Exodus 3:7-22
New American Standard Bible
7 And the Lord said, “I have certainly (A)seen the oppression of My people who are in Egypt, and have heard their outcry because of their taskmasters, for I am aware of their sufferings. 8 So I have come down (B)to rescue them from the [a]power of the Egyptians, and to bring them up from that land to a (C)good and spacious land, to a land flowing with milk and honey, to the place of (D)the Canaanite, the Hittite, the Amorite, the Perizzite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite. 9 And now, behold, (E)the cry of the sons of Israel has come to Me; furthermore, I have seen the oppression with which the Egyptians are oppressing them.
The Mission of Moses
10 And now come, and I will send you to Pharaoh, (F)so that you may bring My people, the sons of Israel, out of Egypt.” 11 But Moses said to God, “(G)Who am I, that I should go to Pharaoh, and that I should bring the sons of Israel out of Egypt?” 12 And He said, “Assuredly (H)I will be with you, and this shall be the sign to you that it is I who have sent you: (I)when you have brought the people out of Egypt, (J)you shall [b]worship God at this mountain.”
13 Then Moses said to God, “Behold, I am going to the sons of Israel, and I will say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you.’ Now they may say to me, ‘What is His name?’ What shall I say to them?” 14 And God said to Moses, “[c](K)I AM WHO [d]I AM”; and He said, “This is what you shall say to the sons of Israel: ‘[e]I AM has sent me to you.’” 15 God furthermore said to Moses, “This is what you shall say to the sons of Israel: ‘(L)The Lord, 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 this is the [f](M)name for [g]all generations to use to call upon Me. 16 Go and (N)gather the elders of Israel together and say to them, ‘(O)The Lord, the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob has appeared to me, saying, “[h](P)I am indeed concerned about you and what has been done to you in Egypt. 17 So (Q)I said, I will bring you up out of the oppression of Egypt to the land of (R)the Canaanite, the Hittite, the Amorite, the Perizzite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite, to a land (S)flowing with milk and honey.”’ 18 Then (T)they will [i]pay attention to what you say; and (U)you with the elders of Israel will come to the king of Egypt, and you will say to him, ‘The Lord, the God of the Hebrews, has met with us. So now, please let us go a (V)three days’ journey into the wilderness, so that we may sacrifice to the Lord our God.’ 19 But I know that the king of Egypt (W)will not permit you to go, (X)except [j]under compulsion. 20 So I will reach out with (Y)My hand and strike Egypt with all My (Z)miracles which I shall do in the midst of it; and (AA)after that he will let you go. 21 I will grant this people (AB)favor in the sight of the Egyptians; and it shall be that when you go, you will not go empty-handed. 22 But every woman (AC)shall ask her neighbor and the woman who lives in her house for articles of silver and articles of gold, and clothing; and you will put them on your sons and daughters. So you will (AD)plunder the Egyptians.”
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- Exodus 3:8 Lit hand
- Exodus 3:12 Or serve
- Exodus 3:14 Related to the name of God, YHWH, rendered Lord, which is derived from the verb HAYAH, to be
- Exodus 3:14 Related to the name of God, YHWH, rendered Lord, which is derived from the verb HAYAH, to be
- Exodus 3:14 Related to the name of God, YHWH, rendered Lord, which is derived from the verb HAYAH, to be
- Exodus 3:15 I.e., name used in prayer, vows, and ceremony
- Exodus 3:15 Lit generation of generation
- Exodus 3:16 Lit Visiting I have visited
- Exodus 3:18 Lit hear your voice
- Exodus 3:19 Lit by a strong hand
Exodus 3:7-22
Revised Standard Version
7 Then the Lord said, “I have 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 Per′izzites, the Hivites, and the Jeb′usites. 9 And now, behold, the cry of the people of Israel has come to me, and I have seen the oppression with which the Egyptians oppress them. 10 Come, I will send you to Pharaoh that you may bring forth my people, the sons of Israel, out of Egypt.” 11 But Moses said to God, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh, and bring the sons 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 forth the people out of Egypt, you shall serve God upon this mountain.”
The Divine Name Revealed
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.”[a] 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,[b] 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 for ever, 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 Per′izzites, the Hivites, and the Jeb′usites, a land flowing with milk and honey.”’ 18 And they will hearken 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, we pray you, let us go a three days’ journey into the wilderness, that we may sacrifice to the Lord our God.’ 19 I know that the king of Egypt will not let you go unless compelled by a mighty hand.[c] 20 So I will stretch out my hand and smite Egypt with all the wonders which 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 of her who sojourns in her house, jewelry of silver and of gold, and clothing, and you shall put them on your sons and on your daughters; thus you shall despoil the Egyptians.”
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- Exodus 3:14 Or I am what I am or I will be what I will be
- Exodus 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
- Exodus 3:19 Gk Vg: Heb no, not by a mighty hand
New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.
Revised Standard Version of the Bible, copyright © 1946, 1952, and 1971 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.