Exodus 3:11 - Printer Friendly

ESV: But Moses said to God, "Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the children of Israel out of Egypt?"

NIV: But Moses said to God, "Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?"

NASB: But Moses said to God, 'Who am I, that I should go to Pharaoh, and that I should bring the sons of Israel out of Egypt?'

CSB: But Moses asked God, "Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and that I should bring the Israelites out of Egypt?"

NLT: But Moses protested to God, 'Who am I to appear before Pharaoh? Who am I to lead the people of Israel out of Egypt?'

KJV: And 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?

NKJV: But Moses said to God, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh, and that I should bring the children of Israel out of Egypt?”

Speaking from a miraculously burning bush (Exodus 3:1–4), God says He will send Moses to spearhead the liberation of Israel from Egyptian slavery (Exodus 3:9–10). Moses clearly understands the scope of the mission. He repeats the calling of going to Pharaoh and bringing the Israelites out of Egypt. This task was overwhelming. Moses responds to God's call with doubt. He does not see himself as the best person to free the Jews, or as an appropriate leader for the task.

However, God often calls unlikely people to accomplish His greatest tasks. God previously used Abraham (Genesis 12:1¬–3) to serve as founder of the Jewish people. He used Joseph as a man raised from slavery and imprisonment (Genesis 41:14, 41–42) to save countless lives from famine (Genesis 50:20). God had already used Moses' mother and sister to save his own life (Exodus 1:22; 2:1–4). Now God is calling an eighty-year-old (Exodus 7:7) exiled shepherd (Exodus 2:14–15) to rescue slaves from the hands of the world's most powerful ruler. Moses realizes the difficulty of the mission. Only God's power would be sufficient to accomplish it.

Exodus 3:9–15 reveals God's commission of Moses as His spokesman. His great task is to lead Israel out of their slavery in Egypt. God provides reassurance in response to Moses' doubts. God also identifies Himself using terminology which will be crucial in both Jewish and Christian understanding of His nature. As a name, God uses the phrase "I am," indicating His eternal, uncreated, necessary, absolute existence. This connects to the Hebrew term YHWH, most often seen as Lord, Yahweh, or sometimes translated as Jehovah. Jesus will use this same phrasing in the New Testament.

Moses is tending sheep for his father-in-law when he sees a miraculous sight: a bush which is on fire, but not burnt up. From this fire, God speaks to Moses, appointing him as the leader of the nation of Israel, whom God intends to free from Egyptian slavery. God identifies Himself in this passage using the famous terminology ''I am.'' Despite Moses' fears and doubts, God gives him a message to take to the elders of Israel, and eventually to Pharaoh himself.

Prior chapters in Exodus explained how the descendants of Abraham became a populous nation, but also one enslaved in Egypt. Exodus 3 describes the moment when God calls Moses to lead Israel out of slavery. This is accomplished through the miracle of the burning bush. This begins a dialogue between God and Moses. It includes messages for both Israel and Pharaoh which will continue into chapter 4.

The book of Exodus establishes God's covenant relationship with the full-fledged nation of Israel. The descendants of Abraham prosper after settling in Egypt, only to be enslaved by a fearful, hateful Egyptian Pharaoh. God appoints Moses to lead the people out of this bondage. Moses serves as God's spokesman, as the Lord brings plagues and judgments on Egypt, leading to the release of Israel.