And Moses said may simply mean that “he thought,” since he was probably alone except for the animals. In many languages it will be better style to place the words “Moses said [or, thought]” at the beginning of the verse rather than in the middle as Good News Translation does. I will turn aside is very literal; it means to change one’s direction or, in this context, “I will go closer” (Good News Translation). The Hebrew uses a particle here that is difficult to translate, but it conveys a sense of urgency. Some translations try to bring this out with the use of “must,” as in New Jerusalem Bible, “I must go across and see.” This great sight should be understood as “strange” (Good News Translation), “marvelous” (New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh), “wonderful” (New English Bible), or “remarkable” (New American Bible).

If it is unnatural to retain the direct speech when one is talking to oneself, the third person may be used. Thus the entire verse may be phrased as follows: “Moses thought it was very strange that the bush was not burning up, so he decided to go closer to investigate.” However, translators may find it more natural style to follow Revised Standard Version‘s word order; for example, “Moses decided to go closer to the bush and investigate, because he thought it was very strange that it was not burning up.” It is also possible to translate using direct speech: Moses thought, “Hey! I’m going to go closer to the bush and look. It’s very strange that this bush isn’t burning up!”

Quoted with permission from Osborn, Noel D. and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on Exodus. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 1999. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .