Hello and welcome to today’s exciting Bible study on Exodus 33. In this chapter, we will read and study about. According to biblical scholars, the events of Exodus 33 occurred around 1446 B.C.
As usual, I encourage you to turn to Exodus 33 in your Bible. Kindly invite the Holy Spirit to guide you as you read and study these chapters with me. I mention this in all the Bible Studies because it is only through the Holy Spirit that we get fresh revelation and knowledge to understand the word of God. No one else can teach you better than the Holy Spirit Himself. I am using the New King James Version (NKJV) of the Bible, just in case you want to know.
Backstory on Exodus 32
In Exodus 32, we read that the Israelites rebelled against God when Moses was absent for forty days, asking Aaron to create a god for them. Aaron complied, melting down gold earrings to form a golden calf, which the people worshipped and made sacrifices to. God was furious and considered destroying the Israelites, but Moses pleaded for their forgiveness.
When Moses and Joshua returned and saw the calf, Moses broke the tablets in anger. He burned the calf, turned it to powder, mixed it with water, and made the people drink it. He then commanded those loyal to the Lord to kill the unfaithful, resulting in three thousand deaths. Moses ascended the mountain again to meet God and pleaded for the people’s mercy.
Now, without any further delay, let us study together and learn what Exodus 33 is about, shall we?
Exodus 33 Summary
The Lord said to Moses to depart and go up from Sinai with the Israelites to the land that He had promised to give to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. He declared that He would send His Angel ahead of the people to drive out the Canaanites, Amorites, Hittites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites. The Lord instructed them to head toward a land flowing with milk and honey, but He warned that He would not go with them because their stubbornness might cause Him to consume them on the way.
When the people heard that the Lord would not accompany them, they mourned, and none of them put on their ornaments. The Lord had told them to take off their ornaments so that He could decide what to do with them. Consequently, the Israelites removed their ornaments at Mount Horeb.
Moses set up his tent far from the people’s camp and called it the Tabernacle of Meeting. Anyone who sought the Lord would go out to the Tabernacle of Meeting, which was located outside their camp. Whenever Moses went out to the Tabernacle, the Israelites would rise, and each man would stand at his tent, watching as Moses entered.
When Moses entered the Tabernacle, the pillar of cloud descended and stood at the entrance, and the Lord spoke with Moses. All the people saw the pillar of cloud at the door of the Tabernacle and rose to worship the Lord from their individual tents. The Lord spoke to Moses face to face, as a man speaks to his friend. Afterward, Moses would return to the camp; however, his servant Joshua, a young man, did not leave the Tabernacle.
Moses asked the Lord to show him whom He would send with him and to reveal His way so that Moses could know the Lord, find grace in His sight, and understand that the nation of Israel is His people. The Lord replied that His Presence would go with them and that He would give them rest.
Moses then pleaded with the Lord, saying that if His Presence did not accompany them to the promised land, they should not go at all. He questioned how it would be known among the nations that the people had found grace in His sight if He did not go with them. He emphasized that in this way, he and the people would be distinct from the rest of the world.
The Lord said He would do what Moses requested because Moses had found favor with Him and was known by name. Moses further requested to see the Lord’s glory. The Lord responded that He would make all His goodness pass before Moses and proclaim His name, stating that He would be gracious to whom He wills, and have compassion on whom He wills. However, He told Moses that he could not see His face, as no man could see God’s face and live.
The Lord explained that there is a place by Him where Moses could stand on the rock. When His glory passed by, He would place Moses in the cleft of the rock and cover him with His hand so that Moses would be shielded. After the glory had passed, He would remove His hand, and Moses would be able to see His back, but His face could not be seen.
Exodus 33 Commentary
1. Exodus 33:3
The Lord restrained His anger against the people. He was grieved by their behavior of blasphemy and idolatry, which He clearly instructed against. They belittled God and called a gold calf as their god even though they saw God inflict plagues on the Egyptians and divide the Red Sea.
2. Exodus 33:5-6
The Lord instructed the Israelites to remove their ornaments. The gold earrings they possessed (when they borrowed from the Egyptians before leaving Egypt based on the Lord’s instructions) were the very items they used to create the golden calf. Therefore, I suppose God took away also their ornaments because He could not trust them. What if they created another idol with those ornaments at another time?
3. Exodus 33:9-11
Lord spoke to Moses face to face, like a friend, from the pillar of cloud. While the people couldn’t see the Lord Himself, they could see the pillar of cloud and worshipped it. This pillar represented the tangible presence of the Lord—the visible form of the invisible God. We understand that Jesus is also described as the visible form of the invisible God (Colossians 1:15). Therefore, we can reasonably conclude that Jesus was the pillar of cloud in this context.
Jesus is God’s spoken word; as stated in John 1:14, “The Word became flesh.” In this instance, we see the Lord “speaking” to Moses from the cloud.
4. Exodus 33:12-17
Moses asks for the Lord’s presence to lead them and to show them His way. This is an attitude that we, as believers, must adopt. However, we do not need to ask the Lord if He will be with us because He has already promised never to leave us nor forsake us. So, He will accompany us, but the important question is: Are we aware of His presence, or are we distracted by the things that surround us in our everyday lives?
5. Exodus 33:18-19
When Moses asked God to show him His glory, the Lord assured him that His goodness would pass before him and that He would proclaim the name of the Lord. He stated that He would be gracious to whom He chose and would have compassion on whom He chose. This highlights His sovereignty. As our Creator, God is not obligated to answer us; He can do anything He wants and when He wants. However, not everything that God wants happens on Earth because He has given us the dominion on Earth. Therefore, it is upto us to enforce His will here on Earth when it comes to various situations in our lives.
6. Exodus 33:20-23
The Lord told Moses that no man can see His face and live. He said He would place Moses on the rock. The rock symbolizes Jesus, the foundation on which we as believers stand and are rooted. Then, the Lord explained that He would place Moses in the cleft of the rock as He passed by, covering him with His hand to prevent him from dying. Later, He would remove His hand, allowing Moses to see God’s back.
The cleft of the rock represents a sheltered place within the rock. In fact, as believers, we are sheltered in Christ, the rock. We approach God from this safe place, through Jesus Christ as He took the punishment for our sins and became our substitute. We approach God with the covering of our rock Jesus Christ.
Exodus 33 Lessons/Revelations
What can we learn from Exodus 33?
1. Ask God to show you His way
Just as Moses asked God to reveal His way, we should seek God’s guidance in every area of our lives. This is not to fulfill our own desires, but to genuinely understand His will because His plan for us is better than our plan for our lives. To begin, you can read the scriptures to gain insight into who God is and to comprehend His will in various matters. What God did for those whom we read in the Bible is what He will do for us also because He is unchanging. Spend some time in cultivating a relationship with Him and ask Him to show you His path. Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life; He holds the answers to all your life’s challenges.
2. God wants to have a relationship with you
There is a friend who sticks closer than a brother (Proverbs 18:24). In Exodus 33, we see that the Lord spoke to Moses face to face, just as a friend would speak to another friend. You don’t need a tent to meet with the Lord; the physical aspects are not so important for us as believers. What truly matters is the posture of your heart. God will meet you where you are. However, you have a role to play. A relationship goes both ways. Therefore, we must make it a point to meet with the Lord every single day, focusing on building a relationship with Him to truly know Him. Then, we too will come to know the Lord not just as a Father but also a friend.
Conclusion
This concludes the bible study on Exodus 33. I hope you enjoyed this free bible study and found it helpful in your Bible study journey. Feel free to share it with your friends and family. Also, share your thoughts and what the Holy Spirit has revealed to you about Exodus 33. If you have any questions or comments, please leave them below. I will get back to you as soon as I can.
Until next time!
In how many hours did they take to cross the Red Sea?
Hello Victor C,
Exodus 14, verses 21-27 says that the Israelites crossed the Red Sea overnight. The crossing should have been over well before sunrise because Verse 27 says that the sea returned to its normal flow at sunrise. I hope I answered your question.