Then the anger of Jehovah was kindled against Moses, and he said, Is not Aaron the Levite thy brother? I know that he can speak well. And also behold, he goeth out to meet thee; and when he seeth thee he will be glad in his heart.
The Lord had answered every objection Moses raised. Moses still asked Him to send someone else. Now the Lord's anger burns against him. The verse holds two things at once: real displeasure, and a brother already on the road to meet him.
Refusing a task can look like modesty. Commentators read God's anger as proof that it was not. God bears with weakness. He rebukes unbelief.
It is not humility to refuse the place God assigns, or to refuse the path His hand marks out for us. That it was not true humility in Moses is clear from this: "the anger of the LORD was kindled against Moses." It was not humility at all. It had gone past the limit of mere weakness. While it looked like excessive timidity — blameworthy as that was — God's boundless grace bore with it and met it with fresh assurances. But when it took on the character of unbelief and a slow heart, it drew down the Lord's just displeasure.
If the shrinking back was not humility, what was it? One writer digs under it and finds pride. He also notes an irony: this man once acted when God had not sent him.
Once more, and for the fifth time, Moses wished to decline the honour of this commission from the Lord, as we see in verse 13. The man who once ran unsent now shrinks from running at God's command — and with the promise of His power going with him! But this is just how the flesh acts in every one of us... Such shrinking back may look like humility, but it really springs from self-occupation. And in the end, what produces that self-occupation is not humility but pride.
God names Aaron as His answer, but the answer carries a cost. The work goes ahead — now through two men instead of one.
At last the Lord is truly displeased with His servant's readiness to object. "Then the anger of the LORD was kindled against Moses and he said, 'Is there not Aaron, your brother, the Levite?'" What a humiliation! Moses might have been the simple and happy instrument of God in this mighty work. Instead, God brings Aaron forward to share it.
Yet the loss came with an honour. The people would see and hear Aaron. Moses kept a place before God that no one could see.
So Moses stopped holding back — but only after the anger of the Lord burned against him for his unwillingness to obey His word. And he lost much. From then on Aaron would share the work with him. Aaron would even hold the most prominent place before the people, since he was to be his brother's spokesman. In tender grace, though, the Lord keeps for His servant Moses the chief place before Himself. Moses has the honour and privilege of being the channel of communication between God and Aaron.
The anger does not cancel the kindness. God had been at work while Moses was still arguing.
The Lord answered all of Moses' objections, and Moses still resisted. He does not want to obey, and pleads with the Lord to send someone else instead of him (v. 13). Here he went too far, and stirred the anger of the Lord against him. Could He excuse Moses? Not at all: Moses must go. Yet the Lord shows His compassion again. He tells Moses that his brother Aaron is already on his way to meet him, and will be glad at their reunion.
The strangest part of the exchange is what finally moved Moses.
Nothing was gained in the way of real power. One mouth had no more virtue or effect in it than another. It was Moses, after all, who was to speak to Aaron. Yet Moses was quite ready to go once he heard that a poor feeble mortal like himself would go with him — while he could not go when God told him, again and again, that He would be with him.
Company is a real help. Leaning on it instead of on God is another matter.
No doubt the fellowship of a brother is most valuable — "Two are better than one" — whether in work, rest, or conflict... Still, we need to know God ourselves, and to know His presence well enough to walk alone if we must. Without that, we will find a brother's presence of very little use. It is striking that Aaron — the companion who seemed to satisfy Moses — was the man who later made the golden calf.
- Refusal. Turning down the place God assigns is not humility. God's anger shows where timidity had turned into unbelief.
- Root. What looks like modesty springs from self-occupation, and self-occupation traces back to pride.
- Cost. Moses could have been God's sole instrument; instead Aaron shares the work, and Moses "lost much."
- Grace. The rebuke does not cancel the kindness — Aaron was already on the road, glad to meet him.
- Lesson. Moses would not move for the promise of God, but he moved for the company of a frail man — and that man later made the golden calf.
And 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.
God had answered every objection Moses raised, and still Moses asked to be excused. So God gave him Aaron, and a promise for both their mouths — a gift, but not without cost.
The verse sets up a chain with God at one end and Israel at the other. One writer traces how each link works:
Aaron could speak well. God would let Moses speak the words of God to Aaron, so that Aaron might repeat them to the people and to Pharaoh. Aaron's mouth would be the instrument Moses used to speak to the people. Moses would be the instrument God used to speak to Aaron.
Moses had pleaded that he was not a good speaker. One commentator points out that this puts the weight in the wrong place, and that God's habit runs the other way:
How common the mistake, even in the Church of God! So eloquence is what even Christians want — giving it a place beyond the power of God. The pulpits of the Christian world are filled in this way with men who are not slow of tongue. Even believers who know the truth in theory are charmed and drawn by splendid gifts. They enjoy hearing those gifts used, apart from the truth being communicated. How different was Paul's thought... This is why God often uses the one who is "slow of speech" far more than those who are eloquent. In such cases there is no temptation to lean on the wisdom of men. Everyone can see that it is the power of God.
Aaron is a gift, but he is also a loss:
Great humiliation! He might have been the simple and happy instrument of God in the mighty work. But now Aaron is brought forward to share it.
One writer weighs what Moses lost and what the Lord still kept for him:
Moses' hesitation was overcome at last... but he lost much. From then on Aaron was to be linked with him, and was to have the most prominent place before people, since he was to be his brother's spokesman. In tender grace, however, the Lord keeps for His servant Moses the chief place before Himself. He gives him the honour and privilege of being the channel of communication between Himself and Aaron... God's purposes cannot be frustrated, but we may suffer from our own stubbornness and disobedience.
The strangest part of the story is that Aaron settles Moses when God's own promise had not. Mackintosh weighs how little Aaron added:
Nothing was gained in the way of real power. There was no more virtue or effectiveness in one mouth than in another, and it was Moses after all who was to speak to Aaron. Yet Moses was quite ready to go once he was assured of the presence and help of a poor feeble mortal like himself. He could not go when God assured him, again and again, that He would be with him.
Working alongside a brother is a real good. Mackintosh says so, then warns about this companion:
No doubt the fellowship of a brother is most valuable — "Two are better than one" — whether in work, rest, or conflict. The Lord Jesus, when He sent out His disciples, "sent them two by two," for unity is always better than isolation. Still, our own knowledge of God and our experience of His presence must be enough to let us walk alone if we had to. Without that, we shall find a brother's presence of very little use. It is remarkable that Aaron, whose company seemed to satisfy Moses, was the man who afterwards made the golden calf.
Aaron speaks words placed in his mouth by another, yet he speaks as himself. Stuart uses this to explain how the Bible's writers worked:
When Aaron delivered the message to the people, he spoke words put into his mouth by Moses. Was it mechanical with him? No doubt those who heard him could have said, "That is Aaron exactly." His voice, his tone, his gestures — all were Aaron's... So with the sacred writers. Each one shows his own characteristics and style.
- The mouth God made. Moses pleaded poor speech. Commentators answer that God often uses the slow of speech more than the eloquent. Then everyone sees that the power is His.
- The mouth God fills. The promise reaches both brothers — words move from God to Moses, from Moses to Aaron, from Aaron to the people.
- The mouth Moses chose. Aaron's help is grace, but Kelly calls it a humiliation. The work meant for one man is now shared. God's purpose still stands, yet Dennett says our stubbornness can cost us.
- The mouth that steadied him. A frail man calmed Moses where God's own promise had not. Mackintosh points out that no real power was added — only a companion as weak as Moses himself.
- The mouth that later failed. Company in service is good, yet the companion Moses leaned on became the man who made the golden calf.
And he shall speak for thee unto the people; and it shall come to pass that he shall be to thee for a mouth, and thou shalt be to him for God.
Moses kept hesitating, so God handed part of the work to his brother. Aaron would carry the words to the people, and Moses would stand toward Aaron in the place of God.
God speaks to Moses, Moses speaks to Aaron, Aaron speaks to Israel. Even so, Moses keeps the higher end of the line.
From now on Aaron was joined with Moses in the work. In fact Aaron was to have the most prominent place before people, since he was to be his brother's spokesman. In tender grace, however, the Lord keeps the chief place before Him for His servant Moses. He gives Moses the honour and privilege of being the channel of communication between Himself and Aaron. Aaron was to be a "mouth" for Moses; Moses was to be to Aaron "instead of God" — that is, Moses was to pass the message on to Aaron for him to deliver.
Exodus 7:1 names the same relationship with a different word: there God calls Aaron Moses' prophet. Older translations render our verse "He shall be your spokesman to the people," and setting the two verses side by side shows what a prophet is.
Perhaps we will find God's own definition of this word by comparing Exodus 4:16 and 7:1. In the first passage God says of Aaron, "He shall be your spokesman to the people." In the second, God says, "Aaron your brother shall be your prophet." Perhaps this gives us the clearest definition of a prophet according to the Word of God: he is God's "spokesman to the people." Very often God speaks of judgment or blessing to come, and then the spokesman speaks of what will happen in the future. But his first duty is to be God's spokesman, which very often includes rebuke, or encouragement. Always remember the most important thing for a prophet: he speaks for God, not for himself, or out of himself.
The change added no power to the mission. It gave Moses a human companion, and that is what finally moved him.
Nothing was gained in the way of real power. There was no more virtue or effectiveness in one mouth than in another, and it was Moses after all who was to speak to Aaron. Yet Moses was quite ready to go once he was sure of the presence and co-operation of a poor frail mortal like himself. He could not go when assured, again and again, that Jehovah would be with him.
Another writer weighs the cost in one line.
Great humiliation! He might have been the simple and happy instrument of God in the mighty work; but Aaron is brought forward to share it.
Losing the platform did not mean losing the private access. Everything Aaron said would have to come through Moses first, and the rest of Exodus bears this out.
