When Moses told the words of the people to the Lord, 10 the Lord said to Moses, “Go to the people and consecrate them today and tomorrow, and let them wash their garments 11 and be ready for the third day. For on the third day the Lord will come down on Mount Sinai in the sight of all the people. 12 And you shall set limits for the people all around, saying, ‘Take care not to go up into the mountain or touch the edge of it. Whoever touches the mountain shall be put to death. 13 No hand shall touch him, but he shall be stoned or shot;[a] whether beast or man, he shall not live.’ When the trumpet sounds a long blast, they shall come up to the mountain.” 14 So Moses went down from the mountain to the people and consecrated the people; and they washed their garments. 15 And he said to the people, “Be ready for the third day; do not go near a woman.”
16 On the morning of the third day there were thunders and lightnings and a thick cloud on the mountain and a very loud trumpet blast, so that all the people in the camp trembled. 17 Then Moses brought the people out of the camp to meet God, and they took their stand at the foot of the mountain. 18 Now Mount Sinai was wrapped in smoke because the Lord had descended on it in fire. The smoke of it went up like the smoke of a kiln, and the whole mountain trembled greatly. 19 And as the sound of the trumpet grew louder and louder, Moses spoke, and God answered him in thunder. 20 The Lord came down on Mount Sinai, to the top of the mountain. And the Lord called Moses to the top of the mountain, and Moses went up.
21 And the Lord said to Moses, “Go down and warn the people, lest they break through to the Lord to look and many of them perish. 22 Also let the priests who come near to the Lord consecrate themselves, lest the Lord break out against them.” 23 And Moses said to the Lord, “The people cannot come up to Mount Sinai, for you yourself warned us, saying, ‘Set limits around the mountain and consecrate it.’” 24 And the Lord said to him, “Go down, and come up bringing Aaron with you. But do not let the priests and the people break through to come up to the Lord, lest he break out against them.” 25 So Moses went down to the people and told them. (Exodus 19:9b-25)
Consecration
As Israel has been brought out of Egypt to Sinai, the Mountain of God, God begins to teach His people, through Moses, about His holiness. That He is not like other gods. He is holy, fearful, and powerful, and they are not. It was a holiness they were taught in that age through ceremonial laws of cleanness, which showed them how pervasive and total their sin and uncleanness was before such a God. God has said that He will come down on the mountain to speak to Moses, that all the people may hear His voice, to believe Moses forever, as they receive His covenant law. And before they even receive the law, the first lesson they are taught is that of God’s holiness, as God requires two days of preparation before He comes on the third day.
In preparation they were to consecrate themselves, which I would take to mean that they are preparing themselves for the coming of the LORD on the mountain, not doing any normal work or activities, much like a sabbath event, preparing their hearts and minds to hear and receive the Word of the LORD. Yet, this preparation was not simply inward and spiritual for they were a carnal people entering into a physical covenant. Thus it was that they were to literally wash their garments, not go near a woman – which I would take to mean refraining from sexual relations – and keeping the perimeter around the mountain.
We know that the outward washing of garments does not cleanse the heart of sin, and having dirt on your clothes is not sin, and having lawful sexual relations with your spouse is not sin, but clearly God was giving them outward rituals to train them and teach them of the necessity of being cleansed and pure before a holy God who is a consuming fire.
I liken the washing of garments to when Moses was told to remove his sandals when he stood on holy ground at the burning bush in the presence of God. Part of the curse at the fall was a curse on the ground, on the dirt. Like the removal of sandals, the washing of dirt off the garments showed that you must have the curse removed, and be cleansed and redeemed from it.
Furthermore, if someone breached the perimeter that was set around the mountain, it was punishable by death – specifically stoning or being shot, presumably with arrows. (It is interesting that in Psalm 77 God’s lightning is likened to arrows). So they couldn’t touch the mountain or they would be put to death, because they were unclean, and the mountain was made into God’s sanctuary, His dwelling place, where He comes down. This would be just like touching the ark of the covenant with your hand. In this prohibition, we are told in verse 13, that if anyone touches the mountain, no one is to touch that person, but they are to put him to death by stoning or shooting with arrows. This seems to communicate the idea that you are not to touch this unclean rebellious person, so you don’t get his uncleanness on you. This is the way the Old Covenant worked, uncleanness was “spread” quite easily, they were constantly told how they needed to be cleansed.
