Exodus 3 - ESV - Bible Reading / Study Notes

Exodus 3

The Burning Bush

3:1 Now Moses was keeping the flock of his father-in-law, Jethro, the priest of Midian, and he led his flock to the west side of the wilderness and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. 2 And the angel of the LORD appeared to him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush. He looked, and behold, the bush was burning, yet it was not consumed. 3 And Moses said, “I will turn aside to see this great sight, why the bush is not burned.” 4 When the LORD saw that he turned aside to see, God called to him out of the bush, “Moses, Moses!” And he said, “Here I am.” 5 Then he said, “Do not come near; take your sandals off your feet, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground.” 6 And he said, “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” And Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look at God.

7 Then the LORD said, “I have surely seen the affliction of my people who are in Egypt and have heard their cry because of their taskmasters. I know their sufferings, 8 and I have come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land to a good and broad land, a land flowing with milk and honey, to the place of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites. 9 And now, behold, the cry of the people of Israel has come to me, and I have also seen the oppression with which the Egyptians oppress them. 10 Come, I will send you to Pharaoh that you may bring my people, the children of Israel, out of Egypt.” 11 But Moses said to God, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the children of Israel out of Egypt?” 12 He said, “But I will be with you, and this shall be the sign for you, that I have sent you: when you have brought the people out of Egypt, you shall serve God on this mountain.”

13 Then Moses said to God, “If I come to the people of Israel and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘What is his name?’ what shall I say to them?” 14 God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM.”¹ And he said, “Say this to the people of Israel: ‘I AM has sent me to you.’” 15 God also said to Moses, “Say this to the people of Israel: ‘The LORD,² the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you.’ This is my name forever, and thus I am to be remembered throughout all generations. 16 Go and gather the elders of Israel together and say to them, ‘The LORD, the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob, has appeared to me, saying, “I have observed you and what has been done to you in Egypt, 17 and I promise that I will bring you up out of the affliction of Egypt to the land of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites, a land flowing with milk and honey.”’ 18 And they will listen to your voice, and you and the elders of Israel shall go to the king of Egypt and say to him, ‘The LORD, the God of the Hebrews, has met with us; and now, please let us go a three days’ journey into the wilderness, that we may sacrifice to the LORD our God.’ 19 But I know that the king of Egypt will not let you go unless compelled by a mighty hand.³ 20 So I will stretch out my hand and strike Egypt with all the wonders that I will do in it; after that he will let you go. 21 And I will give this people favor in the sight of the Egyptians; and when you go, you shall not go empty, 22 but each woman shall ask of her neighbor, and any woman who lives in her house, for silver and gold jewelry, and for clothing. You shall put them on your sons and on your daughters. So you shall plunder the Egyptians.”

Footnotes

[1] 3:14 Or I am what I am, or I will be what I will be
[2] 3:15 The word Lord, when spelled with capital letters, stands for the divine name, YHWH, which is here connected with the verb hayah, “to be” in verse 14
[3] 3:19 Septuagint, Vulgate; Hebrew go, not by a mighty hand

Commentary

v1: Moses led the flock; but God led Moses to the "mountain of God". Moses was to meet with God on His terms. This incident follows 40 years after Moses' attempt of deliverance. Moses was later to lead the flock of God.

v2: God's initiative to appear to Moses, and to speak with him.

v3: Moses was attracted by the unusual sight.

v4: The Lord God spoke to Moses.

v5: Moses' first lesson, that God is holy; and we must treat Him with proper respect and reverence (compare 19.10-13). The ground was described as holy ground, because God was there.

Isaiah had a similar experience (Is 6.1-3), after a king had died; he saw the Lord, holy and exalted, and holy. Simon Peter realised something of Christ's holiness (Luke 5.8).

It is only as we appreciate His holiness, can we begin to understand His grace and mercy.

v6: God identifies Himself; the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob, the faithful God who remembered His promises (2.24). He is the God of the living, not the dead (Matt 22.32). We see, too, that He is the eternal God (v14-16). God revealed Himself, before giving any commands to Moses. Moses needed to see who God was before receiving instructions. Moses was afraid; this was an experience he had not had before.

F D Moule comments; ‘The real authority for the conclusion is the conviction that if God establishes contact with a man and is willing to be called his God, then that relationship is such that death cannot break it.’ (The Birth of a New Testament, p65).

v7-8: The Lord's compassion for His people;

"I have seen the misery of my people"
"I have heard them crying out"
"I am concerned about their suffering"
"So I have come down to rescue them"

Here is the God of faithfulness, or initiative, of compassion, of action. Later, His character is further revealed, as deliverer (ch12), as guide (ch13), as protector (ch14), and as provider (ch14). God was always all these things, but He gradually revealed Himself to His people.

For the first time, Canaan is referred to as "a land flowing with milk and honey", and phrase repeated often, which indicates the fruitfulness of the land which God had for His people.

v9: The Lord saw how the Egyptians were mistreating the children of Israel.

v10: What the Lord saw led Him to action; "so now". Almighty God entrusted His glorious plan to a man, Moses. Through him God's promises would be fulfilled. However, the deliverance from Egypt was explained as unconditional promises; whatever Moses did, the people would have been delivered.

v11: Moses was initially reluctant.

v12: The Lord's response; His presence, which is always enough, and His sign, that the people would return to "this mountain," Horeb (or Sinai, 17.6; 33.6).

v13: The problem of authority. Moses needed to go in someone's Name. The Lord Jesus was asked a similar question; see Matt 21.23-27.

v14: The answer was the Name of the Lord, "I Am". He is the eternal God, outside of time. It is significant that the Lord Jesus used "I Am" several times (see John's gospel). The Lord Jesus made the clear claim repeatedly that He was, and is, the same as God.

v15: Moses was also instructed to refer to the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob, something which would be more familiar to the children of Israel. The ancient promises had to be fulfilled, and Moses was called to be God's servant to fulfil the promises.

v16-17: Moses was sent first to the Elders of the children of Israel. He was to speak in the name of God, and to tell them that they were to be delivered from Egypt into the promised land.

v18: Once the Elders were convinced, they were to go with Moses to Pharaoh. When addressing Pharaoh, a different title for God is used. He is the Lord God of the Hebrews, identifying Him with the distinct people, rather than the God of the precious promises. Some things are kept from unbelievers, see 2 Sam 1.20; other things are strictly for believers alone; 1 Cor 12.3.

v19-20: The Lord explained that Pharaoh would not let the children of Israel go at first. Only after mighty destruction was wrought in Egypt and upon its people would he let them go. But God's promises would still be fulfilled.

v21-22: The children of Israel would not leave empty handed. Normally, fleeing slaves would have no belongings, but this time, they would "plunder" the Egyptians.