Texts in Conversation
Exodus 2:25 ends by saying “God saw” and “God knew,” language that suggests seeing and learning. The Aramaic translation in Targum Onkelos avoids this by adding the “Memra,” a mediator that shifts the focus away from describing divine experience.
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Exodus 2:25
Hebrew Bible
23 During that long period of time the king of Egypt died, and the Israelites groaned because of the slave labor. They cried out, and their desperate cry because of their slave labor went up to God. 24 God heard their groaning; God remembered his covenant with Abraham, with Isaac, and with Jacob. 25 God saw the Israelites, and God understood.
Date: 5th Century B.C.E. (Final composition) (based on scholarly estimates)
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Onkelos Exodus 2:25
Targum
23 And it was in many of those days: and the king of Mizraim died. And the sons of Israel groaned with the hard service which was upon them; and the cry rose up before the presence of the Lord, from their labour. 24 And their appeal was heard before the Lord; and the Lord remembered His covenant with Abraham, with Izhak, and with Jakob. 25 And the servitude of the sons of Israel was known before the Lord, and the Lord said in His Memra, that He would deliver them.
Date: 100-200 C.E. (based on scholarly estimates)
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Notes and References
"... In this verse, Onkelos veers significantly from the literal translation of the text, which reads, 'And God saw the children of Israel, and God knew.' The targumist, again, attempts to avoid anthropomorphisms and introduces memra (a term, like the Greek word logos, which denotes 'word' or 'wisdom.' Thus, God Himself is not anthropomorphically performing the act.) A Midrash expounds exegetically that God anthropomorphically 'saw' that which was not apparent to human observers and 'knew' that He would not distance Himself from events. He would do what was necessary in order to rescue the Israelites ..."
Drazin, Israel, and Stanley M. Wagner
Onkelos on the Torah, Exodus: Understanding the Bible Text
(p. 8) Gefen, 2006
* The use of references are not endorsements of their contents. Please read the entirety of the provided reference(s) to understand the author's full intentions regarding the use of these texts.
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