The interpretation timeline

Exod 13:13

How this passage has been read — the sources, oldest to newest.

From the early Church Fathers to now.

Exod 13:13 · Douay-Rheims
“The firstborn of an ass thou shalt change for a sheep: and if thou do not redeem it, thou shalt kill it. And every firstborn of men thou shalt redeem with a price.”
Patristic before A.D. 750
397
A.D.
Ambrose of Milan Patristic
A.D. 339–397
“The law has established that an unclean animal shall not be a part of a sacrifice but in its place a clean animal be offered. The law orders that the offspring of an ass, which is unclean, should be changed for a sheep, which is a clean animal and suitable for sacrifice. This is the literal meaning. If one were to pursue this matter further and seek for the spiritual sense of this passage, he will discover that the ass is a laborious animal, whereas the sheep is productive. This may be interpreted to mean that labor should be exchanged for produce, since the final results of work is the produce thereof. Or we may interpret the passage in this manner: Every action or labor of yours you can make commendable by the pure and simple manner in which you perform it.”
Source
Modern · 1953 →

The in-app commentary runs from the Fathers to the early-modern record, then stops — that's where the public-domain sources end, not where the reading does. For the modern reading, follow the sources directly.