Exodus 3:1-15

You can sponsor this page of The Text This Week

• Reading the Text:
  • NRSV (with link to Anglicized NRSV) at Oremus Bible Browser.
  • The Bible Gateway: NIV, NASB, CEV, The Message, KJV, etc.
  • The Blue Letter Bible. KJV, alternate versions, Hebrew text with concordance, commentaries.
  • The World Wide Study Bible includes commentary, exposition and sermons.
  • Shemot 3: Massoretic, Hebrew, Aramaic, JPS.
• Historical References, Commentary and Comparative Texts:
  • Navigating the Bible: Text/Rabbinic commentary and Divrei Torah.
  • Comparative World Scriptures from United Communities of Spirit:
    • "Eternal in a World of Transcience"
    • "Call and Awakening" 
    • "Providence and the Mandate of Heaven"
  • Chapter XVII of The First Epistle to the Corinthians, Clement of Rome (ca. 96)
  • Chapter LXII, Chapter LXIII, The First Apology of Justin Martyr. (c 150)
  • Chapter LX, Dialogue With Trypho, Justin Martyr. (c 160)
  • III.VI.2, IV.V.2, IV.VII.4, IV.X.1, IV.XII.4, Adversus Haereses, Irenaeus of Lyons. (c. 180)
  • Chapter IX, Adversus Judaeos, Tertullian (c. 198)
  • Chapter III, On Prayer,  Tertullian (c. 199)
  • I.6, I.8, Paedagogus, Clement of Alexandria (c 200)
  • I.24, Stromata, Clement of Alexandria (c 200)
  • III.V, Against Marcion, Tertullian (c. 209)
  • Chapter I, Scorpiace,  Tertullian (c. 213)
  • I.III.6, II.IV.1, II.VIII.3, First Principles (De Principiis), Origen. (c.225)
  • VIII.II, The Refutation of all Heresies (Philosophumena), Hippolytus of Rome. (c. 225)
  • VII.XXVIII, Against Celsus, Origen. (c.246)
  • Chapter XX, Hortatory Address to the Greeks, pseudo-Justin. (3rd cent?)
  • Book I, Chapter 2, Ecclesiastical History, Eusebius of Caesarea, (c. 320).
  • Rashi's Commentary, c. 1075. chabad.org.
  • From the Geneva Notes.
    • "This shows that the Church is not consumed by the fires of affliction, because God is in the midst of it."
  • From Matthew Henry's Commentary.
    • "The years of the life of Moses are divided into three forties; the first forty he spent as a prince in Pharaoh's court, the second as a shepherd in Midian, the third as a king in Jeshurun."
  • From Wesley's Notes.
    • "And the bush burned, and yet was not consumed - An emblem of the church now in bondage in Egypt, burning in the brick - kilns, yet not consumed; cast down, but not destroyed."
  • From the Commentary on the Whole Bible (Jamieson, Fausset and Brown, 1871).
    • "With [those in Eastern countries] the removal of the shoes is a confession of personal defilement and conscious unworthiness to stand in the presence of unspotted holiness."
• Contemporary References, Commentary and Comparative Texts:
  • Commentary, Exodus 3:1-15, Dennis Olson, Preaching This Week, WorkingPreacher.org, 2008.
    • "This divine name is built on the Hebrew verb "to be" and is related to the divine name used frequently throughout the Old Testament, "Yahweh," or YHWH (the transliterated Hebrew consonants without the vowels)."
  • Comments (commentary) and Clippings (technical notes for in-depth study), Chris Haslam, Anglican Diocese of Montreal.
  • The Old Testament Readings: Exodus 3:1-15. Weekly Comments on the Revised Common Lectionary, Howard Wallace Audrey Schindler, Morag Logan, Paul Tonson, Lorraine Parkinson, Theological Hall of the Uniting Church, Melbourne, Australia.
    • "The Jewish scholar Martin Buber has suggested ‘Ehyeh (“I am”) who will certainly be’ and we might add in this story ‘with you’."
  • "Exodus 3:1-15," Pentecost 16, Commentary, Background, Insights from Literary Structure, Theological Message, Ways to Present the Text. Anna Grant-Henderson, Uniting Church in Australia.
    • "It is one of the delights of the Old Testament that one can be difficult and challenge God and a passive deference is not necessarily an acceptable trait for a divine call. Indeed, God could be seen as taking incredible risks with humans who are very vulnerable and not very reliable at times."
  • "Ever on Holy Ground," Daniel Deffenbaugh, Seeds of Shalom, 2008.
