Q. Put a different way, one wonders if Exod. 3.14 isn’t meant to tease the mind into active thought (a quote I borrow from C.H. Dodd speaking about parables), and so is meant to be evocative rather than definitive. Or is this just a partial unveiling of the truth about Yahweh, and Moses is being told wait and see? But how would that be what Moses would convey to the Hebrews in Egypt when asked about the name of God? I must say Tigay’s explanation makes the better sense to me— my character will become evident through my actions in Egypt. Yes, there is mystery in this whole episode including with the bush, but no, it’s not promoting obscurantism or mere head scratching.
A. In other words, we will never exhaust what can be said about Exod. 3:14! I would, however, note again that the “I AM WHO I AM” meaning of the divine name is given to Moses and the reader, and does not feature as part of what Moses is told to convey, or in the event conveys, to the Hebrews in Egypt. So there may be a meaning greater than that related to the immediate narrative context.
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