Exodus 6: “I Am the Lord Who Delivers”
1. Context: When Faith Is at Its Lowest
Exodus 6 is God’s direct answer to the despair at the end of chapter 5.
Moses has obeyed.
Pharaoh has hardened his heart.
The people have turned against Moses.
Everything looks like failure.
This chapter teaches a crucial lesson of faith:
God often speaks most clearly when hope feels weakest.
St Gregory of Nyssa says:
“When human strength is exhausted, divine power begins to show itself plainly.”
(Life of Moses)
2. “Now You Shall See What I Will Do to Pharaoh”
“For with a strong hand he will let them go, and with a strong hand he will drive them out of his land.” (Ex 6:1)
God does not argue with Moses’ pain.
He responds with a promise.
Pharaoh will not merely allow Israel to leave —
he will force them out.
This shows a pattern repeated throughout salvation history:
The Cross looks like defeat
The Resurrection reveals victory
St Augustine writes:
“God delays, not to deny, but to deepen our trust.”
(Sermons)
3. “I Am the Lord” — God Reasserts His Identity
“I am the Lord.” (Ex 6:2)
This short sentence is the backbone of the chapter.
God is reminding Moses who is acting.
The problem is not Moses’ weakness.
The problem is that Moses has started to look at events instead of at God.
Catholic faith always returns us to this truth:
God is faithful even when His servants are confused.
4. “I Appeared to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob”
“But I did not make Myself known to them in the same way.” (v. 3)
God now places the Exodus within the whole story of salvation.
He reminds Moses:
Abraham trusted promises he never fully saw
Isaac lived by inheritance, not fulfilment
Jacob endured exile and struggle
Faith has always required patience.
St John Chrysostom explains:
“The saints before Moses believed without seeing; Moses is asked to trust in the same way.”
(Homilies on Genesis)
5. “I Also Established My Covenant with Them”
“To give them the land where they lived as strangers.” (v. 4)
God reminds Moses that everything happening now is rooted in a long-standing promise.
Catholic faith is covenantal:
God binds Himself to His people
God keeps His promises even across generations
This is why the Church reads the Old Testament constantly:
We are heirs of promises made long before we were born.
6. “I Have Heard the Groaning of the People”
“And I have remembered My covenant.” (v. 5)
God does not forget.
When Scripture says He “remembers,” it means He is about to act.
This is deeply comforting Catholic theology:
God hears suffering prayer
Silence does not mean absence
St Bede says:
“God’s memory is His mercy beginning to move.”
(Homilies on the Pentateuch)
7. The Great Promise: What God Will Do
From verses 6–8, God makes seven clear promises.
This is one of the most important passages in the Old Testament.
Promise 1: “I Will Bring You Out”
God promises liberation from slavery.
This points forward to:
Freedom from sin
Baptism, which brings us out of slavery to sin
Promise 2: “I Will Deliver You”
God promises rescue, not just escape.
This points to:
Christ rescuing us by the Cross
Confession, where God actively delivers us from sin
Promise 3: “I Will Redeem You”
Redemption means buying back at a cost.
This points clearly to:
Jesus redeeming us by His Blood
The Eucharist, where that redemption is made present
St Augustine says:
“Redemption always requires blood; without sacrifice there is no freedom.”
(City of God)
Promise 4: “I Will Take You as My Own People”
This is adoption.
This points to:
The Church as God’s family
Our adoption as sons and daughters in Christ
Promise 5: “I Will Be Your God”
This is intimacy.
Catholic faith is not just belief — it is belonging.
Promise 6: “You Shall Know That I Am the Lord”
Faith deepens through experience of salvation.
We truly know God after He has saved us.
Promise 7: “I Will Bring You into the Land”
Salvation has a destination.
This points to:
The Promised Land
Heaven
The journey matters, but the goal is eternal life.
8. “I Will Give It to You for a Possession”
“I am the Lord.” (v. 8)
God ends the promise the same way He began it.
This repetition teaches us:
Salvation rests on who God is, not on how strong we feel.
