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Exodus Chapter Twenty-three

 

Exodus 23 Outlines

Justice for All (v.1~9)

The Law of Sabbaths (v.10~13)

Three Annual Feasts (v.14~19)

The Angel and the Promises (v.20~33)

New King James Version (NKJV)

 

INTRODUCTION TO EXODUS 23

This chapter contains several laws chiefly judicial relating to the civil polity of Israel as concerning witness borne and judgment made of cases in courts of judicature without any respect to poor or rich and without the influence of a bribe Exodus 23:1 concerning doing good to an enemy in case any of his cattle go astray or fall under their burden Exodus 23:4 and of the oppression of a stranger Exodus 23:9 and then follow others concerning the sabbath of the seventh year and of the seventh day with a caution against the use of the names of idols Exodus 23:10 next are laws concerning the appearance of all their males at the three feasts Exodus 23:14 and concerning the slaying of the sacrifice of the passover and bringing the first of the firstfruits of the land Exodus 23:18 and then a promise is made of sending an angel to them to bring them into the land of Canaan where they should carefully avoid all idolatry and show a just indignation against it and serve the Lord and then it would be well with them Exodus 23:20 and particularly it is promised that the Lord would send his fear and his hornets before them to destroy the inhabitants of the land and drive out the rest by little and little until they should possess the utmost borders of it which are fixed Exodus 23:27 and the chapter is concluded with a direction not to make a covenant with these people or their gods nor suffer them to dwell among them lest they should be a snare unto them Exodus 23:32.

 

Exodus 23:1  “You shall not circulate a false report. Do not put your hand with the wicked to be an unrighteous witness.

   YLT  1`Thou dost not lift up a vain report; thou dost not put thy hand with a wicked man to be a violent witness.

Thou shalt not raise a false report .... Of a neighbour or of any man whatever either secretly by private slanders whispers backbiting and tale bearing by innuendos detracting from his good name and credit suggesting things false and wicked concerning him; or publicly in a court of judicature bringing a false accusation laying a false charge and bearing a false testimony against him: or "thou shall not receive a false report"F16לא תשא "non suscipies" V. L. Pegninus Vatablus Drusius Fagius. ; if there were not so many that say Report and we will report it that are ready to receive every ill thing of their neighbours there would not be so many that would raise such ill things of them; everything of this kind should be discountenanced and especially by judges in courts of judicature who are chiefly spoken to and of in the context; these should not easily admit every charge and accusation brought; nor bear or endure a false report as the word also signifies but discourage and even punish it:

put not thine hand with the wicked to be an unrighteous witness; which is not a gesture used in swearing such as with us of putting the hand upon a book which did not obtain so early; nor is there any instance of this kind in Scripture; the gesture used in swearing was either putting the hand under the thigh which yet is questionable or lifting of it up to heaven; but here it is expressive of confederacy of joining hand in hand to carry on a prosecution in an unrighteous way by bearing false testimony against another; and such were to be guarded against and not admitted to give evidence in a cause even a man that is known to be a wicked man or to have been an unrighteous witness before; on the one hand a man should be careful of joining with him in a testimony that is unrighteous; and on the other hand judges should take care not to suffer such to be witnesses. The Jews sayF17Maimon. & Bartenora in Misn. Sanhedrin c. 3. sect. 3. that everyone that is condemned to be scourged or has been scourged for some crime committed is reckoned a wicked man and he is not to be admitted a witness nor his testimony taken.

 

Exodus 23:2  2 You shall not follow a crowd to do evil; nor shall you testify in a dispute so as to turn aside after many to pervert justice.

   YLT  2`Thou art not after many to evil nor dost thou testify concerning a strife to turn aside after many to cause [others] to turn aside;

Thou shalt not follow a multitude to do evil .... The Targums of Jerusalem and Jonathan add but to do good. As in private life the examples of the many who are generally the most wicked are not to be followed though they too often are; examples and especially of the multitude having great influence and therefore to be guarded against; so in public courts of judicature where there are many judges upon the bench if one of them is sensible that the greater part go wrong in their judgment of a case he ought not to follow them or be influenced by them but go according to the dictates of his own conscience and the evidence of things as they appear to him and neither agree to justify the wicked nor condemn the righteous:

neither shall thou speak in a cause to decline after many to wrest judgment; or "thou shalt not answer"F18ולא תענה "neque respondeas" Tigurine version; "non respondebis" Pagninus Montanus Vatablus Drusius. ; either in pleading in a cause and taking the side of it the majority is on and for that reason though it is a manifest perversion of justice; or by giving a vote on that side and on that account whereby a wrong judgment passes; and this vote given either according to the number of witnesses which ought not always to be the rule of judgment; for it is not the number of witnesses but the nature evidence and circumstances of their testimony that are to be regarded: Jarchi says in judgments of life and death they go after the mouth of one witness to absolve and after the mouth of two to condemn: or according to the number of judges on the bench and their superiority in years and knowledge; and so some render the word "after the great ones"F19אחרי רבים "post potentiores" Junius & Tremellius; "post magnos" Lyra Cartwright. ; for a judge is not to be influenced by names or numbers in giving his vote but to judge according to the truth of things as they appear to him: hence the Jews say that the younger or puisne judges used to be asked their judgment first that they might not be influenced by others superior to them; and a like method is taken with us in the trial of a peer the younger lords always giving their opinion first: as to the number of votes by which a cause was carried in court it is saidF20Misn. Sanhedrin c. 1. sect. 6. not as the decline to good is the decline to evil; the decline to good i.e. to absolution is by the sentence of one (a majority of one); the decline to evil i.e. to condemnation is by the mouth or sentence of two a majority of two.