We also see in verse 13, that this prohibition applied to both man and beast. This seems to get at the idea that even animals are part of your responsibility in your home and if you don’t care about the holiness of God enough to keep them managed well, then they too will die.
So God’s instructions were to be consecrated for these two days, and on the third day He would come down on the mountain in a thick cloud to speak to Moses in the hearing of all the people, and when the people heard the trumpet sound, they were to come up to the mountain.
Theophanic Storm
What happens next is remarkable and terrifying. Verse 16, “On the morning of the third day there were thunders and lightnings and a thick cloud on the mountain and a very loud trumpet blast, so that all the people in the camp trembled.” Verse 18, “Now Mount Sinai was wrapped in smoke because the LORD had descended on it in fire. The smoke of it went up like the smoke of a kiln, and the whole mountain trembled greatly. And as the sound of the trumpet grew louder and louder, Moses spoke, and God answered him in thunder. The LORD came down on Mount Sinai, to the top of the mountain. And the LORD called Moses to the top of the mountain, and Moses went up.”
So what we have here is a majestic and awful theophany. A theophany is defined as a visible appearance of God to man, or a coming of God to man in a way that is seen, prior to the incarnation of Christ. So in this scene, it is a theophanic storm if you will. Boys and girls, have you ever been awake during a bad thunderstorm, where it is so loud with thunder and rain and lightning? Maybe it has even been a bit scary to you, if you have heard thunder so loud that you can even feel it shake your house. Without doubt, this was more intense and loud and frightening than any thunderstorm you have experienced, for this was no mere thunderstorm. God was there. God was in the cloud. God spoke like thunder. God shook an entire mountain. This was no thunderstorm, it was a theophanic storm.
Boys and girls, you should remember this, and next time there is a bad thunderstorm you should think upon the power of God and the greatness of God, and trust in Jesus as the only one who can save you from the wrath of God. Because when Jesus died on the cross, there were similar things that happened. When Jesus was on the cross, the sun went dark, rocks split, and many people were greatly terrified. But right there with Jesus, in the eye of the storm, trusting Him to save you, is the safest place to be. Remember boys and girls, that when Jesus was on the boat with His disciples and a great storm came, Jesus was the one who spoke and calmed the storm and made it stop. Yes, the storms obey Him, but also Jesus is the one who calms the storm of God’s wrath toward your sin. In forgiving your sin, He gives you peace with God.
We find later on, in chapter 20, verse 18 and following that the people were so afraid that they end up retreating and standing far off. But what were they supposed to do? They were supposed to come up to the mountain. But they were too afraid, they didn’t trust Christ to protect them in the storm. Chapter 20, verse 21 says that “The people stood far off, while Moses drew near to the thick darkness where God was.” Moses was drawing near to Christ, where He was safe, while the people did not believe and so were fearfully in danger.
So we have a theophanic storm where God is in the cloud on the mountain. Certainly the thunder, cloud, and lightning are not God, but the cloud is as His covering for the people, He is clothed in it, as it were, with a voice like thunder accompanied with lightning, trumpet blasts, and fire. I would be inclined to see this more specifically as the pre-incarnate second person of the Trinity in the cloud, as I mentioned last week, we see the Angel of the LORD in the cloud in other texts, as well as Jesus in clouds in other New Testament texts. We also see the angel of the LORD in fire in other texts as well, even as it says in verse 18 that the LORD descended on the mountain IN fire. Indeed this is the Triune God. Where else is it that the Lord descends in fire? One place is pentecost, the coming of the Holy Spirit in flames of fire.
So what is going on here with this theophanic storm? I mentioned last week that Sinai is called God’s temple and sanctuary. Exodus 15:17-18, “You will bring them in and plant them on your own mountain, the place, O LORD, which you have made for your abode, the sanctuary, O Lord, which your hands have established. The LORD will reign forever and ever.” That’s why unauthorized and unclean persons could not touch it. It was God’s dwelling place on earth, where His presence was. Indeed it is a scene of His throne room, brought down to the mountain. Those verses in Exodus 15 show us all of these themes combined – the mountain garden abode (dwelling place), sanctuary (temple), and that He will reign, so His throne room.
