Knowing the Lord
And the LORD said: “I have surely seen the oppression of My people who are in Egypt and have heard their cry because of their taskmasters, for I know their sorrows. So I have come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians… . Come now, therefore, and I will send you to Pharaoh that you may bring My people, the children of Israel, out of Egypt.”
But Moses said to God, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh, and that I should bring the children of Israel out of Egypt?”
So He said, “I will certainly be with you. And this shall be a sign to you that I have sent you: When you have brought the people out of Egypt, you shall serve God on this mountain.”
Then Moses said to God, “Indeed, when I come to the children of Israel and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they say to me, ‘What is His name?’ what shall I say to them?”
And God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM.” And He said, “Thus you shall say to the children of Israel, ‘I AM has sent me to you.’ “ Moreover, God said to Moses, “Thus shall you say to the children of Israel: ‘The LORD God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you. This is My name forever, and this is My memorial to all generations.”
(Exodus 3:7-15)
It is significant that the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob identifies himself definitively as the LORD (yah-weh) not long before the Exodus. Moses’ fathers knew this same God, but now with the birth of their nation he is promising his faithfulness in a new way—not just to one person, or a family, but an existing nation—and so we have a new name, sometimes called his ‘covenant name’ for Israel.
And so he introduces himself as the Present God, yah-weh, the I AM, to Moses, the one who would lead out his promised people. The language he uses is constantly reminding them of his presence: “I have seen… .” “I have heard… .” “I have come down to deliver… .”
“I am the LORD”
Many times throughout the Old Testament, he either begins or ends a dialogue with the sentence “I am the LORD.” It seems that in this way the LORD was clear in identifying himself to them when beginning a dialogue (see Ex. 6:2, 6, 29; 20:2; Lev. 18:2). He tells Abraham “I am the LORD, who brought you out of Ur” (Gen. 15:7). God is not only reminding him of what he did, but he’s saying “This is the one you’re talking to; I’m the same God.”
Also, in the Torah, this ‘signature’ is frequently tagged onto commandments (see especially Lev 18:4-5, 30; also 19:3,4,10,12,14,16,etc.). In light of the commands given, the hearer could then give thought to the character of the One who spoke.
So the primary thing in view seems to be not only that it is deity speaking, but what character of deity; and the LORD is outright in telling Moses that this is his concern.
Israel
As he promises deliverance to Moses, he continues to identify himself with these words: “I am the LORD.” He repeats it, and he also promises that this truth will become real to Moses and the Israelites: “I will take you as my own people, and I will be your God. Then you will know that I am the LORD your God, who brought you out from under the yoke of the Egyptians” (6:6-7). Just as he had done with Abraham (Gen. 15:7), the Lord is describing himself through his actions. Instead of just telling them what he is like, the Lord says that he will show the Israelites through his providential actions.
Egypt
But he is not only willing to show himself to Israel; the same God says, “I will lay my hand on Egypt and with mighty acts of judgment I will bring out my divisions, my people the Israelites. And the Egyptians will know that I am the LORD when I stretch out my hand against Egypt and bring the Israelites out of it” (Ex. 7:4-5). He wants to be recognized by the Egyptians too? Somehow his actions (although in judgment towards Egypt) will show them, as well, something about the Lord’s character.
Pharaoh
As if that was not enough, the LORD shows that he is even concerned about the Pharaoh’s idea of God. The Pharaoh of Exodus is one of the most wicked men in the Bible and probably human history, but the God of Israel promises to him through Moses: “This is what the LORD says: By this you will know that I am the LORD: with the staff that is in my hand I will strike the water of the Nile, and it will be changed into blood” (7:17). The LORD purposed for even the Pharaoh to know who he is (7:17); that there is no one like him (8:10, 9:14); that he is present in the land (8:22); that he distinguishes Israel from Egypt (9:4); and that the earth belongs to him (9:29). Indeed, although some have claimed that the LORD did not want the Pharaoh to know him (or to repent), the story itself seems to say that the LORD had reserved for Pharaoh a special revelation of who he is and what he’s like! Through the entire saga of the plagues of Egypt, the concern that is on the heart of God is this: that everyone involved would understand the extraordinary demonstration of God’s character that is taking place.
2 years ago