Exodus 7:1-7 · Bible study
Exodus 7:1-7 Commentary: Moses as God to Pharaoh
Hebrew · 11 what the commentators say
Meaning in one sentence
What does it mean for Moses to be made 'as God' to Pharaoh?
Research Summary
- Meaning: Moses is appointed as God's representative to confront Pharaoh, with Aaron as his prophetic spokesman, and God declares his intent to harden Pharaoh's heart to display his power and glory.
- Key words: 'made you as God' (נְתַתִּיךָ אֱלֹהִים, appointed you as a divine representative); 'prophet' (נָבִיא, spokesman); 'harden' (אַקְשֶׁה, make stubborn, Hiphil causative).
- Main debate: Is God the direct cause of Pharaoh's hardness, or does he intensify what Pharaoh already chooses?
- Theological theme: Divine sovereignty and human agency in revelation, God uses both obedience and opposition to make himself known.
- Best use: As a launching point for sermons on calling, authority, and the purpose of suffering and resistance in God's plan.
Translation Comparison
BSB Berean Standard Bible 2020
1The LORD answered Moses, “See, I have made you like God to Pharaoh, and your brother Aaron will be your prophet.
2You are to speak all that I command you, and your brother Aaron is to tell Pharaoh to let the Israelites go out of his land.
3But I will harden Pharaoh’s heart, and though I will multiply My signs and wonders in the land of Egypt,
4Pharaoh will not listen to you. Then I will lay My hand on Egypt, and by mighty acts of judgment I will bring the divisions of My people the Israelites out of the land of Egypt.
5And the Egyptians will know that I am the LORD, when I stretch out My hand against Egypt and bring the Israelites out from among them.”
6So Moses and Aaron did just as the LORD had commanded them.
7Moses was eighty years old and Aaron was eighty-three when they spoke to Pharaoh.
WEB World English Bible 2000
1Yahweh said to Moses, “Behold, I have made you as God to Pharaoh; and Aaron your brother shall be your prophet.
2You shall speak all that I command you; and Aaron your brother shall speak to Pharaoh, that he let the children of Israel go out of his land.
3I will harden Pharaoh’s heart, and multiply my signs and my wonders in the land of Egypt.
4But Pharaoh will not listen to you, so I will lay my hand on Egypt, and bring out my armies, my people the children of Israel, out of the land of Egypt by great judgments.
5The Egyptians shall know that I am Yahweh when I stretch out my hand on Egypt, and bring the children of Israel out from among them.”
6Moses and Aaron did so. As Yahweh commanded them, so they did.
7Moses was eighty years old, and Aaron eighty-three years old, when they spoke to Pharaoh.
KJV King James Version 1769
1And the Lord said unto Moses, See, I have made thee a god to Pharaoh: and Aaron thy brother shall be thy prophet.
2Thou shalt speak all that I command thee: and Aaron thy brother shall speak unto Pharaoh, that he send the children of Israel out of his land.
3And I will harden Pharaoh’s heart, and multiply my signs and my wonders in the land of Egypt.
4But Pharaoh shall not hearken unto you, that I may lay my hand upon Egypt, and bring forth mine armies, and my people the children of Israel, out of the land of Egypt by great judgments.
5And the Egyptians shall know that I am the Lord, when I stretch forth mine hand upon Egypt, and bring out the children of Israel from among them.
6And Moses and Aaron did as the Lord commanded them, so did they.
7And Moses was fourscore years old, and Aaron fourscore and three years old, when they spake unto Pharaoh.
ASV American Standard Version 1901
1And Jehovah said unto Moses, See, I have made thee as God to Pharaoh; and Aaron thy brother shall be thy prophet.
2Thou shalt speak all that I command thee; and Aaron thy brother shall speak unto Pharaoh, that he let the children of Israel go out of his land.
3And I will harden Pharaoh’s heart, and multiply my signs and my wonders in the land of Egypt.
4But Pharaoh will not hearken unto you, and I will lay my hand upon Egypt, and bring forth my hosts, my people the children of Israel, out of the land of Egypt by great judgments.
5And the Egyptians shall know that I am Jehovah, when I stretch forth my hand upon Egypt, and bring out the children of Israel from among them.
