Exodus 24:1-8

CRITICAL NOTES.—

Exodus 24:1. “And he said unto Moses.”] These words should be read in connection with Exodus 20:18. The order of events seems to be this—After Moses had received the ten commandments, he drew near again “where God was,” and then he received the book of the covenant (Exodus 20:19 to Exodus 23:33); and before leaving the presence of God he was asked to appear again, accompanied by Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, together with seventy of the elders of Israel (Exodus 24:1, &c.)

Exodus 24:6. And half of the blood he sprinkled on the altar.] This preliminary to the act of communication of the book of the covenant to the people signifies that God pledged Himself to fulfil His part of the covenant independently of the acceptance of it by the people.

Exodus 24:7. And he took the book, &c], i.e., after God had declared Himself bound to the fulfilment of the covenant.

Exodus 24:8. And sprinkled it on the people,] i.e., after the book of the covenant had been read out “in the audience,” bê-osney = into the ears. Thus they were not asked to declare their willingness to do and obey the words until they had heard them distinctly read. Amid all the awful grandeur of the scene God dealt with them as intelligent agents. The objection that Moses could not have made himself heard by so vast a multitude, 600,000, besides children, is met by the fact that the covenant was made not with individuals but with the whole Jewish nation, so that there could be no ground found for dissent on the part of individuals from the engagements of those who heard the words of the covenant and promised obedience to them. The same argument is applicable to the sprinkling of the blood “on the people,” which, in all probability, was only sprinkled on some few individuals who were considered as representatives of the whole nation.

MAIN HOMILETICS OF THE PARAGRAPH.— Exodus 24:1

THE RATIFICATION OF THE DIVINE COVENANT

There are divine regulations in nature, but these are not sufficient for man’s guidance. Nature teaches only in symbol, and these symbols cannot always be clearly read and interpreted. Nature’s teachings are not adequate as a rule of life for man as a moral agent. The scientific man and the philosopher would not be satisfied without a book revelation. And the moralist, who should be the true philosopher, will ask for a direct revelation on morals. And this requirement is met. The true guide for man in the realm of morals is the revelation of God as found in the Bible; taken in its completeness, read and interpreted under the guidance of a discriminating wisdom. The old covenant will tend to illustrate the new; and the new will declare what part of the old is perpetually binding.

I. God makes a covenant with His people. Though the terms of the old covenant were strict and severe, yet they were evidently designed for the good of the people to whom they were delivered. We cannot possibly imagine any advantage that might accrue to the Divine Being from this ancient covenant. But from time to time we have seen that great advantage would result to the people, in so far as they followed the divine rules for life and conduct. Here, again, the divine mercy may be marked in that God makes a covenant with His people. He does not at once destroy, but labours for their social and national prosperity.

II. God reveals the terms of His covenant by specially endowed messengers. Moses was specially endowed as a messenger of God. He displayed the possession of those qualities fitting him in an eminent degree to be a legislator. He ruled with a wise spirit. He stands forth as one of the master spirits of humanity. He was further fitted for his office by special divine communications, and by special disclosures of the divine glory. He alone stands in the divine presence. The people must stand afar off. The elders must worship at a distance. And even the gifted Aaron—the progenitor of a noble priesthood—must not come nigh. In solitude, Moses must approach the mysterious realm. This Moses was the one to tell the people all the words of the Lord, and all the judgments. Those lips, touched with the divine hand and made reflective of the divine glory, must read the book of the covenant in the audience of the people. The old covenant was given by Moses who reflected the divine glory, but the new is given by Him who was the incarnation and visible manifestation of the divine glory.

III. God gives definiteness and permanence to the covenant. “And Moses wrote all the words of the Lord.” Yea, God Himself is represented as writing, and we find reference made to the commandments which God had written. Oral instruction is not sufficient. The voice of tradition is vague. As time advances that voice becomes feeble and wavering. The moral code must be clear and definite. This writing of the covenant may be taken as symbolical of its permanence. To this day the broad spirit—the true essential—of the covenant is working in all legal codes and religious systems.

