EXO 34

Exodus 34:16

WEB

and you take of their daughters to your sons, and their daughters play the prostitute after their gods, and make your sons play the prostitute after their gods.

BSB

And when you take some of their daughters as brides for your sons, their daughters will prostitute themselves to their gods and cause your sons to do the same.

KJV

And thou take of their daughters unto thy sons, and their daughters go a whoring after their gods, and make thy sons go a whoring after their gods.

Matthew Henry

Verses 10–17

Exodus 34:10–17

Reconciliation being made, a covenant of friendship is here settled between God and Israel. The traitors are not only pardoned, but preferred and made favourites again. Well may the assurances of this be ushered in with a behold, a word commanding attention and admiration: Behold, I make a covenant. When the covenant was broken, it was Israel that broke it; now that it comes to be renewed, it is God that makes it. If there be quarrels, we must bear all the blame; if there be peace, God must have all the glory. Here is,

I. God's part of this covenant, what he would do for them, Exo 34:10, Exo 34:11. 1. In general: Before all thy people, I will do marvels. Note, Covenant-blessings are marvellous things (Psa 98:1), marvels in the kingdom of grace; those mentioned here were marvels in the kingdom of nature, the drying up of Jordan, the standing still of the sun, etc. Marvels indeed, for they were without precedent, such as have not been done in all the earth. They were the joy of Israel, and the confirmation of their faith: Thy people shall see, and own the work of the Lord. And they were the terror of their enemies: It is a terrible thing that I will do. Nay, even God's own people should see them with astonishment. 2. In particular: I drive out before thee the Amorite. God, as King of nations, plucks up some, to plant others, as it pleases him; as King of saints, he made room for the vine he brought out of Egypt, Psa 80:8, Psa 80:9. Kingdoms are sacrificed to Israel's interests, Isa 43:3, Isa 43:4.

II. Their part of the covenant: Observe that which I command thee. We cannot expect the benefit of the promises unless we make conscience of the precepts.

1. The two great precepts are, (1.) Thou shalt worship no other gods (Exo 34:14), not give divine honour to any creature, or any name whatsoever, the creature of fancy. A good reason is annexed. It is at thy peril if thou do: For the Lord, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God, as tender in the matters of his worship as the husband is of the honour of the marriage-bed. Jealousy is called the rage of a man (Pro 6:34), but it is God's holy and just displeasure. Those cannot worship God aright who do not worship him alone. (2.) "Thou shalt make thee no molten god (Exo 34:17); thou shalt not worship the true God by images." This was the sin they had lately fallen into, which therefore they are particularly cautioned against.

2. Fences are here erected about these two precepts by two others: (1.) That they might not be tempted to worship other gods, they must not join in affinity or friendship with those that did (Exo 34:12): "Take heed to thyself, for thou art upon thy good behaviour. It is a sin that thou art prone to and that will easily beset thee, and therefore be very cautious, and carefully abstain from all appearances of it and advances towards it. Make no covenant with the inhabitants of the land." If God, in kindness to them, drove out the Canaanites, they ought, in duty to God, not to harbour them. What could be insisted on more reasonable than this? If God make war with the Canaanites, let not Israel make peace with them. If God take care that the Canaanites be not their lords, let them take care that they be not their snares. It was for their civil interest to complete the conquest of the land; so much does God consult our benefit in the laws he gives us. They must particularly take heed of intermarrying with them, Exo 34:15, Exo 34:16. If they espoused their children, they would be in danger of espousing their gods; such is the corruption of nature that the bad are much more likely to debauch the good than the good to reform the bad. The way of sin is downhill: those that are in league with idolaters will come by degrees to be in love with idolatry; and those that are prevailed upon to eat of the idolatrous sacrifice will come at length to offer it. Obsta principiis - Nip the mischief in the bud. (2.) That they might not be tempted to make molten gods, they must utterly destroy those they found and all that belong to them, the altars and groves (Exo 34:13), lest, if these were left standing, they should be brought, in process of time, either to use them or to take pattern by them, or to abate in their detestation and dread of idolatry. The relics of idolatry ought to be abolished as affronts to the holy God and a great reproach to human nature. Let it never be said that men who pretend to reason were ever guilty of such absurdities as to make gods of their own and worship them.

Cross-references: Exod 34:10 · Exod 34:11 · Ps 98:1 · Ps 80:8 · Ps 80:9 · Isa 43:3 · Isa 43:4 · Exod 34:14 · Prov 6:34 · Exod 34:17 · Exod 34:12 · Exod 34:15 · Exod 34:16 · Exod 34:13

Hebrew interlinear

H3947

לָקַחlâqach/law-kakh'/

v — take

Derivation: a primitive root;

to take (in the widest variety of applications)

KJV: accept, bring, buy, carry away, drawn, fetch, get, infold, × many, mingle, place, receive(-ing), reserve, seize, send for, take (away, -ing, up), use, win.

לָקַח

vb — take

לָקַח 965 vb. take

Qal

1. take, take in hand

2. take and carry along with oneself

3.

a. take from, or out of

b. take, carry away

c. take away from, so as to deprive of

d. esp. take away life

4. take to or for a person

5. take up, upon = put upon

6. = fetch

7. take = lead, conduct (with or without contact)

8. take = capture, seize

9. take = carry off

10. in phr. take vengeance

Niph.

1. be captured, of ark

2. be taken away, removed

3. be taken, brought unto

Pu.

1. be taken from, out of

2. = be stolen from

3. be taken captive

4. be taken away, removed

Hoph.

1. be taken, brought unto

2. be taken out of

3. be taken away from

Hithp. lit. fire taking hold of itself, of lightning

H1323

בַּתbath/bath/

n-f — daughter

Derivation: from 1129 (as feminine of 1121);

a daughter (used in the same wide sense as other terms of relationship, literally and figuratively)

KJV: apple (of the eye), branch, company, daughter, × first, × old, owl, town, village.

בַּת

n.f — daughter

בַּת 587 n.f. daughter

1. daughter, female child

2. young women, women

3. with name of city, land, or people, poet. personif. of that city or inhabitants

4. pl. = villages, after name of city

5. in phrases denoting character, quality, etc.

6. ostrich

7. fig.

8. of vine = branch

9. as n. relat.

H1121

בֵּןbên/bane/

n-m — son

Derivation: from 1129;

a son (as a builder of the family name), in the widest sense (of literal and figurative relationship, including grandson, subject, nation, quality or condition, etc., (like father or brother), etc.)

KJV: afflicted, age, (Ahoh-) (Ammon-) (Hachmon-) (Lev-) ite, (anoint-) ed one, appointed to, ( ) arrow, (Assyr-) (Babylon-) (Egypt-) (Grec-) ian, one born, bough, branch, breed, (young) bullock, (young) calf, × came up in, child, colt, × common, × corn, daughter, × of first, firstborn, foal, very fruitful, postage, × in, kid, lamb, ( ) man, meet, mighty, nephew, old, ( ) people, rebel, robber, × servant born, × soldier, son, spark, steward, stranger, × surely, them of, tumultuous one, valiant(-est), whelp, worthy, young (one), youth.

בֵּן

n.m — son

בֵּן 4870 n.m. son

1. son, male child, born of a woman

2. children (male and female)

3. youth, young men

4. the young of animals

5. of plant shoots

6. fig. of lifeless things, sparks, stars, arrows

7.

a. member of a guild, order or class

b. of animals son of (the) herd

8. ב׳ as n. relat. followed by word of quality, characteristic, etc.

9. n. relat. of age

בְּנוֹ

n.pr.m — his son

בְּנוֹ 1 Ch 24:26, 27 as n.pr.m. in AV, RV, but render: the sons of Jaaziah his son, & the sons of Merari by Jaaziah his son, cf. VB & Be Öt.

H2181

זָנָהzânâh/zaw-naw'/

v — commit adultery, commit idolatry

Derivation: a primitive root [highly fed and therefore wanton];

to commit adultery (usually of the female, and less often of simple fornication, rarely of involuntary ravishment); figuratively, to commit idolatry (the Jewish people being regarded as the spouse of Jehovah)

KJV: (cause to) commit fornication, × continually, × great, (be an, play the) harlot, (cause to be, play the) whore, (commit, fall to) whoredom, (cause to) go a-whoring, whorish.

זָנָה

vb — commit fornication

זָנָה vb. commit fornication, be a harlot

Qal

1. be or act as a harlot

2. fig. of improper intercourse with foreign nations

3. of intercourse with other deities

4. of moral defection

Pu. fornication was not done (in going) after thee

Hiph.

1. cause to commit fornication

2. commit fornication

H310

אַחַרʼachar/akh-ar'/

adv a — the hind part, after

Derivation: from 309;

properly, the hind part; generally used as an adverb or conjunction, after (in various senses)

KJV: after (that, -ward), again, at, away from, back (from, -side), behind, beside, by, follow (after, -ing), forasmuch, from, hereafter, hinder end, + out (over) live, + persecute, posterity, pursuing, remnant, seeing, since, thence(-forth), when, with.

אַחַר

adv — the hinder

אַחַר prop. subst. the hinder or following part

1. adv.

a. of place, behind

b. of time, afterwards

2. prep.

a. of place, behind, after

b. of time, after

3. conj. after that.

אַחֲרַי

adj — backwards

אַחֲרַי adj. Pr 28:23 a man that turneth backwards.

H430

אֱלֹהִיםʼĕlôhîym/el-o-heem'/

n-m — gods, God, magistrates

Derivation: plural of 433;

gods in the ordinary sense; but specifically used (in the plural thus, especially with the article) of the supreme God; occasionally applied by way of deference to magistrates; and sometimes as a superlative

KJV: angels, × exceeding, God (gods) (-dess, -ly), × (very) great, judges, × mighty.

אֱלֹהִים

n.m.pl — gods

אֱלֹהִים 2570 n.m.pl.

1. pl. in number.

a. rulers, judges, either as divine representatives at sacred places or as reflecting divine majesty and power

b. divine ones, superhuman beings including God and angels

c. angels

d. gods

2. pl. intensive

a. god or goddess

b. godlike one

c. works of God, or things belongng to him

d. God

3. הָאֱלֹהִים the (true) God

4. אֱלֹהִים = God

H853

אֵתʼêth/ayth/

prt — self, even, namely

Derivation: apparent contracted from 226 in the demonstrative sense of entity;

properly, self (but generally used to point out more definitely the object of a verb or preposition, even or namely)

KJV: [as such unrepresented in English].

אֵת

mark of the accusative

אֵת the mark of the accusative, prefixed as a rule only to nouns that are definite

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