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Bible in Basic English

Exodus 3:13

And Moses said to God, When I come to the children of Israel and say to them, The God of your fathers has sent me to you: and they say to me, What is his name? what am I to say to them?

Bible Study Resources

Concordances:

- Nave's Topical Bible - Israel;   Moses;   Religion;   Scofield Reference Index - Israel;   Thompson Chain Reference - Fathers';   The Topic Concordance - Name;   Sending and Those Sent;  

Dictionaries:

- American Tract Society Bible Dictionary - Sinai;   Bridgeway Bible Dictionary - Exodus, book of;   Jesus christ;   Moses;   Name;   Priest;   Yahweh;   Baker Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology - God;   God, Name of;   God, Names of;   Jeremiah, Theology of;   Proverbs, Theology of;   Charles Buck Theological Dictionary - Frugality;   Name of God;   Fausset Bible Dictionary - Exodus, the Book of;   God;   Holman Bible Dictionary - Call, Calling;   God of the Fathers;   Godhead;   I Am;   Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible - Greek Versions of Ot;   Moses;   Prayer;   Sinai;   Hastings' Dictionary of the New Testament - Living (2);   Morrish Bible Dictionary - Angels;   The Hawker's Poor Man's Concordance And Dictionary - Rod;   Watson's Biblical & Theological Dictionary - Law;   Moses;  

Encyclopedias:

- Condensed Biblical Cyclopedia - Exodus, the;   Moses, the Man of God;   International Standard Bible Encyclopedia - Exodus, the Book of;   Faithful;   God;   God, Names of;   Law in the Old Testament;   Moses;   Name;   Unchangeable;   The Jewish Encyclopedia - Moses;   Sinai, Mount;  

