God Answes Complaints (Exodus 6)

Do even godly leaders sometimes doubt? Was God about to make His hand in the Exodus plain for all to see? Was God’s plan for them to ultimately find rest in the land? Will we find rest in that eternal promised land? Let’s look at Exodus 6.

Did God answer Moses’ prayer when he said to God, “you have done nothing to rescue them”? Would he see God act now?

Yahweh said to Moses, “Now you shall see what I will do to Pharaoh, for by a strong hand he shall let them go, and by a strong hand he shall drive them out of his land.” God spoke to Moses, and said to him, “I am Yahweh. I appeared to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, as God Almighty; but by my name Yahweh I was not known to them. I have also established my covenant with them, to give them the land of Canaan, the land of their travels, in which they lived as aliens. (Exodus 6:1-4 WEB)

Did God remember His covenant? Will Israel know that God rescued them?

I’ve also heard the cry of grief of the Israelites, whom the Egyptians have turned into slaves, and I’ve remembered my covenant. Therefore, say to the Israelites, ‘I am the Lord. I’ll bring you out from Egyptian forced labor. I’ll rescue you from your slavery to them. I’ll set you free with great power and with momentous events of justice. I’ll take you as my people, and I’ll be your God. You will know that I, the Lord, am your God, who has freed you from Egyptian forced labor. I’ll bring you into the land that I promised to give to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. I’ll give it to you as your possession. I am the Lord.’” (Exodus 6:5-8 CEB)

Did the Israelites believe Moses? What was holding them back?

When Moses told this to the Israelites, they were too discouraged and mistreated to believe him. (Exodus 6:9 CEV)

Did Moses believe that he was too poor a speaker to be taken seriously?

So the Lord said to Moses, “Go in, tell Pharaoh king of Egypt to let the people of Israel go out of his land.” But Moses said to the Lord, “Behold, the people of Israel have not listened to me. How then shall Pharaoh listen to me, for I am of uncircumcised lips [a clumsy speaker]?” But the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron and gave them a charge about the people of Israel and about Pharaoh king of Egypt: to bring the people of Israel out of the land of Egypt. (Exodus 6:10-13 ESV)

What was Moses’ genealogy? Were Reuben, Simeon and Levi brothers with the same mother?

These are the heads of their fathers’ families: The sons of Reuben, the firstborn of Israel: Hanoch and Pallu, Hezron and Carmi. These are the clans of Reuben. The sons of Simeon: Jemuel, Jamin, Ohad, Jachin, Zohar, and Shaul, the son of a Canaanite woman. These are the clans of Simeon. (Exodus 6:14 HCSB)

What about the descendants of Levi? What were the three main branches of this tribe?

And these are the names of the sons of Levi according to their generations; Gershon, and Kohath, and Merari: and the years of the life of Levi were an hundred thirty and seven years. The sons of Gershon; Libni, and Shimi, according to their families. And the sons of Kohath; Amram, and Izhar, and Hebron, and Uzziel: and the years of the life of Kohath were an hundred thirty and three years. And the sons of Merari; Mahali and Mushi: these are the families of Levi according to their generations. (Exodus 6:16-19 KJV)

Were both Aaron and Moses descended from Levi?

And Amram took his father’s sister Jochebed as a wife, and she bore him Aaron and Moses; and the years of Amram’s life were 137 years. The sons of Izhar: Korah and Nepheg and Zichri. The sons of Uzziel: Mishael and Elzaphan and Sithri. And Aaron took Elisheba, the daughter of Amminadab, the sister of Nahshon, as a wife, and she bore him Nadab and Abihu, Eleazar and Ithamar. The sons of Korah: Assir and Elkanah and Abiasaph; these are the families of the Korahites. (Exodus 6:20-24 LSB)

Who were some of Aaron’s descendants? Was this the same pair of brothers who spoke to Pharaoh?

Now Aaron’s son Eleazar married one of the daughters of Putiel, and she bore him Phinehas. These are the heads of the fathers’ households of the Levites according to their families. It was the same Aaron and Moses to whom the Lord said, “Bring out the sons of Israel from the land of Egypt according to their multitudes.” They were the ones who spoke to Pharaoh king of Egypt about bringing out the sons of Israel from Egypt; it was the same Moses and Aaron. (Exodus 6:25-27 NASB)