Exodus 32:13
זְכֹר לְאַבְרָהָם לְיִצְחָק וּלְיִשְׂרָאֵל עֲבָדֶיךָ אֲשֶׁר נִשְׁבַּעְתָּ לָהֶם בָּךְ וַתְּדַבֵּר אֲלֵהֶם אַרְבֶּה אֶֽת־זַרְעֲכֶם כְּכוֹכְבֵי הַשָּׁמָיִם וְכָל־הָאָרֶץ הַזֹּאת אֲשֶׁר אָמַרְתִּי אֶתֵּן לְזַרְעֲכֶם וְנָחֲלוּ לְעֹלָֽם׃
✦ Hebrew interlinear
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✦ The same verse in five languages
זְכֹ֡ר לְאַבְרָהָם֩ לְיִצְחָ֨ק וּלְיִשְׂרָאֵ֜ל עֲבָדֶ֗יךָ אֲשֶׁ֨ר נִשְׁבַּ֣עְתָּ לָהֶם֮ בָּךְ֒ וַתְּדַבֵּ֣ר אֲלֵהֶ֔ם אַרְבֶּה֙ אֶֽת־זַרְעֲכֶ֔ם כְּכוֹכְבֵ֖י הַשָּׁמָ֑יִם וְכָל־הָאָ֨רֶץ הַזֹּ֜את אֲשֶׁ֣ר אָמַ֗רְתִּי אֶתֵּן֙ לְזַרְעֲכֶ֔ם וְנָחֲל֖וּ לְעֹלָֽם׃
μνησθεὶς Ἀβραὰμ καὶ Ἰσαὰκ καὶ Ἰακὼβ τῶν σῶν οἰκετῶν, οἷς ὤμοσας κατὰ σεαυτοῦ καὶ ἐλάλησας πρὸς αὐτούς λέγων Πολυπληθυνῶ τὸ σπέρμα ὑμῶν ὡσεὶ τὰ ἄστρα τοῦ οὐρανοῦ τῷ πλήθει, καὶ πᾶσαν τὴν γῆν ταύτην ἢν εἶπας δοῦναι αὐτοῖς, καὶ καθέξουσιν αὐτὴν εἰς τὸν αἰῶνα.
Greek text from Swete's edition, CC BY-SA 4.0
Latin (Vulgate)
Recordare Abraham, Isaac, et Israël servorum tuorum, quibus jurasti per temetipsum, dicens: Multiplicabo semen vestrum sicut stellas cæli; et universam terram hanc, de qua locutus sum, dabo semini vestro, et possidebitis eam semper.
Acuérdate de tus siervos Abraham, Isaac e Israel, a quienes les juraste por ti mismo: ‘Haré que sus descendientes sean tan numerosos como las estrellas del cielo, y les daré a sus descendientes toda esta tierra que les prometí, para que sea de ellos para siempre’”.
Classic Spanish (Reina-Valera 1909)
Acuérdate de Abraham, de Isaac, y de Israel, tus siervos, á los cuales has jurado por ti mismo, y dícholes: Yo multiplicaré vuestra simiente como las estrellas del cielo; y daré á vuestra simiente toda esta tierra que he dicho, y la tomarán por heredad para siempre.
Remember Your servants Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, to whom You swore by Your very self when You declared, ‘ I will make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky, and I will give your descendants all this land that I have promised, and it shall be their inheritance forever.’”
✦ What the text says
Summary
Exodus 32:13 records Moses' appeal to God to remember the covenant made with Abraham, Isaac, and Israel (Jacob), specifically the oath sworn by God's own self promising numerous descendants and possession of the land forever. The verse quotes the earlier divine promise verbatim, shifting from Moses' plea into direct divine speech.
Key words
- ze.Khor ("remember", H2142) — qal imperative, a direct command form addressed to God, opening the verse as a plea.
- nish.Ba'.ta ("you swore", H7650) — niphal perfect, describing a completed oath-taking action; the niphal stem here carries the sense of self-binding.
- 'ar.Beh ("I will increase", H7235A) — hiphil imperfect, causative form meaning "I will cause to multiply," spoken in first person as God's own words.
- zar.'a.Khem ("your offspring", H2233H + H9026) — construct noun with plural suffix, appearing twice (lines 23-24, 39-40), anchoring the promise to descendants collectively.
- na.cha.Lu ("they will possess", H5157) — qal sequential perfect, continuing the chain of promised actions ("and they shall possess") tied to le.'o.Lam ("forever", H5769G).
What the text says
The verse opens with the imperative ze.Khor ("remember", H2142), addressed to God, followed by a list of three names — 'av.ra.Ham (H0085), yitz.Chak (H3327), Yis.ra.'El (H3478) — each preceded by the preposition le. ("to", H9005), marking them as the objects of remembrance. These three are further identified by 'a.va.Dei.kha ("your servants", H5650 + H9021), a construct plural noun with a second-person suffix referring back to God as the one they serve.
The relative clause introduced by 'a.Sher ("whom", H0834A) describes the oath: nish.Ba'.ta la.Hem bo.Kh ("you swore to them by yourself"), using the niphal perfect of shava' (H7650) to indicate a completed self-oath. The narrative vav on te.da.Ber ("and you said", H1696G, piel) introduces the content of the oath as reported speech, shifting into first-person divine promise: 'ar.Beh ("I will increase", H7235A, hiphil imperfect) governs the direct object zar.'a.khem ("your offspring", H2233H + H9026), compared ke.chokh.Vei ha.sha.Ma.yim ("like the stars of the heavens", H3556 + H8064).
The promise continues with the land: khol ha.'A.retz ha.Zot ("all this land", H3605 + H0776G + H2063), qualified by another relative clause 'a.Sher 'a.Mar.ti ("which I have promised/said", H0559, qal perfect). The verb 'e.Ten ("I will give", H5414G, qal imperfect) governs zar.'a.khem again, and the sequence closes with na.cha.Lu le.'o.Lam ("they will possess it forever", H5157 sequential perfect + H5769G), the sequential perfect continuing the chain of future promises begun with 'ar.Beh and 'e.Ten.
Differences between versions
The Hebrew lists Yis.ra.'El (H3478, "Israel") as the third patriarch, while the LXX renders this name as Ἰακὼβ ("Iakōb", i.e., Jacob) rather than transliterating "Israel." The Vulgate follows the Hebrew form, using "Israël."
This explanation describes the text using linguistic data; it adds no doctrine or confessional interpretation.