 

Exodus 23:3  3 You shall not show partiality to a poor man in his dispute.

   YLT  3and a poor man thou dost not honour in his strife.

Neither shalt thou countenance a poor man in his cause. Because he is a poor man and for that reason endeavour to carry his cause for him right or wrong from a foolish pity to him as a poor man and from an affectation of gaining the applause of people on that account; or "thou shalt not honour" or "adorn" a poor manF21לא תהדר "non honorabis" Pagninus Vatablus Drusius Cartwright; "non decorabis" Montanus; "ne ornes" Tigurine version; "ne honorato" Junius & Tremellius; "ne ornato" Piscator. by a set speech in favour of his cause though wrong dressed up in the best manner and set off with all the colourings of art to make it appear in the most plausible manner; the law is against respect of persons as not the person of the rich so neither is the person of the poor to be accepted but the justice of their cause is to be regarded; so the Targum of Jonathan "the poor that is guilty in his judgment or cause his face (or person) thou shalt not accept to have pity on him for no person is to be accepted in judgment.'

 

Exodus 23:4  4 “If you meet your enemy’s ox or his donkey going astray you shall surely bring it back to him again.

   YLT  4`When thou meetest thine enemy's ox or his ass going astray thou dost certainly turn it back to him;

If thou meet thine enemy's ox or his ass going astray .... Or any other beast as the Samaritan version adds; for these are only mentioned for instances as being more common and creatures subject to go astray; now when such as these are met going astray so as to be in danger of being lost to the owner though he is an enemy; or as the Targum of Jonathan "whom thou hatest because of a sin which thou alone knowest in him;'yet this was not so far to prejudice the finder of his beasts against him as to be careless about them to suffer them to go on without acquainting him with them or returning them to him as follows:

thou shalt surely bring it back to him again; whether it be an ox or an ass or any other beast the law is very strong and binding upon the finder to return it to his neighbour though an enemy and bring it either to his field or to his farm.

 

Exodus 23:5  5 If you see the donkey of one who hates you lying under its burden and you would refrain from helping it you shall surely help him with it.

   YLT  5when thou seest the ass of him who is hating thee crouching under its burden then thou hast ceased from leaving [it] to it -- thou dost certainly leave [it] with him.

If thou see the ass of him that hateth thee lying under his burden .... Fallen down and such a burden upon him that he cannot rise up again but lies under it and the owner of it is not able of himself to raise it up again:

and wouldst forbear to help him; show an inclination to pass on without giving him any assistance to get up his beast again; or "wouldst thou forbear to help him?"F23וחדלת מעזב "num desines sublevare eum?" some in Vatablus; "cessabis auxitiari ei?" Drusius; "desines auxiliari ei?" Pagninus. as Jarchi and others read with an interrogation could it be in thine heart to forbear helping him? couldest thou go on and take no notice of him and his case and not join him in endeavouring to get up his beast again that he may proceed its his journey? canst thou be so cruel and hardhearted though he is thine enemy? but if thou art know this:

thou shalt surely help with him; to get up his ass again: hence the Jewish canon runs thusF24Misn. Bava Metzia c. 2. sect. 10. "if an ass is unloaded and loaded four or five times a man is bound i.e. to help as it is said "in helping thou shalt help"; if he (the owner) goes away and sets himself down seeing the command is upon thee if it is thy will and pleasure to unload unload he is free; for it is said with him; if he is an old man or sick he is bound the command of the law is to unload but not to load.'The words may be rendered "in leaving thou shalt leave with him"F25"Deserendo deseres cum eo" Montanus; so Ainsworth. ; either leave or forsake thine enmity to help him as Onkelos; or leave thy business thou art about to lend him an hand to raise up his beast again.

 

Exodus 23:6  6 “You shall not pervert the judgment of your poor in his dispute.

   YLT  6`Thou dost not turn aside the judgment of thy needy one in his strife;

Thou shalt not wrest the judgment of thy poor in his cause. As the poor man was not to be favoured when his cause was bad through an affected pity for him as a poor man so his judgment was not to be wrested or perverted when his cause was good because of his poverty; which is too often the case through the power of rich men and the prevalence of their gifts and bribes and to curry favour with them: the phrase "thy poor" is very emphatic and intended to engage judges to regard them as being of the same flesh and blood with them of the same nation and religion; and who were particularly committed to their care and protection under God who is the Judge and protector of the poor of the widow and the fatherless.

 

Exodus 23:7  7 Keep yourself far from a false matter; do not kill the innocent and righteous. For I will not justify the wicked.

   YLT  7from a false matter thou dost keep far off and an innocent and righteous man thou dost not slay; for I do not justify a wicked man.

Keep thee far from a false matter .... Or "word"F26מדבר שקר "a verbo mendacii" Pagninus Montanus Vatablus Drusius Junius & Tremellius Tigurine version Fagius. ; from receiving a false testimony or taking the false or wrong side of a cause or engaging in a bad one; keep aloof off from it as much at a distance from it as possible:

and the innocent and the righteous slay thou not; that is do not condemn them to death nor join with the majority in their condemnation if they appear to be innocent and righteous; nor give orders or join in giving orders to the executioner to put such to death. The Targum of Jonathan is "he that goes righteous out of the house of thy judgment (out of the sanhedrim to which he belonged) and they find out his sin (afterwards) and he that goes out guilty and they (afterwards) find out his righteousness do not slay:"

for I will not justify the wicked: the wicked judge in pronouncing an unjust sentence on innocent and righteous men or if they absolve wicked men at the same time they put to death the innocent and righteous God will not justify those wicked men cleared by them but will in his own time and way sooner or later inflict the deserved punishment on them: this is not contrary to Romans 4:5 for though God justifies the ungodly he does not justify ungodliness in them or them in ungodliness but from it and that by the imputation of the righteousness of his Son.

