Exo 14:20 in the KJV and JST reads as follows:
|
KJV |
1867
Inspired Version (RLDS) |
|
And it came between the camp of the
Egyptians and the camp of Israel; and it was a cloud and darkness to them,
but it gave light by night to these: so that the one came not near the
other all the night. |
And
it came between the camp of the Egyptians and the camp of Israel; and it was
a cloud and darkness to the Egyptians, but it gave light by night to
the Israelites, so that the one came not near the other all the night. |
In Old Testament Manuscript 2, page 68, we read the following:
to the Egyptians — — the
Israelites
The KJV is ambiguous as to the identity of the “them” in “darkness
to them.” The JST clarifies that that the “them” refers to the
Egyptians.
This fits commentaries on the book of Exodus. Rasham
on Exodus 14:20 wrote that
ויהי הענן והחושך, the cloud spread
darkness for the Egyptian . . .
Rabbeinu Bahya, Shemot 14:20:1-4 noted that
. . . the Egyptians could see the
Israelites as they saw the pillar of fire through the pillar of cloud. When one
sits in the dark one can see light even if the light is distant. Israel,
however, could not see the Egyptians as people bathed in light cannot see those
who sit surrounded by darkness.
Commenting on Exo 14:20, Nahum Sarna noted that the
Traditional interpretation took it that the side of the cloud facing the
Egyptians remained dark, while the other side illuminated the night for the
Israelites. (Nahum M. Sarna, Exodus [The
JPS Torah Commentary; Philadelphia: Jewish Publication Society, 1991], 73)