Exodus Chapter 34

¹  Now the LORD said to Moses, “Cut out for yourself two stone tablets like the former ones, and I will write on the tablets the words that were on the former tablets which you shattered. ²  ”So be ready by morning, and come up in the morning to Mount Sinai, and present yourself there to Me on the top of the mountain. ³  ”No man is to come up with you, nor let any man be seen anywhere on the mountain; even the flocks and the herds may not graze in front of that mountain.”


1. Why was no one to come with Moses?
 This time the Israelites are represented only by Moses, and not by the seventy elders as before (cf. Exod. 24:1, 9). This time, there are no promises made by the people. Before, the people repeatedly affirmed, “All that the Lord has said, we will do” (19:8; 24:3, 7), but this time there are no promises made. And little wonder! Israel could not be counted on to keep her word, no matter how sincere her intentions at the time.

  ⁴  So he cut out two stone tablets like the former ones, and Moses rose up early in the morning and went up to Mount Sinai, as the LORD had commanded him, and he took two stone tablets in his hand.

2. Why new tablets?  
This is a renewal of the covenant.  Moses is noticeably more prominent in the renewal of the covenant than he was in the first ratification of the covenant. His level of involvement is considerably higher. In the first ratification of the covenant, God carved out the stones and wrote the commandments on them (cf. 31:18). In the renewal of this same covenant Moses cut out the stones and wrote the commandments on them (34:1, 27-28). Some would have us think that Moses had to cut out the stone because he had rashly broken the first pair of stones. I believe that Moses was given an even greater participation in the renewal of the covenant, so that now God can say that this is a covenant made between Him and Moses and Israel (34:27), a statement which was not previously made. 

There is no inconsistency here in the fact that we are told on the one hand that God wrote on the tablets (34:1), and, on the other, that Moses did (34:27-28). The account is informing us that God wrote on the tablets through Moses. This is no different than saying that one of Paul’s epistles, written by his own hand, is, at the same time, the Word of God. Moses’ role of mediator is thus enhanced. No wonder all of Israel stood at the doorway of their tents when Moses went out to meet with God at the tent of meeting (33:8).


 ⁵  The LORD descended in the cloud and stood there with him as he called upon the name of the LORD. ⁶  Then the LORD passed by in front of him and proclaimed, “The LORD, the LORD God, compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in lovingkindness and truth; ⁷  who keeps lovingkindness for thousands, who forgives iniquity, transgression and sin; yet He will by no means leave the guilty unpunished, visiting the iniquity of fathers on the children and on the grandchildren to the third and fourth generations.” 



3. What message is God trying to reinforce here?
The revelation of God’s goodness to Moses was a revelation of those aspects of God’s character which were the basis for Israel’s future, and thus Moses petitioned God to forgive this sinful people, and to dwell in their midst, not because they were righteous, but because He was gracious and forgiving. The grace of God is the basis for repentance and for restoration, and thus Moses requested that God forgive His people and make them His possession, as He had previously done. In Romans chapter 11 Paul sums up his argument with the words, “Behold then the kindness and severity of God” (Rom. 11:22). The kindness or goodness of God is that aspect of God’s person which Moses was enabled to see fully—he saw “all of God’s goodness” (Exod. 33:19). Moses saw some of God’s severity, too. He beheld the anger of God at the idolatry of Israel in the incident of the golden calf (cf. Exod. 32:10). He knew that God could easily have wiped this whole nation out, except for His promises to Abraham and his offspring (cf. Exod. 32:13). Moses reflected this anger in his own response to Israel’s revelry and rebellion (Exod. 32:20). He demonstrated this anger when he commanded the Levites to go about the camp, slaying those who had refused to pledge their allegiance to Yahweh (Exod. 32:25-29).


 ⁸  Moses made haste to bow low toward the earth and worship. ⁹  He said, “If now I have found favor in Your sight, O Lord, I pray, let the Lord go along in our midst, even though the people are so obstinate, and pardon our iniquity and our sin, and take us as Your own possession.” ¹⁰  Then God said, “Behold, I am going to make a covenant. Before all your people I will perform miracles which have not been produced in all the earth nor among any of the nations; and all the people among whom you live will see the working of the LORD, for it is a fearful thing that I am going to perform with you.
 

4.  “He punishes the children and their children for the sin of the fathers to the third and fourth generation.”  Is that fair?
steadfast love and forgiveness extends to thousands (probably of generations, cf.Deut. 7:9; and note on Ex. 20:5–6) in contrast to the few generations upon whom he visits iniquity. Moses will appeal to Israel’s need for the Lord’s gracious and merciful presence so that he might forgive them and take them as his inheritance (see 34:9). On visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children, see notes on 20:5–6 and Deut. 5:9–10.
 This is not God punishing innocent children for up to four generations (see 7:10). Rather, up to four generations of those who hate God may suffer the effects of their ancestors’ sins or even continue in the same sins. See also Ex. 34:6–7. The view that innocent children suffer for their parents’ sins is opposed in Jer. 31:29–30 and Ezek. 18:2–4. Butcontrasts God’s treatment of those who hate him with his treatment of those who love him. God’ssteadfast love far outlasts the effects of sin on subsequent generations


 ¹¹  ”Be sure to observe what I am commanding you this day: behold, I am going to drive out the Amorite before you, and the Canaanite, the Hittite, the Perizzite, the Hivite and the Jebusite. ¹²  ”Watch yourself that you make no covenant with the inhabitants of the land into which you are going, or it will become a snare in your midst. ¹³  ”But rather, you are to tear down their altars and smash their sacred pillars and cut down their Asherim
 

5. What’s the big deal? Shouldn’t the Israelites be good neighbors?
The first code of the covenant placed a great deal of emphasis on social matters, such as the treatment of slaves and just compensation for losses caused by negligence or theft. In this abbreviated “code of the covenant” the emphasis falls on Israel’s walk with God, which had so quickly been interrupted by Israel’s idolatry and apostasy. The prohibitions of verses 12-17 forbid those contacts with the Canaanites which might lead Israel to turn from God. The way Israel is to deal with pagan idols is even more severe in the second statement of the “code of the covenant.” The practices referred to in verses 18-26 are those which would enhance Israel’s worship and walk with God. Thus, without referring to Israel’s fall, this abbreviated statement of the previously given “code of the covenant” focuses on those commands which will keep Israel from falling again, if they are obeyed.


