He said, “Don’t come close. Take off your sandals, for the place you are standing on is holy ground.” Moreover he said, “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” Moses hid his face because he was afraid to look at God.
Yahweh said, “I have surely seen the affliction of my people who are in Egypt, and have heard their cry because of their taskmasters, for I know their sorrows. 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 large land, to a land flowing with milk and honey; to the place of the Canaanite, the Hittite, the Amorite, the Perizzite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite. Now, behold, the cry of the children of Israel has come to me. Moreover I have seen the oppression with which the Egyptians oppress them. Come now therefore, and I will send you to Pharaoh, that you may bring my people, the children of Israel, out of Egypt.”
Geneva Bible translators 1599 · Public Domain On vv5–9 Resign thyself up to me, Ruth 4:7; Josh. 5:15.
Resign thyself up to me, Ruth 4:7; Josh. 5:15.
Because of my presence.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain On vv5–10 Exo 3:5 And he said, Draw not nigh hither:…
Exo 3:5 And he said, Draw not nigh hither: put off thy shoes from off thy feet, for the place whereon thou standest [is] holy ground.
Ver. 5. Draw not nigh.] Be not rash, but reverent. Heathens could say, Non loquendum de Deo sine lumine. God will be sanctified of all that draw nigh unto him. {Lev 10:2}
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Put off thy shoes.] Of sensuality and other sins. Quid pedes, saith Erasmus, nisi affectus? Quid pedes calceamentorum onere liberi nisi animus nullis terrenis cupiditatibus oneratus? Affections are the feet of the soul; keep them unclogged.
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain On vv5–9 Draw not nigh hither; keep thy distance; whereby he…
Draw not nigh hither; keep thy distance; whereby he checks his curiosity and forwardness, and works him to the greater reverence and humility. Compare Exo 19:12,21; Jos 5:15.
Put off thy shoes: this he requires as an act and token,
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1. Of his reverence to the Divine Majesty, then and there eminently present.
2. Of his humiliation for his sins, whereby he was unfit and unworthy to appear before God; for this was a posture of humiliation, 2Sa 15:30; Isa 20:2,4; Eze 24:17,23.
3. Of purification from the filth of his feet, or ways, or conversation, that he might be more fit to approach to God. See Joh 13:10; Heb 10:22.
4. Of this submission and readiness to obey God’s will, for which reason slaves used to be bare-footed.
Holy ground; with a relative holiness at this time, because of my special presence in it.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Matthew Henry 1710 · Public Domain On v7 Now that Moses had put off his shoes (for,…
Now that Moses had put off his shoes (for, no doubt, he observed the orders given him, Exo 3:5), and covered his face, God enters upon the particular business that was now to be concerted, which was the bringing of Israel out of Egypt. Now, after forty years of Israel's bondage and Moses's banishment, when we may suppose both he and they began to despair, they of being delivered and he of delivering them, at length, the time has come, even the year of the redeemed. Note, God often comes for the salvation of his people when they have done looking for him. Shall he find faith? Luk 18:8.
Here is, I. The notice God takes of the afflictions of Israel (Exo 3:7, Exo 3:9): Seeing I have seen, not only, I have surely seen, but I have strictly observed and considered the matter. Three things God took cognizance of: - 1. Their sorrows, Exo 3:7. It is likely they were not permitted to make a remonstrance of their grievances to Pharaoh, nor to seek relief against their task-masters in any of his courts, nor scarcely durst complain to one another; but God observed their tears. Note, Even the secret sorrows of God's people are known to him. 2. Their cry: I have heard their cry (Exo 3:7), it has come unto me, Exo 3:9. Note, God is not deaf to the cries of his afflicted people. 3. The tyranny of their persecutors: I have seen the oppression, Exo 3:9. Note, As the poorest of the oppressed are not below God's cognizance, so the highest and greatest of their oppressors are not above his check, but he will surely visit for these things.
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II. The promise God makes of their speedy deliverance and enlargement: I have come down to deliver them, Exo 3:8. 1. It denotes his resolution to deliver them, and that his heart was upon it, so that it should be done speedily and effectually, and by methods out of the common road of providence: when God does something very extraordinary he is said to come down to do it, as Isa 64:1. 2. This deliverance was typical of our redemption by Christ, in which the eternal Word did indeed come down from heaven to deliver us: it was his errand into the world. He promises also their happy settlement in the land of Canaan, that they should exchange bondage for liberty, poverty for plenty, labour for rest, and the precarious condition of tenants at will for the ease and honour of lords proprietors. Note, Whom God by his grace delivers out of a spiritual Egypt he will bring to a heavenly Canaan.
III. The commission he gives to Moses in order hereunto, Exo 3:10. He is not only sent as a prophet to Israel, to assure them that they should speedily be delivered (even that would have been a great favour), but he is sent as an ambassador to Pharaoh, to treat with him, or rather as a herald at arms, to demand their discharge, and to denounce war in case of refusal; and he is sent as a prince to Israel, to conduct and command them. Thus is he taken from following the ewes great with young, to a pastoral office much more noble, as David, Psa 78:71. Note, God is the fountain of power, and the powers that be are ordained of him as he pleases. The same hand that now fetched a shepherd out of a desert, to be the planter of a Jewish church, afterwards fetched fishermen from their ships, to be the planters of the Christian church, That the excellency of the power might be of God.
Matthew Henry's Commentary on the Whole Bible (1708–1710) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain On vv5–10 And he said, draw not nigh hither,.... Keep a…
And he said, draw not nigh hither,.... Keep a proper distance:
put off thy shoes from off thy feet; dust and dirt cleaving to shoes, and these being ordered to be put off from the feet, the instrument of walking, show that those that draw nigh to God, and are worshippers of him, ought to be of pure and holy lives and conversations:
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for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground; not that there was any inherent holiness in this spot of ground more than in any other, which ground is not capable of; but a relative holiness on account of the presence of God here at this time, and was not permanent, only while a pure and holy God was there: hence, in after times, the temple being the place of the divine residence, the priests there performed their services barefooted, nor might a common person enter into the temple with his shoes on (k); and to this day the Jews go to their synagogues barefooted on the day of atonement (l), to which Juvenal (m) seems to have respect; and from hence came the Nudipedalia among the Heathens, and that known symbol of Pythagoras (n), "sacrifice and worship with naked feet": in this manner the priests of Diana sacrificed to her among the Cretians and other people (o); and so the priests of Hercules did the same (p); the Brahmans among the Indians never go into their temples without plucking off their shoes (q); so the Ethiopian Christians, imitating Jews and Gentiles, never go into their places of public worship but with naked feet (r), and the same superstition the Turks and Mahometans observe (s).
