Exodus 5:6

As Pharaoh possessed neither fear of God (εὐσέβεια) nor fear of the gods, but, in the proud security of his might, determined to keep the Israelites as slaves, and to use them as tools for the glorifying of his kingdom by the erection of magnificent buildings, he suspected that their wish to go into the desert was nothing but an excuse invented by idlers, and prompted by a thirst for freedom, which might become dangerous to his kingdom, on account of the numerical strength of the people. He therefore thought that he could best extinguish such desires and attempts by increasing the oppression and adding to their labours. For this reason he instructed his bailiffs to abstain from delivering straw to the Israelites who were engaged in making bricks, and to let them gather it for themselves; but yet not to make the least abatement in the number (מתכּנת) to be delivered every day. בּעם הנּגשׂים, "those who urged the people on," were the bailiffs selected from the Egyptians and placed over the Israelitish workmen, the general managers of the work. Under them there were the שׁטרים (lit., writers, γραμματεῖς lxx, from שׁטר to write), who were chosen from the Israelites (vid., Exo 5:14), and had to distribute the work among the people, and hand it over, when finished, to the royal officers. לבנים לבן: to make bricks, not to burn them; for the bricks in the ancient monuments of Egypt, and in many of the pyramids, are not burnt but dried in the sun (Herod. ii. 136; Hengst. Egypt and Books of Moses, pp. 2 and 79ff.). קשׁשׁ: a denom. verb from קשׁ, to gather stubble, then to stubble, to gather (Num 15:32-33). תּבן, of uncertain etymology, is chopped straw; here, the stubble that was left standing when the corn was reaped, or the straw that lay upon the ground. This they chopped u…

Moses and Aaron are here dealing with Pharaoh, to get leave of him to go and worship in the wilderness. I. They demand leave in the name of God (Exo 5:1), and he answers their demand with a defiance of God (Exo 5:2). II. They beg leave in the name of Israel (Exo 5:3), and he answers their request with further orders to oppress Israel (Exo 5:4-9). These cruel orders were, 1. Executed by the task-masters (Exo 5:10-14). 2. Complained of to Pharaoh, but in vain (Exo 5:15-19). 3. Complained of by the people to Moses (Exo 5:20, Exo 5:21), and by him to God (Exo 5:22, Exo 5:23).

5:6-14 Pharaoh made the work harder in retaliation for their insubordination; he also believed they had too much time on their hands (5:8). He could not conceive of a god who would reveal himself outside of the established royal system of worship, so the only explanation he could imagine for their strange religious ideas was that they had dreamed them up themselves—when they should have been working (see also 5:17).