Moses however was to be to him "instead of God." The Lord would still deal with Moses Himself, and Aaron would get all his directions through Moses. The rod that Moses had held in his hand now came back to him, as it were, from the hand of God, as a sign of the authority God had given him. The later history shows the fulfilment of all this. Again and again we read, "The Lord said to Moses"; and at critical moments the rod appeared in his hand.
God names Aaron as a brother before giving him a job. One writer traces that order forward to Christ.
Jehovah formally appointed Aaron to act as a go-between for Moses and the people, so he was Moses' spokesman. But his original personal relationship to Moses was that of brother. Jehovah described him as "Aaron, your brother, the Levite." Aaron was first brother, then spokesman... Christ was first Son, and then God's Spokesman.
Company in the work is a real gift. Still, it cannot stand in for knowing God yourself.
No doubt the fellowship of a brother is most valuable — "Two are better than one" — whether in work, rest, or conflict... still, if our own knowledge of God and our experience of His presence do not make us able to walk alone when needed, we shall find the presence of a brother of very little use. Aaron's company seemed to satisfy Moses — and it is quite remarkable that this same Aaron afterwards made the golden calf.
- Chain. God speaks to Moses, Moses to Aaron, Aaron to Israel — one message passed down a line, never invented at any link.
- Definition. Spokesman here, and prophet in Exodus 7:1, name one office: a man who speaks for God, not out of himself. Aaron was brother first, then spokesman — as Christ was Son first, then God's Spokesman.
- Cost. Moses could have been God's single instrument. His hesitation handed the public honour to his brother.
- Kept. He still held the private place — direct dealings with God and the rod of authority in his hand.
- Warning. He trusted a frail man where he would not trust God, and that same man later made the golden calf.
And thou shalt take this staff in thy hand, with which thou shalt do the signs.
Moses had tried to argue his way out of the job. In the end God hands him no new tool — just the one he already held, with a new status.
God now gave back to Moses, in a sense, the rod he had held in his hand. It was a sign of the authority God had given him. The later history shows all this fulfilled. Again and again we read, "The Lord said to Moses"; and at critical moments the rod appeared in his hand.
The rod was not a sacred object. It was the ordinary tool of Moses' trade, until God claimed it for Himself.
Moses had his ordinary shepherd's rod in his hand when God called him to feed Israel (Ex. 4). It then became God's rod, for God made it the symbol and instrument of Moses' authority and grace in Israel. From then on he was to carry it. With it he would do his wonders in Egypt and in the wilderness — judgment on the enemy, blessing on the people (Ex. 4:17).
Its weakness was not a drawback. It was the point.
It was only a weak shepherd's rod at first. That is what made it all the more fit to become God's rod. He always perfects His strength in our weakness, and chooses the weak things to shame the mighty.
The tool stays a shepherd's rod, and that says something about the power behind it.
The shepherd's rod in Moses' hand is the sign of power. As we travel on through Exodus, we find how true this is. "All power belongs to God," and this shepherd's rod shows us how He uses it. Power with Him always waits upon love… The rod in Moses' hand, then, is the picture of divine power, marked by tenderness and care, like a shepherd's rod.
The signs Moses is to perform with the rod were not random displays. In Egypt, the imagery of the rod and of the serpent both carried weight, and the sign spoke directly into that world.
The rod in the East stands for authority and power… The old monuments of Egypt show gods and men in hundreds of cases with sceptre-like rods in their hands… Satan had the power and the authority. Jehovah would hand these to Moses as His servant. Often, as the story goes on, we read that Moses has the rod of God. The serpent appeared everywhere on the temples of Egypt. The first divine sign was plain: the rod of God in the hand of the deliverer would win the victory. Jehovah would bring the serpent's power to nothing.
Moses kept explaining what he lacked. The answer was already in his hand.
Notice that Moses had this equipment for his service from the first. The rod was in his hand at the very moment when the excuses were in his mouth. Human eyes saw only the rod, but God was working the mighty wonders through His servant.
The temptation is to credit the stick itself, or to wait for a better one.
You may rest assured that the rod was in itself nothing but a piece of common dead wood. The principle is this. People are apt to think, "How much I would do if only I had such and such instruments." But God is saying, "What is that in your hand? Do it with that." "With that! Why, it's only a bit of stick. Ah, if it were a sceptre, or even a bishop's staff; but it's only a shepherd's crook."
- In his hand. Moses was still listing his excuses, and the equipment for the job was already in his grip.
- From God's hand. The same stick comes back to him as a mark of authority. After that it appears at every decisive moment.
- A weak hand. The crook was fit for the work because it was weak. God perfects strength in weakness, and picks weak things to shame the mighty.
- A shepherd's hand. God's power is a shepherd's power. It moves with tenderness and care, because power with Him waits on love.
- A conquering hand. The serpent covered Egypt's temples. The rod of God in the deliverer's hand meant that the serpent's power would come to nothing.