9
"And now Israel's cry for help has reached me. I have seen the way the Egyptians are beating them down.
10
So now, go. I am sending you to Pharaoh. I want you to bring the Israelites out of Egypt. They are my people."
11
But Moses spoke to God. "Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh?" he said. "Who am I that I should bring the Israelites out of Egypt?"
12
God said, "I will be with you. I will give you a miraculous sign. It will prove that I have sent you. When you have brought the people out of Egypt, all of you will worship me on this mountain."
13
Moses said to God, "Suppose I go to the people of Israel. Suppose I say to them, 'The God of your fathers has sent me to you.' Suppose they ask me, 'What is his name?' Then what should I tell them?"
14
God said to Moses, "I am who I am. Here is what you must say to the Israelites. Tell them, 'I AM has sent me to you.' "
15
God also said to Moses, "Say to the Israelites, 'The LORD is the God of your fathers. He has sent me to you. He is the God of Abraham. He is the God of Isaac. And he is the God of Jacob.' My name will always be The LORD. Remember me by that name for all time to come.
16
"Go. Gather the elders of Israel together. Say to them, 'The Lord, the God of your fathers, appeared to me. He is the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. " 'He said, "I have watched over you. I have seen what the Egyptians have done to you.
17
I have promised to bring you up out of Egypt where you are suffering. I will bring you into the land of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites. It is a land that has plenty of milk and honey." '
18
"The elders of Israel will listen to you. Then you and the elders must go to the king of Egypt. You must say to him, 'The LORD has met with us. He is the God of the Hebrews. Let us take a journey that lasts about three days. We want to go into the desert to offer sacrifices to the LORD our God.'
19
"But I know that the king of Egypt will not let you and your people go. Only a mighty hand could make him do that.