19 On the third new moon after the people of Israel had gone out of the land of Egypt, on that day they came into the wilderness of Sinai. 2 They set out from Rephidim and came into the wilderness of Sinai, and they encamped in the wilderness. There Israel encamped before the mountain, 3 while Moses went up to God. The Lord called to him out of the mountain, saying, “Thus you shall say to the house of Jacob, and tell the people of Israel: 4 ‘You yourselves have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles’ wings and brought you to myself. 5 Now therefore, if you will indeed obey my voice and keep my covenant, you shall be my treasured possession among all peoples, for all the earth is mine; 6 and you shall be to me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.’ These are the words that you shall speak to the people of Israel.”
7 So Moses came and called the elders of the people and set before them all these words that the Lord had commanded him. 8 All the people answered together and said, “All that the Lord has spoken we will do.” And Moses reported the words of the people to the Lord. 9 And the Lord said to Moses, “Behold, I am coming to you in a thick cloud, that the people may hear when I speak with you, and may also believe you forever.”
When Moses told the words of the people to the Lord, 10 the Lord said to Moses, “Go to the people and consecrate them today and tomorrow, and let them wash their garments 11 and be ready for the third day. For on the third day the Lord will come down on Mount Sinai in the sight of all the people. 12 And you shall set limits for the people all around, saying, ‘Take care not to go up into the mountain or touch the edge of it. Whoever touches the mountain shall be put to death. 13 No hand shall touch him, but he shall be stoned or shot;1 whether beast or man, he shall not live.’ When the trumpet sounds a long blast, they shall come up to the mountain.” 14 So Moses went down from the mountain to the people and consecrated the people; and they washed their garments. 15 And he said to the people, “Be ready for the third day; do not go near a woman.”
16 On the morning of the third day there were thunders and lightnings and a thick cloud on the mountain and a very loud trumpet blast, so that all the people in the camp trembled. 17 Then Moses brought the people out of the camp to meet God, and they took their stand at the foot of the mountain. 18 Now Mount Sinai was wrapped in smoke because the Lord had descended on it in fire. The smoke of it went up like the smoke of a kiln, and the whole mountain trembled greatly. 19 And as the sound of the trumpet grew louder and louder, Moses spoke, and God answered him in thunder. 20 The Lord came down on Mount Sinai, to the top of the mountain. And the Lord called Moses to the top of the mountain, and Moses went up.
21 And the Lord said to Moses, “Go down and warn the people, lest they break through to the Lord to look and many of them perish. 22 Also let the priests who come near to the Lord consecrate themselves, lest the Lord break out against them.” 23 And Moses said to the Lord, “The people cannot come up to Mount Sinai, for you yourself warned us, saying, ‘Set limits around the mountain and consecrate it.’” 24 And the Lord said to him, “Go down, and come up bringing Aaron with you. But do not let the priests and the people break through to come up to the Lord, lest he break out against them.” 25 So Moses went down to the people and told them.
Section Overview
The Israelites arrive at Mount Sinai and will remain here until Numbers 10, a period of time just under one year but narrated over fifty-nine chapters. “This level of interest in such a short period of time is unique in the Old Testament” and shows how important the events of Mount Sinai are.338 A house can stand well only on a strong foundation, and the same is true for a nation; the Lord builds just such a foundation during this time.
Exodus 19 begins building this foundation by focusing on the Lord’s invitation to the Israelites to enter into a special covenant relationship with him (vv. 1–6), an invitation they wholeheartedly accept (vv. 7–8). The rest of the chapter focuses on the Lord’s special arrival at Mount Sinai (vv. 9–25). It begins by making clear the importance of ritual cleansing in preparation for the arrival of a holy God and the need to respect his holiness by not transgressing boundaries around his holy mountain (vv. 9–15). It then describes the Lord’s arrival in terrifying detail and makes clear that Moses is the Lord’s appointed spokesman (vv. 16–19). It ends by repeating the necessity of not transgressing the mountain’s boundaries, with the exception of Moses and Aaron, in this way underscoring the Israelites’ need to respect the Lord’s holiness and to recognize those who have been set apart to have a special role within the nation (vv. 20–25).
Section Outline
IV. Israel arrives at Sinai: the Lord prepares his people to receive his covenant and its laws (18:1–19:25) . . .
B. The Lord’s invitation of special covenant relationship; his arrival in glory (19:1–25)
1. The Israelites’ arrival at Sinai (19:1–2)
2. The Lord’s invitation of special covenant relationship (19:3–6)
3. The people accept the Lord’s invitation (19:7–8a)
4. Preparations for the Lord’s arrival (19:8b–15)
5. The Lord’s special arrival takes place (19:16–19)
6. The Lord reinforces his commands about who may and may not go up the mountain (19:20–25)
Response
As Abraham’s descendants, the Israelites are already members of the Abrahamic covenant. In this chapter, however, the Lord invites them afresh to embrace a covenant relationship with him. We may explore what this means by asking four questions.
What Is a Covenant Relationship?
In the ancient Near East to enter into a covenant was to enter into a relationship with another party. Israel’s covenant relationship with the Lord was the type of relationship that was to be much more personal than a contract and much more permanent than an ordinary relationship.349 Stated differently, this was not a business relationship but a personal one, like a marriage. And it was to be not a short-lived relationship but a permanent one, as also a marriage is supposed to be: “Till death us do part.”
Where Does Relationship with the Lord Begin?
Significantly, this relationship is rooted in the Lord’s redeeming love. He begins his invitation in this way: “You yourselves have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles’ wings and brought you to myself” (v. 4). Israel is to accept the Lord’s invitation not in order to earn his love but as the proper response to the overwhelming love he has already shown.
