God’s Word Translation
Exodus 3:18
18“The leaders of Israel will listen to you. Then you and the leaders must go to the king of Egypt and say to him, ‘The Lord God of the Hebrews has met with us. Please let us travel three days into the desert to offer sacrifices to the Lord our God.’
Exodus 3:18 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)And they shall hearken to thy voice: and thou shalt come, thou and the elders of Israel, unto the king of Egypt, and ye shall say unto him, The Lord God of the Hebrews hath met with us: and now let us go, we beseech thee, three days’ journey into the wilderness, that we may sacrifice to the Lord our God.
- New International Version (NIV)“The elders of Israel will listen to you. Then you and the elders are to go to the king of Egypt and say to him, ‘The Lord, the God of the Hebrews, has met with us. Let us take a three-day journey into the wilderness to offer sacrifices to the Lord our God.’
- English Standard Version (ESV)And they will listen to your voice, and you and the elders of Israel shall go to the king of Egypt and say to him, 'The Lord, the God of the Hebrews, has met with us; and now, please let us go a three days' journey into the wilderness, that we may sacrifice to the Lord our God.'
- New King James Version (NKJV)Then they will heed your voice; and you shall come, you and the elders of Israel, to the king of Egypt; and you shall say to him, ‘The Lord God of the Hebrews has met with us; and now, please, let us go three days’ journey into the wilderness, that we may sacrifice to the Lord our God.’
Context of Exodus 3:18
16“Go, assemble the leaders of Israel. Say to them, ‘The Lord God of your ancestors, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, appeared to me. He said, “I have paid close attention to you and have seen what has been done to you in Egypt. 17I promise I will take you away from your misery in Egypt to the land of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites, a land flowing with milk and honey.” ’ “The leaders of Israel will listen to you. Then you and the leaders must go to the king of Egypt and say to him, ‘The Lord God of the Hebrews has met with us. Please let us travel three days into the desert to offer sacrifices to the Lord our God.’ 19I know that the king of Egypt will not let you go, even if he is forced to. 20So I will use my power to strike Egypt. After all the miracles that I will do there, he will let you go.
Read all of Exodus 3Exodus 3:18 word by word
וְשָׁמְע֖וּ לְקֹלֶ֑ךָ וּבָאתָ֡ אַתָּה֩ וְזִקְנֵ֨י יִשְׂרָאֵ֜ל אֶל־מֶ֣לֶךְ מִצְרַ֗יִם וַאֲמַרְתֶּ֤ם אֵלָיו֙ יְהוָ֞ה אֱלֹהֵ֤י הָֽעִבְרִיִּים֙ נִקְרָ֣ה עָלֵ֔ינוּ וְעַתָּ֗ה נֵֽלֲכָה־נָּ֞א דֶּ֣רֶךְ שְׁלֹ֤שֶׁת יָמִים֙ בַּמִּדְבָּ֔ר וְנִזְבְּחָ֖ה לַֽיהוָ֥ה אֱלֹהֵֽינוּ׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- And they shall hearkenשָׁמַעshâma‛ · to hear: hearH8085
- to thy voiceקוֹלqôl qôl · voiceH6963
- and thou shalt comeבּוֹאbô' · to come (in): comeH935
- thou and the eldersזָקֵןzâqên · old: elderH2205
- of Israelיִשְׂרָאֵלyiώrâ'êl · IsraelH3478
- unto the kingמֶ֫לֶךְmelek · kingH4428
- of Egyptמִצְרַ֫יִםmitsrayim · EgyptH4714
- and ye shall sayאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
- unto him, The Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
- Godאֱלֹהִים'ĕlôhîym · GodH430
- of the Hebrewsעִבְרִי‛ibrîy · HebrewH5680
- hath metקָרָהqârâh · to meetH7136
- with us: and now let us goיָלַךְyâlak · to walkH3212
- we beseech thee, threeשָׁלֹשׁshâlôsh shâlôsh shelôshâh shelôshâh · threeH7969
- days’יוֹםyôm · dayH3117
- journeyדֶּ֫רֶךְderek · way: journeyH1870
- into the wildernessמִדְבָּרmidbâr · wildernessH4057
- that we may sacrificeזָבַחzâbach · to sacrificeH2076
Cross-references for Exodus 3:18
- Exodus 3:16“Go, assemble the leaders of Israel. Say to them, ‘The Lord God of your ancestors, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, appeared to me. He said, “I have paid close attention to you and have seen what has been done to you in Egypt.
