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33 And Jehovah said to Moses, Depart, go up hence, thou and the people that thou hast brought up out of the land of Egypt, into the land that I swore unto Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, saying, Unto thy seed will I give it,

(and I will send an angel before thee, and dispossess the Canaanite, the Amorite, and the Hittite, and the Perizzite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite,)

into a land flowing with milk and honey; for I will not go up in the midst of thee, for thou art a stiff-necked people,—lest I consume thee on the way.

And when the people heard this evil word, they mourned; and no man put on his ornaments.

Now Jehovah had said to Moses, Say unto the children of Israel, Ye are a stiff-necked people: in one moment I will come up into the midst of thee and will consume thee. And now put off thine ornaments from thee, and I will know what I will do unto thee.

And the children of Israel stripped themselves of their ornaments at mount Horeb.

And Moses took the tent, and pitched it outside the camp, far from the camp, and called it the Tent of meeting. And it came to pass [that] every one who sought Jehovah went out to the tent of meeting which was outside the camp.

And it came to pass, when Moses went out to the tent, all the people rose up, and stood every man at the entrance of his tent, and they looked after Moses until he entered into the tent.

And it came to pass when Moses entered into the tent, the pillar of cloud descended, and stood at the entrance of the tent, and [Jehovah] talked with Moses.

10 And all the people saw the pillar of cloud standing at the entrance of the tent; and all the people rose and worshipped, every man at the entrance of his tent.

11 And Jehovah spoke with Moses face to face, as a man speaks with his friend. And he returned to the camp; but his attendant, Joshua the son of Nun, a young man, departed not from within the tent.

12 And Moses said to Jehovah, Behold, thou sayest unto me, Bring up this people; but thou dost not let me know whom thou wilt send with me; and thou hast said, I know thee by name, and thou hast also found grace in mine eyes.

13 And now, if indeed I have found grace in thine eyes, make me now to know thy way, that I may know thee, that I may find grace in thine eyes; and consider that this nation is thy people!

14 And he said, My presence shall go, and I will give thee rest.

15 And he said to him, If thy presence do not go, bring us not up hence.

16 And how shall it be known then that I have found grace in thine eyes—I and thy people? [Is it] not by thy going with us? so shall we be distinguished, I and thy people, from every people that is on the face of the earth.

17 And Jehovah said to Moses, I will do this thing also that thou hast said; for thou hast found grace in mine eyes, and I know thee by name.

18 And he said, Let me, I pray thee, see thy glory.

19 And he said, I will make all my goodness pass before thy face, and I will proclaim the name of Jehovah before thee; and I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and I will shew mercy on whom I will shew mercy.

20 And he said, Thou canst not see my face; for Man shall not see me, and live.

21 And Jehovah said, Behold, [there is] a place by me: there shalt thou stand on the rock.

22 And it shall come to pass, when my glory passeth by, that I will put thee in a cleft of the rock, and will cover thee with my hand, until I have passed by.

23 And I will take away my hand, and thou shalt see me from behind; but my face shall not be seen.

34 And Jehovah said to Moses, Hew for thyself two tables of stone like the first; and I will write upon the tables the words that were upon the first tables, which thou hast broken.

And be ready for the morning, and go up in the morning to mount Sinai, and stand there before me on the top of the mountain.

And let no man go up with thee, neither shall any man be seen on all the mountain; neither shall sheep and oxen feed in front of that mountain.

And he hewed two tables of stone like the first; and Moses rose up early in the morning and went up to mount Sinai, as Jehovah had commanded him, and took in his hand the two tables of stone.

And Jehovah came down in the cloud, and stood beside him there, and proclaimed the name of Jehovah.

And Jehovah passed by before his face, and proclaimed, Jehovah, Jehovah God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abundant in goodness and truth,

keeping mercy unto thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, but by no means clearing [the guilty]; visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children, and upon the children's children, upon the third and upon the fourth [generation].

And Moses made haste, and bowed his head to the earth and worshipped,

and said, If indeed I have found grace in thine eyes, Lord, let the Lord, I pray thee, go in our midst; for it is a stiff-necked people; and pardon our iniquity and our sin, and take us for an inheritance!

10 And he said, Behold, I make a covenant: before all thy people I will do marvels that have not been done in all the earth, nor in any nation; and all the people in the midst of which thou [art] shall see the work of Jehovah; for a terrible thing it shall be that I will do with thee.

11 Observe what I command thee this day: behold, I will drive out before thee the Amorite, and the Canaanite, and the Hittite, and the Perizzite, and the Hivite, and the Jebusite.

12 Take heed to thyself, that thou make no covenant with the inhabitants of the land to which thou shalt come, lest it be a snare in the midst of thee;

13 but ye shall demolish their altars, shatter their statues, and hew down their Asherahs.

14 For thou shalt worship no other God; for Jehovah—Jealous is his name—is a jealous God;

15 lest thou make a covenant with the inhabitants of the land, and then, when they go a whoring after their gods, and sacrifice unto their gods, thou be invited, and eat of their sacrifice,

16 and thou take of their daughters unto thy sons, and their daughters go a whoring after their gods, and make thy sons go a whoring after their gods.