    • "I have always taken great comfort in Martin Buber's translation of God's holy name in this passage. The traditional rendering – 'I am that I am' – is, again, pretty nebulous to me. But Buber argues that a more appropriate translation here is, 'I will be whatever I will be.'"
  • Third Sunday in Lent, The Via Negativa: Old Testament Lessons in Lent, Jane E. Strohl, Word & World Texts in Context, Luther Seminary, 1995. (Section on this text begins on page 104.)
    • "Again, as in the Deuteronomy text, we are presented with the same core story, a history in the making of a people oppressed and delivered."
  • Parshah Shemot, text, commentary, stories, sermons & articles from Chassidic Masters and others, from Chabad Lubavitch.
  • "1. Bio-Politics and the Midwives 2. Moses and Emancipation: Perashat Shemot," Mark H. Kirschbaum, M.D., Tikkun.
  • "When Moses Burned Inside the Burning Bush," Arthur Ocean Waskow & Phyllis Ocean Berman, The Shalom Center.
    • "'God only knows where this dance is going to take us,' he muttered. He turned to look back at the summit of the mountain. 'It's up to You,' he shouted. 'I have no idea where we're heading. Freedom, what a chance, a dance, we're taking!'"
  • "The Call of Moses," Larry Broding's Word-Sunday.Com: A Lectionary Resource for Catholics.
    • "Many times when we try to change God's will through prayer, we become frustrated. No wonder! Like Moses we seek God's power, only to find we are not in charge."
  • "Back to the Burning Bush," William H. Willimon, The Christian Century, 2002.
    • "It is odd that God needs someone, particularly someone as inept as Moses, to do the work."
  • Parshas Shemos, Divrei Torah from The Project Genesis Torah Study. Index to numerous Orthodox articles and studies on Exodus 1:1 - 6:1.
  • Parshat Schmot, articles and commentary by the Jewish Community of Atlanta, at The Torah From Dixie.
  • "Lent C3 - Exegetical Notes on Exodus 3:1-15," Douglas MacCallum Lindsay Judisch, Concordia Theological Seminary (LCMS - Indiana).
    • "The converse of this symbolism is the sinner's natural fearfulness of the presence of the All-Holy God. The resulting response, therefore, in verse 6 to the Lord's self-revelation is the desire of Moses to hide his face. A corresponding example in the New Testament would be the reaction of Simon Peter to the Lord's revelation of His deity in the miraculous drought of fish: "Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord!" (Luke 5:8)."
• Articles & Background:
  • "The Meaning of Vocation," A.J. Conyers, (other resources at) "Vocation," Christian Reflection, The Center for Christian Ethics at Baylor University, 2004.
    • "'Vocation' is distorted by two disastrous misunderstandings: a secularized idea of 'career' and a monastic concept of the religious life."
  • Articles, poetry and illustrations from Jewish Heritage OnLine Monthly's "Topic of the Month," Fire. Includes:
    • "Theophany at the Burning Bush," Nahum Sarna
      • "The idea of explicitly sacred (Heb. kadosh) space is encountered here for the first time."
  • "The Holy and the Sacred," Paul S. Minear, Yale Divinity School. Theology Today, 1990.
    • "The sacred is found wherever religion is found; the holy wherever God is present. Accordingly, it is quite possible to consider many things as sacred but nothing as holy, or equally possible to treat many things as holy but nothing as sacred. Everything depends on the concept of God. Of the two terms, theistic religions view the holy as primary, the sacred as secondary."
  • St. Catherine Monastery: explore the monastery, artwork, etc.
    • "Set beneath the mountain where Moses is said to have received the Ten Commandments, Saint Catherine Monastery has been one of the world’s great centers of religious pilgrimage for over fifteen centuries."
    • Chapel of the Burning Bush (includes picture of the Burning Bush)
      • "The monastery's spiritual heart is the Chapel of the Burning Bush, an unassuming structure of tremendous religious significance. According the oldest monastic tradition, this chapel sits atop the roots of the same Biblical bush "that burned with fire, and was not consumed" (Exodus 3:2) when God spoke to Moses for the first time. A few feet away from the Chapel is the reputed bush itself, a rare species of the rose family called Rubus Sanctus."
  • "Burning Bush" from botanical.com.
• ATLASerials is now available on multiple platforms.  Direct links are currently available for ATLASerials via EBSCOhost and ATLA platforms when you are subscribed and logged in to ATLAS on one of these platforms. If you are unsure about which link to choose, please contact support@atla.com.
  • Beach-Verhey, Kathy, "Between Text and Sermon, Exodus 3:1-12," Interpretation, 2005.
      ATLAS via ATLA Image Browse - ATLAS via ATLA PDF
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Bush Still Burns: Reflections on Exodus 3, The, Issue focus on Exodus 3, Religion and Intellectual Life, 1987.
