Moses's Request To God

Exodus 33:18 - 34:8

Have you ever wanted to catch a glimpse of someone famous or important, some celebrity?  Many people love trying to get a look at someone famous, often standing for hours along a street or sidewalk if they know the person will be passing that way.  How about if you could see God? There are a few people who claim they have seen God, but I don’t believe that for a minute. In our Scripture passage for this morning we will look at Moses, one person who had as close a relationship with God as anyone who ever lived, and read of when he asked to look at God.

In the Book of Exodus we read how Moses was brought up in the royal courts of Egypt, in Pharaoh's household.  He then fled the country, living as a shepherd in exile for many years. When Moses returned to Egypt he was a strong and fearless believer in Yahweh.   He led the Israelites out of bondage, seeing the hand of Yahweh perform many miracles in the wilderness. Prior to where our passage begins, Moses had received the 10 Commandments and confronted the Israelites for worshipping the golden calf.  God had wanted to smite all of the people for that grievous sin, and raise up a new nation from Moses, but instead Moses interceded for them, and God relented. Now, as he continues to pray and converse with God, Moses asks to see God, to behold Him in His glory (vs. 18).

Moses wanted to see God’s face, to see His glory.  He wanted assurance that God was with him, despite the recent sin of the people in making and worshipping the golden calf.  Because we are finite and morally imperfect, we cannot see God as He is, and live (vs. 20). God was willing with Moses to place him in a crevice of the mountain he was on, and then pass by, putting His hand in front of Moses so he would not look straight on God.  Then when He had passed by, Moses could see the backside of God (vs. 21-23). Moses saw God’s back. To see God’s back was to see where God had passed by. We can only know God by what He does and how He acts. We cannot comprehend God as He really is, apart from Jesus Christ (John 14:9).

As our passage continues, God gave Moses a second set of the 10 Commandments, the first set having been broken when Moses reacted in anger towards the people and their idolatry (vs. 1-4).  God then descended in a cloud of glory, and passed by Moses, as Moses had requested (vs. 5-7). God’s glory is His character, His nature, His way of relating to His creation. God gave Moses a vision of His love, not of His power.  God’s glory is revealed in His mercy, grace, compassion, faithfulness, forgiveness, and justice.

Verse 7 can sometimes be confusing and troubling to some, and merits a closer look.  Sinful tendencies are often passed down from generation to generation. A parent who abuses his child will often produce a child who will grow up and abuse his own children. Drunkenness often follows generation after generation. If a child observes her parents shoplifting, she may grow up to do the same. Selfishness and greed can be passed along, as well. The consequences of sin are not limited to the individual family member. We should not treat sin casually. The only true cure for this is to repent and turn to the Lord Jesus, taking Him as one’s Savior.

Though no one has ever actually seen God, many people make their own image of Him, whether it is in a carved idol, or in a painting, or just how we imagine Him to be.  Exaggerations or distorted images of any of God’s attributes is not right. God is not just an angry and demanding judge. Nor is He someone who will turn a blind eye to sin.  He is merciful and gracious, but also just in punishing the guilty. We must avoid portraying God as having only our favorite attributes. We must worship all of God, not just what we personally like to see.