A Feint Glow of God’s Glory

29 When Moses came down from Mount Sinai, with the two tablets of the testimony in his hand as he came down from the mountain, Moses did not know that the skin of his face shone because he had been talking with God. 30 Aaron and all the people of Israel saw Moses, and behold, the skin of his face shone, and they were afraid to come near him. 31 But Moses called to them, and Aaron and all the leaders of the congregation returned to him, and Moses talked with them. 32 Afterward all the people of Israel came near, and he commanded them all that the Lord had spoken with him in Mount Sinai. 33 And when Moses had finished speaking with them, he put a veil over his face.

34 Whenever Moses went in before the Lord to speak with him, he would remove the veil, until he came out. And when he came out and told the people of Israel what he was commanded, 35 the people of Israel would see the face of Moses, that the skin of Moses’ face was shining. And Moses would put the veil over his face again, until he went in to speak with him. – Exodus 34:29-35 ESV

Moses had spent 40 days and nights on the mountaintop in his latest encounter with God. During that time, he had gone without food and water, yet somehow God had sustained him physically. His close proximity to God had supernaturally supplemented his body’s need for physical food. Moses could have easily explained his divine enablement the same way Jesus did to His disciples.

“My food is to do the will of him who sent me and to accomplish his work.” – John 4:34 ESV

But the time came for Moses to leave the mountaintop and return to the people. He carried in his hands the new tablets of stone containing the Decalogue, but he was unaware of a physical transformation that had taken place during his time with God.

…when he came down from the mountain, Moses did not know that the skin of his face shone while he talked with him. When Aaron and all the Israelites saw Moses, the skin of his face shone, and they were afraid to approach him. – Exodus 43:29-30 NLT

Moses glowed. His more than month-long encounter with God Almighty had left him physically altered. No explanation is given as to the exact cause of Moses’ glowing countenance, but it came as a direct result of his interaction with God. Somehow, the glory of God “rubbed off” on Moses, causing his face to give off a luminous incandescence that was visible to all those around him. The Hebrew word translated as “shone” is קָרַן (qāran) and literally means “to send out rays” or “to grow horns.” Evidently, his face emanated shafts of light that were visible to Aaron and the rest of the Israelites, but Moses was completely oblivious to this dramatic alteration to his countenance.

In his gospel account, Matthew records a similar experience that Jesus had with His disciples.

…after six days Jesus took with him Peter and James, and John his brother, and led them up a high mountain by themselves. And he was transfigured before them, and his face shone like the sun, and his clothes became white as light. And behold, there appeared to them Moses and Elijah, talking with him. – Matthew 17:1-3 ESV

During his time on the mountaintop, Jesus too glowed with the glory of God. And on that occasion, He was visited by Moses himself. These two servants of God had much in common, but while Moses served as the mediator of the old covenant, Jesus provided a new covenant that allowed both Jews and Gentiles to enjoy a restored relationship with God.

…dear brothers and sisters who belong to God and are partners with those called to heaven, think carefully about this Jesus whom we declare to be God’s messenger and High Priest. For he was faithful to God, who appointed him, just as Moses served faithfully when he was entrusted with God’s entire house.

But Jesus deserves far more glory than Moses, just as a person who builds a house deserves more praise than the house itself. For every house has a builder, but the one who built everything is God.

Moses was certainly faithful in God’s house as a servant. His work was an illustration of the truths God would reveal later. But Christ, as the Son, is in charge of God’s entire house. And we are God’s house, if we keep our courage and remain confident in our hope in Christ. – Hebrews 3:1-6 NLT

But on that day when Moses descended the mountain, he held in his hands the law of God, and his face shone forth the glory of God. In a sense, the tablets reflected God’s expectations of His people, but Moses’ face reflected their need for God’s power. Their capacity to obey God’s laws would not be self-produced but God-endowed. Laws written on tablets of stone would prove to be ineffective if the hearts of the people remained hardened and their faces failed to reflect the glory of God.

