“But Moses said to God, ‘Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?’ God answered: I will be with you; and this will be your sign that I have sent you. When you have brought the people out of Egypt, you will serve God at this mountain. ‘But,’ said Moses to God, ‘If I go to the Israelites and say to them, “The God of your ancestors has sent me to you,” and they ask me, “What is his name?” what do I tell them?’ God replied to Moses: I am who I am. Then he added: This is what you will tell the Israelites: I AM has sent me to you” (Exod 3:11 to 14).

Introduction

This passage stands among the most pivotal moments in salvation history. Here God draws near to His people by allowing them to draw near to Him. He reveals who He is, where He is, what He is, and why He is. Two reasons make this moment foundational.

First, the Israelites had lived in Egypt for more than four centuries (Exod 12:41). They had become familiar with, and in some cases influenced by, the names and identities of many deities. When God reveals Himself as Ehyeh‑Asher‑Ehyeh (“I Am who Am,” “To Be,” “YHWH”), He distinguishes Himself from every god of Egypt and every god beyond Egypt.

Second, the Gospel of John repeatedly applies the divine “I Am” (Greek ego eimi) to Jesus of Nazareth. John uses this expression twenty‑four times, and several of these instances are direct claims to divinity. The revelation at the burning bush, therefore, becomes the interpretive key for understanding Christ’s identity.

Many readers assume that God’s answer to Moses is a disclosure of His personal name. This essay argues that God does not answer Moses’ question at all. Instead, as Christ often does in the Gospels, God reframes the question and answers in a way that reshapes the human understanding of God. Using exegetical and patristic insights, I will show that “I Am” is not a calling name but a revelation of God’s essence.

The Book of Exodus in Context

Exodus, the second book of the Pentateuch, recounts the oppression of Israel in Egypt, the call of Moses, the confrontation with Pharaoh, the deliverance through the Red Sea, the journey to Sinai, the covenant and its legislation, the apostasy and renewal, the construction of the Tabernacle, and the descent of God’s glory upon it. The revelation of the divine name occurs at the beginning of this narrative, establishing the theological foundation for everything that follows.

The Essence of God Is “I Am”

Moses’ first question, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh?” (Exod 3:11), almost invites a divine smile. Moses’ identity is irrelevant to the deliverance God intends. God immediately clarifies that Moses will be a vessel, not the source, of liberation. To paraphrase the divine response: “I will be with you, and I will accomplish this work through you, so that the people will worship Me and not you” (Exod 3:12).

Moses then anticipates the Israelites’ question: “What is His name?” (Exod 3:13). Considering the Egyptian pantheon, this question has practical merit. Yet the scene is striking. Moses stands barefoot on holy ground, speaking to the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and the question he musters is a request for a name.

Still, Moses understands that God has descended to meet a man of dust on the level of dust. He perceives that this God intends to intervene for His people. In this moment, Moses begins to grasp that who God is, what God is, and why God is can be summarized in one truth: God is love. Holy love is the essence of God.

Patristic Witness to the Meaning of “I Am”

Many Fathers of the Church affirm that God did not reveal a personal name to Moses but rather disclosed His essence.

Saint Ephrem writes in Hymns Against Heresies:

“To Moses He revealed His name: WHO AM, He called Himself, which is the name of His essence. And never did He name any other with this name, as He did with His other names. By this one exclusive name, He lets it be known that He alone is Being, which can be said of no other.”

Saint Ambrose of Milan, in On Twelve Psalms, makes the same point:

“When Moses asked, ‘What is your Name?’ he wanted to know what is peculiar to God. God, knowing what was on his mind, did not tell him His name but His occupation. He expressed a reality, not an appellation, when He said, ‘I Am who Am,’ for nothing is more peculiar to God than always to exist.”

God Is Everlasting Because He Is “I Am”

Other Fathers, including Saint Hilary of Poitiers, Saint Gregory of Nyssa, Saint Jerome, and Saint John of Damascus, saw in this passage a revelation of God’s eternal existence, timelessness, and triune nature.

Saint Augustine writes in his Psalms:

“He did not say: ‘The Lord God, almighty, merciful, and just,’ although these would be true. Rising to the heights of all that God could be named, He answered that He is to be called Being Itself. He says, ‘Tell them this: He who Is sent me.’ For He exists in such a way that, in comparison to Him, created things do not exist.”

God’s Love Flows from His Holiness

The Nicene‑Constantinopolitan Creed proclaims Christ as “God from God, Light from Light, true God from true God,” affirming that the Son shares the same substance as the Father and that the Spirit proceeds from that same substance. Saint John writes, “God is love” (1 John 4:8, 16). Isaiah and Jeremiah call God’s love “everlasting” (Isa 54:8; Jer 31:3).

If we apply any label to God’s nature, two must come first: holy and love. The call to holiness (“Be perfect, just as your heavenly Father is perfect,” Mt 5:48) is inseparable from the call to love (“Love one another,” Jn 15:17).

Every attribute of God must be prefixed with “holy.” God is holy love, holy light, holy goodness. His nature and substance are holy.

This encounter at the burning bush teaches that love flows from holiness. Before God reveals His love for Israel, He reveals His holiness. “Remove the sandals from your feet, for the place where you stand is holy ground.” Only by understanding that God is holy can we understand that God is love. Holy love is the true meaning of “I Am.”

God Is Catholic Because He Is “I Am”

When asked my name, I might say “Yoseph Daviyd,” and someone familiar with languages could discern meaning from it. When Moses asks God for His name, God responds with a statement of essence rather than a conventional name: Ehyeh‑Asher‑Ehyeh.

The fullness of this revelation is expressed in the Greek word katholikos, meaning “according to the whole.” God is catholic because He is holy, whole, complete, perfect, and all in all.

One may visualize God pointing to Himself and saying “I,” signifying His holy, complete being. Then, extending His arms outward, He says “Am,” signifying the outpouring of His holy nature in love. Thus the spiritual meaning of “I Am who Am” is “Holy Love who Loves.” God instructs Moses to say, “Love sent me to you.”

Conclusion

It is often said that if we can describe something with words, it is not God. Yet God has given us one word that allows us to understand Him: love. The revelation of “I Am” communicates that the essence of God is who He is in action. God truly is who He says He is.

The Fathers teach that “I Am” denotes God’s eternal nature and essence. Building upon their insight, we can see that each word of the phrase expresses a definitive truth. The essence of a thing tells what it is, how it is, where it is, and why it is. When we say that the meaning of “I Am” is holy love, we answer all these questions. This is the truth God entrusted to Moses when He said, “Tell the Israelites: I AM has sent me to you.”

David L. Gray, ThM

A 2006 convert from Agnosticism, David L. Gray has emerged as a prolific Catholic theologian, author, and humorist. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from Central State University, Ohio, and a Master of Arts in Catholic Theology (ThM) from Ohio Dominican University. He is currently pursuing a Doctor of Ministry (DMin) in Liturgical Catechesis at the Catholic University of America. For more information about Mr. Gray, please visit davidlgray.info