Apr 1, 2026
We left off yesterday with Moses seeming to succumb to his emotions as he questioned whether God would deliver the Israelites from the hands of the ruthless Egyptian ruler. Today, we begin with God’s graceful response: “Now you shall see what I will do to Pharaoh; for with a strong hand he will send them out, and with a strong hand he will drive them out of his land…I am the LORD. I appeared to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, as God Almighty, but by my name the LORD I did not make myself known to them” (vv. 2-3).
God reassured Moses that not only would Pharaoh let the people of Israel go, but he would eagerly send them out. Then, He got personal with Moses, reminding his servant that He was still the same covenant-making God that appeared to his forefathers. But there was a big difference between what Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob experienced with God and what Moses (and the rest of the Israelites) were soon to witness. David Guzik puts it this way: “The patriarchs were privileged to know the God who made the covenant, but for them the covenant was barely fulfilled. The patriarchs knew God as the Maker of the covenant. Moses and the generation of the Exodus would know God as the One who fulfilled the covenant.”[i] Moses proceeded to convey this message of promised deliverance to the Israelites, “but they did not listen to Moses, because of their broken spirit and harsh slavery” (v. 9). How we must endeavor to encourage others to hold on to the promised hope we have when times are difficult.
God commands Moses to go to Pharaoh and tell him that he is to let the people of Israel go, but again, Moses hesitates. “Behold, the people of Israel have not listened to me. How then shall Pharaoh listen to me, for I am of uncircumcised lips?” (v. 12). God doesn’t waver, directing Moses and Aaron to speak to the ruler of the land. And when this command was reiterated by God at the end of chapter 6, Moses unfortunately persisted in his reluctance. Matthew Henry reminds us, “Though our infirmities ought to humble us, yet they ought not to discourage us from doing our best in any service we have to do for God. His strength is made perfect in our weakness.”[ii] Moses continued to look inward at his own perceived inabilities and unworthiness, while God was trying to remind him to have confidence in the One whose battle this truly was.
Before moving on to a time of reflection, don’t gloss over the genealogy of Moses and Aaron in the latter half of Exodus 6. Some of the descendants of Aaron are listed here, whom you will recognize again when we get to the priesthood God establishes among His people later in the book of Exodus. We are also introduced to Korah in this family listing, whose actions in Numbers 16 will be a cautionary tale for us today. These names we read are not just for our enjoyment, but rather to remind us, as we progress through Scripture and see more of their stories, that we all have a desperate need for a Savior to redeem us!
- - - - - -
Journal responses to the following prompts:
· How have you experienced God as a promise maker? Promise keeper? Was there a deeper level of intimacy, love, and trust when He took you from one to the other?
· Why are we so prone to look at our own unworthiness before determining whether to go where God is calling us?
[i] Study Guide for Exodus 6. (n.d.). Blue Letter Bible. Retrieved February 27, 2026, from
https://www.blueletterbible.org/comm/guzik_david/study-guide/exodus/exodus-6.cfm
[ii] Henry, M. (2014). Matthew Henry’s commentary on the whole Bible. (Vol. 1). Hendrickson Publishers. p.