Êxodo 24

Êxodo 24

Guzik says "After this experience (SEEING GOD) they would be more likely to trust God when He spoke through Moses." THOUGHT - To some degree what Guzke says above may be true because Ro 10:17+ says "So faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ (or "of God" - KJV - HIS WORD IS THE PRIMARY WAY WE "SEE GOD" TODAY). And yet faith has to be fertilized and nurtured lest it dissipate (like a slow seepage of air from even a normal tire - I have to pump my bicycle tires up about every 5 days and am amazed how intact tires still lose 10 pounds or more of pressure!). Aaron saw this sight and look what he did some 40 days later in Exodus 32:1-6+! NET Note has an interesting comment - The fact that God did not lay a hand on them – to kill them – shows that they saw something that they never expected to see and live. Some Christian interpreters have taken this to refer to a glorious appearance of the preincarnate Christ, the second person of the Trinity. They saw the brilliance of this manifestation – but not the detail. Later, Moses will still ask to see God's glory – the real presence behind the phenomena. Rayburn has an interesting note - According to one scholar, “This is the real end of Exodus. The remaining chapters, with one major exception, belong to Leviticus.” The one exception is, of course, the narrative of the golden calf and its aftermath in Exodus 32-34. The rest is all liturgical regulations such as we have in Leviticus. Remember, the division of the Pentateuch into five books is artificial, having as much to do with the amount of material that could be put on a scroll as any obvious or implicit division of the material by subject or theme. A COVENANT MEAL ESV Study Bible - Christians enjoy fellowship with God in Christ, who is the food of eternal life (John 6:53–58), symbolized in the Lord’s Supper and consummated in the final feast (Rev. 19:9; 22:4). And they ate and drank - Sharing a meal was an integral part of ancient covenants. Presumably they had this mean in some way in the presence of God. Today we would call this "communion" an act of sharing in fellowship. Did God actually eat with them in this Old Covenant meal as Jesus did with the disciples in the New Covenant meal? The text does not say. Covenants were often celebrated with meals of fellowship and communion. What did they eat? They could not have eaten the burnt offering (which symbolized making atonement) for it was wholly consumed by the fire. What they would have eaten was the leftover from the peace offering, which was apropos as it spoke of fellowship after atonement. NET Note on ate and drank - This is the covenant meal, the peace offering, that they are eating there on the mountain. To eat from the sacrifice meant that they were at peace with God, in covenant with him (ED: THIS RECALLS JESUS' WORDS "unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you have no life in yourselves." -Jn 6:53 = SUGGESTS JESUS WAS SPEAKING OF ENTERING COVENANT WITH HIM - THE NEW COVENANT WHICH GIVES ONE SPIRITUAL LIFE!). Likewise, in the new covenant believers draw near to God on the basis of sacrifice, and eat of the sacrifice because they are at peace with him, and in Christ they see the Godhead revealed. I am reminded of the Marriage Supper of the Lamb marking the relationship between Christ the Bridegroom and the Church His Bride... (Rev 19:7-9+) “Let us rejoice and be glad and give the glory to Him, for the marriage of the Lamb has come and His bride has made herself ready.” 8It was given to her to clothe herself in fine linen, bright and clean; for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints. 9 Then he *said to me, “Write, ‘Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb.’” And he *said to me, “These are true words of God.” COMMENT - There is a passage in the NT in Luke 12:37+ from the lips of the Lord Jesus Christ Himself in which it seems to indicate that the Bridegroom will Himself serve the Bride! This is almost too much to even imagine! F B