17 —Thou shalt make thyself no molten gods.

18 —The feast of the unleavened bread shalt thou keep: seven days shalt thou eat unleavened bread, as I have commanded thee, at the appointed time of the month Abib; for in the month Abib thou camest out from Egypt.

19 —All that openeth the womb [is] mine; and all the cattle that is born a male, the firstling of ox and sheep.

20 But the firstling of an ass thou shalt ransom with a lamb; and if thou ransom [it] not, then shalt thou break its neck. All the first-born of thy sons thou shalt ransom; and none shall appear before me empty.

21 —Six days shalt thou work, but on the seventh day thou shalt rest; in ploughing time and in harvest thou shalt rest.

22 —And thou shalt observe the feast of weeks, of the first-fruits of wheat-harvest, and the feast of ingathering at the turn of the year.

23 Thrice in the year shall all thy males appear before the Lord Jehovah, the God of Israel.

24 For I will dispossess the nations before thee, and enlarge thy border, and no man shall desire thy land, when thou goest up to appear before the face of Jehovah thy God thrice in the year.

25 —Thou shalt not offer the blood of my sacrifice with leaven; neither shall the sacrifice of the feast of the passover be left over night until the morning.

26 —The first of the first-fruits of thy land shalt thou bring into the house of Jehovah thy God. Thou shalt not boil a kid in its mother's milk.

27 And Jehovah said to Moses, Write thee these words; for after the tenor of these words have I made a covenant with thee and with Israel.

28 —And he was there with Jehovah forty days and forty nights; he ate no bread, and drank no water.—And he wrote on the tables the words of the covenant, the ten words.

29 And it came to pass, when Moses came down from mount Sinai—and the two tables of testimony were in Moses' hand, when he came down from the mountain—that Moses knew not that the skin of his face shone through his talking with him.

30 And Aaron and all the children of Israel saw Moses, and behold, the skin of his face shone; and they were afraid to come near him.

31 And Moses called to them; and they turned to him,—Aaron and all the principal men of the assembly; and Moses talked with them.

32 And afterwards, all the children of Israel came near; and he gave them in commandment all that Jehovah had spoken with him on mount Sinai.

33 And Moses ended speaking with them; and he had put on his face a veil.

34 And when Moses went in before Jehovah to speak with him, he took the veil off, until he came out; and he came out, and spoke to the children of Israel what he was commanded.

35 And the children of Israel saw the face of Moses, that the skin of Moses' face shone; and Moses put the veil on his face again, until he went in to speak with him.

33 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(A) to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, saying, ‘I will give it to your descendants.’(B) I will send an angel(C) before you and drive out the Canaanites, Amorites, Hittites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites.(D) Go up to the land flowing with milk and honey.(E) But I will not go with you, because you are a stiff-necked(F) people and I might destroy(G) you on the way.”

When the people heard these distressing words, they began to mourn(H) and no one put on any ornaments. For the Lord had said to Moses, “Tell the Israelites, ‘You are a stiff-necked people.(I) If I were to go with you even for a moment, I might destroy(J) 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.(K)

The Tent of Meeting

Now Moses used to take a tent and pitch it outside the camp some distance away, calling it the “tent of meeting.”(L) Anyone inquiring(M) 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,(N) watching Moses until he entered the tent. As Moses went into the tent, the pillar of cloud(O) would come down and stay at the entrance, while the Lord spoke(P) with Moses. 10 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 their tent.(Q) 11 The Lord would speak to Moses face to face,(R) as one speaks to a friend. Then Moses would return to the camp, but his young aide Joshua(S) son of Nun did not leave the tent.

Moses and the Glory of the Lord

12 Moses said to the Lord, “You have been telling me, ‘Lead these people,’(T) but you have not let me know whom you will send with me. You have said, ‘I know you by name(U) and you have found favor(V) with me.’ 13 If you are pleased with me, teach me your ways(W) so I may know you and continue to find favor with you. Remember that this nation is your people.”(X)

14 The Lord replied, “My Presence(Y) will go with you, and I will give you rest.”(Z)

15 Then Moses said to him, “If your Presence(AA) does not go with us, do not send us up from here. 16 How will anyone know that you are pleased with me and with your people unless you go with us?(AB) What else will distinguish me and your people from all the other people on the face of the earth?”(AC)

17 And the Lord said to Moses, “I will do the very thing you have asked,(AD) because I am pleased with you and I know you by name.”(AE)

18 Then Moses said, “Now show me your glory.”(AF)

19 And the Lord said, “I will cause all my goodness to pass(AG) in front of you, and I will proclaim my name,(AH) 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.(AI) 20 But,” he said, “you cannot see my face, for no one may see(AJ) me and live.”

21 Then the Lord said, “There is a place near me where you may stand on a rock. 22 When my glory passes by, I will put you in a cleft in the rock(AK) and cover you with my hand(AL) until I have passed by. 23 Then I will remove my hand and you will see my back; but my face must not be seen.”

