New International Version
Exodus 1:7
7but the Israelites were exceedingly fruitful; they multiplied greatly, increased in numbers and became so numerous that the land was filled with them.
Exodus 1:7 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)And the children of Israel were fruitful, and increased abundantly, and multiplied, and waxed exceeding mighty; and the land was filled with them.
- English Standard Version (ESV)But the people of Israel were fruitful and increased greatly; they multiplied and grew exceedingly strong, so that the land was filled with them.
- New King James Version (NKJV)But the children of Israel were fruitful and increased abundantly, multiplied and grew exceedingly mighty; and the land was filled with them.
- New Living Translation (NLT)But their descendants, the Israelites, had many children and grandchildren. In fact, they multiplied so greatly that they became extremely powerful and filled the land.
Context of Exodus 1:7
5The descendants of Jacob numbered seventy in all; Joseph was already in Egypt. 6Now Joseph and all his brothers and all that generation died, but the Israelites were exceedingly fruitful; they multiplied greatly, increased in numbers and became so numerous that the land was filled with them. 8Then a new king, to whom Joseph meant nothing, came to power in Egypt. 9“Look,” he said to his people, “the Israelites have become far too numerous for us.
Read all of Exodus 1Exodus 1:7 word by word
וּבְנֵ֣י יִשְׂרָאֵ֗ל פָּר֧וּ וַֽיִּשְׁרְצ֛וּ וַיִּרְבּ֥וּ וַיַּֽעַצְמ֖וּ בִּמְאֹ֣ד מְאֹ֑ד וַתִּמָּלֵ֥א הָאָ֖רֶץ אֹתָֽם׃ פRead the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- And the childrenבֵּןbên · son: descendant/peopleH1121
- of Israelיִשְׂרָאֵלyiώrâ'êl · IsraelH3478
- were fruitfulפָּרָהpârâh · be fruitfulH6509
- and increased abundantlyשָׁרַץshârats · to swarmH8317
- and multipliedרָבָהrâbâh · to multiplyH7235
- and waxed exceedingמְאֹדme'ôd · muchH3966
- mightyעָצֹם‛âtsam · be vastH6105
- and the landאֶ֫רֶץ'erets · land: country/planetH776
- was filledמָלֵאmâlê' mâlâ' · to fillH4390
Cross-references for Exodus 1:7
- Exodus 12:37The Israelites journeyed from Rameses to Sukkoth. There were about six hundred thousand men on foot, besides women and children.
- Genesis 1:20And God said, “Let the water teem with living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the vault of the sky.”
- Genesis 9:1Then God blessed Noah and his sons, saying to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number and fill the earth.
- Genesis 12:2“I will make you into a great nation, and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing.
- Genesis 13:16I will make your offspring like the dust of the earth, so that if anyone could count the dust, then your offspring could be counted.
- Genesis 15:5He took him outside and said, “Look up at the sky and count the stars—if indeed you can count them.” Then he said to him, “So shall your offspring be.”
- Genesis 17:4“As for me, this is my covenant with you: You will be the father of many nations.
- Genesis 22:17I will surely bless you and make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as the sand on the seashore. Your descendants will take possession of the cities of their enemies,
- Genesis 26:4I will make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and will give them all these lands, and through your offspring all nations on earth will be blessed,
- Genesis 28:3May God Almighty bless you and make you fruitful and increase your numbers until you become a community of peoples.
- Genesis 35:11And God said to him, “I am God Almighty; be fruitful and increase in number. A nation and a community of nations will come from you, and kings will be among your descendants.
- Genesis 46:3“I am God, the God of your father,” he said. “Do not be afraid to go down to Egypt, for I will make you into a great nation there.
- Genesis 47:27Now the Israelites settled in Egypt in the region of Goshen. They acquired property there and were fruitful and increased greatly in number.
- Genesis 48:4and said to me, ‘I am going to make you fruitful and increase your numbers. I will make you a community of peoples, and I will give this land as an everlasting possession to your descendants after you.’
- Deuteronomy 10:22Your ancestors who went down into Egypt were seventy in all, and now the Lord your God has made you as numerous as the stars in the sky.
- Deuteronomy 26:5Then you shall declare before the Lord your God: “My father was a wandering Aramean, and he went down into Egypt with a few people and lived there and became a great nation, powerful and numerous.
Commentaries on Exodus 1:7
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 7The children of Israel were fruitful - פרו paru, a general term, signifying that they were like healthy trees, bringing forth an abundance of fruit. And increased - ישרץ yishretsu, they increased like fishes, as the original word implies. See Genesis 1:20; (note), and the note there. Abundantly - ירבו yirbu, they multiplied; this is a separate term, and should not have been used as an adverb by our translators. And waxed exceeding mighty - מאד במאד ויעצמו…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 7In no province does the population increase so rapidly as in that which was occupied by the Israelites. See the note at Genesis 47:6. At present it has more flocks and herds than any province in Egypt, and more fishermen, though many villages are deserted. Until the accession of the new king, the relations between the Egyptians and the Israelites were undoubtedly friendly. The expressions used in this verse imply the lapse of a considerable period after…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 6-7Jacob’s family stayed in Egypt for a long time as part of God's plan. God told Abraham that his descendants would not receive the land of Canaan for 400 years, until the Canaanites' sins were complete (Genesis 15:13–16). Even in Egypt, God's promises were working. The descendants of the elderly Abraham and barren Sarah multiplied … exceedingly, just as God had said (Genesis 15:5). This was because God blessed them (Psalm 105:24).Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 77. children of Israel were fruitful--They were living in a land where, according to the testimony of an ancient author, mothers produced three and four sometimes at a birth; and a modern writer declares "the females in Egypt, as well among the human race as among animals, surpass all others in fruitfulness." To this natural circumstance must be added the fulfilment of the promise made to Abraham.Read the comment
Topics related to Exodus 1:7
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Exodus 1
- 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
New International Version — © NIV® 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 Biblica
Commentaries