All right, in Exodus, first of
all, chapter 19 and verse 16 through verse 20. Again, the
day God gave the law, the day God terrified Israel. And it
came to pass on the third day in the morning that there were
thunderings and lightnings and a thick cloud upon the mount,
and the voice of the trumpet exceedingly loud, so that all
the people that was in the camp trembled. Moses brought forth
the people out of the camp to meet with God, and they stood
at the nether, or the lower part of the mount, and Mount Sinai
was altogether on a smoke, because the Lord descended upon it in
fire, and the smoke thereof ascended as the smoke of a furnace, and
the whole mount quaked greatly. And when the voice of the trumpet
sounded long and waxed louder and louder, Moses spake, and
God answered him by a voice. And the Lord came down upon Mount
Sinai, on the top of the mount, and the Lord called Moses up
to the top of the mount, and Moses went up. Jump to chapter
20, 18 through 21. And all the people saw the thunderings
and the lightning and the noise of the trumpet and the mountain
smoking. When the people saw it, they
removed and stood afar off. And they said unto Moses, Speak
thou with us, and we will hear. But let not God speak with us,
lest we die. Moses said unto the people, Fear
not, for God is come to prove you that his fear may be before
your faces, and that you sin not. Now what we have read here
is the preparation and the aftermath of the giving of the law or the
Ten Commandments at Mount Sinai. And I think that Matthew Henry
was right when I read in his commentary these words, that
this was one of the most striking appearance of the divine glory
that was ever put forth in the lower world, unquote. And of
course, we do not hesitate to add that this was done deliberately. This was done to Israel to make
an impression upon them upon a purpose. But before we dive
in to this great event, let's put some things in chronological
order that led them up and were associated or connected with
it. We learned that it was in the
Third month, Exodus 19 and verse 1. and that they came to Sinai,
where it was here that they received the law. They had seen no less
than five great wonders from God heretofore, before this event
at Mount Sinai. Here they are. Number one, of
course, was the smiting of the firstborn of all of the Egyptian
in the land of Egypt. The second one had been that
miraculous parting the Red Sea whereby they went over on dry
ground and then Moses and rather Pharaoh and his army were Drowned
it they had seen the sweetening of the bitter waters of Mara
in chapter 15 when a tree cast in Sweetened up the water. They've
seen the provision of manna in chapter 16 of Exodus when God
called manna out of heaven to light upon the ground for them
to eat. And then they had seen the smitten
rock in chapter 17 of the book of Exodus providing them water,
and that rock that followed them, Paul said, was indeed Christ. In chapter 19 and in chapter
20, they will formally be brought into covenant with God by the
establishing of it at Mount Sinai. And in chapter 19, verse 5, the
last part, and verse 6, the first part, then ye shall be. Now this presents a great difficulty
as to the nature and the extent of the covenant as seen by the
many views that are held of the covenant that was made with Israel. And it's not our purpose this
evening to consider these questions in regard under this study for
we are pledged to consider that terrible manifestation that God
purposely made unto Israel. Chapter 19 and verse 5, the word
covenant is used, and keep my covenant. If you shall, keep
my covenant. Now, perhaps we ought to notice
that in entering in upon the covenant with them, it then follows
upon the great deliverance out of Egyptian bondage. It was not
until God brought them out that he formally entered into this
covenant with them. Exodus 19 and verse 4, you have
seen what I did unto the Egyptian and how I bear you up on eagle's
wings and brought you unto myself. And the immediate preface to
the Decalogue in Exodus chapter 20 and verse 2 and verse 3, I
am the Lord thy God, which brought thee out of the land of Egypt,
out of the house of bondage. Thou shalt have no other gods
before me." Now, we want to notice The preparation, this was a great
event. And God, that he might impress
upon them the deepness of this great event, made certain preparation
that were required of them. And the preparations for receiving
or making ready for the receiving of the law are in verse nine
through verse 17 here in the book of Exodus. chapter 19 and
they were To do this on the third day as God had given them the
Direction here's what they were to do. They were washed to wash
their clothes in verse 10 and in verse 14 now this was a symbol
no doubt of cleansing and of sanctification it was an outward
token of an inward cleansing of You compare that, if you might,
to Genesis chapter 35 and 2 and Zechariah 3, 1 through 4. Secondly,
they were to look toward the third day. They were to set their
