Charles Ellicott Commentary Leviticus 24:10

"And the son of an Israelitish woman, whose father was an Egyptian, went out among the children of Israel; and the son of the Israelitish woman and a man of Israel strove together in the camp:" — Leviticus 24:10 (ASV)

The son of an Israelitish woman, whose father was an Egyptian. — We are later told that the name of the Israelitish woman, whose son is the subject of this narrative, was Shelomith. She had married an Egyptian while she and her people were still in Egypt. Although the father’s nationality is expressly stated here, it is evident from the fact that he does not personally appear in this incident that he remained in Egypt, while the son was part of the “mixed multitude” who followed the Israelites in their exodus (Exodus 12:38). This incident, therefore, which is difficult to connect satisfactorily with the preceding legislation, presents us with a picture of the camp life of the Israelites in the wilderness.

According to tradition, the father of this blasphemer was the taskmaster under whom Shelomith’s husband worked in Egypt. This tradition also holds that the taskmaster injured Shelomith and then struck her husband; that this was the Egyptian whom Moses killed (Exodus 2:11) for the injuries he had inflicted on both the Hebrew man and his wife; and that this culprit is the child of the outraged Shelomith by the Egyptian who was killed. This tradition explains the rendering of the ancient Chaldee version here: “A wicked man, a rebel against the God of heaven, had come out of Egypt, the son of the Egyptian who killed an Israelite in Egypt, and outraged his wife, who conceived, and bore this son among the children of Israel.”

Went out among the children of Israel. — A better translation is: he went out into the midst, etc. This shows that he lived outside the camp and came where he had no right to be.

This son of the Israelitish woman and a man of Israel strove together. — The cause and manner of their quarrel or contention are not given. But, according to tradition, the “man of Israel” was a Danite. Since the semi-Egyptian’s mother was from the tribe of Dan (as we are told in the next verse), this semi-Egyptian contended with the Danite that he had a right through his mother to encamp among the children of Dan. The Danite, however, disputed this, maintaining that a son could only pitch his tent by the standard of his father’s name (Numbers 2:2).

Moreover, this contention took place before the rulers who tried the case (Exodus 19:21–22). Therefore, the ancient Chaldee version translates it as follows: “And while the Israelites were living in the wilderness, he sought to pitch his tent in the middle of the tribe of the children of Dan; but they would not let him, because, according to the order of Israel, every man, according to his order, lived with his family by the standard of his father’s house. And they quarreled in the camp. After this, the son of the Israelite woman and the man of Israel who was of the tribe of Dan went into the house of judgment.”