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Exodus

About this book
Chapter 31

1 The Lord spoke to Moses, 2 “See, I have chosen Bezalel son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah,⁠ 3 and I have filled him with the Spirit of God⁠ in skill, in understanding, in knowledge, and in all kinds of craftsmanship,⁠ 4 to make artistic designs for work with gold, with silver, and with bronze, 5 and with cutting and setting stone, and with cutting wood, to work in all kinds of craftsmanship. 6 Moreover, I have also given him Oholiab son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan, and I have given ability to all the specially skilled, that they may make everything I have commanded you: 7 the tent of meeting, the ark of the testimony, the atonement lid that is on it, all the furnishings of the tent, 8 the table with its utensils, the pure lampstand with all its utensils, the altar of incense, 9 the altar for the burnt offering with all its utensils, the large basin with its base, 10 the woven garments, the holy garments for Aaron the priest and the garments for his sons, to minister as priests, 11 the anointing oil, and sweet incense for the Holy Place. They will make all these things just as I have commanded you.” 12 The Lord said to Moses, 13 “Tell the Israelites, ‘Surely you must keep my Sabbaths, for it is a sign between me and you throughout your generations, that you may know that I am the Lord who sanctifies you. 14 So you must keep the Sabbath, for it is holy for you. Everyone who defiles it must surely be put to death; indeed, if anyone does any work on it, then that person will be cut off from among his people. 15 Six days work may be done, but on the seventh day is a Sabbath of complete rest, holy to the Lord; anyone who does work on the Sabbath day must surely be put to death. 16 The Israelites must keep the Sabbath by observing the Sabbath throughout their generations as a perpetual covenant. 17 It is a sign between me and the Israelites forever; for in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, and on the seventh day he rested and was refreshed.’”⁠

The Tablets and the Golden Calf

18 He gave Moses two tablets of testimony when he had finished speaking with him on Mount Sinai, tablets of stone written by the finger of God.⁠

Texts in conversation

Compare Exodus 8:19 and Exodus 31:18

Hebrew Bible

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Summary

Exodus 8 and 31 use the rare phrase “finger of God” to describe divine power shown in the plagues and in writing the commandments. Its limited and uneven use suggests it reflects a specific source or tradition within the Torah.

Passages

Exodus 8:19

Hebrew Bible
18 When the magicians attempted to bring forth gnats by their secret arts, they could not. So there were gnats on people and on animals. 19 The magicians said to Pharaoh, “It is the finger of God!” But Pharaoh’s heart remained hard, and he did not listen to them, just as the Lord had predicted. 20 The Lord said to Moses, “Get up early in the morning and position yourself before Pharaoh as he goes out to the water, and tell him, ‘This is what the Lord has said, “Release my people that they may serve me!
750–400 BCE (scholarly estimate) Read in Exodus

Exodus 31:18

Hebrew Bible
16 The Israelites must keep the Sabbath by observing the Sabbath throughout their generations as a perpetual covenant. 17 It is a sign between me and the Israelites forever; for in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, and on the seventh day he rested and was refreshed.’” 18 He gave Moses two tablets of testimony when he had finished speaking with him on Mount Sinai, tablets of stone written by the finger of God.
750–400 BCE (scholarly estimate) Read in Exodus

References

"... The phrase “finger of God” occurs in another P passage (Exodus 8:19) but never in J or E. The reference to the “testimony” also is characteristic of P. Further, the mountain is referred to as Sinai, which occurs only in P and J, never in E or D. This passage connects to the next P passage, Exodus 34:29 ..."
Richard Elliott Friedman, The Bible with Sources Revealed: A New View into the Five Books of Moses (New York: HarperOne, 2005), 173.

References are not endorsements of their contents. Read each reference in full to understand its author's intentions in using these texts.

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Exodus 8:19 and Exodus 31:18

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