| |
 |
|
|
Religion Forum Index » Christian Anabaptist Forum » Idolatry at Sinai
Page 1 of 1
|
| Author |
Message |
| SOLOMON |
 Posted: Mon Dec 03, 2007 6:19 am |
|
|
|
Guest
|
Idolatry at Sinai
[This chapter is based on Exodus 32 to 34.]
While Moses was absent it was a time of waiting and suspense to Israel. The
people knew that he had ascended the mount with Joshua, and had entered the
cloud of thick darkness which could be seen from the plain below, resting on
the mountain peak, illuminated from time to time with the lightnings of the
divine Presence. They waited eagerly for his return. Accustomed as they had
been in Egypt to material representations of deity, it had been hard for
them to trust in an invisible being, and they had come to rely upon Moses to
sustain their faith. Now he was taken from them. Day after day, week after
week passed, and still he did not return. Notwithstanding the cloud was
still in view, it seemed to many in the camp that their leader had deserted
them, or that he had been consumed by the devouring fire.
During this period of waiting, there was time for them to meditate upon the
law of God which they had heard, and to prepare their hearts to receive the
further revelations that He might make to them. They had none too much time
for this work; and had they been thus seeking a clearer understanding of
God's requirements, and humbling their hearts before Him, they would have
been shielded from temptation. But they did not do this, and they soon
became careless, inattentive, and lawless. Especially was this the case with
the mixed multitude. They were impatient to be on their way to the Land of
Promise--the land flowing with milk and honey. It was only on condition of
obedience that the goodly land was promised them, but they had lost sight of
this. There were some who suggested a return to Egypt, but whether forward
to Canaan or backward to Egypt, the masses of the people were determined to
wait no longer for Moses.
Feeling their helplessness in the absence of their leader, they
Page 316
returned to their old superstitions. The "mixed multitude" had been the
first to indulge murmuring and impatience, and they were the leaders in the
apostasy that followed. Among the objects regarded by the Egyptians as
symbols of deity was the ox or calf; and it was at the suggestion of those
who had practiced this form of idolatry in Egypt that a calf was now made
and worshiped. The people desired some image to represent God, and to go
before them in the place of Moses. God had given no manner of similitude of
Himself, and He had prohibited any material representation for such a
purpose. The mighty miracles in Egypt and at the Red Sea were designed to
establish faith in Him as the invisible, all-powerful Helper of Israel, the
only true God. And the desire for some visible manifestation of His presence
had been granted in the pillar of cloud and of fire that guided their hosts,
and in the revealing of His glory upon Mount Sinai. But with the cloud of
the Presence still before them, they turned back in their hearts to the
idolatry of Egypt, and represented the glory of the invisible God by the
similitude of an ox!
In the absence of Moses, the judicial authority had been delegated to Aaron,
and a vast crowd gathered about his tent, with the demand, "Make us gods,
which shall go before us; for as for this Moses, the man that brought us up
out of the land of Egypt, we wot not what is become of him. [*See Appendix,
Note 4.] The cloud, they said, that had heretofore led them, now rested
permanently upon the mount; it would no longer direct their travels. They
must have an image in its place; and if, as had been suggested, they should
decide to return to Egypt, they would find favor with the Egyptians by
bearing this image before them and acknowledging it as their god.
Such a crisis demanded a man of firmness, decision, and unflinching courage;
one who held the honor of God above popular favor, personal safety, or life
itself. But the present leader of Israel was not of this character. Aaron
feebly remonstrated with the people, but his wavering and timidity at the
critical moment only rendered them the more determined. The tumult
increased. A blind, unreasoning frenzy seemed to take possession of the
multitude. There were some who remained true to their covenant with God, but
the greater part of the people joined in the apostasy. A few who ventured to
denounce the proposed image
Page 317
making as idolatry, were set upon and roughly treated, and in the confusion
and excitement they finally lost their lives.
