Exodus 20:19 - Forerunner Commentary

Exodus 20:19

17 ^a“You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; ^byou shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, nor his male servant, nor his female servant, nor his ox, nor his donkey, nor anything that is your neighbor’s.”

The People Afraid of God’s Presence

18 Now ^aall the people ^bwitnessed the thunderings, the lightning flashes, the sound of the trumpet, and the mountain ^csmoking; and when the people saw it, they trembled and stood afar off.

19 Then they said to Moses, ^a“You speak with us, and we will hear; but ^blet not God speak with us, lest we die.”

20 And Moses said to the people, ^a“Do not fear; ^bfor God has come to test you, and ^cthat His fear may be before you, so that you may not sin.”

21 So the people stood afar off, but Moses drew near ^athe thick darkness where God was.

The Law of the Altar

22 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Thus you shall say to the children of Israel: ‘You have seen that I have talked with you ^afrom heaven.

Verse Comparison: Exodus 20:19

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American Standard Version
And they said unto Moses, Speak thou with us, and we will hear; but let not God speak with us, lest we die.

Amplified® Bible
And they said to Moses, You speak to us and we will listen, but let not God speak to us, lest we die.

Contemporary English Version
and said to Moses, "If you speak to us, we will listen. But don't let God speak to us, or we will die!"

Darby English Version
and said to Moses, Speak thou with us, and we will hear; but let not God speak with us, lest we die.

Good News Bible
They said to Moses, "If you speak to us, we will listen; but we are afraid that if God speaks to us, we will die."

King James Version
And they said unto Moses, Speak thou with us, and we will hear: but let not God speak with us, lest we die.

New American Standard Bible
Then they said to Moses, "Speak to us yourself and we will listen; but let not God speak to us, or we will die."

New International Version
and said to Moses, "Speak to us yourself and we will listen. But do not have God speak to us or we will die."

New King James Version
Then they said to Moses, "You speak with us, and we will hear; but let not God speak with us, lest we die."

N.A.S.B. in E-Prime
Then they said to Moses, "Speak to us yourself and we will listen; but let not God speak to us, or we will die."

Revised Standard Version
and said to Moses, "You speak to us, and we will hear; but let not God speak to us, lest we die."

Young's Literal Translation
and say unto Moses, `Speak thou with us, and we hear, and let not God speak with us, lest we die.'

New English Translation
They said to Moses, “You speak¹ to us and we will listen, but do not let God speak with us, lest we die.”

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