translation_id: net-engnet

book_id: EXO

label: NET translator note

text: Or “congregation” (KJV, ASV, NASB, NRSV).


text: The text says that they journeyed “according to their journeyings.” Since the verb form (and therefore the derived noun) essentially means to pull up the tent pegs and move along, this verse would be saying that they traveled by stages, or, from place to place.


text: The disjunctive vav introduces a parenthetical clause that is essential for this passage – there was no water.


text: Here the construction uses a genitive after the infinitive construct for the subject: “there was no water for the drinking of the people” (GKC 353-54 §115. c ).


text: The verb וַיָּרֶב ( vayyarev ) is from the root רִיב ( riv ); it forms the basis of the name “Meribah.” The word means “strive, quarrel, be in contention” and even “litigation.” A translation “quarrel” does not appear to capture the magnitude of what is being done here. The people have a legal dispute – they are contending with Moses as if bringing a lawsuit.


text: The imperfect tense with the vav ( ו ) follows the imperative, and so it carries the nuance of the logical sequence, showing purpose or result. This may be expressed in English as “give us water so that we may drink,” but more simply with the English infinitive, “give us water to drink.” sn One wonders if the people thought that Moses and Aaron had water and were withholding it from the people, or whether Moses was able to get it on demand. The people should have come to Moses to ask him to pray to God for water, but their action led Moses to say that they had challenged God (B. Jacob, Exodus , 476).


text: In this case and in the next clause the imperfect tenses are to be taken as progressive imperfects – the action is in progress.


text: The verb נָסָה ( nasah ) means “to test, tempt, try, prove.” It can be used of people simply trying to do something that they are not sure of (such as David trying on Saul’s armor), or of God testing people to see if they will obey (as in testing Abraham, Gen 22:1 ), or of people challenging others (as in the Queen of Sheba coming to test Solomon), and of the people in the desert in rebellion putting God to the test. By doubting that God was truly in their midst, and demanding that he demonstrate his presence, they tested him to see if he would act. There are times when “proving” God is correct and required, but that is done by faith (as with Gideon); when it is done out of unbelief, then it is an act of disloyalty.


text: The verbs and the pronouns in this verse are in the singular because “the people” is singular in form.


text: The demonstrative pronoun is used as the enclitic form for special emphasis in the question; it literally says, “why is this you have brought us up?” (R. J. Williams, Hebrew Syntax , 24, §118).


text: The preposition lamed ( ל ) is here specification, meaning “with respect to” (see R. J. Williams, Hebrew Syntax , 49, §273).


text: Or “they are almost ready to stone me.”


text: The perfect tense with the vav ( ו ) consecutive almost develops an independent force; this is true in sentences where it follows an expression of time, as here (see GKC 334 §112. x ).


text: “Pass over before” indicates that Moses is the leader who goes first, and the people follow him. In other words, לִפְנֵי ( lifney ) indicates time and not place here (B. Jacob, Exodus , 477-78).


text: The construction uses הִנְנִי עֹמֵד ( hinni ’ omed ) to express the futur instans or imminent future of the verb: “I am going to be standing.” sn The reader has many questions when studying this passage – why water from a rock, why Horeb, why strike the rock when later only speak to it, why recall the Nile miracles, etc. B. Jacob ( Exodus , 479-80) says that all these are answered when it is recalled that they were putting God to the test. So water from the rock, the most impossible thing, cleared up the question of his power. Doing it at Horeb was significant because there Moses was called and told he would bring them to this place. Since they had doubted God was in their midst, he would not do this miracle in the camp, but would have Moses lead the elders out to Horeb. If people doubt God is in their midst, then he will choose not to be in their midst. And striking the rock recalled striking the Nile; there it brought death to Egypt, but here it brought life to Israel. There could be little further doubting that God was with them and able to provide for them.


text: Or “by” (NIV, NLT).


text: The form is a Hiphil perfect with the vav ( ו ) consecutive; it follows the future nuance of the participle and so is equivalent to an imperfect tense nuance of instruction.


