Exodus 3
3One day Moses was tending the flock of his father-in-law, Jethro, the priest of Midian. He led the flock far into the wilderness and came to Sinai, the mountain of God.H4872H1961H7462H6629H3503H2859H3548H4080H5090H6629H310H4057H935H2022H430H27222There the angel of the LORD appeared to him in a blazing fire from the middle of a bush. Moses stared in amazement. Though the bush was engulfed in flames, it didn't burn up.H4397H3068H7200H3827H784H8432H5572H7200H5572H1197H784H5572H3983"This is amazing," Moses said to himself. "Why isn't that bush burning up? I must go see it."H4872H559H5493H7200H1419H4758H4069H5572H11974When the LORD saw Moses coming to take a closer look, God called to him from the middle of the bush, "Moses! Moses!" "Here I am!" Moses replied.H3068H7200H5493H7200H430H7121H8432H5572H559H4872H4872H5595"Do not come any closer," the LORD warned. "Take off your sandals, for you are standing on holy ground.H559H7126H1988H5394H5275H7272H4725H834H5975H6944H1276I am the God of your father—the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob." When Moses heard this, he covered his face because he was afraid to look at God.H559H430H1H430H85H430H3327H430H3290H4872H5641H6440H3372H5027H4307Then the LORD told him, "I have certainly seen the oppression of my people in Egypt. I have heard their cries of distress because of their harsh slave drivers. Yes, I am aware of their suffering.H3068H559H7200H7200H6040H5971H4714H8085H6818H6440H5065H3045H43418So I have come down to rescue them from the power of the Egyptians and lead them out of Egypt into their own fertile and spacious land. It is a land flowing with milk and honey—the land where the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites now live.H3381H5337H3027H4714H5927H776H2896H776H7342H776H2100H2461H1706H4725H3669H2850H567H6522H2340H29839Look! The cry of the people of Israel has reached me, and I have seen how harshly the Egyptians abuse them.H6818H1121H3478H935H7200H3906H4714H390510Now go, for I am sending you to Pharaoh. You must lead my people Israel out of Egypt."H3212H7971H6547H3318H5971H1121H3478H471411But Moses protested to God, "Who am I to appear before Pharaoh? Who am I to lead the people of Israel out of Egypt?"H4872H559H430H3212H6547H3318H1121H3478H471412God answered, "I will be with you. And this is your sign that I am the one who has sent you: When you have brought the people out of Egypt, you will worship God at this very mountain."H559H226H3588H7971H3318H5971H4714H5647H430H202213But Moses protested, "If I go to the people of Israel and tell them, 'The God of your ancestors has sent me to you,' they will ask me, 'What is his name?' Then what should I tell them?"H4872H559H430H935H1121H3478H559H430H1H7971H559H8034H55914God replied to Moses, "I AM WHO I AM. Say this to the people of Israel: I AM has sent me to you."H430H559H4872H1961H1961H559H559H1121H3478H797115God also said to Moses, "Say this to the people of Israel: Yahweh, the God of your ancestors—the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob—has sent me to you. This is my eternal name, my name to remember for all generations.H430H559H5750H4872H559H1121H3478H3068H430H1H430H85H430H3327H430H3290H7971H8034H5769H2143H1755H175516"Now go and call together all the elders of Israel. Tell them, 'The LORD, the God of your ancestors—the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob—has appeared to me. He told me, "I have been watching closely, and I see how the Egyptians are treating you.H3212H622H2205H3478H622H559H3068H430H1H430H85H3327H3290H7200H559H6485H6485H6213H471417I have promised to rescue you from your oppression in Egypt. I will lead you to a land flowing with milk and honey—the land where the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites now live."'H559H5927H6040H4714H776H3669H2850H567H6522H2340H2983H776H2100H2461H170618"The elders of Israel will accept your message. Then you and the elders must go to the king of Egypt and tell him, 'The LORD, the God of the Hebrews, has met with us. So please let us take a three-day journey into the wilderness to offer sacrifices to the LORD, our God.'H8085H6963H935H2205H3478H4428H4714H559H3068H430H5680H7136H3212H7969H3117H1870H4057H2076H3068H43019"But I know that the king of Egypt will not let you go unless a mighty hand forces him.H3045H4428H4714H5414H1980H2389H302720So I will raise my hand and strike the Egyptians, performing all kinds of miracles among them. Then at last he will let you go.H7971H3027H5221H4714H6381H6213H7130H310H797121And I will cause the Egyptians to look favorably on you. They will give you gifts when you go so you will not leave empty-handed.H5414H5971H2580H5869H4714H3212H3212H738722Every Israelite woman will ask for articles of silver and gold and fine clothing from her Egyptian neighbors and from the foreign women in their houses. You will dress your sons and daughters with these, stripping the Egyptians of their wealth."H802H7592H7934H1481H1004H3627H3701H3627H2091H8071H7760H1121H1323H5337H4714
Exodus 4