Parallel Translations

Hebrew Names Version
Moshe said to God, "Behold, when I come to the children of Yisra'el, and tell them, 'The God of your fathers has sent me to you;' and they ask me, 'What is his name?' What should I tell them?"
King James Version
And Moses said unto God, Behold, when I come unto the children of Israel, and shall say unto them, The God of your fathers hath sent me unto you; and they shall say to me, What is his name? what shall I say unto them?
Lexham English Bible
But Moses said to God, "Look, if I go to the Israelites and I say to them, ‘The God of your ancestors has sent me to you,' and they say to me, ‘What is his name?' then what shall I say to them?"
New Century Version
Moses said to God, "When I go to the Israelites, I will say to them, ‘The God of your ancestors sent me to you.' What if the people say, ‘What is his name?' What should I tell them?"
New English Translation
Moses said to God, "If I go to the Israelites and tell them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,' and they ask me, ‘What is his name?'—what should I say to them?"
Amplified Bible
Then Moses said to God, "Behold, when I come to the Israelites and say to them, 'The God of your fathers (ancestors) has sent me to you,' and they say to me, 'What is His name?' What shall I say to them?"
New American Standard Bible
Then Moses said to God, "Behold, I am going to the sons of Israel, and I will say to them, 'The God of your fathers has sent me to you.' Now they may say to me, 'What is His name?' What shall I say to them?"
Geneva Bible (1587)
Then Moses said vnto God, Behold, when I shall come vnto the children of Israel, and shall say vnto them, The God of your fathers hath sent me vnto you: if they say vnto me, What is his Name? what shall I say vnto them?
Legacy Standard Bible
Then Moses said to God, "Behold, I am about to come to the sons of Israel, and I will say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you.' And they will say to me, ‘What is His name?' What shall I say to them?"
Contemporary English Version
Moses answered, "I will tell the people of Israel that the God their ancestors worshiped has sent me to them. But what should I say, if they ask me your name?"
Complete Jewish Bible
Moshe said to God, "Look, when I appear before the people of Isra'el and say to them, ‘The God of your ancestors has sent me to you'; and they ask me, ‘What is his name?' what am I to tell them?"
Darby Translation
And Moses said to God, Behold, [when] I come unto the children of Israel, and shall say unto them, The God of your fathers hath sent me unto you; and they shall say, What is his name? what shall I say unto them?
Easy-to-Read Version
Then Moses said to God, "But if I go to the Israelites and say to them, ‘The God of your ancestors sent me,' then the people will ask, ‘What is his name?' What should I tell them?"
English Standard Version
Then Moses said to God, "If I come to the people of Israel and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,' and they ask me, ‘What is his name?' what shall I say to them?"
George Lamsa Translation
And Moses said to God, Behold, when I go to the children of Israel and say to them, The God of your fathers has sent me to you; and they shall say to me, What is his name? what shall I say to them?
Good News Translation
But Moses replied, "When I go to the Israelites and say to them, ‘The God of your ancestors sent me to you,' they will ask me, ‘What is his name?' So what can I tell them?"
Christian Standard Bible®
Then Moses asked God, “If 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?’ what should I tell them?”
Literal Translation
And Moses said to God, Behold, I shall come to the sons of Israel and say to them, the God of your fathers has sent me to you; and they will say to me, What is His name? What shall I say to them?
Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
Moses sayde vnto God: Beholde, whan I come to the childre of Israel, and saye vnto them: The God of youre fathers hath sent me vnto you, & they saye vnto me: What is his name? what shal I saye vnto them?
American Standard Version
And Moses said unto God, Behold, when I come unto the children of Israel, and shall say unto them, The God of your fathers hath sent me unto you; and they shall say to me, What is his name? What shall I say unto them?
Bishop's Bible (1568)
And Moyses sayde vnto God: behold [when] I come vnto the chyldren of Israel, and shall say vnto them: the God of your fathers hath sent me vnto you. And if they saye vnto me, what is thy name? what answere shall I geue the?
JPS Old Testament (1917)
And Moses said unto God: 'Behold, when I come unto the children of Israel, and shall say unto them: The God of your fathers hath sent me unto you; and they shall say to me: What is His name? what shall I say unto them?'
King James Version (1611)
And Moses saide vnto God, Behold, when I come vnto the children of Israel, and shall say vnto them, The God of your fathers hath sent me vnto you; and they shall say to me, What is his name? what shall I say vnto them?
Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
And Moses said to God, Behold, I shall go forth to the children of Israel, and shall say to them, The God of our fathers has sent me to you; and they will ask me, What is his name? What shall I say to them?
English Revised Version
And Moses said unto God, Behold, when I come unto the children of Israel, and shall say unto them, The God of your fathers hath sent me unto you; and they shall say to me, What is his name? what shall I say unto them?
Berean Standard Bible
Then Moses asked 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?' What should I tell them?"
Wycliffe Bible (1395)
Moises seide to God, Lo! Y schal go to the sones of Israel, and Y schal seie to hem, God of youre fadris sente me to you; if thei schulen seie to me, what is his name, what schal Y seie to hem?
Young's Literal Translation
And Moses saith unto God, `Lo, I am coming unto the sons of Israel, and have said to them, The God of your fathers hath sent me unto you, and they have said to me, What [is] His name? what do I say unto them?'
Update Bible Version
And Moses said to God, Look, when I come to the sons of Israel, and shall say to them, The God of your fathers has sent me to you; and they shall say to me, What is his name? What shall I say to them?
Webster's Bible Translation
And Moses said to God, Behold, [when] I come to the children of Israel, and shall say to them, The God of your fathers hath sent me to you; and they shall say to me, What [is] his name? What shall I say to them?
World English Bible
Moses said to God, "Behold, when I come to the children of Israel, and tell them, 'The God of your fathers has sent me to you;' and they ask me, 'What is his name?' What should I tell them?"
New King James Version
Then Moses said to God, "Indeed, when I come to the children of Israel and say to them, "The God of your fathers has sent me to you,' and they say to me, "What is His name?' what shall I say to them?"
New Living Translation
But Moses protested, "If I go to the people of Israel and tell them, ‘The God of your ancestors has sent me to you,' they will ask me, ‘What is his name?' Then what should I tell them?"
New Life Bible
Then Moses said to God, "See, I am going to the people of Israel, and I will say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you.' Now they might say to me, ‘What is His name?' What should I say to them?"
New Revised Standard
But Moses said to God, "If I come to the Israelites and say to them, ‘The God of your ancestors has sent me to you,' and they ask me, ‘What is his name?' what shall I say to them?"
J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
And Moses said unto God - Lo! as surely as, I, go in unto the sons of Israel, and say unto them, The God of your fathers, hath sent me unto you, So surely will they say unto me - What is his name? What shall I say unto them?
Douay-Rheims Bible
Moses said to God: Lo, I shall go to the children of Israel, and say to them: The God of your fathers hath sent me to you. If they shall say to me: What is his name? What shall I say to them?
Revised Standard Version
Then Moses said to God, "If I come to the people of Israel and say to them, 'The God of your fathers has sent me to you,' and they ask me, 'What is his name?' what shall I say to them?"
THE MESSAGE
Then Moses said to God, "Suppose I go to the People of Israel and I tell them, ‘The God of your fathers sent me to you'; and they ask me, ‘What is his name?' What do I tell them?"
New American Standard Bible (1995)
Then Moses said to God, "Behold, I am going to the sons of Israel, and I will say to them, 'The God of your fathers has sent me to you.' Now they may say to me, 'What is His name?' What shall I say to them?"