(k) Misn. Beracot, c. 9. sect. 5. (l) Buxtorf. Jud Synagog. c. 30. p. 571. (m) "Observant ub. festa mero pede Sabbata reges." Satyr. 6. (n) Jamblichus de Vita Pythagor. Symbol. 3. (o) Solin. Polyhistor. c. 16. Strabo, l. 12. p. 370. (p) Silius de Bello Punic, l. 3. (q) Rogerius de Relig. Brachman. l. 2. c. 10. apud Braunium de vest. sacerdot. l. 1. c. 3. p. 66. (r) Damianus a Goes apud Rivet. in loc. (s) Pitts's Account of the Relig. and Manners of the Mahometans, c. 6. p. 38. 81. Georgieviz. de Turc. Moribus, c. 1. p. 11. Sionita de Urb. Oriental. & Relig. c. 7. p. 18. c. 10. p. 34.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain On vv5, 6, 8, 10 Put off thy shoes from off thy feet -…
Put off thy shoes from off thy feet - The putting off the shoe was then what the putting off the hat is now, a token of respect and submission. The ground is holy ground, made so by this special manifestation of the divine presence. We ought to approach to God with a solemn pause and preparation; and to express our inward reverence, by a grave and reverent behaviour in the worship of God, carefully avoiding every thing that looks light, or rude.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain On vv5–8 Verse 5. Put off thy shoes] It is likely…
Verse 5. Put off thy shoes] It is likely that from this circumstance all the eastern nations have agreed to perform all the acts of their religious worship barefooted. All the Mohammedans, Brahmins, and Parsees do so still. The Jews were remarked for this in the time of Juvenal; hence he speaks of their performing their sacred rites barefooted; Sat. vi., ver. 158:
Observant ubi festa mero pede sabbata reges.
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The ancient Greeks did the same. Jamblichus, in the life of Pythagoras, tells us that this was one of his maxims, Ανυποδητος θυε και προσκυνει, Offer sacrifice and worship with your shoes off. And Solinus asserts that no person was permitted to enter into the temple of Diana, in Crete, till he had taken off his shoes. "AEdem Numinis (Dianae) praeterquam nudus vestigio nulles licito ingreditur." Tertullian observes, de jejunio, that in a time of drought the worshippers of Jupiter deprecated his wrath, and prayed for rain, walking barefooted. "Cum stupet caelum, et aret annus, nudipedalia, denunciantur." It is probable that נעלים nealim, in the text, signifies sandals, translated by the Chaldee סנדל sandal, and סנדלא sandala, (see Ge 14:23), which was the same as the Roman solea, a sole alone, strapped about the foot As this sole must let in dust, gravel, and sand about the foot in travelling, and render it very uneasy, hence the custom of frequently washing the feet in those countries where these sandals were worn. Pulling off the shoes was, therefore, an emblem of laying aside the pollutions contracted by walking in the way of sin. Let those who name the Lord Jesus Christ depart from iniquity. In our western countries reverence is expressed by pulling off the hat; but how much more significant is the eastern custom! "The natives of Bengal never go into their own houses with their shoes on, nor into the houses of others, but always leave their shoes at the door. It would be a great affront not to attend to this mark of respect when visiting; and to enter a temple without pulling off the shoes would be an unpardonable offence."-Ward.
The place whereon thou standest is holy ground.] It was not particularly sanctified by the Divine presence; but if we may credit Josephus, a general opinion had prevailed that God dwelt on that mountain; and hence the shepherds, considering it as sacred ground, did not dare to feed their flocks there. Moses, however, finding the soil to be rich and the pasturage good, boldly drove his flock thither to feed on it. - Antiq., b. ii., c. xii., s. 1.
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Joseph Benson 1811 · Public Domain On vv5, 6, 8, 10 Exo 3:5. Draw not nigh hither — Keep thy…
Exo 3:5. Draw not nigh hither — Keep thy distance. Thus God checks his curiosity and forwardness, and disposes his mind to the greater reverence and humility. Put off thy shoes from thy feet — This is required as a token of his reverence for the Divine Majesty, then and there eminently present; of his humiliation for his sins, which rendered him unworthy to appear before God; of his putting away all sin in his walk or conversation; and of his submission and readiness to obey God’s will; for which reason slaves were wont to approach their masters barefooted. We find the same direction given to Joshua, for the same reason, Jos 5:15. And it seems not improbable that putting off the shoes, as a sign of humiliation and veneration, was a ceremony observed by the patriarchs in their religious worship. Buxtorf says, that to this day the Jews go to their synagogues barefoot on the day of atonement, (Jud. Synag., c. 30, p. 57,) and many learned men suppose that the priests officiated barefoot in the tabernacle and temple. The custom of treading barefoot in holy places seems to have been general in the East: the Egyptians used it: and Pythagoras, who recommends to his disciples to worship, putting off their shoes, (ανυποδητος προσκυνει,) is thought to have learned this rite from them. The Mohammedans observe this ceremony at the present time, as do also the Christians of Abyssinia. The truth seems to be, as Henry observes, that putting off the shoes was then what putting off the hat is now, a token of respect and submission. The ground is holy — Not absolutely, but in relation to him who sanctified it by this peculiar manifestation of his presence. We ought to approach to God with a solemn pause and preparation; and to express our inward reverence by a grave and reverent behaviour in the worship of God, carefully avoiding every thing that looks light or rude.
Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Albert Barnes 1834 · Public Domain On vv5–8 Put off thy shoes - The reverence due to…
Put off thy shoes - The reverence due to holy places thus rests upon God’s own command. The custom itself is well known from the observances of the temple, it was almost universally adopted by the ancients, and is retained in the East.
Holy ground - This passage is almost conclusive against the assumption that the place was previously a sanctuary. Moses knew nothing of its holiness after some 40 years spent on the Peninsula. It became holy by the presence of God.
Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary 1859 · Public Domain On vv5, 6, 8 Shoes. Juvenal, sat. 6, takes notice of this custom.…
Shoes. Juvenal, sat. 6, takes notice of this custom. Observant ubi festa mero pede sabbata reges. (Du Hamel) --- The Ethiopian Christians and the Turks never enter their churches, or mosques, without putting off their shoes. The priests did the like when they entered the temple of Jerusalem, and God ordered them moreover to wash their feet and hands, Exodus xxx. 19. (Calmet) --- We observe the same ceremony, out of respect for Jesus Christ, when we go to kiss the cross. Pythagoras said, "Offer sacrifice and adoration barefoot." (Jamblic. 24.) On such occasions, we ought to have our hearts disengaged from the world. (Haydock) See Leviticus ii. 25.
George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown 1871 · Public Domain On vv5, 6, 10 put off thy shoes--The direction was in conformity with…
put off thy shoes--The direction was in conformity with a usage which was well known to Moses, for the Egyptian priests observed it in their temples, and it is observed in all Eastern countries where the people take off their shoes or sandals, as we do our hats. But the Eastern idea is not precisely the same as the Western. With us, the removal of the hat is an expression of reverence for the place we enter, or rather of Him who is worshipped there. With them the removal of the shoes is a confession of personal defilement and conscious unworthiness to stand in the presence of unspotted holiness.
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain On vv5–7 5. Put off thy shoes — The Orientals drop…
5. Put off thy shoes — The Orientals drop their shoes or sandals at the door, lest they defile the department by bringing in the dirt of the street; and by this expressive symbolism was Moses taught that he was drawing nigh to Him in whose sight “the heavens are not clean.” The awful holiness of God is the first thought that the praying soul needs, and hence at the threshold of prayer the soul is taught to drop its sandals with “Hallowed be thy name.”
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain On vv5–10 5. shoes] properly (as always) sandals. Cf. Jos_5:15 (J).…
5. shoes] properly (as always) sandals. Cf. Jos_5:15 (J). The removal of the sandals is still the usual mark of reverence, upon entering a mosque, or other holy place, in the East.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain On vv5–8 (5) Put off thy shoes.—Rather, thy sandals. It is…
(5) Put off thy shoes.—Rather, thy sandals. It is doubtful whether shoes were known at this early date. They would certainly not have been worn in Midian. Egyptians before the time of Moses, and Orientals generally, in ancient (as in modern) times, removed their sandals (or their shoes) from their feet on entering any place to which respect was due, as a temple, a palace, and even the private house of a great man. It is worthy of notice that God Himself orders this mark of respect to be shown to the place which His Presence has hallowed. On the reverence due to holy places, see the Note on Gen_28:16-17.
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain On vv5–10 Draw not nigh. The awful greatness of the Creator…
Draw not nigh. The awful greatness of the Creator is such that his creatures, until invited to draw near, are bound to stand aloof. Moses, not yet aware that God himself spoke to him, was approaching the bush too close, to examine and see what the "great thing" was. (See ver. 3.) On the general unfitness of man to approach near to holy things, see the comment on Exo_19:12. Put off thy shoes. Rather, "thy sandals. " Shoes were not worn commonly, even by the Egyptians, until a late period, and would certainly not be known in the land of Midian at this time. The practice of putting them off before entering a temple, a palace, or even the private apartments of a house, was, and is, universal in the East the rationale of it being that the shoes or sandals have dust or dirt attaching to them. The command given to Moses at this time was repeated to Joshua. (Jos_5:15) Holy ground. Literally, "ground of holiness ground rendered holy by the presence of God upon it not "an old sanctuary," as some have thought, for then Moses would not have needed the information.
The God of thy father. "Father" here is used collectively, meaning forefathers generally, a usage well known to Hebraists. (Compare Exo_15:2, antioch, Exo_18:4) The God of Abraham, etc., i.e. the God who revealed himself to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and entered into covenant with them. (Gen_15:1-21 Gen_26:2-5 Gen_35:1-12) The conclusion which our Blessed Lord drew from this verse (Mat_22:32) is not directly involved in it, but depends on his minor premiss, "God is not the God of the dead, but of the living." Moses hid his face. A natural instinctive action. So Elijah, on the same site (1Ki_19:13) and the holy angels before God"s throne in heaven. (Isa_6:2) In thereligious system of Rome, the augurs when discharging their office, and all persons when offering a sacrifice, veiled their heads. (See Liv. 1:18; Virg. Aen. 3:405; Juv. 6:390.)
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Biblical Illustrator 1887 · Public Domain On vv6, 7, 8, 10 I am the God of thy father.
Exo_3:6
I am the God of thy father.
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The ancestral God our God
This declaration was made in order to assure Moses that even in the present oppressed state of his nation in Egypt, the Most High had not forgotten them, or His relation to them as a God in covenant. This would be an unspeakable consolation to Moses, to find himself addressed by that God of whose appearances and promises to his fathers he had often heard, and to know that His heart was as kindly affected to him as it ever had been to his venerated ancestors. How comforting beyond measure to the Christian, in his more favoured moments, to be assured that the God of all the good who have ever lived is his God, and equally pledged by His covenant faithfulness, to show to him the same loving-kindness that He showed to them! (G. Bush.)
The Divine revelation
The Divine Being here reveals Himself as--
1. The God of individual men.
2. The God of families.
3. The God of the immortal good. (J. S. Exell, M. A.)
The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob
He is thus the God of generations, the God of individuals, and the God of the whole human family. There is something inexpressibly beautiful in the idea that God is the God of the father, and of the son, and of all their descendants; thus the one God makes humanity into one family. (J. Parker, D. D.)
The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Preacher's Complete Homiletical Commentary 1892 · Public Domain On v7 MAIN HOMILETICS OF THE PARAGRAPH.—Exo_3:7-10
MAIN HOMILETICS OF THE PARAGRAPH.—Exo_3:7-10
THE CALLING OF A GREAT DELIVERER
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I. His call was rendered necessary by intense national suffering. (Exo_3:7).
1. The sufferings to which the Israelites were exposed. “I have seen the affliction of my people.” They were afflicted by a tyrant king—a hostile nation—oppressive taskmasters—unremunerative work. Surrounded as we are by all the advantages of freedom, and Christian influence, it is almost impossible for us to realize their sorrow. Oppression occasions the worst—most degrading—most painful suffering to men. These ancient people had happy memories still lingering in their minds—memories of a godly ancestry,—which would intensify the grief and degradation of their present condition. (i.) Politically they were prisoners. (ii.) Socially they were bondmen. (iii.) Commercially they were ruined. (iv.) Religiously they were degenerate—hence their suffering. The grief of legal slavery is now almost banished from the world.
2. The Divine attention to the sufferings of the Israelites. God has deep sympathy with the sorrowful. (i.) God sees the pain of the oppressed. “I have surely seen the affliction of my people.” He knows the occasion of it—the men who augment it. He is cognisant not only of the secondary agencies of grief, but also of the primary—not only the cruel taskmasters—but also of the tyrant king who has commissioned them. (ii.) God hears the cry of the oppressed. “And have heard their cry.” The Divine Being is not deaf to the voice of human sorrow, especially when it comes from a penitent heart. This is testified by the moral experiences of the universe. The cries and prayers of the suffering not merely gain help—relief—but also expose those by whom they are occasioned to the Divine displeasure. God saw the oppression of the Egyptians, and we cannot but connect this with their final overthrow in the Red Sea. We cannot occasion sorrow to others, without rendering ourselves liable to severe retribution—especially if we afflict the people of God. (iii.) God relieves the pain of the oppressed. He does not merely look in pity—hear with compassion—speak in accents of tenderness—but He devises means for the destruction of the oppressor—for the freedom of the slave. He raises up a deliverer, whose life and heroism He joins to the sorrow-stricken people for the removal of their woe.
II. He was called to his mission by the immediate agency of God. (Exo_3:10.)
1. His free agency was consulted. God does not force men into Christian service—into heroic and philanthropic effort. He does not employ unwilling agents. He merely calls—sometimes by loud voices—by the urgency of the case—by a providential opening. Man has the ability to object—refuse. Thus the Divine Being comes into intimate contact with the lives of destined deliverers—to refine their sympathies—awaken their enthusiasm—to urge them to their great avocation. Such a call is honourable; it links men to the mercy and power of God—it is responsible—it links men to the sufferings of humanity. By willingly—cheerfully responding to it we become, in a very high sense, co-workers with God, for the truest benefit of the race. Such calls to pious souls are varied and numerous—may they always find us obedient thereto.
2. His adaptability was considered. The divine calls to service are dependent upon moral character—intellectual power. God does not call wicked men to achieve the freedom of the suffering. He would not give them the vision—nor would they have the faith to believe it—necessary to awaken them to the conviction of such great service. God does not call weak-minded men to this work of liberation—but those well learned in the literature—science—history of their country—whose moral nature has been well disciplined by solitude—through long years—and who have been previously lifted up to the elevation of the call He gives, and the service He requires. There was not another man in the whole nation more thoroughly qualified for this work than Moses. All his life had been one constant preparation, and an unconscious waiting for this hour. So that when the call of God sounded in his soul, all the discipline of his life became intelligible to him. And so, to-day, in calling men to the varied offices of Christian service, the Divine Being strictly contemplates their moral and intellectual qualifications Social considerations are subordinated. A shepherd may be called to accomplish the freedom of Israel. Hence the Divine call to human souls is—
(1) Emphatic.
(2) Judicious.
(3) Hopeful.
III. He was definitely made acquainted with the mission he had to undertake. (Exo_3:10.)
1. He was to pay a visit to royalty. He was commanded to go unto Pharaoh. There seems an apparent incongruity for a shepherd of the desert to demand an interview with the monarch of Egypt—there was a great disparity in their social position. But what Moses lacked in the social accidents of life, he more than made up in the moral. God had given him a vision—had held audience with him. Hence he was well qualified to meet Pharaoh. Any man who holds intimate communion with God, is fit companionship for the grandest king of the universe. The vision of the bush would awaken Moses to a strong sense of his manhood—to a consciousness of Divine aid—hence he will go bravely to Pharaoh with the requirement of freedom. The visit was not to be one of mere courtesy—but to demand the citizen rights of an enslaved nation. Christian men, in these days, are reluctant to visit kings on the errands of God—they are timorous—they have not vision enough to inspire them with fortitude—at such times they should gather strength from their Divine communion and commission.
2. He was to achieve the freedom of Israel. “That thou mayest bring forth my people, the children of Israel, out of Egypt.” What a commission for one man to fulfil—with no armies but the unseen legions of heaven. Apparently unaided, be goes to the task. God sometimes calls men to arduous duties—in which there appears but little likelihood of success. He clearly defines the duty of Christian service. He forewarns of its difficulties—that they may not surprise or overwhelm. This arrangement is—
(1) Merciful.
(2) Considerate.
(3) Accommodated to our weakness.
IV. In the performance of his mission he was animated by the highest hopes. (Exo_3:8.)
1. He anticipated the freedom of Israel.
2. He anticipated conquest in the event of war
3. He anticipated residence in a land of beauty and fertility. God always animates those engaged in great service by great hopes. Lessons.—
1. That God knows how to prepare men to become the deliverers of the good
2. That a divine call is requisite for the mission of life.
3. That human sorrow is pathetic and powerful in its appeal to God.
A PICTURE OF HUMAN SORROW
I. That God knows the sorrows to which His people are exposed. (Exo_3:7.)
1. Because of the relationship He sustains to them. “My people.” Ancient Israel was a Divinely chosen nation—peculiarly favoured by heaven. This is but a faint type of the Divine regard for all devout souls. “My people:”—
(1.) It indicates ownership.
(2.) It indicates endearment.
(3.) It indicates astonishment. We should imagine as the people of God, so truly loved, that Israel would have been shielded from sorrow altogether. We should have thought that their lives would have been pre-eminently jubilant. Are we not frequently surprised to find the choicest of God’s saints in circumstances of great trial? This is a problem the next world will better solve.
2. Because His omniscient eye is upon them. He sees their trials.
3. Because they are in the habit of making known their sorrows to Him by prayer.
II. That at the proper time God will deliver His people from sorrow. (Exo_3:8).
1. Sometimes after it has been long continued.
2. Sometimes when least expected.
3. Sometimes by agencies once despised. Moses had previously tried to awaken within the Israelites feelings of brotherhood—but he had been repulsed—his authority had been denied—yet this is the man Divinely sent to achieve the freedom of the nation. So, instrumentalities that have been rejected by us may one day be instrumental for our good. Let us despise no effort for our welfare, we may have to meet it again in the future.
