Exodus 3:11 - Meaning and Application

God had spoken to Moses, and now he gives him freedom to speak back. Moses uses that freedom here, and he raises an objection about his own fitness for the task (Exodus 3:11): “Who am I?” He feels unworthy of such honor and unequal to the work. He thinks he lacks courage to stand before Pharaoh and make a demand that could cost him his life, and he thinks he lacks skill to lead Israel out of Egypt. The people are unarmed, untrained, discouraged, and unable to help themselves, so the task seems humanly impossible.

Moses was, in truth, better suited for this work than almost any man alive. He had learning, wisdom, experience, courage, faith, and holiness, and yet he still says, “Who am I?” The more useful a person is for service, the less likely he is to think highly of himself. The work really was very hard, enough to shake even Moses’ courage and faith. Even wise and faithful servants can feel deeply discouraged by the obstacles in the way of the church’s rescue.

Moses had once shown great boldness when he killed the Egyptian, but now his heart fails him. Good people are not always equally bold or zealous at every moment. Yet Moses is the one God finally uses, because God gives grace to the humble. Small and modest beginnings are often a good sign of what God will do next.

God answers Moses’ objection in Exodus 3:12 by promising his own presence: “Certainly I will be with you.” That is enough. People who feel weak in themselves can still do amazing things when they are strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Those who doubt themselves most may trust God most fully. God’s presence brings honor to the lowly, wisdom and strength to the weak, and it makes huge problems seem small. His presence answers every objection.

God also assures Moses of success, saying that Israel will serve God on this mountain. Deliverance is most valuable when it leads us into freedom to serve God. If God gives us both the opportunity and the desire to serve him, that is a hopeful sign of even more blessings to come.

Moses then asks for instructions so he can carry out his mission well. He wants to know by what name God will now make himself known (Exodus 3:13). He assumes the Israelites will ask him, “What is his name?” They may ask to test Moses, since he knows the difficulty of dealing with Pharaoh and also of persuading the people themselves. They would likely be careful and ready to object, and they might demand proof of his authority. Moses also may have thought they needed the answer for their own understanding. In Egypt, they may have become very ignorant because of hard slavery, lack of teachers, and loss of the Sabbath. So they may need to be taught even the most basic truths about God. Their question could also mean, “What kind of help can we expect from him in this rescue?”

Moses also wants to know what answer he should give them: “What shall I say to them?” He needs something clear and weighty to back up his mission. If he is to go, he wants full instructions so he will not go in vain. Those who speak for God need to prepare well ahead of time. If we want to know what to say, we should go to God, to his Word, and to his throne of grace for guidance (Ezekiel 2:7; Ezekiel 3:4, 10, 17). Whenever we deal with God, it is good and right to know and consider his name.

God gives Moses full instructions. He gives two names to use, each showing something different about himself. First, he gives a name that shows what God is in himself (Exodus 3:14): “I am who I am.” This explains the name Jehovah, and it means several things. God exists by himself, with no dependence on anyone else. The greatest and best human can only say, “By God’s grace I am what I am,” but God alone can say, “I am who I am.” Because he exists by himself, he must be self-sufficient, and therefore fully sufficient for all things, the endless source of being and joy.

This name also means that God is eternal and unchanging, always the same, yesterday, today, and forever. He is what he is, what he always was, and what he always will be (Revelation 1:8). It also reminds us that we cannot fully understand him by searching. The name checks our bold and curious questions about God and, in effect, says, “Do not ask too far into my name, because it is secret” (Judges 13:18; Proverbs 30:4). If we ask what God is, let it be enough to know that he is what he is, what he has always been, and what he will always be. “How little a part of him we hear!” (Job 26:14).

This name also shows that God is faithful and true to every promise. He does not change in his word any more than in his nature, and he is not a man that he should lie. Israel should know that “I AM” has sent Moses to them.

Second, God gives a name that shows what he is to his people. Since “I AM” might seem too high and hard for them at first, Moses is also told to use a more familiar name: “The Lord, the God of your fathers, has sent me to you” (Exodus 3:15). This is the same way God had already made himself known to Moses (Exodus 3:6), and it is the way Moses must make him known to the people. This would revive the religion of their fathers, which had likely grown weak and nearly forgotten. That revival was needed to prepare them for deliverance (Psalm 80:19).

It would also lift up their hopes by reminding them of the promises made to their fathers. Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob are named because God first made his covenant with Abraham and often renewed it with Isaac and Jacob. These three were set apart from their brothers and chosen to carry the covenant, while their brothers were not. God wants this to be his name forever, and it has been, is, and will be the name by which his worshipers know him and tell him apart from false gods (1 Kings 18:36).

God’s covenant relationship with his people is something he always remembers and takes delight in. He wants us never to forget it, but to give him the glory for it. If he chooses it as his memorial through all generations, then we have every reason to make it our own precious memory too.