Exodus 24:9-11

 

In a footnote referring Exodus 24:11 the writers that edited The New American Bible wrote this: “After gazing on God, the ancients thought that the sight of God would bring instantaneous death.” The shock of seeing God visibly and literally, without being consciously smart enough, awake enough, or strong enough to stand seeing God directly was thought to lead to the viewer instantaneous death, and intuitively, that seems right.

 

If the viewer was evil and unholy, his death might even be faster and much more painful.

 

Now the exception to this is remarkable, but apparently Yahweh allowed and invited Moses, some priests and 70 righteous elders to see Him without their dying as a result. I have often thought if God’s kingdom ruled on earth, then Jesus and the good deities could walk among us openly, and we would not die of shock from encountering divine presence and perfect goodness.

 

Here is that quote from The New American Bible: “Moses then went up with Aaron, Nadab. Abihu, and seventy elders of Israel, and they beheld the God of Israel. Under his feet there appeared to be a sapphire tilework as clear as the sky itself. Yet he did not smite these chosen Israelites. After gazing on God, they could still eat and drink.”

 

My response: It seems as if Yahweh is offering these representatives of the Hebrews the honor and special gift to reward them for agreeing to set up a covenant between the Chosen People and Yahweh. This special occasion is also to celebrate the gift of the Ten Commandments from Yahweh to his people. Yahweh seems to instruct the Israelis that being holy and spiritually good is incomplete unless people obey Yahweh’s moral law, as codified in the Ten Commandments. I short, a holy people are an ethical people, and an ethical people are a pious, holy people.

 

 

Here is that same quote from the Holy Bible (KJV): “Then went up Moses, and Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel. And they saw the God of Israel: and there was under his feet as it were a paved work of sapphire stone, and as it were the body of heaven in his clearness. And upon the nobles of the children of Israel he laid not his hand: also they saw God and did eat and drink.”