III. That God uses human instrumentalities in the deliverance of His people from sorrow. God sends man to comfort his fellow-man.
1. Prepared by life’s discipline. It requires great preparation to fit man for the work of sympathy.
2. Encouraged by Heaven’s vision. Any man who is destined to aid, or mitigate the suffering of his fellows must have visions of the other world—of the painless life—of God—to prepare his soul for contact with woe, that he may not be depressed thereby. Heaven only can teach a human soul how to console troubled hearts.
3. Called by God’s voice. God knows where to find men who are the most fitted to undertake errands of mercy and consolation—appeals to their sympathies—at the same time authoritatively commissions them to the work.
THE TYPICAL CHARACTER OF MOSES CONSIDERED, AS THE DELIVERER, MEDIATOR, LAWGIVER, AND GUIDE OF ISRAEL
It will be our aim, in the present discourse, to exhibit Moses as the representative of our gracious Lord; and to shew, in a connected view, that the benefits conferred by the one upon Israel, are emblems and shadows of these spiritual mercies, which the other was manifested to bestow upon mankind.
I. Moses claims our first regard as a Deliverer. While Israel was groaning in Egypt, God was preparing the means of their deliverance. When we were dead in sin His compassion provided for our redemption. When the Israelites were arrayed to leave their captivity they numbered 600,000 on foot, besides women and children. Yet, in this vast multitude there was no deliverer, Moses only excepted. Nor could one be found, to redeem the world, from amongst its numbers. Moses was a man like unto his brethren, experienced the wants, and sympathized with the sorrows of Israel. He was well learned in the wisdom of Egypt. The rod of the Lord was put into his hand. Christ partook of our nature—possessed unsearchable wisdom—wrought miracles. Moses made sacrifice to fulfil the duty with which God had charged him. Having “respect unto the recompense of the reward.” Christ made “himself of no reputation,” &c.
II. He is a type of Christ when we regard him as the appointed mediator between God and Israel. So overpowering in greatness did the Most High appear upon Mount Sinai, that the people placed Moses between themselves and the majesty of Heaven. Moses was qualified for this office—by cordial love—meekness—long suffering—disinterestedness—ever watchful seal; so God could have no interest with men except through Christ, who is far more qualified for the office of mediator than Moses.
III. When we regard him in his office of Lawgiver to Israel. Israel had forgotten the sanctions and demands of the Divine covenant with Abraham amidst the rigours of their servitude. During the first part of their wilderness journey they were rather a band of fugitives, without order and regulations, than a people restrained by the influence of judicious legislation. It was necessary that some mode of government should be given to them. This was given by the Most High—through Moses. So, in the mournful captivity of the soul, the lust of the flesh, and the pride of life, oppose the will of God; and the fallen creature becomes a fatal law unto himself. Even when the condemnation of impiety is removed, and the fetters with which it bound all the passions, and faculties, and principles of the mind are broken, the liberated bond-servant needs a revelation of the Word of God, by which his conduct may be governed. Christ a law-giver—assisted at the formation of the law—can best explain it—best enforce it. The temporal deliverer could only give the law; he could not infuse a principle of holy obedience into its injunctions. He could not subdue the enmity of carnal affections. The Son of God alone can form us, by His grace, to the holiness of his own demand.
IV. When we regard him as the Leader and Guide of Israel. Israel did not at once reach the promised land—toilsomo journey. Moses was their guide. So, the Christian, who is journeying from the house of moral bondage toward heaven, has Jesus for his guide [Buddicom’s Christian Exodus].
SUGGESTIVE COMMENTS ON THE VERSES
Exo_3:7. “My people.”
1. Therefore we must love Him.
2. Therefore we must serve Him.
3. Therefore we must aid His Church.
“I know their sorrows.”
I. The Person.
1. He can help. This is demonstrated by all history—experience—from the greatness of his power—the fulness of His resources—from the sympathetic ministries He has at command.
2. He will help—Hagar—David—Peter—prove this. He has promised to succour the tired—has told men to cast their heart-burdens on Himself. The whole scheme of salvation is based on this fact. His arm brought salvation. He will therefore freely give us all things. What a mercy that troubled souls are not left to follow blind impulse—reason—we have a Divine Helper
3. He delights to help. Sympathy is the natural—happy out-come of the heart of God. He heals the withered flower by the new life of spring tide. He heals troubled souls by imparting new spiritual energy. It is His joy to do so.
II. The knowledge.
1. It is certain. God knows the trials of humanity—from whatever cause they may arise—unerringly. He cannot be deceived, or mistaken. What a consolation for the afflicted.
2. It is unlimited. God knows all the sorrows of the heart—those unwhispered to our nearest friend—no matter to what sphere of life they relate—no matter how trivial or how great.
3. It is compassionate. He does not investigate our sorrow—to satisfy curiosity—to become officiously acquainted with our circumstances—but to soothe—to relieve. Religion does not present to the troubled soul a stoical—merely philosophical deity—but One who is touched with the feeling of our infirmity.
III. The Sorrow.
1. It may be long continued. Israel had been in bondage four hundred years. Our trials may be continuous—like a long winter night—like a long polar winter—without a ray of sunlight—but God has not forgotten to be gracious. His delay is part of the discipline—the dawn of morning will come.
2. It may be deeply oppressive. As the poorest are not below God’s cognizance. neither are the greatest beyond His check.
3. It may be widely experienced. “I know their sorrows”
1. Therefore do not complain.
2. Therefore wait His time for deliverance.
3. Therefore seek His grace.
Israel’s bondage and freedom, a type of the world’s sorrow and Christ’s redemption:—
1. Because Christ came down from heaven. 2 Christ came at the call of the world’s sorrow.
3. Christ came to achieve the world’s moral freedom.
4. Christ came to destroy the kingship of sin.
5. Christ came to lead men into happiness.
6. Christ came to awaken holy agencies for the spiritual welfare of the race.… God usually speaks kindly to his servants to remove their fear at His appearing.
Jehovah resents the oppression of the Church.
1. Surely.
2. Speedily.
3. Continually.
4. Retributively.
Egypt is seen by God in all its oppression of His people.
