Now the LORD had said to Moses in Midian, “Go back to Egypt, for all the men who sought to kill you are dead.”
Parallel translations
- WEB Yahweh said to Moses in Midian, “Go, return into Egypt; for all the men who sought your life are dead.”
- KJV And the LORD said unto Moses in Midian, Go, return into Egypt: for all the men are dead which sought thy life.
- NKJV Now the Lord said to Moses in Midian, “Go, return to Egypt; for all the men who sought your life are dead.”
- NASB Now the Lord said to Moses in Midian, “Go back to Egypt, for all the men who were seeking your life are dead.”
- NLT Before Moses left Midian, the Lord said to him, “Return to Egypt, for all those who wanted to kill you have died.”
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
God reassures Moses that those who sought his life are dead, removing a barrier to his return. The Lord clears the way and steadies His servant's fears.
Overview
God speaks again in Midian, addressing the lingering danger that drove Moses to flee Egypt decades earlier. The removal of his enemies by death shows God's providence ordering circumstances for the mission's success. This gracious reassurance, paralleling later words to Joseph about Herod, displays how God prepares the path and calms His servants before sending them into hard tasks.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 3
- Matt 2:20“Get up!” he said. “Take the Child and His mother and go to the land of Israel, for those seeking the Child’s life are now dead.”
- Exod 2:15When Pharaoh heard about this matter, he sought to kill Moses. But Moses fled from Pharaoh and settled in the land of Midian, where he sat down beside a well.
- Exod 2:23After a long time, the king of Egypt died. The Israelites groaned and cried out under their burden of slavery, and their cry for deliverance from bondage ascended to God.
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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 4:19 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
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