Exodus 19:8

Exo 19:8 And all the people answered together, and said, All that the LORD hath spoken we will do. And Moses returned the words of the people unto the LORD.

Ver. 8. All that the Lord hath spoken.] Sed, quid dignum tanto feret hic promissor hiatu! How easily over estimate we our own abilities! Pollicitis dives quilibet esse potest. Words are good cheap.

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Verse 8. And all the people answered, c.] The people, having such gracious advantages laid before them, most cheerfully consented to take God for their portion as he had graciously promised to take them for his people. Thus a covenant was made, the parties being mutually bound to each other.

Moses returned the words] When the people had on their part consented to the covenant, Moses appears to have gone immediately up to the mountain and related to God the success of his mission; for he was now on the mount, as appears from Ex 19:14.

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

(8) All the people answered together.—There was no hesitation, no diversity of opinion, no self-distrust. In view of the great privileges offered to them, all were willing, nay, eager, to promise for themselves that “they would obey God’s voice indeed, and keep his covenant.” In the glow and warmth of their feelings the difficulty of perfect obedience did not occur to them.

Moses returned the words—i.e., “took them back,” “reported them.”

A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

And all the people answered together,.... By their heads and representatives, the elders, summoned before Moses, to whom he declared the whole will of God; or this being communicated by them to their respective tribes and families, they were all of one mind; there was not a contradicting voice among them, they all gave the same answer, or all united in returning for answer what follows:

all that the Lord hath spoken we will do; obey his voice in all things he directs unto, or commands to be done, and keep the covenant he should make with them, and observe whatever was required on their parts; which was well spoken, if with the heart, and if, under a consciousness of their own weakness, they had expressed their desire of dependence upon the grace of God to enable them to perform, see Deu 5:28. The Septuagint version adds, "and we will hear", or be obedient, as in Exo 24:7,

and Moses returned the words of the people unto the Lord; not for his information, who knew very well what they had said, but for the discharge of his office as a mediator and messenger between God and them: this, according to Jarchi, was on the third day of the month.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

All that the Lord ... - By this answer the people accepted the covenant. It was the preliminary condition of their complete admission into the state of a royal priesthood.

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

Related, as a mediator acting between two parties, (Haydock) though God knew all before. Thus his servants cease not to lay before him their own and our wants. (Worthington)

George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).

Not for God’s information, but for the people’s greater obligation, and to learn what answer he should return from God to them.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

8. All the people answered together — From the language employed in the preceding verse, and from the nature of the case, we most naturally infer that this answer of the people was obtained, not in one open assembly of all the nation, but through the mediation of the elders. These elders, representing each a different portion of the people, would have ready means of communicating with the different tribes, and obtaining at short notice their sentiments on any important matter. The word together, accordingly, means here the oneness or unanimity of the people’s response. The answer returned was as that of one man. These two verses (7th and 8th) illustrate what any reader of sense ought to take for granted in such a history as this. We are not to suppose that every detail of communication is given. A great many small gatherings of the people may often have been held in different parts of the plain, and in the adjacent valleys, to hear the words of Jehovah; sometimes communications may have been delivered by numerous messengers without any public assembly. Any reasonable hypothesis of this kind is legitimate in interpretation.

Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

And all the people answered together. It would seem that the elders submitted to the whole congregation the question propounded by Moses; or at any rate submitted it to a popular meeting, fairly representing the congregation. No doubt the exact purport of the question was made known by the usual means beforehand, and the assembly was summoned to declare, by acclamation, its assent or dissent. The result was a unanimous shout of approval:All that the Lord hath spoken we will doi.e. , "we will obey his voice indeed, and keep his covenant" (see ver. 5). In this way they accepted the covenant beforehand, not knowing what its exact provisions would be, but assured in their hearts that all would be right, just, and good; and anxious to secure the promised blessings (vers. 5, 6) for themselves and their posterity Moses returned the words of the people unto the Lordi.e. , Moses was the mouthpiece both ways. He took the messages of God to the people, and carried back ("returned") their answer.

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

And they answered together; all that the Lord hath spoken we will do - Thus accepting the Lord to be to them a God, and giving up themselves to be to him a people.

John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.

we will do

The Fifth Dispensation: Law. This dispensation extends from Sinai to Calvary--from Exodus to the Cross. The history of Israel in the wilderness and in the land is one long record of the violation of the law. The testing of the nation by law ended in the judgment of the Captivities, but the dispensation itself ended at the Cross.

(1) Man’s state at the beginning Exo 19:1-4.

(2) His responsibility Exo 19:5; Exo 19:6; Rom 10:5.