Cruel exactors make God’s people cry aloud to Him in complaint and prayer.
Exo_3:8. “And I am come down to deliver them,” God is said to descend—
1. In accommodation to a human form of speech.
2. To show judgments on the wicked (Genesis 18.)
3. Perhaps to indicate the situation of Egypt, which was a low country.
4. To indicate some notable event about to follow. Babel.
“To bring them up out of that land.”
1. Of bad rulership.
2. Of wicked companionships.
3. Of hostile religious influences.
4. Of servile bondage.
5. There are many countries in the world where it is dangerous for God’s people to reside.
“Unto a good land, and a large.”
1. Canaan was large compared with Goshen.
2. God exchanges the situations of His people for their good.
3. God does not intend His people to remain long the slaves of any earthly power.
4. The spiritual Israel will in eternity enter into the fulness of these words.
“Unto the place of the Canaanites.” The Canaanites were the same whom the Grecians called Phœnicians.
1. The Septuagint in the fifth of Joshua, for Canaanites reads Phœnicians.
2. The woman whom our Saviour dispossessed of a devil, by Matthew is called Canaanitish, by Mark a Syro-Phœnician.
3. These Canaanites are said to dwell near the sea (Num_13:30), as did the Phœnicians.
4. The Phœnicians were noted for their deceit in buying; so the Canaanites are noted in scripture for their craft (Hos_12:7).
“The Canaanites and the Hittites,” &c. A disinherited people:—
1. Disinherited by God, as the Supreme Disposer of all territory.
2. As under a special curse.
3. As guilty of unrepented sin.
4. A warning for nations to-day.
Flowings of milk and honey are in the inheritance of the Church.
The place of wicked nations God can make the inheritance of His people.
God will make good his promise to the uttermost to give the Church its inheritance.
Exo_3:9. God demonstrates that He hears the cry, and sees the oppression of His people and Church.
In times of hearing the cry of His Church, God watches the conduct of enemies toward it.
Exo_3:10. “Come now therefore.” The Divine call to service:—
1. It is persuasive, “come.”
2. It is immediate, “now.”
3. It is logical, “therefore.”
“I will send thee unto Pharaoh:”—I. A vocation.
2. A preparation.
3. A commission.
“That thou mayest bring forth My people.” &c. A God-given task:—
1. Arduous in its requirement.
2. Responsible in its exercise.
3. Glorious in its issue.
4. Unique in its character.
In the eighth verse God says, “I am come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians;” and in the tenth verse He says, “I will send thee unto Pharaoh.” Is there not a discrepancy here? If God Himself came down to do a work, why did He not go and do it personally? One word from Himself would surely have done more for the cause which He had espoused than all the words which the most gifted of His creatures could have used. Looking at this incident as standing alone, it does undoubtedly appear most remarkable that God did not personally execute what He had personally conceived. The thinking was His, so was the love; all the spiritual side of the case belonged exclusively to God; yet He calls a shepherd, a lonely and unfriended man, to work out—with painful elaboration, and through a long series of bewildering disappointments—the purpose which it seems He Himself might have accomplished with a word. We find, however, that the instance is by no means an isolated one. Throughout the whole scheme of the Divine government of the human family, we find the principle of mediation. God speaks to man through man. Undoubtedly, this is mysterious. To our imperfect understanding, it would seem that the direct personal revelation of His presence and glory would instantly secure the results which are so desirable, and yet so doubtful. It is here that Faith must lead us. Moreover, this principle of individual selection in the matter of all great ministries, is in keeping with the principle which embodies in a single germ the greatest forests. It is enough that God gives the one acorn, man must plant it and develope its productiveness. God works from the one to the many [City Temple].
God’s call—is instant, and suffers no delay.
Though God needs no man, He calls some for the help of His people.
Such as God calls, He sends to bring about deliverance.
The mission of God may be of the poorest man to the greatest potentate.
God’s command is enough to empower the weakest man for the strongest work.
ILLUSTRATIONS
Exo_3:7-8. As the bees, although they sometimes sting the hands and face of the owner and master of them, yet they be profitable in providing for him the sweet honey and wax: even so an enemy, although he persecute, injure, and wrong a good Christian, yet is he very profitable unto him, in furthering him to heavenward, if so be that by patience he possess his soul, and do pray for him, as our Saviour Christ and Stephen did.
The fish distressed, slides into the water, and is relieved; the bird flies to the dam, and is shrouded under her wings; the child runs to its parents; strike the dog, and he runs to his master; wound the soldier and he flies to the army; and by way of antiperistasis (the opposition of a contrary quality, by which the quality opposed acquires strength), cold makes the heat retire into the fire, and the force thereof is greater. Thus, if mere natural causes, whose goodness is finite, do cherish their effects, how much more shall God, whose goodness is infinite! It is He, and He only, that is the object of His people’s trust in the midst of their distress,—He is the first cause of all things, and all things have recourse unto Him.
Exo_3:9. Like as a father, having a young infant sick of some sore disease, though the child can speak never a word, is ready to help it; and if it can speak, yet, being full of pain, cannot call for things as it ought, yet, if the mother can by any signs guess at the meaning of it, she will accept as much of it as if it had spoken very plentifully—yea, though it should say one thing and mean another, she would give it according to the meaning of it: even so the Lord, who is filled with the bowels of compassion towards us in Christ, far above any father or mother, though he delighteth to hear us pray unto Him, yet, when, as by the extremity of our miseries, we are oppressed or distracted, so that we cannot in any orderly manner-pray unto him as we ought, he alloweth of the sighs and sobs that we offer up unto Him, and granteth not so much our words (which are none or few) as the meaning of His Spirit, which is plentiful in us [Cawdray].
Exo_3:10. As Samson, though he had strength given him that he was able to have defended the Israelites, and revenged them of their enemies, yet he could not take upon him the government of the people until such time that the Lord had called him unto it: so, likewise the ministers of the Word, albeit they have never so notable gifts of knowledge, utterance, etc., yet they are not in any case to intrude themselves into the ministry, unless they have a particular calling from the Lord [Cawdray].
The Preacher's Complete Homiletical Commentary (gen. ed. Joseph S. Exell; Funk & Wagnalls, c. 1892) — public domain (pre-1929). A full-Bible homiletical/sermon-outline anthology covering 65 of 66 books (2 John is absent from the source module). Text from a community e-Sword module.
