And he said, Draw not nigh hither: put off thy shoes from off thy feet, for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground.
Parallel translations
- WEB He said, “Don’t come close. Take your sandals off of your feet, for the place you are standing on is holy ground.”
- BSB “Do not come any closer,” God said. “Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy ground.”
- NKJV Then He said, “Do not draw near this place. Take your sandals off your feet, for the place where you stand is holy ground.”
- NASB Then He said, “Do not come near here; remove your sandals from your feet, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground.”
- NLT “Do not come any closer,” the Lord warned. “Take off your sandals, for you are standing on holy ground.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
God tells Moses to remove his sandals, for he stands on holy ground. God's presence makes the place sacred and demands reverence.
Overview
Removing sandals was a gesture of humility and respect, acknowledging that the ground is holy only because God is there. The command teaches that sinful people cannot approach the holy God casually. It anticipates the whole sacrificial and priestly system, and ultimately Christ, through whom alone we may draw near to a holy God.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 8
- Josh 5:15And the captain of the LORD’s host said unto Joshua, Loose thy shoe from off thy foot; for the place whereon thou standest is holy. And Joshua did so.
- Acts 7:33Then said the Lord to him, Put off thy shoes from thy feet: for the place where thou standest is holy ground.
- Exod 19:12And thou shalt set bounds unto the people round about, saying, Take heed to yourselves, that ye go not up into the mount, or touch the border of it: whosoever toucheth the mount shall be surely put to death:
- Eccl 5:1Keep thy foot when thou goest to the house of God, and be more ready to hear, than to give the sacrifice of fools: for they consider not that they do evil.
- Gen 28:16–17And Jacob awaked out of his sleep, and he said, Surely the LORD is in this place; and I knew it not.
- Heb 12:20(For they could not endure that which was commanded, And if so much as a beast touch the mountain, it shall be stoned, or thrust through with a dart:
- Exod 19:21And the LORD said unto Moses, Go down, charge the people, lest they break through unto the LORD to gaze, and many of them perish.
- Lev 10:3Then Moses said unto Aaron, This is it that the LORD spake, saying, I will be sanctified in them that come nigh me, and before all the people I will be glorified. And Aaron held his peace.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
The Passover lamb whose blood turns away death, the exodus through the sea, the manna, the rock, and the tabernacle where God dwells with his people all foreshadow Jesus — our Passover, our redemption, the bread from heaven, and God-with-us in the flesh.
How Exodus 3:5 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.