Exodus 8 · Verse 28

Exodus 8:28

And Pharaoh said, I will let you go, that ye may sacrifice to the Lord your God in the wilderness; only ye shall not go very far away: intreat for me.
Exodus 8:28, King James Version

Exodus 8:28 in other translations

BSBPharaoh answered, “I will let you go and sacrifice to the LORD your God in the wilderness, but you must not go very far. Now pray for me.”
WEBPharaoh said, “I will let you go, that you may sacrifice to the LORD your God in the wilderness, only you shall not go very far away. Pray for me.”
ASVAnd Pharaoh said, I will let you go, that ye may sacrifice to Jehovah your God in the wilderness; only ye shall not go very far away: entreat for me.
YLTAnd Pharaoh saith, ‘I send you away, and ye have sacrificed to Jehovah your God in the wilderness, only go not very far off; make ye supplication for me;'
DARBYAnd Pharaoh said, I will let you go, that you may sacrifice to Jehovah your God in the wilderness; only, go not very far away: intreat for me!
BBEThen Pharaoh said, I will let you go to make an offering to the Lord your God in the waste land; but do not go very far away, and make prayer for me.
WebsterAnd Pharaoh said, I will let you go, that ye may sacrifice to the LORD your God in the wilderness; only ye shall not go very far away: entreat for me.

What does Exodus 8:28 mean?

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on Exodus 8:25-32

25-32. Pharaoh called for Moses, ... Go ye, sacrifice to your God in the land, &c.--Between impatient anxiety to be freed from this scourge and a reluctance on the part of the Hebrew bondsmen, the king followed the course of expediency; he proposed to let them free to engage in their religious rites within any part of the kingdom. But true to his instructions, Moses would accede to no such arrangement; he stated a…

Read the full comment on Exodus 8:25-32 →

Adam Clarke's Commentary
Verse 28 I will let you go only ye shall not go very far away - Pharaoh relented because the hand of God was heavy upon him; but he was not willing to give up his gain. The Israelites were very profitable to him; they were slaves of the state, and their hard labor was very productive: hence he professed a willingness, first to tolerate their religion in the land, (Exo 8:25); or to permit them to go into the wilderness, so that they went not far away, and would soon return. How ready is foolish man, when the hand of God presses him sore, to compound with his Maker! He will consent to give up some sins, provided God will permit him to keep others. Entreat for me - Exactly similar to the case of Simon Magus, who, like Pharaoh, fearing the Divine judgments, begged an interest in the prayers of Peter, Act 8:24.

Adam Clarke, 1831 · public domain

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on Exodus 8:20-32

Pharaoh was early at his false devotions to the river; and shall we be for more sleep and more slumber, when any service to the Lord is to be done? The Egyptians and the Hebrews were to be marked in the plague of flies. The Lord knows them that are his, and will make it appear, perhaps in this world, certainly in the other, that he has set them apart for himself. Pharaoh unwillingly entered into a treaty with Moses…

Read the full comment on Exodus 8:20-32 →

Exodus 8:28 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.

וַיֹּ֣אמֶרvai.Yo.merand he saidH559
פַּרְעֹ֗הpar.'OhPharaohH6547
אָנֹכִ֞י'a.no.KhiIH595
אֲשַׁלַּ֤ח'a.sha.LachI will let goH7971
אֶתְכֶם֙'et.Khem<obj.> youH853
וּזְבַחְתֶּ֞םu.ze.vach.Temand you will sacrificeH2076
לַיהוָ֤הla.Yah.wehto YahwehH3068
אֱלֹֽהֵיכֶם֙'e.lo.hei.KhemGod yourH430
בַּמִּדְבָּ֔רba.mid.Barin the wildernessH4057
רַ֛קrakonlyH7535
הַרְחֵ֥קhar.Chekcertainly <to be far away>H7368
לֹא\־lo'-notH3808
תַרְחִ֖יקוּtar.Chi.kuyou must be far awayH7368
לָלֶ֑כֶתla.Le.khetto goH1980
הַעְתִּ֖ירוּha'.Ti.ruprayH6279
בַּעֲדִֽי\׃ba.'a.Difor meH1157

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

Cross references for Exodus 8:28

  • Exodus 8:8

    Then Pharaoh called for Moses and Aaron, and said, Intreat the Lord, that he may take away the frogs from me, and from my people; and I will let the people go, that they may do sacrifice unto the Lord.

  • Exodus 9:28

    Intreat the Lord (for it is enough) that there be no more mighty thunderings and hail; and I will let you go, and ye shall stay no longer.

  • 1 Kings 13:6

    And the king answered and said unto the man of God, Intreat now the face of the Lord thy God, and pray for me, that my hand may be restored me again. And the man of God besought the Lord, and the king’s hand was restored him again, and became as it was before.

  • Acts 8:24

    Then answered Simon, and said, Pray ye to the Lord for me, that none of these things which ye have spoken come upon me.

  • Exodus 10:17

    Now therefore forgive, I pray thee, my sin only this once, and intreat the Lord your God, that he may take away from me this death only.

  • Ezra 6:10

    That they may offer sacrifices of sweet savours unto the God of heaven, and pray for the life of the king, and of his sons.

  • Exodus 8:29

    And Moses said, Behold, I go out from thee, and I will intreat the Lord that the swarms of flies may depart from Pharaoh, from his servants, and from his people, to morrow: but let not Pharaoh deal deceitfully any more in not letting the people go to sacrifice to the Lord.

  • Hosea 10:2

    Their heart is divided; now shall they be found faulty: he shall break down their altars, he shall spoil their images.

  • Ecclesiastes 6:10

    That which hath been is named already, and it is known that it is man: neither may he contend with him that is mightier than he.

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

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
I will.
Ho 10:2
intreat.
8,29; 9:28; 10:17; 1Ki 13:6; Ezr 6:10; Ec 6:10; Ac 8:24

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

Context

  • Exodus 8:27

    We will go three days’ journey into the wilderness, and sacrifice to the Lord our God, as he shall command us.

  • Exodus 8:28

    And Pharaoh said, I will let you go, that ye may sacrifice to the Lord your God in the wilderness; only ye shall not go very far away: intreat for me.

  • Exodus 8:29

    And Moses said, Behold, I go out from thee, and I will intreat the Lord that the swarms of flies may depart from Pharaoh, from his servants, and from his people, to morrow: but let not Pharaoh deal deceitfully any more in not letting the people go to sacrifice to the Lord.

Read all of Exodus 8

Exodus 8:28 in other languages

Spanish
Reina-Valera 1909		Y dijo Faraón: Yo os dejaré ir para que sacrifiquéis á Jehová vuestro Dios en el desierto, con tal que no vayáis más lejos: orad por mí.
French
Bible J.N. Darby 1885		Et le Pharaon endurcit son cœur aussi cette fois, et ne laissa point aller le peuple.
German
Elberfelder 1871		Und der Pharao sprach: Ich will euch ziehen lassen, daß ihr Jehova, eurem Gott, in der Wüste opfert; nur entfernet euch nicht so weit! Flehet für mich!
Latin
Clementine Vulgate		Dixitque Pharao: Ego dimittam vos ut sacrificetis Domino Deo vestro in deserto: verumtamen longius ne abeatis, rogate pro me.