Exodus 24 · Verse 11

Exodus 24:11

And upon the nobles of the children of Israel he laid not his hand: also they saw God, and did eat and drink.
Exodus 24:11, King James Version

Exodus 24:11 in other translations

BSBBut God did not lay His hand on the nobles of Israel; they saw Him, and they ate and drank.
WEBHe didn’t lay his hand on the nobles of the children of Israel. They saw God, and ate and drank.
ASVAnd upon the nobles of the children of Israel he laid not his hand: and they beheld God, and did eat and drink.
YLTand unto those of the sons of Israel who are near He hath not put forth His hand, and they see God, and eat and drink.
DARBYAnd on the nobles of the children of Israel he laid not his hand: they saw God, and ate and drank.
BBEAnd he put not his hand on the chiefs of the children of Israel: they saw God, and took food and drink.
WebsterAnd upon the nobles of the children of Israel he laid not his hand: also they saw God, and ate and drank.

What does Exodus 24:11 mean?

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown
11. upon the nobles of the children of Israel he laid not his hand--The "nobles," that is, the elders, after the sprinkling of the blood, were not inspired with terror in presence of the calm, benign, radiant symbol of the divine majesty; so different from the terrific exhibitions at the giving of the law. The report of so many competent witnesses would tend to confirm the people's faith in the divine mission of Moses. eat and drink--feasted on the peace offering--on the remnants of the late sacrifices and libations. This feast had a prophetic bearing, intimating God's dwelling with men.

Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown, 1871 · public domain

Adam Clarke's Commentary
Verse 11 Upon the nobles of - Israel he laid not his hand - This laying on of the hand has been variously explained. 1. He did not conceal himself from the nobles of Israel by covering them with his hand, as he did Moses, Exo 33:22. 2. He did not endue any of the nobles, i.e., the seventy elders, with the gift of prophecy; for so laying on of the hand has been understood. 3. He did not slay any of them; none of them received any injury; which is certainly one meaning of the phrase: see Neh 13:21; Psa 55:20. Also they saw God, i.e., although they had this discovery of his majesty, yet they did eat and drink, i.e., were preserved alive and unhurt. Perhaps the eating and drinking here may refer to the peace-offerings on which they feasted, and the libations that were then offered on the ratification of the covenant. But they rejoiced the more because they had been so highly favored, and were still permitted to live; for it was generally apprehended that God never showed his glory in this signal manner but for the purpose of manifesting his justice; and therefore it appeared a strange thing that these should have seen God as it were face to face, and yet live. See Gen 16:13; Gen 33:10; and Jdg 13:22, Jdg 13:23.

Adam Clarke, 1831 · public domain

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on Exodus 24:9-11

The elders saw the God of Israel; they had some glimpse of his glory, though whatever they saw, it was something of which no image or picture could be made, yet enough to satisfy them that God was with them of a truth. Nothing is described but what was under his feet. The sapphires are the pavement under his feet; let us put all the wealth of this world under our feet, and not in our hearts. Thus the believer sees…

Read the full comment on Exodus 24:9-11 →

Exodus 24:11 in the original Hebrew

Word-by-word with transliteration, English gloss and Strong's number. Tap a number for the full definition and every place the word is used.

וְאֶל\־ve.'el-and againstH413
אֲצִילֵי֙'a.tzi.Lei[the] nobles ofH678
בְּנֵ֣יbe.Nei[the] people ofH1121
יִשְׂרָאֵ֔לYis.ra.'ElIsraelH3478
לֹ֥אlo'notH3808
שָׁלַ֖חsha.Lachhe stretched outH7971
יָד֑וֹya.Dohand hisH3027
וַֽיֶּחֱזוּ֙vai.ye.che.Zuand they sawH2372
אֶת\־'et-<obj.>H853
הָ֣אֱלֹהִ֔יםha.'E.lo.Him<the> GodH430
וַיֹּאכְל֖וּvai.yo.khe.Luand they ateH398
וַיִּשְׁתּֽוּ\׃\ \סvai.yish.Tuand they drankH8354

Source: STEPBible TAHOT/TAGNT (Tyndale House, CC BY 4.0).