There are a number of passages in places like the Psalms and prophets that speak of God’s presence with this same imagery. But just take a few passages in Revelation which is a vision of heaven. Revelation 4:5, “From the throne came flashes of lightning, and rumblings and peals of thunder, and before the throne were burning seven torches of fire, which are the seven spirits of God.” Revelation 11:19, “Then God’s temple in heaven was opened, and the ark of his covenant was seen within his temple. There were flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder, an earthquake, and heavy hail.” And Revelation 15:8, “and the sanctuary was filled with smoke from the glory of God and from his power…” So this scene at Sinai was God’s sanctuary coming down. It was a scene of heaven on earth, as it were, because God was there. And notice the absolute majesty of God in the simple fact that the LORD came DOWN to the TOP of the mountain, as verse 20 says. God comes DOWN to the highest peak man can ascend on earth. He is holy above all.
But this theophanic storm is not God simply coming down and being present on Sinai, but God speaks and is heard, and it is a fearful thing. Verse 19, the trumpet grew louder and louder, “and Moses spoke, and God answered him in thunder.” God answered in thunder, almost as if the thunder were a covering for the ear, as the cloud was covering for the eye. God answered in thunder, which is fascinating because we see God’s voice associated with thunder throughout the Bible as well. 2 Samuel 22:14, “The LORD thundered from heaven, and the Most High uttered his voice. And he sent out arrows and scattered them; lightning, and routed them.” Job 37:1-5, “At this also my heart trembles and leaps out of its place. Keep listening to the thunder of his voice and the rumbling that comes from his mouth. Under the whole heaven he lets it go, and his lightning to the corners of the earth. After it his voice roars; he thunders with his majestic voice, and he does not restrain the lightnings when his voice is heard. God thunders wondrously with his voice; he does great things that we cannot comprehend.” Psalm 18:13-14, “The LORD also thundered in the heavens, and the Most High uttered his voice, hailstones and coals of fire. And he sent out his arrows and scattered them; he flashed forth lightnings and routed them.” Psalm 29:3-4, 7-8a, “The voice of the LORD is over the waters; the God of glory thunders, the LORD, over many waters. The voice of the LORD is powerful; the voice of the LORD is full of majesty. The voice of the LORD flashes forth flames of fire. The voice of the LORD shakes the wilderness…” Revelation 10:3, the angel “called out with a loud voice, like a lion roaring. When he called out, the seven thunders sounded…”
One more passage that I think is relevant here, John 12:28-30, Jesus says, “‘Father, glorify your name.’ Then a voice came from heaven: ‘I have glorified it, and I will glorify it again.’ The crowd that stood there and heard it said that it had thundered. Others said, ‘An angel has spoken to him.’ Jesus answered, ‘This voice has come for your sake, not mine.’” After this in John 12, it eventually said that the people still did not believe. Is this not exactly what happens in Exodus 19? God tells Moses that He will speak for the sake of the people, that they may believe Moses forever, yet when they experience this theophanic storm and the voice of God like thunder they are fearful, standing far off, retreating in unbelief. God’s voice as thunder is so fearfully awesome that we are in need of a mediator to hear, so God has spoken through His Son. We need ears to hear his voice, and He must give us those ears to bear it, to hear it in faith, and not in terror. And in His Son, indeed who is the Word, the Word made flesh, He speaks to us a better word, the gospel Word, which is good news of great joy, not gloom and terror of judgment and law. And He has given us His written Word. And He has given His Church teachers and preachers, which can be a terror to sinners, but also the beautiful sound of the gospel trumpet to those who believe. God has spoken to us in ways that we can handle it without dying. Those who just want God to speak directly to them with His audible voice have no idea what they are asking for. They are asking for something which they will not be able to bear, just as the people in Exodus 20:19 were so terrified they told Moses “do not let God speak to us, lest we die.” Doug Van Dorn says that “Preaching is a mediatorial announcement from God to hear Christ’s voice, and it is packaged in a form that will not destroy you.” Ultimately, the reason we are not destroyed is because we come not to Mount Sinai, but we come to Mount Zion.
For you have not come to what may be touched, a blazing fire and darkness and gloom and a tempest 19 and the sound of a trumpet and a voice whose words made the hearers beg that no further messages be spoken to them. 20 For they could not endure the order that was given, “If even a beast touches the mountain, it shall be stoned.” 21 Indeed, so terrifying was the sight that Moses said, “I tremble with fear.” 22 But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to innumerable angels in festal gathering, 23 and to the assembly[a] of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven, and to God, the judge of all, and to the spirits of the righteous made perfect, 24 and to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel.