Moses had spent 40 days and nights in God’s presence, going without food and water, and yet he literally radiated an aura of spiritual and physical vitality. But at the sight of Moses’ appearance, the Israelites cowered in fear. It was not what they had expected. Their fearless leader didn’t look the same and his altered appearance left them confused and conflicted. The light that showed from Moses’ face didn’t attract them; it repelled them.

This scene foreshadows another time when the Son of God made His entrance into the world. The apostle John describes the coming of Jesus this way:

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. – John 1:1-5 ESV

The true light, which gives light to everyone, was coming into the world. He was in the world, and the world was made through him, yet the world did not know him. He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him. – John 1:9-11 ESV

And Jesus would later expand on this theme of light in the darkness.

“And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil. For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his works should be exposed. But those who do what is right come to the light so others can see that they are doing what God wants.” – John 3:19-21 ESV

Moses was bringing the law of God and the light of God, but his own people rejected him. They turned their backs in fear and, in doing so, they demonstrated their love affair with darkness.

But Moses convinced them to return and “he commanded them all that the Lord had spoken with him in Mount Sinai” (Exodus 34:32 ESV). His face aglow with the glory of God, Moses imparted to them the commands of God – again. This was not new information, but it was being communicated to them in a new and unforgettable way. Moses was radiating God’s presence and this would have given his words far greater impact than ever before. This wasn’t simply a mortal man imparting legal requirements and moral mandates; it was a divinely ordained messenger from God communicating and reflecting the holiness of God. It was the apostle Paul who wrote “the law itself is holy, and its commands are holy and right and good” (Romans 7:12 NLT). 

This time, God was communicating His holy laws through a holy vessel to an unholy people. The glory of God reflected in the face of Moses was meant to emphasize the gravity of the message and the authority of the messenger. Moses had given them the law once before and while they had vowed to obey all that God had said, they ended up violating His commands and replacing Him with a god of their own making.

The law had not changed. What Moses communicated to the people was the same as it had always been, but the deliverer was dramatically altered so that the recipients might take his words more seriously. And evidently, God continued to bestow His messenger with a supernatural outpouring of His glory for some time to come.

When Moses finished speaking with them, he would put a veil on his face. But when Moses went in before the Lord to speak with him, he would remove the veil until he came out. Then he would come out and tell the Israelites what he had been commanded. – Exodus 34:33-34 NLT

This pattern would be repeated, all so that the people of Israel might take God’s messenger and message more seriously. But the apostle Paul reminds us that this divine strategy would run its course. The time would come when the glory on Moses’ face would fade, and the people’s reverence for the messenger and the message would dissipate. Sadly, Moses would continue to wear the veil long after God’s glory had faded from his face. And the people would eventually lose their fear of the light, reverting back to their love affair with sin and darkness. The apostle Paul provides commentary and much-needed insight into this fascinating passage,

The old way, with laws etched in stone, led to death, though it began with such glory that the people of Israel could not bear to look at Moses’ face. For his face shone with the glory of God, even though the brightness was already fading away. Shouldn’t we expect far greater glory under the new way, now that the Holy Spirit is giving life? If the old way, which brings condemnation, was glorious, how much more glorious is the new way, which makes us right with God! In fact, that first glory was not glorious at all compared with the overwhelming glory of the new way. So if the old way, which has been replaced, was glorious, how much more glorious is the new, which remains forever! – 2 Corinthians 3:7-11 NLT

Moses wore the veil to conceal the glory of God. But Paul reveals that, eventually, that glory faded. He also states that the people’s minds were veiled by sin so they couldn’t comprehend the glory of God contained in His law.

We are not like Moses, who put a veil over his face so the people of Israel would not see the glory, even though it was destined to fade away. But the people’s minds were hardened, and to this day whenever the old covenant is being read, the same veil covers their minds so they cannot understand the truth. And this veil can be removed only by believing in Christ. Yes, even today when they read Moses’ writings, their hearts are covered with that veil, and they do not understand. – 2 Corinthians 3:13-15 NLT

God had a better way in mind. But for the time being, the law was meant to serve as a foreshadowing of that better way. God revealed His glory through the giving of His perfect, just, and righteous commands. But the people would be required to obey them – completely and fully. And He had given His messenger an aura of His glory to validate the holiness of His message. But time would prove that the people of Israel “loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil” (John 3:19 ESV).

