Do not make Me...

Ex 20:22, 23

µymvhAˆm yk µtyar µTa larcy ynBAla rmat hk hvmAla hwhy rmaYw

.µkl Wc[t al bhz yhlaw 5sk yhla iytiai ˆWc[t al  .µkm[ yTrBD

And YHWH said to Moses, Say this to the children of Israel, "You perceived that I spoke with you from heaven.  You shall not make iytiiaii.  Gods of silver and gods of gold you shall not make for yourselves (or a God of silver or gold you shall not make for yourselves)."

The problem with this passage is the first clause of verse 23 appears to be incomplete.  Every translation ancient and modern emends the text, so the only remaining question is what sort of emendation is appropriate.

NASB – You shall not make other gods besides me.  Gods of silver or gods of gold you shall not make for yourselves.

LXX – You shall not make for yourselves gods of silver, and gods of gold you shall not make for yourself.

Vg – You shall not make gods of silver with me; neither shall you make gods of gold for yourself.

Targum – You shall not make before me silver objects of worship, nor shall you make gold objects of worship for yourself.  (The Aramaic term דחלן refers to objects of veneration.)

Biblia Hebraica lists no textual variant here, and the Samaritan Pentateuch has the same consonantal text, implying that the textual tradition is probably correct as it is.  Every approach to understanding the intended meaning requires some sort of emendation.  There are two possibilities for emendation without changing the content of the text:

·      The position of the atnach (verse divider) is incorrect.  The term 5sk yhla should be joined to the first clause as the direct object of the first verb.  All three of the ancient translations noted take this option.

·      The vocalization of  iytiiai should be iytiao, making it the direct object of the first verb.  The result of this change would be You shall not make me. An µyhla of silver or of gold you shall not make for yourselves.

The most common translation of verse 23 makes it a repetition of the second commandment, an injunction not to make idols.  This, however, ignores the significance of verse 22: All Israel perceived that YHWH spoke to them from heaven, but they saw no form.  Taking this as the primary context for verse 23, it becomes an injunction not to make any material representation of YHWH.  Interestingly, the targum translation uses a term that could be understood as a material representation of YHWH.  Historically, the Israelites have violated nearly every aspect of the Sinai covenant at one time or another, but after the incident with the golden calf, they never made another material representation of YHWH.