Alexander MacLaren 1905 · Public Domain On v10 Exo 3:10 - - Exo 3:20.
Exodus
THE CALL OF MOSES
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Exo 3:10 - - Exo 3:20.
The ‘son of Pharaoh’s daughter’ had been transformed, by nearly forty years of desert life, into an Arab shepherd. The influences of the Egyptian court had faded from him, like colour from cloth exposed to the weather; nor is it probable that, after the failure of his early attempt to play the deliverer to Israel, he nourished further designs of that sort. He appears to have settled down quietly to be Jethro’s son-in-law, and to have lived a modest, still life of humble toil. He had flung away fair prospects,-and what had he made of it? The world would say ‘Nothing,’ as it ever does about those who despise material advantages and covet higher good. Looking after sheep in the desert was a sad downcome from the possibility of sitting on the throne of Egypt. Yes, but it was in the desert that the vision of the bush burning, and not burning out, came; and it would not have come if Moses had been in a palace.
This passage begins in the midst of the divine communication which followed and interpreted the vision. We note, first, the divine charge and the human shrinking from the task. It was a startling transition from Exo 3:9, which declares God’s pitying knowledge of Israel’s oppression, to Exo 3:10, which thrusts Moses forward into the thick of dangers and difficulties, as God’s instrument. ‘I will send thee’ must have come like a thunder-clap. The commander’s summons which brings a man from the rear rank and sets him in the van of a storming-party may well make its receiver shrink. It was not cowardice which prompted Moses’ answer, but lowliness. His former impetuous confidence had all been beaten out of him. Time was when he was ready to take up the rôle of deliverer at his own hand; but these hot days were past, and age and solitude and communion with God had mellowed him into humility. His recoil was but one instance of the shrinking which all true, devout men feel when designated for tasks which may probably make life short, and will certainly make it hard. All prophets and reformers till to-day have had the same feeling. Men who can do such work as the Jeremiahs, Pauls, Luthers, Cromwells, can do, are never forward to begin it.
Self-confidence is not the temper which God uses for His instruments. He works with ‘bruised reeds,’ and breathes His strength into them. It is when a man says ‘I can do nothing,’ that he is fit for God to employ. ‘When I am weak, then I am strong.’ Moses remembered enough of Egypt to know that it was no slight peril to front Pharaoh, and enough of Israel not to be particularly eager to have the task of leading them. But mark that there is no refusal of the charge, though there is profound consciousness of inadequacy. If we have reason to believe that any duty, great or small, is laid on us by God, it is wholesome that we should drive home to ourselves our own weakness, but not that we should try to shuffle out of the duty because we are weak. Moses’ answer was more of a prayer for help than of a remonstrance, and it was answered accordingly.
God deals very gently with conscious weakness. ‘Certainly I will be with thee.’ Moses’ estimate of himself is quite correct, and it is the condition of his obtaining God’s help. If he had been self-confident, he would have had no longing for, and no promise of, God’s presence. In all our little tasks we may have the same assurance, and, whenever we feel that they are too great for us, the strength of that promise may be ours. God sends no man on errands which He does not give him power to do. So Moses had not to calculate the difference between his feebleness and the strength of a kingdom. Such arithmetic left out one element, which made all the difference in the sum total. ‘Pharaoh versus Moses’ did not look a very hopeful cause, but ‘Pharaoh versus Moses and Another’-that other being God-was a very different matter. God and I are always stronger than any antagonists. It was needless to discuss whether Moses was able to cope with the king. That was not the right way of putting the problem. The right way was, Is God able to do it?
The sign given to Moses is at first sight singular, inasmuch as it requires faith, and can only be a confirmation of his mission when that mission is well accomplished. But there was a help to present faith even in it, for the very sacredness of the spot hallowed now by the burning bush was a kind of external sign of the promise.
One difficulty being solved, Moses raised another, but not in the spirit of captiousness or reluctance. God is very patient with us when we tell Him the obstacles which we seem to see to our doing His work. As long as these are presented in good faith, and with the wish to have them cleared up, He listens and answers. The second question asked by Moses was eminently reasonable. He pictures to himself his addressing the Israelites, and their question, What is the name of this God who has sent you? Apparently the children of Israel had lost much of their ancestral faith, and probably had in many instances fallen into idolatry. We do not know enough to pronounce with confidence on that point, nor how far the great name of Jehovah had been used before the time of Moses, or had been forgotten in Egypt.
The questions connected with these points and with the history of the name do not enter into our present purpose. My task is rather to point out the religious significance of the self-revelation of God contained in the name, and how it becomes the foundation of Israel’s deliverance, existence, and prerogatives. Whatever opinions are adopted as to the correct form of the name and other grammatical and philological questions, there is no doubt that it mainly reveals God as self-existent and unchangeable. He draws His being from no external source, nor ‘borrows leave to be.’ Creatures are what they are made or grow to be; they are what they were not; they are what they will some time not any more be. But He is what He is. Lifted above time and change, self-existing and self-determined, He is the fountain of life, the same for ever.
This underived, independent, immutable being is a Person who can speak to men, and can say ‘I am.’ Being such, He has entered into close covenant relations with men, and has permitted Himself to be called ‘the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.’ The name Jehovah lifts Him high above all creatures; the name ‘the God of your fathers’ brings Him into tender proximity with men, and, in combination with the former designation, guarantees that He will forever be what He has been, even to all generations of children’s children. That mighty name is, indeed, His ‘memorial to all generations,’ and is as fresh and full of blessedness to us as to the patriarchs. Christ has made us understand more of the treasures for heart and mind and life which are stored in it. ‘Our Father which art in heaven’ is the unfolding of its inmost meaning.
We may note that the bush burning but not consumed expressed in symbol the same truth which the name reveals. It seems a mistake to take the bush as the emblem of Israel surviving persecution. Rather the revelation to the eye says the same thing as that to the ear, as is generally the case. As the desert shrub flamed, and yet did not burn away, so that divine nature is not wearied by action nor exhausted by bestowing, nor has its life any tendency towards ending or extinction, as all creatural life has.