9. Moses Speaks — and the People Do Not Listen
“But they did not listen to Moses, because of their broken spirit and cruel slavery.” (v. 9)
This is one of the most human verses in Scripture.
The people are not wicked.
They are exhausted.
The Church understands this deeply:
Trauma can make faith hard to hear
Suffering can dull hope
St Gregory the Great writes:
“Pain can close the ear of the heart, even to good news.”
(Pastoral Rule)
This is why the Church accompanies patiently rather than condemns.
10. God Recommissions Moses Anyway
“Go in, tell Pharaoh king of Egypt to let the people go.” (v. 11)
God does not withdraw the mission because the people are discouraged.
Catholic ministry continues even when:
People are tired
Results are unseen
Faith feels weak
11. Moses’ Second Objection
“How then shall Pharaoh listen to me?” (v. 12)
Moses is still focused on himself.
God will answer not by removing weakness, but by reaffirming authority.
12. God Reaffirms the Mission to Both Moses and Aaron
“The Lord gave them a charge about the people and about Pharaoh.” (v. 13)
This verse matters deeply for Catholic understanding of ministry:
God sends more than one
Authority is shared
Mission is ecclesial, not individual
This prefigures:
Apostles sent together
Bishops and priests working in communion
13. The Genealogy: Why It Is Here
Verses 14–25 list families, especially the line of Levi, from which Moses and Aaron come.
This is not filler.
It teaches three Catholic truths:
1. God Works Through Families
Salvation history is not abstract.
It passes through real households.
2. Priesthood Comes from God’s Choice
Aaron’s line will become the priesthood of Israel.
This points forward to:
The ordained priesthood of the Church
Ministry that is received, not seized
3. God Works Through Imperfect People
These families are not spotless.
God’s grace works through flawed human history.
St Augustine:
“God chooses not the perfect, but those He will perfect.”
(Sermons)
14. “These Are the Moses and Aaron”
“To whom the Lord said, ‘Bring the people out.’” (v. 26)
Scripture pauses to underline this:
Not other men
Not better men
These men
Catholic vocation is always concrete:
God calls this person, not an ideal one.
15. “He Is the One Who Spoke to Pharaoh”
(v. 27)
The emphasis is deliberate.
Despite fear, protest, weakness, and rejection:
Moses speaks
God acts
Faithfulness matters more than confidence.
16. God Speaks Again
“I am the Lord; tell Pharaoh all that I say to you.” (v. 29)
Everything returns to obedience.
The servant speaks.
God acts.
This is the pattern of salvation, fulfilled perfectly in Christ:
The Son obeys
The Father saves
17. Moses’ Final Hesitation
“Behold, I am slow of speech; how will Pharaoh listen to me?” (v. 30)
The chapter ends with weakness still present.
This is deliberate:
God does not wait for perfection to begin redemption.
Key Catholic Themes in Exodus 6
| Theme | Catholic Meaning |
| God’s promises | Salvation unfolds over time |
| Redemption | Freedom purchased at a cost |
| Adoption | God makes a people His own |
| Sacrifice | Deliverance requires blood |
| Priesthood | God chooses mediators |
| Perseverance | Faith continues despite discouragement |
Christ at the Heart of Exodus 6
Israel → enslaved humanity
Pharaoh → sin and death
Moses → Christ the Deliverer
Redemption → the Cross
Promised Land → Heaven
St Augustine summarises:
“What Moses began in shadow, Christ completed in truth.”
(City of God)
Spiritual Application
Do not measure God by immediate results.
God hears prayer even when hope is weak.
Faith continues even when people cannot listen.
God’s promises are stronger than exhaustion.
Salvation always leads toward worship and communion.
Closing Prayer
Lord God, faithful to Your promises,
when our spirit is broken
and hope feels distant,
remind us who You are.
Deliver us from slavery to sin,
redeem us by the Blood of Christ,
and claim us as Your own people.
Strengthen Your Church to persevere
until You bring us to the land You have promised,
where You live and reign for ever and ever.
Amen.
St. Mary's, St. John Bosco and St. Edward's 