Exodus 3:13–22 (ESV)
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?” God said to Moses, “I am who I am.” And he said, “Say this to the people of Israel: ‘I am has sent me to you.’” God also said to Moses, “Say this to the people of Israel: ‘The Lord, the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you.’ This is my name forever, and thus I am to be remembered throughout all generations. Go and gather the elders of Israel together and say to them, ‘The Lord, the God of your fathers, has appeared to me, saying, “I have observed you and what has been done to you in Egypt, and I promise that I will bring you up out of the affliction of Egypt to the land of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites, a land flowing with milk and honey.”’ And they will listen to your voice, and you and the elders of Israel shall go to the king of Egypt and say to him, ‘The Lord, the God of the Hebrews, has met with us, and now please let us go a three days’ journey into the wilderness, that we may sacrifice to the Lord our God.’ But I know that the king of Egypt will not let you go unless compelled by a mighty hand. So I will stretch out my hand and strike Egypt with all the wonders that I will do in it; after that he will let you go. And I will give this people favor in the sight of the Egyptians; and when you go, you shall not go empty, but each woman shall ask of her neighbor, and any woman who lives in her house, for silver and gold jewelry and for clothing. You shall put them on your sons and on your daughters. So you shall plunder the Egyptians.”
Moses has just been told that God is sending him to deliver Israel, and his first question is, “Who am I?” Now he asks the next question: “Who are You?”
It is such an honest moment. Moses knows that when he goes back to the Israelites, they will want to know who this God really is. So he asks for a name, and God gives him one that is unlike any other: “I Am Who I Am.”
This name, Yahweh, tells us that God simply is. He is not defined by anyone else. He is not changing or dependent. He just is. He is the living, self-existent, eternal God. Everything else in the world depends on Him, but He depends on nothing.
That might sound abstract, but it is actually very personal. When God says, “I Am,” He is saying, “I am the same yesterday, today, and forever. I am the God who was with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and I am still with you.” The name “I Am” means He is always present.
God also gives Moses His covenant promise again. He reminds him that He has seen the suffering of His people and will bring them into the land He swore to give. He tells Moses that Pharaoh will resist, but God Himself will compel him. The outcome is not in doubt. God’s plan will stand.
This is what Israel needed to hear, and it is what we need to hear too. The God who calls Himself “I Am” is not distant or changing. He is faithful and near. When we doubt, when we wonder if He still cares, He says, “I Am.”
This name finds its fullest meaning in Jesus. In John’s Gospel, Jesus takes that same name on His own lips. “Before Abraham was, I Am.” He is the same God who spoke to Moses from the burning bush, now come in human flesh to redeem His people. In Him, the eternal “I Am” has come down to dwell among us.
So when we face fear or uncertainty, we can remember who God is. He is not the “I was,” or the “I might be.” He is the great “I Am,” always present, always faithful, always enough.
Prayer
Father, thank You for revealing Yourself as the great “I Am.” Thank You that You are not distant or changing, but faithful and near. When we are afraid or unsure, remind us that You are still the same God who heard the cries of Israel and sent a deliverer. Help us to trust You as the unshakable foundation of our lives. We praise You for Jesus, the eternal “I Am,” who came to save us and who will never leave us. In His name we pray, Amen.