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Favor before the Egyptians

Favor before the Egyptians

Exodus 3:21


I will give this people favor refers to something God will give to the Israelites as a group, including Moses. But it is something that will be recognized in the sight of the Egyptians. So favor may be understood as “prestige” (JB), or some quality that would command the “respect” of the Egyptians. It may be easier to think of the Egyptians as the object of God’s action, as in 3:21 TEV: “I will make the Egyptians respect you.” In some languages the idea of “face” will be helpful here; for example, “I will lift up your face before the Egyptians,” or “I will cause you to have face before.…”

The second clause, and when you go …, states the purpose of God’s favor, so it is better introduced as “so that when you leave” (see 3:21 TEV). Some translations such as NJB relate the two clauses even more closely: “I shall ensure that the Egyptians are so much impressed with this people that when you go, you shall not go empty-handed.” You shall not go empty, of course, refers to the jewelry and clothing of the Egyptians which the Israelites will take with them. (See verse 22.) If the idea of empty-handed is difficult to translate, another way to express this final sentence is “they will take many valuable things with them.” The following verse describes these things.


Osborn, Noel D., and Howard A. Hatton. A Handbook on Exodus. New York: United Bible Societies, 1999. Print. UBS Handbook Series.

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