New Living Translation
Exodus 2:23
23Years passed, and the king of Egypt died. But the Israelites continued to groan under their burden of slavery. They cried out for help, and their cry rose up to God.
Exodus 2:23 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)And it came to pass in process of time, that the king of Egypt died: and the children of Israel sighed by reason of the bondage, and they cried, and their cry came up unto God by reason of the bondage.
- New International Version (NIV)During that long period, the king of Egypt died. The Israelites groaned in their slavery and cried out, and their cry for help because of their slavery went up to God.
- English Standard Version (ESV)During those many days the king of Egypt died, and the people of Israel groaned because of their slavery and cried out for help. Their cry for rescue from slavery came up to God.
- New King James Version (NKJV)Now it happened in the process of time that the king of Egypt died. Then the children of Israel groaned because of the bondage, and they cried out; and their cry came up to God because of the bondage.
Context of Exodus 2:23
21Moses accepted the invitation, and he settled there with him. In time, Reuel gave Moses his daughter Zipporah to be his wife. 22Later she gave birth to a son, and Moses named him Gershom, for he explained, “I have been a foreigner in a foreign land.” Years passed, and the king of Egypt died. But the Israelites continued to groan under their burden of slavery. They cried out for help, and their cry rose up to God. 24God heard their groaning, and he remembered his covenant promise to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. 25He looked down on the people of Israel and knew it was time to act.
Read all of Exodus 2Exodus 2:23 word by word
וַיְהִי֩ בַיָּמִ֨ים הָֽרַבִּ֜ים הָהֵ֗ם וַיָּ֙מָת֙ מֶ֣לֶךְ מִצְרַ֔יִם וַיֵּאָנְח֧וּ בְנֵֽי־יִשְׂרָאֵ֛ל מִן־הָעֲבֹדָ֖ה וַיִּזְעָ֑קוּ וַתַּ֧עַל שַׁוְעָתָ֛ם אֶל־הָאֱלֹהִ֖ים מִן־הָעֲבֹדָֽה׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- And it came to pass in processרַבrab · manyH7227
- And it came to pass in processהֵ֫מָּהhêm hêmmâh · they(masc.)H1992
- of timeיוֹםyôm · dayH3117
- that the kingמֶ֫לֶךְmelek · kingH4428
- of Egyptמִצְרַ֫יִםmitsrayim · EgyptH4714
- diedמוּתmûth · to dieH4191
- and the childrenבֵּןbên · son: descendant/peopleH1121
- of Israelיִשְׂרָאֵלyiώrâ'êl · IsraelH3478
- sighedאָנַח'ânach · to sighH584
- by reason ofמִן־min minnîy minnêy · fromH4480
- the bondageעֲבֹדָה‛ăbôdâh ‛ăbôdâh · serviceH5656
- and they criedזָעַקzâ‛aq · to cry outH2199
- and their cryשַׁוְעָהshav‛âh · cryH7775
- came upעָלָה‛âlâh · to ascend: riseH5927
- unto Godאֱלֹהִים'ĕlôhîym · GodH430
Cross-references for Exodus 2:23
- Exodus 7:7Moses was eighty years old, and Aaron was eighty-three when they made their demands to Pharaoh.
- Acts 7:30“Forty years later, in the desert near Mount Sinai, an angel appeared to Moses in the flame of a burning bush.
- Exodus 4:19Before Moses left Midian, the Lord said to him, “Return to Egypt, for all those who wanted to kill you have died.”
- Matthew 2:19When Herod died, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt.
- Acts 12:23Instantly, an angel of the Lord struck Herod with a sickness, because he accepted the people’s worship instead of giving the glory to God. So he was consumed with worms and died.
- Genesis 16:11And the angel also said, “You are now pregnant and will give birth to a son. You are to name him Ishmael (which means ‘God hears’), for the Lord has heard your cry of distress.
- Numbers 20:16But when we cried out to the Lord, he heard us and sent an angel who brought us out of Egypt. Now we are camped at Kadesh, a town on the border of your land.
- Deuteronomy 26:6When the Egyptians oppressed and humiliated us by making us their slaves,
- Psalms 12:5The Lord replies, “I have seen violence done to the helpless, and I have heard the groans of the poor. Now I will rise up to rescue them, as they have longed for me to do.”
- Exodus 3:7Then the Lord told him, “I have certainly seen the oppression of my people in Egypt. I have heard their cries of distress because of their harsh slave drivers. Yes, I am aware of their suffering.
- Exodus 22:22“You must not exploit a widow or an orphan.
- Genesis 4:10But the Lord said, “What have you done? Listen! Your brother’s blood cries out to me from the ground!
- Genesis 18:20So the Lord told Abraham, “I have heard a great outcry from Sodom and Gomorrah, because their sin is so flagrant.
- Deuteronomy 24:15You must pay them their wages each day before sunset because they are poor and are counting on it. If you don’t, they might cry out to the Lord against you, and it would be counted against you as sin.
- Judges 10:11The Lord replied, “Did I not rescue you from the Egyptians, the Amorites, the Ammonites, the Philistines,
- Nehemiah 9:9“You saw the misery of our ancestors in Egypt, and you heard their cries from beside the Red Sea.
Commentaries on Exodus 2:23
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 23In process of time - the king of Egypt died - According to St. Stephen, ( Acts 7:30, compared with Exodus 7:7;), the death of the Egyptian king happened about forty years after the escape of Moses to Midian. The words ההם הרבים בימים ויהי vayehi baiyamim harabbim hahem, which we translate And it came to pass in process of time, signify, And it was in many days from these that the king, etc. It has already been remarked that Archbishop Usher supposes this…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 23In process of time - Nearly forty years Acts 7:30. This verse marks the beginning of another section. We now enter at once upon the history of the Exodus. Their cry came up unto God - This statement, taken in connection with the two following verses, proves that the Israelites retained their faith in the God of their Fathers. The divine name, “God,” אלהים 'ĕlohı̂ym is chosen because it was that which the Israelites must have used in their cry for help…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 23-25Verses 23-25 The Israelites' bondage in Egypt continued, though the murdering of their infants did not continue. Sometimes the Lord suffers the rod of the wicked to lie very long and very heavy on the lot of the righteous. At last they began to think of God under their troubles. It is a sign that the Lord is coming towards us with deliverance, when he inclines and enables us to cry to him for it. God heard their groaning; he made it to appear that he took…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 16-25This passage shows the concern Moses felt for the oppressed. It describes his move to a new land (2:18–22). He married, had a child, and lived there for 40 years (Acts 7:30). From a human perspective, rescuing the Israelites through Moses seemed impossible. But what God's perspective is what matters. The end of this section tells us that God had not forgotten his people (Exodus 2:23–25). He was only waiting for the right time to act (2:25).Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 2323. the king of Egypt died: and the children of Israel sighed by reason of the bondage--The language seems to imply that the Israelites had experienced a partial relaxation, probably through the influence of Moses' royal patroness; but in the reign of her father's successor the persecution was renewed with increased severity.Read the comment
Topics related to Exodus 2:23
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Exodus 2
- 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
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