Moses and the Burning Bush

3 Now Moses was tending the flock of Jethrol his father-in-law, the priest of Midian,m and he led the flock to the far side of the wilderness and came to Horeb,n the mountaino of God. 2 There the angel of the Lordp appeared to him in flames of fireq from within a bush.r Moses saw that though the bush was on fire it did not burn up. 3 So Moses thought, “I will go over and see this strange sight—why the bush does not burn up.”

4 When the Lord saw that he had gone over to look, God calleds to him from within the bush,t “Moses! Moses!”

And Moses said, “Here I am.”u

5 “Do not come any closer,”v God said. “Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy ground.”w 6 Then he said, “I am the God of your father,a the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob.”x At this, Moses hidy his face, because he was afraid to look at God.z

7 The Lord said, “I have indeed seena the miseryb of my people in Egypt. I have heard them crying out because of their slave drivers, and I am concernedc about their suffering.d 8 So I have come downe to rescue them from the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land into a good and spacious land,f a land flowing with milk and honeyg—the home of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivitesh and Jebusites.i 9 And now the cry of the Israelites has reached me, and I have seen the way the Egyptians are oppressingj them. 10 So now, go. I am sendingk you to Pharaoh to bring my people the Israelites out of Egypt.”l

11 But Moses said to God, “Who am Im that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?”

12 And God said, “I will be with you.n And this will be the signo to you that it is I who have sent you: When you have brought the people out of Egypt, youb will worship God on this mountain.p”

13 Moses said to God, “Suppose I go to the Israelites and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘What is his name?’q Then what shall I tell them?”

14 God said to Moses, “I am who I am.c This is what you are to say to the Israelites: ‘I amr has sent me to you.’ ”

15 God also said to Moses, “Say to the Israelites, ‘The Lord,d the God of your fatherss—the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacobt—has sent me to you.’

“This is my nameu forever,

the name you shall call me

from generation to generation.v

16 “Go, assemble the eldersw of Israel and say to them, ‘The Lord, the God of your fathers—the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacobx—appeared to me and said: I have watched over you and have seeny what has been done to you in Egypt. 17 And I have promised to bring you up out of your misery in Egyptz into the land of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites—a land flowing with milk and honey.’a

18 “The elders of Israel will listenb to you. Then you and the elders are to go to the king of Egypt and say to him, ‘The Lord, the God of the Hebrews,c has metd with us. Let us take a three-day journeye into the wilderness to offer sacrificesf to the Lord our God.’ 19 But I know that the king of Egypt will not let you go unless a mighty handg compels him. 20 So I will stretch out my handh and strike the Egyptians with all the wondersi that I will perform among them. After that, he will let you go.j

21 “And I will make the Egyptians favorably disposedk toward this people, so that when you leave you will not go empty-handed.l 22 Every woman is to ask her neighbor and any woman living in her house for articles of silverm and goldn and for clothing, which you will put on your sons and daughters. And so you will plundero the Egyptians.”p