Show Me Your Glory

While on Mt. Sinai, interceding on behalf of the people after the golden-calf incident, Moses asks God to show him His glory (Exodus 33:18). God’s answered that request, “I will make all my goodness pass before you and will proclaim before my name, The Lord (Yahweh).”

Moses had perhaps the most intimate relationship with God of any man besides Jesus in all of history. They would speak and God would work amazing signs through Moses; Moses knew God. But there was no familiarity in Moses’ response when God told Moses His Name, nor when God described Who He is to Moses.

Read these words, the Words of God, with slowly with me. This is God’s response to reveal His Glory to Moses; He gave him Words (Exodus 34:6-7):

Yahweh passed before him and proclaimed, “Yahweh, Yahweh, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, but who will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children and the children’s children, to the third and fourth generation.”

Stop! Go back and read that again. This is who God is. This is God’s description of Himself. This is the One who said a few verses earlier that “man shall not see me and live” (Exodus 33:20). This is God! He was not obligated to reveal Himself to us, rebellious mankind. But He did. And He revealed Himself as a gracious God; ultimately revealing Himself in human form as Jesus in order to forgive sins and remain just. This is the God who created the world, died on the cross, and is coming again. I am in many ways so much less familiar with God than Moses was, but I am tempted when I read that statement to say, “Yes, I know that about God, and I could probably rattle off a few other attributes as well.” This must not be my response. When we read of who God is, our response must be the same as Moses’ response on that mountain (Exodus 34:8):

And Moses quickly bowed his head toward the earth and worshiped.

When Moses asked to see God’s glory, God gave him Words: Word’s revealing God. That is what we have in the Bible. We must always remember this; we must always bow our heads and worship when we read these Words of God.