Moses and the Burning Bush

3 Now Moses was tending the flock of Jethro^(A) his father-in-law, the priest of Midian,^(B) and he led the flock to the far side of the wilderness and came to Horeb,^(C) the mountain^(D) of God. ² There the angel of the Lord^(E) appeared to him in flames of fire^(F) from within a bush.^(G) Moses saw that though the bush was on fire it did not burn up. ³ So Moses thought, “I will go over and see this strange sight—why the bush does not burn up.”

⁴ When the Lord saw that he had gone over to look, God called^(H) to him from within the bush,^(I) “Moses! Moses!”

And Moses said, “Here I am.”^(J)

⁵ “Do not come any closer,”^(K) God said. “Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy ground.”^{(L) 6} Then he said, “I am the God of your father,^[a] the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob.”^(M) At this, Moses hid^(N) his face, because he was afraid to look at God.^(O)

⁷ The Lord said, “I have indeed seen^(P) the misery^(Q) of my people in Egypt. I have heard them crying out because of their slave drivers, and I am concerned^(R) about their suffering.^{(S) 8} So I have come down^(T) to rescue them from the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land into a good and spacious land,^(U) a land flowing with milk and honey^(V)—the home of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites^(W) and Jebusites.^{(X) 9} And now the cry of the Israelites has reached me, and I have seen the way the Egyptians are oppressing^(Y) them. ¹⁰ So now, go. I am sending^(Z) you to Pharaoh to bring my people the Israelites out of Egypt.”^(AA)

¹¹ But Moses said to God, “Who am I^(AB) that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?”

¹² And God said, “I will be with you.^(AC) And this will be the sign^(AD) to you that it is I who have sent you: When you have brought the people out of Egypt, you^[b] will worship God on this mountain.^(AE)”

¹³ Moses said to God, “Suppose I go to the Israelites and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘What is his name?’^(AF) Then what shall I tell them?”

¹⁴ God said to Moses, “I am who I am.^[c] This is what you are to say to the Israelites: ‘I am^(AG) has sent me to you.’”

¹⁵ God also said to Moses, “Say to the Israelites, ‘The Lord,^[d] the God of your fathers^(AH)—the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob^(AI)—has sent me to you.’

¹⁶ “Go, assemble the elders^(AL) of Israel and say to them, ‘The Lord, the God of your fathers—the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob^(AM)—appeared to me and said: I have watched over you and have seen^(AN) what has been done to you in Egypt. ¹⁷ And I have promised to bring you up out of your misery in Egypt^(AO) into the land of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites—a land flowing with milk and honey.’^(AP)

¹⁸ “The elders of Israel will listen^(AQ) to you. Then you and the elders are to go to the king of Egypt and say to him, ‘The Lord, the God of the Hebrews,^(AR) has met^(AS) with us. Let us take a three-day journey^(AT) into the wilderness to offer sacrifices^(AU) to the Lord our God.’ ¹⁹ But I know that the king of Egypt will not let you go unless a mighty hand^(AV) compels him. ²⁰ So I will stretch out my hand^(AW) and strike the Egyptians with all the wonders^(AX) that I will perform among them. After that, he will let you go.^(AY)

²¹ “And I will make the Egyptians favorably disposed^(AZ) toward this people, so that when you leave you will not go empty-handed.^{(BA) 22} Every woman is to ask her neighbor and any woman living in her house for articles of silver^(BB) and gold^(BC) and for clothing, which you will put on your sons and daughters. And so you will plunder^(BD) the Egyptians.”^(BE)

Signs for Moses

4 Moses answered, “What if they do not believe me or listen^(BF) to me and say, ‘The Lord did not appear to you’?”

² Then the Lord said to him, “What is that in your hand?”

“A staff,”^(BG) he replied.

³ The Lord said, “Throw it on the ground.”

