Bible Strands
Exodus 12:34
So the people took their dough before it was leavened, carrying it on their shoulders in kneading bowls wrapped in clothing.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — The narrative reports the Israelites acting on the Egyptians' urgent demand to depart immediately, carrying raw provisions as they leave the land.
The words — The Hebrew verb וַיִּשָּׂא (va-yissa') translates literally to "and it carried off," describing the physical transport of the dough. The noun בְּצֵק (beṣeq) means "dough," specifying the unfermented state of the bread being moved.
The thread — The narrative sequence continues in Exodus 12:33 with the Egyptians pressing the people to leave to avoid death, and in Exodus 12:35 as the Israelites gather silver, gold, and clothing before the journey concludes.
Why it lands — The text demands acknowledgment of a sudden, unprepared departure and establishes the physical basis for the subsequent command to observe unleavened bread.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
And the people took their dough before it was leavened, their kneadingtroughs being bound up in their clothes upon their shoulders.
Cross-references
- Exodus 8:3 The Nile will teem with frogs, and they will come into your palace and up to your bedroom and onto your bed, into the houses of your officials and your people, and into your ovens and kneading bowls.