A response

DEVOTION

EXODUS

A RESPONSE

Ex 34:1-8

34:1 The LORD said to Moses, "Chisel out two stone tablets like the first ones, and I will write on them the words that were on the first tablets, which you broke. 2 Be ready in the morning, and then come up on Mount Sinai. Present yourself to me there on top of the mountain. 3 No one is to come with you or be seen anywhere on the mountain; not even the flocks and herds may graze in front of the mountain." 4 So Moses chiseled 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. 5 Then the LORD came down in the cloud and stood there with him and proclaimed his name, the LORD. 6 And he passed in front of Moses, proclaiming, "The LORD, the LORD, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, 7 maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin. Yet he does not leave the guilty unpunished; he punishes the children and their children for the sin of the fathers to the third and fourth generation."

NIV

Moses now has to chisel out two more stone tables because he broke the first ones in his indignation of the sin the people were involved in. So now God and Moses are going to have a one on one meeting, just the two of them with not a single person around, not even the flocks are to be near the mountain. So now God shows up in this cloud and proclaims himself to Moses.  He declares his name, Yahweh, Yahweh almighty, which is the original text words. He declares his character to Moses. We have to remember that Moses asked if he had found favor with God, would he teach him his ways. Here God is doing just that. We now see the fullness of the LORD, his justice and his love. He declares he is compassionate, or as the original text suggests, merciful. This is the first thoughts of God as he thinks of his creation, man. Although they, as we have sinned, his first thought is to be merciful toward us. This should give us enough pause to consider the prayer Jesus taught us. If God is merciful toward us, should we not also be merciful to our fellow man? He declares to Moses that he is gracious. The act of doing good is his nature. He Does good toward us of his own free will and not because of or for the sake of anything in us. We have some insight to this behavior.

1 Peter 3:8-9

8 Finally, all of you, live in harmony with one another; be sympathetic, love as brothers, be compassionate and humble. 9 Do not repay evil with evil or insult with insult, but with blessing, because to this you were called so that you may inherit a blessing.

NIV

This is the act of living graciously with each other. This is living with the divine influence on our heart and being reflected in our lives. If we say we want to be like Jesus, like Yahweh, then let us be like him toward others. Let us do them good, not because they deserve it, but because that is our nature and of our own free will to do them good. God then declares to Moses that is slow to anger. He could at any moment declare his justice and judgment upon them for their sin, but he waits, he demonstrates his patience toward them and toward us. He could judge us guilty at any time and meter out his justice for our sin, but as we know he paid his own price for our sin and satisfied his own need for justice and judgment. Yet there are many who are still subject to this judgement, his wrath, his justice for the sin. He is waiting, his is patient allowing time for his creation to come back to him. We know he does not want anyone to perish, so how will they know about him, unless someone tells them? As well as should we not also demonstrate patience toward our fellow man? God then tells Moses his name is abounding in love and faithfulness. How can we deserve such a God? Yet while we were yet sinners,

Rom 5:6-8

6 You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. 7 Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous man, though for a good man someone might possibly dare to die. 8 But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

NIV

He maintains love to thousands forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin. The unbelieving world who thinks they know about the God of the Old Testament as a vicious God, killing thousands. A God of destruction rather than of love, simply do not know him. They have an unhealthy man centered, man driven view of God comprised of the thoughts of their own hearts, rather than from the very words of God himself about himself. They see God as a reflection of their own evil hearts, but God wants our hearts to be a reflection of him. This is the Old Testament God, the God that never changes, is always the same since the beginning of time, even though in him time does not exist. This is the Old Testament God who abounds in love, forgiving wickedness and sin. He is the faithful God always there to be called upon in our time of trouble. But then there is this statement about the sins of the father. The statement about him not letting the guilty go unpunished. That he punishes the children and their children for the sins of their father to the third and fourth generation. This is where we might have a problem with the translators. There is a sense that the justice of God will always be needed to be fulfilled. That sin, sin that is not repented of, rebellion against God will not go unpunished for all generations till the end of time. If a person refuses to accept his grace, his mercy, his love, his son Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, then by their own act of rebellion, punishment will be metered out. Their guilt will bring them to the point of perishing. However, there is something else in this verse of the Old Testament that gives us another concept.  Let us state just the transliteration of that verse word for word.

{Transgression and sin and that will by no means clear visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon children the children’s and upon children the third and the fourth.}

This could also imply that we fathers are the cause for our children to be raised with the same heart toward sin as we have. It is the nature of mankind to pass on the heart that is bent toward sin. Man will never bear children free of sin. For generations to come we all will have sin and all will be in need of his love, his grace, his mercy, his faithfulness in the fullness of Christ. This view of those words gives us the view of God which is consistent with his character and with our character.

The next verse gives us our response as well.

{And made haste, Moses and bowed his head toward the earth,} as the original words proclaim.

Ex 34:8

8 Moses bowed to the ground at once and worshiped.

NIV

 Knowing who God is and his will toward us, should we not always be in the frame of mind to be bowing not only our head, but our heart and be found worshipping our LORD?