Exodus 5:4
New International Version
But the king of Egypt said, “Moses and Aaron, why are you taking the people away from their labor? Get back to your work!”

New Living Translation
Pharaoh replied, “Moses and Aaron, why are you distracting the people from their tasks? Get back to work!

English Standard Version
But the king of Egypt said to them, “Moses and Aaron, why do you take the people away from their work? Get back to your burdens.”

Berean Standard Bible
But the king of Egypt said to them, “Moses and Aaron, why do you draw the people away from their work? Get back to your labor!”

King James Bible
And the king of Egypt said unto them, Wherefore do ye, Moses and Aaron, let the people from their works? get you unto your burdens.

New King James Version
Then the king of Egypt said to them, “Moses and Aaron, why do you take the people from their work? Get back to your labor.”

New American Standard Bible
But the king of Egypt said to them, “Moses and Aaron, why do you let the people neglect their work? Get back to your labors!”

NASB 1995
But the king of Egypt said to them, “Moses and Aaron, why do you draw the people away from their work? Get back to your labors!”

NASB 1977
But the king of Egypt said to them, “Moses and Aaron, why do you draw the people away from their work? Get back to your labors!”

Legacy Standard Bible
But the king of Egypt said to them, “Moses and Aaron, why do you draw the people away from their work? Get back to your hard labors!”

Amplified Bible
But the king of Egypt said to Moses and Aaron, “Why do you take the people away from their work? Get back to your burdens!”

Christian Standard Bible
The king of Egypt said to them, “Moses and Aaron, why are you causing the people to neglect their work? Get to your labor! ”

Holman Christian Standard Bible
The king of Egypt said to them, “Moses and Aaron, why are you causing the people to neglect their work? Get to your work!”

American Standard Version
And the king of Egypt said unto them, Wherefore do ye, Moses and Aaron, loose the people from their works? get you unto your burdens.

Aramaic Bible in Plain English
And the King of Egypt said to them, “Why do you, Moshe and Aaron, stop the people from their works? Go to your work.”

Brenton Septuagint Translation
And the king of Egypt said to them, Why do ye, Moses and Aaron, turn the people from their works? depart each of you to your works.

Douay-Rheims Bible
The king of Egypt said to them: Why do you Moses and Aaron draw off the people from their works? Get you gone to your burdens.

English Revised Version
And the king of Egypt said unto them, Wherefore do ye, Moses and Aaron, loose the people from their works? get you unto your burdens.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
The king of Egypt said to them, "Moses and Aaron, why are you distracting the people from their work? Get back to work!"

Good News Translation
The king said to Moses and Aaron, "What do you mean by making the people neglect their work? Get those slaves back to work!

International Standard Version
The king of Egypt replied to them, "Moses and Aaron, why are you keeping the people from their labor? Go back to your work!"

JPS Tanakh 1917
And the king of Egypt said unto them: 'Wherefore do ye, Moses and Aaron, cause the people to break loose from their work? get you unto your burdens.'

Literal Standard Version
And the king of Egypt says to them, “Why, Moses and Aaron, do you free the people from its works? Go to your burdens.”

Majority Standard Bible
But the king of Egypt said to them, “Moses and Aaron, why do you draw the people away from their work? Get back to your labor!”

New American Bible
The king of Egypt answered them, “Why, Moses and Aaron, do you make the people neglect their work? Off to your labors!”

NET Bible
The king of Egypt said to them, "Moses and Aaron, why do you cause the people to refrain from their work? Return to your labor!"

New Revised Standard Version
But the king of Egypt said to them, “Moses and Aaron, why are you taking the people away from their work? Get to your labors!”

New Heart English Bible
The king of Egypt said to them, "Why do you, Moses and Aaron, take the people from their work? Get back to your burdens."

Webster's Bible Translation
And the king of Egypt said to them, Why do ye, Moses and Aaron, hinder the people from their works; go you to your burdens.

World English Bible
The king of Egypt said to them, “Why do you, Moses and Aaron, take the people from their work? Get back to your burdens!”

Young's Literal Translation
And the king of Egypt saith unto them, 'Why, Moses and Aaron, do ye free the people from its works? go to your burdens.'

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
Pharaoh's First Refusal
3“The God of the Hebrews has met with us,” they answered. “Please let us go on a three-day journey into the wilderness to sacrifice to the LORD our God, or He may strike us with plagues or with the sword.” 4But the king of Egypt said to them, “Moses and Aaron, why do you draw the people away from their work? Get back to your labor!” 5Pharaoh also said, “Look, the people of the land are now numerous, and you would be stopping them from their labor.”…

Cross References
Exodus 1:11
So the Egyptians appointed taskmasters over the Israelites to oppress them with forced labor. As a result, they built Pithom and Rameses as store cities for Pharaoh.

