Neither the pillar of cloud by day nor the pillar of fire by night left its place before the people.
Parallel translations
- WEB the pillar of cloud by day, and the pillar of fire by night, didn’t depart from before the people.
- KJV He took not away the pillar of the cloud by day, nor the pillar of fire by night, from before the people.
- NKJV He did not take away the pillar of cloud by day or the pillar of fire by night from before the people.
- NASB He did not take away the pillar of cloud by day, nor the pillar of fire by night, from the presence of the people.
- NLT And the Lord did not remove the pillar of cloud or pillar of fire from its place in front of the people.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
The guiding pillars never departed from before the people, signaling God's constant, unbroken presence.
Overview
The emphasis that the cloud and fire 'didn't depart' assures Israel of unwavering divine companionship throughout the journey. God's leading is not intermittent but faithful and continuous, a comfort for a vulnerable people in a hostile wilderness. It foreshadows the promise that God will never leave nor forsake those He redeems.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 2
- Ps 121:5–8The LORD is your keeper; the LORD is the shade on your right hand.
- Rev 10:1Then I saw another mighty angel coming down from heaven, wrapped in a cloud, with a rainbow above his head. His face was like the sun, and his legs were like pillars of fire.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
The Passover lamb whose blood turns away death, the exodus through the sea, the manna, the rock, and the tabernacle where God dwells with his people all foreshadow Jesus — our Passover, our redemption, the bread from heaven, and God-with-us in the flesh.
How Exodus 13:22 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.