Exodus 14:3

Exodus 14:3 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)For Pharaoh will say of the children of Israel, They are entangled in the land, the wilderness hath shut them in.
• New International Version (NIV)Pharaoh will think, ‘The Israelites are wandering around the land in confusion, hemmed in by the desert.’
• English Standard Version (ESV)For Pharaoh will say of the people of Israel, 'They are wandering in the land; the wilderness has shut them in.'
• New King James Version (NKJV)For Pharaoh will say of the children of Israel, ‘They are bewildered by the land; the wilderness has closed them in.’

Context of Exodus 14:3

1Then the Lord gave these instructions to Moses: 2“Order the Israelites to turn back and camp by Pi-hahiroth between Migdol and the sea. Camp there along the shore, across from Baal-zephon. Then Pharaoh will think, ‘The Israelites are confused. They are trapped in the wilderness!’ 4And once again I will harden Pharaoh’s heart, and he will chase after you. I have planned this in order to display my glory through Pharaoh and his whole army. After this the Egyptians will know that I am the Lord!” So the Israelites camped there as they were told. 5When word reached the king of Egypt that the Israelites had fled, Pharaoh and his officials changed their minds. “What have we done, letting all those Israelite slaves get away?” they asked.

Exodus 14:3 word by word

וְאָמַ֤ר פַּרְעֹה֙ לִבְנֵ֣י יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל נְבֻכִ֥ים הֵ֖ם בָּאָ֑רֶץ סָגַ֥ר עֲלֵיהֶ֖ם הַמִּדְבָּֽר׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• For Pharaohפַּרְעֹהpar‛ôh · PharaohH6547
• will sayאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
• of the childrenבֵּןbên · son: descendant/peopleH1121
• of Israelיִשְׂרָאֵלyiώrâ'êl · IsraelH3478
• entangledבּוּךְbûk · to perplexH943
• in the landאֶ֫רֶץ'erets · land: country/planetH776
• the wildernessמִדְבָּרmidbâr · wildernessH4057
• hath shut them inסָגַרsâgar · to shutH5462

Cross-references for Exodus 14:3

• Exodus 7:3But I will make Pharaoh’s heart stubborn so I can multiply my miraculous signs and wonders in the land of Egypt.
• Deuteronomy 31:21And when great disasters come down on them, this song will stand as evidence against them, for it will never be forgotten by their descendants. I know the intentions of these people, even now before they have entered the land I swore to give them.”
• Psalms 139:2You know when I sit down or stand up. You know my thoughts even when I’m far away.
• Ezekiel 38:10“This is what the Sovereign Lord says: At that time evil thoughts will come to your mind, and you will devise a wicked scheme.
• Acts 4:28But everything they did was determined beforehand according to your will.
• Judges 16:2Word soon spread that Samson was there, so the men of Gaza gathered together and waited all night at the town gates. They kept quiet during the night, saying to themselves, “When the light of morning comes, we will kill him.”
• 1 Samuel 23:7Saul soon learned that David was at Keilah. “Good!” he exclaimed. “We’ve got him now! God has handed him over to me, for he has trapped himself in a walled town!”
• Psalms 3:2So many are saying, “God will never rescue him!” Interlude
• Psalms 71:11They say, “God has abandoned him. Let’s go and get him, for no one will help him now.”
• Jeremiah 20:10I have heard the many rumors about me. They call me “The Man Who Lives in Terror.” They threaten, “If you say anything, we will report it.” Even my old friends are watching me, waiting for a fatal slip. “He will trap himself,” they say, “and then we will get our revenge on him.”

Commentaries on Exodus 14:3

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 3They are entangled in the land - God himself brought them into straits from which no human power or art could extricate them. Consider their situation when once brought out of the open country, where alone they had room either to fight or fly. Now they had the Red Sea before them, Pharaoh and his host behind them, and on their right and left hand fortresses of the Egyptians to prevent their escape; nor had they one boat or transport prepared for their…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 3They are entangled … - The original intention of Moses was to go toward Palestine by the wilderness: when that purpose was changed by God‘s direction and they moved southwards, Pharaoh, on receiving information, was of course aware that they were completely shut in, since the waters of the Red Sea then extended to the Bitter Lakes. It is known that the Red Sea at some remote period extended considerably further toward the north than it does at present. In…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 1-4The Lord’s redemptive power was demonstrated as he brought Israel into a place where they were completely helpless and had to either rely on him for rescue or die. At the time, it might have seemed foolish. But Israel would thank God throughout its history for guiding them to that situation (see Psalm 106:7–12; compare Isaiah 12:2–6).Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 33. the wilderness hath shut them in--Pharaoh, who would eagerly watch their movements, was now satisfied that they were meditating flight, and he naturally thought from the error into which they appeared to have fallen by entering that defile, he could intercept them. He believed them now entirely in his power, the mountain chain being on one side, the sea on the other, so that, if he pursued them in the rear, escape seemed impossible.Read the comment

Topics related to Exodus 14:3

• God Continued...

In the dictionaries

• Israel
• Pharaoh
• Israel, Israelites
• Jacob, Israel
• Pharaoh, king of Egypt
• Children of Israel
• Better
• Cover
• Heavily
• Lack

Commentaries on Exodus 14

• 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