Note: This view shows ‘verses’ which are not natural language units and hence sometimes only part of a sentence will be visible. Normally the OET discourages the reading of individual ‘verses’, but this view is only designed for doing comparisons of different translations. Click on any Bible version abbreviation down the left-hand side to see the verse in more of its context. The OET segments on this page are still very early looks into the unfinished texts of the Open English Translation of the Bible. Please double-check these texts in advance before using in public.
Text critical issues=none Clarity of original=clearImportance=normal (All still tentative.)
OET (OET-RV)SoGod caused the people to take the path going towards the wilderness and the Red Sea.[fn] The Israeli left Egypt in formation as if ready for battle.
13:18Probably towards the Gulf of Suez: see https://armstronginstitute.org/339-where-did-the-red-sea-crossing-take-place.
Key: khaki:verbs, blue:Elohim.
Note: Automatic aligning of the OET-RV to the LV is done by some temporary software, hence the OET-RV alignments are incomplete (and may occasionally be wrong).
BrLXXΚαὶ ἐκύκλωσεν ὁ Θεὸς τὸν λαὸν ὁδὸν τὴν εἰς τὴν ἔρημον, εἰς τὴν ἐρυθρὰν θάλασσαν· πέμπτῃ δὲ γενεᾷ ἀνέβησαν οἱ υἱοὶ Ἰσραὴλ ἐκ γῆς Αἰγύπτου. (Kai ekuklōsen ho Theos ton laon hodon taʸn eis taʸn eraʸmon, eis taʸn eruthran thalassan; pemptaʸ de genea anebaʸsan hoi huioi Israaʸl ek gaʸs Aiguptou. )
BrTrAnd God led the people round by the way to the wilderness, to the Red Sea: and in the fifth generation the children of Israel went up out of the land of Egypt.
ULTAnd God caused the people to turn to the way of the wilderness, to the Sea of Reeds. And the sons of Israel went up from the land of Egypt by fives.
USTInstead, God led them to go around through the wilderness toward the Red Sea. The Israelites left Egypt in an orderly formation.
BSBSo God led the people around by the way of the wilderness toward the Red Sea.[fn] And the Israelites left the land of Egypt arrayed for battle.[fn]
WEBBEbut God led the people around by the way of the wilderness by the Red Sea; and the children of Israel went up armed out of the land of Egypt.
WMBBbut God led the people around by the way of the wilderness by the Sea of Suf; and the children of Israel went up armed out of the land of Egypt.
NETSo God brought the people around by the way of the desert to the Red Sea, and the Israelites went up from the land of Egypt prepared for battle.
LSVand God turns around the people the way of the wilderness of the Red Sea, and the sons of Israel have gone up by fifties from the land of Egypt.
FBVSo God led the people by the longer way through the desert towards the Red Sea. When the Israelites left the land of Egypt they were like an army ready for battle.
T4TInstead, 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.
LEBSo God led the people around by the way of the desert to the Red Sea,[fn] and the Israelites[fn] went up in battle array from the land of Egypt.
RVbut God led the people about, by the way of the wilderness by the Red Sea: and the children of Israel went up armed out of the land of Egypt.
WbstrBut God led the people about, through the way of the wilderness of the Red Sea: and the children of Israel went up harnassed from the land of Egypt.
KJB-1769But God led the people about, through the way of the wilderness of the Red sea: and the children of Israel went up harnessed out of the land of Egypt.[fn]
KJB-1611[fn]But God ledde the people about through the way of the wildernesse of the Red sea: and the children of Israel went vp harnessed out of the land of Egypt. (Modernised spelling is same as from KJB-1769 above, apart from punctuation and footnotes)
BshpsBut God led the people about through the way of the wyldernesse of the redde sea, and the chyldren of Israel went vp harnessed out of the lande of Egypt. (Modernised spelling is same as from KJB-1769 above, apart from marking of added words (and possibly capitalisation and punctuation))
GnvaBut God made the people to go about by the way of the wildernesse of the red sea: and the children of Israel went vp armed out of the land of Egypt. (But God made the people to go about by the way of the wilderness of the red sea: and the children of Israel went up armed out of the land of Egypt. )
CvdlTherfore led he the people aboute, euen the waye thorow the wyldernes by ye reed see. And the childre of Israel wente harnessed out of the londe of Egipte. (Therefore led he the people about, even the way through the wilderness by ye/you_all red see. And the children of Israel went harnessed out of the land of Egypt.)
