Exodus 34
34
A deeper revealing of God’s character
1The LORD said to Moses, “Cut two stone tablets like the first ones. I’ll write on these tablets the words that were on the first tablets, which you broke into pieces. 2Get ready in the morning and come up to Mount Sinai. Stand there on top of the mountain in front of me. 3No one else can come up with you. Don’t allow anyone even to be seen anywhere on the mountain. Don’t even let sheep and cattle graze in front of the mountain.” 4So Moses cut two stone tablets like the first ones. He got up early in the morning and climbed up Mount Sinai, just as the LORD had commanded him. He carried the two stone tablets in his hands. 5The LORD came down in the cloud and stood there with him, and proclaimed the name, “The LORD.” 6The LORD passed in front of him and proclaimed:
“The LORD! The LORD!
a God who is compassionate and merciful,
very patient,
full of great loyalty and faithfulness,
7showing great loyalty to a thousand generations,
forgiving every kind of sin and rebellion,
yet by no means clearing the guilty,
punishing for their parents’ sins
their children and their grandchildren,
as well as the third and the fourth generation.”
8At once Moses bowed to the ground and worshipped. 9He said, “If you approve of me, my Lord, please go along with us.#34.9 LXX; MT adds my Lord. Although these are stubborn people, forgive our guilt and our sin and take us as your own possession.”
Renewing the broken covenant
10The LORD said: I now make a covenant. In front of all your people, I’ll perform dramatic displays of power that have never been done before anywhere on earth or in any nation. All the people who are around you will see what the LORD does, because I will do an awesome thing with you.
11Be sure to obey what I command you today. I’m about to drive out before you the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites. 12Be careful that you don’t make a covenant with the inhabitants of the land to which you are going, or it will become a dangerous trap for you. 13You must tear down their altars, smash their sacred stone pillars, and cut down their sacred poles. 14You must not bow down to another god, because the LORD is passionate: the LORD’s name means “a passionate God.” 15Don’t make a covenant with those who live in the land. When they prostitute themselves with their gods and sacrifice to their gods, they may invite you and you may end up eating some of the sacrifice. 16Then you might go and choose their daughters as wives for your sons. And their daughters who prostitute themselves with their gods might lead your sons to prostitute themselves with their gods.
17Don’t make metal gods for yourself.
18Observe the Festival of Unleavened Bread. You should eat unleavened bread for seven days, as I commanded you, at the set time in the month of Abib,#34.18 March–April, named Nisan after the exile because it was in the month of Abib that you came out of Egypt.
19Every first offspring is mine. That includes all your male livestock, the oldest offspring of cows and sheep. 20But a donkey’s oldest offspring you may ransom with a sheep. Or if you don’t ransom it, you must break its neck. You should ransom all of your oldest sons.
No one should appear before me empty-handed.
21You should do your work for six days, but on the seventh day you should rest. Even during plowing or harvesttime you should rest. 22You should observe the Festival of Weeks, for the early produce of the wheat harvest, and the Gathering Festival at the end of the year. 23All your males should appear three times a year before the LORD God, Israel’s God. 24I will drive out nations before you and extend your borders. No one will desire and try to take your land if you go up and appear before the LORD your God three times a year.
25Don’t slaughter the blood of my sacrifice with anything leavened. The sacrifice of the Passover Festival shouldn’t be left over until the morning.
26Bring the best of the early produce of your farmland to the LORD your God’s temple.
Don’t boil a young goat in its mother’s milk.
27The LORD said to Moses: “Write down these words because by these words I hereby make a covenant with you and with Israel.” 28Moses was there with the LORD forty days and forty nights. He didn’t eat any bread or drink any water. He wrote on the tablets the words of the covenant, the ten words.
Moses’ brightly shining face
29Moses came down from Mount Sinai. As he came down from the mountain with the two covenant tablets in his hand, Moses didn’t realize that the skin of his face shone brightly because he had been talking with God. 30When Aaron and all the Israelites saw the skin of Moses’ face shining brightly, they were afraid to come near him. 31But Moses called them closer. So Aaron and all the leaders of the community came back to him, and Moses spoke with them. 32After that, all the Israelites came near as well, and Moses commanded them everything that the LORD had spoken with him on Mount Sinai. 33When Moses finished speaking with them, he put a veil over his face. 34Whenever Moses went into the LORD’s presence to speak with him, Moses would take the veil off until he came out again. When Moses came out and told the Israelites what he had been commanded, 35the Israelites would see that the skin of Moses’ face was shining brightly. So Moses would put the veil on his face again until the next time he went in to speak with the LORD.
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Exodus 34: CEB
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2011 Common English Bible. All rights reserved.