 ¹⁴  —for you shall not worship any other god, for the LORD, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God—


6. Isn’t jealousy bad?

 He is a jealous God and does not want to share His honor and glory with false gods. There is no reason to apologize for God’s being jealous either. I once heard a wife say, “My husband is not jealous of me.” She was boasting of that fact. But I could have told her that if her husband was not jealous, he did not love her. Anything or any person you love, you are jealous of, and do not like to share with others. You can be jealous in an evil way, but this is not what we are talking about. When you love a person, you have a concern and you care for them. JVM



  ¹⁵  otherwise you might make a covenant with the inhabitants of the land and they would play the harlot with their gods and sacrifice to their gods, and someone might invite you to eat of his sacrifice, ¹⁶  and you might take some of his daughters for your sons, and his daughters might play the harlot with their gods and cause your sons also to play the harlot with their gods. ¹⁷  ”You shall make for yourself no molten gods. ¹⁸  ”You shall observe the Feast of Unleavened Bread. For seven days you are to eat unleavened bread, as I commanded you, at the appointed time in the month of Abib, for in the month of Abib you came out of Egypt.



 7. What was the Feast of Unleavened Bread again?
The feast lasts seven days. It was one of the three feast to be physically attended by all male Jews physically able to do so. (Ex. 23:17, Deut. 16:16) Feasts of pilgrimage upon which the Jews were to return to Jerusalem was Unleaven Bread, Tabernacles and Pentecost.
Unleaven bread pictures the suffering of the Messiah. Isaiah 53 prophesied of the suffering of the Messiah. The unleaven bread used in the Passover and during the feast of the Unleaven Bread is called “Matzo or Matsoh”.

              Matzoh has stripes

            Isaiah 53:5 “But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.

            1 Peter 2:24 “Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed.

            Matzoh has holes:

            Zech. 12:10 And I will pour upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and of supplications: and they shall look upon me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for his only son, and shall be in bitterness for him, as one that is in bitterness for his firstborn.

            John 19:37 And again another scripture saith, They shall look on him whom they pierced.

            Matzoh has no leaven:

            Hebrews 4:15 “For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin.”

            Hebrews 9:28 “So Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many; and unto them that look for him shall he appear the second time without sin unto salvation.”

            The bread is placed in the middle section of

the linen cloth with three pockets. Most Jews have no idea why the Matzoh Tosh (Tash) has three pockets. Some rabbis teach that these represent Abraham, Isaac and Jacob; others say they portray the unity of worship — priests, Levites and congregation; still others say they stand for the crowns of learning, priesthood and kingship. But there’s no explanation for breaking and hiding  the middle one. Christians have a better explanation; it involves the “bread of heaven,” spoken of in John 6:32-59.He was beaten, crucified, buried and then raised. Now we can see why the middle matzoh is broken during the Passover, then hidden or buried. Jesus’s body was broken for us, He died, and was buried. But He didn’t stay dead — He came back to life, came out of the tomb! That is represented by bringing out that matzoh later in the ceremony. It is then broken into pieces, and passed out to each person. And this is the exact spot during the Last Supper, when Jesus said, ”This is my body which is given for you.”


  ¹⁹  ”The first offspring from every womb belongs to Me, and all your male livestock, the first offspring from cattle and sheep. ²⁰  ”You shall redeem with a lamb the first offspring from a donkey; and if you do not redeem it, then you shall break its neck. You shall redeem all the firstborn of your sons. None shall appear before Me empty-handed. ²¹  ”You shall work six days, but on the seventh day you shall rest; even during plowing time and harvest you shall rest. ²²  ”You shall celebrate the Feast of Weeks, that is, the first fruits of the wheat harvest, and the Feast of Ingathering at the turn of the year.


8. What did these Feasts represent?
  ²³  ”Three times a year all your males are to appear before the Lord GOD, the God of Israel. ²⁴  ”For I will drive out nations before you and enlarge your borders, and no man shall covet your land when you go up three times a year to appear before the LORD your God. ²⁵  ”You shall not offer the blood of My sacrifice with leavened bread, nor is the sacrifice of the Feast of the Passover to be left over until morning. ²⁶  ”You shall bring the very first of the first fruits of your soil into the house of the LORD your God. “You shall not boil a young goat in its mother’s milk.” ²⁷  Then the LORD said to Moses, “Write down these words, for in accordance with these words I have made a covenant with you and with Israel.” ²⁸  So he was there with the LORD forty days and forty nights; he did not eat bread or drink water. And he wrote on the tablets the words of the covenant, the Ten Commandments.
 

 Shavuot, or Pentecost (Feast of Weeks). 

Celebrated on the fiftieth day after Passover, Shavuot is traditionally a joyous time of giving thanks for the new grain of the summer wheat harvest in Israel. The name “Feast of Weeks” was given because God commanded the Jews in Leviticus 23:15-16, to count seven full weeks (or 49 days) beginning on the second day of Passover, and then present offerings of new grain to the Lord as a lasting ordinance.

The celebration is also tied to the giving of the Ten Commandments and thus bears the name Matin Torah or “giving of the Law.” Jews believe that it was at this time that God gave the Torah to the people through Moses on Mount Sinai.  Just as there was an outpouring of the Holy Spirit so that Jewish people heard and accepted Jesus in a supernatural way on Pentecost, so an even greater outpouring is predicted by the prophet Zechariah: “And I will pour on the house of David and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem the Spirit of grace and supplication; then they will look on Me whom they pierced. Yes, they will mourn for Him as one mourns for his only son, and grieve for Him as one grieves for a firstborn” (Zechariah 12:10).

Yes, there will be mourning when all of Israel finally realizes who Jesus is, but after the mourning and the repentance there will be great joy. Y’shua said this regarding the end-time harvest of souls:

The Feast of Tabernacles is a week-long autumn harvest festival. Tabernacles is also known as the Feast of the Ingathering, Feast of the Booths, Sukkoth, Succoth, or Sukkot (variations in spellings occur because these words are transliterations of the Hebrew word pronounced “Sue-coat”). The two days following the festival are separate holidays, Shemini Atzeret and Simkhat Torah, but are commonly thought of as part of the Feast of Tabernacles.