Wyclbut God ledde aboute by the weie of deseert, which weie is bisidis the reed see. And the sones of Israel weren armed, and stieden fro the lond of Egipte. (but God led about by the way of deseert, which way is besides the red see. And the sons of Israel were armed, and stieden from the land of Egypt.)
LuthDarum führete er das Volk um auf die Straße durch die Wüste am Schilfmeer. Und die Kinder Israel zogen gerüstet aus Ägyptenland. (Therefore führete he the people around/by/for on the road through the desert in/at/on_the Schilfmeer. And the children Israel pulled gerüstet out_of Egyptland.)
ClVgSed circumduxit per viam deserti, quæ est juxta mare Rubrum: et armati ascenderunt filii Israël de terra Ægypti.[fn] (But circumduxit through road deserti, which it_is next_to the_sea Rubrum: and armati ascenderunt children Israel about earth/land Ægypti. )
13.18Non eos duxit Deus, etc. AUG., quæst. 49. Hic ostenditur omnia fieri debere quæ consilio recte fieri possunt, ad evitanda ea quæ adversa sunt, etiam cum Deus apertissime adjutor est Epist. ad Dam., tom. 1.. Et armati ascenderunt filii, etc. HIERON. Aquila, qui non contentiosus, ut putant, sed studiosus verbum interpretatur ad verbum, ubi LXX posuerunt, quinta autem generatione ascenderunt filii Isræl de terra Ægypti, transtulit, et armati ascenderunt filii Isræl de terra Ægypti, licet pro eo quod nos armati diximus, secundum Græci sermonis ambiguitatem instructi vel muniti propter supellectilem quo Ægyptios exspoliaverunt, possit intelligi. Sed ubi LXX, quinta generatione posuerunt, qui Hebræorum libros diligenter inspexerunt, non quinta, sed quinque, scriptum afferunt, ut sit sensus: quinque autem ascenderunt filii Isræl de terra Ægypti; quod quia minus videbatur intelligi, adjuncta generatio est. Aquila vero, et in cæteris, et in hoc præcipue loco, proprie transtulisse dicitur, sicut synagogarum consonant universa subsellia. AUG., quæst. 53. Quinta autem progenie, etc. Utrum progeniem in centum annis vult computare, etc., usque ad Naason genuit Salmon.
13.18Non them duxit God, etc. AUG., quæst. 49. Hic ostenditur everything to_be_done debere which consilio recte to_be_done possunt, to evitanda ea which adversa are, also when/with God apertissime adyutor it_is Epist. to Dam., tom. 1.. And armati ascenderunt children, etc. HIERON. Aquila, who not/no contentiosus, as putant, but studiosus the_word interpretatur to verbum, where LXX posuerunt, quinta however generatione ascenderunt children Isræl about earth/land Ægypti, transtulit, and armati ascenderunt children Isræl about earth/land Ægypti, licet for eo that we armati diximus, after/second Græci sermonis ambiguitatem instructi or muniti propter supellectilem quo Ægyptios exspoliaverunt, possit intelligi. But where LXX, quinta generatione posuerunt, who Hebræorum libros diligenter inspexerunt, not/no quinta, but quinque, scriptum afferunt, as let_it_be sensus: quinque however ascenderunt children Isræl about earth/land Ægypti; that because minus videbatur intelligi, adyuncta generatio it_is. Aquila indeed/yet, and in cæteris, and in this præcipue loco, properly transtulisse it_is_said, like synagogarum consonant universa subsellia. AUG., quæst. 53. Quinta however progenie, etc. Utrum progeniem in hundred annis vult computare, etc., until to Naason genuit Salmon.
13:18roundabout way: There is disagreement among scholars about the identification of some of the sites mentioned (13:20; 14:2), so there is little consensus about the precise route the Israelites took. • Red Sea: Literally sea of reeds. The Red Sea proper is too far south. The Sea of Reeds was part of the Red Sea, probably located at the northern end of the Gulf of Suez.