Aaron feared for his own safety; and instead of nobly standing up for the
honor of God, he yielded to the demands of the multitude. His first act was
to direct that the golden earrings be collected from all the people and
brought to him, hoping that pride would lead them to refuse such a
sacrifice. But they willingly yielded up their ornaments; and from these he
made a molten calf, in imitation of the gods of Egypt. The people
proclaimed, "These be thy gods, O Israel, which brought thee up out of the
land of Egypt." And Aaron basely permitted this insult to Jehovah. He did
more. Seeing with what satisfaction the golden god was received, he built an
altar before it, and made proclamation, "Tomorrow is a feast to the Lord."
The announcement was heralded by trumpeters from company to company
throughout the camp. "And they rose up early on the morrow, and offered
burnt offerings, and brought peace offerings; and the people sat down to eat
and to drink and rose up to play." Under the pretense of holding "a feast to
the Lord," they gave themselves up to gluttony and licentious reveling.
How often, in our own day, is the love of pleasure disguised by a "form of
godliness"! A religion that permits men, while observing the rites of
worship, to devote themselves to selfish or sensual gratification, is as
pleasing to the multitudes now as in the days of Israel. And there are still
pliant Aarons, who, while holding positions of authority in the church, will
yield to the desires of the unconsecrated, and thus encourage them in sin.
Only a few days had passed since the Hebrews had made a solemn covenant with
God to obey His voice. They had stood trembling with terror before the
mount, listening to the words of the Lord, "Thou shalt have no other gods
before Me." The glory of God still hovered above Sinai in the sight of the
congregation; but they turned away, and asked for other gods. "They made a
calf in Horeb, and worshiped the molten image. Thus they changed their glory
into the similitude of an ox." Psalm 106:19, 20. How could greater
ingratitude have been shown, or more daring insult offered, to Him who had
revealed Himself to them as a tender father and an all-powerful king!
Moses in the mount was warned of the apostasy in the camp
Page 318
and was directed to return without delay. "Go, get thee down," were the
words of God; "thy people, which thou broughtest out of the land of Egypt,
have corrupted themselves: they have turned aside quickly out of the way
which I commanded them. They have made them a molten calf, and have
worshiped it." God might have checked the movement at the outset; but He
suffered it to come to this height that He might teach all a lesson in His
punishment of treason and apostasy.
God's covenant with His people had been disannulled, and He declared to
Moses, "Let Me alone, that My wrath may wax hot against them, and that I may
consume them: and I will make of thee a great nation." The people of Israel,
especially the mixed multitude, would be constantly disposed to rebel
against God. They would also murmur against their leader, and would grieve
him by their unbelief and stubbornness, and it would be a laborious and
soul-trying work to lead them through to the Promised Land. Their sins had
already forfeited the favor of God, and justice called for their
destruction. The Lord therefore proposed to destroy them, and make of Moses
a mighty nation.
"Let Me alone, . . . that I may consume them," were the words of God. If God
had purposed to destroy Israel, who could plead for them? How few but would
have left the sinners to their fate! How few but would have gladly exchanged
a lot of toil and burden and sacrifice, repaid with ingratitude and
murmuring, for a position of ease and honor, when it was God Himself that
offered the release.
But Moses discerned ground for hope where there appeared only discouragement
and wrath. The words of God, "Let Me alone," he understood not to forbid but
to encourage intercession, implying that nothing but the prayers of Moses
could save Israel, but that if thus entreated, God would spare His people.
He "besought the Lord his God, and said, Lord, why doth Thy wrath wax hot
against Thy people, which Thou hast brought forth out of the land of Egypt
with great power, and with a mighty hand?"
God had signified that He disowned His people. He had spoken of them to
Moses as "thy people, which thou broughtest out of Egypt." But Moses humbly
disclaimed the leadership of Israel. They were not his, but God's-- "Thy
people, which Thou has brought forth . . . with great power, and with a
mighty
Page 319
hand. Wherefore," he urged, "should the Egyptians speak, and say, For
mischief did He bring them out, to slay them in the mountains, and to
consume them from the face of the earth?"