IV. God gives solemn emphasis to the covenant by sacred ceremonials. We may suppose that Moses acted under divine direction. The hands of Moses built the altar, but the mind of God directed the human movements. The altar raised as indicative of the divine presence, and the twelve pillars representative of the dwelling place of the twelve tribes. Moses sends the young men, the life and vigour of the people, to offer burnt offerings and sacrifice peace offerings, the divine and human sides of the great solemnity. Part of the blood was sprinkled on the altar, an act of solemn dedication of their humanity in its completeness to God, and then the other part was sprinkled upon the people, which may be regarded as the divine response and acceptance. The first Testament was dedicated with blood. Thus the covenant was rendered emphatic by solemn observances. The blood sprinkled on the altar and on the people would be calculated to inspire deep reverence.

V. God requires a voluntary assent to the terms of His covenant. There was something of the nature of an appeal to the people. In fact, the whole circumstances, in connection with the promulgation of the covenant, constituted an eloquent appeal. The reading of the book of the covenant by such a reader, and on an occasion so deeply impressive and affecting, was plainly calculated to draw forth the universal utterance: “All the words which the Lord hath said will we do.” The whole people joined in the declaration. There was a pleasing unanimity in the promise, but there was unpleasant difference as to the performance. The man who at first refuses and then performs is nobler than the man who too readily acquiesces, and then fails to fulfil his vows.

VI. Man’s highest wisdom is to promise and perform obedience to all the terms of God’s covenant. Well would it have been for these people if they had kept to their brave resolve—“All that the Lord hath said will we do, and be obedient.” There are poetical states in peoples, and then they are apt to be free with their promises. But the prosaic condition soon arrives, and then the promises are broken. God’s covenant ever commends itself to man’s higher nature, or to man’s nature in its loftier and holier moods. The temptations of life, and the weakness of the flesh, render us unwilling to practice, and then unbelieving as to the virtue of the divine covenant. Obedience is the pathway of light, the pathway of true divine knowledge, and the pathway to the realisation of divine benedictions. Let us obey, and then shall we know the blessedness of all divine covenants.

There is a slight disarrangement in this chapter, as Ewald and speakers commonly shew. Exodus 24:3 logically follows Exodus 23:33 of previous chapter, and Exodus 24:1 should be inserted between Exodus 24:8.

—W. Burrows, B.A.

THE COVENANT.—Exodus 24:3

This was one of the most impressive acts of a most impressive dispensation. It was also one of the most important, inasmuch as

(1) God used this opportunity to “avouch Himself to be the God” of Israel, and Israel “avouched themselves to be His people.” And

(2) it is the great fact upon which the New Testament lays stress as typifying the great covenant work of our Lord Jesus Christ (1 Corinthians 11:25; Hebrews 8:9 For some valuable remarks in this latter application, see Dales’ “Jewish Temple and Christian Church,” p. 163).

I. The covenant was divinely revealed. “And Moses came and told the people.”

1. It was revealed faithfully. “All the words of the Lord and all the judgments.”
(1.) It consisted of “words” for their direction and encouragement.
(2.) It consisted of judgment for their warning: so the covenant of Jesus Christ consisted of “beatitudes” and “woes.”
2. It was revealed intelligently. Moses had no interest in suppressing anything. He was a good man, and would not suppress anything.
(1.) It was not an appeal to their superstition and credulity. It consisted of laws upon the wisdom and beneficence of which 2000 years of legislation have not improved.
(2.) It was revealed in language which they could all understand.
(3.) It was revealed under circumstances which attested its divine origin.
(4.) It was an appeal to their reason, piety, and interest.

II. The covenant was accepted by man.

1. Unanimously. “All the people … with one voice.”
2. Heartily. “We will do.”

3. Specifically. “All the words which the Lord hath said.” There had been a general acceptance before (Exodus 19:8).

4. Speedily. “Moses rose up early in the morning.”

III. The covenant was permanently embodied. “And Moses wrote all the words of the Lord.”

1. A written revelation is necessary. Memory is not to be trusted. Traditions from a long past are apt to be vague or to diminish or be added to. Books fix facts.

2. A written revelation is advantageous.

(1.) A perpetual direction for obedience and warning against disobedience.
(2.) A standing witness of the divine wisdom and goodness.
3. A written revelation is important. An everlasting record for man’s benefit of what has proceeded from the mind of God.

