Favor · the best way to learn the Bible
Exodus 6 Bible study: I am the LORD
When Moses said God hadn't rescued his people, God answered "I am the LORD" with seven "I will" promises, including "I will redeem you", the word for what a next of kin did for his family. Israel didn't listen for "anguish of spirit", in Hebrew shortness of spirit. The family list stops at Levi to show who Moses and Aaron are. Aaron's wife was the sister of Nahshon, a name in Jesus' line.
Favor is a Bible study app that explains every chapter as you read: the words behind the words, what most readers miss, and how it all leads to Jesus.
First week free, then $10 a month per person
“I will take you to myself for a people. I will be your God; and you shall know that I am the LORD your God, who brings you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians.”
Try it · Did you catch it?
“The family list in Exodus 6 names the families of Reuben, Simeon and Levi, and of no other son of Jacob.”
Is that in Exodus 6, or not? Make your call.
What's really going on
God's answer to "You have not rescued your people"
Chapter 5 ends with Moses asking, "Lord, why have you brought trouble on this people?" and "You have not rescued your people at all!" (5:22-23). The LORD answers, "Now you shall see what I will do to Pharaoh" (6:1), and then, "I am the LORD" (6:2). The chapter says "I am the LORD" five times (6:2, 6:6, 6:7, 6:8, 6:29). Between the "I am the LORD" that opens 6:6 and the one that closes 6:8 come seven promises, each beginning "I will": bring you out, rid you out of their bondage, redeem you, take you for a people, be your God, bring you into the land, and give it to you (6:6-8).
Where it leads to Jesus
He remembered his covenant
Exodus 6:5leads toLuke 1:72-73
God says, "I have remembered my covenant" (6:5), promises, "I will redeem you" (6:6), and speaks of the land "which I swore to give to Abraham" (6:8). When John the Baptist is born, his father Zacharias prophesies that God "has visited and redeemed his people" (Luke 1:68) and "raised up a horn of salvation for us in the house of his servant David" (Luke 1:69), "to remember his holy covenant, the oath which he swore to Abraham our father" (Luke 1:72-73). Luke doesn't cite Exodus 6, and other passages also speak of God remembering his covenant with Abraham (Psalm 105:8-9). This is a reading: some hear Exodus 6 in Zacharias' words; others hear the covenant with Abraham in general.
Honest questions
Questions people ask about Exodus 6
That was a taste
The rest of Exodus 6 is waiting in Favor
- Promises he had already made
- Too crushed to listen
- Why the story stops for a family list
- A lifted hand
- Names you'll meet again
- 9 questions as you read
- 10 more Hebrew words
- A short check at the end
- Your notes, saved as you go
Favor reads the Bible in order, so you'll reach Exodus 6 with everything before it in view. First week free, then $10 a month per person.
The Hebrew word behind it
גָּאַלga'alsay ga-AL
"Redeem, act as kinsman" (Brown-Driver-Briggs). Strong's explains it as "to be the next of kin (and as such to buy back a relative's property, marry his widow, etc.)". Israel's law uses it that way: if a man sells land, "his kinsman who is next to him shall come, and redeem that which his brother has sold" (Leviticus 25:25). Here God himself says, "I will redeem you with an outstretched arm" (6:6): in Hebrew, ve-ga'alti. Before this, the verb appears only once in the Hebrew Bible, in Jacob's blessing: "the angel who has redeemed me from all evil" (Genesis 48:16). After the sea, Moses sings of "the people that you have redeemed" (15:13).
For your group
Exodus 6 Bible study questions
- 1The people "didn’t listen to Moses for anguish of spirit, and for cruel bondage." When life is heavy, what makes it hard for you to take in good news?
- 2God answered Moses' complaint with "I am the LORD" and seven "I will" promises. Which of them do you most need to hear this week, and why?
- 3The chapter stops to name families, down to Aaron's grandson. Whose faith has been handed down to you, and who might you hand it on to?
Leading a group? In Favor, everyone reads Exodus 6 during the week and answers these questions privately. Answers stay sealed until you meet, then appear together, and you can print the week's sheet.
Start a Bible studyThe best way to learn the Bible
Favor opens up every chapter as you read.
Favor is a Bible study app for your phone or computer. It takes you through the Bible one chapter at a time, a few minutes a day, and shows you what's really there: the words behind the words, the moments most people miss, and how the whole story fits together. For you. For everyone.
Every chapter explains itself
As you read, short notes open up what's really going on, the details most readers walk past, and the honest questions people ask.
The Hebrew and Greek behind it
Tap a highlighted word to see the original, how to say it, and what it means, checked against the original-language texts.
Every page leads to Jesus
Watch promises made in Genesis kept in Jesus. Each line lights up on your map as you read.
Better together
Read on your own, or start a Bible study with friends, family or your church. Answers stay sealed until you meet, then appear together.
- 1
Start your free week
Sign up in a minute with your email.
- 2
Read a few minutes a day
Each chapter opens itself up as you go. Tap what you're curious about.
- 3
Bring your people, if you like
Send one link. Everyone reads the same chapter, then meets to talk.
First week free, then $10 a month per person
Questions
What is Favor?
Favor is a Bible study app that explains every chapter as you read: the Hebrew and Greek behind the words, the details most readers miss, and how each part of the Bible leads to Jesus. Read on your own, or start a Bible study with friends, family or your church.
How much does it cost?
Your first week is free. After that it's $10 a month per person, the same for everyone, including groups and churches. There are no tiers and nothing extra to unlock.
Can I read Exodus 6 straight away?
Favor takes the Bible as one story, in order, so you'll reach Exodus 6 with everything that leads up to it in view. Start from Genesis, or meet Jesus first in the Gospels. You can read the text of any chapter in Favor's Look up whenever you like.
Do I need a group?
No. Many people read on their own. If you'd like to read with others, start a Bible study and share one link. Everyone's answers stay private until you meet.
I've never really read the Bible. Is this for me?
Yes. Favor starts where you are and explains as it goes. The questions along the way aren't marked right or wrong: you answer, then see what the text shows.
Which Bible does Favor use?
The World English Bible, a modern, readable translation in the public domain. God's name appears as "the LORD", as in most English Bibles.
Is Favor tied to a church?
No. Favor is non-denominational. Where Christians read a passage differently, it shows the main views side by side and doesn't pick one.
Start with Exodus 6
The best way to learn the Bible. For you. For everyone.
There's a seat for you at the table.
Start your free weekFirst week free, then $10 a month per person · Log in
Scripture quotations are from the World English Bible, which is in the public domain. Hebrew and Greek words are checked against the original-language texts and public-domain lexicons. What we believe · Favor home