Exodus 19:15

Exodus 19:15 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And he said unto the people, Be ready against the third day: come not at your wives.
• New International Version (NIV)Then he said to the people, “Prepare yourselves for the third day. Abstain from sexual relations.”
• English Standard Version (ESV)And he said to the people, "Be ready for the third day; do not go near a woman."
• New King James Version (NKJV)And he said to the people, “Be ready for the third day; do not come near your wives.”

Context of Exodus 19:15

13No hand shall touch him, but he shall surely be stoned or shot with arrows—whether man or beast, he must not live.’ Only when the ram’s horn sounds a long blast may they approach the mountain.” 14When Moses came down from the mountain to the people, he consecrated them, and they washed their clothes. “Be prepared for the third day,” he said to the people. “Do not draw near to a woman.” 16On 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 people in the camp trembled. 17Then Moses brought the people out of the camp to meet with God, and they stood at the foot of the mountain.

Exodus 19:15 word by word

וַיֹּ֙אמֶר֙ אֶל־הָעָ֔ם הֱי֥וּ נְכֹנִ֖ים לִשְׁלֹ֣שֶׁת יָמִ֑ים אַֽל־תִּגְּשׁ֖וּ אֶל־אִשָּֽׁה׃Read the interlinear

• Beהָיָהhâyâh · to beH1961
• preparedכּוּןkûn · to establish: prepareH3559
• for the thirdשָׁלֹשׁshâlôsh shâlôsh shelôshâh shelôshâh · threeH7969
• dayיוֹםyôm · dayH3117
• he saidאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
• toאֶל'êl 'el · to(wards)H413
• the peopleעַם‛am · peopleH5971
• Do notאַל'al · notH408
• draw nearנָגַשׁnâgash · to approach: approachH5066
• a womanאִשָּׁה'ishshâh nâshîym · womanH802

Cross-references for Exodus 19:15

• Amos 4:12“Therefore, that is what I will do to you, O Israel, and since I will do this to you, prepare to meet your God, O Israel!
• Malachi 3:2But who can endure the day of His coming? And who can stand when He appears? For He will be like a refiner’s fire, like a launderer’s soap.
• Matthew 3:10The axe lies ready at the root of the trees, and every tree that does not produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire.
• Matthew 24:44For this reason, you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour you do not expect.
• 2 Peter 3:11Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be? You ought to conduct yourselves in holiness and godliness
• 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.
• 1 Samuel 21:4“There is no common bread on hand,” the priest replied, “but there is some consecrated bread—provided that the young men have kept themselves from women.”
• 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.
• Zechariah 6:3the third white horses, and the fourth dappled horses—all of them strong.
• Zechariah 7:3by asking the priests of the house of the LORD of Hosts, as well as the prophets, “Should I weep and fast in the fifth month, as I have done these many years?”
• Zechariah 12:12The land will mourn, each clan on its own: the clan of the house of David and their wives, the clan of the house of Nathan and their wives,
• 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 of self-control.

Commentaries on Exodus 19:15

• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 9-15Verses 9-15 The solemn manner in which the law was delivered, was to impress the people with a right sense of the Divine majesty. Also to convince them of their own guilt, and to show that they could not stand in judgment before God by their own obedience. In the law, the sinner discovers what he ought to be, what he is, and what he wants. There he learns the nature, necessity, and glory of redemption, and of being made holy. Having been taught to flee to…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 10-15In the second stage of preparation, the people received commands that helped them get ready for God’s covenant. First, they had to wash their clothing (19:10, 14). This act showed that God is pure. Second, they had to set up a boundary around the mountain and not cross it (19:12–13). This command showed that God is holy (completely set apart). Third, they had to abstain from sexual relations (19:15). This instruction reminded them that God is not a sexual…Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 9-159-15. 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. The whole multitude must have anticipated the event with feelings of intense…Read the comment

Topics related to Exodus 19:15

• Israel
• Purification
• Sinai
• Trumpet

In the dictionaries

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

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