Exodus 2:3

Exodus 2:3 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And when she could not longer hide him, she took for him an ark of bulrushes, and daubed it with slime and with pitch, and put the child therein; and she laid it in the flags by the river’s brink.
• New International Version (NIV)But when she could hide him no longer, she got a papyrus basket for him and coated it with tar and pitch. Then she placed the child in it and put it among the reeds along the bank of the Nile.
• English Standard Version (ESV)When she could hide him no longer, she took for him a basket made of bulrushes and daubed it with bitumen and pitch. She put the child in it and placed it among the reeds by the river bank.
• New King James Version (NKJV)But when she could no longer hide him, she took an ark of bulrushes for him, daubed it with asphalt and pitch, put the child in it, and laid it in the reeds by the river’s bank.

Context of Exodus 2:3

1A man from the household of Levi married a woman who was a descendant of Levi. 2The woman became pregnant and gave birth to a son. When she saw that he was a healthy child, she hid him for three months. But when she was no longer able to hide him, she took a papyrus basket for him and sealed it with bitumen and pitch. She put the child in it and set it among the reeds along the edge of the Nile. 4His sister stationed herself at a distance to find out what would happen to him. 5Then the daughter of Pharaoh came down to wash herself by the Nile, while her attendants were walking alongside the river, and she saw the basket among the reeds. She sent one of her attendants, took it,

Exodus 2:3 word by word

וְלֹא־יָכְלָ֣ה עוֹד֮ הַצְּפִינוֹ֒ וַתִּֽקַּֽח־לוֹ֙ תֵּ֣בַת גֹּ֔מֶא וַתַּחְמְרָ֥ה בַחֵמָ֖ר וּבַזָּ֑פֶת וַתָּ֤שֶׂם בָּהּ֙ אֶת־הַיֶּ֔לֶד וַתָּ֥שֶׂם בַּסּ֖וּף עַל־שְׂפַ֥ת הַיְאֹֽר׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• And when she couldיָכֹלyâkôl yâkôl · be ableH3201
• not longerעוֹד‛ôd ‛ôd · stillH5750
• hideצָפַןtsâphan · to treasureH6845
• him, she tookלָקַחlâqach · to take: takeH3947
• for him an arkתֵּבָהtêbâh · arkH8392
• of bulrushesגֹּ֫מֶאgôme' · reedH1573
• and daubedחָמַרchâmar · to daubH2560
• it with slimeחֵמָרchêmâr · bitumenH2564
• and with pitchזֶ֫פֶתzepheth · pitchH2203
• and putשׂוּםώûm ώîym · to set: putH7760
• the childיֶ֫לֶדyeled · youthH3206
• in the flagsסוּףsûph · reedH5488
• by the river’sיְאֹרye'ôr · NileH2975
• brinkשָׂפָהώâphâh ώepheth · lip: shoreH8193

Cross-references for Exodus 2:3

• Exodus 1:22Then Pharaoh commanded all his people, “All sons that are born you must throw into the river, but all daughters you may let live.”
• Matthew 2:13After they had gone, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, “Get up, take the child and his mother and flee to Egypt, and stay there until I tell you, for Herod is going to look for the child to kill him.”
• Acts 7:19This was the one who exploited our people and was cruel to our ancestors, forcing them to abandon their infants so they would die.
• Isaiah 18:2that sends messengers by sea, who glide over the water’s surface in boats made of papyrus. Go, you swift messengers, to a nation of tall, smooth-skinned people, to a people that are feared far and wide, to a nation strong and victorious, whose land rivers divide.
• Genesis 6:14Make for yourself an ark of cypress wood. Make rooms in the ark, and cover it with pitch inside and out.
• Genesis 11:3Then they said to one another, “Come, let’s make bricks and bake them thoroughly.” (They had brick instead of stone and tar instead of mortar.)
• Genesis 14:10Now the Valley of Siddim was full of tar pits. When the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah fled, they fell into them, but some survivors fled to the hills.

Commentaries on Exodus 2:3

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 3An ark of bulrushes - גמא תבת tebath gome, a small boat or basket made of the Egyptian reed called papyrus, so famous in all antiquity. This plant grows on the banks of the Nile, and in marshy grounds; the stalk rises to the height of six or seven cubits above the water, is triangular, and terminates in a crown of small filaments resembling hair, which the ancients used to compare to a thyrsus. This reed was of the greatest use to the inhabitants of…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 3The ark was made of the papyrus which was commonly used by the Egyptians for light and swift boats. The species is no longer found in the Nile below Nubia. It is a strong rush, like the bamboo, about the thickness of a finger, three cornered, and attains the height of 10 to 15 feet. It is represented with great accuracy on the most ancient monuments of Egypt. Slime and pitch - The “slime” is probably the mud, of which bricks were usually made in Egypt…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 3Papyrus reeds grew plentifully along the many streams into which the Nile River divided in the delta region of northern Egypt. They were light and flexible, well-suited for basket weaving. It is possible that the mother of Moses placed the basket in the water exactly where it was most likely to be found by the Egyptian princess.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 33. she took for him an ark of bulrushes--papyrus, a thick, strong, and tough reed. slime--the mud of the Nile, which, when hardened, is very tenacious. pitch--mineral tar. Boats of this description are seen daily floating on the surface of the river, with no other caulking than Nile mud (compare Is 18:2), and they are perfectly watertight, unless the coating is forced off by stormy weather. flags--a general term for sea or river weed. The chest was not…Read the comment

Topics related to Exodus 2:3

• Ark
• Bitumen
• Bulrush
• Flag
• Jochebed
• Moses
• Papyrus
• Pitch
• Servant
• Slime

In the dictionaries

• Ark of Bulrushes
• Ark
• Bitumen
• Bulrush
• Flag
• Herself
• Pitch
• Slime
• Son
• Soon

Commentaries on Exodus 2

• 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