Exodus 4:21

Exodus 4:21 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And the Lord said unto Moses, When thou goest to return into Egypt, see that thou do all those wonders before Pharaoh, which I have put in thine hand: but I will harden his heart, that he shall not let the people go.
• New International Version (NIV)The Lord said to Moses, “When you return to Egypt, see that you perform before Pharaoh all the wonders I have given you the power to do. But I will harden his heart so that he will not let the people go.
• English Standard Version (ESV)And the Lord said to Moses, "When you go back to Egypt, see that you do before Pharaoh all the miracles that I have put in your power. But I will harden his heart, so that he will not let the people go.
• New King James Version (NKJV)And the Lord said to Moses, “When you go back to Egypt, see that you do all those wonders before Pharaoh which I have put in your hand. But I will harden his heart, so that he will not let the people go.

Context of Exodus 4:21

19The Lord had said to Moses while he was still in Midian, ‘Go back to Egypt. All the men who tried to kill you are now dead.’ 20So Moses put his wife and his sons on a donkey and they started on the journey back to Egypt. And Moses carried the stick of God in his hand. Then the Lord said to Moses, ‘When you return to Egypt you must do the signs. Do all the signs that I gave you the power to do. Do them in front of Pharaoh. But I will make Pharaoh angry and cruel. Because of this, he will not let the people go. 22Then you must speak to Pharaoh. You must say, “The Lord says, Israel is my first son. 23I have already said to you, Let my son go so that he can worship me. But if you refuse to let him go, I will kill your first son.” ’

Exodus 4:21 word by word

וַיֹּ֣אמֶר יְהוָה֮ אֶל־מֹשֶׁה֒ בְּלֶכְתְּךָ֙ לָשׁ֣וּב מִצְרַ֔יְמָה רְאֵ֗ה כָּל־הַמֹּֽפְתִים֙ אֲשֶׁר־שַׂ֣מְתִּי בְיָדֶ֔ךָ וַעֲשִׂיתָ֖ם לִפְנֵ֣י פַרְעֹ֑ה וַאֲנִי֙ אֲחַזֵּ֣ק אֶת־לִבּ֔וֹ וְלֹ֥א יְשַׁלַּ֖ח אֶת־הָעָֽם׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• And the Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
• saidאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
• unto Mosesמֹשֶׁהmôsheh · MosesH4872
• When thou goestיָלַךְyâlak · to walkH3212
• to returnשׁוּבshûb · to return: returnH7725
• into Egyptמִצְרַ֫יִםmitsrayim · EgyptH4714
• seeרָאָהrâ'âh · to see: seeH7200
• that thou doעָשָׂה‛âώâh · to make: doH6213
• all those wondersמוֹפֵתmôphêth môphêth · wonderH4159
• beforeפָּנֶהpânîym · face: beforeH6440
• Pharaohפַּרְעֹהpar‛ôh · PharaohH6547
• which I have putשׂוּםώûm ώîym · to set: putH7760
• in thine handיָדyâd · hand: powerH3027
• but I will hardenחָזַקchâzaq · to strengthen: strengthenH2388
• his heartלֵבlêb · heartH3820
• that he shall not let the peopleעַם‛am · peopleH5971
• goשָׁלַחshâlach · to send: let goH7971

Cross-references for Exodus 4:21

• Exodus 3:20So I will show him my power! I will do powerful miracles to punish the Egyptians. When they see that, Pharaoh will let you go free.
• Exodus 7:3But I will make Pharaoh's mind become hard. I will do many miracles in Egypt that show my power.
• Exodus 9:12But Pharaoh refused to listen to Moses and Aaron. The Lord caused Pharaoh's mind to be hard. The Lord had told Moses that this would happen, and it did!
• Exodus 10:1Then the Lord said to Moses, ‘Go to see Pharaoh. I have caused his mind to become hard. I have also caused his officers' minds to become hard. I have done this so that I can do miracles to show him my power.
• Exodus 14:8The Lord caused the mind of Pharaoh, king of Egypt, to be hard. So Pharaoh followed after the Israelites, when they left Egypt without any fear.
• Genesis 6:3The Lord said, ‘My Spirit will not give life to humans for ever. One day they will die. I will not let them live for more than 120 years. Then they will die.’
• Deuteronomy 2:30But Sihon, the king of Heshbon, refused to let us travel through his country. He was too proud to agree with us. The Lord our God had caused him to be like that. He wanted to put King Sihon under your power and give his land to you. You still live in his land today.
• Joshua 11:20The Lord had caused the minds of those people to become hard. So they all decided to fight against the Israelites. The Lord wanted the Israelites to destroy those people completely, as he had commanded Moses.
• 1 Kings 22:22The spirit said, “I will give a message to all Ahab's prophets. I will cause them to speak lies.” The Lord said, “Go and deceive King Ahab, as you have said. He will do what you say.”
• Psalms 105:25So the Egyptians began to hate God's people. They did cruel things to the Lord's people.
• Isaiah 6:10Make them refuse to understand. Cause their ears to be deaf and their eyes to be blind. If you do not do that, they might use their eyes to see. They might use their ears to listen. They might use their minds to understand. Then they might turn back to me so that I would make them well again.’
• Isaiah 63:17Lord, why do you cause us to turn away from your ways? You make our minds become hard, so that we do not obey you. Please come back to help us, because we are your servants. We are the tribes that you have chosen for yourself!
• John 12:40He said: ‘God has made their eyes unable to see. He has closed their minds. So they cannot see with their eyes, and they cannot understand with their minds. They will not turn to me, so that I can make them well.’
• Romans 1:28Those people decided that they did not need to know anything about God. So God let their minds become spoiled. As a result, they do bad things that people ought not to do.
• Romans 9:18So we see this: God is kind to some people and he forgives them. But he causes some people, like Pharaoh, to turn against him. He chooses what he will do with each person.
• Romans 11:8It says this in the Bible: ‘God caused them to be like people who are sleeping. Even until this day, their eyes cannot really see, and their ears cannot really hear.’

Commentaries on Exodus 4:21

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 21But I will harden his heart - The case of Pharaoh has given rise to many fierce controversies, and to several strange and conflicting opinions. Would men but look at the whole account without the medium of their respective creeds, they would find little difficulty to apprehend the truth. If we take up the subject in a theological point of view, all sober Christians will allow the truth of this proposition of St. Augustine, when the subject in question is…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 21I will harden - Calamities which do not subdue the heart harden it. In the case of Pharaoh, the hardening was at once a righteous judgment, and a natural result of a long series of oppressions and cruelties.Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 18-23Verses 18-23 After God had appeared in the bush, he often spake to Moses. Pharaoh had hardened his own heart against the groans and cries of the oppressed Israelites; and now God, in the way of righteous judgment, hardens his heart against the teaching of the miracles, and the terror of the plagues. But whether Pharaoh will hear, or whether he will forbear, Moses must tell him, Thus saith the Lord. He must demand a discharge for Israel, Let my son go; not…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 21-23These verses summarize the upcoming chapters. They start with the request to let the people go to worship God and end with the final plague, the death of the firstborn (5:3; 11:4–6). God was preparing the rescuer for the challenging task ahead (see 11:9).Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1-311. But, behold--Hebrew, "If," "perhaps," "they will not believe me."--What evidence can I produce of my divine mission? There was still a want of full confidence, not in the character and divine power of his employer, but in His presence and power always accompanying him. He insinuated that his communication might be rejected and he himself treated as an impostor.Read the comment

Topics related to Exodus 4:21

• Heart
• Moses

In the dictionaries

• Egypt
• Moses
• Pharaoh
• Egypt, Egyptian
• Pharaoh, king of Egypt
• Bosom
• Dead
• Leprous
• Slow
• Spokesman

Commentaries on Exodus 4

• 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