3:9a–b
where your fathers tested and tried Me, and for forty years saw My works: This verse tells about the Israelites’ time in “the wilderness” (mentioned in 3:8). In many languages it may be more natural to begin a new sentence at this verse. For example:
9a There your ancestors tested and tried my patience, 9b even though they saw my miracles for forty years. (New Living Translation (2004))
In some languages it may be more natural to change the order of 3:9a and 3:9b. See the General Comment on 3:9a–b at the end of 3:9b for an example.
3:9a
where your fathers tested and tried Me: The Greek clause that the Berean Standard Bible translates as where your fathers tested and tried Me is more literally “where your fathers tested me with a trial.” It is an emphatic way to tell what the Israelite ancestors did.
Some other ways to translate the phrase are:
when your ancestors challenged me and put me to the test (New Jerusalem Bible)
-or-
when they tested God’s patience in the wilderness (New Living Translation (2004))
Translate the phrase in a natural way in your language.
fathers: The word fathers refers to the ancestors of the Hebrews to whom the author wrote. It refers specifically to the ancestors who were alive in the time of Moses. It includes both male and female ancestors.
3:9b
and for forty years saw My works: This clause implies that the way the people of Israel acted toward God was surprising and wrong. When they saw what God did, they should have obeyed him. They should not have put him to another test.
Some other ways to translate the clause are:
though for forty years they saw what I did (Revised English Bible)
-or-
yet they saw with their own eyes what I did for them for forty years
for forty years: The phrase forty years refers to the forty years when God caused the people of Israel to wander in the desert. They refused to trust him and enter the land of Canaan after they heard the report of the spies. To read more about this, see Numbers 13–14.
My works: The phrase My works refers to the supernatural acts that God did for the Israelites during their forty years in the wilderness. For example, he gave them manna and quails to eat (Exodus 16), and water out of the rock to drink (Exodus 17). These acts may also include how he punished them when they disobeyed him.
Some other ways to translate My works are:
what I did
-or-
the ⌊mighty/supernatural⌋ acts that I did
General Comment on 3:9a–b
In some languages it may be more natural to change the order of 3:9a and 3:9b. For example:
9b Although your ancestors witnessed God’s miracles for them during those forty years, 9a they repeatedly tested him.
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