Bible Strands
Exodus 5:22
So Moses returned to the LORD and asked, “Lord, why have You brought trouble upon this people? Is this why You sent me?
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — Moses addresses Yahweh immediately after Pharaoh’s officials curse him for worsening the Israelites' labor conditions. This confrontation occurs at the precise moment Moses questions the success of his divine commission.
The words — The Hebrew verb וַ/יָּ֧שָׁב (va/i.Ya.shov) literally means "he returned," while הֲרֵעֹ֙תָה֙ (ha.re.'O.tah) translates to "have you done harm." The phrasing records a direct report of observed suffering rather than theological speculation.
The thread — This pattern of prophetic complaint appears in Exodus 17:4 where Moses fears stoning, Numbers 11:11 where Moses questions his own standing, and Jeremiah 20:7 where the prophet accuses God of overwhelming him.
Why it lands — The text demands a reader confront the tension between divine commission and immediate suffering without resolving the mystery. It forces an examination of how faithful obedience coexists with unexplained hardship.
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 Moses returned unto the Lord, and said, Lord, wherefore hast thou so evil entreated this people? why is it that thou hast sent me?
Cross-references
- Jeremiah 20:7 You have deceived me, O LORD, and I was deceived. You have overcome me and prevailed. I am a laughingstock all day long; everyone mocks me.
- Exodus 17:4 Then Moses cried out to the LORD, “What should I do with these people? A little more and they will stone me!”
- Numbers 11:11 So Moses asked the LORD, “Why have You brought this trouble on Your servant? Why have I not found favor in Your sight, that You have laid upon me the burden of all these people?
- Numbers 11:14 I cannot carry all these people by myself; it is too burdensome for me.
- 1 Samuel 30:6 And David was greatly distressed because the people spoke of stoning him, because the soul of every man grieved for his sons and daughters. But David found strength in the LORD his God.
- 1 Kings 19:4 while he himself went a day’s journey into the wilderness. He sat down under a broom tree and prayed that he might die. “I have had enough, LORD,” he said. “Take my life, for I am no better than my fathers.”
- 1 Kings 19:10 “I have been very zealous for the LORD, the God of Hosts,” he replied, “but the Israelites have forsaken Your covenant, torn down Your altars, and killed Your prophets with the sword. I am the only one left, and they are seeking my life as well.”
- Psalms 73:25 Whom have I in heaven but You? And on earth I desire no one besides You.
- Habakkuk 2:3 For the vision awaits an appointed time; it testifies of the end and does not lie. Though it lingers, wait for it, since it will surely come and will not delay.
- Jeremiah 12:1 Righteous are You, O LORD, when I plead before You. Yet about Your judgments I wish to contend with You: Why does the way of the wicked prosper? Why do all the faithless live at ease?