Exodus 23:20-33

God's Angel Will Prepare the Way

20 "I am sending an angel ahead of you. He will guard you along the way. He will bring you to the place I have prepared.

21 Pay attention to him. Listen to what he says. Do not refuse to obey him. He will not forgive you if you turn against him. My very Name is in him

22 Listen carefully to what he says. Do everything I say. Then I will be an enemy to your enemies. I will fight against those who fight against you.

23 "My angel will go ahead of you. He will bring you into the land of the Amorites, Hittites, Perizzites, Canaanites, Hivites and Jebusites. I will wipe them out.

24 "Do not do what they do. Do not bow down to their gods or worship them. You must destroy the statues of their gods. You must break their sacred stones to pieces.

25 "I am the LORD your God. Worship me. Then I will bless your food and water. I will take away sickness from among you.

26 In your land no woman will give birth to a dead baby. Every woman will be able to have children. I will give you a long life.

27 "I will send my terror ahead of you. I will throw every nation you meet into a panic. I will make all of your enemies turn their backs and run away.

28 I will send hornets ahead of you. They will drive the Hivites, Canaanites and Hittites out of your way.

29 "But I will not drive them out in just one year. If I did, the land would be deserted. There would be too many wild animals for you.

30 I will drive them out ahead of you little by little. I will do it until your numbers have increased enough for you to take control of the land.

31 "I will make your borders secure from the Red Sea to the Mediterranean Sea. They will go from the desert to the Euphrates River. "I will hand over to you the people who live in the land. You will drive them out to make room for you.

32 Do not make a covenant with them or with their gods.

33 Do not let them live in your land. If you do, they will cause you to sin against me. If you worship their gods, that will certainly be a trap for you."

Exodus 23:20-33 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO EXODUS 23

This chapter contains several laws, chiefly judicial, relating to the civil polity of Israel, as concerning witness borne and judgment made of cases in courts of judicature, without any respect to poor or rich, and without the influence of a bribe, Ex 23:1-3,6-8, concerning doing good to an enemy in case any of his cattle go astray, or fall under their burden, Ex 23:4,5, and of the oppression of a stranger, Ex 23:9, and then follow others concerning the sabbath of the seventh year, and of the seventh day, with a caution against the use of the names of idols, Ex 23:10-13, next are laws concerning the appearance of all their males at the three feasts, Ex 23:14-17, and concerning the slaying of the sacrifice of the passover, and bringing the first of the firstfruits of the land, Ex 23:18,19 and then a promise is made of sending an angel to them to bring them into the land of Canaan, where they should carefully avoid all idolatry, and show a just indignation against it, and serve the Lord, and then it would be well with them, Ex 23:20-26, and particularly it is promised, that the Lord would send his fear, and his hornets, before them, to destroy the inhabitants of the land, and drive out the rest by little and little, until they should possess the utmost borders of it, which are fixed, Ex 23:27-31, and the chapter is concluded with a direction not to make a covenant with these people, or their gods, nor suffer them to dwell among them, lest they should be a snare unto them, Ex 23:32,33.