Exodus 5

Exodus 5

Exodus 5:1 After that, Moses and Aaron went and said to Pharaoh, “This is what Yahveh – the God of Israel – says, ‘Let my people go, so that they may hold a feast to me in the open country.'”

Exodus 5:2 But Pharaoh said, “Who is Yahveh, that I should obey his voice and let Israel go? I do not know Yahveh, and I will not also let Israel go.”

Exodus 5:3 Then they said, “The God of the Hebrews has met with us. Please let us go a three days’ journey into the open country that we may sacrifice to Yahveh our God, or else he will fall upon us with pestilence or with the sword.”

Exodus 5:4 But the king of Egypt said to them, “Moses and Aaron, why do you take the people away from their work? Get back to your burdens.”

Exodus 5:5 And Pharaoh said, “Notice, the people of the land are now many, and you are making them rest from their burdens!”

Exodus 5:6 The same day Pharaoh commanded the slavedrivers of the people and their foremen,

Exodus 5:7 “You will no longer provide straw for the people to make bricks, as you have in the past; let them go and gather straw for themselves.

Exodus 5:8 But you will impose on them the same number of bricks that they made in the past, you will not reduce it, because they are lazy. Therefore, they cry, ‘Let us go and offer sacrifice to our God.’

Exodus 5:9 Let heavier work be laid on the men that they may labor at it and pay no regard to lying words.”

Exodus 5:10 So the slavedrivers and the foremen of the people went out and said to the people, “Thus says Pharaoh, ‘I will not give you straw.

Exodus 5:11 Go and get your straw yourselves wherever you can find it, but your work will not be reduced at all.'”

Exodus 5:12 So the people were scattered throughout all the land of Egypt to gather stubble for straw.

Exodus 5:13 The slavedrivers pressed them, and this is what they said, “Finish your work, your daily task each day, just as when there was straw.”

Exodus 5:14 And the foremen of the people of Israel, whom Pharaoh’s slavedrivers had set over them, were beaten and were asked, “Why have you not done all your prescribed task[1] of making bricks today and yesterday, as in the past?”

Exodus 5:15 Then the foremen of the people of Israel came and cried to Pharaoh, and this is what they said “Why do you treat your slaves like this?

Exodus 5:16 No straw is given to your slaves, yet they say to us, ‘Make bricks!’ And notice, your slaves are beaten; but your own people have failed.”[2]

Exodus 5:17 But he said, “You are lazy, you are lazy; that is why you say, ‘Let us go and sacrifice to Yahveh.’

Exodus 5:18 Go now and get to work. No straw will be given you, but you must still deliver the same number of bricks.”

Exodus 5:19 The foremen of the people of Israel saw that they were in trouble when they said, “You will not reduce your number of bricks, your daily task each day.”

Exodus 5:20 They met Moses and Aaron, who stood before them, as they came out from Pharaoh;

Exodus 5:21 and they said to them, “Yahveh look on you and judge, because you have made us stink in the eyes of Pharaoh and his slaves and have put a sword in their hand to kill us.”

Exodus 5:22 Then Moses turned to Yahveh and said, “O LORD, why have you done evil to this people? Why did you ever send me?

Exodus 5:23 Because since I came to Pharaoh to speak in your name, he has done evil to this people, and you have not stripped your people at all.”

[1] חֹק = prescribed task. Exodus 5:14; 12:24; 15:25, 26; 18:16, 20; 29:28; 30:21.

[2] חָטָא = fail. Exodus 5:16; 9:27, 34; 10:16; 20:20; 23:33; 29:36; 32:30, 31, 33.0; 29:28; 30:21.

Exodus 5 quotes:

“Here Moses was, finally doing God’s will God’s way. And what happened? Everything went wrong! Pharaoh rejected his request and tightened the screws of oppression on the Hebrews. Even Moses’ people turned against him, faulting him for their increased labors.”

Swindoll, Charles R., and William D. Watkins. Moses, God’s Man for a Crisis Bible Study Guide from the Bible-Teaching Ministry of Charles R. Swindoll. Insight for Living ; Distributed by Word, Educational Products Division, 1985. p. 62.

“First, Moses went to the source of the enslavement he wanted to destroy—the Pharaoh (Exodus 5:1). We too must go the sources of the slavery we want to end. If our children are being oppressed by false philosophies in their schools, then we must go to the school boards with our complaints instead of talking behind their backs. If laws in our communities are inadequate or unfair, then let us go to the sources of these laws to seek changes.”

Staton, Knofel. Struggle for Freedom. New Life Books, 1977. p. 29.

“Exodus 5 sees the full engagement of the conflict concerning who was in control and who would be served. The Egyptian perspective was that the hierarchy of service went as follows: Pharaoh — other gods > Egyptians > other peoples including the Hebrews. The book of Exodus has another perspective: Yahweh — Moses, Aaron, and the Hebrews > Pharaoh. The conflict between these two political models will not be resolved until 12:31-33, when Pharaoh says, “Leave … Go, worship the LORD.” Here in Exodus 5, however, the pharaoh wins the first round. Moses is in the midst of the fray when God renews his call in Exodus 6. God does not leave him without guidance when Moses seeks the face of the Lord.”

Bruckner, James K. Exodus. Hendrickson Publishers ; Paternoster, 2008. p. 62.