During the few months since Israel left Egypt, the report of their wonderful
deliverance had spread to all the surrounding nations. Fear and terrible
foreboding rested upon the heathen. All were watching to see what the God of
Israel would do for His people. Should they now be destroyed, their enemies
would triumph, and God would be dishonored. The Egyptians would claim that
their accusations were true--instead of leading His people into the
wilderness to sacrifice, He had caused them to be sacrificed. They would not
consider the sins of Israel; the destruction of the people whom He had so
signally honored, would bring reproach upon His name. How great the
responsibility resting upon those whom God has highly honored, to make His
name a praise in the earth! With what care should they guard against
committing sin, to call down His judgments and cause His name to be
reproached by the ungodly!
As Moses interceded for Israel, his timidity was lost in his deep interest
and love for those for whom he had, in the hands of God, been the means of
doing so much. The Lord listened to his pleadings, and granted his unselfish
prayer. God had proved His servant; He had tested his faithfulness and his
love for that erring, ungrateful people, and nobly had Moses endured the
trial. His interest in Israel sprang from no selfish motive. The prosperity
of God's chosen people was dearer to him than personal honor, dearer than
the privilege of becoming the father of a mighty nation. God was pleased
with his faithfulness, his simplicity of heart, and his integrity, and He
committed to him, as a faithful shepherd, the great charge of leading Israel
to the Promised Land.
As Moses and Joshua came down from the mount, the former bearing the "tables
of the testimony," they heard the shouts and outcries of the excited
multitude, evidently in a state of wild uproar. To Joshua the soldier, the
first thought was of an attack from their enemies. "There is a noise of war
in the camp," he said. But Moses judged more truly the nature of the
commotion. The sound was not that of combat, but of revelry. "It is not the
voice of them that shout for mastery, neither is it the voice of them that
cry for being overcome; but the noise of them that sing do I hear."
Page 320
As they drew near the encampment, they beheld the people shouting and
dancing around their idol. It was a scene of heathen riot, an imitation of
the idolatrous feasts of Egypt; but how unlike the solemn and reverent
worship of God! Moses was overwhelmed. He had just come from the presence of
God's glory, and though he had been warned of what was taking place, he was
unprepared for that dreadful exhibition of the degradation of Israel. His
anger was hot. To show his abhorrence of their crime, he threw down the
tables of stone, and they were broken in the sight of all the people, thus
signifying that as they had broken their covenant with God, so God had
broken His covenant with them.
Entering the camp, Moses passed through the crowds of revelers, and seizing
upon the idol, cast it into the fire. He afterward ground it to powder, and
having strewed it upon the stream that descended from the mount, he made the
people drink of it. Thus was shown the utter worthlessness of the god which
they had been worshiping.
The great leader summoned his guilty brother and sternly demanded, "What did
this people unto thee, that thou hast brought so great a sin upon them?"
Aaron endeavored to shield himself by relating the clamors of the people;
that if he had not complied with their wishes, he would have been put to
death. "Let not the anger of my lord wax hot," he said; "thou knowest the
people, that they are set on mischief. For they said unto me, Make us gods,
which shall go before us: for as for this Moses, the man that brought us up
out of the land of Egypt, we wot not what is become of him. And I said unto
them, Whosoever hath any gold, let them break it off. So they gave it me:
then I cast it into the fire, and there came out this calf." He would lead
Moses to believe that a miracle had been wrought--that the gold had been
cast into the fire, and by supernatural power changed to a calf. But his
excuses and prevarications were of no avail. He was justly dealt with as the
chief offender.
The fact that Aaron had been blessed and honored so far above the people was
what made his sin so heinous. It was Aaron "the saint of the Lord" (Psalm
106:16), that had made the idol and announced the feast. It was he who had
been appointed as spokesman for Moses, and concerning whom God Himself had
testified, "I know that he can speak well" (Exodus 4:14), that had failed to
check the idolaters in their heaven-daring purpose.