The Feast of Tabernacles was the final and most important holiday of the year. The importance of this festival is indicated by the statement, “This is to be a lasting ordinance.” The divine pronouncement, “I am the Lord your God,” concludes this section on the holidays of the seventh month. The Feast of Tabernacles begins five days after Yom Kippur on the fifteenth of Tishri (September or October). It is a drastic change from one of the most solemn holidays in our year to one of the most joyous. The word Sukkoth means “booths,” and refers to the temporary dwellings that Jews are commanded to live in during this holiday, just as the Jews did in the wilderness. The Feast of Tabernacles lasts for seven days and ends on the twenty-first day (3×7) of the Hebrew month of Tishri, which is Israel’s seventh month.

This holiday has a dual significance: historical and agricultural (just as Passover and Pentecost). Historically, it was to be kept in remembrance of the dwelling in tents in the wilderness for the forty-year period during which the children of Israel were wandering in the desert.


9. Who else was 40 days and night without eating or drinking?
  ²⁹  It came about when Moses was coming down from Mount Sinai (and the two tablets of the testimony were in Moses’ hand as he was coming down from the mountain), that Moses did not know that the skin of his face shone because of his speaking with Him. ³⁰  So when Aaron and all the sons of Israel saw Moses, behold, the skin of his face shone, and they were afraid to come near him. ³¹  Then Moses called to them, and Aaron and all the rulers in the congregation returned to him; and Moses spoke to them. ³²  Afterward all the sons of Israel came near, and he commanded them to do everything that the LORD had spoken to him on Mount Sinai. ³³  When Moses had finished speaking with them, he put a veil over his face. ³⁴  But whenever Moses went in before the LORD to speak with Him, he would take off the veil until he came out; and whenever he came out and spoke to the sons of Israel what he had been commanded, ³⁵  the sons of Israel would see the face of Moses, that the skin of Moses’ face shone. So Moses would replace the veil over his face until he went in to speak with Him. 


10. Why was Moses’ face radiating?
 The people were at first frightened by the brightness of Moses’ countenance, but then eventually were able to draw near enough to hear Moses speak and to accept his words as from God Himself. Moses began to employ a veil. He would remove the veil when he went to speak with God and would leave it off until he had conveyed God’s words to the people. Then, the veil would be put on until the next time he spoke with God. The text seems to indicate that Moses did this on a number of occasions, with some degree of regularity. I believe that this occurred when Moses entered into the tent of meeting.

The greater intimacy of Moses with God is apparent by the people’s actions here. In the past, the manifestations of the glory and majesty of God were more distant, so that the people wanted to keep their distance from God, and Moses to be their intermediary (cf. 20:18-20). Now that Moses’ face radiated with the glory of God, the people were reluctant to get too close to him (cf. 34:30).

What function did the “beaming,” radiant face of Moses play here? First, I believe that it further elevated Moses, showing him to be the one who God had chosen to be the mediator of His people. It also gave great force to the words which he spoke. When Moses came from the tent of meeting after having spoken with God everybody knew that what Moses was about to convey to them was a word directly from God. When Moses’ face was aglow, the words which Moses spoke were the very words of God. The radiant face of Moses gave testimony to the divinely inspired utterances which he spoke to the people.The meaning of this periodic transfiguration of Moses is not pressed in our passage, other than to imply that Moses’ words, which were spoken with this shining face, would likely be taken very seriously by the Israelites. It is not until the New Testament that this unusual phenomenon is taken up more thoroughly. CN

• NIVSN……………….NIV Study Notes. 
• JVM ………………….J Vernon McGee,
• ACC ………………… Adam Clarke’s Commentary
• BN ……………………Barnes Notes
• WBC………….…….Wycliffe Bible Commentary
• CN ……….…………..Constables Notes 
• IC……………….…….Ironside Commentary
• NET…………….…….Net Bible Study Notes.
• JFB……………………Jamieson Fausset  Brown Commentary
• VWS………………….Vincent Word Studies
• CMM………………..Commentary on Matthew and Mark
• BDB……………..….Barclay’s Daily Study Bible (NT)
• Darby……………….John Darby’s Synopsis of the OT and NT
• Johnson……………Johnson’s Notes on the New Testament.
• NTCMM…………..The New Testament Commentary:  Matthew and Mark.
• EHS………………….Expositions of the Holy Scriptures
• CPP…………………The Complete Pulpit Commentary
• SBC…………………..Sermon Bible Commentary
• K&D…………………Keil and Deilitzsch Commentary on the OT
• EBC……………….…Expositors Bible Commentary
• CBSC……………….Cambridge Bible for Schools and College
• GC……………………Guzik Commentary
• RD…………………..Robert  Deffinbaugh
• NSB …………………The Nelson Study Bible
• MHC…………………Matthew Henry Commentary
• ESVN……………..….ESV Study Bible Notes 
• MSBN……………….MacArthur NASB Study Notes
• CSTTB………………..Chuck Smith Through the Bible
  

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Exodus Chapter 33

 

^{Ex 33:1} Then the LORD said to Moses, “Leave this place, you and the people you brought up out of Egypt, and go up to the land I promised on oath to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, saying, ‘I will give it to your descendants.’


1. When was this land promised to Abraham?

 On that day the Lord made a covenant with Abram and said, “To your descendants I give this land, from the river of Egypt to the great river, the Euphrates– 19 the land of the Kenites, Kenizzites, Kadmonites, 20 Hittites, Perizzites, Rephaites, 21 Amorites, Canaanites, Girgashites and Jebusites.” Gen 15:18-21 (NIV)

^{Ex 33:2} I will send an angel before you and drive out the Canaanites, Amorites, Hittites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites.

 2. Who were these people?

The sons of Ham: Cush, Mizraim, Put and Canaan. Gen 10:6 (NIV)

15 Canaan was the father of Sidon his firstborn, and of the Hittites, 16 Jebusites, Amorites, Girgashites, 17 Hivites, Arkites, Sinites, Gen 10:15-17 (NIV)

The Hebrews were decedents of Shem.