attention upon the coming third day in the future. They were
to look toward verse 15 and verse 16, a set day was appointed for
the giving of the law. Not just any time and willy-nilly,
but upon a fixed set and certain day. Number three, we notice
that the mount was to be cardened off It was to be roped off. They
were to keep from any distance from the mount. They were not
to touch it at all, for for man or beast, it would have been
instant death. And then we notice four, they
were to come before the mount when they heard the sound of
the trumpet. That was their call to assemble
there before the mount, verse 13 and verse 16. And then number
five, they were to suspend their conjugal relation in preparation
for the giving of the law. There would be a day like no
other day. Never again would they see this
day or another that would be like it. And this was that it
might be forever and ever etched in their mind what they saw and
what they heard and what they experienced. And it might leave
a very deep impression upon them for having been there and experienced
this giving of the law. Now, let's fast forward to the
third day morning. Not only was there the sound
of the trumpet, and the scripture said, quote, exceedingly loud,
unquote, but just as God had told Moses in verse 13 to tell
them. But there were also, in verse
16, as we read, thunder and lightning A thick cloud settled in about
and upon the mount, and it must have come suddenly and no doubt
within their sight. In verse 19, even waxing louder
and louder, as well as sounding long, it was elongated a blowing
or sounding of the trumpet. Verse 17, Moses led the people
out of their camp, brought them into their places, no doubt assembling
by their tribe, to the lower part of the mount. And note,
if you might, in verse 17, the purpose, to meet with God. They have come before the Mount
to meet with God. For in verse 11 it is said, the
Lord will come down in the sight of all of the people upon Mount
Sinai. None it was not that God put
his eternal essence in all of it, extensively upon the Mount. For surely the mountain would
be consumed God let loose all of his glory in a certain way
against that mountain even a mountain and in Exodus chapter 19 and
verse 18 we read again remember that the mountain was all together
and on a smoke, because God had descended upon it in fire, and
the smoke ascended up as if it were coming out of some great
furnace. And not only that, but the whole
mountain began to quake or to shake or to rumble as they stood
there awaiting the law. There was smoke, there was fire,
there was quaking, there was thunder, there was lightning,
and on top of that, The great voice of God spoke out upon that
occasion. And then the trumpet grew louder
and louder and louder. And finally, it reached its peak. So it caught the minds and the
attention of the people to such an extent that they lost all
their thought. about anything earthly or carnal
and was fixed upon the event that was unfolding there before
them. Moses spoke in verse 19, and
the Lord answered him by a voice. And he called Moses up into the
mount in the 20th verse. Then he sent him back down again,
verse 21 through verse 25, to charge the people not to give
in to their curiosity, not to wander too close, to be very
careful that they did not Touched them out for the manifestation
was to be so great that it might result in their death Moses lightly
Protests as I might call it verse 23 the people cannot come up
to the mount by your charge and Bounds are set to keep them back
and away from a close-knit God sends him anyway verse 24 and
to charge the people not to break through. Don't lose your senses
and break through upon the mount, lest God break forth upon you. Keep your distance, keep your
place, be obedient. Then in Exodus 20, 1 through
17, there is a record of the 10 laws that are given. When all things were made ready,
when the time was come, when God, as it were, had ascended
his mighty mountainous pulpit on that occasion, he delivers
the holy law of God, the Ten Commandments, the Decalogue as
we call them, unto the people. And they were on two Tablets
are table of stone. Some think that one stone spoke
of their duty to God, the other of their duty unto man, but we
don't know that. In Exodus 20 and 18, the sacred
author returns to note the reaction of the people to seeing and hearing
what had occurred in conjunction with the giving of the law. Now
we notice what was the reaction of the people? How did they react
to this great event? Did they shout for joy and dance
about and giggle and clap and say, oh, praise the Lord, praise
the Lord, thank you, Jesus, hallelujah. Were any of them there that were
slain in the spirit as they saw this great manifestation of God? Did any of them run to the mount,
kneel there before it in order that they might touch it or that
they might say a prayer. Note the reaction. Exodus 20
and verse 18. They removed and they stood afar
off. They backed away. They fled.
