Exodus — Chapter 4

King James Version (KJV)

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Scripture source: Project Gutenberg KJV, ebook 10.

Exodus 4:1 And Moses answered and said, But, behold, they will not believe me, nor hearken unto my voice: for they will say, The LORD hath not appeared unto thee.

Exodus 4:2 And the LORD said unto him, What is that in thine hand? And he said, ^RA rod.

Exodus 4:3 And he said, Cast it on the ground. And he cast it on the ground, and ^Rit became a serpent; and Moses fled from before it.

Exodus 4:4 And the LORD said unto Moses, Put forth thine hand, and take it by the tail. ^RAnd he put forth his hand, and caught it, and it became a rod in his hand:

Exodus 4:5 ^RThat they may believe that the LORD God of their fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, hath appeared unto thee.

Exodus 4:6 And the LORD said furthermore unto him, Put now thine hand into thy bosom. And he put his hand into his bosom: and when he took it out, behold, his hand was ^Rleprous as snow.

Exodus 4:7 And he said, Put thine hand into thy bosom again. And he put his hand into his bosom again; and plucked it out of his bosom, and, behold, ^Rit was turned again as his other flesh.

Exodus 4:8 And it shall come to pass, ^Rif they will not believe thee, neither hearken to the voice of the first sign, that they will believe the voice of the latter sign.

Exodus 4:9 And it shall come to pass, if they will not believe also these two signs, neither hearken unto thy voice, that thou shalt take of the water of the river, and pour it upon the dry land: and the water which thou takest out of the river ^Tshall become ^Rblood upon the dry land.

Exodus 4:10 And Moses said unto the LORD, O my LORD, I am not ^RTeloquent, neither ^Theretofore, nor since thou hast spoken unto thy servant: but I am slow of speech, and of a slow tongue.

Exodus 4:11 And the LORD said unto him, Who hath made man’s mouth? or who maketh the dumb, or deaf, or the seeing, or the blind? have not I the LORD?

Exodus 4:12 Now therefore go, and I will be with thy mouth, and teach thee what thou shalt say.

Exodus 4:13 And he said, O my LORD, send, I pray thee, by the hand of him whom thou ^Twilt send.

Exodus 4:14 And the ^Ranger of the LORD was kindled against Moses, and he said, Is not Aaron the Levite thy brother? I know that he can speak well. And also, behold, he cometh forth to meet thee: and when he seeth thee, he will be glad in his heart.

Exodus 4:15 And thou shalt speak unto him, ^Rand put words in his mouth: and I will be with thy mouth, and with his mouth, and will teach you what ye shall do.

Exodus 4:16 And he shall be thy spokesman unto the people: and he shall be, even he shall be to thee instead of a mouth, and thou shalt be to him instead of God.

Exodus 4:17 And thou shalt take this rod in thine hand, wherewith thou shalt do signs.

Exodus 4:18 And Moses went and ^Treturned to Jethro his father in law, and said unto him, ^RLet me go, I pray thee, and return unto my brethren which are in Egypt, and see whether they be yet alive. And Jethro said to Moses, Go in peace.

Exodus 4:19 And the LORD said unto Moses in Midian, Go, return into Egypt: ^Rfor all the men are dead which sought thy life.

Exodus 4:20 And Moses took his wife and his sons, and set them upon an ass, and he returned to the land of Egypt: and Moses took ^Rthe rod of God in his hand.

Exodus 4:21 And the LORD said unto Moses, When thou goest to return into Egypt, see that thou do all those ^Rwonders before Pharaoh, which I have put in thine hand: but I will harden his heart, that he shall not let the people go.

Exodus 4:22 And thou shalt say unto Pharaoh, Thus saith the LORD, ^RIsrael is my son, even my firstborn:

Exodus 4:23 And I say unto thee, Let my son go, that he may serve me: and if thou refuse to let him go, behold, I will slay thy son, even thy firstborn.

Exodus 4:24 And it came to pass by the way in ^Rthe inn, that the LORD met him, and sought to kill him.

Exodus 4:25 Then Zipporah took ^Ra ^Tsharp stone, and cut off the foreskin of her son, and ^Tcast it at his feet, and said, Surely a bloody husband art thou to me.

Exodus 4:26 So he let him go: then she said, A bloody husband thou art, because of the circumcision.

Exodus 4:27 And the LORD said to Aaron, ^RGo into the wilderness to meet Moses. And he went, and met him in the mount of God, and kissed him.

Exodus 4:28 And Moses ^Rtold Aaron all the words of the LORD who had sent him, and all the signs which he had commanded him.

Exodus 4:29 And Moses and Aaron went and gathered together all the elders of the children of Israel:

Exodus 4:30 And Aaron spake all the words which the LORD had spoken unto Moses, and did the signs in the sight of the people.

Exodus 4:31 And the people ^Rbelieved: and when they heard that the LORD had visited the children of Israel, and that he had looked upon their affliction, then they bowed their heads and worshipped.

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📖 What We’re Reading

Exodus 4:1–9 — Signs for Moses

🌱 What These Verses Teach Us

Moses fears that Israel will not believe him. The LORD gives signs involving his rod, his hand, and water from the river. The signs are given so the people may believe that the God of their fathers has appeared to Moses.

Key Truth: God supplies signs to support the message he sends.

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📖 What We’re Reading

Exodus 4:10–17 — God Provides a Spokesman

🌱 What These Verses Teach Us

Moses describes himself as slow of speech. God reminds him who made the human mouth and promises to teach him what to say. When Moses still asks for someone else to be sent, God appoints Aaron to speak for him.

Key Truth: The LORD provides help while calling Moses to obey.

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📖 What We’re Reading

Exodus 4:18–31 — Moses Returns to Egypt

🌱 What These Verses Teach Us

Moses leaves Midian with his family and returns to Egypt. God identifies Israel as his firstborn and warns of judgment upon Pharaoh’s firstborn. The journey includes a serious encounter involving Zipporah and circumcision; the passage does not explain every detail. Aaron meets Moses, the elders hear God’s words and see the signs, and the people believe and worship.

Key Truth: Israel’s suffering has not escaped God’s attention.

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