Exodus 3:6 English Standard Version (ESV) And he said, “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” And Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look at God.

Nothing in Exodus 3 indicates what Moses did in that moment beyond hiding his face from God because of fear. The first impulse is to believe that Moses took off his sandals because he feared God at that moment. He was not told what to do with those sandals. There was no instruction to cast them back down the mountain or hide them.

If I place myself in that moment I can see how I might act but that is only my idea. I am not Moses, and Moses might have done something else. What is important about the sandals is not what Moses did but what I might do in that situation. 

Finding those sandals in my hands, fearing to even look at the face of God, what was meant to protect my feet are now used to shield my face from God. That is me, in a moment of understanding, this is how things changed when I came before God.

In the Garden Adam and Eve did not have sandals because there were no thorns or thistles to hurt them. It was not until they were ejected from the garden that they needed to protect their feet.

In my mind I see that if and when God releases me from His presence and I go back out into the world, I will need those sandals to protect my feet. I would not throw them away.

Now I see the sandals as things that are made by man to protect our walk in the world. Our feet are sensitive and our first point of contact in the world. What have we bought or made to protect ourselves as we make our way in the world? Remember the footwear is not provided by God, it is a thing of our own choosing.

Since this is a spiritual insight, then what do the sandals now represent as protective mechanisms to hide our pain?

Why pain? Because the thorns and thistles of the world are meant to cause us pain.

Psalm 119:9 English Standard Version

Beth

9 How can a young man keep his way pure? By guarding it according to your word.

This is the English transliteration for the Hebrew beth, meaning “house,” “tent,” “place.” It occurs in many compound proper names formed similarly to the method of compounding words in the German language, as shown in the articles immediately following. Thus we have beth ‘anath or ‘anoth =” house of replies”; beth’el =” house of God” (Source BLB.ORG)

How appropriate that the first verse in the second section of Psalm 119 addresses two important issues. Beth is the second letter in the Hebrew alphabet and while its primary meaning is a dwelling place, its secondary meaning is addressed first.

The answer to important questions are found in His Word. God replies to those in His dwelling place.

Why this question of purity is asked and answered first in this section is important and can be seen in scripture as examples of why it is listed first.

Exodus 3:5 English Standard Version (ESV) Then he said, “Do not come near; take your sandals off your feet, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground.”

We often miss important answers because we do not ask appropriate questions. We often take His Word for granted without seeking the underlying implications. Note closely God’s instruction to remove his sandals after Moses had already stood on Holy Ground.

The first thing that comes to mind for most of us is what has been taught to us about this moment. There is the issue of holiness and that nothing is allowed to come before God that is unholy for it will be destroyed before it gets close enough to pollute our Holy God. The shoes are taught to represent sin and need to be removed before entering into His presence.

But Moses was already standing on Holy Ground before God told him to remove his sandals.

Here is the question. What did Moses do with his sandals?