Contextual Overview

11 And Moses said to God, Who am I to go to Pharaoh and take the children of Israel out of Egypt? 12 And he said, Truly I will be with you; and this will be the sign to you that I have sent you: when you have taken the children of Israel out of Egypt, you will give worship to God on this mountain. 13 And Moses said to God, When I come to the children of Israel and say to them, The God of your fathers has sent me to you: and they say to me, What is his name? what am I to say to them? 14 And God said to him, I AM WHAT I AM: and he said, Say to the children of Israel, I AM has sent me to you. 15 And God went on to say to Moses, Say to the children of Israel, The Lord, the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob, has sent me to you: this is my name for ever, and this is my sign to all generations.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

What is his name: Exodus 3:14, Exodus 15:3, Genesis 32:29, Judges 13:6, Judges 13:17, Proverbs 30:4, Isaiah 7:14, Isaiah 9:6, Jeremiah 23:6, Matthew 1:21, Matthew 1:23

Reciprocal: Exodus 6:12 - children Exodus 33:19 - proclaim Exodus 34:6 - The Lord Numbers 6:27 - put my Deuteronomy 32:3 - Because 1 Kings 8:42 - great name Psalms 20:1 - God Psalms 48:10 - According Proverbs 18:10 - name Isaiah 42:8 - that is John 17:6 - have manifested Acts 22:14 - The God

Cross-References

Genesis 3:4
And the snake said, Death will not certainly come to you:
Genesis 3:6
And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and a delight to the eyes, and to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit, and gave it to her husband.
Genesis 3:9
And the voice of the Lord God came to the man, saying, Where are you?
Genesis 3:10
And he said, Hearing your voice in the garden I was full of fear, because I was without clothing: and I kept myself from your eyes.
Genesis 3:12
And the man said, The woman whom you gave to be with me, she gave me the fruit of the tree and I took it.
Genesis 44:15
And Joseph said, What is this thing which you have done? had you no thought that such a man as I would have power to see what is secret?
1 Samuel 13:11
And Samuel said, What have you done? And Saul said, Because I saw that the people were going away from me, and you had not come at the time which had been fixed, and the Philistines had come together at Michmash;
2 Samuel 3:24
Then Joab came to the king, and said, What have you done? when Abner came to you why did you send him away and let him go?
John 18:35
Pilate said, Am I a Jew? Your nation and the chief priests have given you into my hands: what have you done?
1 Timothy 2:14
And Adam was not taken by deceit, but the woman, being tricked, became a wrongdoer.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

And Moses said unto God,.... Having received full satisfaction to his objection, taken from his own unfitness for such a service, and willing to have his way quite clear unto him, and his commission appear firm and valid to his people, he proceeds to observe another difficulty that might possibly arise:

when I come unto the children of Israel: out of Midian into Egypt;

and shall say unto them, the God of your fathers hath sent me unto you; with a message to them to receive him as his ambassador and their deliverer:

and they shall say unto me, what is his name? a question it was probable they would ask, not through ignorance, since in their distress they had called upon the name of the Lord, and cried unto him for help and deliverance; but either to try Moses, and what knowledge he had of God: or there being many names by which he had made himself known; and especially was wont to make use of a new name or title when he made a new appearance, or any eminent discovery of himself, they might be desirous of knowing what was the present name he took:

what shall I say unto them? what name shall I make mention of?

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

What is his name - The meaning of this question is evidently: “By which name shall I tell them that the promise is confirmed?” Each name of the Deity represented some aspect or manifestation of His attributes (compare the introduction to Genesis). What Moses needed was not a new name, but direction to use that name which would bear in itself a pledge of accomplishment. Moses was familiar with the Egyptian habit of choosing from the names of the gods that which bore specially upon the wants and circumstances of their worshippers, and this may have suggested the question which would be the first his own people would expect him to answer.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse Exodus 3:13. They shall say - What is his name? — Does not this suppose that the Israelites had an idolatrous notion even of the Supreme Being? They had probably drank deep into the Egyptian superstitions, and had gods many and lords many; and Moses conjectured that, hearing of a supernatural deliverance, they would inquire who that God was by whom it was to be effected. The reasons given here by the rabbins are too refined for the Israelites at this time. "When God," say they, "judgeth his creatures, he is called אלהים Elohim; when he warreth against the wicked, he is called צבאות Tsebaoth; but when he showeth mercy unto the world, he is called יהוה Yehovah." It is not likely that the Israelites had much knowledge of God or of his ways at the time to which the sacred text refers; it is certain they had no written word. The book of Genesis, if even written, (for some suppose it had been composed by Moses during his residence in Midian,) had not yet been communicated to the people; and being so long without any revelation, and perhaps without even the form of Divine worship, their minds being degraded by the state of bondage in which they had been so long held, and seeing and hearing little in religion but the superstitions of those among whom they sojourned, they could have no distinct notion of the Divine Being. Moses himself might have been in doubt at first on this subject, and he seems to have been greatly on his guard against illusion; hence he asks a variety of questions, and endeavours, by all prudent means, to assure himself of the truth and certainty of the present appearance and commission. He well knew the power of the Egyptian magicians, and he could not tell from these first views whether there might not have been some delusion in this case. God therefore gives him the fullest proof, not only for the satisfaction of the people to whom he was to be sent, but for his own full conviction, that it was the supreme God who now spoke to him.


 
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