Exodus 33:12-23 Click here for Bible Verses
Hi GAMErs!
Today’s passage is Exodus 33:12-23. Let’s go!
Exodus 33:12-17 (NIV)
12 Moses said to the LORD, “You have been telling me, ‘Lead these people,’ but you have not let me know whom you will send with me. You have said, ‘I know you by name and you have found favor with me.’
13 If you are pleased with me, teach me your ways so I may know you and continue to find favor with you. Remember that this nation is your people.”
14 The LORD replied, “My Presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.”
15 Then Moses said to him, “If your Presence 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? What else will distinguish me and your people from all the other people on the face of the earth?”
17 And the LORD said to Moses, “I will do the very thing you have asked, because I am pleased with you and I know you by name.”
On verses 12-17: Here Moses pleads with the LORD, crying out for the LORD to teach him His ways (v13) and pleading for the LORD’s presence to be with them (v16). When the LORD replies by saying, “My presence will go with you, and I will give you rest” (v14), it’s a reminder that with God’s presence comes rest – both for our immediate present and for our long-term future. There is an almost immediate rest that comes when we are in God’s presence with soft hearts, and there is also a long-term rest that comes with having God’s presence.
Exodus 33:18-23 (NIV)
18 Then Moses said, “Now show me your glory.”
19 And the LORD said, “I will cause all my goodness to pass in front of you, and I will proclaim my name, 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.
20 But,” he said, “you cannot see my face, for no one may see 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 and cover you with my hand 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.”
On verses 18-23: As much as Moses wanted God’s presence for the nation of Israel and for himself as the leader of Israel, Moses didn’t just want to simply use God and get God’s protection, provision and presence for self-centered reasons. Rather, Moses had a deep longing to know God personally and intimately. That is why Moses says to God, “Now show me your glory” (v18).
Similarly, if you and I will devote ourselves to drawing close to God personally and intimately, if we would actively seek the presence and glory of God, God is willing to reveal more of Himself – His goodness, His glory, His presence – to us. While it is true that God sent Jesus Christ to die on the cross so that as many people as possible could have access to God’s presence, it is also true that God reveals the most precious parts of His presence to those who really treasure Him and seek Him. God is not the type to give the most precious pearls of His presence to pigs who just want to use Him. If you want to experience God’s presence more deeply, the question is: how much are you willing to seek God and spend time with Him to have it?
Finally, in verse 23, even as God says that He will reveal His glory to Moses, God also says that His face must not be seen. Just like Moses to whom God revealed His glory but didn’t show His face, so in our lifetime on earth we get to experience much of God if we want, but it’s nothing compared to how much of God’s presence we will get to experience in heaven, when we get to see Him face to face. When it comes to God’s presence, the best is waiting for us in eternity.
Father, thank You for the rest that comes with Your presence. May I not be content to stay in the outer courts of Your presence, but like Moses may I draw as close to You as I can and experience Your presence and glory on the most intimate level possible on earth, for in Your presence there is rest and great glory. In Jesus’ name, AMEN!