English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001

New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

The Source of All Sustenance

18 “You shall keep the Feast of Unleavened Bread. Seven days you shall eat unleavened bread, as I commanded you, at the time appointed in the month Abib, for in the month Abib you came out from Egypt. 19 All that open the womb are mine, all your male livestock, the firstborn of cow and sheep. 20 The firstborn of a donkey you shall redeem with a lamb, or if you will not redeem it you shall break its neck. All the firstborn of your sons you shall redeem. And none shall appear before me empty-handed.

21 “Six days you shall work, but on the seventh day you shall rest. In plowing time and in harvest you shall rest. 22 You shall observe the Feast of Weeks, the firstfruits of wheat harvest, and the Feast of Ingathering at the year’s end. 23 Three times in the year shall all your males appear before the Lord God, the God of Israel. 24 For I will cast out nations before you and enlarge your borders; no one shall covet your land, when you go up to appear before the Lord your God three times in the year.

25 “You shall not offer the blood of my sacrifice with anything leavened, or let the sacrifice of the Feast of the Passover remain until the morning. 26 The best of the firstfruits of your ground you shall bring to the house of the Lord your God. You shall not boil a young goat in its mother’s milk.”

27 And the Lord said to Moses, “Write 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 neither ate bread nor drank water. And he wrote on the tablets the words of the covenant, the Ten Commandments. – Exodus 34:18-28 ESV

This portion of Exodus 34 has left scholars scratching their heads in confusion and contradicting one another in their attempts to explain what is going on. In these verses, Moses records the words spoken to him by God when he returned to the top of Mount Sinai. It is clear that God’s emphasis was on the covenant and the law that accompanied it. But why does God seem to give such a strange and disjointed summary of the Decalogue and the Book of the Covenant? He provides Moses with a random list of moral and ceremonial laws that appear to have no rhyme or reason behind them.

Yet, if one considers the context, it all begins to make sense. This entire exchange between God and Moses took place shortly after Israel had committed the sin of apostasy by worshiping the golden calf. In doing so, they had broken God’s laws and violated the covenant commitment they had agreed to keep. God had expressed His anger and judgment with their rejection of Him by having the leaders of the rebellion executed and by sending a plague to punish all those who had joined them in the worship of the false god they had made. But Moses had intervened on behalf of the people of Israel, begging God to extend grace, mercy, and forgiveness. He had also pleaded with Yahweh to remain with His chosen people, rather than abandon them as punishment for their sinfulness. And God had agreed to all of Moses’ requests.

But while God was willing to renew His relationship with His rebellious people, He was going to reiterate and renew His covenant requirements of them.

“Observe what I command you this day.” – Exodus 34:11 ESV

And what follows is a summary list of the laws He had previously given to Moses on Mount Sinai. Moses had already provided the people of Israel with the complete compilation of the Decalogue and the Book of the Covenant.

Moses came and told the people all the Lord’s words and all the decisions. All the people answered together, “We are willing to do all the words that the Lord has said,” and Moses wrote down all the words of the Lord. – Exodus 24:3-4 NLT

God had also given Moses the original set of stone tablets containing the Ten Commandments.

The Lord said to Moses, “Come up to me on the mountain and remain there, and I will give you the stone tablets with the law and the commandments that I have written, so that you may teach them.” – Exodus 24:12 NLT

These tablets had been shattered by Moses when he had come down from the mountaintop and discovered the people of Israel celebrating their new god. But the breaking of the tablets was not the problem; it was the Israelite’s breaking of the laws the tablets contained. They had not acted in ignorance. They had willingly disobeyed their covenant commitment by refusing to keep God’s commandments. So now, God was preparing to provide them with a second copy of the Ten Commandments and He accompanied it with a carefully chosen collection of laws that emphasized their covenant relationship with Him.

A close look at this seemingly random list of rules and regulations reveals that they have much in common. First of all, they were not to repeat the mistake they had just made.

