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)“When a difficult situation comes up among them, someone comes to me and I make the judgement between a man and his neighbour. In addition, I help them understand the God’s statutes and laws.”
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).
BrLXXὍταν γὰρ γένηται αὐτοῖς ἀντιλογία, καὶ ἔλθωσι πρός με, διακρίνω ἕκαστον, καὶ συμβιβάζω αὐτοὺς τὰ προστάγματα τοῦ Θεοῦ καὶ τὸν νόμον αὐτοῦ. (Hotan gar genaʸtai autois antilogia, kai elthōsi pros me, diakrinō hekaston, kai sumbibazō autous ta prostagmata tou Theou kai ton nomon autou. )
BrTrFor whenever there is a dispute among them, and they come to me, I give judgment upon each, and I teach them the ordinances of God and his law.
ULTWhen a situation comes up among them, someone comes to me. And I judge between a man and his associate, and I help them understand the statutes of God and his laws.”
USTWhen they cannot agree about something, they come to me, and they ask me to decide which of them is right. When I decide, I also explain to them how God’s laws and instructions apply in that situation.”
BSB“Whenever they have a dispute, it is brought to me to judge between one man and another, and I make known to them the statutes and laws of God.”
NETWhen they have a dispute, it comes to me and I decide between a man and his neighbor, and I make known the decrees of God and his laws.”
LSVwhen they have a matter, it has come to me, and I have judged between a man and his neighbor, and made known the statutes of God, and His laws.”
FBV“When they argue over something, the case is brought before me to decide between one them, and I explain to them the God's laws and regulations.”
T4TWhen they have a dispute about something, they come to me, and they ask me to decide which of them is right. I also tell them all of God’s laws and instructions.”
LEBWhen they have an issue,[fn] it comes to me, and I judge between a man and his neighbor, and I make known God’s rule and his instructions.”
BBEAnd if they have any question between themselves, they come to me, and I am judge between a man and his neighbour, and I give them the orders and laws of God.
JPSwhen they have a matter, it cometh unto me; and I judge between a man and his neighbour, and I make them know the statutes of God, and His laws.'
ASVwhen they have a matter, they come unto me; and I judge between a man and his neighbor, and I make them know the statutes of God, and his laws.
DRAAnd when any controversy falleth out among them, they come to me to judge between them, and to shew the precepts of God, and his laws.
YLTwhen they have a matter, it hath come unto me, and I have judged between a man and his neighbour, and made known the statutes of God, and His laws.'
DrbyWhen they have a matter, they come to me, and I judge between one and another; and I make known [to them] the statutes of [fn]God, and his laws.
RVwhen they have a matter, they come unto me; and I judge between a man and his neighbour, and I make them know the statutes of God, and his laws.
WbstrWhen they have a matter, they come to me, and I judge between one and another, and I make them know the statutes of God, and his laws.
KJB-1769When they have a matter, they come unto me; and I judge between one and another, and I do make them know the statutes of God, and his laws.[fn]
KJB-1611[fn]When they haue a matter, they come vnto mee, and I iudge betweene one and another, and I doe make them know the statutes of God and his Lawes. (When they have a matter, they come unto me, and I judge between one and another, and I do make them know the statutes of God and his Lawes.)
BshpsWhen they haue a matter, they come vnto me, and I iudge betweene euery man & his neyghbour, & shew them the ordinaunces of God and his lawes. (When they have a matter, they come unto me, and I judge between every man and his neighbour, and show them the ordinaunces of God and his lawes.)
GnvaWhen they haue a matter, they come vnto me, and I iudge betweene one and another, and declare the ordinances of God, and his lawes. (When they have a matter, they come unto me, and I judge between one and another, and declare the ordinances of God, and his lawes. )
Cvdlfor whan they haue eny thinge to do, they come vnto me, that I maye iudge betwixte euery one & his neghboure, and shewe them the statutes of God, and his lawes. (for when they have anything to do, they come unto me, that I may judge betwixte every one and his neighbour, and show them the statutes of God, and his lawes.)
Wycland whanne ony strijf bifallith to hem, thei comen to me, that Y deme bitwixe hem, and schewe `the comaundementis of God, and hise lawis. (and when any strife bifallith to them, they comen to me, that I deme between them, and show `the commandmentis of God, and his lawis.)
LuthDenn wo sie was zu schaffen haben, kommen sie zu mir, daß ich richte zwischen einem jeglichen und seinem Nächsten und zeige ihnen Gottes Rechte und seine Gesetze. (Because where they/she/them what/which to schaffen have, coming they/she/them to mir, that I richte between one jeglichen and his Nächsten and zeige to_them God’s lawe and his lawe.)
ClVgcumque acciderit eis aliqua disceptatio, veniunt ad me ut judicem inter eos, et ostendam præcepta Dei, et leges ejus.[fn] (cumque acciderit to_them aliqua disceptatio, veniunt to me as yudicem between them, and ostendam præcepta of_God, and leges his. )
18.16Ostendam præcepta, etc. ID., quæst. 67. Quæri potest quomodo hic Moyses dixit, etc., usque ad juste judicare non posset.
18.16Ostendam præcepta, etc. ID., quæst. 67. Quæri potest how this Moyses dixit, etc., until to juste yudicare not/no posset.
18:13-27 Jethro’s wise advice is a further example of God’s providence, although it was not given in a miraculous way. Jethro introduced Moses to a style of leadership that involved delegation of authority. It appears that Moses had been following an Egyptian style of leadership that was heavily hierarchical and based on circumstances. No Egyptian law code has yet been discovered. It appears that all authority flowed downward from the pharaoh, who ruled by fiat. Jethro proposed a structure of delegation that would make Moses’ life easier.
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.
