why does god ....?

Question

Exodus 3:5
5 "Do not come any closer," God said. "Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy ground."

why does god care that moses had sandals on? would an all powerful and all knowing being really care if one of his creations had some shoes on? isnt that kind of... picky?

and what is the main purpose in this? why did it matter?

Answer 1

Moses taking off his shoes was a token of respect and submission.

Answer 2

Gods purpose was not the shoes it was the fact that Moses was in Gods presence and His holy ground there is no one could live and look upon the face of God His brilliance and splendor is nothing humans could fathom

Answer 3

When you believe in God, everything you do is a sign of faith, even the little things. Respect for what is Holy and a willingness to do what God asks of us is what Moses did and we should too.

May God Bless you.

Answer 4

It has to do with respect. A holy place is something beyond normal, not your weekly church house. It's a temple. And you are showing respect to God by removing your shoes before you enter.

It's not the shoes bothering God, it's the man taking the moment to show respect for his God. That's what's important here. The man showing faith and respect.

Answer 5

“Holiness Belongs to Jehovah”

Since Jehovah embodies the quality of holiness, it may rightly be said that he is the source of all holiness. He does not selfishly hoard this precious quality; he imparts it to others, and he does so generously. Why, when God spoke to Moses through an angel at the burning bush, even the surrounding ground became holy as a result of its connection with Jehovah!—Exodus 3:5.

Can imperfect humans become holy with Jehovah’s help? Yes, in a relative sense. God gave his people Israel the prospect of becoming “a holy nation.” (Exodus 19:6) He blessed that nation with a system of worship that was holy, clean, pure. Holiness is thus a recurring theme of the Mosaic Law. In fact, the high priest wore a golden plate across the front of his turban, where all could see it glittering in the light. Engraved upon it were the words: “Holiness belongs to Jehovah.” (Exodus 28:36) So a high standard of cleanness and purity was to distinguish their worship and, indeed, their way of life. Jehovah told them: “You should prove yourselves holy, because I Jehovah your God am holy.” (Leviticus 19:2) As long as the Israelites lived by God’s counsel to the extent possible for imperfect humans, they were holy in a relative sense.

This emphasis on holiness was in stark contrast with the worship of the nations surrounding Israel. Those pagan nations worshiped gods whose very existence was a lie and a sham, gods who were portrayed as violent, greedy, and promiscuous. They were unholy in every possible sense. The worship of such gods made people unholy. Thus, Jehovah warned his servants to keep separate from pagan worshipers and their polluted religious practices.—Leviticus 18:24-28; 1 Kings 11:1, 2.

At its best, Jehovah’s chosen nation of ancient Israel could provide only a dim reflection of the holiness of God’s heavenly organization. The millions of spirit creatures who loyally serve God are referred to as his “holy myriads.” (Deuteronomy 33:2; Jude 14) They perfectly reflect the bright, pure beauty of God’s holiness. And remember the seraphs that Isaiah saw in his vision. The content of their song suggests that these mighty spirit creatures play an important role in making Jehovah’s holiness known throughout the universe. One spirit creature, though, is above all of these—the only-begotten Son of God. Jesus is the highest reflection of Jehovah’s holiness. Rightly, he is known as “the Holy One of God.”—John 6:68, 69.

Answer 6

I don't think it's picky as much as it is symbolic. Now, part of the problem is we have to second-guess what God was after. But the link below gives a good, reasoned explanation of the symbolic nature of the action.

Answer 7

It was to show that respect was needed when walking on the holy ground.

If you went to someone's house, and they had white carpet and they requested everyone take off their shoes b/c of the carpet, wouldn't it be out respect to do that in the first place?

He was just reminding him of how to show the proper respect for holy things.

I hope this helped you some!

Answer 8

because God is so Holy and so Perfect that one should not even soil the ground God stands on.
most people have no concept of how great God is.....especially those who criticize God or ask questions like "why does God?' or "why didn't God?"
the created questioning the Creator.....
that is the height of human stupidity.

Answer 9

It was to protect him from getting to close to the fire, or the holiness of God. It is basically a metaphor saying that you shouldn't touch this, it is holy. Or this ground is holy, do not make it unclean with your sandals.

Answer 10

because if moses came with sandals, it means that he does not want to be part of the glory of God.