Page 323
He by whom God had wrought in bringing judgments both upon the Egyptians and
upon their gods, had heard unmoved the proclamation before the molten image,
"These be thy gods, O Israel, which brought thee up out of the land of
Egypt." It was he who had been with Moses on the mount, and had there beheld
the glory of the Lord, who had seen that in the manifestation of that glory
there was nothing of which an image could be made--it was he who had changed
that glory into the similitude of an ox. He to whom God had committed the
government of the people in the absence of Moses, was found sanctioning
their rebellion. "The Lord was very angry with Aaron to have destroyed him."
Deuteronomy 9:20. But in answer to the earnest intercession of Moses, his
life was spared; and in penitence and humiliation for his great sin, he was
restored to the favor of God.
If Aaron had had courage to stand for the right, irrespective of
consequences, he could have prevented that apostasy. If he had unswervingly
maintained his own allegiance to God, if he had cited the people to the
perils of Sinai, and had reminded them of their solemn covenant with God to
obey His law, the evil would have been checked. But his compliance with the
desires of the people and the calm assurance with which he proceeded to
carry out their plans, emboldened them to go to greater lengths in sin than
had before entered their minds.
When Moses, on returning to the camp, confronted the rebels, his severe
rebukes and the indignation he displayed in breaking the sacred tables of
the law were contrasted by the people with his brother's pleasant speech and
dignified demeanor, and their sympathies were with Aaron. To justify
himself, Aaron endeavored to make the people responsible for his weakness in
yielding to their demand; but notwithstanding this, they were filled with
admiration of his gentleness and patience. But God seeth not as man sees.
Aaron's yielding spirit and his desire to please had blinded his eyes to the
enormity of the crime he was sanctioning. His course in giving his influence
to sin in Israel cost the life of thousands. In what contrast with this was
the course of Moses, who, while faithfully executing God's judgments, showed
that the welfare of Israel was dearer to him than prosperity or honor or
life.
Of all the sins that God will punish, none are more grievous in His sight
than those that encourage others to do evil. God
Page 324
would have His servants prove their loyalty by faithfully rebuking
transgression, however painful the act may be. Those who are honored with a
divine commission are not to be weak, pliant time-servers. They are not to
aim at self-exaltation, or to shun disagreeable duties, but to perform God's
work with unswerving fidelity.
Though God had granted the prayer of Moses in sparing Israel from
destruction, their apostasy was to be signally punished. The lawlessness and
insubordination into which Aaron had permitted them to fall, if not speedily
crushed, would run riot in wickedness, and would involve the nation in
irretrievable ruin. By terrible severity the evil must be put away. Standing
in the gate of the camp, Moses called to the people, "Who is on the Lord's
side? let him come unto me." Those who had not joined in the apostasy were
to take their position at the right of Moses; those who were guilty but
repentant, at the left. The command was obeyed. It was found that the tribe
of Levi had taken no part in the idolatrous worship. From among other tribes
there were great numbers who, although they had sinned, now signified their
repentance. But a large company, mostly of the mixed multitude that
instigated the making of the calf, stubbornly persisted in their rebellion.
In the name of "the Lord God of Israel," Moses now commanded those upon his
right hand, who had kept themselves clear of idolatry, to gird on their
swords and slay all who persisted in rebellion. "And there fell of the
people that day about three thousand men." Without regard to position,
kindred, or friendship, the ringleaders in wickedness were cut off; but all
who repented and humbled themselves were spared.
Those who performed this terrible work of judgment were acting by divine
authority, executing the sentence of the King of heaven. Men are to beware
how they, in their human blindness, judge and condemn their fellow men; but
when God commands them to execute His sentence upon iniquity, He is to be
obeyed. Those who performed this painful act, thus manifested their
abhorrence of rebellion and idolatry, and consecrated themselves more fully
to the service of the true God. The Lord honored their faithfulness by
bestowing special distinction upon the tribe of Levi.
