Exodus 4:8 kjv
And it shall come to pass, if they will not believe thee, neither hearken to the voice of the first sign, that they will believe the voice of the latter sign.
Exodus 4:8 nkjv
"Then it will be, if they do not believe you, nor heed the message of the first sign, that they may believe the message of the latter sign.
Exodus 4:8 niv
Then the LORD said, "If they do not believe you or pay attention to the first sign, they may believe the second.
Exodus 4:8 esv
"If they will not believe you," God said, "or listen to the first sign, they may believe the latter sign.
Exodus 4:8 nlt
The LORD said to Moses, "If they do not believe you and are not convinced by the first miraculous sign, they will be convinced by the second sign.
Exodus 4 8 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Exod 4:1 | Moses answered, “What if they do not believe me or listen to my voice? For they may say, ‘The Lord has not appeared to you.’” | Moses' initial doubt and God's provision of signs. |
| Exod 4:9 | “And if they do not believe even these two signs or listen to your voice, then you shall take water...and pour it on the dry ground; and the water which you take from the river will become blood on the dry ground.” | God's provision of a third, more drastic sign. |
| Exod 7:3 | But I will harden Pharaoh’s heart that I may multiply My signs and My wonders in the land of Egypt. | God's purpose to display power through many signs. |
| Num 14:11 | The Lord said to Moses, “How long will this people spurn Me? And how long will they not believe in Me, despite all the signs which I have performed in their midst?" | People's failure to believe despite multiple signs. |
| Deut 18:18 | 'I will raise up a prophet from among their countrymen like you, and I will put My words in his mouth, and he shall speak to them all that I command him.' | Signs validate a true prophet. |
| Ps 78:43 | When He performed His signs in Egypt and His wonders in the field of Zoan. | Recalling God's signs in Egypt as acts of power. |
| Jer 32:20 | 'You have performed signs and wonders in the land of Egypt to this day, and in Israel and among mankind; and You have made a name for Yourself, as it is this day.' | Signs establish God's renown and identity. |
| Isa 42:9 | “Behold, the former things have come to pass, now I declare new things; Before they spring forth I proclaim them to you.” | God's foreknowledge and declaration of future events. |
| Isa 48:5 | “Therefore I declared them to you long ago, before they took place I proclaimed them to you..." | God declares things before they happen to confirm His word. |
| Joel 2:30 | “I will display wonders in the sky and on the earth, Blood, fire and columns of smoke." | Future eschatological signs leading to belief or judgment. |
| Matt 12:38-39 | Then some of the scribes and Pharisees said, “Teacher, we want to see a sign from You.”... “An evil and adulterous generation craves for a sign; and yet no sign will be given to it but the sign of Jonah the prophet." | Demand for signs and the ultimate sign (resurrection). |
| Matt 16:4 | “An evil and adulterous generation seeks after a sign; and a sign will not be given it, except the sign of Jonah.” And He left them and went away. | Jesus rebuking a desire for signs over belief in His words. |
| Luke 16:31 | “But he said to him, ‘If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be persuaded even if someone rises from the dead.’” | Unbelief persists despite clear, undeniable evidence. |
| John 2:11 | This beginning of His signs Jesus did in Cana of Galilee, and manifested His glory, and His disciples believed in Him. | Signs are for the purpose of revealing glory and eliciting belief. |
| John 4:48 | So Jesus said to him, “Unless you people see signs and wonders, you will not believe.” | The human tendency to require physical proof to believe. |
| John 5:36 | “But the testimony which I have is greater than that of John; for the works which the Father has given Me to accomplish—the very works that I do—testify about Me, that the Father has sent Me." | Jesus' works as evidence of His divine commission. |
| John 10:25 | Jesus answered them, “I told you, and you do not believe; the works that I do in My Father’s name, these testify of Me." | Works/signs are powerful testimonies to divine authority. |
| John 20:30-31 | Therefore many other signs Jesus also performed...but these have been written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ...and that by believing you may have life in His name. | The overarching purpose of biblical signs: to produce saving faith. |
| Acts 2:22 | “Men of Israel, listen to these words: Jesus the Nazarene, a man attested to you by God with miracles and wonders and signs which God performed through Him in your midst..." | Jesus validated by God through signs. |
| 2 Cor 12:12 | The signs of a true apostle were performed among you with all perseverance, by signs and wonders and miracles. | Signs validating apostolic authority. |
| Heb 2:4 | God also testifying with them, both by signs and wonders and by various miracles and by gifts of the Holy Spirit... | God's own attestation of the gospel message through signs. |
| Heb 3:7-19 | A prolonged warning against hardening one's heart, citing Israel's wilderness generation who did not believe God despite His works. | A stark example of persistent unbelief even after signs. |
Exodus 4 verses
Exodus 4 8 Meaning
Exodus 4:8 reveals God's strategy for validating Moses' divine commission to the Israelites. It states that if the first sign, the rod turning into a serpent, fails to convince the people, then a second sign, the hand becoming leprous, will be provided, with the explicit purpose of leading them to believe the authenticity of Moses' message and his divine sender. It highlights God's foreknowledge of potential disbelief and His patience in providing escalating evidence.
Exodus 4 8 Context
Exodus chapter 4 immediately follows God's call to Moses at the burning bush in chapter 3. Moses, overwhelmed and hesitant, offers several objections to God's command to return to Egypt and lead Israel. His primary concern, expressed in Exodus 4:1, is that the Israelites themselves will not believe him or his message, asking, "What if they do not believe me, nor heed my voice? For they may say, 'The Lord has not appeared to you.'" In response to this specific fear, God provides Moses with three distinct miraculous signs: his staff turning into a serpent, his hand becoming leprous and then healed, and water from the Nile turning to blood.
Exodus 4:8 is part of God's instruction to Moses regarding the first two of these signs and their intended impact. The historical and cultural context involves the ancient Near East, where claims of divine authority, particularly in a context of slavery and impending liberation, were often substantiated by supernatural manifestations. Both Egyptians and other peoples observed or performed various magical feats. Thus, for Moses to gain credibility with the Israelites and later with Pharaoh, visible, undeniable acts of power ('signs') would serve as divine warrants, differentiating God's power from mere human trickery or Egyptian sorcery. The escalating nature of the signs in the subsequent verses (4:9 mentions a third) shows God's commitment to providing ample evidence for those willing to believe.
Exodus 4 8 Word analysis
- Then it will be: (וְהָיָה - və-hāyāh) This introduces a consequential outcome or a logical next step. It implies a divinely ordained progression based on the people's response. God is not reacting in surprise, but implementing a pre-planned strategy.
- if they do not believe: (אִם־לֹא יַאֲמִינוּ - ʾim-lōʾ yaʾă-mînû)
- believe: (אמַן - 'aman) The root carries the sense of firm, certain, reliable. In the Hiphil stem, as used here, it means "to cause to be firm, reliable, secure" and hence "to trust, rely upon, believe." It implies more than mere intellectual assent; it involves trust, reliance, and commitment to the truth being presented. God foresaw a potential lack of 'aman from the Israelites, a fundamental distrust in His word delivered by Moses.
- not: (לֹא - lo') Indicates a negation, directly addressing Moses' stated concern about unbelief.
- you: Refers directly to Moses, signifying that their potential disbelief is directed towards him as God's chosen messenger, and by extension, toward God who sent him.
- nor heed the message: (וְלֹא יִשְׁמְעוּ לְקֹל - wə-lōʾ yishməʿū lə-qōl)
- heed: (שָׁמַע - shama') This word means "to hear," but often encompasses "to hear and obey," or "to pay attention." In a covenantal context, shama' is crucial for relationship with God, implying submission and obedience to His voice or command. The coupling of "believe" and "heed" suggests a comprehensive response: mental acceptance and active compliance.
- message/voice: (קֹל - qōl) Here translated as "message," it literally means "voice" or "sound." It refers to the spoken divine message delivered by Moses, authenticated by the sign. To not heed the message of the sign implies ignoring its divine significance and the truth it confirms.
- of the first sign: (הָאֹת הָרִאשׁוֹן - hā-ʾōṯ hā-rīʾšōwn)
- sign: (אוֹת - 'ot) A distinguishing mark, signal, omen, or pledge. In the Bible, an 'ot is often a miraculous act, not merely to astound, but to confirm God's word, to authenticate His messenger, or to serve as a reminder of His presence and power. It has a judicial weight, acting as a divine warrant. The first sign was the staff turning into a serpent, which, for ancient peoples familiar with staffs and serpents in religious or magical contexts, would have been striking.
- first: (רִאשׁוֹן - riʾšōwn) Denotes precedence, setting up a sequence of events.
- that they may believe the message: (לְמַעַן יַאֲמִינוּ לְקֹל - lə-maʿan yaʾă-mînū lə-qōl)
- that they may believe: The purpose clause (לְמַעַן - lemaʿan - "in order that") clearly states the telos, or goal, of the second sign: to lead to belief and heeding. This highlights God's patience and desire for His people to trust Him.
- message: Again, qōl, indicating that the goal is belief in the authoritative communication originating from God, delivered by Moses.
- of the latter sign: (הָאֹת הָאַחֲרוֹן - hā-ʾōṯ hā-ʾaḥărōwn)
- latter: (אַחֲרוֹן - ʾaḥărōwn) "Last, after." It implies the subsequent or second sign in a series. This was the hand becoming leprous and then whole again, a powerful display of God's control over life, death, disease, and healing, which held profound theological implications of defilement and purification in Israelite thought.
Words-group by words-group analysis:
- "if they do not believe you, nor heed the message of the first sign": This phrase reveals God's understanding of human skepticism and recalcitrance. It shows that initial evidence may be insufficient for genuine trust and obedience. The pairing of "believe" and "heed" is significant; true faith (belief) must be accompanied by obedience (heeding) to the divine instruction that the sign validates. The "message of the first sign" isn't just about the spectacle but the truth it communicates: God has indeed appeared to Moses and sent him.
- "that they may believe the message of the latter sign": This outlines the redemptive purpose behind the additional evidence. It underscores God's persistent efforts to elicit faith from His people. The "latter sign" is an amplification of evidence, intended to overcome stubbornness. The use of "that they may believe" underscores that even with increased evidence, belief remains a choice. God provides sufficient ground for faith but does not force it. The expectation is that greater proof will lead to greater conviction.
Exodus 4 8 Bonus section
- The legal/judicial aspect of 'ot (sign): In ancient Near Eastern contexts, signs often functioned as credentials, similar to a king's seal or an ambassador's letters of credence. God provides Moses with such "divine warrants" to legitimate his authority. This goes beyond mere magic; it's about divine authentication of a divinely appointed messenger.
- The nature of the signs:
- Rod to serpent: Symbolic of authority (staff of shepherd/leader) and danger/divine judgment (serpent often represents evil or a chaotic force in ANE mythology, though here clearly God's control over it).
- Hand of leprosy: Leprosy (צאָרַעַת - tsara'at) was not only a dreaded physical disease but also held profound spiritual implications of uncleanness and exclusion in Israelite culture. It was seen as a divine punishment (Num 12:10; 2 Kgs 5:27). God demonstrating power over such a condition, healing it instantaneously, would be an irrefutable sign of His ultimate authority over purity, life, and death.
- God's initiative: This verse emphasizes God's proactive initiative. Moses voices doubt, and God immediately addresses it, not with a rebuke, but with a strategy that caters to human limitations and anticipates resistance, demonstrating divine patience and purpose in working through His chosen servant.
Exodus 4 8 Commentary
Exodus 4:8 lays bare a fundamental aspect of divine communication: God's readiness to provide escalating evidence for those genuinely seeking to believe. It is a testament to God's patient persistence, anticipating human doubt and providing means to overcome it. Moses' initial hesitation about his credibility before the Israelites is immediately met with a divine plan. The two signs, the rod to serpent and the healthy hand to leprous and back, serve as divine attestations, validating Moses as God's chosen representative and confirming that the message he carries originates from the Lord.
These aren't merely wonders to astound; they are 'signs' (אוֹת, 'ot), specifically designed to convey a message and demand a response of belief and obedience ('aman and shama'). The progressive nature of the signs, with a contingency plan for unbelief, highlights God's desire for His people to move beyond initial skepticism into active faith. It also foreshadows Israel's often-stiff-necked refusal to fully trust God even in the face of overwhelming proof, a pattern seen throughout their wilderness journey and history. The passage subtly counters any potential syncretistic thought by demonstrating the unique and undeniable power of the One True God, distinct from Egyptian deities or magicians whose 'signs' (as seen in Exodus 7-8) would eventually fail to replicate divine power. Ultimately, this verse underscores that God, in His graciousness, provides sufficient evidence for faith, while recognizing that true belief is ultimately a matter of the heart responding to divine revelation.