Why did the Israelite slaves have gold?

Answer 1

The Israelite ex-slaves had gold because the Egyptians willingly gave them whatever they wanted as remuneration for 400 years of slavery, just to get rid of them and any more plagues.

Exo 11:1-3 KJV And the LORD said unto Moses, "Yet will I bring one plague more upon Pharaoh, and upon Egypt; afterwards he will let you go hence: when he shall let you go, he shall surely thrust you out hence altogether. (v.2) Speak now in the ears of the people, and let every man borrow of his neighbour, and every woman of her neighbour, jewels of silver, and jewels of gold." (v.3) And the LORD gave the people favour in the sight of the Egyptians. Moreover the man Moses was very great in the land of Egypt, in the sight of Pharaoh's servants, and in the sight of the people.

In his "Notes On The Bible" on the word 'borrow' in Exodus 11:2, Albert Barnes then refers to his note on the same word in Exodus 11:2:-

Shall borrow - shall ask.

The Egyptians had made the people serve "with rigor," and the Israelites when about to leave the country for ever were to ask or claim the jewels as a just, though very inadequate, remuneration for services which had made "their lives bitter." The Egyptians ....recognized a divine interposition, which also they rightly attributed to the obstinacy of their own king (see Exo_10:7). The Hebrew women were to make the demand, and were to make it of women, who would of course be especially moved to compliance by the loss of their children, ....

The Notes in the NET Bible are particularly good in showing what the words translated into English actually meant in the original language.

Exo 11:2 NET Instruct the people that each man and each woman is to request5 from his or her neighbor6 items of silver and gold."

5 translation note ... The meaning of the verb might be stronger than simply "ask"; it might have something of the idea of "implore" ...

6 scriptural note Here neighbor refers to Egyptian neighbors, who are glad to see them go (Exo_12:33) and so willingly give their jewelry and vessels.

Exodus 11:2 and 12:36 makes it clear the Egyptians willingly gave the Israelites anything just to get rid of them:-

Exo 12:35-36 NET Now the Israelites had done as Moses told them - they had requested from the Egyptians silver and gold items and clothing. (v.36) The LORD gave the people favor in the sight of the Egyptians, and they gave them whatever they wanted, and so they plundered Egypt.

Answer 2

The Israelite slaves had gold because they were instructed by God to take valuable items as they left Egypt in the Exodus story found in The Bible. The Egyptians had given them gold and other valuables as a form of repayment for their years of servitude.

Answer 3

In the book of Exodus, we see that the Israelites had an almost unimaginable amount of gold. They had enough to build a golden calf, which Moses ground to dust and made the Israelites ingest. They still had enough to make a fabulous mercy seat of gold, flanked by golden cherubim and all manner of ornamentation. Then there was enough gold for plates of solid gold, golden chains and breastplates, and an altar of gold. Truly, the Book of Exodus could be described as a book of gold.

Exodus 3:22 talks of the Israelites 'borrowing' gold and jewels from the Egyptians as they slept. No wonder the Egyptians chased the Israelites as the fled! Some say the reference to borrowing the gold and jewellery was not a euphemism and that the Israelites really intended to return them. But when they melted the gold down for all these other purposes, it is clear that Exodus 3:22 is talking of theft.

Answer 4

Israelite slaves had no gold. It was only as they were gaining their freedom, and as Egypt was reeling from the latter Plagues, that they gained Egyptian gold, silver, and articles of clothing (Exodus ch.11-12). The Egyptians handed these over willingly. The fact that these items were not returned is not a case of theft. Why not? -

1) The Egyptians pursued the newly-freed Israelites with the intent of not just regaining property but of killing them (Exodus 14:11-12, and 15:9). Exodus 15:9 - "The enemy said: 'I will pursue, I will overtake, I will divide the spoil; my desire shall be satisfied; I will draw my sword, my hand shall destroy them.' " By their murderous intent, the Egyptians forfeited any complaints or claims.

2) The things that the Israelites took, constituted just a partial repayment for centuries of forced backbreaking labor (Talmud, Sanhedrin 91a), and there was no moral reason to return anything to the Egyptians.