Exodus 19:12 (GNV)

Passage

And thou shalt set markes vnto the people rounde about, saying, Take heede to your selues that ye goe not vp the mount, nor touche the border of it: whosoeuer toucheth the mount, shall surely die.

Nearby Context

Exodus 19:10 Moreouer, the Lord sayd vnto Moses, Goe to the people, and sanctifie them to day and to morow, and let them wash their clothes.

Exodus 19:11 And let them be ready on the third day: for the thirde day the Lord will come downe in the sight of all the people vpon mount Sinai:

Exodus 19:12 And thou shalt set markes vnto the people rounde about, saying, Take heede to your selues that ye goe not vp the mount, nor touche the border of it: whosoeuer toucheth the mount, shall surely die.

Exodus 19:13 No hand shall touche it, but he shalbe stoned to death, or striken through with darts: whether it be beast or man, he shall not liue: when the horne bloweth long, they shall come vp into the mountaine.

Exodus 19:14 Then Moses went downe from ye mount vnto the people, and sanctified the people, and they washed their clothes.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "thou", "shalt", "markes", "vnto", "people", "rounde", "saying", and "take". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "thou" and "shalt", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 11's "And let them be ready on the..." into verse 13's "No hand shall touche it but he...", so "thou" and "shalt" belong inside that flow. In Exodus context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "thou" and "shalt" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.