God’s Word Translation
Exodus 8:28
28Pharaoh said, “I will let you go, but don’t go very far. You may offer sacrifices to the Lord your God in the desert and pray for me.”
Exodus 8:28 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)And Pharaoh said, I will let you go, that ye may sacrifice to the Lord your God in the wilderness; only ye shall not go very far away: intreat for me.
- New International Version (NIV)Pharaoh said, “I will let you go to offer sacrifices to the Lord your God in the wilderness, but you must not go very far. Now pray for me.”
- English Standard Version (ESV)So Pharaoh said, "I will let you go to sacrifice to the Lord your God in the wilderness; only you must not go very far away. Plead for me."
- New King James Version (NKJV)So Pharaoh said, “I will let you go, that you may sacrifice to the Lord your God in the wilderness; only you shall not go very far away. Intercede for me.”
Context of Exodus 8:28
26Moses replied, “It wouldn’t be right to do that. The sacrifices we offer to the Lord our God are disgusting to Egyptians. If they see us offer sacrifices that they consider disgusting, won’t they stone us to death? 27We need to travel three days into the desert to offer sacrifices to the Lord our God, as he told us to do.” Pharaoh said, “I will let you go, but don’t go very far. You may offer sacrifices to the Lord your God in the desert and pray for me.” 29Moses answered, “As soon as I leave you, I will pray to the Lord. Tomorrow the swarms of flies will go away from you, your officials, and your people. But you must stop tricking us by not letting the people go to offer sacrifices to the Lord.” 30Moses left Pharaoh and prayed to the Lord.
Read all of Exodus 8Exodus 8:28 word by word
וַיֹּ֣אמֶר פַּרְעֹ֗ה אָנֹכִ֞י אֲשַׁלַּ֤ח אֶתְכֶם֙ וּזְבַחְתֶּ֞ם לַיהוָ֤ה אֱלֹֽהֵיכֶם֙ בַּמִּדְבָּ֔ר רַ֛ק הַרְחֵ֥ק לֹא־תַרְחִ֖יקוּ לָלֶ֑כֶת הַעְתִּ֖ירוּ בַּעֲדִֽי׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- And Pharaohפַּרְעֹהpar‛ôh · PharaohH6547
- saidאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
- I will let you goשָׁלַחshâlach · to send: departH7971
- that ye may sacrificeזָבַחzâbach · to sacrificeH2076
- to the Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
- your Godאֱלֹהִים'ĕlôhîym · GodH430
- in the wildernessמִדְבָּרmidbâr · wildernessH4057
- only ye shall not goיָלַךְyâlak · to walkH3212
- veryרָחַקrâchaq · to removeH7368
- intreatעָתַר‛âthar · to prayH6279
- for meבַּ֫עַדbe‛ad · about/through/forH1157
Cross-references for Exodus 8:28
- Hosea 10:2They are hypocrites. Now they must take their punishment. God will tear down their altars and destroy their stone markers.
- Exodus 8:8Pharaoh sent for Moses and Aaron and said, “Pray that the Lord will take the frogs away from me and my people. Then I will let your people go to offer sacrifices to the Lord.”
- Exodus 9:28Pray to the Lord. We’ve had enough of God’s thunder and hail. I’ll let you go; you don’t have to stay here any longer.”
- Exodus 10:17Please forgive my sin one more time. Pray to the Lord your God to take this deadly plague away from me.”
- 1 Kings 13:6Then the king asked the man of God, “Please make an appeal to the Lord your God, and pray for me so that I can use my arm again.” So the man of God made an appeal to the Lord, and the king was able to use his arm again, as he had earlier.
- Ezra 6:10Then they can offer sacrifices that please the God of heaven and pray for the life of the king and his sons.
- Ecclesiastes 6:10Whatever has happened ⌞in the past⌟ already has a name. Mortals are already known for what they are. Mortals cannot argue with the one who is stronger than they.
- Acts 8:24Simon answered, “Pray to the Lord for me that none of the things you said will happen to me.”
Commentaries on Exodus 8:28
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 28I will let you go only ye shall not go very far away - Pharaoh relented because the hand of God was heavy upon him; but he was not willing to give up his gain. The Israelites were very profitable to him; they were slaves of the state, and their hard labor was very productive: hence he professed a willingness, first to tolerate their religion in the land, ( Exodus 8:25;); or to permit them to go into the wilderness, so that they went not far away, and…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 20-32Verses 20-32 Pharaoh was early at his false devotions to the river; and shall we be for more sleep and more slumber, when any service to the Lord is to be done? The Egyptians and the Hebrews were to be marked in the plague of flies. The Lord knows them that are his, and will make it appear, perhaps in this world, certainly in the other, that he has set them apart for himself. Pharaoh unwillingly entered into a treaty with Moses and Aaron. He is content…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 20-32The fourth plague was the plague of flies. The Egyptians worshiped insects such as flies that seemed to be able to turn death into life, as their young seemed to emerge from decaying matter. If the Egyptians thought that insects had the secret of life, God would let them have all the insects they wanted. Some say that this infestation was the natural result of all the dead frogs, but there were no flies in Goshen (8:22), the northeastern delta area where…Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 25-3225-32. Pharaoh called for Moses, ... Go ye, sacrifice to your God in the land, &c.--Between impatient anxiety to be freed from this scourge and a reluctance on the part of the Hebrew bondsmen, the king followed the course of expediency; he proposed to let them free to engage in their religious rites within any part of the kingdom. But true to his instructions, Moses would accede to no such arrangement; he stated a most valid reason to show the danger of…Read the comment
Topics related to Exodus 8:28
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Exodus 8
- 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
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