 

Exodus 23:8  8 And you shall take no bribe for a bribe blinds the discerning and perverts the words of the righteous.

   YLT  8`And a bribe thou dost not take; for the bribe bindeth the open-[eyed] and perverteth the words of the righteous.

And thou shalt take no gift .... Of the persons whose cause is to be tried in a court of judicature before judges; neither of those on the one side nor on the other neither before the trial nor after neither by words by a promise nor by facts by actually receiving money; and not even to judge truly as Jarchi observes neither to clear the innocent nor to condemn the guilty: a gift was not to be taken on any consideration whatever:

for the gift blindeth the wise; or the "seeing"F1פקחים "videntes" Pagninus Vatablus Cartwright; "apertos" Montanus Drusius. ; the open ones who used to have both their eyes and their ears open and attentive to the cause before them; and yet a gift so blinds them by casting such a mist before them that they are inattentive to the true merits of the cause and their affections and judgments are to be carried away in favour of those that have bribed them as to pass a wrong sentence:

and perverteth the words of the righteous; either the sentences of righteous judges as they ought to be but a gift perverts their judgment and they give a wrong decree; or the causes of the righteous that are brought before those are perverted by giving the cause to their adversaries who are wicked men.

 

Exodus 23:9  9 “Also you shall not oppress a stranger for you know the heart of a stranger because you were strangers in the land of Egypt.

   YLT  9`And a sojourner thou dost not oppress and ye -- ye have known the soul of the sojourner for sojourners ye have been in the land of Egypt.

Also thou shall not oppress a stranger .... As these were not to be vexed and oppressed in a private manner and by private men see Exodus 22:21 so neither in a public manner and in a public court of judicature or by judges on the bench when their cause was before them by not doing them justice showing a partiality to those of their own nation against a stranger; whereas a stranger ought to have equal justice done him as a native and the utmost care should be taken that he has no injury done him and the rather because he is a stranger:

for ye know the heart of a stranger; the fears he is possessed of the inward distress of his soul the anxiety of his mind the tenderness of his heart the workings of his passions his grief and sorrow and dejection of spirit: the Targum of Jonathan is ""the groaning of the soul of a stranger": this the Israelitish judges knew having had a very late experience of it:"

seeing ye were strangers in the land of Egypt; where they had been vexed and oppressed brought into hard bondage and groaned under it; and therefore it might be reasonably thought and expected that they would have a heart sympathizing with strangers and use them well and especially see that justice was done them and no injury or oppression of any kind.

 

Exodus 23:10  10 “Six years you shall sow your land and gather in its produce

   YLT  10`And six years thou dost sow thy land and hast gathered its increase;

And six years thou shall sow thy land The land of Canaan given to their ancestors and to them and which they were now going to inherit; and when they came into it they were to plant it with vines and olives; or rather these being ready planted they were to prune and dress them; and they were to till their land and plough it and sow it with various sorts of grain for six years running from the time of their possession of it:

and shall gather in the fruits thereof; corn and wine and oil into their own garners treasuries and cellars as their own property to dispose of as they pleased for their own use and profit.

 

Exodus 23:11  11 but the seventh year you shall let it rest and lie fallow that the poor of your people may eat; and what they leave the beasts of the field may eat. In like manner you shall do with your vineyard and your olive grove.

   YLT  11and the seventh thou dost release it and hast left it and the needy of thy people have eaten and their leaving doth the beast of the field eat; so dost thou to thy vineyard -- to thine olive-yard.

But the seventh year thou shall let it rest and lie still .... From tillage and make its fruits common as the Targum of Jonathan; the note of Jarchi is "let it rest" from perfect tillage as ploughing and sowing; "and lie still" from dunging and harrowing or weeding: this law was intended to show that God was the original proprietor and owner of this land and that the Israelites held it under him; and to teach them to depend upon and trust in his providence; as well as that there might be both rest for the land and so it became more fruitful afterwards having by this rest renewed its vigour and also for servants and cattle; and that the poor might have an equal share in the fruits of the earth and appear to be joint lords of it with others under God as it follows:

that the poor of thy people may eat: that which grows up of itself of which there were great quantities; for the sixth year bringing forth for three years a great deal of seed fell which grew up again; and especially as through plenty they were not so careful to gather it all up; and besides this there were the fruits of trees of vines olives &c. which brought forth their fruit in course as usual and which were all this year common to poor and rich; so that the former had an equal propriety and share with the latter:

and what they leave the beasts of the field shall eat; signifying that there should be such plenty that there would be enough for all and to spare; that there would be much left and which should be the portion of the beasts of the field and who would also be sufficiently provided for by the produce the earth brought forth of itself as herbage &c. and the fruits the poor left:

in like manner thou shall deal with thy vineyard and with thy oliveyard; that is these were not to be pruned nor the grapes and olives gathered but were to be in common with all: a larger account is given of this law in Leviticus 25:2.

 

Exodus 23:12  12 Six days you shall do your work and on the seventh day you shall rest that your ox and your donkey may rest and the son of your female servant and the stranger may be refreshed.

