New English Translation
Exodus 4:24
24Now on the way, at a place where they stopped for the night, the Lord met Moses and sought to kill him.
Exodus 4:24 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)And it came to pass by the way in the inn, that the Lord met him, and sought to kill him.
- New International Version (NIV)At a lodging place on the way, the Lord met Moses and was about to kill him.
- English Standard Version (ESV)At a lodging place on the way the Lord met him and sought to put him to death.
- New King James Version (NKJV)And it came to pass on the way, at the encampment, that the Lord met him and sought to kill him.
Context of Exodus 4:24
22You must say to Pharaoh, ‘Thus says the Lord, “Israel is my son, my firstborn, 23and I said to you, ‘Let my son go that he may serve me,’ but since you have refused to let him go, I will surely kill your son, your firstborn!”’” Now on the way, at a place where they stopped for the night, the Lord met Moses and sought to kill him. 25But Zipporah took a flint knife, cut off the foreskin of her son and touched it to Moses’ feet, and said, “Surely you are a bridegroom of blood to me.” 26So the Lord let him alone. (At that time she said, “A bridegroom of blood,” referring to the circumcision.)
Read all of Exodus 4Exodus 4:24 word by word
וַיְהִ֥י בַדֶּ֖רֶךְ בַּמָּל֑וֹן וַיִּפְגְּשֵׁ֣הוּ יְהוָ֔ה וַיְבַקֵּ֖שׁ הֲמִיתֽוֹ׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
Cross-references for Exodus 4:24
- Genesis 42:27When one of them opened his sack to get feed for his donkey at their resting place, he saw his money in the mouth of his sack.
- Genesis 17:14Any uncircumcised male who has not been circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin will be cut off from his people – he has failed to carry out my requirement.”
- Exodus 3:18“The elders will listen to you, and then you and the elders of Israel must go to the king of Egypt and tell him, ‘The Lord, the God of the Hebrews, has met with us. So now, let us go three days’ journey into the wilderness, so that we may sacrifice to the Lord our God.’
- Numbers 22:22Then God’s anger was kindled because he went, and the angel of the Lord stood in the road to oppose him. Now he was riding on his donkey and his two servants were with him.
- 1 Chronicles 21:16David looked up and saw the Lord’s messenger standing between the earth and sky with his sword drawn and in his hand, stretched out over Jerusalem. David and the leaders, covered with sackcloth, threw themselves down with their faces to the ground.
- Hosea 13:8I will attack them like a bear robbed of her cubs – I will rip open their chests. I will devour them there like a lion – like a wild animal would tear them apart.
- Leviticus 10:3Moses then said to Aaron, “This is what the Lord spoke: ‘Among the ones close to me I will show myself holy, and in the presence of all the people I will be honored.’” So Aaron kept silent.
- 1 Kings 13:24As the prophet from Judah was traveling, a lion attacked him on the road and killed him. His corpse was lying on the road, and the donkey and the lion just stood there beside it.
Commentaries on Exodus 4:24
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 24By the way in the inn - See Clarke's note on Genesis 42:27. The account in this and the following verse is very obscure. Some suppose that the Exodus 4:23; is not a part of the message to Pharaoh, but was spoken by the Lord to Moses; and that the whole may be thus paraphrased: "And I have said unto thee, (Moses), Send forth שלח shallach, my son, (Gershom, by circumcising him), that he may serve me, (which he cannot do till entered into the covenant by…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 24In the inn - Or “resting place.” See Genesis 42:27 note. Met him, and sought to kill him - Moses was attacked by a sudden and dangerous illness, which he knew was inflicted by God. The word “sought to kill” implies that the sickness, whatever might be its nature, was one which threatened death had it not been averted by a timely act. Zipporah believed that the illness of Moses was due to his having neglected the duty of an Israelite, and to his not having…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 24-31Verses 24-31 God met Moses in anger. The Lord threatened him with death or sent sickness upon him, as the punishment of his having neglected to circumcise his son. When God discovers to us what is amiss in our lives, we must give all diligence to amend it speedily. This is the voice of every rod; it calls us to return to Him that smites us. God sent Aaron to meet Moses. The more they saw of God's bringing them together, the more pleasant their interview…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 24-26This incident is mysterious. Zipporah immediately circumcising her son suggests she and Moses had previously discussed it and decided it was unnecessary. Why would having an uncircumcised son make God want to kill the rescuer he had prepared and called? It would seem strange for Moses to arrive in Egypt claiming to represent the God of the Israelites' ancestors, but would not do what God commanded them (Genesis 17:10). This might cause the people to be…Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 2424. inn--Hebrew, "a halting place for the night." the Lord met him, and sought to kill him--that is, he was either overwhelmed with mental distress or overtaken by a sudden and dangerous malady. The narrative is obscure, but the meaning seems to be, that, led during his illness to a strict self-examination, he was deeply pained and grieved at the thought of having, to please his wife, postponed or neglected the circumcision of one of his sons, probably…Read the comment
Topics related to Exodus 4:24
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Exodus 4
- 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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