Outline
God renews his promise. (Verse 1-9.)
Moses and Aaron again sent to Pharaoh. (Verse 10-13.)
The parentage of Moses and Aaron. (Verse 14-30.)
Then the LORD said unto Moses, Now shalt thou see what I will do to Pharaoh: for with a strong hand shall he let them go, and with a strong hand shall he drive them out of his land.
2 And God spake unto Moses, and said unto him, I am the LORD:
3 And I appeared unto Abraham, unto Isaac, and unto Jacob, by the name of God Almighty, but by my name JEHOVAH was I not known to them.
[Gen 17:1, Gen 35:11, Gen 48:3]
here we find recorded one of God’s names; the Jehovah’s Witnesses overemphasise this point to the exclusion of all of the other names of God revealed in scripture – eg. El, Eloah, Jah, Elohim, Elyon, etc.
This is the first time God’s name JEHOVAH is mentioned in the Bible as being told to people, of course we see it mentioned earlier in Genesis.
That is because Moses is writing it long after the events have occurred, and he uses the name for God long after the fact, but God never used it to identify himself to the Patriarchs until now.
4 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.
5 And I have also heard the groaning of the children of Israel, whom the Egyptians keep in bondage; and I have remembered my covenant.
6 Wherefore say unto the children of Israel, I am the LORD, and I will bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians, and I will rid you out of their bondage, and I will redeem you with a stretched out arm, and with great judgments:
What a blessing to know that God will not allow us to be tempted above that we are able, but will with that temptation provide a way of escape that we will be able to bare
7 And I will take you to me for a people, and I will be to you a God: and ye shall know that I am the LORD your God, which bringeth you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians.
[Gen 17:8, Exod 29:45, Lev 26:12, Deut 29:13, Rev 21:7]
8 And I will bring you in unto the land, concerning the which I did swear to give it to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob; and I will give it you for an heritage: I am the LORD.
seven promises are made by God to the children of Israel, each beginning with the phrase, “I will….”
God would use this great deliverance of the nation of Israel from slavery to testify of His great power to the heathen nations around and any gentile that saw these wonders or heard about them had a decision to make.
Would they stay in their idolatry, praying to images made by their own hands, or would they bow the knee to the one true God?
9 And Moses spake so unto the children of Israel: but they hearkened not unto Moses for anguish of spirit, and for cruel bondage.
people in difficult times are often so centered upon their own problems that they fail to trust in God’s promises; they are so desirous of immediate relief that they overlook the comfort found in God’s promises. With their hearts of unbelief and their eyes upon the circumstances about them, the Jewish people paid for their unbelief by having to endure some of the plagues that came upon Egypt.
Friends and family may oppose you, but God is with you as he was with Moses when he chose to go it alone against the world.
People need to see others take a stand and attempt the impossible by faith so that they too will one day attempt great things for God.
10 And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,
11 Go in, speak unto Pharaoh king of Egypt, that he let the children of Israel go out of his land.
12 And Moses spake before the LORD, saying, Behold, the children of Israel have not hearkened unto me; how then shall Pharaoh hear me, who am of uncircumcised lips?
13 And the LORD spake unto Moses and unto Aaron, and gave them a charge unto the children of Israel, and unto Pharaoh king of Egypt, to bring the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt.
It is all right to wonder how God is going to go about accomplishing His will in our life, but we should not fight it or run from it.
14 These be the heads of their fathers’ houses: The sons of Reuben the firstborn of Israel; Hanoch, and Pallu, Hezron, and Carmi: these be the families of Reuben.
15 And the sons of Simeon; Jemuel, and Jamin, and Ohad, and Jachin, and Zohar, and Shaul the son of a Canaanitish woman: these are the families of Simeon.
16 And these are the names of the sons of Levi according to their generations; Gershon, and Kohath, and Merari: and the years of the life of Levi were an hundred thirty and seven years.
17 The sons of Gershon; Libni, and Shimi, according to their families.
18 And the sons of Kohath; Amram, and Izhar, and Hebron, and Uzziel: and the years of the life of Kohath were an hundred thirty and three years.
19 And the sons of Merari; Mahali and Mushi: these are the families of Levi according to their generations.
20 And Amram took him Jochebed his father’s sister to wife; and she bare him Aaron and Moses: and the years of the life of Amram were an hundred and thirty and seven years.
