Exo 3:1–22 I Will Turn Aside and See This Great Sight

[Study Aired March 21, 2022]

Exo 3:1  Now Moses kept the flock of Jethro his father in law, the priest of Midian: and he led the flock to the backside of the desert, and came to the mountain of God, even to Horeb. 
Exo 3:2  And the angel of the LORD appeared unto him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush: and he looked, and, behold, the bush burned with fire, and the bush was not consumed. 
Exo 3:3  And Moses said, I will now turn aside, and see this great sight, why the bush is not burnt. 
Exo 3:4  And when the LORD saw that he turned aside to see, God called unto him out of the midst of the bush, and said, Moses, Moses. And he said, Here am I. 
Exo 3:5  And he said, Draw not nigh hither: put off thy shoes from off thy feet, for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground. 
Exo 3:6  Moreover he said, I am the God of thy father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. And Moses hid his face; for he was afraid to look upon God. 
Exo 3:7  And the LORD said, I have surely seen the affliction of my people which are in Egypt, and have heard their cry by reason of their taskmasters; for I know their sorrows; 
Exo 3:8  And I am come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians, and to bring them up out of that land unto a good land and a large, unto a land flowing with milk and honey; unto the place of the Canaanites, and the Hittites, and the Amorites, and the Perizzites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites. 
Exo 3:9  Now therefore, behold, the cry of the children of Israel is come unto me: and I have also seen the oppression wherewith the Egyptians oppress them. 
Exo 3:10  Come now therefore, and I will send thee unto Pharaoh, that thou mayest bring forth my people the children of Israel out of Egypt. 
Exo 3:11  And Moses said unto God, Who am I, that I should go unto Pharaoh, and that I should bring forth the children of Israel out of Egypt? 
Exo 3:12  And he said, Certainly I will be with thee; and this shall be a token unto thee, that I have sent thee: When thou hast brought forth the people out of Egypt, ye shall serve God upon this mountain. 
Exo 3:13  And Moses said unto God, Behold, when I come unto the children of Israel, and shall say unto them, The God of your fathers hath sent me unto you; and they shall say to me, What is his name? what shall I say unto them? 
Exo 3:14  And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you. 
Exo 3:15  And God said moreover unto Moses, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, The LORD God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, hath sent me unto you: this is my name for ever, and this is my memorial unto all generations. 
Exo 3:16  Go, and gather the elders of Israel together, and say unto them, The LORD God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob, appeared unto me, saying, I have surely visited you, and seen that which is done to you in Egypt: 
Exo 3:17  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. 
Exo 3:18  And they shall hearken to thy voice: and thou shalt come, thou and the elders of Israel, unto the king of Egypt, and ye shall say unto him, The LORD God of the Hebrews hath met with us: and now let us go, we beseech thee, three days’ journey into the wilderness, that we may sacrifice to the LORD our God. 
Exo 3:19  And I am sure that the king of Egypt will not let you go, no, not by a mighty hand. 
Exo 3:20  And I will stretch out my hand, and smite Egypt with all my wonders which I will do in the midst thereof: and after that he will let you go. 
Exo 3:21  And I will give this people favour in the sight of the Egyptians: and it shall come to pass, that, when ye go, ye shall not go empty: 
Exo 3:22  But every woman shall borrow of her neighbour, and of her that sojourneth in her house, jewels of silver, and jewels of gold, and raiment: and ye shall put them upon your sons, and upon your daughters; and ye shall spoil the Egyptians.

This chapter deals with the coming of the Lord to Moses. In other words, Moses’ encounter with Christ. Up to this time in Moses’ life, he knew he had been called by the Lord and was doing the work of the Lord by his own strength. He had not encountered Jesus yet. Moses’ scenario is just like us. We left Egypt and came to the wilderness thinking we were serving the Lord by helping the flock, when in fact, we’ve ended up in Babylon (the church in the wilderness) and were becoming worse off. If we are called and chosen, then our Lord would come to us with the brightness of His coming to start the process of destroying the beast within.

2Th 2:7  For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way. 
2Th 2:8  And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming:

As we are aware, what Moses went through is typical of us as elect. The disciples also had the same encounter. The time that Jesus called them to become His disciples was the time they left Egypt or the world. However, when Jesus was physically with them, they thought they were serving the Lord, when in fact, they were unconverted. It was later after Christ was resurrected that they had an encounter with Christ. This is what Peter had to say about his experience on the day of Pentecost:

Act 2:19  And I will shew wonders in heaven above, and signs in the earth beneath; blood, and fire, and vapour of smoke: 
Act 2:20  The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before that great and notable day of the Lord come: 
Act 2:21  And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved.

It is after our sun had been turned to darkness and the moon to blood that Christ comes to us. His coming is the time when, if we call on the name of the Lord, we are saved. Let’s now look at Moses’ encounter when Christ came to him as follows:

Exo 3:1  Now Moses kept the flock of Jethro his father in law, the priest of Midian: and he led the flock to the backside of the desert, and came to the mountain of God, even to Horeb. 

Here, Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law, represents the Lord whose flock Moses was taking care of. As we know, the land of Midian where Moses fled after leaving Egypt, was part of the desert. A key characteristic of a desert is the scarcity of water, which makes it impossible for plants to grow. The fact that Moses was keeping the flock in the desert, therefore, suggests that Moses, together with the flock, symbolizes Babylon where there is lack of the word of the Lord. So, after leaving Egypt, we automatically end up in Babylon.

1Sa 3:1  And the child Samuel ministered unto the LORD before Eli. And the word of the LORD was precious in those days; there was no open vision.

Moses, being a symbol of the elect, had been called and chosen before the foundations of the world. Being called and chosen, it is a matter of time before the Lord comes with His brightness, which is His words, to destroy that which holds us from offering our lives as living sacrifice to the Lord. In the fullness of time, Moses led the flock to the backside^H310 of the desert. The word “backside” has frequently been used in King James to mean “after” or “behind”. However, it is also used in other ways such as “to turn away from” in Numbers 14:43.

Num 14:43  For the Amalekites and the Canaanites are there before you, and ye shall fall by the sword: because ye are turned away from^H310 the LORD, therefore the LORD will not be with you.

Thus, Moses leading the flock to the backside of the desert can mean Moses ‘turning away from’ the desert. It is when Moses turned away from the desert situation of the lack of the word of Christ that he came to the mountain of God or had an encounter with the Lord who comes with His words to brighten our path. In other words, it is when we begin to turn away from Babylon, representing the desert and its doctrines, that Christ comes to us!! This mountain of God, which is called Horeb, is the same as the New Jerusalem or the church of the first born. So, we turn away from the desert (Babylon) to enter Jerusalem which is above. This mountain of God is also spiritually the same as Mount Zion.

Isa 10:12  Wherefore it shall come to pass, that when the Lord hath performed his whole work upon mount Zion and on Jerusalem, I will punish the fruit of the stout heart of the king of Assyria, and the glory of his high looks.

It is interesting that Horeb, the mountain of God, means “desolate”. The word of the Lord describes the elect as desolate. This is all to confirm that the mountain of God here represents the assembly of the Lord’s elect.

Gal 4:27  For it is written, Rejoice, thou barren that bearest not; break forth and cry, thou that travailest not: for the desolate hath many more children than she which hath an husband.

Exo 3:2  And the angel of the LORD appeared unto him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush: and he looked, and, behold, the bush burned with fire, and the bush was not consumed. 
Exo 3:3  And Moses said, I will now turn aside, and see this great sight, why the bush is not burnt. 

The Lord coming to us, His elect, is through judgment or the fire of the word of the Lord. The bush here represents the elect as follows:

Deu 33:16  And for the precious things of the earth and fulness thereof, and for the good will of him that dwelt in the bush: let the blessing come upon the head of Joseph, and upon the top of the head of him that was separated from his brethren.

Thus, the statement that the Lord appeared unto Moses in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush is to let us know that this coming of Christ to the elect is all within us. In the fullness of time, the Lord will appear for the whole world to see. However, in this dispensation, the Lord’s coming is within us just as the kingdom of the Lord is within us.

Luk 17:20  And when he was demanded of the Pharisees, when the kingdom of God should come, he answered them and said, The kingdom of God cometh not with observation: 
Luk 17:21  Neither shall they say, Lo here! or, lo there! for, behold, the kingdom of God is within you. 
Luk 17:22  And he said unto the disciples, The days will come, when ye shall desire to see one of the days of the Son of man, and ye shall not see it.

What Moses saw caught his attention. Indeed, the Lord knows what will catch our attention. He saw the bush burning with fire, but the bush was not consumed. The question is, “What does this mean?” As indicated, the bush represents the elect and the bush burning is to let us know of the judgment of the elect. In spite of what the elect go through by way of judgment, we rather become stronger and are not consumed by our fiery trials. This is exemplified by what happened to the Israelites while in Egypt. Even as their burden became heavier, they became stronger and more fruitful.

Exo 1:12  But the more they afflicted them, the more they multiplied and grew. And they were grieved because of the children of Israel.

This is what Paul had to say about the bush burning but not being consumed:

2Co 6:4  But in all things approving ourselves as the ministers of God, in much patience, in afflictions, in necessities, in distresses, 
2Co 6:5  In stripes, in imprisonments, in tumults, in labours, in watchings, in fastings; 
2Co 6:6  By pureness, by knowledge, by longsuffering, by kindness, by the Holy Ghost, by love unfeigned, 
2Co 6:7  By the word of truth, by the power of God, by the armour of righteousness on the right hand and on the left, 
2Co 6:8  By honour and dishonour, by evil report and good report: as deceivers, and yet true; 
2Co 6:9  As unknown, and yet well known; as dying, and, behold, we live; as chastened, and not killed; 
2Co 6:10  As sorrowful, yet alway rejoicing; as poor, yet making many rich; as having nothing, and yet possessing all things. 

Our Lord Jesus Christ’s experience here on earth caps it all. He was like a bush burning but was not consumed.

Heb 5:5  So also Christ glorified not himself to be made an high priest; but he that said unto him, Thou art my Son, to day have I begotten thee. 
Heb 5:6  As he saith also in another place, Thou art a priest for ever after the order of Melchisedec. 
Heb 5:7  Who in the days of his flesh, when he had offered up prayers and supplications with strong crying and tears unto him that was able to save him from death, and was heard in that he feared; 
Heb 5:8  Though he were a Son, yet learned he obedience by the things which he suffered; 
Heb 5:9  And being made perfect, he became the author of eternal salvation unto all them that obey him; 

Now the question is, “What did Jesus, together with the people of God, see that kept them going in spite of the trouble they went through?” This is the very question on the mind of Moses that caused him to turn aside to see this great sight – why the bush is burning and yet not being consumed. The answer is very simple. It is because they have all seen the reward!! This is what Paul had to say about our High Priest Jesus:

Heb 12:2  Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.

Jesus saw the reward, and it served as a driving force to go against all the odds in this life to please God!! The reward is what is motivating all of us and preparing us to go through the fire knowing that we shall not be consumed!! Moses, like us, also wanted to know why the bush burns and yet was not consumed. However, many have seen the bush burning and not being consumed but were/are not enthused about it and therefore do not turn aside to see this great sight!! We, the elect, are the ones who, like Moses, are turning aside to see this great sight!! I remember Mike being questioned by someone about why he is so concerned with the first resurrection. This simply means that the fellow has not turned aside to see the reward!!

Exo 3:4  And when the LORD saw that he turned aside to see, God called unto him out of the midst of the bush, and said, Moses, Moses. And he said, Here am I.
Exo 3:5  And he said, Draw not nigh hither: put off thy shoes from off thy feet, for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground.

It is when we turn aside to understand the word of the Lord regarding how all the elect before us went through all kinds of tribulations, but they were not consumed, that Christ comes to us with His brightness. That is when we hear a voice within us calling us by our name. Let’s now pay attention to the name Moses. It means to ‘draw out’. As we are aware, Moses also represents the law. It is when the law has run its full course that it draws out of us what we really are in the flesh.

Gal 3:23  But before faith came, we were kept under the law, shut up unto the faith which should afterwards be revealed. 
Gal 3:24  Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith. 
Gal 3:25  But after that faith is come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster.

The fact that Moses was told not to draw near because the place where he was standing was holy ground is to make Moses aware that his way of life was not pleasing to the Lord. This means that the law has drawn out of Moses his unworthiness before the Lord and that Moses is required to change his way of walking before the Lord, which is signified by the Lord telling Moses to put off his shoes from his feet. The Lord also told Abraham after several years that the Lord appeared to him that he should walk before the Lord and be blameless. This implies that Abraham’s life at that time was not pleasing to the Lord.

Gen 17:1  And when Abram was ninety years old and nine, the LORD appeared to Abram, and said unto him, I am the Almighty God; walk before me, and be thou perfect. 

Exo 3:6  Moreover he said, I am the God of thy father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. And Moses hid his face; for he was afraid to look upon God. 

In this encounter with Moses, the Lord introduced Himself as the God of Moses’ fathers – Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. This introduction is to let Moses know that he is dealing with a God who is able to raise him up from his spiritually dead state.

Luk 20:37  Now that the dead are raised, even Moses shewed at the bush, when he calleth the Lord the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. 
Luk 20:38  For he is not a God of the dead, but of the living: for all live unto him. 

Moses hiding his face signifies that he became aware of his sins which separates us from the Lord.

Isa 59:2  But your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid his face from you, that he will not hear.

It is when the Lord comes to us with the brightness of His words that we become aware of our iniquities, and we come to see clearly the man of sin sitting in our temple claiming that he is God. This is what happened to Isaiah when the Lord came to Him.

Isa 6:1  In the year that King Uzziah died I saw the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up; and the train of his robe filled the temple.

Isa 6:5  And I said: “Woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts!” 

2Th 2:3  Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; 
2Th 2:4  Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God. 

2Th 2:7  For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way. 
2Th 2:8  And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming:

Exo 3:7  And the LORD said, I have surely seen the affliction of my people which are in Egypt, and have heard their cry by reason of their taskmasters; for I know their sorrows; 
Exo 3:8  And I am come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians, and to bring them up out of that land unto a good land and a large, unto a land flowing with milk and honey; unto the place of the Canaanites, and the Hittites, and the Amorites, and the Perizzites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites. 
Exo 3:9  Now therefore, behold, the cry of the children of Israel is come unto me: and I have also seen the oppression wherewith the Egyptians oppress them. 

The Lord’s coming to us is the result of us groaning under the burden of sin because of our taskmaster, the old man or the flesh. If we are called and chosen, then he will hear our cry in this life and come to us with His deliverance. As stated here in verse 8, the deliverance of the Lord at the hands of the Egyptian is to bring them out of Egypt to possess a good land. The land here is our bodies, and the Egyptians, the Canaanites, the Hittites the Amorites and the Jebusites are all different aspects of the beast or the old man within which are dealt with at various phases of our lives. Thus, our salvation is a process which lasts a lifetime. It is not something that we attain at the beginning of our walk as our brothers and sisters in Babylon made us believe during our sojourn there. It is rather at the end of the road that salvation becomes ours.

Mat 24:13  But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved. 

1Co 9:24  Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one receives the prize? So run that you may obtain it. 
1Co 9:25  Every athlete exercises self-control in all things. They do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable. 
1Co 9:26  So I do not run aimlessly; I do not box as one beating the air. 
1Co 9:27  But I discipline my body and keep it under control, lest after preaching to others I myself should be disqualified. 

Exo 3:10  Come now therefore, and I will send thee unto Pharaoh, that thou mayest bring forth my people the children of Israel out of Egypt. 
Exo 3:11  And Moses said unto God, Who am I, that I should go unto Pharaoh, and that I should bring forth the children of Israel out of Egypt?
Exo 3:12  And he said, Certainly I will be with thee; and this shall be a token unto thee, that I have sent thee: When thou hast brought forth the people out of Egypt, ye shall serve God upon this mountain. 

When we come to realize our unworthiness in the Lord’s presence, we do not think that the Lord can ever use us. This was what happened to Moses. The same thing happened to both Isaiah and Jeremiah when the Lord called them. These three present a witness to us that indeed the Lord is a God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. That is, the Lord is able to raise us up from our dead situation to use us for His cause.

Isa 6:5  And I said: “Woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts!” 
Isa 6:6  Then one of the seraphim flew to me, having in his hand a burning coal that he had taken with tongs from the altar. 
Isa 6:7  And he touched my mouth and said: “Behold, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away, and your sin atoned for.” 
Isa 6:8  And I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?” Then I said, “Here I am! Send me.”
Isa 6:9  And he said, “Go, and say to this people: “‘Keep on hearing, but do not understand; keep on seeing, but do not perceive.’

Jer 1:4  Now the word of the LORD came to me, saying, 
Jer 1:5  “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you; I appointed you a prophet to the nations.” 
Jer 1:6  Then I said, “Ah, Lord GOD! Behold, I do not know how to speak, for I am only a youth.” 
Jer 1:7  But the LORD said to me, “Do not say, ‘I am only a youth’; for to all to whom I send you, you shall go, and whatever I command you, you shall speak.

The reason why the Lord is able to use us in spite of our shortfalls is that it is the Lord that does the work. It does not depend on us. We are only vessels through which the Lord does the work. This is what verse 12 seems to suggest as the Lord told Moses that He would be with him. In Jeremiah’s encounter with the Lord, he was also told that the Lord would be with Him. The Lord being with us is the same as Him doing the work!!

Jer 1:8  Do not be afraid of them, for I am with you to deliver you, declares the LORD.” 

Php 2:13  for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure. 

1Co 12:6  And there are diversities of operations, but it is the same God which worketh all in all. 

In verse 12, Moses was told that as a sign of the Lord sending Him, when the Lord delivers them from Egypt, they shall serve the Lord in mountain Horeb. As indicated earlier, the mountain here represents the New Jerusalem. We are only able to serve the Lord acceptably when we are in the company of the saints.

Heb 12:22  But ye are come unto mount Sion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels, 
Heb 12:23  To the general assembly and church of the firstborn, which are written in heaven, and to God the Judge of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect, 
Heb 12:24  And to Jesus the mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling, that speaketh better things than that of Abel. 
Heb 12:25  See that ye refuse not him that speaketh. For if they escaped not who refused him that spake on earth, much more shall not we escape, if we turn away from him that speaketh from heaven: 
Heb 12:26  Whose voice then shook the earth: but now he hath promised, saying, Yet once more I shake not the earth only, but also heaven. 
Heb 12:27  And this word, Yet once more, signifieth the removing of those things that are shaken, as of things that are made, that those things which cannot be shaken may remain. 
Heb 12:28  Wherefore we receiving a kingdom which cannot be moved, let us have grace, whereby we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear:

Exo 3:13  And Moses said unto God, Behold, when I come unto the children of Israel, and shall say unto them, The God of your fathers hath sent me unto you; and they shall say to me, What is his name? what shall I say unto them? 
Exo 3:14  And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you. 
Exo 3:15  And God said moreover unto Moses, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, The LORD God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, hath sent me unto you: this is my name for ever, and this is my memorial unto all generations.

When Moses requested to know the name of the Lord, he was told that ”I AM THAT I AM”.  ‘I AM’ implies self-sufficiency, self-existence and immediate presence. What this means is that the Lord’s existence and actions are not dependent on anybody or anything. In other words, the Lord’s plans are not contingent upon any circumstance or anyone else.  He is sufficient in Himself to accomplish whatever He decides to do. It is another way of saying that with God, all things are possible. He promises that He will be what He will be; that is, He will be the eternally constant God. He stands, ever-present and unchangeable, completely sufficient in Himself, to do what He wills to do and to accomplish what He wills to accomplish.

As we have shown earlier, telling Moses that He is the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob is to show Moses that He is able to raise the dead to do whatever He wills to do!!

Job 23:13  But he is in one mind, and who can turn him? and what his soul desireth, even that he doeth. 
Job 23:14  For he performeth the thing that is appointed for me: and many such things are with him. 

Rev 1:8  I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty. 

Luk 20:37  Now that the dead are raised, even Moses shewed at the bush, when he calleth the Lord the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. 
Luk 20:38  For he is not a God of the dead, but of the living: for all live unto him. 

Exo 3:16  Go, and gather the elders of Israel together, and say unto them, The LORD God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob, appeared unto me, saying, I have surely visited you, and seen that which is done to you in Egypt: 
Exo 3:17  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. 

All these verses are to assure us that when we pray to the Lord according to His will, He hears us and will surely answer in His time. Right before the nation of Israel came to existence, the Lord had prophesied to Abraham that the Israelites will be in a foreign land for four hundred years before they are delivered. Thus, Israel’s request to be liberated from their taskmasters was right in the center of the Lord’s will!! However, the Lord has set times and seasons for the execution of His will in everybody’s life, and it is only when these set times are fulfilled that we receive answers to our request.

Ecc 3:1  To everything there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven: 

Ecc 3:11  He hath made everything beautiful in his time: also he hath set the world in their heart, so that no man can find out the work that God maketh from the beginning to the end. 

1Jn 3:21  Beloved, if our heart condemn us not, then have we confidence toward God. 
1Jn 3:22  And whatsoever we ask, we receive of him, because we keep his commandments, and do those things that are pleasing in his sight.

In verse 17, we are told that the land they are going to inherit after leaving Egypt is a land flowing with milk and honey. Let’s try to understand what milk and honey stands for. Milk in the scriptures represents the basics of the Lord’s word as shown below:

Isa 28:9  Whom shall he teach knowledge? and whom shall he make to understand doctrine? them that are weaned from the milk, and drawn from the breasts. 

1Co 3:2  I have fed you with milk, and not with meat: for hitherto ye were not able to bear it, neither yet now are ye able. 

Heb 5:12  For when for the time ye ought to be teachers, ye have need that one teach you again which be the first principles of the oracles of God; and are become such as have need of milk, and not of strong meat. 
Heb 5:13  For every one that useth milk is unskilful in the word of righteousness: for he is a babe. 

1Pe 2:2  As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby: 

Honey can also mean the milk of the word of Christ. It only helps us to distinguish between good and evil.

Isa 7:15  Butter and honey shall he eat, that he may know to refuse the evil, and choose the good. 

On the other hand, honey essentially deals with how we hear the word of the Lord. When the word of the Lord comes to us, it tastes so sweet, but after we start to apply it to our lives, that is when it becomes bitter.

Eze 3:3  And he said unto me, Son of man, cause thy belly to eat, and fill thy bowels with this roll that I give thee. Then did I eat it; and it was in my mouth as honey for sweetness. 

Rev 10:9  And I went unto the angel, and said unto him, Give me the little book. And he said unto me, Take it, and eat it up; and it shall make thy belly bitter, but it shall be in thy mouth sweet as honey. 
Rev 10:10  And I took the little book out of the angel’s hand, and ate it up; and it was in my mouth sweet as honey: and as soon as I had eaten it, my belly was bitter. 

So, the Lord delivering the Israelites from Egypt and taking them to the land flowing with milk and honey is to let us know that when we come out of the world, we are to start with the milk of the word of the Lord and must be zealous for the word of the Lord just as human beings search for honey which taste so good in the mouth. However, in reality, in our zeal to know the word of the Lord, we all end up in the church in the wilderness (Babylon) imbibing false doctrines which block us from the milk of the word and the honey taste of the word of the Lord.

Exo 3:18  And they shall hearken to thy voice: and thou shalt come, thou and the elders of Israel, unto the king of Egypt, and ye shall say unto him, The LORD God of the Hebrews hath met with us: and now let us go, we beseech thee, three days’ journey into the wilderness, that we may sacrifice to the LORD our God. 

Our exit from Egypt is to be accompanied by a three-day journey into the wilderness where we can offer sacrifice to the Lord. The wilderness here is the world. Our walk with Christ starts after leaving Egypt, and the three-day journey means that all we go through in this life is part of the spiritual maturity process destined for us. This spiritual maturity is accomplished through judgment. It is as we are maturing that we are able to offer our bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to the Lord.

Rom 12:1  I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.
Rom 12:2  And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God. 

Exo 3:19  And I am sure that the king of Egypt will not let you go, no, not by a mighty hand. 
Exo 3:20  And I will stretch out my hand, and smite Egypt with all my wonders which I will do in the midst thereof: and after that he will let you go. 

As we have explained in previous sessions, the king of Egypt represents the beast within. Our deliverance from this beast, or the old man within, is not accomplished in one day. It is a process. It takes the mighty hand of the Lord to deliver us from the opposition put up by this beast within to relinquish its throne in our lives. As indicated in verse 20, it takes the mighty hand of the Lord to work wonders on our behalf before we are delivered from the beast’s clutches. This is all to let us know that the death of the beast within is not our work. It is the Lord’s work. All we have to do to work the works of the Lord is to believe that what the Lord has started in us, He is able to complete it!!

Joh 6:28  Then said they unto him, What shall we do, that we might work the works of God? 
Joh 6:29  Jesus answered and said unto them, This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent. 

Php 1:6  Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ: 

Exo 3:21  And I will give this people favour in the sight of the Egyptians: and it shall come to pass, that, when ye go, ye shall not go empty: 
Exo 3:22  But every woman shall borrow of her neighbour, and of her that sojourneth in her house, jewels of silver, and jewels of gold, and raiment: and ye shall put them upon your sons, and upon your daughters; and ye shall spoil the Egyptians. 

The Lord does not facilitate our exit from Egypt without Him providing us with His word, which is represented here as gold and silver. However, after leaving Egypt, we turn the gold and the silver into images of men which are false doctrines. This is clearly demonstrated later in the journey in the wilderness at Mount Sinai when the Israelites used all the gold and silver to make a golden image. In the case of the raiment, which signifies the righteousness of Christ, we end up not submitting to Christ’s righteousness but rather establish our own righteousness (wear our own raiment).

Eze 16:13  Thus wast thou decked with gold and silver; and thy raiment was of fine linen, and silk, and broidered work; thou didst eat fine flour, and honey, and oil: and thou wast exceeding beautiful, and thou didst prosper into a kingdom.  
Eze 16:14  And thy renown went forth among the heathen for thy beauty: for it was perfect through my comeliness, which I had put upon thee, saith the Lord GOD. 
Eze 16:15  But thou didst trust in thine own beauty, and playedst the harlot because of thy renown, and pouredst out thy fornications on every one that passed by; his it was. 
Eze 16:16  And of thy garments thou didst take, and deckedst thy high places with divers colours, and playedst the harlot thereupon: the like things shall not come, neither shall it be so.
Eze 16:17  Thou hast also taken thy fair jewels of my gold and of my silver, which I had given thee, and madest to thyself images of men, and didst commit whoredom with them,

Exo 32:1  And when the people saw that Moses delayed to come down out of the mount, the people gathered themselves together unto Aaron, and said unto him, Up, make us gods, which shall go before us; for as for this Moses, the man that brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we wot not what is become of him. 
Exo 32:2  And Aaron said unto them, Break off the golden earrings, which are in the ears of your wives, of your sons, and of your daughters, and bring them unto me. 
Exo 32:3  And all the people brake off the golden earrings which were in their ears, and brought them unto Aaron. 
Exo 32:4  And he received them at their hand, and fashioned it with a graving tool, after he had made it a molten calf: and they said, These be thy gods, O Israel, which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt. 

Rom 10:2  For I bear them record that they have a zeal of God, but not according to knowledge. 
Rom 10:3  For they being ignorant of God’s righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God.