Exodus 4:12-22

12 And now go and I will open thy mouth, and will instruct thee in what thou shalt say.

13 And Moses said, I pray thee, Lord, appoint another able whom thou shalt send.

14 And the Lord was greatly angered against Moses, and said, Lo! is not Aaron the Levite thy brother? I know that he will surely speak to thee; and, behold, he will come forth to meet thee, and beholding thee he will rejoice within himself.

15 And thou shalt speak to him; and thou shalt put my words into his mouth, and I will open thy mouth and his mouth, and I will instruct you in what ye shall do.

16 And he shall speak for thee to the people, and he shall be thy mouth, and thou shalt be for him in things pertaining to God.

17 And this rod that was turned into a serpent thou shalt take in thine hand, wherewith thou shalt work miracles.

18 And Moses went and returned to Jothor his father-in-law, and says, I will go and return to my brethren in Egypt, and will see if they are yet living. And Jothor said to Moses, Go in health. And in those days after some time, the king of Egypt died.

19 And the Lord said to Moses in Madiam, Go, depart into Egypt, for all that sought thy life are dead.

20 And Moses took his wife and his children, and mounted them on the beasts, and returned to Egypt; and Moses took the rod from God in his hand.

21 And the Lord said to Moses, When thou goest and returnest to Egypt, see—all the miracles I have put into thine hands. charged thee with, thou shalt work before Pharao: and I will harden his heart, and he shall certainly not send away the people.

22 And thou shalt say to Pharao, These things saith the Lord, Israel my first-born.

Exodus 4:12-22 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO EXODUS 4

This chapter is a continuation of the discourse that passed between God and Moses; and here Moses makes other objections to his mission; one is taken from the unbelief of the people of Israel, which is removed by giving him power to work miracles, by turning the rod in his hand into a serpent, and then into a rod again; and by putting his hand into his bosom at one time, when it became leprous, and again into the same place, when it became sound and whole, and by turning the water of the river into blood, Ex 4:1-9, another objection is formed from his want of eloquence, which is answered with an assurance, that God, that made man's mouth, would be with his mouth, and teach him what to say; and besides, Aaron his brother, who was an eloquent man, should be his spokesman, Ex 4:10-17 upon which he returned to Midian, and having obtained leave of his father-in-law to depart from thence, he took his wife and his sons, and returned to Egypt, Ex 4:18-20 at which time he received some fresh instructions from the Lord what he should do before Pharaoh, and what he should say unto him, Ex 4:21-23 then follows an account of what befell him by the way, because of the circumcision of his son, Ex 4:24-26 and the chapter is closed with an account of the meeting of Moses and Aaron, and of their gathering the elders of Israel together, to whom the commission of Moses was opened, and signs done before them, to which they gave credit, and expressed their joy and thankfulness, Ex 4:27-31.

Footnotes

• [a]. See 1 Cor 2. 16.