Exodus 19:16

Exodus 19:16 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And it came to pass on the third day in the morning, that there were thunders and lightnings, and a thick cloud upon the mount, and the voice of the trumpet exceeding loud; so that all the people that was in the camp trembled.
• New International Version (NIV)On the morning of the third day there was thunder and lightning, with a thick cloud over the mountain, and a very loud trumpet blast. Everyone in the camp trembled.
• English Standard Version (ESV)On the morning of the third day there were thunders and lightnings and a thick cloud on the mountain and a very loud trumpet blast, so that all the people in the camp trembled.
• New King James Version (NKJV)Then it came to pass on the third day, in the morning, that there were thunderings and lightnings, and a thick cloud on the mountain; and the sound of the trumpet was very loud, so that all the people who were in the camp trembled.

Context of Exodus 19:16

14So Moses went down from the mountain to the people and sanctified them [for God’s sacred purpose], and they washed their clothes. 15He said to the people, “Be prepared for the third day; do not be intimate with a woman.” So it happened on the third day, when it was morning, that there were thunder and flashes of lightning, and a thick cloud was on the mountain, and a very loud blast was sounded on a ram’s horn, so that all the people who were in the camp trembled. 17Then Moses brought the people out of the camp to meet God, and they stood and presented themselves at the foot of the mountain. 18Mount Sinai was wrapped in smoke because the Lord descended upon it in fire; its smoke ascended like the smoke of a furnace, and the whole mountain quaked violently.

Exodus 19:16 word by word

וַיְהִי֩ בַיּ֨וֹם הַשְּׁלִישִׁ֜י בִּֽהְיֹ֣ת הַבֹּ֗קֶר וַיְהִי֩ קֹלֹ֨ת וּבְרָקִ֜ים וְעָנָ֤ן כָּבֵד֙ עַל־הָהָ֔ר וְקֹ֥ל שֹׁפָ֖ר חָזָ֣ק מְאֹ֑ד וַיֶּחֱרַ֥ד כָּל־הָעָ֖ם אֲשֶׁ֥ר בַּֽמַּחֲנֶֽה׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• And it came to pass on the thirdשְׁלִישִׁיshelîyshîy · thirdH7992
• dayיוֹםyôm · dayH3117
• in the morningבֹּ֫קֶרbôqer · morningH1242
• that there were thundersקוֹלqôl qôl · voice: thunderH6963
• and lightningsבָּרָקbârâq · lightningH1300
• and a thickכָּבֵדkâbêd · heavyH3515
• cloudעָנָן‛ânân · cloudH6051
• upon the mountהַרhar · mountain: mountH2022
• and the voiceקוֹלqôl qôl · voice: soundH6963
• of the trumpetשֹׁפָרshôphâr shôphâr · trumpetH7782
• exceedingמְאֹדme'ôd · muchH3966
• loudחָזָקchâzâq · strongH2389
• so that all the peopleעַם‛am · peopleH5971
• in the campמַחֲנֶהmachăneh · campH4264
• trembledחָרַדchârad · to trembleH2729

Cross-references for Exodus 19:16

• Exodus 9:23Moses stretched out his staff toward the sky, and the Lord sent thunder and hail, and lightning (fireballs) ran down to the earth and along the ground. And the Lord rained hail on the land of Egypt.
• Exodus 20:18Now all the people witnessed the thunder and the flashes of lightning and the sound of the trumpet and the smoking mountain; and as they looked, the people were afraid, and they trembled [and moved backward] and stood at a [safe] distance.
• 1 Samuel 12:17Is it not [the beginning of the] wheat harvest today? I will call to the Lord and He will send thunder and rain; then you will know [without any doubt], and see that your evil which you have done is great in the sight of the Lord by asking for yourselves a king.”
• Job 37:1“Indeed, at His thundering my heart trembles And leaps out of its place.
• Job 38:25“Who has prepared a channel for the torrents of rain and for the flood, Or a path for the thunderbolt,
• Psalms 18:11He made darkness His hiding place (covering); His pavilion (canopy) around Him, The darkness of the waters, the thick clouds of the skies.
• Psalms 29:3The voice of the Lord is upon the waters; The God of glory thunders; The Lord is over many waters.
• Psalms 50:3May our God come and not keep silent; Fire devours before Him, And around Him a mighty tempest rages.
• Psalms 77:18The voice of Your thunder was in the whirlwind; The lightnings illumined the world; The earth trembled and shook.
• Psalms 97:4His lightnings have illuminated the world; The earth has seen and trembled.
• Hebrews 12:18For you have not come [as did the Israelites in the wilderness] to a mountain that can be touched and to a blazing fire, and to gloom and darkness and a raging windstorm,
• Revelation 4:5From the throne came flashes of lightning and [rumbling] sounds and peals of thunder. Seven lamps of fire were burning in front of the throne, which are the seven Spirits of God;
• Revelation 8:5So the angel took the censer and filled it with fire from the altar, and hurled it to the earth; and there were peals of thunder and loud rumblings and sounds and flashes of lightning and an earthquake.
• Revelation 11:19And the temple of God which is in heaven was opened; and the ark of His covenant appeared in His temple, and there were flashes of lightning, loud rumblings and peals of thunder and an earthquake and a great hailstorm.
• Exodus 19:9The Lord said to Moses, “Behold, I will come to you in a thick cloud, so that the people may hear when I speak with you and may believe and trust in you forever.” Then Moses repeated the words of the people to the Lord.
• Exodus 40:34Then the cloud [the Shekinah, God’s visible, dwelling presence] covered the Tent of Meeting, and the glory and brilliance of the Lord filled the tabernacle.

Commentaries on Exodus 19:16

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 16Thunders and lightnings, and a thick cloud - and the voice of the trumpet - The thunders, lightnings, etc., announced the coming, as they proclaimed the majesty, of God. Of the thunders and lightnings, and the deep, dark, dismal, electric cloud, from which the thunders and lightnings proceeded, we can form a tolerable apprehension; but of the loud, long-sounding trumpet, we can scarcely form a conjecture. Such were the appearances and the noise that all…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 16-25Verses 16-25 Never was there such a sermon preached, before or since, as this which was preached to the church in the wilderness. It might be supposed that the terrors would have checked presumption and curiosity in the people; but the hard heart of an unawakened sinner can trifle with the most terrible threatenings and judgments. In drawing near to God, we must never forget his holiness and greatness, nor our own meanness and pollution. We cannot stand…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 16-25The final preparation phase included events that helped people accept the covenant. Some of the experiences were visual: lightning and a cloud (19:16), smoke and fire (19:18). The people also heard thunder, a ram’s horn, and the voice of God (19:16, 19). The entire mountain shook violently (19:18). In the Bible, such unusual events are often associated with a theophany, which is a visible appearance of God’s holy presence.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1616. on the third day in the morning, that there were thunders and lightnings, &c.--The descent of God was signalized by every object imagination can conceive connected with the ideas of grandeur and of awe. But all was in keeping with the character of the law about to be proclaimed. As the mountain burned with fire, God was exhibited as a consuming fire to the transgressors of His law. The thunder and lightning, more awful amid the deep stillness of the…Read the comment

Topics related to Exodus 19:16

• Cloud
• Darkness
• God
• Law
• Miracles
• Reverence
• Sinai
• Symbols and Similitudes
• Thunder
• Trumpet

In the dictionaries

• Third Day
• Commandments, the Ten
• Festivals, Religious
• Kingdom
• Return
• Sanctify
• Thunder
• Treasure
• Wing
• Blackness

Commentaries on Exodus 19

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Rashi on Tanakh
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings