Lesson #28

EXODUS 24
Lesson #28
CONFIRMATION OF THE COVENANT AT MT. SINAI

• Memory verse: Exodus 24:17

• In this chapter of Exodus, the Israelites are camped at the foot of Mt. Sinai (Horeb) waiting for God to give them the Law as He had promised.
• We will see more characteristics of life under the Law and compare them to life under grace.
• First we need some background:
• What is the archaeological evidence for Mt. Sinai?
• We have discussed the fact that there are various opinions for the location of the route of the exodus and various locations for Mt. Sinai where God gave the Law to Moses.
• We have seen that the popular location of mount Jebel Musa in the southern part of the Sinai Peninsula is probably not the correct location of Mt. Sinai.
• The geographical descriptions in the Bible do not correspond to the geography around Jebel Musa.
• There is no archaeological evidence at Jebel Musa to prove its authenticity as Mt. Sinai.
• However, there is a location in Arabia that corresponds to the Biblical description of the geography, and it does have archaeological evidence to prove it.
• We have examined the evidence for the location of the exodus route. It seems that the Israelites crossed near the center of the Gulf of Aqaba.
• If that is true, then Mt. Sinai must be near that crossing.
• Mount Jabal Lawz
• There is a mountain near the location of the crossing in the area of Midian that is called Jabal Lawz.
• What is the geographical area like around Mt. Jabal Lawz?
• Scripture tells us that the Israelites camped at the foot of Mt. Sinai. In fact, they were there about a year. This means that there would have to have been a flat area sufficiently large for 2 to 3 million people to camp there.
• Mt. Jebel Musa on the Sinai Peninsula has no flat plain any where near the mountain.
• Mt. Jabal Lawz in Midian has a very large, flat plan next to this mountain.
• What is the archaeological evidence to prove Mt. Jabal Lawz is Mt. Sinai?
• The top of Mt. Jabal Lawz has a blackened top as though it was burned. (Exo 20:18) Other mountains around it do not have this black top and neither does Mt. Jebel Musa on the Sinai Peninsula.
• There is a large stone altar next to the mountain, outside the boundary markers made by the Israelites. Archaeological evidence shows that this altar was used for animal sacrifice. There are carvings on this altar that refer to worship of the Apis Bull.
• Therefore, we can assume that this could be the altar on which the people worshipped the golden calf.
• Also, next to the mountain are the remnants of 12 pillars constructed in a line.
• We will see in this chapter of Exodus that Moses built 12 pillars at the foot of the mountain to represent the 12 tribes of Israel. (Exo 24:4)
• God told Moses to make a boundary line that the people could not cross. (Exo 19:12-13) There is archaeological evidence for this boundary line at mount Jabal Lawz.
• Moses built a smaller altar at the foot of the mountain inside the boundary line. (Exo 24:4)
• Read 1Kin 19:8-9
• This passage tells us that Elijah spent 40 days and 40 nights at Mt Sinai (Horeb) in a cave.
• There is cave in the mountain next to Jabal Lawz. It is called the cave of Elijah.

• Read Exo 24:1-11 The confirmation of the covenant
• God tells Moses to gather together the elders of Israel. Why?
• The leaders of Israel represent the people in a confirmation of the covenant with Moses.
• They swore an oath that the people agreed to keep the Law.
• There were 70 elders. (1)
• The number 70 is significant.
• Symbolically the number 70 is a combination of the numbers 7 and 10.
• The number 7 represents God’s perfection or completeness.
• The number 10 represents God’s standard by which man is tested.
• The elders were God’s human authority through which the people should come to achieve spiritual maturity (perfection) along with the 10 commandments that were to be their schoolmaster to bring them to Christ.
• Of what significance is it that these people were told to worship from a distance? (1)
• This is a characteristic of law. Law divides and separates the people from God because it points out God’s holiness and man’s sinfulness.
• Just as household laws divide and separate children from their parents, the Israelites cannot approach God through the Law.
• Read Eph 2:13
• It is only by grace through the blood of Christ that we can approach God and have a personal relationship with Him. This is the beautiful thing about grace!
• The oath of confirmation: (2-3)
• Previously we saw the people agree to live by the Law even before they knew the details of the laws they were promising to keep.
• Now that they know the Law, they confirm before God by oath to keep the Law.
• Their attitude is confident, full of pride, and arrogant. Of course, they can keep the Law. That is what they mistakenly thought.
• The Israelites were deceiving themselves to think that they could live up to God’s standards.
• Read 1Joh 1:5-10
• There are people today who are equally deceived to think that they are keeping God’s law by doing good works. They lie to themselves that they have no sin.
• John tells us that they make God a liar.
• We see that aspect in Exo 24 when God tells the people to worship at a distance. Because of sin, they cannot come close to God.
• Why could Moses come close to God? Moses is operating under the grace given to Abraham. By faith, he draws close to God.
• The altar and the 12 pillars:
• The altar was of natural stone according to Exo 20:24.
• The sacrifice was a peace offering and a burnt offering.
• The peace offering represented the peace man can have with God after his sins are forgiven.
• The burnt offering represented the perfect sacrifice, Jesus Christ, who atoned for the sins of the people.
• Notice that the animal sacrificed is an ox.(5) This was the sacrifice for the whole congregation of people. The sacrifice for an individual was a lamb.
• The sprinkling of the blood:
• The book of the covenant (7)
• Moses wrote all the Law that God gave him. This book of the covenant is what we call the Law.
• Of what significance is the sprinkling of the blood on the people?
• #1 = It was a common practice to seal a covenant with blood. (Gen 15:9-13, 17)
• #2 = The people must recognize that animal sacrifice is required under this covenant of Law.
• #3 = The people must recognize that there is no forgiveness of sin except by blood. (Heb 9:22)
• However, animal blood never did forgive anyone of sin.
• Read Heb 10:4
• The blood of animals only covered over sin until Christ came to forgive them.
• The blood of animals was only to point to Christ as a prefigure or type.
• #4= The people must participate personally in the covenant of blood for it to take effect.
• Almost all the covenants that God made with man had a shadow of blood as a prefigure of the blood of Christ:
• The Adamic Covenant made with Adam after the fall from grace:
• God killed the first animals to shed their blood, and to clothe Adam and Eve with animal skins.
• The Noahic Covenant made with Noah immediately after the flood:
• Noah came off the ark and built an altar to sacrifice animals to God through the shedding of blood..(Gen 8:20)
• The Abrahamic Covenant made with Abraham in the promised land:
• God made the covenant with Abraham in a ceremony with slain animals whose blood had been shed. (Gen 15:7-21)
• The Land Covenant made with Moses:
• In the covenant God said He would circumcise their hearts. (Deu 30:6)
• Circumcision is a cutting of the flesh to shed blood. The circumcision of the heart is a shadow of the Old Testament physical circumcision commanded of Abraham as a sign of the covenant.
• The New Covenant made for us through the shed blood of Jesus Christ.
• “And they saw the God of Israel…”

(11)

• Read Exo 33:18-23
• Read 1Joh 4:12
• Read Joh 14:9
• We seem to have a contradiction in the scriptures. How do we explain that the people saw God when other scriptures says that no man has seen God and lived?
• Because the Word of God is inspired by God, there cannot be any true contradiction. The contradiction is therefore only in our interpretation.
• God is a spirit. (Joh 4:24)
• You cannot see a spirit. Therefore, the elders and Moses did not see the essence of God. Instead what they saw was a representation of the glory of God in some way.
• Can God be known completely?
• No, not in this life in the flesh. (1Cor 13:12)

The Manner In Which God Cannot Be Known	The Manner In Which God Can be Known
Completely	Partially
Directly	Indirectly
In Himself	In His creation
His essence	His effects
As Spirit	As incarnate in Jesus Christ (Joh 14:9)

• “…there was under his feet as it were a paved work of a sapphire stone, and as it were the body of heaven in his clearness.”

(10)

• When you have a fabulous experience with God, how can you adequately describe it so others can grasp what you saw? It is impossible!
• The sapphire stone comes in all colors except red. If it is red, it is called a ruby. The most popular color of sapphire is dark blue.
• Read Eze 1:26

• Read Exo 24:12-18
• We see Joshua in this passage. God is preparing him for leadership.
• A Leadership Principle

: The best way to teach leadership to another who is preparing for leadership is to take him with you.

• Teaching by word is not enough. You must teach him by actions and by doing it himself.
• Of what significance is the 40 days and 40 nights that Moses spent on the mountain with God? (18)
• The number 40 is significant through scripture.
• The number represents symbolically a period of testing for preparation:
• We see in scripture the following events:
• The flood of Noah (Gen 7:4, 12, 17). It rained for 40 days and 40 nights.
• Wandering in the wilderness (Num 32:13). The Israelites wandered for 40 years because of unbelief before they were ready to enter the promised land.
• The Israelites fought against the Philistines in the period of Judges for 40 years. (Jdg 13:1)
• Saul reigned as king for 40 years.
• David reigned as king for 40 years (1Kin 2:11)
• Solomon reigned as king for 40 years (1Kin 11:42)
• Jesus was 40 days and 40 nights fasting in the wilderness before his ministry began. (Mat 4:2)
• The glory cloud of God covered Moses as he walked to the top of the mountain alone. (16)
• Moses waited 6 days before God spoke to him on the seventh day.
• Summary and application:
• We have seen how the Israelites were very quick to agree to new covenant of Law when the covenant of grace given to Abraham was already in effect. That covenant of grace would remain in effect forever while the covenant of Law given to Moses would remain in effect only until Christ came the first time.
• We have seen how pride is quick to throw grace out the window and replace it with law when grace is so much better than the Law, in that grace can draw us closer to God than law ever could.
• Still it is amazing how many Christians fall into this same pattern as the Israelites who were willing to exchange grace for law.

HOMEWORK
EXODUS 25:1-9
This is a self-study. Please do not send answers of the homework questions to theteacher for correction.

• Application of Exo 24
• In what way has this study of the Law of Moses changed your thinking about law and grace?

• Preparation for Exo 25:1-9
• Read Exo 25:1-9
• What do you notice in this passage about giving to God?

• Memory verse: Luke 6:38