Such an understanding is at odds with how God’s love is thought of today, sometimes even in Christian circles. Too often his love is presented as meager food for which one must labor all day long in the hopes of getting a scrap. But in the Bible God’s love is like a lavish banquet on which he invites us to feast all day long in order to fuel our life. Or, again, we think of his love as something we must climb to heaven to secure by means of our good works, when in reality he has already come down from heaven to rescue us and embrace us with his love. Biblically speaking, God always takes the initiative. He is the pursuer; we are the pursued. He is the rescuer; we are the rescued. He is the lover: we are the loved. As Paul puts it, “God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Rom. 5:8).
What Does Relationship with the Lord Entail?
In most meaningful relationships both parties have obligations, especially the obligation of faithfulness. Whether in a relationship between friends, best friends, or spouses, a certain level of faithfulness is assumed. The same is true in the Lord’s covenant relationship with Israel: each party is expected to be faithful to the other.
That faithfulness may be described in terms of the type of covenant in view. As discussed in more detail below (cf. comments on 20:1–21), the Sinai covenant resembles other ancient Near Eastern treaties between a greater king (a suzerain) and a lesser king (a vassal, i.e., a servant). In such treaties the greater king is obligated to offer military protection while the lesser king is obligated to offer absolute loyalty.350
For his part the Lord shows his faithfulness by rescuing the Israelites from slavery and will show his ongoing faithfulness by treating them as his “treasured possession” (19:5). The word translated “treasured possession” refers elsewhere to a king’s treasure (1 Chron. 29:3; Eccles. 2:8), something to be highly safeguarded and valued (cf. comment on 19:3–6). That is what the Lord will do with Israel. As Moses will later say, “[The Lord] kept [Israel] as the apple of his eye” (Deut. 32:10; cf. Zech. 2:8).
For Israel’s part they are to be faithful to the Lord’s covenant law (“Obey my voice and keep my covenant”; Ex. 19:5). It is how they show their loyalty. What is more, by doing so they will live out the special calling the Lord has given them: to be a kingdom of priests and a holy nation. Just as priests within Israel are to help the Israelites know, love, and worship God, so Israel as a nation is to help the rest of the world do the same. Indeed, as a holy nation they are to embody God’s own character on earth so that the nations may come to understand who their Creator is and what it means to live in his world. In short the Lord has called Israel into unique relationship, not because he wants to save them and not the world but so that through them the world might be saved (cf. Gen. 12:3). “All the earth is mine” (Ex. 19:5), says the Lord, and I have called Israel to spread my kingdom throughout all of it. As noted above, the Lord extends the exact same call to believers today (1 Pet. 2:9; cf. comment on 19:3–6). He not only calls us in love; he gives us the privilege of embodying his love in this world and calling others to feast upon it.
Who Is This Lord Who Invites Us into Relationship?
I have focused thus far on the Lord’s lavish love shown for his people and how it calls forth a response of obedient love from them. But this chapter also emphasizes the Lord’s incomparable holiness and what that means for his people.
To be holy is to be set apart as distinct or unique.351 Here the Lord shows his utter uniqueness in terms of his power and purity. In terms of his power he comes down from heaven to earth with a display of such terrifying might that both the people and the mountain itself are left trembling. Here is a King before whom all must fall on their faces. In terms of his purity he emphasizes the importance of the Israelites’ cleansing themselves to prepare for his coming and the fact that even then they may not approach too close without suffering death. His moral purity makes him like the sun, and our sin makes us like snowmen; to enter unshielded into his presence is to melt.
What this means for his people, among other things, is that they approach him with great reverence. To many this may feel like an irreconcilable tension. If someone is loved, is not the proper response love instead of reverence? But this is a false choice. Biblically speaking, loving and revering the Lord who loves us is as natural as loving and revering a loving parent.
What is more, the Bible is clear that this reverence is due not simply to God the Father but also to God the Son, since the Son shares equally in his holiness. When the apostle John catches glimpses of Jesus in a vision, he beholds someone of unspeakable power and blazing purity (Rev. 1:12–18; 19:11–16). Similarly, the author of Hebrews describes him as “the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature . . . [who] upholds the universe by the word of his power” (Heb. 1:3). And Paul is clear that “God has highly exalted [Jesus] and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow” (Phil. 2:9–10).
What might this look like in the life of the believer today? What does it mean practically to rejoice and bask in God’s love for us in Christ and also to bow our knees in reverence before the Father and the Son? Does one of these come more naturally to us than the other? If so, why? And what might growth in the other area look like? Whatever the answers to these questions may be, we can take comfort in hearing the Father’s invitation, now made even louder in Christ, to become his treasured possession, the apple of his eye, the one he will watch over both now and forever.Exodus 19
In chapter 19 the Lord invited Israel to enter a new covenant with him, an invitation the people willingly accepted (vv. 5–8). In chapters 20–24 the Lord gives the covenant to the Israelites (chs. 20–23) and both parties ratify it (ch. 24). Covenant is clearly this section’s theme.
As noted below, the covenant’s form is most comparable to ancient Near Eastern treaties in which a king (in this case the Lord) enters a covenant relationship with a nation (in this case Israel) who will serve him (cf. comments on 20:1–21). Reading this section well therefore requires doing so through the lens of a king’s entering a covenant with a people who will serve him. The king is both Creator and Redeemer, who rescues his people in sovereign power, faithfulness, and love. The people are those rescued from cruel servitude to Pharaoh into glorious servitude to the Lord. The service with which he privileges them is to worship him and show his kingdom of goodness, justice, mercy, and love to his world. Covenant with the Lord is always relational, relationship with him is always for the good and blessing of his people, and his people are always to mediate that good and blessing to his world.Exodus 20:1–24:11