Exodus
Chapter 19
Offering of the Covenant
Exactly two months after the Israelites had left Egypt, they arrived at the wilderness of Sinai.
They arrived there, having come from Rephidim, and camped in the wilderness of Sinai.
The Israelites camped there in front of the mountain, but Moses went up to God, and the Lord called to him from the mountain, saying:
“This is what you are to say and to explain to the Israelites: You have seen what I did to the Egyptians and how I carried you on eagle’s wings and brought you to myself.
Now, if you listen to me and keep my Covenant, you shall be my very own possession among all the nations. For all the earth is mine,
but you will be a kingdom of priests and a holy nation for me.”
And he added, “This is what you are to say to the people of Israel.”
So Moses summoned all the elders of the people and related to them all that the Lord had commanded him to say.
All the people responded with one voice:
“All that the Lord has said, we will do.”
Moses then brought back to the Lord the people’s response.
The Lord spoke to Moses, “I am going to come to you in a dense cloud so that the people may hear me speaking with you and trust you always.”
Then Moses related to the Lord what the people had said.
Theophany
Again, the Lord spoke to Moses:
“Go to the people and have them sanctified today and tomorrow; let them wash their garments
and be ready for the third day. On the third day the Lord will come down on Mount Sinai in the sight of all the people.
You will fix a limit for the people all around, saying: ‘Take care not to go up to the mountain or touch its base. Whoever touches the mountain will die.
No hand shall touch him, but he will be stoned or shot down by arrows; be it man or beast, he shall not live.’ Some of them may go up to the mountain only when the ram’s horn sounds.”
Moses came down from the mountain to the people and purified them, and they washed their garments.
He then said to the people:
“Be ready in three days and abstain from sexual relations.”
On the morning of the third day, there was thunder and lightning and a dense cloud over the mountain, and a thunderous trumpet blast was heard. All the people in the camp trembled.
17 Moses then led the people out of the camp to meet God and stand at the foot of the mountain.
Mount Sinai was completely covered in smoke because the Lord had come down in a fire, and the smoke rose as from a furnace. The whole mountain shook violently,
while the trumpet’s blast became louder and louder. Moses spoke, and God replied in thunder.
When the Lord had come down to the summit of Mount Sinai, God called Moses, who went to the summit
where the Lord said to him:
“Go down and give this warning to the people, lest they rush to see the Lord and many of them perish.
Even the priests who come near the Lord must purify themselves lest the Lord break out against them.”
Moses answered the Lord:
“The people cannot ascend Mount Sinai because you ordered us to put limits around the mountain and set it apart as holy.”
The Lord replied:
“Go down and bring up Aaron with you, but do not let the priests and the people break through to come up to the Lord, or he will break out against them.”
So Moses went down to the people and said to them…
Commentaries
Offering of the Covenant.
The narrative of the people’s experiences in the desert reveals the stages of their journey. In each part, the dissatisfaction and rebellion of those freed from Egypt (cf. 15:22-24; 16:3; 17:1-3) become clear. Now, the people find themselves in the Sinai Desert. The significance of this arrival is the clear offer to become the people of the one God, who will, in turn, be established as a “priestly kingdom” (6). The Israelites must first consider what kind of God they are committing to; it is not a typical or ordinary deity like many other local, capricious, fickle gods associated with power. Israel must remember that the God who freely offers himself to them, inserting Himself into their lives and journey, is the same God who acted against the Egyptians—again, Egypt as a symbol of power and severe oppression—(4). However, the people are not forced to follow this God; they must choose “if they want to obey me…” (5). The desert once again takes on its symbolic meaning as a place where the people consider whether obeying the God of life, justice, and mercy, who has been revealing Himself throughout their journey, is beneficial. The people’s response is: “All that the Lord has said, we will do” (8).
Theophany.
The atmosphere of this story is almost liturgical, radiating a sense of profound transcendence and solemnity. The purification (10s); the exclusivity of the place (12); the thunder, lightning, and thick clouds (16); the smoke, fire (18), and the blowing of a trumpet (19) all emphasize the absolute transcendence of the God who is establishing a covenant with Israel. This distinction sets him apart from any other god. The people cannot face a direct encounter with him; they need a mediator, and that mediator is Moses, chosen by both God and the people (20:19). Through this figure, the writers aim to convey a sense of security and confidence to the believer during the most critical moments in their history, especially when their lives are at risk.