(3) His failure 2Ki 17:7-17; 2Ki 17:19; Act 2:22; Act 2:23.

(4) The judgment 2Ki 17:1-6; 2Ki 17:20; 2Ki 25:1-11; Luk 21:20-24

For Another Point of View: See Topic 301180

See, for the other six dispensations: INNOCENCE (Gen 1:28); CONSCIENCE (Gen 3:23); HUMAN GOVERNMENT (Gen 8:20); PROMISE (Gen 12:1); GRACE (Joh 1:17); KINGDOM (Eph 1:10)

(See Scofield "Gen 1:28"). See Scofield "Gen 3:23". See Scofield "Gen 8:21". See Scofield "Gen 12:1". See Scofield "Joh 1:17". See Scofield "Eph 1:10".

The Scofield Reference Bible (1917 edition), notes by C. I. Scofield — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

וישב משה את דברי העם וגו׳ AND MOSES RETURNED THE WORDS OF THE PEOPLE [UNTO THE LORD] on the next day, which was the third of the month, for he never ascended the mountain to God except early in the morning (Shabbat 86a). But was it really necessary for Moses to deliver the reply to God; God is Omniscient! — But the explanation is that Scripture intends to teach you good manners from the example of Moses: for he did not say, “Since He who sent me knows the reply there is no need for me to report it” (Mekhilta).

Rashi on the Tanakh — English translations: “The Judaica Press complete Tanach with Rashi, translated by A. J. Rosenberg” (CC BY 4.0); “Pentateuch with Rashi's commentary by M. Rosenbaum and A.M. Silbermann, 1929-1934” (public domain); “The Metsudah Tanach series, Lakewood, N.J” (CC BY 4.0); and “The Book of Joshua, Metsudah Publications, 1997” (CC BY 4.0). Text via Sefaria.

VAYASHEV MOSHEH’ THE WORDS OF THE PEOPLE UNTO THE ETERNAL. This means that Moses returned in the sense of “returning,” and not of “reporting”: “he returned to G-d with the words of the people.” “And there was no need to mention that ‘he went up to the mountain,’ since Scripture speaks here briefly” (Ibn Ezra). before Him to the mountain with the people’s answer. Now everything is revealed to Him, and He did not inquire of him, “What did this people answer you?” It is similar in meaning to the verse: And the Eternal heard the voice of your words, when ye spoke unto me. And when Moses came before Him, the Holy One, blessed be He, said, Lo, I come unto thee in a thick cloud, that the people may hear when I speak with thee, and may also believe thee forever. Then Moses said before Him, i.e., the words they had said, “Master of the universe, etc.” On the significance of this interpretation of Ramban, see further, Note 186. “Master of the universe, your children are people of faith, and they accept upon themselves whatever You will speak.”The above usage [of the word vayashev as meaning “returning” or “coming back”] is also found in the verse, ‘vayashivu’ unto them word… and they showed them the fruit of the Land, which means: “They [i.e., the spies] came back to them with the things which they saw.” [It cannot mean that “they reported” to them], for afterwards Scripture says there, And they told him, and said., Verse 27. [Hence, vayashivu in the preceding verse must mean that “they came back” with the things they had seen.] here means that “Moses came back” with the words of the people to G-d. Actually, however, as Ramban continues to explain, he did not report them, as everything was revealed to Him. This differs with Ibn Ezra’s interpretation, as explained in the following note. There is thus no need for Rabbi Abraham ibn Ezra’s interpretation on this point., why does it say again at the end of Verse 9, and Moses told the words of the people unto the Eternal? To remove this difficulty, Ibn Ezra said that vayageid Mosheh (and Moses told) in Verse 9 means that “Moses had already told the words of the people to G-d.” It is thus clear that Ibn Ezra explained vayashev Mosheh in Verse 8 as meaning that Moses “reported” the words of the people to G-d. Hence, Ibn Ezra’s difficulty and his forced solution. Ramban, however, explains vayashev Mosheh as meaning that Moses returned to G-d to report these words. Actually, there was no need to report them, as explained above. Then G-d said to him, Lo, I come unto thee, etc. (Verse 9), and finally vayageid Mosheh: Moses told these words to G-d, i.e., that His children are men of faith and that they accept upon themselves whatever He will speak. “There is thus no need for Ibn Ezra’s interpretation on this point,” as Ramban succinctly puts it.

Ramban (Nachmanides) on the Tanakh — English translation: “Commentary on the Torah by Ramban (Nachmanides). Translated and annotated by Charles B. Chavel. New York, Shilo Pub. House, 1971-1976” (CC BY 4.0). Text via Sefaria.