text: These two verbs are also perfect tenses with vav ( ו ) consecutive: “and [water] will go out…and [the people] will drink.” But the second verb is clearly the intent or the result of the water gushing from the rock, and so it may be subordinated. sn The presence of Yahweh at this rock enabled Paul to develop a midrashic lesson, an analogical application: Christ was present with Israel to provide water for them in the wilderness. So this was a Christophany. But Paul takes it a step further to equate the rock with Christ, for just as it was struck to produce water, so Christ would be struck to produce rivers of living water. The provision of bread to eat and water to drink provided for Paul a ready analogy to the provisions of Christ in the gospel ( 1 Cor 10:4 ).


text: Heb “in the eyes of.”


text: Heb “and Amalek came”; NIV, NCV, TEV, CEV “the Amalekites.”


text: Or “fought with.”


text: This could be rendered literally “choose men for us.” But the lamed ( ל ) preposition probably indicates possession, “our men,” and the fact that Joshua was to choose from Israel, as well as the fact that there is no article on “men,” indicates he was to select some to fight.


text: The line in Hebrew reads literally: And Joshua did as Moses had said to him, to fight with Amalek. The infinitive construct is epexegetical, explaining what Joshua did that was in compliance with Moses’ words.


text: The two verbs in the temporal clauses are by וְהָיָה כַּאֲשֶׁר ( vÿhaya ka ’ asher , “ as long as ” or, “and it was that whenever”). This indicates that the two imperfect tenses should be given a frequentative translation, probably a customary imperfect.


text: Or “lower.”


text: Literally “now the hands of Moses,” the disjunctive vav ( ו ) introduces a circumstantial clause here – of time.


text: The term used here is the adjective כְּבֵדִים ( kÿvedim ). It means “heavy,” but in this context the idea is more that of being tired. This is the important word that was used in the plague stories: when the heart of Pharaoh was hard, then the Israelites did not gain their freedom or victory. Likewise here, when the staff was lowered because Moses’ hands were “heavy,” Israel started to lose.


text: Heb “from this, one, and from this, one.”


text: The word “steady” is אֱמוּנָה (’ emuna ) from the root אָמַן (’ aman ). The word usually means “faithfulness.” Here is a good illustration of the basic idea of the word – firm, steady, reliable, dependable. There may be a double entendre here; on the one hand it simply says that his hands were stayed so that Israel might win, but on the other hand it is portraying Moses as steady, firm, reliable, faithful. The point is that whatever God commissioned as the means or agency of power – to Moses a staff, to the Christians the Spirit – the people of God had to know that the victory came from God alone.


text: The verb means “disabled, weakened, prostrated.” It is used a couple of times in the Bible to describe how man dies and is powerless (see Job 14:10 ; Isa 14:12 ).


text: Or “people.”


text: Heb “mouth of the sword.” It means as the sword devours – without quarter (S. R. Driver, Exodus , 159).


text: The presence of the article does not mean that he was to write this in a book that was existing now, but in one dedicated to this purpose (book, meaning scroll). See GKC 408 §126. s .


text: The Hebrew word is “place,” meaning that the events were to be impressed on Joshua.


text: Heb “in the ears of Joshua.” The account should be read to Joshua.


text: The construction uses the infinitive absolute and the imperfect tense to stress the resolution of Yahweh to destroy Amalek. The verb מָחָה ( makhah ) is often translated “blot out” – but that is not a very satisfactory image, since it would not remove completely what is the object. “Efface, erase, scrape off” (as in a palimpsest, a manuscript that is scraped clean so it can be reused) is a more accurate image.


text: The line here is very difficult. The Hebrew text has כִּי־יָד עַל־כֵּס יָהּ ( ki yad ’ al kes yah , “for a hand on the throne of Yah”). If the word is “throne” (and it is not usually spelled like this), then it would mean Moses’ hand was extended to the throne of God, showing either intercession or source of power. It could not be turned to mean that the hand of Yah was taking an oath to destroy the Amalekites. The LXX took the same letters, but apparently saw the last four ( כסיה ) as a verbal form; it reads “with a secret hand.” Most scholars have simply assumed that the text is wrong, and כֵּס should be emended to נֵס ( nes ) to fit the name, for this is the pattern of naming in the OT with popular etymologies – some motif of the name must be found in the sentiment. This would then read, “My hand on the banner of Yah.” It would be an expression signifying that the banner, the staff of God, should ever be ready at hand when the Israelites fight the Amalekites again.