“Do ye, Moses and Aaron, let the people from their works?”
The full verse · Exodus 5:4 · KJV
And the of unto them, Wherefore do ye, and , the from their ? you unto your .
Asked by
Asked to
Moses and Aaron together, both named directly in the text as those who came before Pharaoh to petition for Israel’s release.
Why It Was Asked
The purpose behind the questionPharaoh frames his accusation as a question to publicly shame Moses and Aaron while asserting his authority over Israel’s labor force. By questioning rather than merely commanding, he dismisses their petition as seditious interference with state productivity and delegitimizes their role as spokesmen for the people.
The Response
What Scripture recordsMoses and Aaron did not verbally respond to Pharaoh’s accusation in this immediate exchange. Instead, Pharaoh dismissed them and immediately issued harsher commands to the taskmasters, demanding the Israelites gather their own straw while maintaining full brick quotas (Exodus 5:6-9).
The Bigger Picture
Where this fits in God's storyPharaoh’s question drips with contempt as he names Moses and Aaron directly, treating their request as dangerous meddling. The Hebrew construction emphasizes you as the troublemakers disrupting productivity. By phrasing his rebuke as a question, Pharaoh publicly frames their petition as economically irresponsible rather than religiously legitimate. The term let the people go uses the Hebrew raphah, meaning to slacken or become idle, which Pharaoh interprets as Moses and Aaron causing deliberate work stoppage. Rather than engage the theological claim that Yahweh demands Israel’s worship, Pharaoh reduces the entire discussion to labor management. This reveals the spiritual blindness of tyranny: unable to recognize divine authority, earthly rulers can only see challenges to their own power. Pharaoh’s question anticipates the hardening of his heart that will ultimately lead to Egypt’s devastation and Israel’s redemption.
When you obey God and face accusations of disrupting the status quo, remember that faithfulness often threatens those invested in exploitation. Moses and Aaron didn’t defend themselves against Pharaoh’s charge because their mission came from God, not public approval. Your obedience to Christ may be labeled as troublemaking by those who benefit from systems of control or spiritual complacency. Stand firm knowing that Jesus Himself was accused of turning the world upside down (Acts 17:6). Trust that God vindicates His servants in His timing, not through winning arguments but through displaying His power and faithfulness (Romans 12:19).
Built from the biblical text and checked against trusted commentaries and lexicons. References & Sources
Keep questioning
“Who is the LORD, that I should obey his voice to let Israel go?”
“The officers of the children of Israel, which Pharaoh's taskmasters had set over them, were beaten, and demanded, Wherefore have ye not fulfilled your task in making brick both yesterday and to day, as heretofore ?”
“But who are they that shall go?”
“Why have ye done this thing, and have saved the men children alive?”