The Israelites had been guilty of treason, and that against a King who had
loaded them with benefits and whose authority they had voluntarily pledged
themselves to obey. That the divine
Page 325
government might be maintained justice must be visited upon the traitors.
Yet even here God's mercy was displayed. While He maintained His law, He
granted freedom of choice and opportunity for repentance to all. Only those
were cut off who persisted in rebellion.
It was necessary that this sin should be punished, as a testimony to
surrounding nations of God's displeasure against idolatry. By executing
justice upon the guilty, Moses, as God's instrument, must leave on record a
solemn and public protest against their crime. As the Israelites should
hereafter condemn the idolatry of the neighboring tribes, their enemies
would throw back upon them the charge that the people who claimed Jehovah as
their God had made a calf and worshiped it in Horeb. Then though compelled
to acknowledge the disgraceful truth, Israel could point to the terrible
fate of the transgressors, as evidence that their sin had not been
sanctioned or excused.
Love no less than justice demanded that for this sin judgment should be
inflicted. God is the guardian as well as the sovereign of His people. He
cuts off those who are determined upon rebellion, that they may not lead
others to ruin. In sparing the life of Cain, God had demonstrated to the
universe what would be the result of permitting sin to go unpunished. The
influence exerted upon his descendants by his life and teaching led to the
state of corruption that demanded the destruction of the whole world by a
flood. The history of the antediluvians testifies that long life is not a
blessing to the sinner; God's great forbearance did not repress their
wickedness. The longer men lived, the more corrupt they became.
So with the apostasy at Sinai. Unless punishment had been speedily visited
upon transgression, the same results would again have been seen. The earth
would have become as corrupt as in the days of Noah. Had these transgressors
been spared, evils would have followed, greater than resulted from sparing
the life of Cain. It was the mercy of God that thousands should suffer, to
prevent the necessity of visiting judgments upon millions. In order to save
the many, He must punish the few. Furthermore, as the people had cast off
their allegiance to God, they had forfeited the divine protection, and,
deprived of their defense, the whole nation was exposed to the power of
their enemies. Had not the evil been promptly put away, they would soon have
fallen a prey to their numerous and powerful foes. It was necessary
Page 326
for the good of Israel, and also as a lesson to all succeeding generations,
that crime should be promptly punished. And it was no less a mercy to the
sinners themselves that they should be cut short in their evil course. Had
their life been spared, the same spirit that led them to rebel against God
would have been manifested in hatred and strife among themselves, and they
would eventually have destroyed one another. It was in love to the world, in
love to Israel, and even to the transgressors, that crime was punished with
swift and terrible severity.
As the people were roused to see the enormity of their guilt, terror
pervaded the entire encampment. It was feared that every offender was to be
cut off. Pitying their distress, Moses promised to plead once more with God
for them.
"Ye have sinned a great sin," he said, "and now I will go up unto the Lord;
peradventure I shall make an atonement for your sin." He went, and in his
confession before God he said, "Oh, this people have sinned a great sin, and
have made them gods of gold. Yet now if Thou wilt forgive their sin--; and
if not, blot me, I pray Thee, out of Thy book which Thou hast written." The
answer was, "Whosoever hath sinned against Me, him will I blot out of My
book. Therefore now go, lead the people into the place of which I have
spoken unto thee: behold, Mine Angel shall go before thee: nevertheless, in
the day when I visit, I will visit their sin upon them."
In the prayer of Moses our minds are directed to the heavenly records in
which the names of all men are inscribed, and their deeds, whether good or
evil, are faithfully registered. The book of life contains the names of all
who have ever entered the service of God. If any of these depart from Him,
and by stubborn persistence in sin become finally hardened against the
influences of His Holy Spirit, their names will in the judgment be blotted
from the book of life, and they themselves will be devoted to destruction.