4But Moses protested again, "What if they won't believe me or listen to me? What if they say, 'The LORD never appeared to you'?"H4872H6030H559H539H8085H6963H559H3068H72002Then the LORD asked him, "What is that in your hand?" "A shepherd's staff," Moses replied.H3068H559H3027H559H42943"Throw it down on the ground," the LORD told him. So Moses threw down the staff, and it turned into a snake! Moses jumped back.H559H7993H776H7993H776H5175H4872H5127H64404Then the LORD told him, "Reach out and grab its tail." So Moses reached out and grabbed it, and it turned back into a shepherd's staff in his hand.H3068H559H4872H7971H3027H270H2180H7971H3027H2388H4294H37095"Perform this sign," the LORD told him. "Then they will believe that the LORD, the God of their ancestors—the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob—really has appeared to you."H539H3068H430H1H430H85H430H3327H430H3290H72006Then the LORD said to Moses, "Now put your hand inside your cloak." So Moses put his hand inside his cloak, and when he took it out again, his hand was white as snow with a severe skin disease.H3068H559H5750H935H3027H2436H935H3027H2436H3318H3027H6879H79507"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.H559H7725H3027H2436H7725H7725H3027H2436H7725H3318H2436H7725H13208The LORD said to Moses, "If they do not believe you and are not convinced by the first miraculous sign, they will be convinced by the second sign.H539H8085H6963H7223H226H539H6963H314H2269And if they don't believe you or listen to you even after these two signs, then take some water from the Nile River and pour it out on the dry ground. When you do, the water from the Nile will turn to blood on the ground."H539H8147H226H8085H6963H3947H4325H2975H8210H3004H4325H3947H2975H1818H300610But Moses pleaded with the LORD, "O Lord, I'm not very good with words. I never have been, and I'm not now, even though you have spoken to me. I get tongue-tied, and my words get tangled."H4872H559H3068H994H136H376H1697H8032H8543H227H1696H5650H3515H6310H3515H395611Then the LORD asked Moses, "Who makes a person's mouth? Who decides whether people speak or do not speak, hear or do not hear, see or do not see? Is it not I, the LORD?H3068H559H7760H120H6310H7760H483H2795H6493H5787H306812Now go! I will be with you as you speak, and I will instruct you in what to say."H3212H6310H3384H169613But Moses again pleaded, "Lord, please! Send anyone else."H559H994H136H7971H3027H797114Then the LORD became angry with Moses. "All right," he said. "What about your brother, Aaron the Levite? I know he speaks well. And look! He is on his way to meet you now. He will be delighted to see you.H639H3068H2734H4872H559H175H3881H251H3045H1696H1696H3318H7125H7200H8055H382015Talk to him, and put the words in his mouth. I will be with both of you as you speak, and I will instruct you both in what to do.H1696H7760H1697H6310H6310H6310H3384H621316Aaron will be your spokesman to the people. He will be your mouthpiece, and you will stand in the place of God for him, telling him what to say.H1696H5971H6310H43017And take your shepherd's staff with you, and use it to perform the miraculous signs I have shown you."H3947H4294H3027H6213H22618So Moses went back home to Jethro, his father-in-law. "Please let me return to my relatives in Egypt," Moses said. "I don't even know if they are still alive." "Go in peace," Jethro replied.H4872H3212H7725H3500H2859H559H3212H7725H251H4714H7200H5750H2416H3503H559H4872H3212H796519Before Moses left Midian, the LORD said to him, "Return to Egypt, for all those who wanted to kill you have died."H3068H559H4872H4080H3212H7725H4714H582H4191H1245H531520So Moses took his wife and sons, put them on a donkey, and headed back to the land of Egypt. In his hand he carried the staff of God.H4872H3947H802H1121H7392H2543H7725H776H4714H4872H3947H4294H430H302721And the LORD told Moses, "When you arrive back in Egypt, go to Pharaoh and perform all the miracles I have empowered you to do. But I will harden his heart so he will refuse to let the people go.H3068H559H4872H3212H7725H4714H7200H6213H4159H6440H6547H7760H3027H2388H3820H5971H797122Then you will tell him, 'This is what the LORD says: Israel is my firstborn son.H559H6547H559H3068H3478H1121H106023I commanded you, "Let my son go, so he can worship me." But since you have refused, I will now kill your firstborn son!'"H559H1121H7971H5647H3985H7971H2026H1121H106024On the way to Egypt, at a place where Moses and his family had stopped for the night, the LORD confronted him and was about to kill him.H1870H4411H3068H6298H1245H419125But Moses' wife, Zipporah, took a flint knife and circumcised her son. She touched his feet with the foreskin and said, "Now you are a bridegroom of blood to me."H6855H3947H6864H3772H6190H1121H5060H7272H559H1818H286026(When she said "a bridegroom of blood," she was referring to the circumcision.) After that, the LORD left him alone.H7503H559H1818H2860H413927Now the LORD had said to Aaron, "Go out into the wilderness to meet Moses." So Aaron went and met Moses at the mountain of God, and he embraced him.H3068H559H175H3212H4057H7125H4872H3212H6298H2022H430H540128Moses then told Aaron everything the LORD had commanded him to say. And he told him about the miraculous signs the LORD had commanded him to perform.H4872H5046H175H1697H3068H7971H226H668029Then Moses and Aaron returned to Egypt and called all the elders of Israel together.H4872H175H3212H622H2205H1121H347830Aaron told them everything the LORD had told Moses, and Moses performed the miraculous signs as they watched.H175H1696H1697H3068H1696H4872H6213H226H5869H597131Then the people of Israel were convinced that the LORD had sent Moses and Aaron. When they heard that the LORD was concerned about them and had seen their misery, they bowed down and worshiped.H5971H539H8085H3068H6485H1121H3478H7200H6040H6915H7812
Dublin, OH
, the priest of Midian. He led the flock far into the wilderness and came to Sinai, the mountain of God.H4872
