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The Second Book of Moses: Exodus

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- Chapter 24 -

1
He also said to Moses: “Ascend to the Lord, you and Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, and seventy elders out of Israel, and adore from a distance.
2
And only Moses will ascend to the Lord, and these shall not approach. Neither shall the people ascend with him.”
3
Therefore, Moses went and explained to the people all the words of the Lord, as well as the judgments. And all the people responded with one voice: “We will do all the words of the Lord, which he has spoken.”
4
Then Moses wrote all the words of the Lord. And rising up in the morning, he built an altar at the base of the mountain, with twelve titles according to the twelve tribes of Israel.(a)
5
And he sent youths from the sons of Israel, and they offered holocausts, and they immolated calves as peace-offerings to the Lord.(b)
6
And so Moses took one half part of the blood, and he put it into bowls. Then the remaining part he poured over the altar.
7
And taking up the book of the covenant, he read it in the hearing of the people, who said: “All that the Lord has spoken, we will do, and we will be obedient.”
8
In truth, taking up the blood, he sprinkled it on the people, and he said, “This is the blood of the covenant, which the Lord has formed with you concerning all these words.”
9
And Moses and Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel ascended.
10
And they saw the God of Israel. And under his feet was something like a work of sapphire stone, or like the sky, when it is serene.
11
Neither did he lay his hand upon those of the sons of Israel who were at a distance. And they saw God, and they ate and drank.

Moses on the Mountain

12
Then the Lord said to Moses: “Ascend to me on the mountain, and be there. And I will give to you tablets of stone, and the law and the commandments that I have written. So may you teach them.”
13
Moses rose up, with Joshua his minister. And Moses, ascending on the mountain of God,
14
said to the elders: “Wait here, until we return to you. You have Aaron and Hur with you. If any question arises, you shall refer it to them.”
15
And when Moses had ascended, a cloud covered the mountain.
16
And the glory of the Lord dwelt upon Sinai, covering it with a cloud for six days. And on the seventh day, he called to him from the middle of the mist.
17
Now the appearance of the glory of the Lord was like a burning fire over the summit of the mountain in the sight of the sons of Israel.
18
And Moses, entering into the midst of the cloud, ascended the mountain. And he was there for forty days and forty nights.(c)

Footnotes

(a)24:4 Titles:That is, pillars.(Challoner)
(b)24:5 Holocausts:Whole burnt offerings, in which the whole sacrifice was consumed with fire upon the altar.(Challoner)
(c)24:18 The expression ‘forty days and forty nights’ is not an approximate length of time. Whenever the reference is to ‘days and nights,’ the length of time is being presented as an exact length of time. The interpretation may be figurative, but the grammatical meaning is an exact length of time.(Conte)
1
He said to Moses, “Come up to the LORD, you, and Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel; and worship from a distance.
2
Moses alone shall come near to the LORD, but they shall not come near. The people shall not go up with him.”
3
Moses came and told the people all the LORD’s words, and all the ordinances; and all the people answered with one voice, and said, “All the words which the LORD has spoken will we do.”
4
Moses wrote all the LORD’s words, then rose up early in the morning and built an altar at the base of the mountain, with twelve pillars for the twelve tribes of Israel.
5
He sent young men of the children of Israel, who offered burnt offerings and sacrificed peace offerings of cattle to the LORD.
6
Moses took half of the blood and put it in basins, and half of the blood he sprinkled on the altar.
7
He took the book of the covenant and read it in the hearing of the people, and they said, “We will do all that the LORD has said, and be obedient.”
8
Moses took the blood, and sprinkled it on the people, and said, “Look, this is the blood of the covenant, which the LORD has made with you concerning all these words.”
9
Then Moses, Aaron, Nadab, Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel went up.
10
They saw the God of Israel. Under his feet was like a paved work of sapphire (a) stone, like the skies for clearness.
11
He didn’t lay his hand on the nobles of the children of Israel. They saw God, and ate and drank.

Moses on the Mountain

12
The LORD said to Moses, “Come up to me on the mountain, and stay here, and I will give you the stone tablets with the law and the commands that I have written, that you may teach them.”
13
Moses rose up with Joshua, his servant, and Moses went up onto God’s Mountain.
14
He said to the elders, “Wait here for us, until we come again to you. Behold, Aaron and Hur are with you. Whoever is involved in a dispute can go to them.”
15
Moses went up on the mountain, and the cloud covered the mountain.
16
The LORD’s glory settled on Mount Sinai, and the cloud covered it six days. The seventh day he called to Moses out of the middle of the cloud.
17
The appearance of the LORD’s glory was like devouring fire on the top of the mountain in the eyes of the children of Israel.
18
Moses entered into the middle of the cloud, and went up on the mountain; and Moses was on the mountain forty days and forty nights.

Footnotes

(a)24:10 or, lapis lazuli
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