Taking off a shoe, in these verses, is an act of respect or a sign of a bargain. Moses at the bush is told, “put off thy shoes from off thy feet, for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground”, and Joshua hears the same from the captain of the LORD’s host. In Deuteronomy 25:9 a loosed shoe marks a man who will not honor his brother’s name. John the Baptist says he is not worthy to unloose the latchet of Christ’s shoes. Amos 2:6 grieves that the poor were sold for a pair of shoes. Begin with Exodus 3:1-6 for the first of these scenes.
7 verses
That I will not take from a thread even to a shoelatchet, and that I will not take any thing that is thine, lest thou shouldest say, I have made Abram rich:
And he said, Draw not nigh hither: put off thy shoes from off thy feet, for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground.
Then shall his brother's wife come unto him in the presence of the elders, and loose his shoe from off his foot, and spit in his face, and shall answer and say, So shall it be done unto that man that will not build up his brother's house.
And the captain of the LORD'S host said unto Joshua, Loose thy shoe from off thy foot; for the place whereon thou standest is holy. And Joshua did so.
None shall be weary nor stumble among them; none shall slumber nor sleep; neither shall the girdle of their loins be loosed, nor the latchet of their shoes be broken:
Thus saith the LORD; For three transgressions of Israel, and for four, I will not turn away the punishment thereof; because they sold the righteous for silver, and the poor for a pair of shoes;
John answered, saying unto them all, I indeed baptize you with water; but one mightier than I cometh, the latchet of whose shoes I am not worthy to unloose: he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost and with fire:
Matthew George Easton, 1897
Of various forms, from the mere sandal (q.v.) to the complete covering of the foot. The word so rendered (A.V.) in Deut. 33:25, min’al, “a bar,” is derived from a root meaning “to bolt” or “shut fast,” and hence a fastness or fortress. The verse has accordingly been rendered “iron and brass shall be thy fortress,” or, as in the Revised Version, “thy bars [marg., “shoes”] shall be iron and brass.”