Exodus 3:2

Linguistic Bible Translation from Source Texts

The angel of the LORD appeared to him in a flame of fire from within a bush. Moses saw that the bush was burning with fire, but it was not consumed.

📖 Grammatical Analysis

Original Text

וַ֠יֵּרָא מַלְאַ֨ךְ יְהֹוָ֥ה אֵלָ֛יו בְּלַבַּת־אֵ֖שׁ מִתּ֣וֹךְ הַסְּנֶ֑ה וַיַּ֗רְא וְהִנֵּ֤ה הַסְּנֶה֙ בֹּעֵ֣ר בָּאֵ֔שׁ וְהַסְּנֶ֖ה אֵינֶ֥נּוּ אֻכָּֽל׃

Transliteration

Wayyērāʾ malʾaḵ YHWH ʾēlāw in-labbat-ʾēš from-tōḵ hasseneh wayyarʾ and-hinnēh hasseneh bō'ēr in-ʾēš and-hasseneh ʾênennû ʾukkāl.

Grammar Details

• *Wayyērāʾ*: consecutive imperfect, 3rd masculine singular, niphal - and he appeared
• *malʾaḵ*: noun, masculine singular construct - messenger/angel of
• *YHWH*: proper noun - Yahweh/LORD
• *ʾēlāw*: preposition with 3rd masculine singular suffix - to him
• *labbat*: noun, feminine singular construct with preposition - in flame of
• *ʾēš*: noun, feminine singular with preposition - in fire
• *tōḵ*: noun, masculine singular construct with preposition - from midst of
• *hasseneh*: noun, masculine singular with definite article - the bush/bramble
• *wayyarʾ*: consecutive imperfect, 3rd masculine singular, qal - and he saw
• *hinnēh*: interjection - behold
• *bō'ēr*: participle, masculine singular - burning
• *ʾênennû*: particle of negation with 3rd masculine singular suffix - was not
• *ʾukkāl*: participle, masculine singular, pual - consumed/devoured

Word Meanings

• *malʾaḵ*: messenger/angel/representative
• *labbat*: flame/blaze/heart
• *tōḵ*: midst/middle/among
• *hasseneh*: the bush/bramble/thornbush
• *bō'ēr*: burning/kindled/consuming
• *ʾukkāl*: consumed/devoured/eaten

Other Translations

• King James Version 1769 (Standard Version)

  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.

• KJV1611 – Modern English

  And the angel of the LORD appeared to him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush. He looked, and behold, the bush burned with fire, but the bush was not consumed.

• King James Version 1611 (Original)

  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.

• American Standard Version with Strong's Numbers

  And the angel{H4397} of Jehovah{H3068} appeared{H7200} unto him in a flame{H3827} of fire{H784} out of the midst{H8432} of a bush:{H5572} and he looked,{H7200} and, behold, the bush{H5572} burned{H1197} with fire,{H784} and the bush{H5572} was not consumed.{H398}

• King James Version with Strong's Numbers

  And the angel{H4397} of the LORD{H3068} appeared{H7200}{(H8735)} unto him in a flame{H3827} of fire{H784} out of the midst{H8432} of a bush{H5572}: and he looked{H7200}{(H8799)}, and, behold, the bush{H5572} burned{H1197}{(H8802)} with fire{H784}, and the bush{H5572} was not consumed{H398}{(H8794)}.

• Tyndale Bible (1526/1534)

  And the angell of the Lorde apeared vnto hi in a flame of fyre out of a bush. And he perceaued that the bush burned with fyre and consumed not.

• Coverdale Bible (1535)

  And the angell of ye LORDE appeared vnto him in a flame of fyre out of the bush. And he sawe that ye bush brent wt fyre, and yet was not consumed,

• Geneva Bible (1560)

  Then the Angel of the Lord appeared vnto him in a flame of fire, out of the middes of a bush: and he looked, and behold, the bush burned with fire, and the bush was not consumed.

• Bishops' Bible (1568)

  And the angell of the Lorde appeared vnto hym in a flambe of fire out of the middes of a busshe: And he loked, and beholde the busshe burned with fire, and the busshe was not consumed.

• Authorized King James Version (1611)

  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.

• Webster's Bible (1833)

  The angel of Yahweh appeared to him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush. He looked, and behold, the bush burned with fire, and the bush was not consumed.

• Young's Literal Translation (1862/1898)

  and there appeareth unto him a messenger of Jehovah in a flame of fire, out of the midst of the bush, and he seeth, and lo, the bush is burning with fire, and the bush is not consumed.

• American Standard Version (1901)

  And the angel of Jehovah 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.

• American Standard Version (1901)

  And the angel of Jehovah 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.

• Bible in Basic English (1941)

  And the angel of the Lord was seen by him in a flame of fire coming out of a thorn-tree: and he saw that the tree was on fire, but it was not burned up.

• World English Bible (2000)

  The angel of Yahweh appeared to him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush. He looked, and behold, the bush burned with fire, and the bush was not consumed.

• NET Bible® (New English Translation)

  The angel of the LORD appeared to him in a flame of fire from within a bush. He looked– and the bush was ablaze with fire, but it was not being consumed!

Referenced Verses

• Acts 7:30-35 : 30 After forty years had passed, an angel of the Lord appeared to Moses in the flames of a burning bush in the wilderness near Mount Sinai. 31 Moses was amazed at what he saw. As he approached to look more closely, he heard the voice of the Lord say, 32 'I am the God of your ancestors, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.' Moses trembled with fear and did not dare to look closely. 33 Then the Lord said to him, 'Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy ground.' 34 'I have surely seen the oppression of my people in Egypt, and I have heard their groaning. I have come down to rescue them. Now come, I will send you to Egypt.' 35 This same Moses, whom they had rejected by saying, 'Who made you ruler and judge?'—this is the one God sent as ruler and deliverer through the angel who appeared to him in the bush.
• Deut 33:16 : 16 With the choicest gifts of the earth and its fullness, and with the favor of Him who dwelt in the burning bush. May these rest on the head of Joseph, on the crown of the prince among his brothers.
• Isa 43:2 : 2 When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you cross the rivers, they will not overwhelm you. When you walk through fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not consume you.
• Mark 12:26 : 26 Regarding the dead being raised—have you not read in the book of Moses, in the passage about the burning bush, how God said to him, 'I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob'?
• Luke 20:37 : 37 Even Moses showed that the dead are raised, in the passage about the bush, where he calls the Lord 'the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.'
• John 1:14 : 14 The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us. We have seen His glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.
• Isa 63:9 : 9 In all their distress, he too was distressed, and the angel of his presence saved them. In his love and compassion, he redeemed them; he lifted them up and carried them all the days of old.
• 2 Cor 1:8-9 : 8 For we do not want you to be unaware, brothers and sisters, of the trouble we experienced in the province of Asia. We were under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired of life itself. 9 Indeed, we felt we had received the sentence of death. But this happened so that we would not rely on ourselves but on God, who raises the dead. 10 He has delivered us from such a deadly peril, and He will deliver us again. On Him we have set our hope that He will continue to deliver us,
• Dan 3:27 : 27 The satraps, prefects, governors, and the king’s officials gathered around and saw that the fire had had no effect on the bodies of these men. Their hair was not singed, their clothes were not burned, and there was no smell of fire on them.
• Hos 12:4-5 : 4 In the womb, he grasped his brother’s heel; and in his strength, he struggled with God. 5 He struggled with the angel and prevailed. He wept and pleaded for favor. He found Him at Bethel, and there He spoke with us.
• Zech 13:7 : 7 Awake, O sword, against My shepherd and against the man who is My companion, declares the LORD of hosts. Strike the shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered; and I will turn My hand against the little ones.
• Mal 3:1 : 1 Behold, I am sending my messenger, and he will prepare the way before me. Suddenly, the Lord whom you are seeking will come to his temple; and the messenger of the covenant, in whom you delight—behold, he is coming,
• Rom 8:3 : 3 For what the law could not do, weakened as it was by the flesh, God did. By sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and as a sin offering, He condemned sin in the flesh.
• Isa 53:10-11 : 10 Yet it was the Lord's will to crush him and cause him to suffer. When you make his life an offering for sin, he will see his offspring and prolong his days, and the will of the Lord will prosper in his hand. 11 After his suffering, he will see the result and be satisfied. By his knowledge, my righteous servant will justify many, and he will bear their iniquities.
• Ps 66:12 : 12 You caused men to ride over our heads; we went through fire and water, but You brought us out to abundance.
• Gen 15:13-17 : 13 The LORD said to him, "Know for certain that your descendants will be foreigners in a land not their own, where they will be enslaved and oppressed for four hundred years." 14 "But I will judge the nation they serve, and afterward they will come out with great wealth." 15 "As for you, you will go to your ancestors in peace and be buried at a good old age." 16 In the fourth generation, your descendants will return here, for the iniquity of the Amorites has not yet reached its full measure. 17 When the sun had set and darkness had fallen, a smoking oven and a burning torch appeared and passed between the divided pieces.
• Gen 16:7-9 : 7 The angel of the LORD found her by a spring of water in the wilderness, the spring on the way to Shur. 8 He said, "Hagar, Sarai's maidservant, where have you come from, and where are you going?" She answered, "I am fleeing from the presence of my mistress Sarai." 9 Then the angel of the LORD said to her, "Return to your mistress and submit to her authority." 10 The angel of the LORD also said, "I will greatly multiply your offspring so that they cannot be counted because of their great numbers." 11 The angel of the LORD said to her, "You are now pregnant and will give birth to a son. You shall name him Ishmael, because the LORD has heard of your misery." 12 He will be a wild man; his hand will be against everyone, and everyone's hand will be against him. He will live in hostility toward all his brothers. 13 So Hagar called the name of the LORD who spoke to her, 'You are the God who sees me,' for she said, 'Have I truly seen the One who sees me here?'
• Gen 22:15-16 : 15 Then the angel of the LORD called to Abraham a second time from heaven, 16 and said, 'By Myself I have sworn, declares the LORD, because you have done this and have not withheld your son, your only son,
• Gen 48:16 : 16 'The Angel who redeemed me from all harm, may he bless these boys. May they be called by my name and the names of my fathers Abraham and Isaac. May they grow into a multitude in the midst of the earth.'
• Exod 3:4-9 : 4 When the LORD saw that he turned aside to look, God called to him out of the bush and said, 'Moses, Moses!' And Moses replied, 'Here I am.' 5 God said, 'Do not come any closer. Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy ground.' 6 Then he said, 'I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.' At this, Moses hid his face because he was afraid to look at God. 7 The LORD said, 'I have surely seen the affliction of my people in Egypt. I have heard their cry on account of their oppressors, and I am aware of their sufferings.' 8 'So I have come down to rescue them from the power of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land to a good and spacious land, a land flowing with milk and honey—the place of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites.' 9 'Now, the cry of the Israelites has come to me, and I have also seen the oppression with which the Egyptians oppress them.' 10 'So now go! I am sending you to Pharaoh to bring my people, the Israelites, out of Egypt.'
• Exod 3:16 : 16 Go, assemble the elders of Israel, and tell them, 'The LORD, the God of your ancestors—the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob—has appeared to me and said: "I have watched over you and have seen what has been done to you in Egypt."
• Deut 4:20 : 20 But the LORD has taken you and brought you out of the iron furnace, out of Egypt, to be a people of His inheritance, as you are today.