Lectionary Calendar
Sunday, July 27th, 2025
the Week of Proper 12 / Ordinary 17
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Read the Bible

Good News Translation

Exodus 34:19

"Every first-born son and first-born male domestic animal belongs to me,

Bible Study Resources

Concordances:

- Nave's Topical Bible - Firstborn;   Thompson Chain Reference - First-Born;   Ownership, Divine;   Stewardship-Ownership;   Torrey's Topical Textbook - Ox, the;  

Dictionaries:

- Fausset Bible Dictionary - Jehoiakim;   Holman Bible Dictionary - Exodus, Book of;   Harvest;   Matrix;   Pilgrimage;   Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible - Covenant;   Firstborn;   Hexateuch;   Idolatry;   Law;   Moses;   Ten Commandments;   Hastings' Dictionary of the New Testament - Brethren of the Lord (2);   Israel, Israelite;   Numbers (2);   Morrish Bible Dictionary - Matrix;   The Hawker's Poor Man's Concordance And Dictionary - Firstborn;   People's Dictionary of the Bible - Sinai;   Smith Bible Dictionary - First-Born;   Pass'over,;   Watson's Biblical & Theological Dictionary - Moses;  

Encyclopedias:

- Condensed Biblical Cyclopedia - Events of the Encampment;   Other Laws;   Moses, the Man of God;   International Standard Bible Encyclopedia - Ark of the Covenant;   Criticism (the Graf-Wellhausen Hypothesis);   Firstborn;   Law in the Old Testament;   Passover;   Ten Commandments, the;   The Jewish Encyclopedia - Bekorot;   Birthright;   Decalogue;   Deuteronomy;   Law, Reading from the;   Pentecost;   Sidra;  

Parallel Translations

Hebrew Names Version
All that opens the womb is mine; and all your cattle that is male, the firstborn of cow and sheep.
King James Version
All that openeth the matrix is mine; and every firstling among thy cattle, whether ox or sheep, that is male.
Lexham English Bible
Every first offspring of a womb is for me—all of your male livestock, the first offspring of cattle and small livestock.
New Century Version
"The firstborn of every mother belongs to me, including every firstborn male animal that is born in your flocks and herds.
New English Translation
"Every firstborn of the womb belongs to me, even every firstborn of your cattle that is a male, whether ox or sheep.
Amplified Bible
"All the firstborn males among your livestock belong to Me, whether cattle or sheep.
New American Standard Bible
"The firstborn from every womb belongs to Me, and all your male livestock, the firstborn from cattle and sheep.
Geneva Bible (1587)
Euery male, that first openeth the wombe, shalbe mine: also all the first borne of thy flocke shalbe rekoned mine, both of beeues and sheepe.
Legacy Standard Bible
"The first offspring from every womb belongs to Me, even of all your male livestock, the first offspring from cattle and sheep.
Contemporary English Version
The first-born males of your families and of your flocks and herds belong to me.
Complete Jewish Bible
"Everything that is first from the womb is mine. Of all your livestock, you are to set aside for me the males, the firstborn of cattle and flock.
Darby Translation
—All that openeth the womb [is] mine; and all the cattle that is born a male, the firstling of ox and sheep.
Easy-to-Read Version
"A woman's first baby always belongs to me. Even the first animals that are born from your cattle or sheep belong to me.
English Standard Version
All that open the womb are mine, all your male livestock, the firstborn of cow and sheep.
George Lamsa Translation
All that opens the womb is mine; and every firstling among your cattle, both of the oxen and of the lambs.
Christian Standard Bible®
“The firstborn male from every womb belongs to me, including all your male livestock, the firstborn of cattle or sheep.
Literal Translation
Every one opening the womb is Mine, and all your male livestock, a firstling of ox or sheep,
Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
All yt first breaketh the Matrix, is myne, soch as shalbe male amoge ye catell, yt breaketh the Matrix, whether it be oxe or shepe.
American Standard Version
All that openeth the womb is mine; and all thy cattle that is male, the firstlings of cow and sheep.
Bible in Basic English
Every first male child is mine; the first male birth of your cattle, the first male of every ox and sheep.
Bishop's Bible (1568)
All that openeth the matrice is myne, and al that breaketh the matrice amongest thy cattell if it be male, whether it be oxe or sheepe.
JPS Old Testament (1917)
All that openeth the womb is Mine; and of all thy cattle thou shalt sanctify the males, the firstlings of ox and sheep.
King James Version (1611)
All that openeth the matrixe is mine: and euery firstling amongst thy cattell, whether oxe or sheepe, that is male.
Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
The males are mine, everything that opens the womb; every first-born of oxen, and every first-born of sheep.
English Revised Version
All that openeth the womb is mine; and all thy cattle that is male, the firstlings of ox and sheep.
Berean Standard Bible
The first offspring of every womb belongs to Me, including all the firstborn males among your livestock, whether cattle or sheep.
Wycliffe Bible (1395)
Al thing of male kynde that openeth the wombe schal be myn, of alle lyuynge beestis, as wel of oxun, as of scheep, it schal be myn.
Young's Literal Translation
`All opening a womb [are] Mine, and every firstling of thy cattle born a male, ox or sheep;
Update Bible Version
All that opens the womb is mine; and you shall separate the males of all your cattle, the firstborns of cow and sheep.
Webster's Bible Translation
Every first-born [is] mine: and every firstling among thy cattle, [whether] ox or sheep, [that is male].
World English Bible
All that opens the womb is mine; and all your cattle that is male, the firstborn of cow and sheep.
New King James Version
"All that open the womb are Mine, and every male firstborn among your livestock, whether ox or sheep.
New Living Translation
"The firstborn of every animal belongs to me, including the firstborn males from your herds of cattle and your flocks of sheep and goats.
New Life Bible
Every first-born belongs to Me, and all your male animals, the first-born from cattle and sheep.
New Revised Standard
All that first opens the womb is mine, all your male livestock, the firstborn of cow and sheep.
J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
Every one that is the first to be born, is mine, - and every one of thy cattle that is born a male, firstling of oxen or sheep.
Douay-Rheims Bible
All of the male kind that openeth the womb, shall be mine. Of all beasts; both of oxen and of sheep, it shall be mine.
Revised Standard Version
All that opens the womb is mine, all your male cattle, the firstlings of cow and sheep.
THE MESSAGE
"Every firstborn from the womb is mine, all the males of your herds, your firstborn oxen and sheep.
New American Standard Bible (1995)
"The first offspring from every womb belongs to Me, and all your male livestock, the first offspring from cattle and sheep.