25 See that you do not refuse him who is speaking. For if they did not escape when they refused him who warned them on earth, much less will we escape if we reject him who warns from heaven. 26 At that time his voice shook the earth, but now he has promised, “Yet once more I will shake not only the earth but also the heavens.” 27 This phrase, “Yet once more,” indicates the removal of things that are shaken—that is, things that have been made—in order that the things that cannot be shaken may remain. 28 Therefore let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, and thus let us offer to God acceptable worship, with reverence and awe, 29 for our God is a consuming fire. (Hebrews 12:18-29)
Hebrews 12:18-29
This passage is a beautiful contrast between Mount Sinai and Mount Zion, which is to say that it is a contrast between the Old Covenant and the New Covenant.
The Old Covenant was carnal, in that it could be touched, there was a physical emphasis – washing rites, outward ritual, the tabernacle and temple, and such. In contrast to the Sinai covenant, verse 18 says “For you have not come to what may be touched.” The New Covenant, Mount Zion, has a more spiritual character to it. Sinai was on earth, Zion is in heaven. They had the old Jerusalem, we have the New Jerusalem. They had a terrifying theophanic storm, we have the preaching of Christ and Him crucified. God warned them on earth, God warns us from heaven.
Sinai was unbearable for the people, they begged for no further messages to be spoken to them. It was darkness and gloom for them. They could not endure the commands given to them. It was death. But for us, at Zion, we have been brought to the city of the living God. We’ve been brought to the joyful festal gathering of innumerable angels, the assembly of the firstborn enrolled in heaven. They went back from God, we’ve been brought to God, to the spirits of the righteous made perfect, and to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant whose blood speaks a better word than the blood of Abel. Abel’s blood cried out for vengeance, Christ’s blood cries out for forgiveness and peace. The law was a ministry of death and condemnation to them, we’ve been brought to life in the city of the living God where there is now no condemnation for those in Christ Jesus. While we don’t have the terrifying rumblings of lightning, thunder, and darkness, we gather in the presence of God, the resurrected and reigning Christ, and innumerable angels who marvel at the preaching of the gospel!
God made Mount Sinai tremble and shake and so did the people. And God shook it again that it would crumble, be removed, and no longer remain, so that what cannot be shaken remains. And what cannot be shaken is what we have received, an unshakeable kingdom, a kingdom that remains, that cannot be lost or destroyed. We have a blood-bought redemption, and forgiveness of sins soaked in the blood of Jesus that will not be revoked. God shook the heavens that the Old Covenant economy with its outward form would be destroyed, that the heavenly economy of the New Covenant would be all that remains. Matthew Henry says, “It is by the gospel from heaven that God shook to pieces the Jewish nation, and introduced a new state of the church.”
Therefore, what is our call? “See that you do not refuse him who is speaking. For if they did not escape when they refused him who warned them on earth, much less will we escape if we reject him who warns from heaven.” It’s a lesser to greater argument here. If in the old, temporary, covenant they did not escape, how much more will we not escape the heavenly, spiritual, everlasting word? The greatness of the Word of Christ in the gospel so far exceeds that of Sinai, that it is all the more vital that we believe Christ. Again as Matthew Henry says, “When God speaks to men in the most excellent manner, the guilt of those who refuse him is the greater.”
You see, though covenants have changed, God is the same, yesterday, today, and forever. God is a consuming fire. He was then and He is now. And He has given us something better. Therefore let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, and thus let us offer to God acceptable worship, with reverence and awe. Being in the New Covenant doesn’t mean no more rules and we can do what we want. But the fact that it is a more excellent quality bought by the very blood of Christ, means that all the more we must worship God in reverence and awe, and as is acceptable to Him.
As Israel was to wash their garments before hearing from God, so Revelation 22:14 tells us, “Blessed are those who wash their robes, so that they may have the right to the tree of life and that they may enter by the gates.” Do you have sin that needs washing? Then come unto Jesus Christ and confess your sins, for He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. Come to Him, who brings us to Zion, to the festal gathering of innumerable angels, to the unshakeable kingdom, to Himself.
Leave a Reply