6And Moses and Aaron did so; as Jehovah commanded them, so did they.
7And Moses was fourscore years old, and Aaron fourscore and three years old, when they spake unto Pharaoh.
YLT Young's Literal Translation 1898
1And Jehovah saith unto Moses, `See, I have given thee a god to Pharaoh, and Aaron thy brother is thy prophet;
2thou--thou dost speak all that I command thee, and Aaron thy brother doth speak unto Pharaoh, and he hath sent the sons of Israel out of his land.
3`And I harden the heart of Pharaoh, and have multiplied My signs and My wonders in the land of Egypt,
4and Pharaoh doth not hearken, and I have put My hand on Egypt, and have brought out My hosts, My people, the sons of Israel, from the land of Egypt by great judgments;
5and the Egyptians have known that I am Jehovah, in My stretching out My hand against Egypt; and I have brought out the sons of Israel from their midst.'
6And Moses doth--Aaron also--as Jehovah commanded them; so have they done;
7and Moses is a son of eighty years, and Aaron is a son of eighty and three years, in their speaking unto Pharaoh.
Darby Darby Bible 1890
1And Jehovah said to Moses, See, I have made thee God to Pharaoh; and Aaron thy brother shall be thy prophet.
2Thou shalt speak all that I command thee; and Aaron thy brother shall speak unto Pharaoh, that he let the children of Israel go out of his land.
3And I will render Pharaoh's heart obdurate, and multiply my signs and my wonders in the land of Egypt.
4And Pharaoh will not hearken unto you; and I will lay my hand upon Egypt, and bring forth my hosts, my people, the children of Israel, out of the land of Egypt by great judgments.
5And the Egyptians shall know that I am Jehovah, when I stretch forth my hand on Egypt, and bring out the children of Israel from among them.
6And Moses and Aaron did as Jehovah had commanded them: so did they.
7And Moses was eighty years old, and Aaron was eighty-three years old, when they spoke to Pharaoh.
Douay-Rheims Douay-Rheims Bible 1899
1And the Lord said to Moses: Behold, I have appointed thee the god of Pharao; and Aaron, thy brother, shall be thy prophet.
2Thou shalt speak to him all that I command thee; and he shall speak to Pharao, that he let the children of Israel go out of his land.
3But I shall harden his heart, and shall multiply my signs and wonders in the land of Egypt.
4And he will not hear you: and I will lay my hand upon Egypt, and will bring forth my army and my people, the children of Israel, out of the land of Egypt, by very great judgments.
5And the Egyptians shall know that I am the Lord, who have stretched forth my hand upon Egypt, and have brought forth the children of Israel out of the midst of them.
6And Moses and Aaron did as the Lord had commanded; so did they.
7And Moses was eighty years old, and Aaron eighty-three, when they spoke to Pharao.
Verse in Context
Original Language (Biblical Hebrew)
Old Testament · Biblical Hebrew · Exodus 7:1
Source: STEPBible TAGNT/TEHB (CC-BY 4.0). Click or tap a morphology code to see the full parsing.
Scholars' Consensus
Commentators across traditions agree that in Exodus 7:1-7 God answers Moses' earlier reluctance by granting him a role of supreme delegated authority. As Calvin puts it, Moses was 'armed with supreme authority and power, whereby he should cast down the tyrant's pride.' The phrase 'I have made you as God' uses the Hebrew elohim, a term for God, judges, or divine beings. Gill notes Moses was made 'a god not by nature, but by commission and office,' acting as God's vicegerent to Pharaoh. Aaron functions as his prophet, the spokesman who declares Moses' words, fulfilling the pattern already sketched in Exodus 4:16. On the hardening of Pharaoh's heart, Adam Clarke and Jamieson-Fausset-Brown stress that the divine message was the occasion, not the efficient cause, of the king's obduracy; God permitted Pharaoh's stubbornness to multiply signs and wonders. Barnes emphasizes the progressive nature of the plagues, each aimed at Egyptian superstition. Moses and Aaron's obedient response (v.6) and their advanced ages (v.7) underscore that this work was God's timing, not human initiative. The shared core: God equips his servants, works through human agents, and reveals his supremacy over all earthly powers.
How settled is the interpretation?
Interpretive difficulty: Medium
Main views:
- Representative delegation: Moses acts as God's deputy by commission, not by nature; the term 'elohim' indicates delegated authority (Gill, Matthew Henry).
- Divine council participation: Psalm 82 suggests 'elohim' can refer to beings in God's council; Moses is given a share in divine governance, implying more than mere representation.
- Active hardening (Calvinist): God directly causes Pharaoh's heart to harden as a judicial act, consistent with Romans 9:17-18.
- Permissive hardening (Wesleyan/Arminian): God permits Pharaoh's existing stubbornness to intensify, using it as an occasion for judgment and revelation (Clarke, Jamieson-Fausset-Brown).
What is clear: Moses and Aaron are commissioned by Yahweh with specific roles – Moses as God's representative, Aaron as his prophet – and they obey, showing that God's call carries both authority and enablement.
What Scholars Agree and Debate
| Topic | Agreed | Debated |
|---|---|---|
| Moses as 'god' to Pharaoh | Christians agree that Moses acts as God's authorized representative, wielding delegated divine power. | Some traditions emphasize the ontological gap (Moses is not God), while others (e.g., Eastern Orthodox) see a real participation in divine authority, akin to theosis. |
| Hardening of Pharaoh's heart | All affirm that God is sovereign over events and that Pharaoh's hardness serves God's redemptive purpose. | Calvinists often see God actively hardening Pharaoh's heart; Arminians and Wesleyans view it as God withdrawing grace or permitting Pharaoh's own stubbornness to run its course. |
| Signs and wonders as credentials | The miracles validate Moses and Aaron as God's messengers. | Pentecostal/charismatic traditions see a pattern for spiritual warfare; cessationists argue the miraculous signs were limited to the apostolic era. |
| Aaron's role as prophet | Aaron is Moses' spokesman, consistent with Exodus 4:16. | Protestants generally restrict 'prophet' to foretelling/forthtelling; Catholics see a broader continuity with the prophetic office in the Church. |
Historical & Cultural Context
This passage sits at a crucial pivot in the Exodus narrative. Israel has been enslaved in Egypt for generations. Pharaoh's court operated with a theology of divine kingship, the ruler was considered a living god, mediator between the gods and Egypt. For Yahweh to call Moses 'a god to Pharaoh' was a direct challenge to that worldview. As Barnes notes, the following plagues are 'directly aimed at some Egyptian superstition', each one unmasks the impotence of Egypt's deities. The language of 'signs' (otot) and 'wonders' (mofetim) places these acts as credentials of a divine messenger, not mere magic.
Aaron's role as prophet (navi) fits the ancient Near Eastern pattern of a court spokesman, one who speaks on behalf of a superior. In Egypt, prophets served the temples; here, Aaron serves Yahweh's appointed representative. The hardening vocabulary (qashah, to make stubborn, severe) appears in contexts of determined resistance. God's declaration 'I will harden Pharaoh's heart' must be understood against the background of Pharaoh's own pride (Exodus 5:2). The Hebrew verb form used here (Hiphil) often carries a causative nuance, yet commentators like Clarke see it as a judicial permission: God gives Pharaoh over to the stubbornness he already possesses.
The reference to Israel as 'my hosts' or 'my armies' (v.4) is significant. The people are organized for departure, not as a rabble but as a company under divine command. Moses and Aaron's ages, 80 and 83, confirm that this is not youthful enthusiasm but seasoned dependence on God. Jamieson notes that 'this advanced age was a pledge that they had not been readily betrayed into a rash enterprise.' The historical backdrop: a total of 430 years in Egypt (Exodus 12:40) had prepared Israel for this moment.
Textual Notes
The consulted sources note no significant textual variants for Exodus 7:1-7. The Hebrew text is stable across medieval manuscripts, and the ancient versions (Septuagint, Vulgate, Targum) confirm the same reading.
Reception History
Early Christian writers saw in Moses' role as 'god to Pharaoh' a typology of Christ, who is the true God confronting the powers of evil. Augustine and others linked the hardening of Pharaoh to the mystery of predestination. Reformation-era interpreters, especially John Calvin, focused on God's sovereignty: the passage was a comfort to ministers facing stubborn opponents. Matthew Henry emphasized the encouragement it gave to Moses himself, a model for all who feel inadequate for their calling. Modern scholarship has examined the passage's literary structure within the Priestly source, noting how the ages of Moses and Aaron anchor the exodus chronology. Across traditions, this passage has been sung in hymns of deliverance and cited in prayers for courage before hostile authorities.
Preaching This Verse
Three-point outline
- God delegates his authority. Moses is made 'as God' to Pharaoh, not in essence, but in office and power. Yahweh shares his authority to accomplish his purposes.
- God works through mediators. Aaron as prophet speaks for Moses; Moses as god speaks for God. This chain of communication shows that God uses human partners to confront earthly powers.
- God reveals himself through resistance. The hardening of Pharaoh's heart is not a failure; it is the stage on which God multiplies signs and judgments so that 'the Egyptians shall know that I am Yahweh.'
Five-point outline
- Commission and reassurance (v.1): God answers Moses' insecurity by elevating his role.
- Chain of speech (v.2): Moses commands, Aaron speaks, Pharaoh hears the demand.
- Foreknowledge of resistance (v.3-4): God predicts hardening and declares his greater purpose.
- Ultimate goal (v.5): Knowledge of Yahweh among Egyptians, not mere freedom for Israel.
- Obedience despite age (v.6-7): Moses and Aaron act. Their age reminds us that God's call does not depend on youth.
Illustration hooks
- A parent speaking to a school principal. The parent has authority over the child, but sends a representative to deal with the school. Moses is that representative, backed by God's full authority.
- An employee delegated by the CEO. Even if the employee feels small, the authority behind the message is not the employee's, it's the CEO's. Moses goes to Pharaoh not as Moses the shepherd, but as God's appointed officer.
- A doctor delivering a difficult diagnosis. The doctor's words carry the weight of medical science, not personal opinion. Moses' words carry the weight of Yahweh.
Questions your congregation is asking
- If God hardened Pharaoh's heart, how can Pharaoh be held responsible?
- Why did Moses and Aaron obey this time after their earlier failure (Exodus 5)?
- What does it mean for us to be 'as God' to someone? Do we have that kind of authority today?
Leading a Discussion
This passage shows how God equips his servants for impossible tasks. After Moses' complaints about his speaking ability and the people's rejection, God recommissions him with a new title, 'a god to Pharaoh.' The group's task is to uncover what this means for how we understand God's power, human resistance, and faithful obedience.
Discussion questions
- What is surprising about Yahweh making Moses 'as God' to Pharaoh? How would an Egyptian king hear such a claim?
- Read Exodus 4:10-16 and compare it with 7:1-2. What changes, and what stays the same in God's plan?
- The word 'elohim' can mean God, gods, or judges (see Psalm 82:6). Why do you think God chose this word for Moses' role? What does it suggest about the authority Moses carries?
- Verse 3 says 'I will harden Pharaoh's heart.' How does this connect with Pharaoh's earlier statement in Exodus 5:2, 'Who is Yahweh that I should obey him?' Who bears responsibility for the hardening?
- Verse 5 states the goal: 'The Egyptians shall know that I am Yahweh.' How does God's desire for outsiders to know him shape the way we read the plagues, as punishment or as revelation?
- Moses and Aaron obey in verse 6. What had changed inside them since Exodus 5:22-23? How does God's reassurance (v.1) affect your own willingness to step into hard tasks?
- The detail of their ages (v.7) is the only time we learn Moses and Aaron's ages at this moment. Why might the writer include this? What does it say about God's timing?
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 19:21 | He said to him, “Behold, I have granted your request concerning this thing also, that I will not overthrow the city of which you have spoken. |
| Exodus 4:15 | You shall speak to him, and put the words in his mouth. I will be with your mouth, and with his mouth, and will teach you what you shall do. |
| Exodus 4:16 | He will be your spokesman to the people. It will happen that he will be to you a mouth, and you will be to him as God. |
| Exodus 16:29 | Behold, because Yahweh has given you the Sabbath, therefore he gives you on the sixth day the bread of two days. Everyone stay in his place. Let no one go out of his place on the seventh day.” |
| I Kings 17:23 | Elijah took the child and brought him down out of the room into the house, and delivered him to his mother; and Elijah said, “Behold, your son lives.” |
| II Kings 6:32 | But Elisha was sitting in his house, and the elders were sitting with him. Then the king sent a man from before him; but before the messenger came to him, he said to the elders, “Do you see how this son of a murderer has sent to take away my head? Behold, when the messenger comes, shut the door, and hold the door shut against him. Isn’t the sound of his master’s feet behind him?” |
| Psalms 82:6 | I said, “You are gods, all of you are sons of the Most High. |
| Ecclesiastes 1:10 | Is there a thing of which it may be said, “Behold, this is new”? It has been long ago, in the ages which were before us. |
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
11 public-domain commentaries, condensed into plain language.
Adam Clarke's Commentary Methodist/Wesleyan 1826
Clarke sees God's hardening of Pharaoh's heart as a permission of Pharaoh's own stubbornness, giving God the fullest opportunity to display His power through the plagues. This was done in mercy to the Egyptians, so that even the king and his magicians could see that Jehovah alone is the all-powerful God who delivers Israel.
Barnes' Notes on the Bible Protestant 1832
Barnes emphasizes that the plagues progress in severity, each targeting a specific Egyptian superstition and developing natural forces rather than reversing them. He also notes Moses is appointed as a god to Pharaoh, illustrating that a prophet is fundamentally one who declares God's will and purpose, not merely a foreteller.
Calvin's Commentaries Reformed 1564
Calvin insists that God communicates supreme authority to Moses without diminishing His own glory. He
Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges Anglican 1880
The commentary highlights that in the Priestly source, Aaron never speaks for Moses to Pharaoh, only performing wonders at Moses direction, contrasting with other sources. It also notes the ages given for Moses and Aaron are improbably high and conflict with the representation in the Yahwist source.
Geneva Bible Notes Reformed 1599
The Geneva note highlights the striking parallel: as God speaks through His prophet, so Moses, made a "god" to Pharaoh, will speak through Aaron as his prophet. This arrangement shows that the hardenings and judgments serve not merely to punish Egypt, but to demonstrate God's identity when He finally delivers His people.
Gill's Exposition of the Bible Baptist 1748
Gill emphasizes that when God tells Moses He has made him a god to Pharaoh, it means Moses is acting as God's vice-regent with delegated authority to command, control, and even punish the king of Egypt. Aaron serves as Moses' prophet, receiving divine revelation to declare to Pharaoh.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Commentary Protestant 1871
JFB emphasizes that God appointed Moses as a "god" to Pharaoh, meaning His personal representative who would act and speak with divine authority and perform miracles. Aaron served as Moses' prophet or spokesman. The hardening of Pharaoh's heart resulted from the divine message but was not caused by it, and Moses' advanced age proved God's support.
Keil & Delitzsch OT Commentary Protestant 1876
Keil and Delitzsch draw a careful distinction: Moses was made a god to Aaron as the revealer of God's will, but a god to Pharaoh as the executor of that will. Aaron served as Moses' prophet, announcing the revelations. This dual role promised Moses divine authority so Pharaoh would eventually bow.
Lange's Commentary Reformed 1857
Lange sees a deliberate double meaning in Moses and Aaron's modest request for a three-day feast. What sounds like a petition for a furlough actually conceals a command to set the people free, and the call to worship in the wilderness points toward a complete separation from Egypt. Pharaoh's defiant refusal marks him as the prototype of all religious tyrants, his impiety beginning with a dismissal of the unknown God.
Matthew Henry's Commentary Reformed/Presbyterian 1710
Henry stresses that when God calls Moses a god to Pharaoh, it means Moses is only a deputy, a made god by commission rather than nature. Unlike the living God who is God to everyone, Moses holds this role just for Pharaoh and carries no divine status of his own.
Wesley's Explanatory Notes Methodist/Wesleyan 1754
Wesley highlights the striking contrast between Joseph and Moses: Joseph was a mere servant to Pharaoh at age thirty, but Moses was not made a god to Pharaoh—God's representative with divine power—until age eighty. Such an honor demands long waiting and lengthy preparation before service.