18 And Moses said, “Show me your glory.” 19 And the Lord said, “I will make all my goodness pass before your face, and I will proclaim the Lord by name before you; I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious; I will show mercy to whom I will show mercy.” 20 But he added, “You cannot see my face, for no one can see me and live.” 21 The Lord said, “Here is a place by me; you will station yourself on a rock. 22 When my glory passes by, I will put you in a cleft in the rock and will cover you with my hand while I pass by. 23 Then I will take away my hand, and you will see my back, but my face must not be seen.” –Exodus 33:18-23, NET
5 The Lord descended in the cloud and stood with him there and proclaimed the Lord by name. 6 The Lord passed by before him and proclaimed: “The Lord, the Lord, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, and abounding in loyal love and faithfulness, 7 keeping loyal love for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin. But he by no means leaves the guilty unpunished, responding to the transgression of fathers by dealing with children and children’s children, to the third and fourth generation.” –Exodus 34:5-7, NET
Consider first the context. This all follows the golden calf incident (Exo 32:1-6), where God first threatens annihilation (Exo 32:10), but Moses intercedes (Exo 32:11-14,30-32). God relents, but says He will withhold His presence and “not go up among you,” (Exo 33:3). Moses cries, “If your presence does not go with us, do not take us up from here,” (Exo 33:15). God agrees (Exo 33:14), and then Moses pleads, “Show me Your glory!”
Is this not the cry of the heart of all who seek God? He tells us He will be present with us, but we want more. We want to SEE Him. We want evidence that He is with us.
And God grants Moses’ request. But notice carefully how He does so.
God tells Moses he cannot see (with physical eyes) God’s face and live (while in our sinful flesh; see Rev 22:3-4). But God tells Moses His glory will “pass before [his] face” as He places Moses in the cleft of the rock and “covers” him with His “hand” (Exo 33:22). Moses must first hear the LORD’s name (character) proclaimed, and then he can catch a glimpse of God’s back—the afterglow of where the LORD had been.
O, do we see the SPECTACULAR truth! God’s glory is revealed in the marvelous proclamation of His holy character (scripture). God’s presence is revealed in His Word which declares not only His astounding mercy and compassionate love, but also His perfect justice and terrifying wrath. For those who have an “ear to hear” of God’s full glory (ex: Mar 4:23; Rev 13:9-10), then after they have experienced the LORD’s “goodness” (Exo 33:19) and been covered by His protective hand, then they will have their eyes open to see God’s back—the afterglow of His character that proves true, revealing to us that His presence has been with us always (Deu 31:8).
“And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” –Matthew 28:20b, NET
Do not miss an opportunity to see God. Meet with Him in His word today and hear His great name being proclaimed, allowing His goodness to pass before your face and reveal to you where He has been.
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