What is the meaning of Exodus 3:11? But Moses asked God “But Moses asked God” (Exodus 3:11) frames a candid conversation in which the Lord invites a hesitant servant into His plan. • The meeting takes place at the burning bush, where “the Angel of the LORD appeared to him in a flame of fire” (Exodus 3:2), underscoring that the initiative is entirely God’s. • Scripture records other moments when God’s call meets human reluctance—Gideon’s plea for signs (Judges 6:15-17) and Jeremiah’s protest of youth (Jeremiah 1:6). • Acts 7:30-32 recounts Stephen’s Spirit-filled summary of this scene, affirming its historicity and God’s sovereign authorship. The pattern is clear: divine assignment is grounded in the certainty of God’s presence, not in the confidence of the messenger. “Who am I” Moses blurts, “Who am I,” a question that reveals humility—but also fear. • Similar words rise from David: “Who am I, O Lord GOD, and what is my house” (2 Samuel 7:18). • Isaiah cries, “Woe to me! For I am ruined” (Isaiah 6:5), and Paul later confesses, “I am the least of the apostles” (1 Corinthians 15:9). • God does not correct Moses’ low view of himself; instead, He redirects the focus to His own sufficiency (Exodus 3:12). Takeaway: a right sense of inadequacy is healthy when it drives us to depend on the Almighty rather than retreat from His call. “that I should go to Pharaoh” The task is daunting. Pharaoh represents absolute earthly power, and Moses had fled Egypt decades earlier (Exodus 2:15). • Hebrews 11:27 notes that Moses “left Egypt, not fearing the king’s anger, for he persevered as if seeing the One who is invisible.” That future perseverance begins here. • Proverbs 21:1 reminds us, “The king’s heart is in the hand of the LORD,” confirming that the true authority stands behind the commission. • God’s call often leads directly into confrontation with the world’s strongholds—Elijah before Ahab (1 Kings 17:1) and John before Herod (Mark 6:18). Thus, the phrase underlines that the servant’s weakness highlights the Master’s strength. “and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?” This final clause spells out the mission: deliverance. • God foretold this very exodus generations earlier: “Know for certain that your descendants will be strangers in a land that is not their own … afterward they will depart with many possessions” (Genesis 15:13-14). • The promise is reiterated: “Therefore say to the Israelites: ‘I am the LORD, and I will bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians’” (Exodus 6:6). • Acts 7:34-36 shows the fulfillment, underscoring that Moses’ role fits into an unbroken chain of covenant faithfulness. • The deliverance points ahead to Christ, who leads a greater exodus from sin and death (Luke 9:31, where His impending death is called an “exodus” in the Greek text). God intends not merely to extract people from bondage but to form them into a worshiping nation (Exodus 3:12). summary Exodus 3:11 captures Moses’ startled reaction when God drafts him into redemptive history. His question, “Who am I,” reveals a heart aware of personal limits, intimidated by Pharaoh’s power, and overwhelmed by the scale of Israel’s bondage. Yet every line of the verse drives us to the same conclusion: the success of God’s mission never hinges on human adequacy. Instead, the Lord chooses willing yet weak vessels to showcase His sovereignty, fulfill His promises, and point forward to the ultimate Deliverer, Jesus Christ. |
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