Moses realized how dreadful would be the fate of the sinner; yet if the
people of Israel were to be rejected by the Lord, he desired his name to be
blotted out with theirs; he could not endure to see the judgments of God
fall upon those who had been so graciously delivered. The intercession of
Moses in behalf of Israel illustrates the mediation of Christ for sinful
men. But the Lord did not permit Moses to bear, as did Christ, the guilt of
the transgressor. "Whosoever
Page 327
hath sinned against Me," He said, "him will I blot out of My book."
In deep sadness the people had buried their dead. Three thousand had fallen
by the sword; a plague had soon after broken out in the encampment; and now
the message came to them that the divine Presence would no longer accompany
them in their journeyings. Jehovah had declared, "I will not go up in the
midst of thee; for thou art a stiffnecked people: lest I consume thee in the
way." And the command was given, "Put off thy ornaments from thee, that I
may know what to do unto thee." Now there was mourning throughout the
encampment. In penitence and humiliation "the children of Israel stripped
themselves of their ornaments by the mount Horeb."
By the divine direction the tent that had served as a temporary place of
worship was removed "afar off from the camp." This was still further
evidence that God had withdrawn His presence from them. He would reveal
Himself to Moses, but not to such a people. The rebuke was keenly felt, and
to the conscience-smitten multitudes it seemed a foreboding of greater
calamity. Had not the Lord separated Moses from the camp that He might
utterly destroy them? But they were not left without hope. The tent was
pitched without the encampment, but Moses called it "the tabernacle of the
congregation." All who were truly penitent, and desired to return to the
Lord, were directed to repair thither to confess their sins and seek His
mercy. When they returned to their tents Moses entered the tabernacle. With
agonizing interest the people watched for some token that his intercessions
in their behalf were accepted. If God should condescend to meet with him,
they might hope that they were not to be utterly consumed. When the cloudy
pillar descended, and stood at the entrance of the tabernacle, the people
wept for joy, and they "rose up and worshiped, every man in his tent door."
Moses knew well the perversity and blindness of those who were placed under
his care; he knew the difficulties with which he must contend. But he had
learned that in order to prevail with the people, he must have help from
God. He pleaded for a clearer revelation of God's will and for an assurance
of His presence: "See, Thou sayest unto me, Bring up this people: and Thou
hast not let me know whom Thou wilt send with me. Yet Thou
Page 328
hast said, I know thee by name, and thou hast also found grace in My sight.
Now therefore, I pray Thee, if I have found grace in Thy sight, show me now
Thy way, that I may know Thee, that I may find grace in Thy sight: and
consider that this nation is Thy people."
The answer was, "My presence shall go with thee, and I will give thee rest."
But Moses was not yet satisfied. There pressed upon his soul a sense of the
terrible results should God leave Israel to hardness and impenitence. He
could not endure that his interests should be separated from those of his
brethren, and he prayed that the favor of God might be restored to His
people, and that the token of His presence might continue to direct their
journeyings: "If Thy presence go not with me, carry us not up hence. For
wherein shall it be known here that I and Thy people have found grace in Thy
sight? is it not in that Thou goest with us? So shall we be separated, I and
Thy people, from all the people that are upon the face of the earth."
And the Lord said, "I will do this thing also that thou hast spoken: for
thou hast found grace in My sight, and I know thee by name." Still the
prophet did not cease pleading. Every prayer had been answered, but he
thirsted for greater tokens of God's favor. He now made a request that no
human being had ever made before: "I beseech Thee, show me Thy glory."
God did not rebuke his request as presumptuous; but the gracious words were
spoken, "I will make all My goodness pass before thee." The unveiled glory
of God, no man in this mortal state can look upon and live; but Moses was
assured that he should behold as much of the divine glory as he could
endure. Again he was summoned to the mountain summit; then the hand that
made the world, that hand that "removeth the mountains, and they know not"
(Job 9:5), took this creature of the dust, this mighty man of faith, and
placed him in a cleft of the rock, while the glory of God and all His
goodness passed before him.
This experience--above all else the promise that the divine Presence would
attend him--was to Moses an assurance of success in the work before him; and
he counted it of infinitely greater worth than all the learning of Egypt or
all his attainments as a statesman or a military leader. No earthly power or
skill or learning can supply the place of God's abiding presence.