The meaning of this term (by fives) is uncertain. Many English translations opt for something like “prepared for battle,” because this seems to be the meaning in Numbers 32:17 and the related verses in Joshua 1:14 and 4:12. Because of what the previous verse said about war, it may mean that they went out in formation—like an army would march—but perhaps not armed. Alternate translation: “And … in formation like an army”
Like several other events recorded in Scripture, the Bible’s account of the Israelites’ journey from Egypt to Mount Sinai includes an abundance of geographical references, yet it remains one of the most hotly debated topics among scholars, and numerous theories have been offered. The vast majority of geographical references provided in the story are disputed, including the place where the Israelites crossed the Red Sea, the location of Mount Sinai (see Proposed Locations for Mount Sinai map), and the various stops along the Israelites’ journey. A few locations have been established with some degree of scholarly consensus, but even these are not without opposing viewpoints. Amidst this incredible diversity of opinion, however, a single verse provides one of the most helpful clues for weighing the merits of one viewpoint over another: “By the way of Mount Seir it takes eleven days to reach Kadesh-barnea from Horeb” (Deuteronomy 1:2). For those who assume the Bible’s account to be trustworthy, this verse appears to require the following for any theory to be considered viable: 1) Kadesh-barnea and Mount Sinai must have been located at a distance from each other that could reasonably have been expected to take eleven days for an entire nation of people with small children, flocks, equipment, and perhaps even elderly members to travel on foot; and 2) the pace established by this distance over eleven days should most likely be considered the typical pace for the Israelites as they traveled from place to place along the other parts of the journey. This two-pronged test clearly strains many of the theories put forth to this point, especially when one factors in the time references given for the start of the journey (Exodus 12:6; Numbers 33:3), the middle of the journey (Exodus 16:1; Numbers 33:8), and the end of the journey (Exodus 19:1). In short, the journey from Rameses to the Wilderness of Sin took 31 days, since it included the 15th day of the second month, and the rest of the journey took another 16 days, assuming they arrived at Mount Sinai on the 15th day (not the first day, etc.) of the third month. Along with these criteria, a theory’s overall congruence with other established geographical and archeological data should bolster its credibility over other proposals. Another consideration is the extreme similarity between the events at Rephidim (Exodus 17) and the events at Kadesh-barnea (Numbers 20:1-13; 27:12-14; Deuteronomy 32:51; Ezekiel 47:19; 48:28), raising the question of whether Rephidim (meaning “resting places”) is in fact Kadesh-barnea. With these things in mind, the map below proposes a route for the exodus that meets virtually all of these criteria. A careful analysis and explanation of all the elements of the map is far beyond the scope of this article, but a few key points should be noted. The term Red Sea, in addition to referring to what we now regard it, must have also applied to the interconnected lakes and marshlands that lay along what is now the Suez Canal. Also, the portion of the journey that passed through the wilderness for three days without water (Exodus 15:22; Numbers 33:8) may have been comprised of a partial first day, a full second day, and a partial third day, much like Jesus’ time in the tomb is reckoned as three days in Matthew 12:40. Most notably, Mount Sinai is placed on this map at Gebel Khashm et-Tarif, which is appropriately located near, but not in, Midian (Exodus 3:1; 18:5; Numbers 10:29-30). It is also located 89 miles from Kadesh-barnea (assuming Kadesh is at Tall al-Quderat), which establishes a reasonable pace of 7.6 miles (12.2 km) per day to travel between them in 11 days. This lines up well with several known sources of water along that route (e.g., `Ain Qedeis [Hazar-addar?], Tamilat Suwelima [Hor-haggiggad?], and the spring at Kuntillet al-Girafi [unknown ancient identification]). This general pace then synchronizes very well with the timetable and distances required by this map for the other parts of the journey. The distance from Rameses to the Wilderness of Sin (where it is located here) could be completed in under 26 days, leaving an acceptable buffer of about 5 days for the parting of the Red Sea and perhaps a slower pace through the Wilderness of Shur/Etham. The entire journey took about 60 days, and the journey from the Wilderness of Sin to Mount Sinai took about 29 days. This leaves an acceptable buffer of time to complete the rest of the journey (about 16 days of travel) with a very adequate two weeks of extra time for Jethro to visit Moses and the Israelites to do battle with the Amalekites (Exodus 17-18). It should be noted that this timetable generally assumes (but does not necessarily require) that travel continued on sabbath days, but Scripture does not make clear whether travel was prohibited as work prior to the giving of the law at Mount Sinai.
