Exodus Chapter 17 verse 11 Holy Bible
And it came to pass, when Moses held up his hand, that Israel prevailed; and when he let down his hand, Amalek prevailed.
read chapter 17 in ASV
Now while Moses' hand was lifted up, Israel was the stronger: but when he let his hand go down, Amalek became the stronger.
read chapter 17 in BBE
And it came to pass when Moses raised his hand, that Israel prevailed; and when he let down his hand, Amalek prevailed.
read chapter 17 in DARBY
And it came to pass, when Moses held up his hand, that Israel prevailed: and when he let down his hand, Amalek prevailed.
read chapter 17 in KJV
And it came to pass, when Moses held up his hand, that Israel prevailed: and when he let down his hand, Amalek prevailed.
read chapter 17 in WBT
It happened, when Moses held up his hand, that Israel prevailed; and when he let down his hand, Amalek prevailed.
read chapter 17 in WEB
and it hath come to pass, when Moses lifteth up his hand, that Israel hath been mighty, and when he letteth his hands rest, that Amalek hath been mighty.
read chapter 17 in YLT
Pulpit Commentary
Pulpit CommentaryVerse 11. - When Moses held up his hand,... Israel prevailed. The elevation of Moses' hand, with the rod held in it, was an appeal to God for aid, and must be supposed to have been accompanied by fervent prayer to God, that he would help his people and give them victory over their enemies. So long as the hand was upraised, the Israelites prevailed; not because they saw it, and took it as directing them to continue the fight (Kalisch), but because God gave them strength, and vigour and courage, while Moses interceded, and left them to themselves when the intercession ceased, It may be said, that Moses might have continued to pray, though his hands were weary; but only those who have tried, know how difficult a thing it is to pray with any intensity for a continuance. Probably Moses' spiritual and physical powers collapsed together; and when he dropped his hand through physical fatigue, he rested also from his mental effort. To impress upon Israel the importance of intercessory prayer, God made success and failure alternate with its continuance and discontinuance, thus teaching his people a lesson of inestimable value.
Ellicott's Commentary
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers(11) When Moses held up his hand . . . Israel prevailed, &c.--In order to teach the lesson of the value of intercessory prayer, God made the fortunes of the fight to vary according as Moses "held up his hand," or allowed it to sink down. It is not probable that the Israelites were directly affected by the bodily movements of Moses, or indeed could discern them, but Moses, Aaron, and Hur were struck by the fact that the fluctuations in the battle coincided with the motions of Moses' hands.