“You shall not make for yourself any gods of cast metal.” – Exodus 34:17 ESV

No more golden calves. And no adoption and adaptation of the false gods of the inhabitants of Canaan. When they finally entered the land of promise, they were to purge it of all remnants of idolatry and pagan worship. No shrines were to be left standing. Not altars to false gods were to remain intact.

Not only that, they were to keep the feast days that God had established for them. There were to be no new feast days or special events associated with false gods or worthless idols. One of the things that infuriated Moses and caused him to destroy the original tablets of stone was to see his fellow Israelites dancing around the golden calf.

When he approached the camp and saw the calf and the dancing, Moses became extremely angry. He threw the tablets from his hands and broke them to pieces at the bottom of the mountain. – Exodus 32:19 NLT

What Moses had witnessed that day was a man-made festival decreed by his very own brother. Aaron had not only given in to the people’s demand for a new god, but he also set aside the following day as an official feast day.

“Tomorrow will be a feast to the Lord.” So they got up early on the next day and offered up burnt offerings and brought peace offerings, and the people sat down to eat and drink, and they rose up to play. – Exodus 32:5-6 NLT

So, it makes sense that God would remind His people that they were limited to celebrating the feasts that He had established for them, including the Feast of Unleavened Bread. Once a year, they were to celebrate their deliverance from Egypt by holding three closely connected days of remembrance. The first was the Feast of Unleavened Bread. For seven days they were forbidden to eat anything containing yeast, a symbol of sin. Then, on the seventh day, they were to hold a feast, commemorating and celebrating their deliverance from their captivity in Egypt. Notice that the feast was to follow a period of abstinence from and purging of sin – the opposite of the celebration that took place after their sinful worship of the golden calf.

God also reminded them of the Feast of Weeks and the Feast of Ingathering. These two feasts were to bookend the annual harvest.

“You must observe the Feast of Weeks—the firstfruits of the harvest of wheat—and the Feast of Ingathering at the end of the year.” – Exodus 34:22 NLT

They were to recognize God as the faithful provider of all their needs by offering Him the first of all their harvests. There were to be no celebrations of false gods because they were incapable of providing any help or hope. Everything the Israelites had was a gift from God, including their food, shelter, flocks, herds, and children.

“Every firstborn of the womb belongs to me, even every firstborn of your cattle that is a male, whether ox or sheep.” – Exodus 34:19 NLT

God was reemphasizing His providential care for His people. The very thought of aligning themselves with another god should have been abhorrent to them. No man-made god could match Yahweh’s generosity and goodness. The Israelites owed all that they had to the gracious benevolence of their God, and they were to regularly celebrate His providential care by keeping His prescribed feasts. Even the weekly celebration of the Sabbath was intended to remind the Israelites that His provision was so generous that they could take the seventh day off. But this day was to be dedicated to Him.

Three times each year, at the Feast of Unleavened Bread, the Feast of Weeks, and the Feast of Ingathering, the men of Israel were required to appear before the Lord. These mandatory festivals were designed to be reminders of God’s covenant faithfulness and to prompt the people of Israel to treat their gracious and generous God with the reverence and gratitude He deserved.

Every law and regulation God gave them was to be faithfully kept, including the rather obscure one that prohibited the boiling of a lamb in its mother’s milk. God seems to reiterate this one for emphasis. There were to be no commandments that were overlooked or ignored. God’s will was serious business and His call to obedience was not to be taken lightly.

For 40 days and nights, Moses communed with God, going without food or water. This reference to Moses’ extended fast is just another reminder that Yahweh was to be the provider and sustainer of all their needs. Moses was energized and fueled by his access to God Almighty. He suffered no hunger, pain, or diminishment of his strength during that time. He feasted on the words of God and was nourished by His presence. And when Moses finished his time along with Yahweh, he descended the mountain one more time with a brand new copy of the Decalogue in his hands.

English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001

New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

The Key to God’s Blessings

10 And he said, “Behold, I am making a covenant. Before all your people I will do marvels, such as have not been created in all the earth or in any nation. And all the people among whom you are shall see the work of the Lord, for it is an awesome thing that I will do with you.