The New Stone Tablets

34 The Lord said to Moses, “Chisel out two stone tablets like the first ones,(AM) and I will write on them the words that were on the first tablets,(AN) which you broke.(AO) Be ready in the morning, and then come up on Mount Sinai.(AP) Present yourself to me there on top of the mountain. No one is to come with you or be seen anywhere on the mountain;(AQ) not even the flocks and herds may graze in front of the mountain.”

So Moses chiseled(AR) out two stone tablets like the first ones and went up Mount Sinai early in the morning, as the Lord had commanded him; and he carried the two stone tablets in his hands.(AS) Then the Lord came down in the cloud(AT) and stood there with him and proclaimed his name, the Lord.(AU) And he passed in front of Moses, proclaiming, “The Lord, the Lord, the compassionate(AV) and gracious God, slow to anger,(AW) abounding in love(AX) and faithfulness,(AY) maintaining love to thousands,(AZ) and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin.(BA) Yet he does not leave the guilty unpunished;(BB) he punishes the children and their children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation.”(BC)

Moses bowed to the ground at once and worshiped. “Lord,” he said, “if I have found favor(BD) in your eyes, then let the Lord go with us.(BE) Although this is a stiff-necked(BF) people, forgive our wickedness and our sin,(BG) and take us as your inheritance.”(BH)

10 Then the Lord said: “I am making a covenant(BI) with you. Before all your people I will do wonders(BJ) never before done in any nation in all the world.(BK) The people you live among will see how awesome is the work that I, the Lord, will do for you. 11 Obey what I command(BL) you today. I will drive out before you the Amorites, Canaanites, Hittites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites.(BM) 12 Be careful not to make a treaty(BN) with those who live in the land where you are going, or they will be a snare(BO) among you. 13 Break down their altars, smash their sacred stones and cut down their Asherah poles.[a](BP) 14 Do not worship any other god,(BQ) for the Lord, whose name(BR) is Jealous, is a jealous God.(BS)

15 “Be careful not to make a treaty(BT) with those who live in the land; for when they prostitute(BU) themselves to their gods and sacrifice to them, they will invite you and you will eat their sacrifices.(BV) 16 And when you choose some of their daughters as wives(BW) for your sons and those daughters prostitute themselves to their gods,(BX) they will lead your sons to do the same.

17 “Do not make any idols.(BY)

18 “Celebrate the Festival of Unleavened Bread.(BZ) For seven days eat bread made without yeast,(CA) as I commanded you. Do this at the appointed time in the month of Aviv,(CB) for in that month you came out of Egypt.

19 “The first offspring(CC) of every womb belongs to me, including all the firstborn males of your livestock, whether from herd or flock. 20 Redeem the firstborn donkey with a lamb, but if you do not redeem it, break its neck.(CD) Redeem all your firstborn sons.(CE)

“No one is to appear before me empty-handed.(CF)

21 “Six days you shall labor, but on the seventh day you shall rest;(CG) even during the plowing season and harvest(CH) you must rest.

22 “Celebrate the Festival of Weeks with the firstfruits(CI) of the wheat harvest, and the Festival of Ingathering(CJ) at the turn of the year.[b] 23 Three times(CK) a year all your men are to appear before the Sovereign Lord, the God of Israel. 24 I will drive out nations(CL) before you and enlarge your territory,(CM) and no one will covet your land when you go up three times each year to appear before the Lord your God.

25 “Do not offer the blood of a sacrifice to me along with anything containing yeast,(CN) and do not let any of the sacrifice from the Passover Festival remain until morning.(CO)

26 “Bring the best of the firstfruits(CP) of your soil to the house of the Lord your God.

“Do not cook a young goat in its mother’s milk.”(CQ)

27 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Write(CR) down these words, for in accordance with these words I have made a covenant(CS) with you and with Israel.” 28 Moses was there with the Lord forty days and forty nights(CT) without eating bread or drinking water.(CU) And he wrote on the tablets(CV) the words of the covenant—the Ten Commandments.(CW)

The Radiant Face of Moses

29 When Moses came down from Mount Sinai(CX) with the two tablets of the covenant law in his hands,(CY) he was not aware that his face was radiant(CZ) because he had spoken with the Lord. 30 When Aaron and all the Israelites saw Moses, his face was radiant, and they were afraid to come near him. 31 But Moses called to them; so Aaron and all the leaders of the community(DA) came back to him, and he spoke to them. 32 Afterward all the Israelites came near him, and he gave them all the commands(DB) the Lord had given him on Mount Sinai.

33 When Moses finished speaking to them, he put a veil(DC) over his face. 34 But whenever he entered the Lord’s presence to speak with him, he removed the veil until he came out. And when he came out and told the Israelites what he had been commanded, 35 they saw that his face was radiant.(DD) Then Moses would put the veil back over his face until he went in to speak with the Lord.

Footnotes

  1. Exodus 34:13 That is, wooden symbols of the goddess Asherah
  2. Exodus 34:22 That is, in the autumn