Exodus 34
34
The New Stone Tablets
1The Lord said to Moses, “Cut out two stone tablets that are just like the first ones. I will write on them the words that were on the first tablets, which you broke. 2Be ready in the morning. Then come up on Mount Sinai. Meet with me there on top of the mountain. 3No one must come with you. No one must be seen anywhere on the mountain. Not even the flocks and herds must be allowed to eat grass in front of the mountain.”
4So Moses carved out two stone tablets just like the first ones. Early in the morning he went up Mount Sinai. He carried the two stone tablets in his hands. He did as the Lord had commanded him to do. 5Then the Lord came down in the cloud. He stood there with Moses and announced his name, the Lord. 6As he passed in front of Moses, he called out. He said, “I am the Lord, the Lord. I am the God who is tender and kind. I am gracious. I am slow to get angry. I am faithful and full of love. 7I continue to show my love to thousands of people. I forgive those who do evil. I forgive those who refuse to obey me. And I forgive those who sin. But I do not let guilty people go without punishing them. I cause the sins of the parents to affect their children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren.”
8Moses bowed down to the ground at once and worshiped. 9“Lord,” he said, “if you are pleased with me, then go with us. Even though these people are stubborn, forgive the evil things we have done. Forgive our sin. And accept us as your people.”
10Then the Lord said, “I am making a covenant with you. I will do wonderful things in front of all your people. I will do amazing things that have never been done before in any nation in the whole world. The people you live among will see the things that I, the Lord, will do for you. And they will see how wonderful those things really are. 11Obey what I command you today. I will drive out the Amorites, Canaanites, Hittites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites to make room for you. 12Be careful. Do not make a peace treaty with those who live in the land where you are going. They will be a trap to you. 13Break down their altars. Smash their sacred stones. Cut down the poles they use to worship the female god named Asherah. 14Do not worship any other god. The Lord is a jealous God. In fact, his name is Jealous.
15“Be careful not to make a peace treaty with the people living in the land. They commit sin by offering sacrifices to their gods. They will invite you to eat their sacrifices, and you will do it. 16You will choose some of their daughters as wives for your sons. And those daughters will commit sin by worshiping their gods. Then they will lead your sons to do the same thing.
17“Do not make any statues of gods.
18“Celebrate the Feast of Unleavened Bread. For seven days eat bread made without yeast, just as I commanded you. Do it at the appointed time in the month of Aviv. You came out of Egypt in that month.
19“Every male animal born first to its mother belongs to me. That includes your livestock. It includes herds and flocks alike. 20Sacrifice a lamb to buy back every male donkey born first to its mother. But if you do not buy the donkey back, break its neck. Buy back all your oldest sons.
“You must not come to worship me with your hands empty.
21“Do your work in six days. But you must rest on the seventh day. Even when you are plowing your land or gathering your crops, you must rest on the seventh day.
22“Celebrate the Feast of Weeks. Bring the first share of your wheat crop. Celebrate the Feast of Booths. Hold it in the fall. 23Three times a year all your men must come to worship me. I am your Lord and King, the God of Israel. 24I will drive out nations ahead of you. I will increase your territory. Go up three times a year to worship me. While you are doing that, I will keep others from wanting to take any of your land for themselves. I am the Lord your God.
25“Do not include anything made with yeast when you offer me the blood of a sacrifice. You must not keep any of the meat from the sacrifice of the Passover Feast until morning.
26“Bring the best of the first share of your crops to the house of the Lord your God.
“Do not cook a young goat in its mother’s milk.”
27Then the Lord said to Moses, “Write down the words I have spoken. I have made a covenant with you and with Israel in keeping with those words.” 28Moses was there with the Lord for 40 days and 40 nights. He didn’t eat any food or drink any water. The Lord wrote on the tablets the words of the covenant law. Those words are the Ten Commandments.
The Face of Moses Shines
29Moses came down from Mount Sinai. He had the two tablets of the covenant law in his hands. His face was shining because he had spoken with the Lord. But he didn’t realize it. 30Aaron and all the people of Israel saw Moses. His face was shining. So they were afraid to come near him. 31But Moses called out to them. So Aaron and all the leaders of the community came to him. And Moses spoke to them. 32After that, all the Israelites came near him. And he gave them all the commands the Lord had given him on Mount Sinai.
33Moses finished speaking to them. Then he covered his face with a veil. 34But when he would go to speak with the Lord, he would remove the veil. He would keep it off until he came out. Then he would tell the people what the Lord had commanded. 35They would see that his face was shining. So Moses would cover his face with the veil again. He would keep it on until he went in again to speak with the Lord.
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