Contextual Overview

18 "Keep the Festival of Unleavened Bread. As I have commanded you, eat unleavened bread for seven days in the month of Abib, because it was in that month that you left Egypt. 19 "Every first-born son and first-born male domestic animal belongs to me, 20 but you are to buy back every first-born donkey by offering a lamb in its place. If you do not buy it back, break its neck. Buy back every first-born son. "No one is to appear before me without an offering. 21 "You have six days in which to do your work, but do not work on the seventh day, not even during plowing time or harvest. 22 "Keep the Harvest Festival when you begin to harvest the first crop of your wheat, and keep the Festival of Shelters in the autumn when you gather your fruit. 23 "Three times a year all of your men must come to worship me, the Lord , the God of Israel. 24 After I have driven out the nations before you and extended your territory, no one will try to conquer your country during the three festivals. 25 "Do not offer bread made with yeast when you sacrifice an animal to me. Do not keep until the following morning any part of the animal killed at the Passover Festival. 26 "Each year bring to the house of the Lord the first grain that you harvest. "Do not cook a young sheep or goat in its mother's milk." 27 The Lord said to Moses, "Write these words down, because it is on the basis of these words that I am making a covenant with you and with Israel."

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

openeth: Exodus 13:2, Exodus 13:12, Exodus 22:29, Numbers 18:15-17, Ezekiel 44:30, Luke 2:23

Reciprocal: Numbers 3:13 - Because Deuteronomy 15:19 - the firstling Nehemiah 10:36 - the firstborn

Cross-References

Genesis 29:20
Jacob worked seven years so that he could have Rachel, and the time seemed like only a few days to him, because he loved her.
Genesis 34:3
But he found the young woman so attractive that he fell in love with her and tried to win her affection.
Genesis 34:5
Jacob learned that his daughter had been disgraced, but because his sons were out in the fields with his livestock, he did nothing until they came back.
Genesis 34:8
Hamor said to him, "My son Shechem has fallen in love with your daughter; please let him marry her.
Genesis 34:9
Let us make an agreement that there will be intermarriage between our people and yours.
Genesis 41:20
The thin cows ate up the fat ones,
Numbers 22:15
Then Balak sent a larger number of leaders, who were more important than the first.
1 Samuel 22:14
Ahimelech answered, "David is the most faithful officer you have! He is your own son-in-law, captain of your bodyguard, and highly respected by everyone in the royal court.
2 Kings 5:1
Naaman, the commander of the Syrian army, was highly respected and esteemed by the king of Syria, because through Naaman the Lord had given victory to the Syrian forces. He was a great soldier, but he suffered from a dreaded skin disease.
1 Chronicles 4:9
There was a man named Jabez, who was the most respected member of his family. His mother had given him the name Jabez, because his birth had been very painful.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

All that openeth the matrix is mine,.... Or "the womb", and therefore to be sanctified, and set apart for his use: this also was declared, and the law concerning it given, at the time of their coming out of Egypt, and here repeated, :-,

:-.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

The precepts contained in these verses are, for the most part, identical in substance with some of those which follow the Ten Commandments and are recorded in “the Book of the covenant” (Exo. 20–23; see Exodus 24:7).

Exodus 34:13

Cut down their groves - This is the first reference to what is commonly known as grove-worship. The original word for “grove” in this connection אשׁרה 'ăshêrāh is different from that so rendered in Genesis 21:33. Our translators supposed that what the law commands is the destruction of groves dedicated to the worship of false deities Judges 6:25; 2 Kings 18:4; but inasmuch as the worship of asherah is found associated with that of Astarte, or Ashtoreth Judges 2:13; Jdg 10:6; 1 Samuel 7:4, it seems probable that while Astarte was the personal name of the goddess, the asherah was a symbol of her, probably in some one of her characters, made in wood in some conventional form.

Exodus 34:15-16

An expansion of Exodus 34:12. The unfaithfulness of the nation to its covenant with Yahweh is here for the first time spoken of as a breach of the marriage bond. The metaphor is, in any case, a natural one, but it seems to gain point, if we suppose it to convey an allusion to the abominations connected with pagan worship, such as are spoken of in Numbers 25:1-3.

Exodus 34:21

See Exodus 20:9; Exodus 23:12. There is here added to the commandment a particular caution respecting those times of year when the land calls for most labor. The old verb “to ear” (i. e. to plow) is genuine English.

Exodus 34:24

Neither shall any man desire etc. - Intended to encourage such as might fear the consequences of obeying the divine law in attending to their religious duties. Compare Proverbs 16:7.


 
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