New King James Version
Exodus 8:28
28So Pharaoh said, “I will let you go, that you may sacrifice to the Lord your God in the wilderness; only you shall not go very far away. Intercede for me.”
Exodus 8:28 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)And Pharaoh said, I will let you go, that ye may sacrifice to the Lord your God in the wilderness; only ye shall not go very far away: intreat for me.
- New International Version (NIV)Pharaoh said, “I will let you go to offer sacrifices to the Lord your God in the wilderness, but you must not go very far. Now pray for me.”
- English Standard Version (ESV)So Pharaoh said, "I will let you go to sacrifice to the Lord your God in the wilderness; only you must not go very far away. Plead for me."
- New Living Translation (NLT)“All right, go ahead,” Pharaoh replied. “I will let you go into the wilderness to offer sacrifices to the Lord your God. But don’t go too far away. Now hurry and pray for me.”
Context of Exodus 8:28
26And Moses said, “It is not right to do so, for we would be sacrificing the abomination of the Egyptians to the Lord our God. If we sacrifice the abomination of the Egyptians before their eyes, then will they not stone us? 27We will go three days’ journey into the wilderness and sacrifice to the Lord our God as He will command us.” So Pharaoh said, “I will let you go, that you may sacrifice to the Lord your God in the wilderness; only you shall not go very far away. Intercede for me.” 29Then Moses said, “Indeed I am going out from you, and I will entreat the Lord, that the swarms of flies may depart tomorrow from Pharaoh, from his servants, and from his people. But let Pharaoh not deal deceitfully anymore in not letting the people go to sacrifice to the Lord.” 30So Moses went out from Pharaoh and entreated the Lord.
Read all of Exodus 8Exodus 8:28 word by word
וַיֹּ֣אמֶר פַּרְעֹ֗ה אָנֹכִ֞י אֲשַׁלַּ֤ח אֶתְכֶם֙ וּזְבַחְתֶּ֞ם לַיהוָ֤ה אֱלֹֽהֵיכֶם֙ בַּמִּדְבָּ֔ר רַ֛ק הַרְחֵ֥ק לֹא־תַרְחִ֖יקוּ לָלֶ֑כֶת הַעְתִּ֖ירוּ בַּעֲדִֽי׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- And Pharaohפַּרְעֹהpar‛ôh · PharaohH6547
- saidאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
- I will let you goשָׁלַחshâlach · to send: departH7971
- that ye may sacrificeזָבַחzâbach · to sacrificeH2076
- to the Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
- your Godאֱלֹהִים'ĕlôhîym · GodH430
- in the wildernessמִדְבָּרmidbâr · wildernessH4057
- only ye shall not goיָלַךְyâlak · to walkH3212
- veryרָחַקrâchaq · to removeH7368
- intreatעָתַר‛âthar · to prayH6279
- for meבַּ֫עַדbe‛ad · about/through/forH1157
Cross-references for Exodus 8:28
- Hosea 10:2Their heart is divided; Now they are held guilty. He will break down their altars; He will ruin their sacred pillars.
- Exodus 8:8Then Pharaoh called for Moses and Aaron, and said, “Entreat the Lord that He may take away the frogs from me and from my people; and I will let the people go, that they may sacrifice to the Lord.”
- Exodus 9:28Entreat the Lord, that there may be no more mighty thundering and hail, for it is enough. I will let you go, and you shall stay no longer.”
- Exodus 10:17Now therefore, please forgive my sin only this once, and entreat the Lord your God, that He may take away from me this death only.”
- 1 Kings 13:6Then the king answered and said to the man of God, “Please entreat the favor of the Lord your God, and pray for me, that my hand may be restored to me.” So the man of God entreated the Lord, and the king’s hand was restored to him, and became as before.
- Ezra 6:10that they may offer sacrifices of sweet aroma to the God of heaven, and pray for the life of the king and his sons.
- Ecclesiastes 6:10Whatever one is, he has been named already, For it is known that he is man; And he cannot contend with Him who is mightier than he.
- Acts 8:24Then Simon answered and said, “Pray to the Lord for me, that none of the things which you have spoken may come upon me.”
Commentaries on Exodus 8:28
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 28I will let you go only ye shall not go very far away - Pharaoh relented because the hand of God was heavy upon him; but he was not willing to give up his gain. The Israelites were very profitable to him; they were slaves of the state, and their hard labor was very productive: hence he professed a willingness, first to tolerate their religion in the land, ( Exodus 8:25;); or to permit them to go into the wilderness, so that they went not far away, and…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 20-32Verses 20-32 Pharaoh was early at his false devotions to the river; and shall we be for more sleep and more slumber, when any service to the Lord is to be done? The Egyptians and the Hebrews were to be marked in the plague of flies. The Lord knows them that are his, and will make it appear, perhaps in this world, certainly in the other, that he has set them apart for himself. Pharaoh unwillingly entered into a treaty with Moses and Aaron. He is content…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 20-32The fourth plague was the plague of flies. The Egyptians worshiped insects such as flies that seemed to be able to turn death into life, as their young seemed to emerge from decaying matter. If the Egyptians thought that insects had the secret of life, God would let them have all the insects they wanted. Some say that this infestation was the natural result of all the dead frogs, but there were no flies in Goshen (8:22), the northeastern delta area where…Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 25-3225-32. Pharaoh called for Moses, ... Go ye, sacrifice to your God in the land, &c.--Between impatient anxiety to be freed from this scourge and a reluctance on the part of the Hebrew bondsmen, the king followed the course of expediency; he proposed to let them free to engage in their religious rites within any part of the kingdom. But true to his instructions, Moses would accede to no such arrangement; he stated a most valid reason to show the danger of…Read the comment
Topics related to Exodus 8:28
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Exodus 8
- 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
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
New King James Version — © 1982 Thomas Nelson, Inc
Commentaries