Exodus 3:17 · Bible study
Exodus 3:17 Commentary: The Promise of the Land and Its Nations
Hebrew · 7 what the commentators say
Meaning in one sentence
Why does God list six Canaanite nations in his promise?
Research Summary
- Meaning: God promises to bring Israel out of Egyptian slavery into the specific territory of Canaan, a fertile land he earlier swore to the patriarchs.
- Key words: “I have said” (וָאֹמַר, a settled decree); “bring you up” (הַעֲלֹה, Hiphil of עָלָה, causative action); “affliction” (עֳנִי, misery); “flowing with milk and honey”, token of abundance.
- Main debate: Whether the conquest implied by naming the nations is a permanent model or a unique historical judgment; also whether the nations are literal peoples or symbolic of spiritual enemies.
- Theological theme: Covenant faithfulness, God keeps his word across generations, even when circumstances seem hopeless.
- Best use: Teaching on the certainty of God’s promises, the connection between deliverance and inheritance, and the specificity of biblical hope.
Translation Comparison
BSB Berean Standard Bible 2020
And I have promised to bring you up out of your affliction in Egypt, into the land of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites—a land flowing with milk and honey.’
WEB World English Bible 2000
I have said, I will bring you up out of the affliction of Egypt to the land of the Canaanite, the Hittite, the Amorite, the Perizzite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite, to a land flowing with milk and honey.”’
KJV King James Version 1769
And I have said, I will bring you up out of the affliction of Egypt unto the land of the Canaanites, and the Hittites, and the Amorites, and the Perizzites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites, unto a land flowing with milk and honey.
ASV American Standard Version 1901
and I have said, I will bring you up out of the affliction of Egypt unto the land of the Canaanite, and the Hittite, and the Amorite, and the Perizzite, and the Hivite, and the Jebusite, unto a land flowing with milk and honey.
YLT Young's Literal Translation 1898
and I say, I bring you up out of the affliction of Egypt, unto the land of the Canaanite, and the Hittite, and the Amorite, and the Perizzite, and the Hivite, and the Jebusite, unto a land flowing with milk and honey.
Darby Darby Bible 1890
and I have said, I will bring you up out of the affliction of Egypt, unto the land of the Canaanites, and the Hittites, and the Amorites, and the Perizzites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites, unto a land flowing with milk and honey.
Douay-Rheims Douay-Rheims Bible 1899
And I have said the word to bring you forth out of the affliction of Egypt, into the land of the Chanaanite, and Hethite, and Amorrhite, and Pherezite, and Hevite, and Jebusite, to a land that floweth with milk and honey.
Translations in other languages (10 available)
Y he dicho: Yo os sacaré de la aflicción de Egipto á la tierra del Cananeo, y del Hetheo, y del Amorrheo, y del Pherezeo, y del Heveo, y del Jebuseo, á una tierra que fluye leche y miel.
E disse: Eu vos tirarei da aflição do Egito à terra dos cananeus, e dos heteus, e dos amorreus, e dos perizeus, e dos heveus, e dos jebuseus, a uma terra que flui leite e mel.
et j’ai dit: Je vous ferai monter de l’ Égypte, où vous souffrez, dans le pays des Cananéens, des Héthiens, des Amoréens, des Phéréziens, des Héviens et des Jébusiens, dans un pays où coulent le lait et le miel.
und habe gesagt: ich will euch aus dem Elend Ägyptens führen in das Land der Kanaaniter, Hethiter, Amoriter, Pheresiter, Heviter und Jebusiter, in das Land, darin Milch und Honig fließt.
Daarom heb Ik gezegd: Ik zal ulieden uit de verdrukking van Egypte opvoeren, tot het land der Kanaanieten, en der Hethieten, en der Amorieten, en der Ferezieten, en der Hevieten, en der Jebusieten; tot het land, vloeiende van melk en honig.
e ho detto: Io vi trarrò dall’afflizione d’Egitto, e vi farò salire nel paese dei Cananei, degli Hittei, degli Amorei, de’ Ferezei, degli Hivvei e de’ Gebusei, in un paese ove scorre il latte e il miele.
I rzekłem: Wyprowadzę was z utrapienia Egipskiego do ziemi Chananejczyka, i Hetejczyka, i Amorejczyka, i Ferezejczyka, i Hewejczyka, i Jebuzejczyka, do ziemi opływającej mlekiem i miodem.
И сказал: Я выведу вас от угнетения Египетского в землю Хананеев, Хеттеев, Аморреев, Ферезеев, [Гергесеев,] Евеев и Иевусеев, в землю, где течет молоко и мед.
我也說：要將你們 從埃及 的困苦 中領出來，往 迦南人、赫人、亞摩利人、比利洗人、希未人、耶布斯人 的地去，就是到 流 奶 與蜜 之地。』
And I have said, I will take you up out of the sorrows of Egypt into the land of the Canaanite and the Hittite and the Amorite and the Perizzite and the Hivite and the Jebusite, into a land flowing with milk and honey.
Verse in Context
Original Language (Biblical Hebrew)
Old Testament · Biblical Hebrew · Exodus 3:17
Source: STEPBible TAGNT/TEHB (CC-BY 4.0). Click or tap a morphology code to see the full parsing.
Scholars' Consensus
Commentators consistently affirm that this verse records God’s solemn decree to deliver Israel from slavery and give them the land of Canaan. Calvin calls it a “secret counsel”, a settled purpose that assures Israel their affliction will end. Gill notes that God “purposed and promised” the deliverance. Keil and Delitzsch tie the verse to Joseph’s final words in Genesis 50:24, showing God is fulfilling an ancient promise. Matthew Henry emphasizes that Moses is to “raise their expectation of a speedy removal to Canaan.” The detailed listing of six Canaanite nations (a standard biblical formula found also in Exodus 3:8 and Genesis 15:19-21) underscores the reality and particularity of the inheritance. The phrase “a land flowing with milk and honey” is not merely poetic; it describes actual agricultural abundance, promised by God to a people who had known only bitter oppression.
How settled is the interpretation?
Interpretive difficulty: Medium
Main views:
- Literal land promise: The names correspond to known tribal groups; God’s promise to Abraham (Gen 15) is being fulfilled historically.
- Typological reading: The nations represent enemies of God’s people overcome by Christ; Canaan points to the inheritance of believers.
- Ethical concern reading: The conquest narrative raises moral questions; some interpreters argue it is a unique divine judgment not to be universalized.
What is clear: God promises to rescue Israel from oppression and bring them to a fertile land, fulfilling prior covenant promises made to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
What Scholars Agree and Debate
| Topic | Agreed | Debated |
|---|---|---|
| The significance of the listed nations | Christians agree that God promised Israel a specific land inhabited by these peoples, fulfilling the Abrahamic covenant. | Some see the naming as a literal legal claim justifying the conquest; others read the nations as a type of the spiritual opposition God overcomes for his people, with the conquest being a unique historical event not meant to be repeated. |
| I have said, decree or promise? | All agree that God’s statement expresses his settled intention to act. | Reformed commentators (Calvin) emphasize the divine decree; others (Matthew Henry, Gill) stress the promise aspect, God’s word as assurance for human faith. The distinction affects how one reads the relationship between God’s sovereignty and human response. |
| Flowing with milk and honey, literal or symbolic? | Christians affirm the phrase describes the real agricultural richness of Canaan. | Some traditions emphasize the literal fulfillment in Israel’s history; others read it primarily as a symbol of spiritual abundance in Christ and the new creation. |
| Application of the land promise today | All Christians see this promise as foundational to the Old Testament story of redemption. | Dispensationalists apply the land promise literally to ethnic Israel today; covenant theologians see it as fulfilled in Christ and the church; others hold mediating positions. |
Historical & Cultural Context
This verse is part of God’s commission to Moses at the burning bush (Exodus 3). After revealing his name, Yahweh instructs Moses to gather the elders of Israel and deliver this message. The list of six nations, Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites, Jebusites, corresponds to the tribal groups that inhabited the land of Canaan during the Late Bronze Age. The same list appears in Exodus 3:8 and, with slight variations, in Genesis 15:19-21, where God first promises the land to Abraham.
The phrase “flowing with milk and honey” is a recognized ancient Near Eastern descriptor for a region’s fertility, appearing in Egyptian and Canaanite texts. It emphasizes that the land is not barren but rich for agriculture and herding. For a slave people in Egypt, this promise would have been a powerful contrast to their affliction.
God’s words “I have said” render the Hebrew verb va’omar, a waw-consecutive imperfect that here functions as a perfect tense, indicating a settled, intentional decree. The Hiphil form of alah (“I will bring you up”) is causative: God is the active agent of the exodus. The historical context also includes Joseph’s dying words in Genesis 50:24: “God will surely visit you, and bring you up out of this land to the land which he swore.” Keil and Delitzsch note that the burning bush appearance fulfills that dying prophecy. Thus the promise given to the patriarchs is now being activated for their descendants.
By naming the specific nations, God signals the real, physical territory his people will inherit, and the conflict that will come. As Calvin comments, the enumeration “attracts them to come forth” by showing what awaits them.
Textual Notes
The consulted sources note no significant textual variants for this verse. The list of six nations (Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites, Jebusites) is consistent across Hebrew manuscripts and ancient translations, matching the pattern found in Exodus 3:8.
Reception History
This verse has been foundational in both Jewish and Christian traditions. In Jewish liturgy, the promise of the land “flowing with milk and honey” is recited during Passover as part of the Haggadah, connecting the exodus to the patriarchal promises. Early Christian interpreters like Origen allegorized the named nations as spiritual vices that God’s people must overcome. Reformation commentators (Calvin, Luther) emphasized the certainty of God’s promise against human doubt. During the modern period, the verse has been read through the lens of liberation theology (God hears the cry of the oppressed) and has also raised ethical questions about the conquest of Canaan. Across all traditions, the verse functions as a declaration that God’s faithfulness extends across generations, and that suffering is not the end of the story.
Preaching This Verse
Three-point outline
- God’s promise rests on his covenant character. The verse echoes the Abrahamic covenant (Gen 15) and Joseph’s deathbed words (Gen 50:24). God does not act on a whim; he fulfills what he swore.
- Deliverance and destination are one gift. God promises both rescue “out of the affliction of Egypt” and entrance into a specific, abundant land. Salvation is not just removal from misery but placement into blessing.
- The detailed list makes the promise concrete. The six nations are not generic enemies, they are named peoples. This assures Israel that God knows exactly where they are going and what obstacles stand in the way.
Five-point outline
- God speaks before the work begins. “I have said” is a settled decree (Calvin).
- Affliction is not the final word. The exodus is coming.
- The land is already occupied, but it is promised. God names the nations to show he knows the obstacles.
- The land is described in terms of abundance: milk and honey. God’s provision is generous, not stingy.
- This message is to be proclaimed to the people. Moses is to “raise their expectation” (Matthew Henry).
Illustration hooks
- A family who has lived for years in cramped rental housing receives a deed to a spacious home in a new town. The realtor names the nearby schools and parks, the promise becomes real.
- A child enduring a long illness is told by her father, “I’ve booked our vacation to the beach. You’ll see the ocean, build sandcastles, eat ice cream.” The details help her endure treatment.
- A legal contract that lists every parcel of land being transferred, with boundaries and easements. The specificity removes doubt.
Questions your congregation is asking
- Why does God list all those long-gone nations? Does that mean he endorses conquest today?
- How does this Old Testament promise apply to Christians? Is “the land” just a type of heaven?
- What does “flowing with milk and honey” actually mean for our faith when we face our own “Egypts”?
Leading a Discussion
This verse is God’s first recorded speech to Israel through Moses after the burning bush. It connects the exodus to the promises made to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and it gives the people a concrete hope. The small group can explore how God’s promises function in times of oppression, and how naming the details of his provision strengthens faith.
Discussion questions
- Read Exodus 3:16-17. What is Moses supposed to tell the elders? Why does God include the six nations by name?
- How does this verse connect to Joseph’s words in Genesis 50:24? What does that say about God’s timing?
- What does the phrase “land flowing with milk and honey” suggest about God’s view of his people’s future?
- Calvin says this promise is a “secret counsel” from God. How does knowing God has a settled plan help when circumstances seem fixed against you?
- In your own life, when have you needed God to name the specific details of a promise in order to hold on to hope?
- This verse speaks to a whole people, not just an individual. How does corporate deliverance challenge our tendency to privatize faith?
- Christians read this as a type of salvation. What does the exodus pattern, out of slavery, into a land of abundance, tell us about what Christ does?
Word Study
The key original-language words in this verse. Select any word for its full lexicon entry — meaning, every occurrence in Scripture, and related words.
Cross-References
Source: Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (TSK, public domain)
| Genesis 15:13 | He said to Abram, “Know for sure that your offspring will live as foreigners in a land that is not theirs, and will serve them. They will afflict them four hundred years. |
| Genesis 15:14 | I will also judge that nation, whom they will serve. Afterward they will come out with great wealth; |
| Genesis 15:21 | the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Girgashites, and the Jebusites.” |
| Genesis 46:4 | I will go down with you into Egypt. I will also surely bring you up again. Joseph’s hand will close your eyes.” |
| Genesis 50:24 | Joseph said to his brothers, “I am dying, but God will surely visit you, and bring you up out of this land to the land which he swore to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob.” |
| Exodus 2:23 | In the course of those many days, the king of Egypt died, and the children of Israel sighed because of the bondage, and they cried, and their cry came up to God because of the bondage. |
| Exodus 2:25 | God saw the children of Israel, and God understood. |
| Exodus 3:8 | I have come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians, and to bring them up out of that land to a good and large land, to a land flowing with milk and honey; to the place of the Canaanite, the Hittite, the Amorite, the Perizzite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite. |
Interlinear and lexical data from STEPBible (CC BY 4.0). Cross-reference data from OpenBible.info (CC BY 4.0). Commentaries are public domain.
For personal reflection
Read the devotional page — prayer, application, and "for families"
What the Commentators Say
7 public-domain commentaries, condensed into plain language.
Calvin's Commentaries Reformed 1564
Calvin emphasizes that God's secret decree guarantees Israel's deliverance is certain and near, since nothing can hinder Him from performing His work. The promised land flowing with milk and honey is not merely natural fertility but a sign of God's abundant provision, as He will drive out many nations to give them spacious dwellings.
Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges Anglican 1880
The commentator explains that in ancient times, knowing a deity's personal name was essential for prayer and help, and the name often revealed the deity's nature. This cultural background clarifies why Moses needed to know God's name. The promise that the Israelites would receive valuables from the Egyptians is attributed to a specific source.
Geneva Bible Notes Reformed 1599
Therefore I did say, I wil bring you out of the affliction of Egypt vnto the land of the Canaanites, and the Hittites, and the Amorites, and the Perizzites, and the Hiuites, and the Iebusites, vnto a lande that floweth with milke and honie.
Gill's Exposition of the Bible Baptist 1748
Gill notes that when God says "I have said," it refers to both an internal resolve in His own mind and a declared promise to Moses. God purposed and promised to bring Israel out of the affliction they suffered from the Egyptians into the land then held by the Canaanites and other nations.
Keil & Delitzsch OT Commentary Protestant 1876
Keil-Delitzsch argue that God's initial request for a three-day journey was not deception but mercy. By asking something small and reasonable first, God put Pharaoh to the test. His refusal would expose his hard heart without excuse, and the full demand for Israel's departure would come only after that refusal was clear.
Lange's Commentary Reformed 1857
Lange sees the burning bush as a symbol of Israel in affliction, with the fire representing God’s purifying presence rather than judgment. The bush unconsumed points to the Church’s final endurance through all trials, a pattern that holds for all future theocratic affliction.
Matthew Henry's Commentary Reformed/Presbyterian 1710
Henry emphasizes that Moses, as God's messenger, must faithfully repeat to the elders exactly what God told him, holding nothing back. This sets a pattern for all ministers: their duty is to pass on what they have received from the Lord, not to add or omit.