Bible Timeline · Traditional count about 1446 BC

The Burning Bush: God Tells Moses His Name

At 80 years old, Moses saw a bush on fire that did not burn up. God spoke from it, called him to free Israel from Egypt, and told him His personal name: I AM WHO I AM, Yahweh.

Read it in the Bible: Exodus 3:1-22 Exodus 4:1-17 Exodus 3:14-15 Exodus 6:2-3 Acts 7:30-35 John 8:58

The burning bush is where God called Moses to go back to Egypt and set Israel free. Moses was 80 years old, tending sheep near Mount Horeb, when he saw a bush on fire that did not burn up. From that fire God told Moses His own personal name, Yahweh, and explained it as I AM WHO I AM. By the traditional count this happened shortly before the Exodus of about 1446 BC. It is one of the most important moments in the whole Bible, because it is where God tells us who He is.

What Happened at the Burning Bush?

Moses had spent 40 years in Midian. The prince of Egypt was now a shepherd working for his father in law, Jethro. One day he led the flock to the far side of the wilderness and came to Horeb, the mountain of God.

There the angel of Yahweh appeared to him in a blazing fire from within a bush. Moses saw the bush ablaze with fire, but it was not consumed. Exodus 3:2

Moses walked over for a closer look, the way any of us would. Then God called his name twice, “Moses, Moses,” and stopped him.

“Do not come any closer,” God said. “Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy ground.” Exodus 3:5

The ground was not holy because of the dirt. It was holy because God was there. Moses hid his face, because he was afraid to look at God.

Why Did God Appear to Moses?

God had heard His people. For generations the Israelites had cried out under slavery in Egypt, and it may have felt like heaven was silent. It was not.

Yahweh said, “I have indeed seen the affliction of My people in Egypt. I have heard them crying out because of their oppressors, and I am aware of their sufferings. Exodus 3:7

God said He had come down to rescue them and bring them to a good land flowing with milk and honey. Then came the twist. He was sending Moses to do it.

What Does I AM WHO I AM Mean?

Moses asked a fair question. If the Israelites ask the name of the God who sent me, what do I tell them? God answered.

God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: ‘I AM has sent me to you.’” Exodus 3:14

In Hebrew, I AM WHO I AM is ehyeh asher ehyeh. It comes from the verb to be. It can also be read I WILL BE WHO I WILL BE. God is saying that He simply is. He was not made by anyone. He does not change. He is fully Himself, and He will be there for His people.

In the very next verse God gives His personal name, spelled with four Hebrew letters, YHWH. Scholars call this the Tetragrammaton, which just means the four letters. It is closely tied to that same verb to be. God says this is His name forever.

This is My name forever, and this is how I am to be remembered in every generation. Exodus 3:15

Why Does This Bible Say Yahweh Instead of LORD?

Over time many Jewish readers stopped saying the name out loud out of deep respect. When they read YHWH, they said Adonai, which means Lord. Most English Bibles followed that custom and print LORD in small capital letters wherever the Hebrew has YHWH. That is a good and reverent tradition.

The Owner's Manual uses Yahweh, the spelling most scholars think is closest to how the name was said. God gave His name so His people would call on it. The Introduction section God Has a Name explains this choice in more detail. When you see Yahweh in this Bible, you are reading the name God told Moses at the bush.

Moses' Excuses

Moses did not jump at the job. He gave God a list of reasons he was the wrong man, and honestly, it is one of the most relatable conversations in Scripture.

Who am I? God answered, I will surely be with you, Exodus 3:12.
What is Your name? God told him, Exodus 3:14 to 15.
What if they do not believe me? God gave him three signs. His staff turned into a snake, his hand turned diseased and then healthy, and Nile water would turn to blood, Exodus 4:1 to 9.
I am not a good speaker. God reminded him who made the human mouth, Exodus 4:11.
Please send someone else. God got angry, but He still sent Aaron to speak alongside him, Exodus 4:13 to 16.

And Yahweh said to him, “Who gave man his mouth? Or who makes the mute or the deaf, the sighted or the blind? Is it not I, Yahweh? Now go! I will help you as you speak, and I will teach you what to say.” Exodus 4:11 to 12

God does not call the qualified so much as He qualifies the called. Moses at 80, with a stammer and a criminal record in Egypt, was exactly who God wanted.

Where Was the Burning Bush?

The Bible says it was at Horeb, another name for Mount Sinai. The oldest Christian tradition places it at Jebel Musa, the Mountain of Moses, in the southern Sinai Peninsula. Saint Catherine's Monastery was built at its foot in the 500s AD, and the monks still care for a bush they honor as the burning bush. UNESCO calls it the oldest Christian monastery still used for its original purpose.

Not everyone agrees on the spot. Moses was living in Midian, and Midian is usually placed east of the Gulf of Aqaba in Arabia. Paul also mentions Mount Sinai in Arabia, Galatians 4:25. So some suggest a mountain in northwest Arabia instead. We don't know for sure, and the Archaeology page on this site looks at the options.

How the Burning Bush Points to Jesus

Centuries later, Jesus was arguing with religious leaders about Abraham. He said something that made them pick up stones.

“Truly, truly, I tell you,” Jesus declared, “before Abraham was born, I am!” John 8:58

He did not say I was. He said I am. His listeners knew exactly what that sounded like, the name God gave Moses at the bush. That is why they tried to stone Him. Jesus also called Himself the bread of life, the light of the world, the good shepherd and the resurrection, all with the same two words, I am.

Many Christians through history have also seen the angel of Yahweh in the bush as a preview of the Son, God appearing in a form people could see. And the bush itself is a picture of the gospel. God came close in fire, and the bush was not destroyed. In Jesus, God came close in a human body, and we are not consumed. We are rescued. The God who said I have seen, I have heard, I have come down, did it again in Bethlehem.

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Questions People Ask

What does I AM WHO I AM mean?

It is how God explained His name to Moses in Exodus 3:14. In Hebrew it comes from the verb to be and can also mean I WILL BE WHO I WILL BE. It means God exists on His own, never changes and will be faithfully present with His people.

What is God's name in the Bible?

God's personal name is spelled YHWH in Hebrew, and most scholars think it was pronounced Yahweh. Many English Bibles print it as LORD in small capitals, following a Jewish custom of not saying the name aloud. The Owner's Manual prints Yahweh.

How old was Moses at the burning bush?

About 80. Stephen says Moses spent 40 years in Midian before the bush appeared, Acts 7:30, and Exodus 7:7 says Moses was 80 when he spoke to Pharaoh.

Did Jesus claim to be the I AM?

Yes. In John 8:58 Jesus said, before Abraham was born, I am. His listeners understood it as a claim to the divine name from Exodus 3:14 and picked up stones to throw at Him.

Where is the burning bush today?

Tradition places it at Saint Catherine's Monastery at the foot of Jebel Musa in the Sinai Peninsula, where monks care for a bush they honor as the one Moses saw. Some scholars place Mount Sinai in northwest Arabia instead, near ancient Midian.

Sources

Saint Catherine Area, UNESCO World Heritage Centre

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