Cross references for Exodus 24:11

  • Exodus 18:12

    And Jethro, Moses’ father in law, took a burnt offering and sacrifices for God: and Aaron came, and all the elders of Israel, to eat bread with Moses’ father in law before God.

  • Luke 15:23-24

    And bring hither the fatted calf, and kill it; and let us eat, and be merry: For this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found. And they began to be merry.

  • Genesis 31:54

    Then Jacob offered sacrifice upon the mount, and called his brethren to eat bread: and they did eat bread, and tarried all night in the mount.

  • Genesis 16:13

    And she called the name of the Lord that spake unto her, Thou God seest me: for she said, Have I also here looked after him that seeth me?

  • Deuteronomy 12:7

    And there ye shall eat before the Lord your God, and ye shall rejoice in all that ye put your hand unto, ye and your households, wherein the Lord thy God hath blessed thee.

  • 1 Corinthians 10:16-18

    The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the communion of the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not the communion of the body of Christ? For we being many are one bread, and one body: for we are all partakers of that one bread. Behold Israel after the flesh: are not they which eat of the sacrifices partakers of the altar?

  • Ecclesiastes 9:7

    Go thy way, eat thy bread with joy, and drink thy wine with a merry heart; for God now accepteth thy works.

  • Exodus 19:21

    And the Lord said unto Moses, Go down, charge the people, lest they break through unto the Lord to gaze, and many of them perish.

  • Numbers 21:18

    The princes digged the well, the nobles of the people digged it, by the direction of the lawgiver, with their staves. And from the wilderness they went to Mattanah:

  • 2 Chronicles 23:20

    And he took the captains of hundreds, and the nobles, and the governors of the people, and all the people of the land, and brought down the king from the house of the Lord: and they came through the high gate into the king’s house, and set the king upon the throne of the kingdom.

  • Genesis 18:18

    Seeing that Abraham shall surely become a great and mighty nation, and all the nations of the earth shall be blessed in him?

  • Jeremiah 14:3

    And their nobles have sent their little ones to the waters: they came to the pits, and found no water; they returned with their vessels empty; they were ashamed and confounded, and covered their heads.

Ranked by reader votes · OpenBible.info cross references (CC BY).

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
nobles.
1,9; Nu 21:18; Jud 5:13; 1Ki 21:8; 2Ch 23:20; Ne 2:16; Jer 14:3
laid not.
19:21; 33:20-23; Ge 32:24-32; De 4:33; Jud 13:22
they saw.
10; Ge 16:13
did eat.
18:12; Ge 18:18; 31:54; De 12:7; Ec 9:7; Lu 15:23,24; 1Co 10:16-18

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (Samuel Bagster, c. 1836) · public domain

Context

  • Exodus 24:10

    And they saw the God of Israel: and there was under his feet as it were a paved work of a sapphire stone, and as it were the body of heaven in his clearness.

  • Exodus 24:11

    And upon the nobles of the children of Israel he laid not his hand: also they saw God, and did eat and drink.

  • Exodus 24:12

    And the Lord said unto Moses, Come up to me into the mount, and be there: and I will give thee tables of stone, and a law, and commandments which I have written; that thou mayest teach them.

Read all of Exodus 24

Exodus 24:11 in other languages

Spanish
Reina-Valera 1909		Mas no extendió su mano sobre los príncipes de los hijos de Israel: y vieron á Dios, y comieron y bebieron.
French
Bible J.N. Darby 1885		Et il ne porta point sa main sur les nobles d’entre les fils d’Israël: ils virent Dieu, et ils mangèrent et burent.
German
Elberfelder 1871		Und er streckte seine Hand nicht aus gegen die Edlen der Kinder Israel; und sie schauten Gott und aßen und tranken.
Latin
Clementine Vulgate		Nec super eos qui procul recesserant de filiis Israël, misit manum suam, videruntque Deum, et comederunt, ac biberunt.