The Pulpit Commentary — Exodus — Volume 1 — Section 305

them, and u.lso the first-born of beeats, BB His of "greenness," or of "green ears of corn" own. The clean beasts bec11me his by sacri• would be both appropriate and intelligible. ' flee ; but the unclean ones could not be Ver. 5.-The land of the Canaanites, ctc Compare eh. iii. 8, 17. The six no.tions of 1imil11rly treated, and therofore had to be these paBsages are reduced here to five by the " redeemed " ( verse UI) by the sacrifice of omission of the Perizzites, one ot the less clean animnls in their ple.ce. The first-born important trihes. Whioh he aware unto thy of men bec11me at the first institution of the fathers to give thee. See Gen. xv. 18; new ordinance God's ministers ; but as this xxiv. 7; and compare the comment on eh. vi. 8. That thou ahalt keep this service. system was not intended to continue, it was This injunction had been already given announced that they too would have to be (eh. xii. 25) almost in the same words; but 'redeemed" (verses 13, 15). The exact on the former occasion it was delivered to the mode of redeeming them was left to be elders only; now it is laid npon the whole people. settled afterwards, and will be found in Ver. 6.-Seven days. Compare eh. xii. 15 Num. iii. 40-51 ; xviii. 16. In the seventh day shall be a feast to the Ver. 1.-0n the true grammatical nezw of Lord. The feast lasted during the whole of this verse, see note on eh. xii. 51. The in- the seven days, but the first day and the last Junctions of verse 2, and probably those of were to he kept especially holy. (See eh 3-15-were given to Moses on the very day xii. 16; Lev. xxiii. 6--8.) of the setting-forth, most likely, at Succoth Ver. 7.-Here again the injunctions aro in the evening. ~ere re:p_etitions of commands already given Ver. 2.-Sanctify unto me, Not by any ~ eh. Xll. (See verses 15 and 19.) Repeti- positive ceremony, but by regarding it as t10n was no doubt had recourse to in order to "set apart unto the Lord" (verse 12)-made deepen the impression. over to him, that is, as his own. All the Ver. 8.-And thou shalt shew thy son, first-born, The Hebrew word used is mas- Repeated from eh. xii. 26, 'l:7. culine, and by its proper force limits the Ver. 9.-And it shall be for a sign unto co=and to the first-born males, who alone thee upon thy hand, and for a memorial had been in danger from the tenth plague. between thine eyes. There can he no doubt Whatever openeth the womb, This clause that the Jewish system of tephi1lin, er" phv- added definiteness, showing that " first-born " lacteries," grew mainly out of this passa.;e did not contain any reference to any later and was intended as a fulfilment of the co~~ bath, and that it applied to every case mands contained in it. The tephi1lin were where a woman's first child was a male. strips of parchment with passages of Scrip- It ia mine. Or, " it shall be mine." I ture written upon them and deposited in claim it. small boxes, which were fastened by 11 strap Ver. 3.-And Moses said. Without relat- either to the left arm, or across the forehead. ing the directions given to Moses any fur- The modem Jews argue that they were what ther, the author passes to the directions given Moses here intende~, and that their employ- by him. He thus, here and elsewhere, avoids ment began from this tlllle. Some Christian unn~cessary repetition. Remember this day, co=entators agree with them. But the The injunction co.me with great force at the great majority argue, from supposed proba- close of the first day's journey, when the bility and from the entire absence of anv good-will of the Egyptians had been shown, reference to the actual wearing of tephill{n and the people had been helped and speeded in the Old Testament, that the custom must on their way, and felt that they were actually be, comparatiYely speaking, a modem one quitting the house of their bondage, and It_ is generally su)lposed to have originated, setting out for Canaan lly strength of hand with other superst1t10us practices, in the time the Lord brought you out-i.e., " by His of the Babylonish captivity. Those who take powerful protection has God brought you on this view regard the words of Moses in the your way thus far." Therefore, "Remember present passage as merely metaphorical, a.nd this day, and remember that nothing leavened compare them with Prov. iii. 3; vi. 21 ; vii. 3. is to be eaten on it" (see eh. xii. 15-20). Kalisch, however, observes with reason, that Ver 4-In the month Abib, The name if the injunction to write pa.ssag"" of the Law of the month had not been 'previously men- on the door-posts of their houses (Deut. vi. 9 ; tioned. Some have derived it from the xi. 20) was intended ,o be understood lite- Egyp~ian Epiphi. As, however, ab means rally, and was literally carried out (ls. !vii. "greenness" in Hebrew, and abib "green 8), the com.a,,ands with respect to tephillin, ears of corn," while ibba meant "fruit" in which are coupled with them (Deut. vi. 8 ; Chaldee (Dan. iv. 12, 14), and abbon means xi. 18) must have been similarly intended. ·, green herbs " iu Aro.hie, there is no need of And probability, which is said to be ag~inst o. foreign derivation for the word. The month the Moso.1c origin of tephilli11, may perh,i,i,s  THE BOOK OF EXODUS.