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| 1 And the LORD said unto Moses, Depart, and go up hence, thou and the people which thou hast brought up out of the land of Egypt, unto the land which I sware unto Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, saying, Unto thy seed will I give it:
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| 2 And I will send an angel before thee; and I will drive out the Canaanite, the Amorite, and the Hittite, and the Perizzite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite: |
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| 3 Unto a land flowing with milk and honey: for I will not go up in the midst of thee; for thou art a stiffnecked people: lest I consume thee in the way. |
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| 4 And when the people heard these evil tidings, they mourned: and no man did put on him his ornaments. |
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| 5 For the LORD had said unto Moses, Say unto the children of Israel, Ye are a stiffnecked people: I will come up into the midst of thee in a moment, and consume thee: therefore now put off thy ornaments from thee, that I may know what to do unto thee. |
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| 6 And the children of Israel stripped themselves of their ornaments by the mount Horeb. |
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| 7 And Moses took the tabernacle, and pitched it outside of the camp, afar off from the camp, and called it the Tabernacle of the congregation. And it came to pass, that every one which sought the LORD went out unto the tabernacle of the congregation, which was outside of the camp. |
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| 8 And it came to pass, when Moses went out unto the tabernacle, that all the people rose up, and stood every man at his tent door, and looked after Moses, until he was gone into the tabernacle. |
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| 9 And it came to pass, as Moses entered into the tabernacle, the cloudy pillar descended, and stood at the door of the tabernacle, and the LORD talked with Moses. |
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| 10 And all the people saw the cloudy pillar stand at the tabernacle door: and all the people rose up and worshipped, every man in his tent door. |
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| 11 And the LORD spake unto Moses face to face, as a man speaketh unto his friend. And he turned again into the camp: but his servant Joshua, the son of Nun, a young man, departed not out of the tabernacle. |
Face to face – Signifying a closeness of fellowship with the Lord rather than really looking into the face of Jehovah. R4055:2
We see the Lord's face with the eye of faith, for we see the Lord Jesus who represents the Father and declares that he who has seen him has seen the Father. (John 14:9) R4055:2
"Their angels do always have access to the face of my Father" (Matt. 18: 10); all our interests and affairs are brought directly to the Father's attention. R4055:4
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| 12 And Moses said unto the LORD, See, thou sayest unto me, Bring up this people: and thou hast not let me know whom thou wilt send with me. Yet thou hast said, I know thee by name, and thou hast also found grace in my sight. |
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| 13 Now therefore, I pray thee, if I have found grace in thy sight, show me now thy way, that I may know thee, that I may find grace in thy sight: and consider that this nation is thy people. |
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| 14 And he said, My presence shall go with thee, and I will give thee rest. |
My presence – By his spirit and through his angelic messengers. R5547:5
His power and sustaining grace. R5548:1
Because he was speaking to Moses as the Mediator. R5387:6
Not literally. God manifests his power and love to his people by his various powers and agents, not merely to know what is happening, but to control all events that they may outwork his designs. He guides and assists the efforts of his people. R5387:2
The divine presence was manifested directly with the Israelites in the Shekinah glory in the Most Holy and also by the pillar of cloud by day and the pillar of fire by night. R5387:5, R5548:1
Similarly, God has promised that his presence is with us in all the affairs of life. R5548:2, R5862:5
Shall go with thee – If we call him in the busy hours of the day or in the silent watches of the night, he is near to sustain, uphold and protect. R5549:1
I will give thee rest – The rest in Canaan was a type of the rest of the people of God in the Gospel age. We rest in his promises. R5388:1
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| 15 And he said unto him, If thy presence go not with me, carry us not up hence. |
If thy presence go not – Moses felt the task too great for any man to accomplish alone and so do we. R5548:2
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| 16 For wherein shall it be known here that I and thy people have found grace in thy sight? is it not in that thou goest with us? so shall we be separated, I and thy people, from all the people that are upon the face of the earth. |
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| 17 And the LORD said unto Moses, I will do this thing also that thou hast spoken: for thou hast found grace in my sight, and I know thee by name. |
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| 18 And he said, I beseech thee, show me thy glory. |
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| 19 And he said, I will make all my goodness pass before thee, and I will proclaim the name of the LORD before thee; and will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will show mercy on whom I will show mercy. |
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| 20 And he said, Thou canst not see my face: for there shall no man see me, and live. |
No man see me, and live – "Whom no man hath seen nor can see, dwelling in the light which no man can approach unto." (1 Tim. 6:16) F722
Humanity, being of earthly nature, could not see a spirit being. R3861:6
It is just as impossible for men to see the unveiled glory of the Lord Jesus as it is for them to behold Jehovah. B131
A perfect human being would be the best illustration mankind could see, and this they saw in our Lord Jesus, the Father's image in the flesh. R3861:6
Those who saw and understood Jesus to be the Son of God caught the best possible glimpse of the Heavenly Father. R5653:6
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| 21 And the LORD said, Behold, there is a place by me, and thou shalt stand upon a rock: |
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| 22 And it shall come to pass, while my glory passeth by, that I will put thee in a clift of the rock, and will cover thee with my hand while I pass by: |
My glory passeth by – The Lord's special messenger, the angel of the Lord. Q360:2
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| 23 And I will take away mine hand, and thou shalt see my back parts: but my face shall not be seen. |
Thou shalt see – An appearance representing God; nothing more was possible. "No man hath seen God at any time." (John 1:18) B132
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