11 “Observe what I command you this day. Behold, I will drive out before you the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites. 12 Take care, lest you make a covenant with the inhabitants of the land to which you go, lest it become a snare in your midst. 13 You shall tear down their altars and break their pillars and cut down their Asherim 14 (for you shall worship no other god, for the Lord, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God), 15 lest you make a covenant with the inhabitants of the land, and when they whore after their gods and sacrifice to their gods and you are invited, you eat of his sacrifice, 16 and you take of their daughters for your sons, and their daughters whore after their gods and make your sons whore after their gods.

17 “You shall not make for yourself any gods of cast metal. – Exodus 34:10-17 ESV

Moses had gotten what he asked for, and more. He requested to see God’s glory and God had obliged. But God had also given Moses a verbal reminder of His identity.

The Lord passed by before him and proclaimed: “The Lord, the Lord, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, and abounding in loyal love and faithfulness,  keeping loyal love for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin. But he by no means leaves the guilty unpunished, responding to the transgression of fathers by dealing with children and children’s children, to the third and fourth generation.” – Exodus 34:6-7 NLT

This divine declaration of God’s nature led Moses to respond, “O Lord, let my Lord go among us, for we are a stiff-necked people; pardon our iniquity and our sin, and take us for your inheritance” (Exodus 34:9 NLT). He was more convinced than ever that the Israelites were in desperate need of God’s presence but would need an extra measure of His grace, mercy, love, and forgiveness. Their sin had separated them from a holy and just God, and only His compassion could restore the relationship they had broken. There was nothing they could do to redeem themselves or earn back God’s favor.

And God responded to Moses’ humble request by agreeing to remain among His people. But it would require a recommitment of the covenant agreement they had broken. In a sense, God was beginning again. He was giving them a second chance to prove their willingness to live according to His laws. And God was recommitting Himself to fulfill His part of the covenant.

“See, I am going to make a covenant before all your people. I will do wonders such as have not been done in all the earth, nor in any nation. All the people among whom you live will see the work of the Lord, for it is a fearful thing that I am doing with you.” – Exodus 34:10 NLT

The God whom they had greatly offended was declaring His intentions to act on their behalf. He would do great wonders and fearful works that proved their status as His chosen people. Just a short time earlier, God had revealed His frustration with His rebellious people by stating, “If I went up among you for a moment, I might destroy you.” (Exodus 33:5 NLT). Now, He was declaring His intentions to bless them by pouring out His power on their behalf. And one of the greatest manifestations of that power would come in the form of His defeat of all the nations that occupied the land of Canaan. 

“I am going to drive out before you the Amorite, the Canaanite, the Hittite, the Perizzite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite.” – Exodus 34:11 NLT

Israel’s takeover of Canaan would not come without a fight, but they would be guaranteed victory because Yahweh was on their side. They had nothing to fear and everything to gain. But this promise of ultimate success came with conditions.

God warns the people of Israel two separate times about making covenants with the inhabitants of Canaan. Their only covenant was to be with Him and, for His part, He would remove their enemies from the land. For their part, they were to refrain from any kind of relationship with those nations.

“Be careful not to make a covenant with the inhabitants of the land where you are going, lest it become a snare among you.” – Exodus 34:12 NLT

God knew His people well. This warning was necessary because the Israelites had proven their propensity for unfaithfulness. God knew that, once the Israelites entered Canaan, they would be tempted to make treaties and alliances with their enemies. It would be easier to compromise than to conquer. But God prohibited His people from making any kind of concessions that might jeopardize their commitment to Him. The Israelites had already demonstrated their propensity for unfaithfulness. Long before they ever stepped foot into Canaan, they had chosen to replace Yahweh with a false god. What would happen when they crossed over the Jordan River and discovered that the land of Canaan was filled with altars and high places dedicated to all kinds of false gods?

