Exodus 13:17

When the king of Egypt let the Israeli people go, God did not lead them to go through the land of the Philistines. That was a shorter way, but God said, “It would be bad if my people change their minds when they realize that they will have to fight the Philistines to take their land, and then decide to return to Egypt.”

Translation for Translators

In The King James Version

And it came to pass, when Pharaoh had let the people go, that God led them not through the way of the land of the Philistines, although that was near; for God said, Lest peradventure the people repent when they see war, and they return to Egypt:

In Context

16I repeat that this ritual will remind you about how Yahweh brought our ancestors out of Egypt by his great power [MTY]; it will be like something you tie on your wrist or on your forehead to remind you of that.”

18Instead, God led them to go around through the desert toward the Red Sea (OR, the Gulf of Suez). When the Israeli people left Egypt, they were carrying weapons to fight their enemies.

Read all of Exodus 13

Cross References

Exodus 14:10When the king’s army got near, the Israeli people were surprised to see that the Egyptians were marching toward them. They were terrified; so they cried out to Yahweh to help them.

Exodus 16:2There in the desert, the Israeli [HYP] people complained to Aaron and Moses/me.

Deuteronomy 17:16After he becomes the king, he should not acquire a large number of horses for himself. He should not send people to Egypt to buy horses for him, because Yahweh said to you, ‘Never return to Egypt for anything’!

Deuteronomy 28:68Yahweh will send some of you back to Egypt in ships, even though he promised that you would never be forced to go there again. There in Egypt you will try to sell yourselves to become slaves of your enemies in order to have food to eat, but no one will buy you. All those things will happen to you if you do not obey the laws that Yahweh is giving to you.”

1 Kings 8:47If that happens, while they are in those countries to which they were forced to go, if they sincerely repent and plead with you there saying ‘We have sinned and have done things that are very wicked,’

Luke 14:27People who are ready to execute a prisoner make him carry his cross [MET] to the place where others will nail him on it. Only those who are willing to allow others to hurt them and disgrace them like that because of being my disciples, and who are willing to obey what I teach, can be my disciples.

Matthew Henry on Exodus 13:12-17

God's Claim upon the Firstborn. ( b. c. 1491.) 11 And it shall be when the Lord shall bring thee into the land of the Canaanites, as he sware unto thee and to thy fathers, and shall give it thee, 12 That thou shalt set apart unto the Lord all that openeth the matrix, and every firstling that cometh of a beast which thou hast; the males shall be the Lord 's. 13 And every firstling of an ass thou shalt redeem with a lamb; and if thou wilt not redeem it, then thou shalt break his neck: and all the firstborn of man… Read the whole commentary →

This Verse In Other Editions

Study Exodus 13:17