Exodus chapter 3 (The book of Exodus dates back to around BC 1350. Along with four other ancient books of Israel it was written by Moses. This chapter takes place before the people of Israel, numbering perhaps 1.5 million, are released from slavery and opression in Egypt and is about the call of Moses to achieve that.
Almighty God tells Moses his name. It is YHWH. It is so holy as name that, in later years, the Jews were unwilling to write or speak it. So they decided to use the word LORD (in capital letters) instead. This process was used throughout the written archives of Israel and has been followed in Christian Bibles.
In the extract below, Almighty God the LORD explains to Moses that YHWH is strongly connected with "I AM". God's name is "I AM" or "I AM WHO I AM".)
3 Now Moses was keeping the flock of his father-in-law, Jethro, the priest of Midian, and he led his flock to the west side of the wilderness and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. 2 And the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush. He looked, and behold, the bush was burning, yet it was not consumed. 3 And Moses said,
"I will turn aside to see this great sight, why the bush is not burned."
4 When the Lord saw that he turned aside to see, God called to him out of the bush,
"Moses, Moses!"
And he said,
"Here I am."
5 Then he said,
"Do not come near; take your sandals off your feet, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground."
6 And he said,
"I am the God of your 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 at God.
7 Then the Lord said,
"I have surely 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 Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites. 9 And now, behold, the cry of the people of Israel has come to me, and I have also seen the oppression with which the Egyptians oppress them. 10 Come, I will send you to Pharaoh that you may bring my people, the children of Israel, out of Egypt."
11 But Moses said to God,
"Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the children 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 the people out of Egypt, you shall serve God on this mountain."
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."
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, 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 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 Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites, a land flowing with milk and honey." ’ 18 And they will listen 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, please let us go a three days’ journey into the wilderness, that we may sacrifice to the LORD our God.’ 19 But I know that the king of Egypt will not let you go unless compelled by a mighty hand. 20 So I will stretch out my hand and strike Egypt with all the wonders that 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 any woman who lives in her house, for silver and gold jewelry, and for clothing. You shall put them on your sons and on your daughters. So you shall plunder the Egyptians."
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Exodus chapter 33 (The book of Exodus dates back to around BC 1350. Along with four other ancient books of Israel it was written by Moses. This chapter takes place after the people of Israel, numbering perhaps 1.5 million, are released from slavery and opression in Egypt but before their entgry into the promised land.
In it Moses asks to see the LORD's "glory" but is only permitted to see it as the LORD "passes by".......)
12 Moses said to the LORD,
"See, you say to me, ‘Bring up this people,’ but you have not let me know whom you will send with me. Yet you have said, ‘I know you by name, and you have also found favor in my sight.’ 13 Now therefore, if I have found favor in your sight, please show me now your ways, that I may know you in order to find favor in your sight. Consider too that this nation is your people."
14 And he said,
"My presence will go with you, and I will give you rest."
15 And he said to him,
"If your presence will not go with me, do not bring us up from here. 16 For how shall it be known that I have found favor in your sight, I and your people? Is it not in your going with us, so that we are distinct, I and your people, from every other people on the face of the earth?"
17 And the LORD said to Moses,
"This very thing that you have spoken I will do,
for you have found favor in my sight, and I know you by name."
18 Moses said,
"Please show me your glory."
19 And he said,
"I will make all my goodness pass before you and will proclaim before you my name ‘The LORD.’ And I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will show mercy on whom I will show mercy. 20 But,"
he said,
"you cannot see my face, for man shall not see me and live."
21 And the LORD said,
"Behold, there is a place by me where you shall stand on the rock, 22 and while my glory passes by I will put you in a cleft of the rock, and I will cover you with my hand until I have passed by. 23 Then I will take away my hand, and you shall see my back, but my face shall not be seen." |
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