God’s greatest concern was that His chosen people would choose to be tolerant and accepting of their Canaanite neighbors. They would be tempted to operate by the old adage, “Live and let live.” But God knew that any fraternizing with the enemy would prove to be disastrous, so He warned them:

“Rather you must destroy their altars, smash their images, and cut down their Asherah poles.  For you must not worship any other god, for the Lord, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God.” – Exodus 34:13 NLT

Yahweh was not a tolerant and open-minded deity who was willing to share the affections of His covenant people. He would not abide by any sign of unfaithfulness or infidelity among His people. And He knew that the Israelites would find it difficult to refrain from unfaithfulness if they failed to clean house. God had guaranteed the removal of Canaan’s inhabitants, but Israel was responsible for destroying all their idols and places of worship. Not a single shrine or altar was to be left standing because they would prove to be too great a temptation for the fickle people of Israel.

The Israelites should have learned a powerful and permanent lesson about God’s jealous nature when 3,000 of their leaders had been destroyed for their role in the golden calf incident. These men had been put to death for instigating the rejection of Yahweh and His replacement with a false god. And they were not the only ones to suffer God’s wrath. A plague put an end to an undisclosed number of Israelites who had joined in the insurrection.

So, God wanted to spare His people from any further judgment by reminding them of their need to remain faithful at all costs. God’s plan for the removal of the Canaanites involved a slow and methodical process. It would not happen overnight. He had already told Moses, “I will not drive them out from before you in one year, lest the land become desolate and the wild beasts multiply against you. Little by little I will drive them out from before you, until you have increased and possess the land” (Exodus 23:29-30 ESV). But God knew that this plan for incremental expulsion would present a problem for the people of Israel. The ongoing presence of the Canaanites would tempt the Israelites to make alliances with them, which God completely prohibited, and for good reason.

“Be careful not to make a covenant with the inhabitants of the land, for when they prostitute themselves to their gods and sacrifice to their gods, and someone invites you, you will eat from his sacrifice, and you then take his daughters for your sons, and when his daughters prostitute themselves to their gods, they will make your sons prostitute themselves to their gods as well.” – Exodus 34:15-16 NLT

Close proximity would encourage moral laxity. The temptation to make alliances with their enemies would prove to be a problem for the Israelites. When they eventually entered the land of Canaan and saw the prosperity and power of their adversaries, the Israelites would find it tempting to take the path of least resistance and simply go along to get along. It would be easier to conform than to face the prospect of armed conflict. But conformity would result in compromise and compromise would lead to an abandonment of their convictions.

God reminds His people of the second of the Ten Commandments when He states, “You shall not make for yourself any gods of cast metal” (Exodus 34:17 ESV). The Israelites were not free to worship the existing gods of the Canaanites or a god they made with their own hands. This was a direct reference to the golden calf. The Israelites had already proven their ability to fabricate their own gods. So, it was going to get even harder when they entered the land of Canaan and discovered a virtual cafeteria of deities from which to choose. If remaining faithful to Yahweh had proven to be difficult in the wilderness, how were the Israelites supposed to survive the idol-filled landscape of Canaan?

The key to their survival would lie in their willingness to keep God’s commands and to maintain all the commitments that came with His covenant. Faithfulness would be the best defense against unfaithfulness. Living according to God’s law would preserve the set-apart status of God’s people. If the Israelites would only obey, they would experience the blessings of God and discover the joy of living in unbroken fellowship with Him.

English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001

New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

A Plea for God’s Mercy

1 The Lord said to Moses, “Cut for yourself two tablets of stone like the first, and I will write on the tablets the words that were on the first tablets, which you broke. 2 Be ready by the morning, and come up in the morning to Mount Sinai, and present yourself there to me on the top of the mountain. 3 No one shall come up with you, and let no one be seen throughout all the mountain. Let no flocks or herds graze opposite that mountain.” 4 So Moses cut two tablets of stone like the first. And he rose early in the morning and went up on Mount Sinai, as the Lord had commanded him, and took in his hand two tablets of stone. 5 The Lord descended in the cloud and stood with him there, and proclaimed the name of the Lord. 6 The Lord passed before him and proclaimed, “The Lord, the Lord, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness, 7 keeping steadfast love for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, but who will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children and the children’s children, to the third and the fourth generation.” 8 And Moses quickly bowed his head toward the earth and worshiped. 9 And he said, “If now I have found favor in your sight, O Lord, please let the Lord go in the midst of us, for it is a stiff-necked people, and pardon our iniquity and our sin, and take us for your inheritance.” – Exodus 34:1-9 ESV

