how reasonable God's demands are. Whatever he calls for, it is but his own: They are my people, therefore let them go.
The words behind it
18 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וַיֹּ֤אמֶר | vaiyomer | and he said | H559 → | 5305 times |
| יְהוָה֙ | yahweh | Yahweh | H3068 → | 6520 times |
| אֶל־ | ʾel- | to | H413 → | 5510 times |
| מֹשֶׁ֔ה | mosheh | Moses | H4872 → | 765 times |
| בֹּ֖א | bo' | go | H935 → | 2568 times |
| אֶל־ | ʾel- | to | H413 → | 5510 times |
| פַּרְעֹ֑ה | paroh | Pharaoh | H6547 → | 274 times |
| וְדִבַּרְתָּ֣ | vedibarta | and you will say | H1696 → | 1141 times |
| אֵלָ֗יו | ʾelav | to him | H413 → | 5510 times |
| כֹּֽה־ | koh- | thus | H3541 → | 577 times |
| אָמַ֤ר | ʾamar | he says | H559 → | 5305 times |
| יְהוָה֙ | yahweh | Yahweh | H3068 → | 6520 times |
| אֱלֹהֵ֣י | ʾelohei | [the] God of | H430 → | 2601 times |
| הָֽעִבְרִ֔ים | haivrim | the Hebrews | H5680 → | 34 times |
| שַׁלַּ֥ח | shalach | let go | H7971 → | 845 times |
| אֶת־ | ʾet- | <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| עַמִּ֖י | ʾami | people my | H5971 → | 1873 times |
| וְיַֽעַבְדֻֽנִי׃ | veyaavduni | so they may serve me | H5647 → | 288 times |
וַיֹּ֤אמֶרand he said
vaiyomerH559 →5305 times
יְהוָה֙Yahweh
yahwehH3068 →6520 times
אֶל־to
ʾel-H413 →5510 times
מֹשֶׁ֔הMoses
moshehH4872 →765 times
בֹּ֖אgo
bo'H935 →2568 times
אֶל־to
ʾel-H413 →5510 times
פַּרְעֹ֑הPharaoh
parohH6547 →274 times
וְדִבַּרְתָּ֣and you will say
vedibartaH1696 →1141 times
אֵלָ֗יוto him
ʾelavH413 →5510 times
כֹּֽה־thus
koh-H3541 →577 times
אָמַ֤רhe says
ʾamarH559 →5305 times
יְהוָה֙Yahweh
yahwehH3068 →6520 times
אֱלֹהֵ֣י[the] God of
ʾeloheiH430 →2601 times
הָֽעִבְרִ֔יםthe Hebrews
haivrimH5680 →34 times
שַׁלַּ֥חlet go
shalachH7971 →845 times
אֶת־<obj.>
ʾet-H853 →10935 times
עַמִּ֖יpeople my
ʾamiH5971 →1873 times
וְיַֽעַבְדֻֽנִי׃so they may serve me
veyaavduniH5647 →288 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 8:20Then the LORD said to Moses, “Get up early in the morning, and when Pharaoh goes out to the water, stand before him and tell him that this is what the LORD says: ‘Let…
it leads to
- Exodus 7:15
Go to Pharaoh in the morning as you see him walking out to the water. Wait on the bank of the Nile to meet him, and take in your hand the staff that was…
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Exodus 7:15
Through
Exodus 8:1Then the LORD said to Moses, “Go to Pharaoh and tell him that this is what the LORD says: ‘Let My people go, so that they may worship Me.
it leads to
- Exodus 3:18
The elders of Israel will listen to what you say, and you must go with them to the king of Egypt and tell him, ‘The LORD, the God of the Hebrews, has met with…
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Exodus 3:18
Through
Exodus 3:18The elders of Israel will listen to what you say, and you must go with them to the king of Egypt and tell him, ‘The LORD, the God of the Hebrews, has met with…
it leads to
- Exodus 7:16
Then say to him, ‘The LORD, the God of the Hebrews, has sent me to tell you: Let My people go, so that they may worship Me in the wilderness. But you have not…
- Exodus 9:13
Then the LORD said to Moses, “Get up early in the morning, stand before Pharaoh, and tell him that this is what the LORD, the God of the Hebrews, says: ‘Let My people go,…
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Exodus 10:24–26
Then Pharaoh summoned Moses and said, “Go, worship the LORD. Even your little ones may go with you; only your flocks and herds must stay behind.”
- Exodus 7:16
Through
Exodus 10:3So Moses and Aaron went to Pharaoh and told him, “This is what the LORD, the God of the Hebrews, says: ‘How long will you refuse to humble yourself before Me? Let My people…
it leads to
- 1 Peter 5:6
Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, so that in due time He may exalt you.
- James 4:10
Humble yourselves before the Lord, and He will exalt you.
- 1 Kings 21:29
“Have you seen how Ahab has humbled himself before Me? Because he has humbled himself before Me, I will not bring the calamity during his days, but I will bring it upon his house…
- 1 Peter 5:6
Where this verse is studied
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; John Calvin, Commentaries; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); Keil and Delitzsch, Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament: The Pentateuch and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.