Now when all the people perceived is literally “And all the people were seeing.” The participle here expresses progressive or continuous action, so Childs has “Now as all the people were perceiving,” and Durham has “And all the people were experiencing.” What they perceived included sounds (thunderings and the sound of the trumpet) as well as sights (lightnings and the mountain smoking). These four terms are discussed at 19.16, 18. New Revised Standard Version now has “When all the people witnessed the thunder” (similarly Tanakh and New American Bible). Today’s English Version separates the sounds from the sights and uses an appropriate verb for each: “When the people heard the thunder and the trumpet blast and saw the lightning and the smoking mountain” (similarly Translator’s Old Testament and Contemporary English Version). Many translators will find this a helpful model.

The people were afraid is following the Septuagint rather than the Hebrew, which says “the people saw.” Other translations also follow the Greek, such as New Revised Standard Version, New American Bible, New Jerusalem Bible, and Revised English Bible, but only New Revised Standard Version and New Jerusalem Bible have included a footnote to this effect. This is because the Hebrew word for “see” is very similar to the word for “fear,” with only a slight difference in the vowels. And trembled means to shake “with fear.” The Hebrew term may be used when a foundation is weakened or lost. This is a different word from the one used in 19.16, 18, which emphasizes the physical shaking. It is possible to place the clause, the people were afraid and trembled, at the beginning of the verse and say “The people were afraid and trembled when they heard the thunder and the trumpet blowing, and saw the lightning flashing and smoke pouring out of the mountain.”

And they stood afar off may mean that they “kept their distance” (New Jerusalem Bible), or it may mean “they took up a position much farther away” (New American Bible). The word for afar off must always be translated from the context, for it is the same word used in 2.4, where its relative meaning is discussed. Today’s English Version “a long way off” (also Contemporary English Version) may suggest too great a distance. At least they were close enough to speak to Moses in the next verse. Another way to express this is “they would not stand near to the mountain.”

Quoted with permission from Osborn, Noel D. and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on Exodus. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 1999. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .