Bible Strands
Exodus 4:17
But take this staff in your hand so you can perform signs with it.”
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — God speaks to Moses at the mountain, instructing him to carry the staff as a physical instrument for divine demonstration. This command follows God’s appointment of Aaron as Moses’ spokesman and immediately precedes Moses’ departure to Egypt.
The words — The Hebrew verb תִקַּח (ti.Kach) means “you will take,” paired with הַמַּטֶּה הַזֶּה (ha.ma.Teh ha.Zeh), “this staff.” The text explicitly commands physical possession of the object for subsequent action.
The thread — The staff appears in Exodus 4:2 as a familiar object, reappears in Exodus 7:9 as the instrument thrown before Pharaoh, and aligns with 1 Corinthians 1:27 where God’s chosen means often appear weak to human observers.
Why it lands — The text requires obedience to carry a mundane object into a confrontation, trusting it will function as a conduit for signs. The reader must accept that divine authority operates through provided, ordinary tools rather than independent human power.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
And thou shalt take this rod in thine hand, wherewith thou shalt do signs.
Cross-references
- Exodus 4:2 And the LORD asked him, “What is that in your hand?” “A staff,” he replied.
- 1 Corinthians 1:27 But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong.
- Exodus 7:9 “When Pharaoh tells you, ‘Perform a miracle,’ you are to say to Aaron, ‘Take your staff and throw it down before Pharaoh,’ and it will become a serpent.”