Exodus 4:7

ESV Then God said, "Put your hand back inside your cloak." So he put his hand back inside his cloak, and when he took it out, behold, it was restored like the rest of his flesh.

NIV "Now put it back into your cloak," he said. So Moses put his hand back into his cloak, and when he took it out, it was restored, like the rest of his flesh.

NASB Then He said, 'Put your hand inside the fold of your robe again.' So he put his hand into the fold again, and when he took it out of the fold, behold, it was restored like the rest of his flesh.

CSB "Put your hand back inside your cloak," he said. So he put his hand back inside his cloak, and when he took it out, it had again become like the rest of his skin.

NLT Now put your hand back into your cloak,' the Lord said. So Moses put his hand back in, and when he took it out again, it was as healthy as the rest of his body.

KJV And he said, Put thine hand into thy bosom again. And he put his hand into his bosom again; and plucked it out of his bosom, and, behold, it was turned again as his other flesh.

NKJV And He said, “Put your hand in your bosom again.” So he put his hand in his bosom again, and drew it out of his bosom, and behold, it was restored like his other flesh.

What does Exodus 4:7 mean?

The Lord has given Moses a sign which proves that his mission is legitimate (Exodus 4:1). This involved turning his staff into a snake and back (Exodus 4:2–5). The second demonstration begins with Moses placing a healthy hand under the fold of his robe near his chest; when he removes it, it is horrifically riddled with disease (Exodus 4:6). Most English translations use the term "leprosy," though the Hebrew term itself includes a wide variety of conditions. Moses follows God's directions to cover and uncover his hand again, and it is entirely cured.

Changing a staff into a snake, and then reversing it, might have been dismissed as a trick or duplicated with some unknown means (Exodus 7:11–12). Instantly afflicting a healthy hand, then healing it, would be much harder to dismiss (Exodus 4:8).

The third sign given to Moses involves turning water into blood (Exodus 4:9). Combined, these miracles indicate the Lord's absolute power over animal life, human life, and all of nature. This foreshadows the pattern of plagues (Exodus 3:20) which prove the Lord's superiority over the powers of supposed Egyptian deities.

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