   YLT  12`Six days thou dost do thy work and on the seventh day thou dost rest so that thine ox and thine ass doth rest and the son of thine handmaid and the sojourner is refreshed;

Six days thou shalt do thy work .... That is they might do what work they would on the six days of the week:

and on the seventh day thou shall rest; from all the work and labour done on other days and give up themselves to religious exercises:

that thine ox and thine ass may rest; and so every other beast as horses camels &c.

and the son of thy handmaid and the stranger may be refreshed; the former the Targum of Jonathan and so Jarchi interprets of one uncircumcised and the latter of a proselyte of the gate: this law is here repeated partly to show that it is of the same kind with the former namely ceremonial and temporary; and partly as Jarchi observes lest it should be said since all the year is called the sabbath there was no need to observe the weekly sabbath.

 

Exodus 23:13  13 “And in all that I have said to you be circumspect and make no mention of the name of other gods nor let it be heard from your mouth.

   YLT  13and in all that which I have said unto you ye do take heed; and the name of other gods ye do not mention; it is not heard on thy mouth.

And in all things that I have said unto you be circumspect .... Or observe them be careful to keep them punctually and constantly even all that are delivered in this and the preceding chapters:

and make no mention of the name of other gods; neither call upon them nor swear by them nor make vows to them; and as little as possible ever utter their names and never with pleasure and delight and showing any honour of them and reverence to them but with the utmost detestation and abhorrence:

neither let it be heard out of thy mouth; not any of their names; the same thing in different words the more to inculcate and impress the thing upon the mind and to show with what vehemence and earnestness this is pressed.

 

Exodus 23:14  14 “Three times you shall keep a feast to Me in the year:

   YLT  14`Three times thou dost keep a feast to Me in a year;

Three times thou shall keep a feast unto me in the year. The feast of the passover on the fourteenth of the month Nisan or March; and the feast of weeks or pentecost fifty days after that; and the feast of tabernacles on the fifteenth day of Tisri or September.

 

Exodus 23:15  15 You shall keep the Feast of Unleavened Bread (you shall eat unleavened bread seven days as I commanded you at the time appointed in the month of Abib for in it you came out of Egypt; none shall appear before Me empty);

   YLT  15the Feast of Unleavened things thou dost keep; seven days thou dost eat unleavened things as I have commanded thee at the time appointed [in] the month of Abib; for in it thou hast come forth out of Egypt and ye do not appear [in] My presence empty;

Thou shalt keep the feast of unleavened bread .... Which began on the fourteenth of the month Abib or Nisan and lasted seven days during which time no leavened bread was to be eaten by the Israelites or to be in their houses of which see the notes on:See Gill on Exodus 12:15 Exodus 12:18 Exodus 12:19 Exodus 12:10 Exodus 13:6 Exodus 13:7.

thou shall eat unleavened bread seven days as I commanded thee in the time appointed of the month Abib; from the fourteenth of the month to the twenty first:

for in it thou camest out of Egypt; in such haste that there was no time to leaven the dough in the troughs; in commemoration of which this law was given and this feast was kept:

and none shall appear before me empty; at this feast and the two following ones; for besides the offerings and sacrifices appointed at the feast of passover was brought a sheaf of the first fruits of the barley harvest; and at the feast of pentecost the two wave loaves or cakes of the first fruits of the wheat harvest; and at the feast of tabernacles they appeared with palm tree branches and boughs of goodly trees and poured out water fetched from Siloam before the Lord: but to this appearance the Jewish doctorsF2Bartenora in Misn. Peah c. 1. sect. 1. say "there was no measure fixed; for everyone if he would might go up and appear and go away: according to another interpretation for the burnt offering of appearance and the peace offerings of the Chagigah which a man is bound to bring as it is written "ye shall not appear empty"; there is no measure from the law as it is written "a man according to the gift of his hand" Deuteronomy 16:17 but the wise men fix a measure; to the burnt offering a meah of silver to the Chagigah two pieces of silver:'some understand this not of their bringing anything with them to appear before the Lord with but of what they should be blessed with there; even with the presence of God and communion with him and with the blessings of his grace and goodness; so that however they came they should not remain nor go away empty and so have no cause to repent their appearance before him; but the former sense seems best.

 

Exodus 23:16  16 and the Feast of Harvest the firstfruits of your labors which you have sown in the field; and the Feast of Ingathering at the end of the year when you have gathered in the fruit of your labors from the field.

   YLT  16and the Feast of Harvest the first fruits of thy works which thou sowest in the field; and the Feast of the In-Gathering in the outgoing of the year in thy gathering thy works out of the field.

And the feast of harvest .... This is the second feast the feast of wheat harvest between which and barley harvest were fifty days; or between the firstfruits of the one and the first fruits of the other were seven weeks as Aben Ezra observes and was sometimes called the feast of weeks; at which feast were to be brought:

the first fruits of thy labours which thou hast sown in the field; the two wave loaves or cakes made of the first new wheat which was the effect of their labour in tilling the field and sowing it with wheat and reaping it:

and the feast of ingathering which is in the end of the year when thou hast gathered in thy labours out of the field; this is the third feast in the year to be kept and was kept at the close of the year at the revolution of it when a new year began that is according to the old account which made Tisri the month in which this feast was kept the first month of the year; whereas according to the new count it was the seventh month from the month Abib now made the first of the months upon the Israelites coming out of Egypt in that month: this is the same feast with the feast of tabernacles but here called the feast of ingathering because at this time of the year all the fruits of the earth were gathered in; the corn and wine and oil and all other fruits on account of which there was great rejoicing as there ought to be.