IV. The arrangements for the covenant were carefully and impressively prepared.

1. (1) An altar was built to represent God, and
(2) pillars to represent His people.
2. Young men were selected for special service as symbolising the strength and earnestness that should be exerted in keeping our covenant engagement.
3. Sacrifices were offered.
(1.) Burnt-offerings, to signify the dedication of the people to Jehovah.
(2.) Peace-offerings, as typifying Jehovah’s reconciliation with His people.

V. The covenant was ratified with blood.

1. Half the blood of the sacrifices was sprinkled on the altar to signify Israel’s dedication to God.
2. One more opportunity was given to the people to withdraw from their engagement. The law was read and the people renewed their vows.

3. Then the other half of the blood was sprinkled on the people, signifying the purification of the people and the certainty of the divine favours, and the whole ceremony closed with the memorable words, Exodus 24:8.

In conclusion—

1. Christ is the mediator of a better covenant.

2. That His blood is sprinkled on the altar of God (Hebrews 9:12), and in the heart of His people (Hebrews 9:13).

3. That He has instituted a “perpetual memorial of His previous death until His coming again” (1 Corinthians 9:25).

—J. W. Burn.

SUGGESTIVE COMMENTS ON THE VERSES

Exodus 24:1. Again, I see the seventy left at some little distance; I see Moses alone go up into the mount; and I see the affairs of the people committed to Aaron and Hur. It appears to me this is a beautiful presentment of what is going on in the present dispensation, when the affairs of the Lord’s kingdom are administered through subordinate instrumentality. The 4th of Ephesians tells us that, when the Lord Jesus Christ ascended to the right hand of God, “He gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; for the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ.” But, meantime, higher transactions are going on in the mount—transactions of which you and I know nothing except through the precious lattices of the promises. By and by the time will come when we shall see our glorious Head; see Him in His glory, see Him as he is.—Krause.

We may search from end to end of the legal ritual, and not find those two precious words, “draw nigh.” Ah! no; such words could never be heard from the top of Sinai, nor from amid the shadows of the law. They could only be uttered at heaven’s side of the empty tomb of Jesus, where the blood of the cross has opened a perfectly cloudless prospect to the vision of faith. The words, “afar off,” are as characteristic of the law, as “draw nigh” are of the Gospel. Under the law, the work was never done which could entitle a sinner to draw nigh. Man had not fulfilled his promised obedience; and the “blood of calves and goats” could not atone for the failure, or give his guilty conscience peace. Hence, therefore, he had to stand “afar off.” Man’s vows were broken and his sin unpurged; how, then, could he draw nigh? The blood of ten thousand bullocks could not wipe away one stain from the conscience, or give the peaceful sense of nearness to a reconciled God.—C. H. M.

ILLUSTRATIONS

BY
REV. W. ADAMSON

Elders! Exodus 24:1. Pierotti says that, among the Jews, the elders exercised great authority, and were held in high respect. At a later period the word became a regular title, irrespective of age or experience, being conferred generally on those who, by their wealth or wisdom, could head a tribe or lead in public affairs:

1. From Deuteronomy 21:2 it would appear that in certain expiatory rites they represented the city or the whole nation. In Deuteronomy 22:15 they formed a court for trying crimes; while in Numbers 11:16 they were selected by Moses to aid in supporting his authority. Joshua, in Joshua 7:6, relates how, after Israel’s defeat, he and the elders fell down before the ark.

2. In the New Testament we have the seventy disciples; and in the apocalyptic scenery of heaven are twenty-four lesser thrones around about the throne of God—occupied by four and twenty elders. These, sitting in the symbols of priesthood and royalty, of endurance and victory, clothed in white raiment, and having on their heads crowns of gold, are supposed to be the representatives of the twelve tribes under the Mosaic and Christian dispensations:—

“For the Lord their God hath clothed them with

A new and glorious dress.

With the garments of salvation, with the robes

Of righteousness.”

