Exodus 6:4

ESV I also established my covenant with them to give them the land of Canaan, the land in which they lived as sojourners.

NIV I also established my covenant with them to give them the land of Canaan, where they resided as foreigners.

NASB I also established My covenant with them, to give them the land of Canaan, the land in which they lived as strangers.

CSB I also established my covenant with them to give them the land of Canaan, the land they lived in as aliens.

NLT And I reaffirmed my covenant with them. Under its terms, I promised to give them the land of Canaan, where they were living as foreigners.

KJV And I have also established my covenant with them, to give them the land of Canaan, the land of their pilgrimage, wherein they were strangers.

NKJV I have also established My covenant with them, to give them the land of Canaan, the land of their pilgrimage, in which they were strangers.

What does Exodus 6:4 mean?

God is reassuring Moses (Exodus 5:22–23) who is concerned that the Lord's plan to free Israel (Exodus 3:10) is not happening as expected. God began by reminding Moses that he was about to see fulfillment of exactly what was pre-dicted (Exodus 3:19–20; 6:1). Next, the Lord begins explaining His history with the people of Israel (Exodus 6:2–3). This began with the earliest patriarchs: Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Once mostly known as "God Al-mighty," He will now be "the Lord" to His people.

God's relationship with Moses' ancestors came with a covenant promise (Genesis 17:1–8) and a guarantee that they would possess the land of Canaan (Genesis 12:6–7). During the lives of Abraham and Isaac, their people lived as nomads in that territory. A "sojourn" is to make a temporary stop while travelling to a destination. The Hebrew patriarchs were never fully settled in their lands: they were always there temporarily, anticipating their arrival in a Promised Land.

This continued through most of the life of Jacob, the man God renamed Israel (Genesis 32:28). Near the end of Jacob's life, he and his family moved into Egypt to escape a famine (Genesis 46:2–7). Even then, Jacob and later Joseph knew that Goshen was not their home (Genesis 49:29–32); Joseph anticipated God visiting the people and bringing them into the Promised Land (Genesis 50:24–25). Years after Joseph died, the Egyp-tian's friendly relationship with the Hebrew sojourners turned into brutal slavery (Exodus 1:11–14). During that time, God has not spoken to the people. Yet He has always been aware of their situation and intends to take them out of it (Exodus 6:5).

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