Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on the Whole Bible
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Exodus
Book: Exodus
Chapter: 33
Overview:
The
Lord refuses to go with
Israel.
(1-6) The
Tabernacle of
Moses removed without the
Camp.
(7-11) Moses desires to see the
Glory of
God.
(12-23)
1-6 Those whom
God pardons, must be made to know what their
Sin
deserved. "Let them go forward as they are;" this was very
expressive of
God's displeasure. Though he promises to make good
his
Covenant with
Abraham, in giving them
Canaan, yet he denies
them the tokens of his presence they had been blessed with. The
people mourned for their
Sin. Of all the
Bitter fruits and
consequences of
Sin, true penitents most lament, and dread most,
God's departure from them.
Canaan itself would be
No pleasant
land without the
Lord's presence. Those who parted with
ornaments to maintain
Sin, could do
No less than lay aside
ornaments, in token of sorrow and shame for it.
7-11 Moses took the
Tabernacle, and pitched it without the
Camp. This seems to have been a temporary
Building, set up for
Worship, and at which he judged disputes among the people. The
people looked after him; they were very desirous to be at peace
with
God, and concerned to know what would come to pass. The
cloudy
Pillar which had withdrawn from the
Camp when it was
polluted with
Idolatry, now returned. If our hearts go forth
toward
God to meet him, he will graciously come to meet us.
12-23 Moses is very
Earnest with
God. Thus,
By the intercession
of
Christ, we are not only saved from ruin, but become entitled
to
Everlasting happiness. Observe here how he pleads. We find
Grace in
God's sight, if we find
Grace in our hearts to guide
and quicken us in the way of our duty.
Moses speaks as one who
dreaded the thought of going forward without the
Lord's
presence.
God's gracious promises, and
Mercy towards us, should
not only encourage our
Faith, but also excite our fervency in
Prayer. Observe how he speeds. See, in a
Type,
Christ's
intercession, which he ever lives to make for all that come to
God By him; and that it is not
By any thing in those for whom he
intercedes.
Moses then entreats a sight of
God's
Glory, and is
heard in that also. A full discovery of the
Glory of
God, would
overwhelm even
Moses himself.
Man is mean, and unworthy of it;
weak, and could not
Bear it; guilty, and could not but dread it.
The merciful display which is made in
Christ Jesus, alone can be
borne
By us. The
Lord granted that which would abundantly
satisfy.
God's
Goodness is his
Glory; and he will have us to
know him
By the
Glory of his
Mercy, more than
By the
Glory of
his majesty. Upon the
Rock there was a fit place for
Moses to
view the
Goodness and
Glory of
God. The
Rock in
Horeb was
typical of
Christ the
Rock; the
Rock of
Refuge,
Salvation, and
strength. Happy are they who stand upon this
Rock. The cleft may
be an emblem of
Christ, as smitten, crucified, wounded, and
slain. What follows, denotes the imperfect knowledge of
God in
the present state, even as revealed in
Christ; for this, when
compared with the heavenly sight of him, is but like seeing a
Man that is gone
By, whose back only is to be seen.
God in
Christ, as he is, even the fullest and brightest displays of his
Glory,
Grace, and
Goodness, are reserved to another state.