New King James Version
Exodus 11:5
5and all the firstborn in the land of Egypt shall die, from the firstborn of Pharaoh who sits on his throne, even to the firstborn of the female servant who is behind the handmill, and all the firstborn of the animals.
Exodus 11:5 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)And all the firstborn in the land of Egypt shall die, from the firstborn of Pharaoh that sitteth upon his throne, even unto the firstborn of the maidservant that is behind the mill; and all the firstborn of beasts.
- New International Version (NIV)Every firstborn son in Egypt will die, from the firstborn son of Pharaoh, who sits on the throne, to the firstborn son of the female slave, who is at her hand mill, and all the firstborn of the cattle as well.
- English Standard Version (ESV)and every firstborn in the land of Egypt shall die, from the firstborn of Pharaoh who sits on his throne, even to the firstborn of the slave girl who is behind the handmill, and all the firstborn of the cattle.
- New Living Translation (NLT)All the firstborn sons will die in every family in Egypt, from the oldest son of Pharaoh, who sits on his throne, to the oldest son of his lowliest servant girl who grinds the flour. Even the firstborn of all the livestock will die.
Context of Exodus 11:5
3And the Lord gave the people favor in the sight of the Egyptians. Moreover the man Moses was very great in the land of Egypt, in the sight of Pharaoh’s servants and in the sight of the people. 4Then Moses said, “Thus says the Lord: ‘About midnight I will go out into the midst of Egypt; and all the firstborn in the land of Egypt shall die, from the firstborn of Pharaoh who sits on his throne, even to the firstborn of the female servant who is behind the handmill, and all the firstborn of the animals. 6Then there shall be a great cry throughout all the land of Egypt, such as was not like it before, nor shall be like it again. 7But against none of the children of Israel shall a dog move its tongue, against man or beast, that you may know that the Lord does make a difference between the Egyptians and Israel.’
Read all of Exodus 11Exodus 11:5 word by word
וּמֵ֣ת כָּל־בְּכוֹר֮ בְּאֶ֣רֶץ מִצְרַיִם֒ מִבְּכ֤וֹר פַּרְעֹה֙ הַיֹּשֵׁ֣ב עַל־כִּסְא֔וֹ עַ֚ד בְּכ֣וֹר הַשִּׁפְחָ֔ה אֲשֶׁ֖ר אַחַ֣ר הָרֵחָ֑יִם וְכֹ֖ל בְּכ֥וֹר בְּהֵמָֽה׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- And all the firstbornבְּכוֹרbekôr · firstbornH1060
- in the landאֶ֫רֶץ'erets · land: country/planetH776
- of Egyptמִצְרַ֫יִםmitsrayim · EgyptH4714
- shall dieמוּתmûth · to dieH4191
- of Pharaohפַּרְעֹהpar‛ôh · PharaohH6547
- that sittethיָשַׁבyâshab · to dwellH3427
- upon his throneכִּסֵּאkissê' kissêh · throneH3678
- of the maidservantשִׁפְחָהshiphchâh · maidservantH8198
- behindאַחַר'achar · afterH310
- the millרֵחֶהrêcheh · millstoneH7347
- of beastsבְּהֵמָהbehêmâh · animalH929
Cross-references for Exodus 11:5
- Exodus 4:23So I say to you, let My son go that he may serve Me. But if you refuse to let him go, indeed I will kill your son, your firstborn.” ’ ”
- Exodus 12:12‘For I will pass through the land of Egypt on that night, and will strike all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and against all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgment: I am the Lord.
- Exodus 13:15And it came to pass, when Pharaoh was stubborn about letting us go, that the Lord killed all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both the firstborn of man and the firstborn of beast. Therefore I sacrifice to the Lord all males that open the womb, but all the firstborn of my sons I redeem.’
- Psalms 78:51And destroyed all the firstborn in Egypt, The first of their strength in the tents of Ham.
- Psalms 105:36He also destroyed all the firstborn in their land, The first of all their strength.
- Psalms 135:8He destroyed the firstborn of Egypt, Both of man and beast.
- Psalms 136:10To Him who struck Egypt in their firstborn, For His mercy endures forever;
- Hebrews 11:28By faith he kept the Passover and the sprinkling of blood, lest he who destroyed the firstborn should touch them.
- Judges 16:21Then the Philistines took him and put out his eyes, and brought him down to Gaza. They bound him with bronze fetters, and he became a grinder in the prison.
- Isaiah 47:2Take the millstones and grind meal. Remove your veil, Take off the skirt, Uncover the thigh, Pass through the rivers.
- Lamentations 5:13Young men ground at the millstones; Boys staggered under loads of wood.
- Matthew 24:41Two women will be grinding at the mill: one will be taken and the other left.
Commentaries on Exodus 11:5
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 5The first-born of Pharaoh, etc. - From the heir to the Egyptian throne to the son of the most abject slave, or the principal person in each family. See Clarke's note on Exodus 12:29. The maid-servant that is behind the mill - The meanest slaves were employed in this work. In many parts of the east they still grind all their corn with a kind of portable mill-stones, the upper one of which is turned round by a sort of lever fixed in the rim. A drawing of…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 5Two points are to be noticed: 1. The extent of the visitation: the whole land suffers in the persons of its firstborn, not merely for the guilt of the sovereign, but for the actual participation of the people in the crime of infanticide Exodus 1:22. 2. The limitation: Pharaoh‘s command had been to slay ALL the male children of the Israelites, but only one child in each Egyptian family was to die. If Tothmosis II was the Pharaoh, the visitation fell with…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 4-10Verses 4-10 The death of all the first-born in Egypt at once: this plague had been the first threatened, but is last executed. See how slow God is to wrath. The plague is foretold, the time is fixed; all their first-born should sleep the sleep of death, not silently, but so as to rouse the families at midnight. The prince was not too high to be reached by it, nor the slaves at the mill too low to be noticed. While angels slew the Egyptians, not so much as…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 5In many parts of the world, people look to their children for survival. In many cultures, the firstborn son carries on the family line. If people have children, they may feel secure. They may believe that, even after they die, they will continue through their children. When the Egyptian firstborn sons died, God showed that people cannot guarantee their own survival. Life is a gift. That gift is in the hand of the one Lord, the "I Am."Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 55. And all the first-born in the land ... shall die--The time, the suddenness, the dreadful severity of this coming calamity, and the peculiar description of victims, among both men and beasts, on whom it was to fall, would all contribute to aggravate its character. the maid-servant that is behind the mill--The grinding of the meal for daily use in every household is commonly done by female slaves and is considered the lowest employment. Two portable…Read the comment
Topics related to Exodus 11:5
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Exodus 11
- 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
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
New King James Version — © 1982 Thomas Nelson, Inc
Commentaries