 

Exodus 23:17  17 “Three times in the year all your males shall appear before the Lord God.[a]

   YLT  17`Three times in a year do all thy males appear before the face of the Lord Jehovah.

Three times in the year all thy males shall appear before the Lord thy God. In the city of Jerusalem when they were come into the land of Canaan and the temple was there built: here they were to show themselves before the Lord as being his and devoted to his service; concerning which the Misnic doctors have the following canonF3Misn. Chagigah c. 1. sect. 1. "all are bound to appear except a man deaf and dumb a fool a little one one of neither sex or of both sexes women servants not free the lame the blind the sick an old man and he that cannot go on his feet.'

 

Exodus 23:18  18 “You shall not offer the blood of My sacrifice with leavened bread; nor shall the fat of My sacrifice remain until morning.

   YLT  18`Thou dost not sacrifice on a fermented thing the blood of My sacrifice and the fat of My festival doth not remain till morning;

Thou shall not offer the blood of my sacrifice with leavened bread .... This belongs to the feast of the passover; for as all the Jewish writers agree this sacrifice is the sacrifice of the passover as it is sometimes called see Exodus 12:27 now when the paschal lamb was killed and its blood shed and its flesh eaten there was to be no leaven along with it; it was to be eaten with unleavened bread and there was to be no leaven in their houses at this time; nay it was not to be slain until all was removed: this was the first thing the Jews did as soon as the fourteenth day was come to search for leaven remove and burn it; and this sense of the law is confirmed by the Targum of Jonathan which is "not a man shall slay while there is leaven in your houses the sacrifice of my passover;'and to the same purpose is the note of Jarchi:

neither shall the fat of my sacrifice remain until the morning; and indeed no part of the passover lamb was to remain until the morning what did was to be burnt with fire Exodus 12:10 the Targum of Jonathan is "neither shall there remain without the altar the fat of the sacrifice of my passover until the morning nor of the flesh which ye ate in the evening;'and so Jarchi interprets it of its not remaining without the altar.

 

Exodus 23:19  19 The first of the firstfruits of your land you shall bring into the house of the Lord your God. You shall not boil a young goat in its mother’s milk.

   YLT  19the beginning of the first-fruits of thy ground thou dost bring into the house of Jehovah thy God; thou dost not boil a kid in its mother's milk.

The first of the first fruits of thy land .... Both of the barley and wheat harvest and of the wine and oil; yea Jarchi says the seventh year was obliged to first fruits; and JosephusF4Antiqu. l. 3. c. 15. sect. 3. relates that the Jews were so tenacious of this law that even in the famine in the time of Claudius Caesar the first fruits were brought to the temple and were not meddled with:

thou shall bring into the house of the Lord thy God; to the tabernacle during the standing of that and the temple when that was built; which were the perquisites of the priests who officiated in the house and service of God: so Pliny saysF5Nat. Hist. l. 18. c. 2. of the ancient Romans that they tasted not of the new fruits or wines before the first fruits were offered to the priests which seems to have been borrowed from hence:

thou shalt not seethe a kid in his mother's milk: and so a calf or a lambF6Vid. T. Bab. Cholin. fol. 114. 1. as Jarchi interprets it; which some understand of slaying a young kid and its dam together and so is a law against cruelty like that law of not taking the dam with the young on finding a bird's nest Deuteronomy 22:6 others of killing dressing and eating a kid while it sucks the milk of its mother before it is eight days old and so a law against luxury; but the Jews generally understand it of boiling or eating the flesh of any creature and milk togetherF7Tikkune Zohar Correct. 14. fol. 26. 1. : so the Targum of Onkelos paraphrases it "ye shall not eat flesh with milk;'and the Targum of Jonathan is "ye shall neither boil nor eat the flesh and the milk mixed together:'hence according to the rules they give the flesh of any beast or of a fowl is not to be set upon a table on which cheese is (being made of milk) lest they should be eaten together; nor may cheese be eaten after flesh until some considerable time and then if there is any flesh sticks between a man's teeth he must remove it and wash and cleanse his mouth; nor may cheese be eaten on a table cloth on which meat is nor be cut with a knife that flesh is cut withF8Schulchan Aruch par. 2. Yore Deah Hilchot Bashar Bechaleb c. 88. sect. 1. & 89. sect. 1. 4. : so careful are they of breaking this law as they understand it: but the words are doubtless to be taken literally of not boiling a kid in its mother's milk; and is thought by many to refer to some custom of this kind either among the Israelites which they had somewhere learnt or among the idolatrous Heathens and therefore cautioned against; Maimonides and Abarbinel both suppose it was an idolatrous rite but are not able to produce an instance of it out of any writer of theirs or others: but Dr. Cudworth has produced a passage out of a Karaite authorF9Apud Gregory's Notes & Observ. c. 19. p. 97 98. who affirms "it was a custom of the Heathens at the ingathering of their fruits to take a kid and seethe it in the milk of the dam and then in a magical way go about and besprinkle all their trees fields gardens and orchards thinking by this means they should make them fructify and bring forth fruit again more abundantly the next year:'and the Targum of Jonathan on Exodus 34:26 seems to have respect to this where having paraphrased the words as here quoted above adds "lest I should destroy the fruit of your trees with the unripe grape the shoots and leaves together:'and if this may be depended upon the law comes in here very aptly after the feast of ingathering and the bringing in the first fruits of the land into the Lord's house.

 

Exodus 23:20  20 “Behold I send an Angel before you to keep you in the way and to bring you into the place which I have prepared.

