And Moses said to God, Behold, when I come to the children 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?
What is his name.
Exodus 3:14 And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you.
Exodus 15:3 The LORD is a man of war: the LORD is his name.
Genesis 32:29 And Jacob asked him, and said, Tell me, I pray thee, thy name. And he said, Wherefore is it that thou dost ask after my name? And he blessed him there.
“Suppose I go to the Israelites and say to them,
Moses anticipates the skepticism he might face from the Israelites. This reflects the historical context of the Israelites' long enslavement in Egypt, which may have led to doubts about divine intervention. Moses is concerned about his credibility and the reception of his message.
‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’
This phrase connects the present mission to the patriarchal promises made to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. It emphasizes continuity in God's covenant relationship with Israel. The reference to "fathers" underscores the importance of ancestry and God's faithfulness to His promises.
and they ask me, ‘What is His name?’
In ancient Near Eastern culture, knowing the name of a deity was crucial as it revealed the deity's character and authority. The Israelites, surrounded by Egyptian polytheism, would seek assurance that Moses' message was from the true God of their ancestors.
What should I tell them?”
Moses seeks a definitive answer to provide the Israelites with confidence in his divine commission. This question sets the stage for God's revelation of His name, "I AM WHO I AM," which signifies His eternal, self-existent nature and faithfulness. This revelation is foundational for understanding God's identity and His relationship with His people.
• Moses’ immediate response shows a genuine, respectful dialogue with the living God, not mere inner thoughts (Exodus 3:11; Acts 7:30-32).
• Scripture presents this conversation as literal history, reminding us that God invites real questions from His servants (Jeremiah 33:3).
• Moses is already on holy ground (Exodus 3:5); his questioning arises in humility, not defiance.
• Moses anticipates obedience—he assumes he will go, reflecting faith that follows the Lord’s commission (Exodus 3:10; Hebrews 11:24-27).
• Yet he weighs the practical outcome: Will the people listen? (Exodus 4:1).
• God’s call is never abstract; it moves us toward specific people and places (Jonah 3:3; Matthew 28:19-20).
• Moses anchors his message in covenant history: Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob (Exodus 3:6; 3:15; Genesis 12:1-3).
• This wording signals continuity—God has not changed, and His promises stand firm (Malachi 3:6; Luke 1:72-73).
• By invoking the fathers, Moses underscores God’s faithfulness, preparing Israel for redemption (Hebrews 10:23).
• Ancient people linked a name with revealed character; Israel might seek assurance that Moses truly represents the covenant God (Isaiah 42:8).
• Similar moments appear when Manoah asks the Angel of the LORD for His name (Judges 13:17-18) and when Jacob wrestles at Peniel (Genesis 32:29).
• Such a question stems from longing to know God personally, not merely by reputation (Psalm 9:10; John 17:26).
• Moses desires precise truth, not personal invention—an example for every messenger of God (1 Peter 4:11).
• The next verse supplies the divine answer: “I AM WHO I AM” (Exodus 3:14), revealing God’s self-existence and eternal constancy (Revelation 1:8).
• This sets the foundation for all future revelation, culminating in Jesus’ “I am” declarations (John 8:58).
Exodus 3:13 captures Moses’ humble but practical concern: how to represent the covenant-keeping, self-revealing God to a doubting people. Each phrase shows that authentic ministry rests on historical faithfulness, personal knowledge of God’s name and character, and a commitment to speak only what the Lord gives.
(13) What is his name?--In Egypt, and wherever polytheism prevailed, every god had, as a matter of course, a name. Among the Israelites hitherto God had been known only by titles, as El or Elohim, "the Lofty One; "Shaddai," the Powerful; "Jahveh, or Jehovah, "the Existent." These titles were used with some perception of their meaning; no one of them had as yet passed into a proper name. Moses, imagining that the people might have become so far Egyptianised as to be no longer content with this state of things, asks God by what name he shall speak of Him to them. Who shall he say has appeared to him?Verse 13. - What is his name? It is not at all clear why Moses should suppose that the Israelites would ask him this question, nor does it even appear that they did ask it. Perhaps, however, he thought that, as the Egyptians used the word "god," generically, and had a special name for each particular god - as Ammon, Phthah, Ra, Mentu, Her, Osiris, and the like - when he told his people of "the God of their fathers," they would conclude that he, too, had a proper name, and would wish to know it. The Egyptians set much store by the names of their gods, which in every ease had a meaning. Ammen was "the concealed (god)," Phthah, "the revealer," Ra,"the swift," etc. Hitherto Israel's God had had no name that could be called a proper name more than any other. He had been known as "El," "The High;" "Shad-dai," "The Strong;" and "Jehovah," "The Existent;" but these terms had all been felt to be descriptive epithets, and none of them had passed as yet into a proper name. What was done at this time, by the authority of God himself, was to select from among the epithets one to be distinctly a proper name, and at the same time to explain its true meaning as something more than "The Existent" - as really "The Alone Existent" - the source of all existence. Henceforth this name, which had previously been but little used and perhaps less understood, predominated over every other, was cherished by the Jews themselves as a sacred treasure, and recognised by those around them as the proper appellation of the one and only God whom the Israelites worshipped. It is found in this sense on the Moabite stone ('Records of the Past,' vol. 11, p. 166), in the fragments of Philo-Byblius, and elsewhere.