They retreated. They put some distance between
them and this great event that was occurring upon the mount. Now the author of Hebrews also
makes a reference to the majesty of the giving of the law. You'll
find it in chapter 12, verse 18 through 21. There he makes
a comparison between Judaism and Christianity, or, if you
will, between the law and the gospel. And he cites the occurrences
of such things as fire and blackness, darkness, tempest, the trumpet,
the voice of words, and such like. He also, the Hebrew writer
does, includes the people's request that God not speak to them anymore
in such a way. but rather convey the message
through Moses that he might bring it unto them. But he also, the
Hebrew author, speaks of the effect of this upon Moses. In Hebrews 12 and verse 21, And
so terrible was the sight, that even Moses said, I exceedingly
fear and quake. Not only that, but take note
of the effect upon the people, but to give emphasis to this
awful import of the event. He tells of the effect that it
had upon Moses. Not only did the people back
off, not only were they fearful for their life and their safety,
But even Moses, the mediator of God, who'd been called up
into the presence of God, so awesome, so majestic, so overwhelming
was this, that even Moses said, I exceedingly fear and quake. I didn't find these exact words. to be written in the Old Testament
as attributed under Moses, but we do read in Exodus 19 and 16
that all the people that was in the camp trembled. And that
could include Moses. And yet the Holy Spirit who did
inspire the author of Hebrews is the one that tells us that
Moses also greatly quaked and feared at that event. Now the question comes, To what
purpose does Hebrews speak of the fear and the trembling of
Moses? Not just the people, but the
mediator. What is the point? What does
this add to the argument, or for emphasis? Well, just this,
I believe. Moses was a man who had been
in the presence of God. He had received divine revelation. He'd been in the mount, and God
had spoken unto him. God had called him at the burning
bush in the third chapter of the book of Exodus. He'd had
communion with God in wondrous ways that other men had not,
at Horeb in the backside of the desert. In Exodus 3 and verse
2, the angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a flame of fire out
of the midst. the bush Exodus rather Deuteronomy
33 and 16 him that dwell in the bush Exodus 3 in verse 4 declares
that God called unto him out of the midst of the bush furthermore
the bush burned and Was not consumed Exodus chapter 3 and verse 2
and it was in this that stirred the curiosity of Moses to turn
aside and see this great event why the bush burns and is not
consumed but the giving of the law in all of its all in all
of its glory and its majesty even caused Moses to quake and
to tremble and Moses, a mediator between God and the people. Even Moses, I think the emphasis
ought to be, was put to fear and trembling by the terrible
sight that occurred there on the mountain in Horeb. So let's
give emphasis, if we might, under those very same words again. Hebrews 12, 19 and 20. They entreated that the word
should not be spoken to them anymore, for they could not endure
that which was commanded, or literally, for they bore not
the thing being charged. It was more than they could bear.
It was more than they thought they could tolerate. And they
thought they might die. So great and glorious was that
exhibition. Now, we noticed some things about
that that overwhelmed them. Number one, the manner of the
giving of the law. The many supernatural, undeniable,
unexplainable by natural causes events that occurred in conjunction
with the giving of the law. multitude of angels we read in
Acts chapter 7 and verse 55 when Stephen said they received the
law by the disposition of angels and have not kept it even it
was Galatians 3 and verse 19 and ordained by angels in the
hand of a mediator. Now the second thing, the content
of the law. Not only the manifestation and
the way that it was given, but the content of the law. They
could not bear or endure that which was commanded, for they
were not even to have sinful feelings. are unlawful desires. The law forbid even that. Now, speaking of them, not being
able to endure that, which was commanded, I think, or did me,
puts me in the mind of the Apostle Peter, in the Jerusalem Council,
in the contention over Gentile circumcision and conditions for
entering into the Christian church. Acts 15 verse 8 through 10. Since God gave them, Peter said,
that is the Gentile, the Holy Spirit, he purified their heart
by faith. Verse 10. Why do you tempt God
to put a yoke upon the neck of the disciple which neither we
nor our fathers were able to bear. This law was more than
we or our fathers were able to bear. To say nothing of what
the Lord Jesus charged those who sat in Moses' seat about
the law, Matthew 23 and verse 2, the scribes and the Pharisee,
who according to that verse 4, bind heavy burdens and grievous
to be born and lay them upon men's shoulders. in addition
to everything else. While they, that is, the hypocrites
who occupied the seat of Moses, would not lift so much as one
finger of the burden that was placed upon them. And while such
a subject, let us observe that many present-day preachers, many
today, lead their flocks before smoking, firing, quaking Sinai. And they exhort the people to
chain themselves to that mountain and to that law, which they find
themselves affrighted by the demands of that law, and more
than they are able to give. But if we might go back to Hebrews
chapter 12 one more time, where the author says, such as his
spouse, the gospel revelation, in verse 18, you are not come
to a mount that might be touched. You have not approached a mount
touchable. You have not approached a material,
earthly rock mountain, which if touched at one time would
have meant death. which mount being engulfed in
fire, and smoke, and flame, and an awful sight. And they were
therefore feared of being consumed. And they became fearful that
if God spoke to them, any longer, any more, in such a manner as
that of Mount Sinai, that they would die. Exodus chapter 20
and verse 19. Now we read in Exodus 20 and
verse 21, the people stood afar off again, back from the mount,
their hearts full of fear and not knowing what to expect next. a confession, a manifestation
of the glory of God stirred up in their heart a fear of God
and of His wrath and of His power. And it drove them backwards,
and so they request that Moses become a mediator between them. And in Deuteronomy, this idea
of God speaking with them is considered further. Deuteronomy
4, Deuteronomy 5, Moses notices for the people the exclusiveness
of this appearance at Mount Sinai. Deuteronomy 4.33, Did ever people
hear the voice of God speaking out of the midst of fire as you
have heard and live? Did anybody ever hear that? Did
anybody ever go through that and actually live to tell it?
