Old Testament - Exodus 3 - March 23, 2022

 3/23/2022 – Exodus 3

I think I’ll start with the student manual comments on this chapter: “The Lord called Moses to lead Israel out of Egypt. Moses expressed concern about his inadequacies and his ability to deliver Israel. [That sounds familiar to me as I think back to how I have felt when church, or family, or work situations needed help from me. But for Moses, the difficulties of life happen on a national level! So in my case, I simply need to remind myself when the worries start to surface, that if I work to stay close to the Lord, He will be right there.] The Lord reassured Moses that He would be with him and give him power to deliver Israel. As a wife, a mother, a nurse…. I often asked for, and received, either comfort, or guidance, or the feeling of just “keep on, keeping on” coming from my Father to me. 

Moses must have been a poor public speaker, for the Lord called Aaron to be a spokesman for Moses. Aaron and Moses traveled to Egypt and spoke to the elders of Israel.”

This has been an amazing time for Moses. He has gone from prince of Egypt to a sheep herder for his father-in-law. It is when Moses and his herd were far from civilization—between “the backside of the desert” and “the mountain of God” (and this is in the time when the mountains WERE the temples). And this is where “the angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush”—a bush that was burning, but was not being consumed. (v 2) V 3 & 4 tell us how the Lord got Moses’ attention, and what Moses did once his attention was directed toward the burning bush: “And Moses said, I will now turn aside, and see this great sight, why the bush is not burnt. And when the Lord saw that he turned aside to see, God called unto him out of the midst of the bush and said Moses, Moses, and he said: Here am I.  That “Here am I” from Moses is very important. When I feel a flood of recognition, or of peace, or of confirmation, I try to right then thank Heavenly Father for His being there, telling me that I am in the right place, or on the right track.

In v 5, The Lord speaks of the best way to approach Him. In v 6 he assures Moses that He knows all the hardships the Israelites have endured, and He assures Moses He is there to get them out of Egypt and into a place of good land and well being. The Lord then explains that He will send Moses to Pharoah, which seems, at least to me, like the way to send Moses to prison or to death. (v 10) Moses also feels that he does not have what it takes to do what the Lord is proposing. Moses doesn’t even know what to call the Lord, for he needs to tell the people that he was called by a Supreme Being. (v 13) The Lord tells Moses that He is “I AM THAT I AM” and the people may call Him ‘I Am.’, for He is real and is always available. (v 14) He is emphasizing  HE IS or HE EXISTS

Moses is to go back to Egypt, gather the elders of Israel, and together they are to go into the Pharoah. They are to tell the Pharoah that they want all Hebrews to go into the desert and make offerings to their God. The Lord then says that he is sure Pharoah will not agree to that, and when that happens Moses is to reply to Pharoah: “The Lord God of the Hebrews hath met with us; and now let us go, we beseech thee, three day’s journey into the wilderness, that we may sacrifice to the Lord.”  The Lord then tells them that Pharoah will not agree to that either.

And then the Lord tells what will happen: ”And I will stretch out my hand, and smite Egypt with all my wonders which I will do in the midst thereof; and after that he will let you go. And I will give this people favor in the sight of the Egyptians: and it shall come to pass, when ye go, ye shall not go empty. But every woman shall borrow of her neighbor, and of her that sojourneth in her house; jewels of silver, and jewels of gold, and raiment: and ye shall put them upon your sons, and upon your daughters, and ye shall spoil the Egyptians.” (v’s 20-22)

President Thomas S Monson said it more succinctly than I possibly could: “Now, some of you may be shy by nature or consider yourselves inadequate to respond affirmatively to a calling. Remember that this work is not yours and mine alone. It is the Lord’s work, and when we are on the Lord’s errand, we are entitled to the Lord’s help. Remember that whom the Lord calls, the Lord qualifies” (“Duty Calls,” Ensign, May 1996, 44).


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