Page 329
To the transgressor it is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the
living God; but Moses stood alone in the presence of the Eternal One, and he
was not afraid; for his soul was in harmony with the will of his Maker. Says
the psalmist, "If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me."
Psalm 66:18. But "the secret of the Lord is with them that fear Him; and He
will show them His covenant." Psalm 25:14.
The Deity proclaimed Himself, "The Lord, The Lord God, merciful and
gracious, long-suffering, and abundant in goodness and truth, keeping mercy
for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, and that will
by no means clear the guilty."
"Moses made haste, and bowed his head toward the earth, and worshiped."
Again he entreated that God would pardon the iniquity of His people, and
take them for His inheritance. His prayer was granted. The Lord graciously
promised to renew His favor to Israel, and in their behalf to do marvels
such as had not been done "in all the earth, nor in any nation."
Forty days and nights Moses remained in the mount; and during all this time,
as at the first, he was miraculously sustained. No man had been permitted to
go up with him, nor during the time of his absence were any to approach the
mount. At God's command he had prepared two tables of stone, and had taken
them with him to the summit; and again the Lord "wrote upon the tables the
words of the covenant, the Ten Commandments." [* See Appendix, Note 5.]
During that long time spent in communion with God, the face of Moses had
reflected the glory of the divine Presence; unknown to himself his face
shown with a dazzling light when he descended from the mountain. Such a
light illumined the countenance of Stephen when brought before his judges;
"and all that sat in the council, looking steadfastly on him, saw his face
as it had been the face of an angel." Acts 6:15. Aaron as well as the people
shrank away from Moses, and "they were afraid to come nigh him." Seeing
their confusion and terror, but ignorant of the cause, he urged them to come
near. He held out to them the pledge of God's reconciliation, and assured
them of His restored favor. They perceived in his voice nothing but love and
entreaty, and at last one ventured to approach him. Too awed to speak, he
silently pointed to the countenance of Moses, and then toward
Page 330
heaven. The great leader understood his meaning. In their conscious guilt,
feeling themselves still under the divine displeasure, they could not endure
the heavenly light, which, had they been obedient to God, would have filled
them with joy. There is fear in guilt. The soul that is free from sin will
not wish to hide from the light of heaven.
Moses had much to communicate to them; and compassionating their fear, he
put a veil upon his face, and continued to do so thereafter whenever he
returned to the camp from communion with God.
By this brightness God designed to impress upon Israel the sacred, exalted
character of His law, and the glory of the gospel revealed through Christ.
While Moses was in the mount, God presented to him, not only the tables of
the law, but also the plan of salvation. He saw that the sacrifice of Christ
was pre-figured by all the types and symbols of the Jewish age; and it was
the heavenly light streaming from Calvary, no less than the glory of the law
of God, that shed such a radiance upon the face of Moses. That divine
illumination symbolized the glory of the dispensation of which Moses was the
visible mediator, a representative of the one true Intercessor.
The glory reflected in the countenance of Moses illustrates the blessings to
be received by God's commandment-keeping people through the mediation of
Christ. It testifies that the closer our communion with God, and the clearer
our knowledge of His requirements, the more fully shall we be conformed to
the divine image, and the more readily do we become partakers of the divine
nature.
Moses was a type of Christ. As Israel's intercessor veiled his countenance,
because the people could not endure to look upon its glory, so Christ, the
divine Mediator, veiled His divinity with humanity when He came to earth.
Had He come clothed with the brightness of heaven, he could not have found
access to men in their sinful state. They could not have endured the glory
of His presence. Therefore He humbled Himself, and was made "in the likeness
of sinful flesh (Romans 8:3), that He might reach the fallen race, and lift
them up. |
|
|
| Back to top |
|
| |
|
Page 1 of 1
All times are GMT - 5 Hours
The time now is Fri Nov 21, 2008 10:08 pm
|
|