The Law · Chapter 3 of 40
Exodus 3
God meets Moses at a bush that burns without being consumed, calling him from tending Jethro's flock at Horeb. The LORD declares that He has seen Israel's affliction, heard their cry, and come down to deliver them into a land flowing with milk and honey. He commissions a reluctant Moses and reveals His name, I AM THAT I AM.
What happens in Exodus 3
Moses leads the flock to the backside of the desert and sees a bush aflame yet unburned. Turning aside, he hears God call his name and is told to remove his shoes, for the ground is holy. God names Himself the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and Moses hides his face. The LORD declares He has seen the affliction of His people, heard their cry, and come down to rescue them and bring them to a good land.
He sends Moses to Pharaoh. Moses protests, Who am I, and God promises, Certainly I will be with thee. When Moses asks God's name, He answers, I AM THAT I AM, and instructs Moses to gather the elders, foretelling Pharaoh's resistance and Israel's eventual departure, not empty but laden with the wealth of Egypt.
Exodus 3 in context
Exodus opens with Israel enslaved in Egypt under a Pharaoh who ordered Hebrew infants killed. Moses, rescued as a baby and raised in Pharaoh's house, had fled to Midian after killing an Egyptian and married Jethro's daughter.
Decades pass and the old king dies, but bondage continues. This chapter is the turning point where the God of the patriarchs begins to act on the covenant He made with Abraham.
Main themes of Exodus 3
Exodus 3 (KJV)
1Now Moses kept the flock of Jethro his father in law, the priest of Midian: and he led the flock to the backside of the desert, and came to the mountain of God, even to Horeb. 2And the angel of the LORD appeared unto him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush: and he looked, and, behold, the bush burned with fire, and the bush was not consumed. 3And Moses said, I will now turn aside, and see this great sight, why the bush is not burnt. 4And when the LORD saw that he turned aside to see, God called unto him out of the midst of the bush, and said, Moses, Moses. And he said, Here am I. 5And he said, Draw not nigh hither: put off thy shoes from off thy feet, for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground. 6Moreover he said, I am the God of thy 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 upon God. 7And the LORD said, I have surely seen the affliction of my people which are in Egypt, and have heard their cry by reason of their taskmasters; for I know their sorrows; 8And 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. 9Now 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. 10Come now therefore, and I will send thee unto Pharaoh, that thou mayest bring forth my people the children of Israel out of Egypt. 11And Moses said unto God, Who am I, that I should go unto Pharaoh, and that I should bring forth the children of Israel out of Egypt? 12And he said, Certainly I will be with thee; and this shall be a token unto thee, that I have sent thee: When thou hast brought forth the people out of Egypt, ye shall serve God upon this mountain. 13And Moses said unto God, Behold, when I come unto the children of Israel, and shall say unto them, The God of your fathers hath sent me unto you; and they shall say to me, What is his name? what shall I say unto them? 14And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you. 15And God said moreover unto Moses, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, The LORD God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, hath sent me unto you: this is my name for ever, and this is my memorial unto all generations. 16Go, and gather the elders of Israel together, and say unto them, The LORD God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob, appeared unto me, saying, I have surely visited you, and seen that which is done to you in Egypt: 17And I have said, I will bring you up out of the affliction of Egypt unto the land of the Canaanites, and the Hittites, and the Amorites, and the Perizzites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites, unto a land flowing with milk and honey. 18And they shall hearken to thy voice: and thou shalt come, thou and the elders of Israel, unto the king of Egypt, and ye shall say unto him, The LORD God of the Hebrews hath met with us: and now let us go, we beseech thee, three days’ journey into the wilderness, that we may sacrifice to the LORD our God. 19And I am sure that the king of Egypt will not let you go, no, not by a mighty hand. 20And I will stretch out my hand, and smite Egypt with all my wonders which I will do in the midst thereof: and after that he will let you go. 21And I will give this people favour in the sight of the Egyptians: and it shall come to pass, that, when ye go, ye shall not go empty: 22But every woman shall borrow of her neighbour, and of her that sojourneth in her house, jewels of silver, and jewels of gold, and raiment: and ye shall put them upon your sons, and upon your daughters; and ye shall spoil the Egyptians.
Verses to carry from Exodus 3
“And he said, Draw not nigh hither: put off thy shoes from off thy feet, for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground.”Exodus 3:5
“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.”Exodus 3:8
“And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you.”Exodus 3:14
Thematic connection
How Exodus 3 points to Jesus
The name God speaks here, I AM, echoes across Scripture and lands, centuries later, on the lips of Jesus. Standing before those who doubted Him, He said, Before Abraham was, I am, and His hearers understood the claim and took up stones. The bush that burned unconsumed pictures a holy presence that draws near to the lowly without destroying them, which is the mystery of Christ dwelling among sinners.
The God who came down to deliver a suffering people foreshadows the One who would come down, not to a mountain but to a manger, to lead a greater exodus out of bondage. In Jesus, the God who sees affliction takes on flesh and bears it Himself.
Questions about Exodus 3
What does I AM THAT I AM mean?
God's name in Exodus 3:14 declares self-existence: He depends on nothing and no one, and simply is. Unlike the gods of Egypt, He is not made or sustained by others. The name assures Moses that the God sending him will still be present and unchanged when he arrives, and forever after.
Why did Moses have to take off his shoes?
Removing his shoes acknowledged that the ground was holy because God was present. It was an act of humility and reverence, setting aside self-sufficiency before the Almighty. The gesture teaches that meeting God is never casual; His holiness calls for awe, even in an ordinary desert far from any temple.
Reflection
You may feel unqualified, as Moses did, asking Who am I. Notice that God never answers that question. He answers a better one: I will be with thee. Your adequacy was never the point. His presence is.
A prayer from Exodus 3
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