But Pharaoh said, “You are idle! You are idle! Therefore you say, ‘Let’s go and sacrifice to Yahweh.’
Parallel Translations
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But Pharaoh said, “You are idle! You are idle! Therefore you say, ‘Let’s go and sacrifice to Yahweh.’
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But he said, Ye are idle, ye are idle: therefore ye say, Let us go and do sacrifice to the LORD.
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But he said: 'Ye are idle, ye are idle; therefore ye say: Let us go and sacrifice to the LORD.
Cross-references (4)
Passages linked to Exodus 5:17 in the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge, ordered by reader-vote popularity; verse text shown in World English Bible.
- Exodus 5:8 You shall require from them the number of the bricks which they made before. You shall not diminish anything of it, for they are idle. Therefore they cry, saying, ‘Let’s go and sacrifice to our God.’
- Matthew 26:8 But when his disciples saw this, they were indignant, saying, “Why this waste?
- John 6:27 Don’t work for the food which perishes, but for the food which remains to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give to you. For God the Father has sealed him.”
- 2 Thessalonians 3:10-11 For even when we were with you, we commanded you this: “If anyone is not willing to work, don’t let him eat.” For we hear of some who walk among you in rebellion, who don’t work at all, but are busybodies.
Cross-references from openbible.info (CC BY 4.0)
Explain this verse (8 sources)
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Geneva Bible translators 1599 · Public Domain Hebrew, idle, ye are idle.
Hebrew, idle, ye are idle.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain Exo 5:17 But he said, Ye [are] idle, [ye…
Exo 5:17 But he said, Ye [are] idle, [ye are] idle: therefore ye say, Let us go [and] do sacrifice to the LORD.
Ver. 17. Ye are idle.] {See Trapp on "Exo 5:4"} {See Trapp on "Exo 5:8"}
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain But he said, ye are idle, ye are idle,....…
But he said, ye are idle, ye are idle,.... Instead of expressing indignation at the taskmasters, and relieving the officers and the people, he insults them in a flouting sarcastic way, charging them with sloth and idleness; and which, for the certainty of it, or, however, to show how strongly persuaded and fully assured he was of the truth of it, repeats it, and gives the following as a proof of it:
therefore ye say, let us go and do sacrifice to the Lord; suggesting that it was not so much the service and honour of God they regarded, as that they might have a leisure day from work and labour.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain Verse 17. Ye are idle - therefore ye say,…
Verse 17. Ye are idle - therefore ye say, Let us go and do sacrifice] It is common for those who feel unconcerned about their own souls to attribute the religious earnestness of others, who feel the importance of eternal things, to idleness or a disregard of their secular concerns. Strange that they cannot see there is a medium! He who has commanded them to be diligent in business, has also commanded them to be fervent in spirit, serving the Lord. He whose diligence in business is not connected with a true religious fervour of spirit, is a lover of the world; and whatever form he may have he has not the power of godliness, and therefore is completely out of the road to salvation.
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Albert Barnes 1834 · Public Domain Ye are idle - The old Egyptian language abounds…
Ye are idle - The old Egyptian language abounds in epithets which show contempt for idleness. The charge was equally offensive and ingenious; one which would be readily believed by Egyptians who knew how much public and private labors were impeded by festivals and other religious ceremonies. Among the great sins which, according to Egyptian belief, involved condemnation in the final judgment, idleness is twice mentioned.
Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain 17, 18. The king impatiently turns them away, repeating…
17, 18. The king impatiently turns them away, repeating the charge of idleness which he had made before (v. 8), and insisting again that they must produce the same amount of bricks as before.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain (17) Ye are idle.—Idleness was regarded by the Egyptians…
(17) Ye are idle.—Idleness was regarded by the Egyptians as one of the worst sins. It had to be specially disclaimed in the final judgment before Osiris (Birch, in Bunsen’s Egypt, vol. v. p. 254). Men sometimes disclaimed it in the epitaphs which they placed upon their tombs (Records of the Past, vol. vi. p. 137). Pharaoh had already made the charge, by implication, against Moses and Aaron (Exo_5:4). No doubt, among the Egyptians themselves, a good deal of idleness resulted from the frequent attendance upon religious festivals (Herod. ii. 59-64). Hence the charge might seem plausible.
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain Ye are idle, etc. Compare ver. 8. Pharaoh is…
Ye are idle, etc. Compare ver. 8. Pharaoh is evidently pleased with his "happy thought." It seems to him clever, witty, humorous, to tax overworked people with idleness; and equally clever to say to religious people religion is a mere pretence. You do not want to worship. You want a holiday." We may remark further that idleness and hypocrisy were two sins of the deepest dye, according to Egyptian notions.
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.