New King James Version
Exodus 1:21
21And so it was, because the midwives feared God, that He provided households for them.
Exodus 1:21 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)And it came to pass, because the midwives feared God, that he made them houses.
- New International Version (NIV)And because the midwives feared God, he gave them families of their own.
- English Standard Version (ESV)And because the midwives feared God, he gave them families.
- New Living Translation (NLT)And because the midwives feared God, he gave them families of their own.
Context of Exodus 1:21
19And the midwives said to Pharaoh, “Because the Hebrew women are not like the Egyptian women; for they are lively and give birth before the midwives come to them.” 20Therefore God dealt well with the midwives, and the people multiplied and grew very mighty. And so it was, because the midwives feared God, that He provided households for them. 22So Pharaoh commanded all his people, saying, “Every son who is born you shall cast into the river, and every daughter you shall save alive.”
Read all of Exodus 1Exodus 1:21 word by word
וַיְהִ֕י כִּֽי־יָֽרְא֥וּ הַֽמְיַלְּדֹ֖ת אֶת־הָאֱלֹהִ֑ים וַיַּ֥עַשׂ לָהֶ֖ם בָּתִּֽים׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
Cross-references for Exodus 1:21
- 1 Samuel 2:35Then I will raise up for Myself a faithful priest who shall do according to what is in My heart and in My mind. I will build him a sure house, and he shall walk before My anointed forever.
- 1 Samuel 25:28Please forgive the trespass of your maidservant. For the Lord will certainly make for my lord an enduring house, because my lord fights the battles of the Lord, and evil is not found in you throughout your days.
- 2 Samuel 7:11since the time that I commanded judges to be over My people Israel, and have caused you to rest from all your enemies. Also the Lord tells you that He will make you a house.
- 1 Kings 2:24Now therefore, as the Lord lives, who has confirmed me and set me on the throne of David my father, and who has established a house for me, as He promised, Adonijah shall be put to death today!”
- 1 Kings 11:38Then it shall be, if you heed all that I command you, walk in My ways, and do what is right in My sight, to keep My statutes and My commandments, as My servant David did, then I will be with you and build for you an enduring house, as I built for David, and will give Israel to you.
- Psalms 37:3Trust in the Lord, and do good; Dwell in the land, and feed on His faithfulness.
- Psalms 127:1Unless the Lord builds the house, They labor in vain who build it; Unless the Lord guards the city, The watchman stays awake in vain.
- Proverbs 24:3Through wisdom a house is built, And by understanding it is established;
- Ecclesiastes 8:12Though a sinner does evil a hundred times, and his days are prolonged, yet I surely know that it will be well with those who fear God, who fear before Him.
- Jeremiah 35:2“Go to the house of the Rechabites, speak to them, and bring them into the house of the Lord, into one of the chambers, and give them wine to drink.”
Commentaries on Exodus 1:21
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 21He made them houses - Dr. Shuckford thinks that there is something wrong both in the punctuation and translation of this place, and reads the passage thus, adding the 21st to the 20th verse: "And they multiplied and waxed mighty; and this happened (ויהי vayehi ) because the midwives feared God; and he (Pharaoh) made (להם lahem, masc.). them (the Israelites) houses; and commanded all his people, saying, Every son that is born, etc." The doctor supposes…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 21Made them houses - i. e. they married Hebrews and became mothers in Israel. The expression is proverbial. See the margin reference.Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 15-22Verses 15-22 The Egyptians tried to destroy Israel by the murder of their children. The enmity that is in the seed of the serpent, against the Seed of the woman, makes men forget all pity. It is plain that the Hebrews were now under an uncommon blessing. And we see that the services done for God's Israel are often repaid in kind. Pharaoh gave orders to drown all the male children of the Hebrews. The enemy who, by Pharaoh, attempted to destroy the church…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 20-21He gave them families: For most of history, children have had the worthy goal of growing up to raise a family. God graciously granted the universal wish of these women who served him courageously and faithfully.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 20-2120-21. God dealt well with the midwives--This represents God as rewarding them for telling a lie. This difficulty is wholly removed by a more correct translation. To "make" or "build up a house" in Hebrew idiom, means to have a numerous progeny. The passage then should be rendered thus: "God protected the midwives, and the people waxed very mighty; and because the midwives feared, the Hebrews grew and prospered."Read the comment
Topics related to Exodus 1:21
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 King James Version — © 1982 Thomas Nelson, Inc
Commentaries