Exodus 1:18

And the king of Egypt called for the midwives, and said unto them, Why have ye done this thing, and have saved the men children alive?

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Word by word — the Hebrew

Word	Hebrew	Strong’s	Meaning
king	מֶֽלֶךְ Me.lekh-	H4428	a king · noun, common masculine singular construct
Egypt	מִצְרַ֙יִם֙ mitz.Ra.yim	H4714	Mitsrajim · proper noun, a place name
called	וַיִּקְרָ֤א vai.yik.Ra'	H7121	to call out to (i.e. properly · conjunction + verb, qal sequential imperfect, 3rd person masculine singular
midwives	לַֽמְיַלְּדֹ֔ת lam.ya.le.Dot	H3205	to bear young · preposition with the article + verb, piel active participle, feminine plural absolute
said	וַיֹּ֣אמֶר vai.Yo.mer	H559	to say (used with great latitude) · conjunction + verb, qal sequential imperfect, 3rd person masculine singular
Why	מַדּ֥וּעַ ma.Du.a'	H4069	what (is) known? · interrogative particle
done	עֲשִׂיתֶ֖ן 'a.si.Ten	H6213	to do or make · verb, qal perfect, 2nd person feminine plural
thing	הַדָּבָ֣ר ha.da.Var	H1697	a word · definite article + noun, common masculine singular absolute
saved	וַתְּחַיֶּ֖יןָ va.te.chai.Yei.na	H2421	to live · conjunction + verb, piel sequential imperfect, 2nd person feminine plural
children	הַיְלָדִֽים hay.la.Dim	H3206	something born · definite article + noun, common masculine plural absolute
alive	חָיָה châyâh	H2421	to live

Strong's Exhaustive Concordance (James Strong, 1890/1894), public domain; digitized by Open Scriptures (CC BY-SA). KJV word tagging: eBible.org (public domain). Original-language text, parsing and brief lexicon: STEPBible.org data from Tyndale House, Cambridge (CC BY 4.0).

Cross-references

Ecclesiastes 8:4 Where the word of a king is, there is power: and who may say unto him, What doest thou?
2 Samuel 13:28 Now Absalom had commanded his servants, saying, Mark ye now when Amnon’s heart is merry with wine, and when I say unto you, Smite Amnon; the…

Cross-references from OpenBible.info (CC BY), in the lineage of the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (public domain).

Commentary

Matthew Henry on Exodus 1:15–end

The Egyptians' indignation at Israel's increase, notwithstanding the many hardships they put upon them, drove them at length to the most barbarous and inhuman methods of suppressing them, by the murder of their children. It was strange that they did not rather pick quarrels with the grown men, against whom they might perhaps find some occasion: to be thus bloody towards the infants, whom all must own to be innocents, was a sin which they had to cloak for. Note, 1. There is more cruelty in the corrupt heart of man than one would imagine, Rom 3:15, Rom 3:16. The enmity that is in the seed of the serpent against the seed of the woman divests men of humanity itself, and makes them forget all pit…

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Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on Exodus 1:17

But the midwives feared God--Their faith inspired them with such courage as to risk their lives, by disobeying the mandate of a cruel tyrant; but it was blended with weakness, which made them shrink from speaking the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.

Adam Clarke on Exodus 1:17

The midwives feared God - Because they knew that God had forbidden murder of every kind; for though the law was not yet given, Exo 20:13, being Hebrews they must have known that God had from the beginning declared, Whosoever sheddeth man's blood, by man shall his blood be shed, Gen 9:6. Therefore they saved the male children of all to whose assistance they were called. See Clarke's note on Exo 1:19.

John Gill on Exodus 1:18

And the king called for the midwives,.... Perceiving, by the increase of the Israelites, that they did not obey his commands: and said unto them, why have ye done this thing, and have saved the men children alive? not only did not kill them, but did everything for them that was necessary for their future preservation and health; see Ezekiel 16:4.

John Calvin on Exodus 1:15–end

Dictionary and topics

Exodus — The great deliverance wrought for the children of Isreal when they were brought out of the land of Egypt with “a mighty hand and with an outstretched arm” (Ex 12:51; Deut. 26:8; Ps 114; 136), about…
Law of Moses — Is the whole body of the Mosaic legislation (1 Kings 2:3; 2 Kings 23:25; Ezra 3:2). It is called by way of eminence simply “the Law” (Heb. Torah, Deut. 1:5; 4:8, 44; 17:18, 19; 27:3, 8). As a written…
Lie — An intentional violation of the truth. Lies are emphatically condemned in Scripture (John 8:44; 1 Tim. 1:9, 10; Rev. 21:27; 22:15). Mention is made of the lies told by good men, as by Abraham (Gen.…
Pharaoh — The official title borne by the Egyptian kings down to the time when that country was conquered by the Greeks. (See EGYPT.) The name is a compound, as some think, of the words Ra, the “sun” or…
Puah — Splendid. (1.) One of the two midwives who feared God, and refused to kill the Hebrew male children at their birth (Ex. 1:15-21). (2.) A descendant of Issachar (Judg. 10:1).
Shiphrah — Beauty, one of the Egyptian midwives (Ex. 1:15).
Egypt · History of Israel in: Male children destroyed — History of Israel in: Male children destroyed
Midwifery · General scriptures concerning — General scriptures concerning
Oppression · .Of Israelites, by Egyptians — .Of Israelites, by Egyptians
Usurpation · .Of Pharaoh, making bondservants of the Israelites — .Of Pharaoh, making bondservants of the Israelites

Dictionary: Easton's (1897) and Smith's (1863), public domain. Topics: Nave's Topical Bible (1896) and Torrey's Topical Textbook (1897), public domain. Both as parsed by NEUU (CC BY 4.0).

Exodus 1:18

Word by word — the Hebrew

Cross-references

Commentary

Matthew Henry on Exodus 1:15–end

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on Exodus 1:17

Adam Clarke on Exodus 1:17

John Gill on Exodus 1:18

John Calvin on Exodus 1:15–end

Dictionary and topics

Exodus 1:18

Word by word — the Hebrew

Cross-references

Commentary

Matthew Henry on Exodus 1:15–end

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on Exodus 1:17

Adam Clarke on Exodus 1:17

John Gill on Exodus 1:18

John Calvin on Exodus 1:15–end

Dictionary and topics

Keil & Delitzsch on Exodus 1:18-19

Tyndale Open Study Notes on Exodus 1:17

Rashi on Exodus 1:17