   YLT  20`Lo I am sending a messenger before thee to keep thee in the way and to bring thee in unto the place which I have prepared;

Behold I send an angel before thee .... Not a created angel but the uncreated one the Angel of God's presence that was with the Israelites at Sinai and in the wilderness; who saved redeemed bore and carried them all the days of old whom they rebelled against and tempted in the wilderness; as appears by all the characters after given of him which by no means agree with a created angel: Aben Ezra observes that some say this is the book of the law because it is said "my name is in him" or "in the midst of it"; others say the ark of the covenant; but he says this angel is Michael; and if indeed by Michael is intended the uncreated angel as he always is in Scripture he is right: Jarchi remarks that their Rabbins say this is Metatron whose name is as the name of his master; Metatron by gematry is Shaddai which signifies almighty or all-sufficient and is an epithet of the divine Being; and Metatron seems to be a corruption of the word "mediator": some of the ancient Jewish writers sayF11In Zohar in Gen. fol. 124. 4. this is the Angel that is the Redeemer of the world and the keeper of the children of men: and Philo the JewF12"De migratione" Abraham p. 415. applies the word unto the divine Logos and says "he (God) uses the divine Word as the guide of the way; for the oracle is "behold I send my Angel" &c.'which agrees with what follows:

to keep thee in the way and to bring thee into the place which I have prepared; to preserve the Israelites in their journey through the wilderness from all their enemies that should set upon them and to bring them safe at last to the land of Canaan which he had appointed for them and promised to them and had prepared both in his purpose and gift for them and would make way for their settlement in it by driving out the nations before them.

 

Exodus 23:21  21 Beware of Him and obey His voice; do not provoke Him for He will not pardon your transgressions; for My name is in Him.

   YLT  21be watchful because of his presence and hearken to his voice rebel not against him for he beareth not with your transgression for My name [is] in his heart;

Beware of him .... Of his face or countenance; observe his looks towards you in a providential way whether frowning or smiling; observe his directions and instructions laws and commands:

and obey his voice; hearken to what he says and cheerfully readily and punctually do as he orders:

provoke him not; by unbelief by murmurings and complaints by unbecoming words and actions by transgressing his commands and acting contrary to his will:

for he will not pardon your transgressions: or suffer them to pass unchastised and uncorrected but will as he did take vengeance on their inventions and on them because of them though he forgave their iniquities; for that he was such an Angel as could forgive sin which none but God can do is evident; because it would be absurd to say he will not pardon if he could not pardon their transgressions see Matthew 9:6

for my name is in him; the Father is in the Son and the Son in the Father; the nature and perfections of God are in the Word and Son of God and so his name Jehovah which is peculiar to him; Christ is Jehovah our righteousness: or "though my name is in him"F13כי שמי "quamvis nomen menum" Drusius. ; as Abendana and others his name the Lord God gracious and merciful pardoning iniquity transgression and sin as afterwards proclaimed in him; and yet notwithstanding this he would not clear the guilty or suffer the Israelites to go unpunished if they offended him: the Targum of Onkelos is "or in my name is his word 'he is my ambassador and speaks in my name.

 

Exodus 23:22  22 But if you indeed obey His voice and do all that I speak then I will be an enemy to your enemies and an adversary to your adversaries.

   YLT  22for if thou diligently hearken to his voice and hast done all that which I speak then I have been at enmity with thine enemies and have distressed those distressing thee.

But if thou shall indeed obey his voice .... Or "hearkening hearken" F14שמוע תשמע "audiendo audieris" Pagninus Montanus Drusius Piscator. to it attentively listen to it and diligently and constantly observe and obey in whatever he shall direct and order:

and do all that I speak; by him; or whatsoever he had spoke or was about to speak; for as yet all the laws and statutes were not delivered especially those of the ceremonial kind:

then I will be an enemy unto thine enemies and an adversary unto thine adversaries; which they should either meet with in their passage through the wilderness or when they came into the land of Canaan; signifying hereby that he would protect them from them subdue them under them and give them victory over them as that they should be utterly destroyed and so way made for their possession of their land as in the following words.

 

Exodus 23:23  23 For My Angel will go before you and bring you in to the Amorites and the Hittites and the Perizzites and the Canaanites and the Hivites and the Jebusites; and I will cut them off.

   YLT  23`For My messenger goeth before thee and hath brought thee in unto the Amorite and the Hittite and the Perizzite and the Canaanite the Hivite and the Jebusite and I have cut them off.

For mine Angel shall go before thee .... The same as before described:

and bring thee in unto the Amorite and the Hittite and the Perizzite and the Canaanite and the Hivite and the Jebusite; six nations are only mentioned though there were seven; the Girgashites are omitted though added in the Septuagint version; and this omission of them might be either because they were swallowed up by one or other of the other nations particularly the Amorites who were the most powerful; or rather having mentioned the most and chiefest the Lord was not careful as Aben Ezra observes to take notice of the least:

and I will cut them off; from being a nation either of them; for though there were some of them left and dwelt about in the land yet not as a kingdom and nation of themselves as they had been but became tributary to the Israelites.

 

Exodus 23:24  24 You shall not bow down to their gods nor serve them nor do according to their works; but you shall utterly overthrow them and completely break down their sacred pillars.

   YLT  24`Thou dost not bow thyself to their gods nor serve them nor do according to their doings but dost utterly devote them and thoroughly break their standing pillars.