21 And the sons of Izhar; Korah, and Nepheg, and Zichri.
22 And the sons of Uzziel; Mishael, and Elzaphan, and Zithri.
23 And Aaron took him Elisheba, daughter of Amminadab, sister of Naashon, to wife; and she bare him Nadab, and Abihu, Eleazar, and Ithamar.
[1st Chron 2:10, Matt 1:4]
24 And the sons of Korah; Assir, and Elkanah, and Abiasaph: these are the families of the Korhites.
25 And Eleazar Aaron’s son took him one of the daughters of Putiel to wife; and she bare him Phinehas: these are the heads of the fathers of the Levites according to their families.
Notice that four of Jacob’s sons are mentioned which each came from Leah, Jacob’s first wife, but Judah is not mentioned intentionally.
Levi gets the predominance here by God because it is the Levitical priesthood that is about to be established in Exodus and Aaron’s sons are the ones in which this honor falls. Judah will have one who is prophet, priest and king one day.
26 These are that Aaron and Moses, to whom the LORD said, Bring out the children of Israel from the land of Egypt according to their armies.
“armies” – for the first time since the Jews came into Egypt, mention is made of them being organized into a political unit. Although they had never had a military engagement (see 13:17), they do leave Egypt with weapons (see 17:8-14)
27 These are they which spake to Pharaoh king of Egypt, to bring out the children of Israel from Egypt: these are that Moses and Aaron.
28 And it came to pass on the day when the LORD spake unto Moses in the land of Egypt,
29 That the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, I am the LORD: speak thou unto Pharaoh king of Egypt all that I say unto thee.
30 And Moses said before the LORD, Behold, I am of uncircumcised lips, and how shall Pharaoh hearken unto me?
Again, God brings up Moses’ status as being uncircumcised, which is both a problem with the nation he was trying to deliver, and Pharaoh could through it in his face as well and say, “Moses, you’re not even circumcised, you’re Egyptian.”
Satan likes to remind us of our past to keep us in bondage so that we will not do anything for God in the future.
Commentary by Matthew Henry, 1710.
Verse 1-9 – We are most likely to prosper in attempts to glorify God, and to be useful to men, when we learn by experience that we can do nothing of ourselves; when our whole dependence is placed on him, and our only expectation is from him. Moses had been expecting what God would do; but now he shall see what he will do. God would now be known by his name Jehovah, that is, a God performing what he had promised, and finishing his own work. God intended their happiness: I will take you to me for a people, a peculiar people, and I will be to you a God. More than this we need not ask, we cannot have, to make us happy. He intended his own glory: Ye shall know that I am the Lord. These good words, and comfortable words, should have revived the drooping Israelites, and have made them forget their misery; but they were so taken up with their troubles, that they did not heed God’s promises. By indulging discontent and fretfulness, we deprive ourselves of the comfort we might have, both from God’s word and from his providence, and go comfortless.
Verse 10-13 – The faith of Moses was so feeble that he could scarcely be kept to his work. Ready obedience is always according to the strength of our faith. Though our weaknesses ought to humble us, yet they ought not to discourage us from doing our best in any service we have to do for God. When Moses repeats his baffled arguments, he is argued with no longer, but God gives him and Aaron a charge, both to the children of Israel, and to Pharaoh. God’s authority is sufficient to answer all objections, and binds all to obey, without murmuring or disputing,Php 2:14.
Verse 14-30 – Moses and Aaron were Israelites; raised up unto them of their brethren, as Christ also should be, who was to be the Prophet and Priest, the Redeemer and Lawgiver of the people of Israel. Moses returns to his narrative, and repeats the charge God had given him to deliver his message to Pharaoh, and his objection against it. Those who have spoken unadvisedly with their lips ought to reflect upon it with regret, as Moses seems to do here.”Uncircumcised,” is used in Scripture to note the unsuitableness there may be in any thing to answer its proper purpose; as the carnal heart and depraved nature of fallen man are wholly unsuited to the services of God, and to the purposes of his glory. It is profitable to place no confidence in ourselves, all our sufficiency must be in the Lord. We never can trust ourselves too little, or our God too much. I can do nothing by myself, said the apostle, but I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.