      ATLAS via ATLA Image Browse - ATLAS via ATLA PDF
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Carroll, R.P., "Strange Fire: Abstract of Presence Absent in the Text Meditations on Exodus 3," Journal for the Study of the Old Testament, 1994.
      ATLAS via ATLA Image Browse - ATLAS via ATLA PDF
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Coats, George W., "Moses in Midian," Journal of Biblical Literature, 1973.
      ATLAS via ATLA Image Browse - ATLAS via ATLA PDF
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • den Hertog, Cornelis, "The Prophetic Dimension of the Divine Name: On Exodus 3:14a and Its Context," The Catholic Biblical Quarterly, 2002.
      ATLAS via ATLA Image Browse - ATLAS via ATLA PDF
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Egger, Thomas J., "Homiletical Helps on the LSB Series C - Old Testament / A - Epistles," Concordia Journal, 2007. (Section on this text begins on page 385.)
      ATLAS via ATLA Image Browse - ATLAS via ATLA PDF
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Eslinger, Lyle, "Freedom or Knowledge? Perspective and Purpose in the Exodus Narrative," Journal for the Study of the Old Testament, 1991.
      ATLAS via ATLA Image Browse - ATLAS via ATLA PDF
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Freedman, David Noel, "The Name of the God of Moses," Journal of Biblical Literature, 1960.
      ATLAS via ATLA Image Browse - ATLAS via ATLA PDF
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Gianotti, Charles R., "The Meaning of the Divine Name YHWH," Bibliotheca Sacra, 1985.
      ATLAS via ATLA Image Browse - ATLAS via ATLA PDF
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Hertog, Cornelia den, "The Prophetic Dimension of the Divine Name: On Exodus 3:14a and Its Context," The Catholic Biblical Quarterly, 2002.
      ATLAS via ATLA Image Browse - ATLAS via ATLA PDF
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Holmgren, Fredrick C., "Between Text & Sermon, Exodus 2:11-3:15," Interpretation, 2002.
      ATLAS via ATLA Image Browse - ATLAS via ATLA PDF
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Janzen, J. Gerald, "...And the Bush Was Not Consumed," Encounter, 2002.
      ATLAS via ATLA Image Browse - ATLAS via ATLA PDF
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Janzen, J. Gerald, "The Child Is the Father of the Man: Moses in the Bulrushes," The Living Pulpit, 2003.
      ATLAS via ATLA Image Browse - ATLAS via ATLA PDF
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Johnson, William A., "The Philosopher at the Burning Bush," Religion and Intellectual Life, 1987.
      ATLAS via ATLA Image Browse - ATLAS via ATLA PDF
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Kearney, Richard, "God Who May Be: A Phenomenological Study," Modern Theology, 2002.
      ATLAS via ATLA Image Browse - ATLAS via ATLA PDF
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Levine, Etan, "Midrash on the Burning Bush," Reconstructionist, 1971.
      ATLAS via ATLA Image Browse - ATLAS via ATLA PDF
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • McCarthy, Dennis J., S.J., "Exodus 3:14: History, Philology and Theology," The Catholic Biblical Quarterly, 1978.
      ATLAS via ATLA Image Browse - ATLAS via ATLA PDF
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Mendenhall, Maury, "Runaways," Journal for Preachers, 2001. Sermon.
      ATLAS via ATLA Image Browse - ATLAS via ATLA PDF
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Mowinckel, Sigmund, "The Name of the God of Moses," Hebrew Union College Annual, 1961.
      ATLAS via ATLA Image Browse - ATLAS via ATLA PDF
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Phillips, Anthony and Lucy, "The Origin of 'I am' in Exodus 3.14," Journal for the Study of the Old Testament, 1998.
      ATLAS via ATLA Image Browse - ATLAS via ATLA PDF
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Robinson, Bernard P., "Moses at the Burning Bush," Journal for the Study of the Old Testament, 1997.
      ATLAS via ATLA Image Browse - ATLAS via ATLA PDF
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Schild, E., "On Exodus 3:14 - 'I Am That I Am,'" Vetus Testamentum, 1954.
      ATLAS via ATLA Image Browse - ATLAS via ATLA PDF
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Smith, John Ferris, "Miriam and the Burning Bush: To a High School Teacher," Religion and Intellectual Life, 1987.
      ATLAS via ATLA Image Browse - ATLAS via ATLA PDF
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Strohl, Jane E., "The Via Negativa: Old Testament Lessons in Lent," Word & World, 1995. (Section on this text begins on page 104.)
      ATLAS via ATLA Image Browse - ATLAS via ATLA PDF
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Thompson, Thomas L., "How Yahweh Became God: Exodus 3 and 6 and the Heart of the Pentateuch," Journal for the Study of the Old Testament, 1995.
      ATLAS via ATLA Image Browse - ATLAS via ATLA PDF
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Tiessen, Terry, "God, Time and Knowledge: What Does God Know and When Does God Know It?" Didaskalia, 2007.
      ATLAS via ATLA Image Browse - ATLAS via ATLA PDF
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Wardlaw, Theodore J., "Forming: A Peculiar Language," Journal for Preachers, 1994. (Sermon)
      ATLAS via ATLA Image Browse - ATLAS via ATLA PDF
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Whitten, Hubert N., "Burning Bush," Brethren Life and Thought, 2002. (Poetry)
      ATLAS via ATLA Image Browse - ATLAS via ATLA PDF
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Willimon, William H., "Back to the Burning Bush," The Christian Century, 2002.
      ATLAS via ATLA Image Browse - ATLAS via ATLA PDF
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Wyatt, N., "The Significance of the Burning Bush," Vetus Testamentum, 1986.
      ATLAS via ATLA Image Browse - ATLAS via ATLA PDF
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
• Reviews:
• Sermons:
  • "Clarity about Your Calling," the Rev. Dr. Joanna Adams, Day 1, 2006.
  • "Mortal Meanness and Divine Plentitude," Madeleine L'Engle, 30 Good Minutes, Chicago Sunday Evening Club, 1995.
  • "Call: A Taste of Understanding," Linda Loving, 30 Good Minutes, Chicago Sunday Evening Club, 2003.
  • "Turning Aside," the Rev. Barbara Lundblad, Associate Professor of Homiletics at Union Theological Seminary in New York City, 30 Good Minutes, Chicago Sunday Evening Club, 2000.
  • "Something of God," the Rev. Dr. Francis H. Wade, Day 1, 1997.
  • "Our Uneasy Relationship with God," Robert McAfee Brown, 30 Good Minutes, Chicago Sunday Evening Club, 1989.
  • "The Name of God: I Am," Pastor Edward F. Marquart, Grace Lutheran Church, Seattle, Washington.
• With Children:
  • "Moses and the Burning Bush," Illustrating the Story (lessons, children's sermons), coloring pages, activity sheets, crafts, children's songs. MSSS Crafts.
  • "The Burning Bush," children's study, puzzles, coloring sheet, etc. Higher Praise Christian Center.
  • "Burning Bush," Jim Kerlin, childrensermons.com.
  • "The Call of Moses," online computer java-based coloring pages from Grace Baptist Church of Feeding Hill.
• Drama:
  • "I Want You, Moses," Kevin Penner, dramatix.
  • "Moses and the Burning Bush," Joey Bauer, dramatix.
  • "Moses vs. the Burning Bush," Theodore N. Wright, dramatix.
• Graphics & Bulletin Materials:
  • Clip Art, Exodus 3:2, Exodus 3:6, Fr. Richard Lonsdale, Resources for Catholic Educators.
  • Clip Art Images: Exodus 3:1-15, Misioneros Del Sagrado Corazón en el Perú.
  • Clip Art: Moses and the Burning Bush, Julius Schnoor von Carolsfeld woodcuts, World Mission Collection, Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod.
  • Moses, Leader of God's People PowerPoint Slide Masters. Henry Martin, sermons4kids.com.
  • Burning Bush, Clip Art, Anglican Diocese of Dunedin, New Zealand.
  • Exodus 3:1-15, Scripture Pics - graphics relating to RCL texts, Matt Baker, Germantown UMC, Ohio.
• Hymns and Music:
  • "Our God, You Called to Moses," Carolyn Winfrey Gillette. TUNE: LLANGLOFFAN 7.6.7.6.D ("Rejoice, Rejoice, Believers").
  • At Oremus Hymnal:
    • Be still, for the presence of the Lord
      Come, ye faithful, raise the strain
      God reveals his presence
      Holy, Holy, Holy! Lord God Almighty
      Jesus, where'er thy people meet
      The God of Abraham praise
      When Israel was in Egypt's land
  • Hymn Selections, The Lutheran Hymnal, Lutheran Worship.
  • At Digital Hymnal (midi files, guitar chords, karaoke files, projection text):
    • The God of Abraham Praise
• Fine Arts Images Linked at The Text This Week's Art Index:
  • Moses and the Burning Bush
• Movies scenes with the following themes, listed at The Text This Week's Movie Concordance:
  • Moses/Exodus
• Study Links and Resources for the Book of Exodus