As Moses stood in the tent of meeting at the outskirts of the camp, God agreed to give Moses a glimpse of His glory. But if Moses wanted to see his request fulfilled, he would first have to replace the tablets of stones he had shattered. The God-inscribed tablets lay in pieces on the valley floor where Moses had thrown them in anger when he discovered the sordid scene taking place among his people. Moses may have broken the tablets, but the law of God remained fully intact and in place. The holiness of God had not diminished and His holy expectations of His chosen people had not been altered by their actions. If anything, God’s righteous laws were more important than ever.

The people of Israel had shown their true colors. Their allegiance to God had been exposed for what it was, weak and vacillating. It had taken no time at all for their faithfulness to Yahweh to wane and their commitment to keeping His laws to disappear like the manna did when the sun came up in the morning. So, God demanded that Moses carve out two more tablets of stone and return to the top of Mount Sinai.

“Chisel out two stone tablets like the first ones. I will write on them the same words that were on the tablets you smashed. Be ready in the morning to climb up Mount Sinai and present yourself to me on the top of the mountain.” – Exodus 34:1-2 NLT

And as before, God restricted access to the mountain, warning that no other Israelite was to come anywhere near Sinai. Not even the flocks and herds of Israel were allowed to graze near the base of the mountain. God was going to descend on Mount Sinai, transforming the entire mountain into a sacred place or sanctuary. This warning was intended as a not-so-subtle reminder to the people of Israel that they served a holy and transcendent God who deserved their reverence and whose power should elicit fear and awe. This was the very same God who had promised to dwell among them in the Tabernacle that He had designed and commissioned them to build. At the moment, that sacred structure remained unbuilt but when completed, it too would become a holy place because it contained the glory of God’s presence.

Moses obeyed God’s command and chiseled out two new tablets to replace the ones he had broken. The original set had been hand-carved by God.

The tablets were the work of God, and the writing was the writing of God, engraved on the tablets. – Exodus 32:16 ESV

This time, by having to do the difficult work of crafting the replacement stones, Moses would have skin in the game. Perhaps he would treat God’s laws with greater respect if he had some sweat equity in their creation. But there is something else going on here. When Moses returned to the top of the mountain, he would be carrying stones that he had crafted with his own hands. They would be poor facsimiles of the ones he had broken. There is no way that Moses could craft stone tablets that were equal in quality to those made by the hand of God. Yet, God promised to write His law on the flawed stones made by human hands.

Centuries later, the prophet, Jeremiah would write the following words from God concerning the people of Israel.

“But this is the new covenant I will make with the people of Israel after those days,” says the Lord. “I will put my instructions deep within them, and I will write them on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people.” – Jeremiah 31:33 NLT

God was speaking of a future day when He would restore His rebellious people to a right relationship with Himself. They had broken His commands time and time again and were subject to His judgment for their disobedience. He was going to punish them for their failure to obey, but He also promised to restore them. But notice what God said. He would write His laws on their hearts. And the author of Hebrews picks up on this idea when he writes:

But when God found fault with the people, he said:

“The day is coming, says the Lord,
    when I will make a new covenant
    with the people of Israel and Judah.
This covenant will not be like the one
    I made with their ancestors
when I took them by the hand
    and led them out of the land of Egypt.
They did not remain faithful to my covenant,
    so I turned my back on them, says the Lord.
But this is the new covenant I will make
    with the people of Israel on that day, says the Lord:
I will put my laws in their minds,
    and I will write them on their hearts.
I will be their God,
    and they will be my people.” – Hebrews 8:8-10 NLT

In a sense, those stone tablets carved by Moses’ hands were meant to symbolize the hardened hearts of the people of Israel. When Moses carved those stones out of the mountainside, they proved to be stubbornly resistant to the blows of his chisel and hammer. But when he carried them up the mountain, they would become the receptacles of God’s divine law. God’s intention all along was the change the hearts of His people. Laws without willing hearts to obey them become nothing more than regulations that condemn.

The apostle Paul spoke of this very issue from a personal perspective. As a former Pharisee, he had done his best to try and obey the law, only to discover that it was impossible. His heart wasn’t in it.

I discovered that the law’s commands, which were supposed to bring life, brought spiritual death instead. Sin took advantage of those commands and deceived me; it used the commands to kill me. But still, the law itself is holy, and its commands are holy and right and good. – Romans 7:10-12 NLT

He wrote the believers in Galatia: “If the law could give us new life, we could be made right with God by obeying it” (Galatians 3:21 NLT). But the problem was not with the law; it was with the hearts of those who refused to obey the law.

So the trouble is not with the law, for it is spiritual and good. The trouble is with me, for I am all too human, a slave to sin. – Romans 7:14 NLT

It’s interesting to note that, until God had given the Decalogue to Moses, there were no prohibitions against having any other gods than Yahweh. But once God had given the Ten Commandments to Moses and the people had agreed to obey them, the law became binding and irrefutable. They were non-optional. Not only that, they made sin indefensible. No Israelite could say he acted out of ignorance. All those who participated in the worship of the golden calf did so in spite of their understanding of God’s law and their verbal commitment to obey that law. They stood justly condemned.

And yet, God was graciously offering to provide them with another copy of His commands. This time, they would be written on hard, cold stones carved by the hands of Moses. But they would be just as binding and unbendable in their scope.

Before God inscribed His law on the new tablets, He kept His promise and revealed His glory to Moses. And His glorious presence was accompanied by the following speech.

“Yahweh! The Lord!
    The God of compassion and mercy!
I am slow to anger
    and filled with unfailing love and faithfulness.
I lavish unfailing love to a thousand generations.
    I forgive iniquity, rebellion, and sin.
But I do not excuse the guilty.
    I lay the sins of the parents upon their children and grandchildren;
the entire family is affected—
    even children in the third and fourth generations.” – Exodus 34:6-7 NLT

If you recall, God had earlier told Moses, “I will show mercy to anyone I choose, and I will show compassion to anyone I choose” (Exodus 33:19 NLT). Now, as He revealed His glory to Moses, God expanded on that statement. He describes His own commitment to show compassion and mercy to His people. He declares His unfailing capacity to show love and to forgive. And yet, He affirms His right to judge the wicked and unrepentant. He declares His intention to hold the guilty accountable for their actions. Not only that, He states that future generations will inherit the guilt of their forefathers. But what is going on here? How do we justify this statement with God’s earlier promise of forgiveness? The key lies in the Ten Commandments themselves. In giving the first two laws, God had added the following condition.

“I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God who will not tolerate your affection for any other gods. I lay the sins of the parents upon their children; the entire family is affected—even children in the third and fourth generations of those who reject me.” – Exodus 20:5 NLT

There was one sin that God would not forgive, and that was any rejection of Him as the one true God. He knew that this sin was particularly infectious. God knew that when the parents turned their backs on Him, the children would be prone to follow their example. And this hereditary sin would be passed down from generation to generation, with each subsequent generation bearing the guilt of their forefathers.

What had happened in the valley of Sinai was a serious breach of God’s law, but what made it even more dangerous was its potential for spreading a spirit of rebellion among the people of Israel. If it happened once, it could happen again and if it did, God would hold all those who rejected Him guilty and worthy of condemnation.

This foreboding word from God caused Moses to cry out, “Yes, this is a stubborn and rebellious people, but please forgive our iniquity and our sins. Claim us as your own special possession” (Exodus 34:9 NLT). He knew that without God’s presence, the people would be helpless, and without God’s forgiveness, they would be hopeless. So, he begged God to show mercy and extend forgiveness because he understood that the people of Israel were worthy of judgment. According to the law, they stood condemned. Which led Moses to appeal to the Law-giver to extend mercy and grace. It was their only hope.

English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001

New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.