Exodus 1:7

The Israelites, ¹  however, ²  were fruitful, increased greatly, multiplied, and became extremely strong, ³  so that the land was filled with them.

but the Israelites were fruitful and multiplied greatly and became exceedingly numerous, so that the land was filled with them.

But the sons of Israel were fruitful and increased greatly, and multiplied, and became exceedingly mighty, so that the land was filled with them.

But their descendants had many children and grandchildren. In fact, they multiplied so quickly that they soon filled the land.

But the children of Israel kept on reproducing. They were very prolific--a population explosion in their own right--and the land was filled with them.

And the children of Israel were fertile, increasing very greatly in numbers and in power; and the land was full of them.

But the Israelites were fruitful and prolific; they multiplied and grew exceedingly strong, so that the land was filled with them.

But the children of Israel were fruitful and increased abundantly, multiplied and grew exceedingly mighty; and the land was filled with them.

The Israelites, ¹  however, ²  were fruitful, increased greatly, multiplied, and became extremely strong, ³  so that the land was filled with them.

¹ tn Heb “the sons of Israel.”

² tn The disjunctive vav marks a contrast with the note about the deaths of the first generation.

³ tn Using מְאֹד (mÿ’od) twice intensifies the idea of their becoming strong (see GKC 431-32 §133.k).

sn The text is clearly going out of its way to say that the people of Israel flourished in Egypt. The verbs פָּרָה (parah, “be fruitful”), שָׁרַץ (sharats, “swarm, teem”), רָבָה (ravah, “multiply”), and עָצַם (’atsam, “be strong, mighty”) form a literary link to the creation account in Genesis. The text describes Israel’s prosperity in the terms of God’s original command to be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth, to show that their prosperity was by divine blessing and in compliance with the will of God. The commission for the creation to fill the earth and subdue it would now begin to materialize through the seed of Abraham.