When Noah awoke from his wine and found out what his youngest son had done to him, 25 he said, “Cursed be Canaan! The lowest of slaves will he be to his brothers.” 26 He also said, “Blessed be the Lord, the God of Shem! May Canaan be the slave of Shem. 27 May God extend the territory of Japheth ; may Japheth live in the tents of Shem, and may Canaan be his slave.” Gen 9:24-27 (NIV)

^{Ex 33:3} Go up to the land flowing with milk and honey. But I will not go with you, because you are a stiff-necked people and I might destroy you on the way.”  

3. What does it mean that the Lord will not go with them?

Good news included bad news! Entry into the Promised Land was not forfeited, but God’s presence on the way was withdrawn. What was a sworn covenant-promise to the patriarchs just could not be broken: what was assured—the divine presence on the way—could be set aside because of sin.

 The grace of God is seen even in God’s threat to remove Himself from their midst. God’s stated purpose for keeping a distance between Himself and the Israelites as they travel on toward the promised land was that their sinfulness would require Him to destroy them. Thus, to be in their midst was to greatly endanger the Israelites, while to be distant from them was to assure their safety, unless there was some means provided to deal with Israel’s sins, and thus to appease God’s righteous anger.

God had said, “Behold, I am going to send an angel before you to guard you along the way, and to bring you into the place which I have prepared” Exod. 23:20,

^{Ex 33:4-6} When the people heard these distressing words, they began to mourn and no one put on any ornaments. For the LORD had said to Moses, “Tell the Israelites, ‘You are a stiff-necked people. If I were to go with you even for a moment, I might destroy you. Now take off your ornaments and I will decide what to do with you.’ ” So the Israelites stripped off their ornaments at Mount Horeb.

 4. What did their jewelry have to do with the situation?

 Removal of their jewelry depicted outwardly the people’s sorrow of heart. It was a response analogous to donning sackcloth and ashes
These ornaments, as we have already seen, were heathen. Their earrings, for example, demonstrated the fact that they were still worshiping the gods of Egypt. The earrings were a sign of it. This is very much like the wearing of a cross, although it is meaningless today as an identification of a Christian. 

Do you see why the putting off of Israel’s ornaments and jewelry was an appropriate act of repentance? Because these ornaments were similar to those which had been contributed to make the golden calf (Exod. 32:2-4). These images seemed to have an idolatrous association with the past, with pagan gods. Thus, to put off these ornaments was to show Israel’s repentance over the golden calf incident. 

The Israelites, we seem to be told, never again put on these ornaments: “So the sons of Israel stripped themselves of their ornaments from Mount Horeb onward” (Exod. 33:6). I believe that it is these ornaments, which the Israelites put off here, were later offered to God to be used for the furnishings of the Tabernacle (Exod. 35:21-22). As implements of idolatry, these golden ornaments were fit only for destruction. As tokens of Israel’s repentance, these ornaments were fit for use as tokens of God’s presence in the Tabernacle furnishings.

^{Ex 33:7-11} Now Moses used to take a tent and pitch it outside the camp some distance away, calling it the “tent of meeting.” Anyone inquiring of the LORD would go to the tent of meeting outside the camp.  And whenever Moses went out to the tent, all the people rose and stood at the entrances to their tents, watching Moses until he entered the tent.  As Moses went into the tent, the pillar of cloud would come down and stay at the entrance, while the LORD spoke with Moses.  Whenever the people saw the pillar of cloud standing at the entrance to the tent, they all stood and worshiped, each at the entrance to his tent. The LORD would speak to Moses face to face, as a man speaks with his friend. Then Moses would return to the camp, but his young aide Joshua son of Nun did not leave the tent.

5. What is this tent of meeting?

 The first thing we must establish is that the “tent of meeting” is not the Tabernacle, which will appear later. That the “tent of meeting” and the Tabernacle are distinct entities can be seen from these lines of evidence:

(1) The “tent of meeting” was outside the camp, while the Tabernacle was within the camp.

(2) The “tent of meeting” was served by Moses

and Joshua, while the Tabernacle was served by the Levites.

(3) The cloud of God’s presence came down to the “tent of meeting” only when Moses was there, while the cloud hovered over the Tabernacle at all times, except when Israel was to break camp and march. 

tent of meeting outside the camp. Not the tabernacle, which occupied a central location within the Israelite camp, but a temporary structure where the people could consult the Lord until the more durable tabernacle was completed. 

  pillar of cloud would come down. Symbolizing God’s communication with Moses “as a man speaks with his friend” (v. 11). Later, a similar descent crowned the completion of the tabernacle. 

 The LORD would speak to Moses face to face. God communicated with him directly—but without visually showing his “face.” As the OT mediator, Moses was unique among the prophets.Joshua … did not leave the tent. Probably his task was to guard the tent against intrusion by others. The evidence all points to the fact that the “tent of meeting” described here is a unique, provisional place for God to met with Moses and the Israelites. On the one hand, it is inferior to the Tabernacle, but on the other hand, any place of meeting with God is better than none at all. The function of the “tent of meeting” and the Tabernacle was similar, in that the Tabernacle was also a “tent of meeting” (cf. Exod. 35:21), and thus superseded the mysterious “tent” of verses 7-11 of our text. Therefore, we will see references to the “tent of meeting” later on,⁹⁰ but I think these are all referring to the Tabernacle.

^{Ex 33:12-13} Moses said to the LORD, “You have been telling me, ‘Lead these people,’ but you have not let me know whom you will send with me. You have said, ‘I know you by name and you have found favor with me.’  If you are pleased with me, teach me your ways so I may know you and continue to find favor with you. Remember that this nation is your people.”

6. What does Moses mean “teach me your ways”?

Make me know Thy ways, O LORD; Teach me Thy paths. Lead me in Thy truth and teach me, For Thou art the God of my salvation; For Thee I wait all the day. Remember, o LORD, Thy compassion and Thy lovingkindnesses, For they have been from of old (Ps. 25:4-6). 

 Moses is seeking to know God even more intimately than he already knew Him. That he desires to know God’s character, as reflected in His way of doing things. To know God’s ways is thus to know God, and to better understand how one should live in a way that pleases God. Moses knows that taking the lands from the Canaanites was going to be huge project, comparable to dealing with the Pharaoh and going across the Red Sea, but this time the Lord would not be leading the way. So how is this going to work?

 Moses petitioned God to consider the Israelites as His people. Ever since the Israelites chose to worship a golden calf rather than God, God has referred to this people as Moses’ people: “Then the LORD spoke to Moses, ‘Go down at once, for your people, whom you brought up from the land of Egypt, have corrupted themselves’” (Exod. 32:7). Moses wants to reverse this. Moses wants God to view the Israelites as His chosen people. Thus, he makes this petition. God’s response to Moses’ petition is recorded in verse 14: “And He said, ‘My presence shall go with you, and I will give you rest’” (Exod. 33:14).


^{Ex 33:14-17} The LORD replied, “My Presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.^” Then Moses said to him, “If your Presence does not go with us, do not send us up from here.  How will anyone know that you are pleased with me and with your people unless you go with us? What else will distinguish me and your people from all the other people on the face of the earth?”And the LORD said to Moses, “I will do the very thing you have asked, because I am pleased with you and I know you by name.”

7. How does God respond to Moses request?

 God’s response to Moses’ petition is recorded in verse 14: “And He said, ‘My presence shall go with you, and I will give you rest’” (Exod. 33:14)
There is tremendous encouragement here. God assured Moses that He would be personally present with him as he led the Israelites to Canaan. The messenger whom God promised to send was therefore the “angel of God’s presence” (cf. Isa. 63:9). God promised Moses the means to getting the Israelites to Canaan. Furthermore, He promised Moses that the end, the Israelites living safely in Canaan, would be realized. This is indicated by the term “rest” as it is used here and elsewhere in the Old Testament: God will be with Moses in a personal way. Moses continues want to link God back to His people, but God refuses at this point because he knows their hearts.



8. What does it mean My presence shall go?

My presence shall go with thee—‏פני ילכו‎  panai yelechu, my faces shall go. I shall give thee

manifestations of my grace and goodness through the whole of thy journey. I shall vary my appearances for thee, as thy necessities shall require.

^{Ex 33:18-23} Then Moses said, “Now show me your glory.” And the LORD said, “I will cause all my goodness to pass in front of you, and I will proclaim my name, the LORD, in your presence. I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion.  But,” he said, “you cannot see my face, for no one may see me and live.”Then the LORD said, “There is a place near me where you may stand on a rock.  When my glory passes by, I will put you in a cleft in the rock and cover you with my hand until I have passed by. Then I will remove my hand and you will see my back; but my face must not be seen.”

• NIVSN……………….NIV Study Notes. 
• JVM ………………….J Vernon McGee,
• ACC ………………… Adam Clarke’s Commentary
• BN ……………………Barnes Notes
• WBC………….…….Wycliffe Bible Commentary
• CN ……….…………..Constables Notes 
• IC……………….…….Ironside Commentary
• NET…………….…….Net Bible Study Notes.
• JFB……………………Jamieson Fausset  Brown Commentary
• VWS………………….Vincent Word Studies
• CMM………………..Commentary on Matthew and Mark
• BDB……………..….Barclay’s Daily Study Bible (NT)
• Darby……………….John Darby’s Synopsis of the OT and NT
• Johnson……………Johnson’s Notes on the New Testament.
• NTCMM…………..The New Testament Commentary:  Matthew and Mark.
• EHS………………….Expositions of the Holy Scriptures
• CPP…………………The Complete Pulpit Commentary
• SBC…………………..Sermon Bible Commentary
• K&D…………………Keil and Deilitzsch Commentary on the OT
• EBC……………….…Expositors Bible Commentary
• CBSC……………….Cambridge Bible for Schools and College
• GC……………………Guzik Commentary
• RD…………………..Robert  Deffinbaugh
• NSB …………………The Nelson Study Bible
• MHC…………………Matthew Henry Commentary
• ESVN……………..….ESV Study Bible Notes 
• MSBN……………….MacArthur NASB Study Notes
• CSTTB………………..Chuck Smith Through the Bible
  

“Fair Use “ Notice – Title 17 U.S.C. section 107
The above post may contain copyrighted material the use of which has not always been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. It is being made available in an effort to advance the understanding of environmental, political, human rights, economic, democracy, scientific, social justice, for the purpose of historical debate, and to advance the understanding of Christian conservative issues.  It is believed that this constitutes a ”fair use” of any such copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the Copyright Law. In accordance with the title 17 U.S. C. section 107, the material in this post is shown without profit to those who have expressed an interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes.

 

Exodus Chapter 32

The Golden Calf

1 When the people saw that Moses was so long in coming down from the mountain, they gathered around Aaron and said, “Come, make us gods who will go before us. As for this fellow Moses who brought us up out of Egypt, we don’t know what has happened to him.” 2 Aaron answered them, “Take off the gold earrings that your wives, your sons and your daughters are wearing, and bring them to me.” 3 So all the people took off their earrings and brought them to Aaron. 4 He took what they handed him and made it into an idol cast in the shape of a calf, fashioning it with a tool. Then they said, “These are your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of Egypt.” 5 When Aaron saw this, he built an altar in front of the calf and announced, “Tomorrow there will be a festival to the Lord.” 6 So the next day the people rose early and sacrificed burnt offerings and presented fellowship offerings. Afterward they sat down to eat and drink and got up to indulge in revelry.

1. Wow what happened? How could they do such a thing?

Only days have passed since God had spoken from the mountain, giving Israel this commandment:

“You shall have no other gods before Me. You shall not make for yourself an idol, or any likeness of what is in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the water under the earth. You shall not worship them or serve them; for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children, on the third and the fourth generations of those who hate Me” (Exod. 20:3-5).

“‘You shall not make other gods besides Me; gods of silver or gods of gold, you shall not make for yourselves” (Exod. 20:23).

They had agreed only a few days ago to do all that the Lord had spoken.
To these commandments, along with all the others, Israel repeatedly affirmed, “All the words which the Lord has spoken we will do!” (Exod. 24:3; cf. 24:7; 19:8).
It happened quickly.

The sin of the Israelites happened very soon after the Mosaic Covenant was ratified in Exodus chapter 24—sooner, in fact than 40 days. Moses had prepared the people for him to be gone for some time, and part of the forty days had passed. A good part of the forty days could not have passed before the people of Israel proposed that Aaron fashion an image. Making this idol involved the collection of the contributions of gold from the Israelites, melting it down, determining what form the idol would take, making a cast, and then tooling the roughly cast image. Since Moses was absent 40 days and the idol was completed by the time he returned, we must conclude that somewhat less than 40 days had elapsed when Israel practiced idolatry.
The absence of leadership is a contributing factor to Israel’s idolatry.

There is a direct, cause-effect relationship between the absence of leadership and the practice of idolatry. It is obvious that Moses is absent. He is on the mountain with God, gone for 40 days and nights (cf. 24:18). His absence gave the Israelites a pretext for taking action, and also the opportunity for doing so (Moses wasn’t there to stop them). Aaron, of course, was present, but he hardly deserves the title “leader” here. The seventy elders who ate the covenant meal in the presence of God, Whom they saw (24:9-11), are not so much as mentioned, and yet they are most likely in the camp. How could they not have exercised some leadership in this situation? Moses had given only Aaron and Hur authority to handle legal disputes (24:14), and even Hur’s name is not mentioned in chapter 32. Perhaps even more interesting, no leaders are named of the group which wanted an idol. In other places the rebel leaders are named (e.g. Num. 16:1-3), but in our text the only designation given is “the people” (32:1, 3, 6). The absence of leadership plays a significant role in the idolatry of Israel.

 ”The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil, is for good men to do nothing”, Jonathan Edwards

2. What was Aaron’s role in this rebellion?

Aaron just didn’t stand back and do nothing, it was by his instruction that the Golden Calf is made. The calf was probably similar to representations of the Egyptian bull-god Apis.

 The hostility of the people plays a significant role in explaining the role which Aaron played in Israel’s sin.

The crowd which had “assembled about” Aaron was not a friendly group, gathering for small talk and making casual suggestions. The expression used here suggests that this was an angry, aggressive mob, whose presence Aaron perceived to be a threat to his safety, perhaps even his life. Given the actions of the Israelites before and after, Aaron was probably right to see this situation as one that was “dangerous to his health.”

 There is a military motivation behind Israel’s demand to have a graven image.

What was it that the Israelites thought the graven “god” could do for them? I have concluded that there is a rather strong military factor here. Twice in our text, the expression, “who brought us up from the land of Egypt,” has occurred, the first time with regard to Moses (32:1), the second, with respect to the idol which was made (32:4). Moses led the Israelites out of Egypt. This victory was viewed as a military victory over the army of Pharaoh (cf. Exod. 15). The idol which the Israelites demanded was to serve as the nation’s military leader, which would lead them to victory over her enemies.

The Israelites had faced the Egyptians and won. They have also been opposed by Amalek at Rephedim (Exod. 17:8-16). They are now facing the conquest of Canaan, which is also a military matter.  The people want a visible symbol, a kind of mascot god, which they can take before them as they proceed on to Canaan. Since Moses was not there to go before them, their idol will be their leader. The expression “to go before” definitely conveys the idea of leadership, and it has a military connotation: “The LORD your God who goes before you will Himself fight on your behalf, just as He did for you in Egypt before your eyes” (Deut. 1:30; cf. also Exod. 14:19; 23:23; 32:34). If the Israelites cannot look to Moses to lead them to victory, then they will have a “god” who will “go before them” as they march into Canaan, to possess it.

Aaron responded to “the people” by telling them to “tear off” the gold rings. This gold jewelry was undoubtedly Israel’s “wages” from the Egyptians (cf. 3:21-22; 12:35-36). This gold should also have been what was contributed for the construction of the tabernacle, rather than the golden idol (cf. Exod. 25:3). The expression, “tear off,” seems to suggest that what the Israelites did was a hasty, spontaneous, act. Spur of the moment decisions and actions are often suspect.

3. How did they come to “party time”?

Aaron tries to mix worship of God with his

idolatry. Paganism and Christianity. Haiti voodoo a mixture of Catholicism and African pagan worship. 

This is one pretense that the Roman Catholics have for the idolatry in their image worship. Their high priest, the pope, collects the ornaments of the people, and makes an image, a crucifix, a madonna, etc. The people worship it; but the pope says it is only to keep God in remembrance. But of the whole God says, Thy people have corrupted themselves; and thus as they continue in their idolatry, they have forfeited the blessings of the Lord’s covenant. They are not God’s people, they are the pope’s people, and he is called “our holy father the pope.”
Aaron built an altar (32:5), just as Moses had (24:4). Aaron proclaimed a feast (a covenant meal?), a “feast to the Lord” (v. 5), just as there was a meal on Mt. Sinai (24:11). Israel’s early rising (v. 6) indicates the zeal with which this “worship” was pursued. Burnt offerings and peace offerings were sacrificed, too, (32:6), just as these had been sacrificed in chapter 24 (v. 5). All the people sat down to eat and to drink.

There was a very great difference between the “worship” of the people before the golden calf and that of the elders on the mountain. The people not only ate and drank, they “rose up to play” (32:6). This term “play” refers to illicit and immoral sex play. The same expression is used in Genesis 26:8, where Abimelech “looked out through a window, and saw, and behold, Isaac was caressing his wife Rebekah” (emphasis mine). Thus, this “worship” had turned into an orgy. And so another of the commandments, the prohibition of adultery, is most likely violated.

7 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Go down, because your people, whom you brought up out of Egypt, have become corrupt. 8 They have been quick to turn away from what I commanded them and have made themselves an idol cast in the shape of a calf. They have bowed down to it and sacrificed to it and have said, ‘These are your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of Egypt.’ 9 ”I have seen these people,” the Lord said to Moses, “and they are a stiff-necked people. 10 Now leave me alone so that my anger may burn against them and that I may destroy them. Then I will make you into a great nation.” 11 But Moses sought the favor of the Lord his God. “O Lord,” he said, “why should your anger burn against your people, whom you brought out of Egypt with great power and a mighty hand? 12 Why should the Egyptians say, ‘It was with evil intent that he brought them out, to kill them in the mountains and to wipe them off the face of the earth’? Turn from your fierce anger; relent and do not bring disaster on your people. 13 Remember your servants Abraham, Isaac and Israel, to whom you swore by your own self: ‘I will make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and I will give your descendants all this land I promised them, and it will be their inheritance forever.’” 14 Then the Lord relented and did not bring on his people the disaster he had threatened.

