Exodus 5:3

Exodus 5:3 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And they said, The God of the Hebrews hath met with us: let us go, we pray thee, three days’ journey into the desert, and sacrifice unto the Lord our God; lest he fall upon us with pestilence, or with the sword.
• New International Version (NIV)Then they said, “The God of the Hebrews has met with us. Now let us take a three-day journey into the wilderness to offer sacrifices to the Lord our God, or he may strike us with plagues or with the sword.”
• English Standard Version (ESV)Then they said, "The God of the Hebrews has met with us. Please let us go a three days' journey into the wilderness that we may sacrifice to the Lord our God, lest he fall upon us with pestilence or with the sword."
• New King James Version (NKJV)So they said, “The God of the Hebrews has met with us. Please, let us go three days’ journey into the desert and sacrifice to the Lord our God, lest He fall upon us with pestilence or with the sword.”

Context of Exodus 5:3

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.” 2Pharaoh asked, “Who is the Lord? Why should I obey him and let Israel go? I don’t know the Lord, and I won’t let Israel go.” They 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.” 4The king of Egypt said to them, “Moses and Aaron, why are you distracting the people from their work? Get back to work!” 5Then Pharaoh added, “Look how many people there are in the land! Do you want them to quit working?”

Exodus 5:3 word by word

וַיֹּ֣אמְר֔וּ אֱלֹהֵ֥י הָעִבְרִ֖ים נִקְרָ֣א עָלֵ֑ינוּ נֵ֣לֲכָה נָּ֡א דֶּרֶךְ֩ שְׁלֹ֨שֶׁת יָמִ֜ים בַּמִּדְבָּ֗ר וְנִזְבְּחָה֙ לַֽיהוָ֣ה אֱלֹהֵ֔ינוּ פֶּ֨ן־יִפְגָּעֵ֔נוּ בַּדֶּ֖בֶר א֥וֹ בֶחָֽרֶב׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• And they saidאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
• The Godאֱלֹהִים'ĕlôhîym · GodH430
• of the Hebrewsעִבְרִי‛ibrîy · HebrewH5680
• hath metקָרָאqârâ' · to encounter: meetH7122
• with us: let us goיָלַךְyâlak · to walkH3212
• we pray thee, threeשָׁלֹשׁshâlôsh shâlôsh shelôshâh shelôshâh · threeH7969
• days’יוֹםyôm · dayH3117
• journeyדֶּ֫רֶךְderek · way: journeyH1870
• into the desertמִדְבָּרmidbâr · wildernessH4057
• and sacrificeזָבַחzâbach · to sacrificeH2076
• unto the Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
• lest he fallפָּגַעpâga‛ · to fall onH6293
• upon us with pestilenceדֶּ֫בֶרdeber · pestilenceH1698
• or with the swordחֶ֫רֶבchereb · swordH2719

Cross-references for Exodus 5:3

• Exodus 3:18“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.’
• Deuteronomy 28:21The Lord will send one plague after another on you until he wipes you out of the land you’re about to enter and take possession of.
• 2 Kings 17:25When they first came to live there, they didn’t worship the Lord. So the Lord sent lions to kill some of them.
• 2 Chronicles 30:8Don’t be impossible to deal with like your ancestors. Reach out for the Lord. Come to his holy place that he made holy forever. Serve the Lord your God, and he will turn his burning anger away from you.
• Ezra 7:23Whatever the God of heaven has commanded must be carried out in detail for the temple of the God of heaven. Why should God become angry with the king’s empire and his sons?
• Ezekiel 6:11“ ‘This is what the Almighty Lord says: Clap your hands, stomp your feet, and say, “Oh no!” because the people of Israel have done evil and disgusting things. So they will die in wars, famines, and plagues.
• Zechariah 14:16Everyone who is left from all the nations that attacked Jerusalem will come every year to worship the king, the Lord of Armies, and to celebrate the Festival of Booths.

Commentaries on Exodus 5:3

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 3Three days' journey - The distance from Goshen to Sinai; see Exodus 3:18. And sacrifice unto the Lord - Great stress is laid on this circumstance. God required sacrifice; no religious acts which they performed could be acceptable to him without this. He had now showed them that it was their indispensable duty thus to worship him, and that if they did not they might expect him to send the pestilence - some plague or death proceeding immediately from…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 3Three days‘ journey - See the Exodus 3:18 note. With pestilence, or with the sword - This shows that the plague was well known to the ancient Egyptians. The reference to the sword is equally natural, since the Israelites occupied the eastern district, which was frequently disturbed by the neighboring Shasous.Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 3He may strike us: God had not said this. Perhaps Moses and Aaron were trying to strengthen their case by saying that they had to obey God or die.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 33. The God of the Hebrews hath met with us--Instead of being provoked into reproaches or threats, they mildly assured him that it was not a proposal originating among themselves, but a duty enjoined on them by their God. They had for a long series of years been debarred from the privilege of religious worship, and as there was reason to fear that a continued neglect of divine ordinances would draw down upon them the judgments of offended heaven, they…Read the comment

In the dictionaries

• God
• god, false god, goddess, idol, idolater, idolatrous, idolatry
• Cover
• Demand
• Jew
• Tale
• Task
• Desert
• Exodus, the Book of
• Genesis

Commentaries on Exodus 5

• 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