CHAPTER III
GOD SENDS MOSES TO SAVE HIS PEOPLE
Exodus 3.1-4.31
Interpretation. The time now being ripe for God's fulfilling His covenant to redeem Israel from the bondage of Egypt, He makes His purpose known to Moses and entrusts him with the mission of announcing the redemption to the elders of Israel and demanding it of Pharaoh. But Moses hesitates. He doubts his qualifications for the task, asking, "Who am I that I should go unto Pharaoh and that I should bring forth the children of Israel out of Egypt?" And God's answer is, "Certainly I will be with thee." But this does not yet satisfy Moses, he wants a guarantee of Divine aid in God's statement, "I am יהוה." For in asking God for his name, Moses was not merely seeking information. There is no space in this book to take up a discussion of the critical questions raised by these verses. The interpretation given by Wiener[7] seems the most reasonable. He calls attention to the fact that among primitive people—and the narratives of the Pentateuch had to be made comprehensible to a primitive people—the name of a person, and, more especially, of a god, was regarded as having certain powers which were conferred upon anyone to whom he revealed his name. When Moses asked for the name of God, it was, therefore, as a sort of positive irrevocable guarantee of success, but God, at this juncture, refuses to say directly, "I am יהוה" and gives the evasive reply, "I am that I am." Then Moses, dissatisfied, declares that the people will not believe him, and God replies by showing him the miracle of the staff turning into a serpent, etc. Still Moses hesitates, pleading lack of eloquence as an excuse for not going, and God promises to inspire his utterances and to commission, also, his brother Aaron, who was eloquent, to assist as his spokesman. The significance of this dialogue of Moses with God is usually explained as contained in what it reveals to us of the characteristic meekness of Moses. It does, indeed, illustrate this conspicuous trait of his character, but if it were the chief aim of the Biblical author to commend the meekness of Moses we should scarcely be prepared for the statement (Exodus 4.14), "And the anger of the Lord was kindled against Moses." The main purpose of the Biblical author seems rather to be to emphasize the apparent impossibility of the task which Moses was asked to accomplish in order that the miraculous character of the deliverance be the more evident. It is significant that before Moses goes to speak to Pharaoh, God refuses the revelation of His name, but after he has gone on his mission God does reveal it (Exodus 6.2). It would seem that He resented Moses' refusal to go without a special guarantee. The moral of the narrative is perhaps most clearly brought out in God's rejoinder to Moses, "Who maketh a man dumb or deaf, or seeing or blind? is it not I, the Lord?" Exodus 4.11.
Aim. The aim of this lesson should be to inculcate in the child faith in God's power and providence as revealed in Jewish history. The teacher should endeavor to make the child, through admiration of the heroism of Moses in attempting the apparently impossible in the service of God, feel with deep conviction that in His service, there can be no failure. He should try to get not only the child's intellectual assent to the idea that God can accomplish anything that He purposes, but he should arouse an emotional appreciation of that heroism begotten of faith which leads great men to undertake what would, to others, seem impossible.
Suggestions to the teacher. Inasmuch as we wish to inspire in the child by means of this lesson, a faith in divine providence, we must guard against any attempt at rationalizing the miracles recorded in this and subsequent chapters. It is faith in God's power over nature and His use of this power in the interests of justice and righteousness that this lesson should teach, and no philosophic explanation can bring home this truth to the child so well as the simple, impressive narration of the miracle. A belief in the supernatural and transcendent power of God is essential in Judaism, and the miracle tale is the best means for emphasizing this doctrine. To be sure, it may be necessary at an older age, to modify and deepen one's conception of the miraculous, but the only means by which the child can conceive of God's transcendent power, providentially exercised, is through the simple, straight-forward narrative of miracles He performed. No attempt, for instance, should be made to identify the voice that addressed Moses from the burning bush with the voice of conscience. It must remain an objective voice. God's reply to Moses' inquiry as to His name, "I am that I am," is sometimes made the occasion for the teacher to indulge in an attempt at a philosophical discussion of the nature of God. We have already suggested in our interpretation of the passage that these words were probably never intended to convey such meaning. They are not an answer to the question, "What is Thy name?" but a refusal to answer it, and, therefore, it is not in place to interpret their significance as revealing anything of the nature of God. Apart from this consideration, however, such abstract theological discussion is above the mental power of the child and should always be avoided. It is, therefore, best to teach the verse without any comment, as this by itself tends to preserve the atmosphere of mystery and awe which envelopes the whole episode.
In telling of the dialogue of God and Moses, the Biblical language can be used almost throughout, and, at any rate, the speeches should be given in direct discourse. Be careful to aid the child to an appreciation of the reason for Moses' hesitation, both because this is necessary to a proper understanding of the character of Moses, and because it prepares the way for a better appreciation of the miracle of the Exodus. For instance, in telling of the call of God to Moses, one might continue somewhat in this wise: "When Moses heard God say, 'Go and I will send thee to Pharaoh, and do thou bring my people, the children of Israel out of Egypt', his heart sank. How could he, one man, and a stranger, go before this cruel and powerful king of a mighty nation, surrounded by courtiers, guards and soldiers, and say to him, 'Let these thousands of slaves who are building your cities go free?' Would Pharaoh pay any attention to him? So Moses said to God, 'Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh, that I should bring forth the children of Israel out of Egypt?'" The teacher can also make the emphasis of the narrative clearer by the questions he asks after the presentation of the lesson, as, for instance: "What did God ask Moses to say to Pharaoh? Do you think Pharaoh would let Israel go just because Moses asked it? Why not? (Draw out the idea that Pharaoh was used to being obeyed, not commanded, and that the slavery of Israel was profitable to him.) Did Moses think that Pharaoh would obey him? What did Moses say to God when God told him to go to Pharaoh? Why did not Moses want to go? How did God answer Moses when Moses said that he was not a good enough speaker?"