- Exodus 4:31and the people believed them. When they heard that the Lord was concerned about the people of Israel and that he had seen their misery, they knelt, bowing with their faces touching the ground.
- Joshua 1:17We will obey you as we obeyed Moses. May the Lord your God be with you as he was with Moses.
- 2 Chronicles 30:12Also, God guided the people of Judah so that they united to carry out the command which the king and the leaders gave from the Lord’s word.
- Psalms 110:3Your people will volunteer when you call up your army. Your young people will come to you in holy splendor like dew in the early morning.
- Jeremiah 26:5Suppose you don’t listen to the words of my servants the prophets, whom I sent to you again and again, even though you didn’t listen.
- Exodus 5:1Later Moses and Aaron went to Pharaoh and said, “This is what the Lord God of Israel says: Let my people go into the desert to celebrate a festival in my honor.”
- Exodus 7:16Say to him, ‘The Lord God of the Hebrews sent me to tell you, “Let my people go to worship me in the desert.” So far you have not listened.
- Exodus 9:1Then the Lord said to Moses, “Go to Pharaoh, and tell him, ‘This is what the Lord God of the Hebrews says: Let my people go to worship me.
- Exodus 10:3So Moses and Aaron went to Pharaoh and said to him, “This is what the Lord God of the Hebrews says: How long will you refuse to humble yourself in my presence? Let my people go to worship me.
- Exodus 4:24Along the way they stopped for the night. The Lord met Moses and tried to kill him.
- Exodus 5:3They replied, “The God of the Hebrews has met with us. Please let us travel three days into the desert to offer sacrifices to the Lord our God. If we don’t go, he may kill us with a plague or a war.”
- Exodus 25:22I will be above the throne of mercy between the angels whenever I meet with you and give you all my commands for the Israelites.
- Exodus 29:42“For generations to come this will be the daily burnt offering ⌞made⌟ in the Lord’s presence at the entrance to the tent of meeting. There I will meet with you to speak to you.
- Exodus 30:6Put the altar in front of the canopy which ⌞hangs⌟ over the ark containing the words of my promise. I will meet with you there in front of the throne of mercy that is on the ark.
- Genesis 12:1The Lord said to Abram, “Leave your land, your relatives, and your father’s home. Go to the land that I will show you.
Commentaries on Exodus 3:18
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 18They shall hearken to thy voice - This assurance was necessary to encourage him in an enterprise so dangerous and important. Three days' journey into the wilderness - Evidently intending Mount Sinai, which is reputed to be about three days' journey, the shortest way, from the land of Goshen. In ancient times, distances were computed by the time required to pass over them. Thus, instead of miles, furlongs, etc., it was said, the distance from one place to…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 18Three days‘ journey - i. e. a journey which would occupy three days in going and returning. This was a demand quite in accordance with Egyptian customs. The refusal of Pharaoh and the subsequent proceedings were revealed to Moses at once; but it is important to observe that the first request which Pharaoh rejected could have been granted without any damage to Egypt, or any risk of the Israelites passing the strongly-fortified frontier.Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 16-22Verses 16-22 Moses' success with the elders of Israel would be good. God, who, by his grace, inclines the heart, and opens the ear, could say beforehand, They shall hearken to thy voice; for he would make them willing in this day of power. As to Pharaoh, Moses is here told that petitions and persuasions, and humble complaints, would not prevail with him; nor a mighty hand stretched out in signs and wonders. But those will certainly be broken by the power…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 18Hebrews: See study note on 1:15. a three-day journey … so that we may sacrifice: If we view the main goal of the exodus as rescuing the Israelites from slavery, this request might seem insincere. But God's main goal was to create a nation for himself. He led them into the wilderness to teach them how to worship him.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 10-2210-22. Come now therefore, and I will send thee--Considering the patriotic views that had formerly animated the breast of Moses, we might have anticipated that no mission could have been more welcome to his heart than to be employed in the national emancipation of Israel. But he evinced great reluctance to it and stated a variety of objections [Ex 3:11, 13; 4:1, 10] all of which were successfully met and removed--and the happy issue of his labors was…Read the comment
Topics related to Exodus 3:18
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Exodus 3
- 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
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