Exodus 4:24

Exodus 4:24

And it came to pass by the way in the inn, that the LORD met him, and sought to kill him.

a. ASV: And it came to pass on the way at the lodging-place, that Jehovah met him, and sought to kill him.

b. YLT: And it cometh to pass in the way, in a lodging place, that Jehovah meeteth him, and seeketh to put him to death;

c. Amplified Bible Classic: Along the way at a [resting-] place, the Lord met [Moses] and sought to kill him [made him acutely and almost fatally ill].

d. Septuagint: And it came to pass [that] the angel of the Lord met him by the way in the inn, and sought to slay him.

e. Stone Edition Torah/Prophets/Writings: It was on the way, in the lodging, that HASHEM encountered him and sought to kill him.

1. “And it came to pass by the way in the inn…”

a. [And it] came to pass [Strong: 1961  hayah haw-yaw a primitive root (Compare 1933); to exist, i.e. be or become, come to pass (always emphatic, and not a mere copula or auxiliary):--beacon, X altogether, be(-come), accomplished, committed, like), break, cause, come (to pass), do, faint, fall, + follow, happen, X have, last, pertain, quit (one-)self, require, X use.]

b. [by the] way [Strong: 1870 derek, deh'-rek; from H1869; a road (as trodden); figuratively, a course of life or mode of action, often adverb:—along, away, because of, by, conversation, custom, (east-) ward, journey, manner, passenger, through, toward, (high-) (path-) way(-side), whither(-soever).]

c. [in the] inn [Strong: 4411  mâlôwn, maw-lone'; from H3885; a lodgment, i.e. caravanserai or encampment:—inn, place where...lodge, lodging (place).]

2. “...that the LORD met him, and sought to kill him.”

a. [that the] LORD [Strong: 3068 Yᵉhôvâh, yeh-ho-vaw'; from H1961; (the) self-Existent or Eternal; Jeho-vah, Jewish national name of God:—Jehovah, the Lord.]

b. met him [Strong: 6298 pâgash, paw-gash'; a primitive root; to come in contact with, whether by accident or violence; figuratively, to concur:—meet (with, together).]

c. [and] sought [Strong: 1245 bâqash, baw-kash'; a primitive root; to search out (by any method, specifically in worship or prayer); by implication, to strive after:—ask, beg, beseech, desire, enquire, get, make inquisition, procure, (make) request, require, seek (for).]

d. [to] kill [him] [Strong: 4191 bâqash, baw-kash'; a primitive root; to search out (by any method, specifically in worship or prayer); by implication, to strive after:—ask, beg, beseech, desire, enquire, get, make inquisition, procure, (make) request, require, seek (for).]

1). This is a fascinating passage. Many of the sources I checked were in agreement that it was Moses failure to circumcise his son that brought this on, but some I checked are not in agreement with this interpretation. Personally i believe it was because of Moses failure to circumcise his son.

a). Genesis 17:14 And the uncircumcised man child whose flesh of his foreskin is not circumcised, that soul shall be cut off from his people; he hath broken my covenant.

2). Stone Edition of the Chumash Commentary: Moses set out for Egypt with his family, including his newborn son, who had not yet been circumcised, and, because he was unconcerned about performing the circumcision in time, an angel was about to kill him. R’ Yose taught: Heaven forfend that moses did not care about the circumcision, He was faced with a dilemma. Should he perform the circumcision before he went, and then take the child with him? But the infant would be in danger for the first three days after the circumcision! Should he perform the circumcision and delay the trip for three days? But God had commanded him to go! He decided to travel immediately [since God knew about the baby when he commanded him to go]; nevertheless, he was held culpable because, when they arrived at an inn, he began making arrangements for his lodging instead of performing the circumcision without delay (Rashi from Nedarim 31b-32a). Even though he would  have had to resume his trip to Egypt after the circumcision, thus putting the infant into new danger and justifying further delay, the inn was close enough to Egypt that the short trip would not endanger the child’s health. (Ran. ibid.) An angel grasped Moses in such a way as to make Zipporah understand that the danger had been caused by Moses’ failure to circumcise the baby. Seeing that her husband was about to die because of the sin of omission, Zipporah circumcised the child, saving Moses’ life.