Covenant! Exodus 24:3. Awa, on the lofty mountain-summit is a spring which breaks into two parts, one flowing down one side, the other adown the other. A man, climbing up the wild and rocky side, traces the river up to its source. There he sees the other flowing. He follows down the grassy soft slope, until he traces its descent into the ocean. Even so with Christ’s salvation on the Mount of Love. This is not a new covenant, but the renewal and fuller development of the everlasting covenant with Abraham, Abel, Adam, &c. Its living stream flowed on one side to David and Israel, Abraham and Abel; on the other side to the apostles and martyrs, &c., and so on to the eternal ocean.

“Jehovah’s covenant shall endure,
All ordered, everlasting, sure!
O child of God, rejoice to trace
Thy portion in its glorious grace.”

Law’s Province! Exodus 24:3. In Galatians 3:17, the apostle says that law, in its Mosaic development, was added because of transgression. He does not say that there was no law before Adam sinned, much less does he assert that there was none before Moses received it here. There is law in heaven, i.e., the moral law of love, and that law Adam had. In the free state of Liberia certain judicial enactments were absent. After the African Republic had existed a few years, some of its subjects committed offences. To prevent their repetition Government passed certain laws. The moral law was there before, and the Liberian freed-men were as morally bound to obey it before as after its judicial enforcement. God renewed the covenant more stringently, because of previous breaches of its provisions. The purpose of the law was to

(1) Point out clearly the rule of human duty to tread the path of righteousness; to
(2) Press home man’s natural inability to keep the law in his own strength; and to
(3) Prepare the way, like John the Baptist, for Christ to enter the sinner’s heart, as the end of the law for righteousness.

“By His life, for that fulfilling God’s command exceeding broad,
By His glorious resurrection, seal and signet of thy God.”

Morning-Prayer! Exodus 24:4. Milton speaks of the breath of morning being sweet, “Her rising sweet with charm of earliest birds.” Vaughan quaintly says that mornings are mysteries. Mysteries of good are they when well used, but mysteries of evil when, as too oft, much abused. Mornings are well used when prayer ushers them in. Beecher says, “Let the day have a blessed baptism by giving your first waking thoughts into the bosom of God.” The first hours of the morning is the rudder of the day. Carlyle says we have a proverb among us that “the morning is a friend to the muses,” i.e., a good time for study. Is it not more true that it is a great friend to the graces—that it is a good praying time! Therefore

“Serve God before the world; let Him not go
Until thou hast a blessing; then resign
The whole unto Him, and remember who
Prevailed by wrestling ere the sun did shine.”

—Vaughan.

Gospel and Blood! Exodus 24:6. Foss says that he once heard a very earnest and evangelical minister say that he had been accosted by a man who had heard him preach with this remark: “I do not like your creed; it is too bloody,—it savours of the shambles. It is all blood, blood, BLOOD.” To this the faithful ambassador replied, “Well, it is so, for it recognises as its foundation a very sanguinary scene—the death of Christ, with bleeding hands, and feet, and side. And without shedding of blood is no remission of sins.”

“Jesus, our Great High Priest,

Has shed His blood and died;

Our guilty conscience needs

No sacrifice beside.

His precious blood
Did once atone,
And now it pleads
Before the throne.”

—Watts.

Covenant-Obedience! Exodus 24:7. Obedience is our universal duty and destiny, says Carlyle, and whoso will not bend must break. Upon which Watson adds that to obey God unwillingly, as Balaam did, is to resemble the devils who came out or the man possessed, at Christ’s command, but with reluctancy and against their will. If a willing mind be wanting, there wants that flower which should perfume our obedience and make it a sweet-smelling savour to God. The hireling prophet’s obedience was deficient in this respect, that it lacked the frequent odours of voluntary or free-will offering. Israel’s apparently full self-surrender to covenant-obedience—however earnest for the nonce—afterwards turned out signally deficient in this voluntary grace. Their vehement covenant-protestations of obedience here are a vivid example of the Divine testimony, “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked, who can know it?” None but God, who searcheth the heart and trieth the reins.

“Not the labour of my hands
Can fulfil Thy law’s demands;
Could my zeal no respite know,
Could my tears for ever flow,
All for sin could not atone—
Thou must save, and Thou alone.”

—Toplady.