The closing verses of this passage {Exo 3:16 - - Exo 3:20} are a programme of Moses’ mission, in which one or two points deserve notice. First, the general course of it is made known from the beginning. Therein Moses was blessed beyond most of God’s servants, who have to risk much and to labour on, not knowing which shall prosper. If we could see, as he did, the lie of the country beforehand, our journeys would be easier. So we often think, but we know enough of what shall be to enable us to have quiet hearts; and it is best for us not to see what is to fail and what to succeed. Our ignorance stimulates effort, and drives to clinging to God’s hand.
Then we may note the full assurances to be given to the ‘elders of Israel.’ Apparently some kind of civic organisation had been kept up, and there were principal people among the slaves who had to be galvanised first into enthusiasm. So they are to be told two things,-that Jehovah has appeared to Moses, and that He, not Moses only, will deliver them and plant them in the land. The enumeration of the many tribes {Exo 3:17} might discourage, but it is intended to fire by the thought of the breadth of the land, which is further described as fertile. The more exalted our conceptions of the inheritance, the more willing shall we be to enter on the pilgrimage towards it. The more we realise that Jehovah has promised to lead us thither, the more willing shall we be to face difficulties and dangers.
The directions as to the opening of communications with Pharaoh have often been made a difficulty, as if there was trickery in the modest request for permission to go three days’ journey into the wilderness. But that request was to be made, knowing that it would not be granted. It was to be a test of Pharaoh’s willingness to submit to Jehovah. Its very smallness made it so more effectually. If he had any disposition to listen to the voice speaking through Moses, he would yield that small point. It is useless to speculate on what would have happened if he had done so. But probably the Israelites would have come back from their sacrificing.
Of more importance is it to note that the failure of the request was foreseen, and yet the effort was to be made. Is not that the same paradox which meets us in all the divine efforts to win over hard-hearted men to His service? Is it not exactly what our Lord did when He appealed to Judas, while knowing that all would be vain?
The expression in Exo 3:19, ‘not by a mighty hand,’ is very obscure. It may possibly mean that Pharaoh was so obstinate that no human power was strong enough to bend his will. Therefore, in contrast to the ‘mighty hand’ of man, which was not mighty enough for this work, God will stretch out His hand, and that will suffice to compel obedience from the proudest. God can force men by His might to comply with His will, so far as external acts go; but He does not regard that as obedience, nor delight in it. We can steel ourselves against men’s power, but God’s hand can crush and break the strongest will. ‘It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.’ It is a blessed thing to put ourselves into them, in order to be moulded by their loving touch. The alternative is laid before every soul of man.
Alexander MacLaren, Expositions of Holy Scripture (1904–1910) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Paul E. Kretzmann 1924 · Public Domain On v7 The Command to go to Egypt
The Command to go to Egypt
v. 7. And the Lord said, I have surely seen, "seeing I have seen," a very emphatic expression, the affliction of My people which are in Egypt, the burdens which they were forced to bear, and have heard their cry by reason of their taskmasters, in the presence of the cruel drivers; for I know their sorrows, the pains and the suffering which they were enduring;
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v. 8. and I am come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians, and to bring them up out of that land unto a good land and a large, unto a land flowing with milk and honey; unto the place of the Canaanites, and the Hittites, and the Amorites, and the Perizzites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites. Cf Gen 10:19; Gen 15:18. The land of Canaan, which was now inhabited by the Canaanitish tribes enumerated here, was to the children of Israel the Land of Promise, a good land on account of its great fertility, and a large or wide land in contrast to the present condition of oppression in the land of Egypt, a land overflowing with milk and honey, supremely rich in flowery and nourishing pastures.
v. 9. Now, therefore, behold, the cry of the children of Israel is come unto Me; and I have also seen the oppression wherewith the Egyptians oppress them.
v. 10. Come now, therefore, and I will send thee unto Pharaoh, that thou mayest bring forth My people, the children of Israel, out of Egypt. This was the object of the Lord’s explanation, to make Moses the leader of the people in effecting their deliverance from the bondage of Egypt. With. out the command and call of God no man should venture to undertake work in His kingdom. Even Christ glorified not Himself to be made a High Priest, Heb 5:5-6. Moses received an immediate call from God; His method at the present time is that of the mediate call, through the congregations or their representatives.
Paul E. Kretzmann, Popular Commentary of the Bible (1921–1924) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On vv7, 9 Egyptians whose job was to force the Israelites to…
taskmasters
Egyptians whose job was to force the Israelites to do hard work. See how you translated this in Exodus 1:11.
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a land flowing with milk and honey
"a land where milk and honey flow." God spoke of the land being good for animals and plants as if the milk and honey from those animals and plants were flowing through the land. AT: "a land that is excellent for raising livestock and growing crops" (See: Metaphor and Metonymy)
flowing with
"full of" or "with an abundance of"
milk
Since milk comes from cows and goats, this represents food produced by livestock. AT: "food from livestock" (See: Metonymy)
honey
Since honey is produced from flowers, this represents food from crops. AT: "food from crops" (See: Metonymy)
translationWords
Yahweh
people of God
Egypt
Canaan
Hittite
Amorite
Perizzite
Hivite
Jebus
unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.
Tyndale Open Study Notes 2022 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On vv5, 6, 7, 8, 10 3:5 The soil around the bush was holy ground,…
3:5 The soil around the bush was holy ground, while the soil on the bottom of Moses’ sandals was common. The common cannot touch the holy without being transformed or destroyed (see “Clean, Unclean, and Holy” Theme Note). At the outset of the Exodus, God was making it plain that he is absolutely “other” than his creation, a reality that cannot be overlooked in a proper divine-human relationship. The word holy occurs only a few times in the Bible prior to Exod 3:5. It now becomes the central descriptor of God in the Old Testament. In other Semitic languages, the same root occurs infrequently. It does not describe a moral quality in these other languages but simply what is “other than” human. The pagan gods, for instance, were “holy” only in the sense of being “other”—they did everything humans do, good and evil, but on a larger scale. In the Bible, by contrast, moral perfection is a central idea of the term holy. The one true God is the only being in the universe who truly stands apart from this world and is worthy of being called “holy” in this general sense. The true God is perfectly consistent and moral in his character. Here, at the burning bush, God revealed his otherness. Later at Sinai, he revealed his moral character in his requirements for those who would be his covenant partners (see Exod 19:6; 20:1–23:33; see also Lev 11:45; 1 Pet 1:13-16).
Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.