 4. Was God going to destroy the Hebrews?  Does God change His mind?

The plans for the tabernacle have been given to Moses, along with the two tablets of stone, on which the commandments have been written by the finger of God (31:18). Knowing all that has been going on in Moses’ absence, God told Moses to go down to the people. Before Moses departed from God’s presence, God first diagnosed Israel’s condition, and then threatened judgment which Israel richly deserved. God gave Moses a three-fold description of the sin of the Israelites. The first two characterize the sin which the nation has just committed. These are expressed in the past tense “have corrupted themselves” (v. 7); “have quickly turned aside” (v. 8). The third term focuses on the root problem, the spiritual condition of the nation which has produced these symptomatic sins seen in chapter 32.

By worshipping this idol, Israel has violated the covenant they just made with God, and have thus “corrupted”⁷⁰ themselves. They are not the “holy nation” which God had set them apart to be (cp. 19:5-6). Furthermore, they have “quickly turned aside” from the way which God had shown they should walk and live, the “way” declared by the commandments. The nation had not only corrupted themselves by their disobedience, they had done so quickly. God’s words here are intended to convey the great danger which Israel is now in. But they are also intended to produce something different than destruction which is not only suggested by the outcome of the story, but is also implied by the words themselves.

If God had intended to wipe Israel out, what reason was there for Him to tell Moses about it, and then send Him down to the people? God tells of judgment in advance so as to afford an opportunity for men to repent. Furthermore, the words, “let Me alone,” suggest to Moses that if he did not leave God alone, the people would not be destroyed. The inference is that if Moses did intercede for Israel, God would likely turn His wrath from His people.

Finally, Moses knew that God’s threatened action (of destroying Israel) and His offer to Moses (of making a new nation through him) would have been inconsistent with His character and His covenant with Israel. The Egyptians would have taken pleasure in the fact that the Israelites were destroyed, which was precisely what they had attempted to do (cf. Exod. 1:8-22). The character of God would have been demeaned, for God would not have kept His promises to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. The Messiah could not come through Moses, for he was of the tribe of Levi, while Messiah must come through Judah (compare Exodus 2:1-2 with Genesis 49:10). Thus, the words which God spoke were intended to stimulate Moses to intercede for his people, and thus to bring about forgiveness.

 The Lord changed His mind about the harm. Moses’ appeal for God to change His mind, to relent, succeeded because God had only threatened judgment, not decreed it. A divine intention is not an unchangeable divine decree. Decrees or sworn declarations or categorical statements of not changing or relenting are unconditional and bind the speaker to the stated course of action regardless of the circumstances or reactions of the listeners. Intentions retain a conditional element and do not necessarily bind the speaker to a stated course of action.
  Notice how God is speaking of your people … these people. By not calling Israel “my people”  God indicates that he is disowning them for breaking his covenant with them . This was a real temptation to Moses. God is saying, “Moses, I will use you like I used Abraham, and I will make of you a great nation, and I will still be able to make good my covenant with Abraham.

 Then Moses tells the Lord, “You brought Your people out of the land of Egypt, but suppose that You do not take them into the land. The Egyptians would say that You were able to lead them out of Egypt but not able to take them into the land. They are Your people, Lord. You promised to bring them into the land.”

Next, Moses gives God a third reason for turning aside from His wrath against the Israelites.
Moses continues, “Lord, remember Abraham, Isaac, and Israel; You made a promise to them. You promised to multiply their seed and give them a land.”
When Moses prayed like that, it moved the arm of God.

 15 Moses turned and went down the mountain with the two tablets of the Testimony in his hands. They were inscribed on both sides, front and back. 16 The tablets were the work of God; the writing was the writing of God, engraved on the tablets. 17 When Joshua heard the noise of the people shouting, he said to Moses, “There is the sound of war in the camp.” 18 Moses replied: 
“It is not the sound of victory, it is not the sound of defeat; it is the sound of singing that I hear.”
19 When Moses approached the camp and saw the calf and the dancing, his anger burned and he threw the tablets out of his hands, breaking them to pieces at the foot of the mountain.

 5. What did the broken tablets represent?      
                             
 The people had broken the laws of God, which they had recently agreed to keep? The breaking of a covenant, which normally meant death to the breaker.

 20 And he took the calf they had made and burned it in the fire; then he ground it to powder, scattered it on the water and made the Israelites drink it.

 6. Why make them drink the mixture of water and golden calf powder?

Remember “they sat down to eat and drink and got up to indulge in revelry.”  Moses was so angry, it’s like he was saying, “so you want to drink, I’ll give you something to drink”. I’ll bet they got sick after drinking it. Kind of reminds me of getting my mouth washed out with soap.

21 He said to Aaron, “What did these people do to you, that you led them into such great sin?” 22 ”Do not be angry, my lord,” Aaron answered. “You know how prone these people are to evil. 23 They said to me, ‘Make us gods who will go before us. As for this fellow Moses who brought us up out of Egypt, we don’t know what has happened to him.’ 24 So I told them, ‘Whoever has any gold jewelry, take it off.’ Then they gave me the gold, and I threw it into the fire, and out came this calf!”

 7. Sounds like a good story to me? Right?

 In his desperation, Aaron blamed the people, but the Lord held him accountable. Only through Moses’ intercession was Aaron spared.    out came this calf. Aaron could hardly have thought that Moses would believe such an incredible story.

 In affect he is blaming Moses, “you took so long that they thought you were dead, and then those people, you know how they are, and then the fire, they just put in gold and this calf jumped out.”

 25 Moses saw that the people were running wild and that Aaron had let them get out of control and so become a laughingstock to their enemies.

 They weren’t just having a harmless little wine sipping dinner. They were having a drunken naked orgy.

 26 So he stood at the entrance to the camp and said, “Whoever is for the Lord, come to me.” And all the Levites rallied to him. 27 Then he said to them, “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: ‘Each man strap a sword to his side. Go back and forth through the camp from one end to the other, each killing his brother and friend and neighbor.’” 28 The Levites did as Moses commanded, and that day about three thousand of the people died.

