Bible Strands
Exodus 19:15
“Be prepared for the third day,” he said to the people. “Do not draw near to a woman.”
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — Moses addresses the Israelites after consecrating them and having them wash their garments, giving final instructions before the third day.
The words — The Hebrew phrase הֱי֥וּ נְכֹנִ֖ים (he.Yu ne.kho.Nim) literally commands "be prepared," while אַֽל־ (al-) introduces a strict prohibition against drawing near to a woman.
The thread — The text's preparation command aligns with Exodus 19:11's warning of the Lord's descent, parallels the consecration requirement in 1 Samuel 21:4, and mirrors the temporary abstinence principle in 1 Corinthians 7:5.
Why it lands — The verse demands ritual and physical readiness before a divine encounter, requiring the reader to recognize that approaching the sacred requires deliberate separation and preparation.
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 he said unto the people, Be ready against the third day: come not at your wives.
Cross-references
- Exodus 19:11 and be prepared by the third day, for on the third day the LORD will come down on Mount Sinai in the sight of all the people.
- 1 Samuel 21:4 “There is no common bread on hand,” the priest replied, “but there is some consecrated bread—provided that the young men have kept themselves from women.”
- 1 Corinthians 7:5 Do not deprive each other, except by mutual consent and for a time, so you may devote yourselves to prayer. Then come together again, so that Satan will not tempt you through your lack of self-control.
- Joel 2:16 Gather the people, sanctify the congregation, assemble the aged, gather the children, even those nursing at the breast. Let the bridegroom leave his room, and the bride her chamber.
- Exodus 19:16 On the third day, when morning came, there was thunder and lightning. A thick cloud was upon the mountain, and a very loud blast of the ram’s horn went out, so that all the people in the camp trembled.
- Amos 4:12 “Therefore, that is what I will do to you, O Israel, and since I will do this to you, prepare to meet your God, O Israel!
- Zechariah 6:3 the third white horses, and the fourth dappled horses—all of them strong.
- Zechariah 7:3 by asking the priests of the house of the LORD of Hosts, as well as the prophets, “Should I weep and fast in the fifth month, as I have done these many years?”
- Malachi 3:2 But who can endure the day of His coming? And who can stand when He appears? For He will be like a refiner’s fire, like a launderer’s soap.
- Matthew 3:10 The axe lies ready at the root of the trees, and every tree that does not produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire.