<P> I am that I am is a common English translation of the Hebrew phrase אֶהְיֶה אֲשֶׁר אֶהְיֶה ‬,' ehyeh' ăšer' ehyeh ((ʔɛhˈjɛh ʔaˈʃɛr ʔɛhˈjɛh)) - also "I am who am", "I am who I am" or "I will be what I will be" or even "I create what (ever) I create". The traditional English translation within Judaism favors "I will be what I will be" because there is no present tense of the verb "to be" in the Hebrew language . So for example to say "I am a book" in Hebrew would be Ani Sefer (literally in English is "I book"). This translation of phrase from the Hebrew Bible is often guided by the theology or ideology of the people doing the translation or their sponsors . </P> <P> Its context is the encounter of the burning bush (Exodus 3: 14): Moses asks what he is to say to the Israelites when they ask what God has sent him to them, and Yahweh replies, "I am who I am," adding, "Say this to the people of Israel,' I am has sent me to you ."' ' Ehyeh is the first person form of hayah, "to be", and owing to the peculiarities of Hebrew grammar means both "I am", "I was", and "I will be". The meaning of the longer phrase' ehyeh' ăšer' ehyeh is debated, and might be seen as a promise ("I will be with you") or as statement of incomparability ("I am without equal"). </P> <P> The passage raises a number of issues beyond to its linguistic and theological meaning . It is, for example, somewhat remarkable that despite this exchange the Israelites never ask Moses for the name of God . Then there are a number of probably unanswerable questions, including who it is that does not know God's name, Moses or the Israelites (most commentators take it that it is Moses who does not know, meaning that the Israelites will ask him the name in order to prove his credentials), and just what the statement means . The last can be approached in three ways: </P>

When did god say i am who i am