Moses threw it on the ground and it became a snake,^(BH) and he ran from it. ⁴ Then the Lord said to him, “Reach out your hand and take it by the tail.” So Moses reached out and took hold of the snake and it turned back into a staff in his hand. ⁵ “This,” said the Lord, “is so that they may believe^(BI) that the Lord, the God of their fathers—the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob—has appeared to you.”

⁶ Then the Lord said, “Put your hand inside your cloak.” So Moses put his hand into his cloak, and when he took it out, the skin was leprous^[e]—it had become as white as snow.^(BJ)

⁷ “Now put it back into your cloak,” he said. So Moses put his hand back into his cloak, and when he took it out, it was restored,^(BK) like the rest of his flesh.

⁸ Then the Lord said, “If they do not believe^(BL) you or pay attention to the first sign,^(BM) they may believe the second. ⁹ But if they do not believe these two signs or listen to you, take some water from the Nile and pour it on the dry ground. The water you take from the river will become blood^(BN) on the ground.”

¹⁰ Moses said to the Lord, “Pardon your servant, Lord. I have never been eloquent, neither in the past nor since you have spoken to your servant. I am slow of speech and tongue.”^(BO)

¹¹ The Lord said to him, “Who gave human beings their mouths? Who makes them deaf or mute?^(BP) Who gives them sight or makes them blind?^(BQ) Is it not I, the Lord? ¹² Now go;^(BR) I will help you speak and will teach you what to say.”^(BS)

¹³ But Moses said, “Pardon your servant, Lord. Please send someone else.”^(BT)

¹⁴ Then the Lord’s anger burned^(BU) against Moses and he said, “What about your brother, Aaron the Levite? I know he can speak well. He is already on his way to meet^(BV) you, and he will be glad to see you. ¹⁵ You shall speak to him and put words in his mouth;^(BW) I will help both of you speak and will teach you what to do. ¹⁶ He will speak to the people for you, and it will be as if he were your mouth^(BX) and as if you were God to him.^{(BY) 17} But take this staff^(BZ) in your hand^(CA) so you can perform the signs^(CB) with it.”

Moses Returns to Egypt

¹⁸ Then Moses went back to Jethro his father-in-law and said to him, “Let me return to my own people in Egypt to see if any of them are still alive.”

Jethro said, “Go, and I wish you well.”

¹⁹ Now the Lord had said to Moses in Midian, “Go back to Egypt, for all those who wanted to kill^(CC) you are dead.^(CD)” ²⁰ So Moses took his wife and sons,^(CE) put them on a donkey and started back to Egypt. And he took the staff^(CF) of God in his hand.

²¹ The Lord said to Moses, “When you return to Egypt, see that you perform before Pharaoh all the wonders^(CG) I have given you the power to do. But I will harden his heart^(CH) so that he will not let the people go.^{(CI) 22} Then say to Pharaoh, ‘This is what the Lord says: Israel is my firstborn son,^{(CJ) 23} and I told you, “Let my son go,^(CK) so he may worship^(CL) me.” But you refused to let him go; so I will kill your firstborn son.’”^(CM)

²⁴ At a lodging place on the way, the Lord met Moses^[f] and was about to kill^(CN) him. ²⁵ But Zipporah^(CO) took a flint knife, cut off her son’s foreskin^(CP) and touched Moses’ feet with it.^[g] “Surely you are a bridegroom of blood to me,” she said. ²⁶ So the Lord let him alone. (At that time she said “bridegroom of blood,” referring to circumcision.)

²⁷ The Lord said to Aaron, “Go into the wilderness to meet Moses.” So he met Moses at the mountain^(CQ) of God and kissed^(CR) him. ²⁸ Then Moses told Aaron everything the Lord had sent him to say, and also about all the signs he had commanded him to perform.

²⁹ Moses and Aaron brought together all the elders^(CS) of the Israelites, ³⁰ and Aaron told them everything the Lord had said to Moses. He also performed the signs^(CT) before the people, ³¹ and they believed.^(CU) And when they heard that the Lord was concerned^(CV) about them and had seen their misery,^(CW) they bowed down and worshiped.^(CX)

Psalm 16

A miktam^[a] of David.

Psalm 17

A prayer of David.

¹ Jude,^(A) a servant of Jesus Christ^(B) and a brother of James,

To those who have been called,^(C) who are loved in God the Father and kept for^[a] Jesus Christ:^(D)

² Mercy, peace^(E) and love be yours in abundance.^(F)

The Sin and Doom of Ungodly People

³ Dear friends,^(G) although I was very eager to write to you about the salvation we share,^(H) I felt compelled to write and urge you to contend^(I) for the faith^(J) that was once for all entrusted to God’s holy people.^{(K) 4} For certain individuals whose condemnation was written about^[b] long ago have secretly slipped in among you.^(L) They are ungodly people, who pervert the grace of our God into a license for immorality and deny Jesus Christ our only Sovereign and Lord.^(M)

⁵ Though you already know all this,^(N) I want to remind you^(O) that the Lord^[c] at one time delivered his people out of Egypt, but later destroyed those who did not believe.^{(P) 6} And the angels who did not keep their positions of authority but abandoned their proper dwelling—these he has kept in darkness, bound with everlasting chains for judgment on the great Day.^{(Q) 7} In a similar way, Sodom and Gomorrah^(R) and the surrounding towns^(S) gave themselves up to sexual immorality and perversion. They serve as an example of those who suffer the punishment of eternal fire.^(T)

⁸ In the very same way, on the strength of their dreams these ungodly people pollute their own bodies, reject authority and heap abuse on celestial beings.^{(U) 9} But even the archangel^(V) Michael,^(W) when he was disputing with the devil about the body of Moses,^(X) did not himself dare to condemn him for slander but said, “The Lord rebuke you!”^{[d](Y) 10} Yet these people slander whatever they do not understand, and the very things they do understand by instinct—as irrational animals do—will destroy them.^(Z)

¹¹ Woe to them! They have taken the way of Cain;^(AA) they have rushed for profit into Balaam’s error;^(AB) they have been destroyed in Korah’s rebellion.^(AC)

¹² These people are blemishes at your love feasts,^(AD) eating with you without the slightest qualm—shepherds who feed only themselves.^(AE) They are clouds without rain,^(AF) blown along by the wind;^(AG) autumn trees, without fruit and uprooted^(AH)—twice dead. ¹³ They are wild waves of the sea,^(AI) foaming up their shame;^(AJ) wandering stars, for whom blackest darkness has been reserved forever.^(AK)

¹⁴ Enoch,^(AL) the seventh from Adam, prophesied about them: “See, the Lord is coming^(AM) with thousands upon thousands of his holy ones^{(AN) 15} to judge^(AO) everyone, and to convict all of them of all the ungodly acts they have committed in their ungodliness, and of all the defiant words ungodly sinners have spoken against him.”^{[e](AP) 16} These people are grumblers^(AQ) and faultfinders; they follow their own evil desires;^(AR) they boast^(AS) about themselves and flatter others for their own advantage.

A Call to Persevere

¹⁷ But, dear friends, remember what the apostles^(AT) of our Lord Jesus Christ foretold.^{(AU) 18} They said to you, “In the last times^(AV) there will be scoffers who will follow their own ungodly desires.”^{(AW) 19} These are the people who divide you, who follow mere natural instincts and do not have the Spirit.^(AX)

²⁰ But you, dear friends, by building yourselves up^(AY) in your most holy faith^(AZ) and praying in the Holy Spirit,^{(BA) 21} keep yourselves in God’s love as you wait^(BB) for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to bring you to eternal life.^(BC)

²² Be merciful to those who doubt; ²³ save others by snatching them from the fire;^(BD) to others show mercy, mixed with fear—hating even the clothing stained by corrupted flesh.^[f](BE)

Doxology

²⁴ To him who is able^(BF) to keep you from stumbling and to present you before his glorious presence^(BG) without fault^(BH) and with great joy— ²⁵ to the only God^(BI) our Savior be glory, majesty, power and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore!^(BJ) Amen.^(BK)