Exodus 18:5

18:5 Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law, together with Moses’ ¹  sons and his wife, came to Moses in the desert where he was camping by ²  the mountain of God. ³ 

Exodus 19:11

19:11 and be ready for the third day, for on the third day the Lord will come down on Mount Sinai in the sight of all the people.

Exodus 19:20

19:20 The Lord came down on Mount Sinai, on the top of the mountain, and the Lord summoned Moses to the top of the mountain, and Moses went up.

Exodus 24:16

24:16 The glory of the Lord resided ⁴  on Mount Sinai, and the cloud covered it for six days. ⁵  On the seventh day he called to Moses from within the cloud.

Exodus 34:2

34:2 Be prepared ⁶  in the morning, and go up in the morning to Mount Sinai, and station yourself ⁷  for me there on the top of the mountain.

[18:5]  ¹ tn Heb “his”; the referent (Moses) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[18:5]  ² tn This is an adverbial accusative that defines the place (see GKC 373-74 §118.g).

[18:5]  ³ sn The mountain of God is Horeb, and so the desert here must be the Sinai desert by it. But chap. 19 suggests that they left Rephidim to go the 24 miles to Sinai. It may be that this chapter fits in chronologically after the move to Sinai, but was placed here thematically. W. C. Kaiser defends the present location of the story by responding to other reasons for the change given by Lightfoot, but does not deal with the travel locations (W. C. Kaiser, Jr., “Exodus,” EBC 2:411).

[24:16]  ⁴ sn The verb is וַיִּשְׁכֹּן (vayyishkon, “and dwelt, abode”). From this is derived the epithet “the Shekinah Glory,” the dwelling or abiding glory. The “glory of Yahweh” was a display visible at a distance, clearly in view of the Israelites. To them it was like a consuming fire in the midst of the cloud that covered the mountain. That fire indicated that Yahweh wished to accept their sacrifice, as if it were a pleasant aroma to him, as Leviticus would say. This “appearance” indicated that the phenomena represented a shimmer of the likeness of his glory (B. Jacob, Exodus, 749). The verb, according to U. Cassuto (Exodus, 316), also gives an inkling of the next section of the book, the building of the “tabernacle,” the dwelling place, the מִשְׁכָּן (mishkan). The vision of the glory of Yahweh confirmed the authority of the revelation of the Law given to Israel. This chapter is the climax of God’s bringing people into covenant with himself, the completion of his revelation to them, a completion that is authenticated with the miraculous. It ends with the mediator going up in the clouds to be with God, and the people down below eagerly awaiting his return. The message of the whole chapter could be worded this way: Those whom God sanctifies by the blood of the covenant and instructs by the book of the covenant may enjoy fellowship with him and anticipate a far more glorious fellowship. So too in the NT the commandments and teachings of Jesus are confirmed by his miraculous deeds and by his glorious manifestation on the Mount of the Transfiguration, where a few who represented the disciples would see his glory and be able to teach others. The people of the new covenant have been brought into fellowship with God through the blood of the covenant; they wait eagerly for his return from heaven in the clouds.

[24:16]  ⁵ tn This is an adverbial accusative of time.

[34:2]  ⁷ tn The form is a Niphal participle that means “be prepared, be ready.” This probably means that Moses was to do in preparation what the congregation had to do back in Exod 19:11-15.

[34:2]  ⁸ sn The same word is used in Exod 33:21. It is as if Moses was to be at his post when Yahweh wanted to communicate to him.