Exodus 3:5 kjv
And he said, Draw not nigh hither: put off thy shoes from off thy feet, for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground.
Exodus 3:5 nkjv
Then He said, "Do not draw near this place. Take your sandals off your feet, for the place where you stand is holy ground."
Exodus 3:5 niv
"Do not come any closer," God said. "Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy ground."
Exodus 3:5 esv
Then he said, "Do not come near; take your sandals off your feet, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground."
Exodus 3:5 nlt
"Do not come any closer," the LORD warned. "Take off your sandals, for you are standing on holy ground.
Exodus 3 5 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference (Short Note) |
|---|---|---|
| Gen 28:17 | And he was afraid and said, "How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God... | Jacob's recognition of sacred space due to God's presence. |
| Josh 5:15 | The commander of the LORD's army said to Joshua, "Take off your sandals from your feet, for the place where you are standing is holy." And Joshua did so. | Direct parallel command demonstrating reverence for God's presence. |
| Exod 19:12 | You shall set limits for the people all around, saying, "Take care not to go up into the mountain or touch its border... | God establishing boundaries around His presence at Sinai, showing His awesome holiness. |
| Lev 10:3 | Moses said to Aaron, "This is what the LORD spoke, saying, 'Among those who are near me I will be sanctified, and before all the people I will be glorified.'" | God's demand for holiness from those who approach Him, especially priests. |
| Isa 6:3 | And one called to another and said: "Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory!" | Emphasizes God's inherent, absolute holiness that permeates existence. |
| Isa 6:5 | And I said: "Woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips... for my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts!" | Human unworthiness in the face of God's overwhelming holiness. |
| Hab 2:20 | But the LORD is in his holy temple; let all the earth keep silence before him. | Call for reverent silence and awe in God's presence. |
| Zech 2:13 | Be silent, all flesh, before the LORD, for he has stirred up himself from his holy dwelling. | Command for awe and reverence when God acts from His dwelling. |
| Ps 2:11 | Serve the LORD with fear, and rejoice with trembling. | Admonition to approach God with both joy and reverence. |
| Ps 99:9 | Exalt the LORD our God, and worship at his holy hill; for the LORD our God is holy! | Command to worship God acknowledging His holiness. |
| 1 Pet 1:15 | but as he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct... | Application of God's holiness as a standard for believer's lives. |
| Heb 4:16 | Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need. | Contrast showing the new covenant access to God through Christ. |
| Heb 9:8 | By this the Holy Spirit indicates that the way into the holy places has not yet been opened as long as the first tent is still standing... | Highlights the restricted access to God's immediate presence under the Old Covenant. |
| Heb 10:19-20 | Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus, by the new and living way... | Through Christ, a new and direct access to God's presence is established. |
| Acts 7:33 | The Lord said to him, 'Take off your sandals from your feet, for the place where you are standing is holy ground.' | Stephen's speech reiterates this command, connecting it to Israel's history with God. |
| Acts 17:24 | The God who made the world and everything in it, being Lord of heaven and earth, does not live in temples made by man... | God is not contained by human-made structures, emphasizing His transcendence. |
| 1 Cor 3:16 | Do you not know that you are God's temple and that God's Spirit dwells in you? | New Testament understanding of believers themselves as holy dwellings of God's Spirit. |
| Eph 2:19-22 | So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God... | Believers built into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit. |
| Rev 4:8 | "Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord God Almighty, who was and is and is to come!" | Heavenly worship reinforcing the eternal holiness of God. |
| Rev 21:22 | And I saw no temple in the city, for its temple is the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb. | The ultimate future state where God's direct presence is the Temple itself. |
Exodus 3 verses
Exodus 3 5 Meaning
Exodus 3:5 records God's direct command to Moses, initiating a profound encounter. The core meaning conveys that divine presence transforms a physical location into sacred ground, demanding a corresponding act of reverence and separation from humanity. This command underscores God's absolute holiness and humanity's inherent need to approach Him with awe and humility, recognizing the inherent separation between the holy and the common.
Exodus 3 5 Context
Exodus chapter 3 details Moses' pivotal encounter with God at Mount Horeb (Sinai). Moses, serving as a shepherd, leads his flock to the wilderness's far side when he sees a bush burning but not consumed. This phenomenon, a theophany (a visible manifestation of God), catches his attention, prompting him to investigate. Just as Moses draws near to examine the sight, God calls out to him from the bush. Verse 5 follows immediately after God identifies Himself as the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and before He reveals His plan for Moses to deliver Israel. The command is a divine interruption, establishing the sacred nature of the encounter and preparing Moses for a direct communion with the Almighty. Historically and culturally, removing shoes upon entering a sacred place or the home of a respected individual was, and still is, a common gesture of deference and reverence in many Eastern cultures, symbolizing humility and acknowledging the purity of the space.
Exodus 3 5 Word analysis
- And he said, Draw not nigh hither: The speaker is God. "Draw not nigh" (Hebrew:
al-tiqrav, meaning "do not come near") is a prohibitory command. It immediately establishes a boundary between God's manifest holiness and human proximity. This highlights God's transcendence and the inherent sacredness associated with His immediate presence. It serves as a test of obedience and prepares Moses for a revelation that requires separation. - put off thy shoes: (Hebrew:
shal na'alekha, "send off your sandals") This is an active command. Shoes, made of leather and gathering dust and defilement from the earth, represented contact with the mundane and common. Removing them signifies humility, purification, and acknowledging the sanctity of the place. It's an act of worship, demonstrating Moses' unworthiness and God's absolute purity. It is also a gesture of servitude in ancient Near Eastern culture. - from off thy feet: This specifies the personal and immediate nature of the act. It is Moses, individually, who must perform this cleansing and humble gesture before his feet can stand on consecrated ground.
- for the place whereon thou standest: This phrase provides the divine reason for the command. It's not a mere arbitrary rule, but directly tied to the condition of the ground. This introduces a foundational principle: sacredness is imparted by God's presence, not by inherent quality or human ritual.
- is holy ground: (Hebrew:
admat-qodesh, "ground of holiness"). This is the critical revelation. The ground itself, ordinarily common earth, becameqodesh(holy) because God, the source of all holiness, chose to manifest there. It is consecrated not by an act of human sanctification, but by divine visitation. This prefigures the concept of the tabernacle and later temple, which derive their holiness from God's promised dwelling among His people.
Words-group analysis:
- "Draw not nigh hither: put off thy shoes from off thy feet,": These two clauses represent a two-fold divine directive – a prohibition against casual proximity followed by a specific command for ritual humility. They work in tandem to create an atmosphere of reverence and a clear demarcation of sacred space, preparing Moses' spiritual and physical state for God's presence.
- "put off thy shoes... for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground.": This linkage provides the direct theological rationale. The action (removing shoes) is necessitated by the nature of the place (holy ground). It demonstrates that holiness emanates from God's direct presence and requires a responsive act of reverence and spiritual purity from humanity.
Exodus 3 5 Bonus section
The act of taking off shoes, rather than any other form of cleansing, might also signify that the ground itself now has intrinsic holiness, akin to how priests were barefoot when ministering in the Tabernacle. This sacred connection to the soil points towards the earth's ultimate redemption and glorification when God fully reclaims His creation. The voice speaking from the burning bush is identified as the Angel of the LORD in Exodus 3:2, who is later understood as God Himself, further emphasizing the divine and unique nature of the encounter. This event established a lasting pattern: where God reveals Himself, reverence is the immediate and appropriate response.
Exodus 3 5 Commentary
Exodus 3:5 serves as a foundational declaration of God's holiness and the appropriate human response to it. This verse is not merely an antiquated custom but a timeless theological statement. God, who is utterly separate from sin and commonness, cannot be approached casually. His presence instantly consecrates space, transforming ordinary ground into a holy sanctuary. Moses’ immediate obedience establishes a precedent for reverence in the presence of the Almighty. This act symbolizes humility, a shedding of the mundane, and an acknowledgment of God's unparalleled purity.
This encounter sets the stage for God's revelation of the Law at Sinai, where strict boundaries and regulations regarding approaching the mountain were also enforced. It highlights that God initiates the holy space through His presence, not that humanity confers holiness upon a place. Furthermore, it foreshadows the entire Old Covenant system of clean and unclean, common and holy, emphasizing the need for ritual purity and consecrated spaces for humans to draw near to God. Ultimately, this verse underscores the inherent difference between creature and Creator, demanding awe, worship, and separation as a prerequisite for divine communion. In the New Covenant, while literal holy ground is less emphasized as the Spirit indwells believers, the principle of reverent approach to God through Christ remains paramount.