Thou shalt not bow down to their gods .... In a way of honour to them doing them reverence expressing thereby an high esteem of them trust in them and expectation of good things from them:

nor serve them: in any kind of service in which they usually are served by their votaries; as by offering sacrifice incense libations &c. or by praying to them or praising of them or in whatsoever way they are served by idolaters:

nor do after their works; the works of the worshippers of idols; all those wicked works in general done by them which should not be imitated; and those particularly relating to the service and worship of their deities:

but thou shalt overthrow them; the heathen gods; utterly destroy them and break them to pieces or demolish their temples the idolatrous houses built for them and their altars; for the word has the signification of demolishing buildings and razing up the very foundations of them:

and quite break down their images; or "in breaking break down"F15שבר תשבר "confringendo confringes" Pagninus Montanus Drusius "perfringendo perfringito" Piscator. ; utterly and entirely break them down break them to shivers all their statues of gold or silver brass wood or stone or of whatsoever materials they were made; none were to be spared nor any remains of them to be seen that they might not prove a snare to any to worship them; and hereby they were to express their detestation of idolatry and their strict and close adherence to the true God and the worship of him as follows.

 

Exodus 23:25  25 “So you shall serve the Lord your God and He will bless your bread and your water. And I will take sickness away from the midst of you.

   YLT  25`And ye have served Jehovah your God and He hath blessed thy bread and thy water and I have turned aside sickness from thine heart;

And ye shall serve the Lord your God .... And him only who had brought them out of Egypt and done so many great and good things for them at the Red sea and now in the wilderness; by which he appeared to be the true Jehovah the one and only living God and to be their God in covenant who had promised them much and had performed it; and therefore was in a special and peculiar manner their God and they were under the highest obligations to serve and worship him in the way and manner he directed them to:

and he shall bless thy bread and thy water; and make them nourishing and refreshing to them and preserve them thereby in health as well as prosper and succeed them and increase their worldly substance:

and I will take sickness away from the midst of thee; the stroke of bitterness or the bitter stroke as the Targum of Jonathan any grievous disease which is bitter and distressing; signifying that there should be none among them but that they should be healthful and free from distempers and diseases.

 

Exodus 23:26  26 No one shall suffer miscarriage or be barren in your land; I will fulfill the number of your days.

   YLT  26there is not a miscarrying and barren one in thy land; the number of thy days I fulfil:

There shall nothing cast their young nor be barren in the land .... There shall be no abortions or miscarriages nor sterility or barrenness either among the Israelites or their cattle of every kind so that there should be a great increase both of men and beasts:

the number of thy days I will fulfil; which was fixed for each of them in his eternal purposes and decrees; or what according to the temperament of their bodies and the course of nature which humanly speaking it might be supposed they would arrive unto; or generally the common term of human life which in the days of Moses was threescore years and ten or fourscore see Job 14:5 it may be considered whether any respect is had to the time of their continuance in the land of Canaan the term of which was fixed in the divine mind or the fulness of time in which the Messiah was to come.

 

Exodus 23:27  27 “I will send My fear before you I will cause confusion among all the people to whom you come and will make all your enemies turn their backs to you.

   YLT  27My terror I send before thee and I have put to death all the people among whom thou comest and I have given the neck of all thine enemies unto thee.

And I will send my fear before thee .... What should cause fear among the nations of the land of Canaan; either the hornets mentioned in the next verse as the explanative of this; or the fame of his mighty works which he had done for Israel in Egypt at the Red sea and in the wilderness; which struck the inhabitants of Canaan with such a panic that they were ready to faint and melt away and lost all courage Joshua 2:9.

and will destroy all the people to whom thou shalt come; that is the greatest part of them:

and I will make all thine enemies turn their backs unto thee; flee away not being able to face them and stand a battle or however not stand it long but run and make their escape: "or I will give thee the neck of them"F16נתתי־ערף "et dabo-cervicem" Pagninus Montanus; "exponam tibi cervicem" Junius & Tremellius Piscator; "ponam ad te cervicem" Drusius. ; cause them to submit to lay down their necks and be trampled upon; an expression denoting their subjection and an entire conquest of them see Psalm 18:39.

 

Exodus 23:28  28 And I will send hornets before you which shall drive out the Hivite the Canaanite and the Hittite from before you.

   YLT  28`And I have sent the hornet before thee and it hath cast out the Hivite the Canaanite and the Hittite from before thee;

And I will send hornets before thee .... Which may be interpreted either figuratively and so may signify the same as fear before which should fall on the Canaanites upon hearing the Israelites were coming; the stings of their consciences for their sins terrors of mind dreading the wrath of the God of Israel of whom they had heard and terrible apprehensions of ruin and destruction from the Israelites: Aben Ezra interprets it of some disease of the body which weakens it as the leprosy from the signification of the word which has some affinity with that used for the leprosy; and so the Arabic version understands it of a disease: or rather the words are to be taken literally for hornets which are a sort of wasps whose stings are very penetrating and venomous; nor is it any strange or unheard of thing for people to be drove out of their countries by small animals as mice flies bees &c. and particularly AelianusF17Hist. Animal. l. 11. c. 28. relates that the Phaselites were drove out of their country by wasps: and BochartF18Hierozoic. par. 2. l. 4. c. 13. Colossians 541. has shown that those people were of a Phoenician original and inhabited the mountains of Solymi; and that this happened to them about the times of Joshua and so may probably be the very Canaanites here mentioned as follow: the wasps in Aristophanes's comedy which bears that name are introduced speaking of themselves and say no creature when provoked is more angry and troublesome than we areF19Aristoph. Vespae p. 510. :

which shall drive out the Hivite the Canaanite and the Hittite from before thee; which three are mentioned instead of the rest or because they were more especially infested and distressed with the hornets and drove out of their land by means of them.

 

Exodus 23:29  29 I will not drive them out from before you in one year lest the land become desolate and the beasts of the field become too numerous for you.

   YLT  29I cast them not out from before thee in one year lest the land be a desolation and the beast of the field hath multiplied against thee;

I will not drive them out from before thee in one year .... This is observed before hand lest the Israelites should be discouraged and fear they should never be rid of them; and it was so ordered in Providence for the following reason:

lest the land become desolate; there being not a sufficient number of Israelites to replace in their stead to repeople the land and to cultivate it; and yet their number was very large being when they came out of Egypt as is generally computed about two millions and a half besides the mixed multitude of Egyptians and others and during their forty years in the wilderness must be greatly increased:

and the beast of the field multiply against thee; there being so much waste ground for them to prowl about in they would so increase as to make head against them and be too many for them; or however it would be difficult to keep them under control: the Targum of Jonathan adds "when they shall come to eat their carcasses (the carcasses of the Canaanites slain in war) and may hurt thee.'

 

Exodus 23:30  30 Little by little I will drive them out from before you until you have increased and you inherit the land.

   YLT  30little [by] little I cast them out from before thee till thou art fruitful and hast inherited the land.

By little and little I will drive them out from before thee .... Not the beasts of the field but the inhabitants of Canaan who were left partly to keep up the cities and towns that they might not fall to ruin and to till the land that it might not be desolate; and partly to be trials and exercises to the people of Israel and to prove whether they would serve the Lord or not. Just as the corruptions of human nature remain with the people of God when converted for the trial and exercise of their graces and that they may have their dependence not on themselves but on the grace of God to keep them in his ways and to preserve them safe to eternal glory; and by completing the work of grace which is gradually done they might be made meet for it:

until thou be increased and inherit the land; for as their enemies were driven out gradually by little and little so they multiplied gradually until at length they became a sufficient number to fill all the cities and towns in all the nations of Canaan and take an entire possession of it as their inheritance given unto them by God.

 

Exodus 23:31  31 And I will set your bounds from the Red Sea to the sea Philistia and from the desert to the River.[b] For I will deliver the inhabitants of the land into your hand and you shall drive them out before you.

   YLT  31`And I have set thy border from the Red Sea even unto the sea of the Philistines and from the wilderness unto the River: for I give into your hand the inhabitants of the land and thou hast cast them out from before thee;

And I will set thy bounds .... The bounds of the land of Canaan which in process of time it should reach unto though not at once not until the times of David and Solomon 2 Samuel 8:1 which bounds were as follow:

from the Red sea even unto the sea of the Philistines: the Red sea was the boundary eastward as the sea of the Philistines or the Mediterranean sea was the boundary westward:

and from the desert unto the river; the desert of Shur or Arabia towards Egypt was the boundary southward as the river Euphrates was the boundary northward and is the river here meant as the Targum of Jonathan expresses it; and so Jarchi interprets it and generally others:

for I will deliver the inhabitants of the land into your hand; the greater part upon their entrance into it and settlement in it and the rest afterwards:

and thou shalt drive them out before thee; not all at once but by degrees as before observed.

 

Exodus 23:32  32 You shall make no covenant with them nor with their gods.

   YLT  32thou dost not make a covenant with them and with their gods;

Thou shalt make no covenant with them .... A covenant of peace a league a confederacy so as to take them to be their allies and friends; but they were always to consider them as their enemies until they had made an utter end of them; though the Gibeonites by craft and guile obtained a league of them; but the methods they took to get it show they had some knowledge of this law that the Israelites might not or at least would not make any league or covenant with the inhabitants of the land of Canaan. This may be also extended to marriage covenants which they were forbid to make with them; which yet they did and proved a snare to them for this brought them to makes a covenant with their gods and serve them which is here also forbidden:

nor with their gods; making vows unto them promising to serve them if they would do such and such things for them.

 

Exodus 23:33  33 They shall not dwell in your land lest they make you sin against Me. For if you serve their gods it will surely be a snare to you.”

   YLT  33they do not dwell in thy land lest they cause thee to sin against Me when thou servest their gods when it becometh a snare to thee.'

They shall not dwell in thy land .... The land of Canaan given by God for an inheritance and now would be in the possession of the Israelites; and therefore were not to suffer the old inhabitants to dwell with them in it at least no longer than they could help it; they were to do all they could to root them out:

lest they make thee sin against me; by their ill examples and persuasions drawing them into idolatry than which there is no greater sin against God it being not only contrary to his law his mind and will but directly against his nature being perfections and glory:

for if thou serve their gods or "for thou wilt serve"F20כי תעבד "quia servies" Malvenda. ; this would be the consequence of their dwelling in the land they would draw the Israelites into the worship of their idols to which they were naturally prone; and should they commit idolatry:

it will surely be a snare unto thee: idolatry would be the cause of their ruin and destruction they would be snared by it as fishes in a net or birds and beasts by traps and gins; or "for it will be a snare"F21כי יהיה "quia erit" Pagninus Montanus Drusius. that is the Canaanites dwelling among them would be a snare to draw them into their idolatry and go into ruin.

 

──John Gill’s Exposition of the Bible

 

New King James Version (NKJV)

Footnotes:

a.    Exodus 23:17 Hebrew YHWH usually translated Lord

b.    Exodus 23:31 Hebrew Nahar the Euphrates