 8. Isn’t that a little harsh?

  Only the tribe of Levi responded to the call to take action in response to this situation which demanded judgment be inflicted. They had understood that neutrality could not exist in the open confrontation between good and evil. Family and national ties were superseded by submission to the Lord to do His will, which in this situation was to wield the sword of God’s judgment to preserve His honor and glory. They apparently killed those who persisted in idolatry and immorality.

 It is time for Moses to move in with extreme surgery. When you have cancer, you want to try to get rid of it. If it means cutting away half of your body, you want to get rid of it. Sin is an awful cancer, and God uses extreme surgery in this case by slaying those who were guilty. Those that were guilty were slain, and that cleaned up the camp pretty well. Many people are apt to say that this was brutal. Look at it this way. Was it better to cut out the cancer now and save the nation or let the cancer grow and destroy the nation? Think of the men, women, and children in the camp who were not guilty. If the men who had led Israel into idolatry had been allowed to live, the nation would never have entered the Promised Land.

 29 Then Moses said, “You have been set apart to the Lord today, for you were against your own sons and brothers, and he has blessed you this day.” 30 The next day Moses said to the people, “You have committed a great sin. But now I will go up to the Lord; perhaps I can make atonement for your sin.” 31 So Moses went back to the Lord and said, “Oh, what a great sin these people have committed! They have made themselves gods of gold. 32 But now, please forgive their sin–but if not, then blot me out of the book you have written.”

 9. How is Moses in this case a picture of Christ?

 He is offering himself for the sins of the people. By making

urgent intercession before God, as the mediator God had appointed between himself and Israel. No sacrifice that Israel or Moses might bring could atone for this sin. But Moses so identified himself with Israel that he made his own death the condition for God’s destruction of the nation. Jesus Christ, the great Mediator, offered himself on the cross to make atonement for his people.  
    
 An atonement covered up sin. That is the way sin was handled before Jesus Christ came to earth and died on the Cross. After the Cross, sin is removed.

 33 The Lord replied to Moses, “Whoever has sinned against me I will blot out of my book. 34 Now go, lead the people to the place I spoke of, and my angel will go before you. However, when the time comes for me to punish, I will punish them for their sin.” 35 And the Lord struck the people with a plague because of what they did with the calf Aaron had made.

  10. Can we be blotted out of the book?

  blot me out. Whoever has sinned … I will blot out. Moses’ gracious offer is refused, because the individuals who sin are responsible for their own sin. What is this? Confession. If you want to get along with God, you will have to agree with Him about sin. Sin is sin and it must be confessed. It does not matter who you are, either. These are God’s chosen people, the children of Israel, and Moses says, “We have sinned!” Israel had sinned a great sin and made gods of gold. Moses spelled out the sin before God. And, friends, when we confess our sin to God, we should spell it out. Tell God exactly what it is.

 He that overcometh, the same shall be clothed in white raiment; and I will not blot out his name out of the book of life, but I will confess his name before my Father, and before his angels. Rev 3:5 (KJV)

The beast that thou sawest was, and is not; and shall ascend out of the bottomless pit, and go into perdition: and they that dwell on the earth shall wonder, whose names were not written in the book of life from the foundation of the world, when they behold the beast that was, and is not, and yet is. Rev 17:8 (KJV)

Is it possible for you to be in the Book of Life and then have your name blotted out? Can you lose your salvation? If that is true, then the Lord Jesus should not have said, “And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand” (John 10:28). Again and again throughout Scripture we have the assurance given to us of our salvation. 

Dr. John Walvoord’s book The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which is a very good explanation of what is meant in this verse:
Some have indicated that there is no explicit statement here that anybody will have his name blotted out, but rather the promise that his name will not be blotted out because of his faith in Christ. The implication, however, is that such is a possibility. On the basis of this some have considered the book of life not as the roll of those who are saved but rather a list of those for whom Christ died, that is, all humanity who have possessed physical life. As they come to maturity and are faced with the responsibility of accepting or rejecting Christ, their names are blotted out if they fail to receive Jesus Christ as Saviour; whereas those who do accept Christ as Saviour are confirmed in their position in the book of life, and their names are confessed before the Father and the heavenly angels.

•  
• NIVSN……………….NIV Study Notes. 
• JVM ………………….J Vernon McGee,
• ACC ………………… Adam Clarke’s Commentary
• BN ……………………Barnes Notes
• WBC………….…….Wycliffe Bible Commentary
• CN ……….…………..Constables Notes 
• IC……………….…….Ironside Commentary
• NET…………….…….Net Bible Study Notes.
• JFB……………………Jamieson Fausset  Brown Commentary
• VWS………………….Vincent Word Studies
• CMM………………..Commentary on Matthew and Mark
• BDB……………..….Barclay’s Daily Study Bible (NT)
• Darby……………….John Darby’s Synopsis of the OT and NT
• Johnson……………Johnson’s Notes on the New Testament.
• NTCMM…………..The New Testament Commentary:  Matthew and Mark.
• EHS………………….Expositions of the Holy Scriptures
• CPP…………………The Complete Pulpit Commentary
• SBC…………………..Sermon Bible Commentary
• K&D…………………Keil and Deilitzsch Commentary on the OT
• EBC……………….…Expositors Bible Commentary
• CBSC……………….Cambridge Bible for Schools and College
• GC……………………Guzik Commentary
• RD…………………..Robert  Deffinbaugh
• NSB …………………The Nelson Study Bible
• MHC…………………Matthew Henry Commentary
• ESVN……………..….ESV Study Bible Notes 
• MSBN……………….MacArthur NASB Study Notes
• CSTTB………………..Chuck Smith Through the Bible     

 

“Fair Use “ Notice – Title 17 U.S.C. section 107
The above post may contain copyrighted material the use of which has not always been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. It is being made available in an effort to advance the understanding of environmental, political, human rights, economic, democracy, scientific, social justice, for the purpose of historical debate, and to advance the understanding of Christian conservative issues.  It is believed that this constitutes a ”fair use” of any such copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the Copyright Law. In accordance with the title 17 U.S. C. section 107, the material in this post is shown without profit to those who have expressed an interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes.