Exodus 4:2

2 So the Lord asked him, "What are you holding?" "A walking stick," he answered.

Exodus 4:2 Meaning and Commentary

Exodus 4:2

And the Lord said unto him
Not reproving him for contradicting him, or showing any diffidence of what he had said; but rather as approving the hint he gave of having some sign or miracle wrought, to command from the Israelites an assent unto him, as commissioned of God to deliver them: what [is] that in thine hand?
which question is put, not as being ignorant of what it was, but to lead on to what he had further to say, and to the working of the miracle: and he said, a rod;
or staff, such as shepherds use in the management of their flocks, for Moses was now feeding the flock of his father-in-law; but Aben Ezra seems rather to think it was a walking staff, such as ancient men lean upon, since Moses did not go to Pharaoh after the manner of a shepherd; yea, it may be added, he went with the authority of a prince or ruler of Israel, and even with the authority of the ambassador of the King of kings.

Exodus 4:2 In-Context

1 Then Moses answered the Lord, "But suppose the Israelites do not believe me and will not listen to what I say. What shall I do if they say that you did not appear to me?"

2 So the Lord asked him, "What are you holding?" "A walking stick," he answered.

3 The Lord said, "Throw it on the ground." When Moses threw it down, it turned into a snake, and he ran away from it.

4 Then the Lord said to Moses, "Reach down and pick it up by the tail." So Moses reached down and caught it, and it became a walking stick again.

5 The Lord said, "Do this to prove to the Israelites that the Lord, the God of their ancestors, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, has appeared to you."