Moses in Deuteronomy 5, 24 and 25 reminds them of what they
had seen and what had been said at Mount Sinai. And they desired
a mediator, and God approved of that. In Deuteronomy 5.28,
they have well said, God said unto Moses. In Deuteronomy 15-18,
Moses became the prophet of God and the voice of God to bring
them the mind and the will of God. Now, there must be a mediator
between a holy God and sinful man. They cannot approach God
in their own person or in their own merit or in their own work
for the glory of God's voice is too fearful for a sinner to
endure while he lives and abides in this flesh and the people's
reaction there before Mount Sinai. Even as Paul, when he saw that
the law was just, was holy, and was good, but that he was carnal,
I am carnal and sold under sin. And he found even Saul, even
Paul, that the law worked death in him. Thus, when the law is
seen in its true nature and essence, when truly apprehended, It will
produce fear in the conscience of an individual. For John Owen,
the old Puritan, put it like this. What the law required cannot
be complied with by any who are sinners and are fallen. Let's
take up the words of Paul, Romans 4 and verse 15. The law works
wrath. It does not put away sin. It
does not cleanse from sin. It actually works wrath. And
this is part of Paul's argument for gratuitous, free and unmerited
justification in the case of Abraham. That the law was not
the basis of the promise of God unto Abraham. Romans 4, 13 through
16. Galatians 3, 16 through 18. The promise, the covenant with
Abraham was not based upon the law, but it was given before
the law was ever given. But in verse 13 through 16 of
Romans chapter 4, thought through law was the promise to Abraham. For the promise is realized by
faith, as Paul points out. Verse 15, because or literally,
for the law works wrath. where there is no law, there
is no transgression. So there is no hope of a sinner
ever being justified by the law in the sight of Almighty God. It has never happened. It will
never happen that one be justified who is a sinner by the works
of the law. In fact, Paul says, 1 Corinthians
15, 56, The strength of sin is the law. Sin uses the law actually
to do us hurt. The law falls out, if I may use
that expression, on the side of sin. It will not help us against
sin, it will help sin against us. So that only Christ can save
from the curse of the law, and that by bearing that curse, in
his very own body on the tree of Calvary. So we see that Paul
compares the gospel and the law. In 2 Corinthians he does that,
chapter 3. He does it again in Galatians
chapter 3, 10 through verse 13, when he said that that which
is written in stone, with stone, is taken away and it is written
upon the fleshly table of our heart. So here's the contrasting
glory of the law and the gospel, that he does assign a great glory
to the law. Paul does not take away its glory,
but he says, as glorious as it was, It has no glory by reason
of the glory that is in the gospel that so far excels it. In 2 Corinthians
3 and 13, the children of Israel could not gaze at the end of
the thing that was done away. And this glorious ministration
was temporary, the law. It was intended and designed
to be done away. And in comparison, the gospel,
as I said, it has no glory. It might be like a star at night
appears bright, but when the sun arises, You can't even see
the stars in the heaven anymore. And any that put themselves under
the law seeking for justification will find instead of justification,
condemnation, death, wrath, curse, and bondage unto sin. To Israel,
The law was a schoolmaster. Galatians 3, that wonderful passage
from the Apostle Paul, the allegory of the schoolmaster to bring
them under Christ. And when they have come to Christ,
no longer under a schoolmaster. When faith has come, no longer
under the law. So on that day, God manifested
his glory to such an extent that it terrified Israel, and they
could never forget it. They might transgress it, but
they could never wipe out of their mind what they saw and
heard at Mount Sinai on that appointed day of the giving of
the law. So we learn, we want grace, not
law. We want grace and not our justice. Grace and not death. Grace, grace,
grace.