You shall serve the LORD your God begins with the usual conjunction waw, which Good News Translation interprets as “If.” This is because the second clause may be understood as a conditional promise. But it is also possible to interpret this as a categorical statement, as in Revised Standard Version and others. Serve here means to “worship,” as in verse 24 (see also 3.12). The LORD your God is, of course, “Yahweh your God” (New Jerusalem Bible), but Good News Translation changes this to “worship me, the LORD your God,” since it is Yahweh who is speaking. The you and your are plural.

And I will bless is literally “and he will bless,” since the first clause refers to Yahweh in the third person. (See the Revised Standard Version footnote.) In a functional equivalent translation a footnote is not necessary. The and carries the meaning of “then” following the condition in the first clause (so also New American Bible and New Jerusalem Bible). Bless your bread and your water is understood by Good News Translation as “bless you with food and water,” which is possible. Translator’s Old Testament even has “bless you by giving you abundance of food and water.” But the ancient belief in the power of blessing and cursing suggests that the food and the water may also be intended as the recipients of the blessing. This would be the same idea as when people today ask God to bless the food they are about to eat. In other words Yahweh will cause the food and water to give the people good health. And this interpretation relates well to the following clause promising no more sickness. Both interpretations are possible. So one may also translate “and I will cause your food and water to bring you good health” or “I will let you have good food and water and will protect you from sickness.” The your here shifts back to singular, but certainly the plural is to be understood.

And I will take sickness away is literally “and I will cause weakness to turn aside.” From the midst of you is literally “from your [singular] inward part.” Although the you is singular, it is best to relate it to the community, and the sickness to disease in general. Translator’s Old Testament has “I will banish disease from your community.” An alternative model is “I will cause you [plural] to be free from disease.”

Alternative translation models for this verse are:

• If you [plural] worship me, Yahweh, your God, I will be kind to you and cause you to have much food and water. I will also keep you free from disease.

• You [plural] are to worship me, the LORD your God. And I will let you have good food and water and will protect you from sickness.

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 .