Exodus 2:11
One day, after Moses had grown up, he went out to his own people and observed their hard labor. He saw an Egyptian beating a Hebrew, one of his own people.

Exodus 6:5
Furthermore, I have heard the groaning of the Israelites, whom the Egyptians are enslaving, and I have remembered My covenant.

Jeremiah 38:4
Then the officials said to the king, "This man ought to die, for he is discouraging the warriors who remain in this city, as well as all the people, by speaking such words to them; this man is not seeking the well-being of these people, but their ruin."


Treasury of Scripture

And the king of Egypt said to them, Why do you, Moses and Aaron, let the people from their works? get you to your burdens.

wherefore.

Jeremiah 38:4
Therefore the princes said unto the king, We beseech thee, let this man be put to death: for thus he weakeneth the hands of the men of war that remain in this city, and the hands of all the people, in speaking such words unto them: for this man seeketh not the welfare of this people, but the hurt.

Amos 7:10
Then Amaziah the priest of Bethel sent to Jeroboam king of Israel, saying, Amos hath conspired against thee in the midst of the house of Israel: the land is not able to bear all his words.

Luke 23:2
And they began to accuse him, saying, We found this fellow perverting the nation, and forbidding to give tribute to Caesar, saying that he himself is Christ a King.

let.

burdens.

Exodus 1:11
Therefore they did set over them taskmasters to afflict them with their burdens. And they built for Pharaoh treasure cities, Pithom and Raamses.

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Exodus 5
1. Pharaoh chides Moses and Aaron for their message.
6. He increases the Israelites' task.
16. He ignores their complaints.
19. They cry out to Moses and Aaron.
22. Moses complains to God.














Verse 4. - The king makes no direct reply to this appeal, but turns upon his petitioners, and charges them with an offence against the crown. Why do they, Moses and Aaron, by summoning the people to meet together, and exciting their minds with vague hopes, "let the people from their works." This is damage to the crown, whoso labourers the people are, and he, the Pharaoh, will not have it. "Get you - all of you, people and leaders together - to your appointed tasks - your burdens."

Parallel Commentaries ...


Hebrew
But the king
מֶ֣לֶךְ (me·leḵ)
Noun - masculine singular construct
Strong's 4428: A king

of Egypt
מִצְרַ֔יִם (miṣ·ra·yim)
Noun - proper - feminine singular
Strong's 4714: Egypt -- a son of Ham, also his descendants and their country in Northwest Africa

said
וַיֹּ֤אמֶר (way·yō·mer)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Qal - Consecutive imperfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 559: To utter, say

to them,
אֲלֵהֶם֙ (’ă·lê·hem)
Preposition | third person masculine plural
Strong's 413: Near, with, among, to

“Moses
מֹשֶׁ֣ה (mō·šeh)
Noun - proper - masculine singular
Strong's 4872: Moses -- a great Israelite leader, prophet and lawgiver

and Aaron,
וְאַהֲרֹ֔ן (wə·’a·hă·rōn)
Conjunctive waw | Noun - proper - masculine singular
Strong's 175: Aaron -- an elder brother of Moses

why
לָ֚מָּה (lām·māh)
Interrogative
Strong's 4100: What?, what!, indefinitely what

do you draw
תַּפְרִ֥יעוּ (tap̄·rî·‘ū)
Verb - Hifil - Imperfect - second person masculine plural
Strong's 6544: To loosen, to expose, dismiss, absolve, begin

the people
הָעָ֖ם (hā·‘ām)
Article | Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 5971: A people, a tribe, troops, attendants, a flock

away from their work?
מִמַּֽעֲשָׂ֑יו (mim·ma·‘ă·śāw)
Preposition-m | Noun - masculine plural construct | third person masculine singular
Strong's 4639: An action, a transaction, activity, a product, property

Get back
לְכ֖וּ (lə·ḵū)
Verb - Qal - Imperative - masculine plural
Strong's 1980: To go, come, walk

to your work!”
לְסִבְלֹתֵיכֶֽם׃ (lə·siḇ·lō·ṯê·ḵem)
Preposition-l | Noun - feminine plural construct | second person masculine plural
Strong's 5450: Porterage


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OT Law: Exodus 5:4 The king of Egypt said to them (Exo. Ex)
Exodus 5:3
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