Bible Strands
Exodus 20:2
“I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery.
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — God addresses Israel at Sinai immediately after announcing He will speak all the words, positioning this declaration as the foundation for the commandments that follow. He identifies Himself as their covenant God and historical deliverer before issuing any prohibitions.
The words — The verse opens with אָֽנֹכִ֖י ('a.no.Khi, "I") and יְהוָ֣ה (Yah.weh, "Yahweh"), explicitly naming the speaker and His covenant identity. It then uses מִ/בֵּ֣֥ית (mi./Beit, "from a house of") combined with slavery to specify the nature of the Egyptian bondage from which He acted.
The thread — This exact formulation appears in Deuteronomy 5:6, while Hosea 13:4 and Leviticus 26:13 reference the same deliverance event with distinct phrasing. Leviticus 26:13 describes the outcome as liberation from Egyptian slavery without employing the "house of slavery" compound.
Why it lands — The text requires Israel to acknowledge Yahweh as the sole God who actively intervened to break their bondage. It anchors the subsequent ethical demands in a concrete act of redemption rather than abstract obligation.
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
I am the Lord thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage.
Cross-references
- Deuteronomy 5:6 “I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery.
- Hosea 13:4 Yet I am the LORD your God ever since the land of Egypt; you know no God but Me, for there is no Savior besides Me.
- Leviticus 26:13 I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt so that you would no longer be slaves to the Egyptians. I broke the bars of your yoke and enabled you to walk in uprightness.
- Psalms 81:10 I am the LORD your God, who brought you up out of Egypt. Open wide your mouth, and I will fill it.
- Exodus 13:3 So Moses told the people, “Remember this day, the day you came out of Egypt, out of the house of slavery; for the LORD brought you out of it by the strength of His hand. And nothing leavened shall be eaten.
- Leviticus 19:36 You shall maintain honest scales and weights, an honest ephah, and an honest hin. I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt.
- Genesis 17:7 I will establish My covenant as an everlasting covenant between Me and you and your descendants after you, to be your God and the God of your descendants after you.
- Deuteronomy 26:6 But the Egyptians mistreated us and afflicted us, putting us to hard labor.
- Deuteronomy 7:8 But because the LORD loved you and kept the oath He swore to your fathers, He brought you out with a mighty hand and redeemed you from the house of slavery, from the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt.
- Deuteronomy 5:15 Remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and that the LORD your God brought you out of there with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm. That is why the LORD your God has commanded you to keep the Sabbath day.