Exodus 23:19

Exodus 23:19 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)The first of the firstfruits of thy land thou shalt bring into the house of the Lord thy God. Thou shalt not seethe a kid in his mother’s milk.
• New International Version (NIV)“Bring the best of the firstfruits of your soil to the house of the Lord your God. “Do not cook a young goat in its mother’s milk.
• English Standard Version (ESV)"The best of the firstfruits of your ground you shall bring into the house of the Lord your God. "You shall not boil a young goat in its mother's milk.
• New King James Version (NKJV)The first of the firstfruits of your land you shall bring into the house of the Lord your God. You shall not boil a young goat in its mother’s milk.

Context of Exodus 23:19

17“These are the three times each year that all your men must come into the presence of the Master, the Lord. 18“Never offer the blood of a sacrifice to me at the same time you offer anything containing yeast. The fat sacrificed at my festivals should never be left over in the morning. “You must bring the best of the first produce harvested from your soil to the house of the Lord your God. “Never cook a young goat in its mother’s milk. 20“I’m going to send a Messenger in front of you to protect you on your trip and bring you to the place I have prepared. 21Pay attention to him, and listen to him. Don’t defy him, because he will not forgive your disobedience. He is acting on my authority.

Exodus 23:19 word by word

רֵאשִׁ֗ית בִּכּוּרֵי֙ אַדְמָ֣תְךָ֔ תָּבִ֕יא בֵּ֖ית יְהוָ֣ה אֱלֹהֶ֑יךָ לֹֽא־תְבַשֵּׁ֥ל גְּדִ֖י בַּחֲלֵ֥ב אִמּֽוֹ׃ סRead the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• The firstרֵאשִׁיתrê'shîyth · first: bestH7225
• of the firstfruitsבִּכּוּרִיםbikkûr · firstfruitH1061
• of thy landאֲדָמָה'ădâmâh · land: soilH127
• thou shalt bringבּוֹאbô' · to come (in): bringH935
• into the houseבַּ֫יִתbayith · house: templeH1004
• of the Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
• thy Godאֱלֹהִים'ĕlôhîym · GodH430
• Thou shalt not seetheבָּשַׁלbâshal · to boilH1310
• a kidגְּדִיgedîy · kidH1423
• in his mother’sאֵם'êm · motherH517
• milkחָלָבchâlâb · milkH2461

Cross-references for Exodus 23:19

• Exodus 22:29“Never withhold your best wine from me. “You must give me your firstborn son.
• Exodus 34:26“You must bring the first and best of the produce harvested from your soil to the house of the Lord your God. “Never cook a young goat in its mother’s milk.”
• Leviticus 23:10“Tell the Israelites: When you come to the land I am going to give you and you harvest grain, bring the priest a bundle of the first grain you harvest.
• Numbers 18:12“I am also giving you the first of the produce they give the Lord: the best of all the olive oil and the best of the new wine and fresh grain.
• Deuteronomy 12:5The Lord your God will choose a place out of all your tribes to live and put his name. Go there and worship him.
• Deuteronomy 26:10So now I’ve brought the first produce harvested from the fields you gave me, Lord.” You will place the basket in the presence of the Lord your God and bow down in front of him.
• Nehemiah 10:35We have drawn lots to decide who should bring the first produce harvested and the first fruit from every tree each year to the Lord’s temple.
• 1 Corinthians 15:20But now Christ has come back from the dead. He is the very first person of those who have died to come back to life.
• Revelation 14:4These 144,000 virgins are pure. They follow the lamb wherever he goes. They were bought from among humanity as the first ones offered to God and to the lamb.
• Deuteronomy 14:21Never eat any creature that dies naturally. You may give it to the foreigners who live in your cities, and they may eat it. You may also sell it to foreigners who are visiting. But you are people who are holy to the Lord your God. Never cook a young goat in its mother’s milk.
• Proverbs 12:10A righteous person cares ⌞even⌟ about the life of his animals, but the compassion of wicked people is ⌞nothing but⌟ cruelty.
• Jeremiah 10:3The religion of the people is worthless. Woodcutters cut down trees from the forest. The hands of craftsmen prepare them with axes.

Commentaries on Exodus 23:19

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 19Thou shalt not seethe a kid in his mother's milk - This passage has greatly perplexed commentators; but Dr. Cudworth is supposed to have given it its true meaning by quoting a MS. comment of a Karaite Jew, which he met with, on this passage. "It was a custom of the ancient heathens, when they had gathered in all their fruits, to take a kid and boil it in the milk of its dam; and then, in a magical way, to go about and besprinkle with it all their trees…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 19The first of the firstfruits of thy land - The “best,” or “chief” of the firstfruits, that is, the two wave loaves described Leviticus 23:17. As the preceding precept appears to refer to the Passover, so it is likely that this refers to Pentecost. They are called in Leviticus, “the firstfruits unto the Load;” and it is reasonable that they should here be designated the “chief” of the firstfruits. If, with some, we suppose the precept to relate to the…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 10-19Verses 10-19 Every seventh year the land was to rest. They must not plough or sow it; what the earth produced of itself, should be eaten, and not laid up. This law seems to have been intended to teach dependence on Providence, and God's faithfulness in sending the larger increase while they kept his appointments. It was also typical of the heavenly rest, when all earthly labours, cares, and interests shall cease for ever. All respect to the gods of the…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 19The meaning of the command not to cook a young goat in its mother’s milk is not clear. The Bible does not explain the reason for this law. Because it appears among other worship laws, some scholars think it may have been a pagan religious practice. Pagan means related to the worship of other gods. If that is true, the command would warn Israel not to copy the worship practices of other nations.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1919. Thou shalt not seethe a kid in his mother's milk--A prohibition against imitating the superstitious rites of the idolaters in Egypt, who, at the end of their harvest, seethed a kid in its mother's milk and sprinkled the broth as a magical charm on their gardens and fields, to render them more productive the following season. [See on De 14:21].Read the comment

Topics related to Exodus 23:19

• Church
• First Fruits
• Goat
• Lamb
• Milk

In the dictionaries

• God
• god, false god, goddess, idol, idolater, idolatrous, idolatry
• Beware
• Book
• Countenance
• Cow
• Firstfruits
• Food
• Ingathering
• Kid

Commentaries on Exodus 23

• 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
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings