Exodus 7:2 is God’s instruction to Moses about how the confrontation with Pharaoh will happen. Moses is to say everything God commands, and his brother Aaron is to deliver the message to Pharaoh, demanding that the Israelites be allowed to leave Egypt. The verse is spoken by the LORD to Moses, and it describes the words and roles he is to carry into the royal court.
You 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.
Exodus 7:2 (WEB)
What Exodus 7:2 Means
The verse begins with “You shall speak all that I command you.” Moses is not to improvise or soften the message. Whatever God gives him to say is the content he delivers, which makes the words God’s and not Moses’ own opinions. Moses is being trained to be a faithful messenger, one who passes along exactly what he has been given.
Next, “Aaron your brother shall speak to Pharaoh” assigns the spokesman role to Aaron. Aaron will carry Moses’ words to the king, so Moses and Aaron work as a team, with one receiving the message and the other delivering it in public. The verse does not explain why the division falls this way, though the surrounding chapters suggest Moses’ hesitation to speak in public played a part.
The purpose clause, “that he let the children of Israel go out of his land,” states the goal of the whole confrontation. The verse does not promise that Pharaoh will agree, and the surrounding text in fact warns that he will resist. What it does promise is that God has a clear purpose for Israel’s release and is directing the messengers toward it.
The Context of Exodus 7:2
Exodus is the second book of the Torah, traditionally attributed to Moses, and it tells how God brought the descendants of Jacob out of slavery in Egypt and formed them into a nation at Sinai. Its first audience was most likely the people of Israel, who needed to understand how their deliverance had come about. Chapter 7 begins the sequence of plagues, in which God confronts the gods and the power of Egypt.
Verses 1 through 5 come just before this one and give Moses a bold status, “as God to Pharaoh,” with Aaron as his prophet. Verse 3 adds that God will harden Pharaoh’s heart and multiply the signs, and verse 5 states that the Egyptians will know that the LORD is God. Read in that setting, verse 2 is less about Moses’ skill as a speaker and more about God’s plan to make himself known through a series of events that Pharaoh cannot easily resist.
Key Phrases in Exodus 7:2
Exodus 4:10
Moses said to the LORD, “O Lord, I am not eloquent, neither before now, nor since you have spoken to your servant; for I am slow of speech, and of a slow tongue.”
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Moses’ earlier complaint that he is slow of speech sets up why Aaron is named as spokesman in Exodus 7:2. Reading the two passages together shows that God’s choice of Aaron responds to Moses’ honest fear rather than ignoring it.
Exodus 3:12
He said, “Certainly I will be with you. This will be the token to you, that I have sent you: when you have brought the people out of Egypt, you shall serve God on this mountain.”
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God’s promise at the burning bush that he will be with Moses gives the foundation for the mission described in Exodus 7:2. The reassurance of God’s presence explains why Moses can accept a task that seems far beyond his strength.
A Short Prayer From Exodus 7:2
Lord, you gave Moses words to speak and a brother to stand beside him. Help me to hear what you are asking of me and to speak it faithfully, without adding to it or taking away from it. When the task feels heavier than I can carry, remind me that you have already provided the help I need. Give me courage to say what is true and trust in you for the outcome. Amen.
