Metaphysical Bible Interpretation of Exodus Chapter 4
Metaphysically Interpreting Exodus 4:1-17
4:1And Moses answered and said, But, behold, they will not believe me, nor hearken unto my voice; for they will say, Jehovah hath not appeared unto thee. 4:2And Jehovah said unto him, What is that in thy hand? And he said, A rod. 4:3And he said, Cast in on the ground. And he cast it on the ground, and it became a serpent; and Moses fled from before it. 4:4And Jehovah said unto Moses, Put forth thy hand, and take it by the tail: (and he put forth his hand, and laid hold of it, and it became a rod in his hand:) 4:5That they may believe that Jehovah, the God of their fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, hath appeared unto thee.
4:6And Jehovah said furthermore unto him, Put now thy hand into thy bosom. And he put his hand into his bosom: and when he took it out, behold, his hand was leprous, as white as snow. 4:7And he said, Put thy hand into thy bosom again. (And he put his hand into his bosom again; and when he took it out of his bosom, behold, it was turned again as his other flesh.) 4:8And it shall come to pass, if they will not believe thee, neither hearken to the voice of the first sign, that they will believe the voice of the latter sign. 4:9And it shall come to pass, if they will not believe even 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 shall become blood upon the dry land.
4:10And Moses said unto Jehovah, Oh, Lord, I am not eloquent, neither heretofore, nor since thou hast spoken unto thy servant; for I am slow of speech, and of a slow tongue. 4:11And Jehovah said unto him, Who hath made man's mouth? Or who maketh a man dumb, or deaf, or seeing, or blind? Is it not I, Jehovah? 4:12Now therefore go, and I will be with thy mouth, and teach thee what thou shalt speak. 4:13And he said, Oh, Lord, send, I pray thee, by the hand of him whom thou wilt send. 4:14And the anger of Jehovah was kindled against Moses, and he said, Is there not Aaron thy brother the Levite? 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. 4:15And thou shalt speak unto him, and put the words in his mouth: and I will be with thy mouth, and with his mouth, and will teach you what ye shall do. 4:16And he shall be thy spokesman unto the people; and it shall come to pass, that he shall be to thee a mouth, and thou shalt be to him as God. 4:17And thou shalt take in thy hand this rod, wherewith thou shalt do the signs.
July 10, 1932: Exodus 4:10-12
Please explain the 10th verse: “Oh, Lord, I am not eloquent, neither heretofore, nor since thou, hast spoken unto thy servant; for I am slow of speech, and of a slow tongue.” Man may feel that in his personal, or lesser, self he is not able to express himself well, and that he is not capable of undertaking the task before him. However, when he looks back of the seeming to his real self, his inner, spiritual I AM, he feels a mighty power surging through him and knows that this I AM, or Christ within him, is equal to any task, any emergency.
July 18, 1926: Exodus 4:10-12
Moses murmured against going down into Egypt and carrying out Jehovah's instructions, because he was not eloquent and was slow of speech. From what source does eloquence originate? All things come from Jehovah, or I AM. Man's hold on the power of the Word determines whether he is dumb or eloquent, whether he is blind or can see.
July 18, 1937: Exodus 4:10-16
What is the theme of today's lesson? It is the nature of God and His relation to man. Moses ponders his missions to the captive Children of Israel, following his desire to convince them of the Truth of God and of His power to deliver them. We too look for power to deliver ourselves from sense consciousness into the freedom of the kingdom of God.
Has such power been found? The I AM, the principle within each man by which he can identify himself with Truth, is such power. Moses was directed to tell the captives that the power to set them free resided in themselves, as it does in each of us.
Moses was further commanded to say that the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob had sent him. Did this second statement add to the strength and impressiveness of the first or subtract from it? The first affirms God as the indwelling Spirit of life, the second as the all enveloping universal Spirit. The first affirms Spirit as functioning within man, the second as functioning in man’s environment.
July 18, 1943: Exodus 4:10-17
Is lack of eloquence or persuasive power a handicap to leadership? Not always. Persuasive power is desirable, but those who lack it may develop it by faithfully trusting God to teach them what they shall speak. “Go, and I will be with thy mouth.” Aaron, who could speak well, was not a leader.
Why did this encouragement fail to convince Moses of his fitness for the task of leading the Children of Israel out of Egypt? Moses had faith in Jehovah as the God of his fathers but not as his ever-present help and inspiration when appealing to his people and to Pharaoh.
“Oh, Lord, send, I pray thee, by the hand of him whom thou wilt send.” What is meant by this speech? It conveys an unwillingness to do what a sense of duty convinces the person called that he should do. It is reminiscent also of the mistaken belief that in accomplishing a given task we have nothing to do but relax and let God do it all for us. This theory leaves the I AM and our duty to use it out of account entirely. The testimony of the Christ is that “we must work the works of him that sent me.”
Why was the work of Aaron needed in addition to that of Moses? Aaron (enlightener) represents the ruling power of the intellectual consciousness. Those who are in bondage to material burdens need this power to convince them that help is at hand. Borne down by heavy taskmasters, they listen to nothing but reason.
“He shall be to thee a mouth, and thou shalt be to him as God.” In everyday language what does this type of encouragement mean? When the power to express thought is equal to the thought conceived, and when understanding is clear and conviction of the rightness and justice of the cause is certain, success is assured. Aaron and Moses, working together, were equal to the task assigned them by Jehovah.
Metaphysically Interpreting Exodus 4:18-31
4:18And Moses went and returned to Jethro his father-in-law, and said unto him, Let me go, I pray thee, and return unto my brethren that are in Egypt, and see whether they be yet alive. And Jethro said to Moses, Go in peace. 4:19And Jehovah said unto Moses in Midian, Go, return into Egypt; for all the men are dead that sought thy life. 4:20And Moses took his wife and his sons, and set them upon an ass, and he returned to the land of Egypt: and Moses took the rod of God in his hand.
4:21And Jehovah said unto Moses, When thou goest back into Egypt, see that thou do before Pharaoh all the wonders which I have put in thy hand: but I will harden his heart and he will not let the people go. 4:22And thou shalt say unto Pharaoh, Thus saith Jehovah, Israel is my son, my first-born: 4:23and I have said unto thee, Let my son go, that he may serve me; and thou hast refused to let him go: behold, I will slay thy son, thy first-born.
4:24And it came to pass on the way at the lodging-place, that Jehovah met him, and sought to kill him. 4:25Then Zipporah took a flint, and cut off the foreskin of her son, and cast it at his feet; and she said, Surely a bridegroom of blood art thou to me. 4:26So he let him alone. Then she said, A bridegroom of blood art thou, because of the circumcision.
4:27And Jehovah said to Aaron, Go into the wilderness to meet Moses. And he went, and met him in the mountain of God, and kissed him. 4:28And Moses told Aaron all the words of Jehovah wherewith he had sent him, and all the signs wherewith he had charged him. 4:29And Moses and Aaron went and gathered together all the elders of the children of Israel: 4:30and Aaron spake all the words which Jehovah had spoken unto Moses, and did the signs in the sight of the people. 4:31And the people believed: and when they heard that Jehovah had visited the children of Israel, and that he had seen their affliction, then they bowed their heads and worshipped.
Transcribed by Lloyd Kinder on 02-02-2014 and Jennifer Keating on 02-10-2014
