Глава 19

1–2. Arrival of the Jews in the Sinai Desert. 3–25. At the inspiration of Moses, the people of Israel are preparing to accept the Decalogue. Ex.19:1. In the third month after the exodus of the children of Israel from the land of Egypt, on the very day of the new moon, they came to the Sinai desert. There is no direct indication of the time of the Jews’ arrival in the Sinai desert either in this place or in the parallel number. 10:11. But since the Hebrew expression “hodegi” (month) is used in the meaning of “new moon” (1 Kings 20:5, 2 Kings 4:23), then in conjunction with the numeral “hashshelishi” it should be translated: “in the third new moon,” i.e. on the first day of the third month. Only with this understanding does the further phrase become clear: “on this very day” (“bayom gazze”). Without a precise determination of the time of arrival earlier, it remains unclear. According to Jewish tradition, recorded in the Talmud, the arrival of the Jews to Sinai falls on the first day of the third month. Exodus 19:2. And they journeyed from Rephidim, and came to the wilderness of Sinai, and encamped there in the wilderness; and Israel pitched there opposite the mountain. Mount Sinai, against which the Jews encamped and on which legislation was subsequently carried out, belongs, according to the more widespread Christian tradition, to the southeastern group of mountains of the Sinai Peninsula and is identified with the one at the foot of which the monastery of St. Catherine is located. The identification of the mountain of legislation with Mount Serbal, located near the city of Paran, cannot be allowed because it is not visible at close range - it is hidden by other mountains, and meanwhile, according to the Bible, the top of the mountain of legislation was visible to the Jews standing at its base (Ex. 20:18, 19:17). In addition, the valleys surrounding Serbal are small, not particularly flat, in a word - they do not represent the space necessary for the location of the Jewish camp. Exodus 19:3. Moses went up to God [upon the mountain], and the Lord called to him from the mountain, saying, Thus shalt thou speak unto the house of Jacob, and tell the children of Israel: Exodus 19:4. you have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore you [as if] on eagle’s wings, and brought you to Myself; The Lord’s speech is aimed at inducing the Jews to give voluntary consent to enter into a covenant with Him. It is primarily caused by their religious experience - “you saw.” This experience is the knowledge of Divine Justice in relation to enemies - “you have seen what I did to the Egyptians”, and mercy towards them themselves. By the almighty power of God, the Jews were delivered from slavery and brought to a safe place, the place of the appearance and revelation of the glory of the Most High (to Himself). These former mercies, arousing zeal among the people to do the will of God, should serve as a guarantee for them, a guarantee of receiving new benefits. Exodus 19:5. Therefore, if you will obey My voice and keep My covenant, then you will be My possession above all nations, for all the earth is Mine, And indeed, obedience to the will of God, manifested in the fulfillment of the covenant now made, will attract new and extraordinary mercy. It will be expressed in the fact that the Jews will become “the precious property of God” (Heb. segulla, 1 Chronicles 17:22; Greek λαὸς περιούσιος) among all the nations of the earth. The latter are God's property by creation, while Israel is His property by election and salvation (Deut. 4:20, 7:6, 14:2, Ps. 135:4). He will remain with this precious inheritance under the condition of keeping the covenant (Deut. 26:18). Exodus 19:6. and you will be to Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation; These are the words that you will speak to the children of Israel. The Jews will be God's precious property because, fulfilling his covenant, they form a kingdom of priests. All the people will be in close communication with God, which is awarded to persons - priests - called to be mediators between God and other people (Lev.10:3). Being a priest - a servant of the Lord (Isaiah 61:6), a proclaimer of His will and salvation, the people will be dear in the eyes of God (Isaiah 42). As a kingdom of priests, the Jews are called to become a “holy nation”—pure from sins (Lev. 11:44–45, 20:26, Deut. 14:2). Exodus 19:7. And Moses came and called the elders of the people and set before them all these words which the Lord had commanded him. Exodus 19:8. And all the people answered with one voice, saying, “Let us do all that the Lord has spoken [and be obedient]. And Moses reported the words of the people to the Lord. Exodus 19:9. And the Lord said to Moses: Behold, I will come to you in a thick cloud, so that the people will hear how I speak to you and believe you forever. And Moses declared the words of the people to the Lord. The consent given by the people to the fulfillment of the covenant (Ex. 19:8) is unthinkable without faith in its divine authority, and this latter without trust in Moses, the mediator in concluding the covenant, as the messenger of God, the messenger of the divine will. The Jews will accept him as such, having heard the voice of the Lord to him from the cloud: Moses brings revelation to the people. Exodus 19:10. And the Lord said to Moses: Go to the people, [proclaim] and sanctify them today and tomorrow; let them wash their clothes, Exodus 19:11. to be ready for the third day: for on the third day the Lord will descend in the presence of all the people upon Mount Sinai; Exodus 19:12. and draw a line for the people on all sides and say: beware of going up the mountain and touching its foot; anyone who touches the mountain will be put to death; Ex.19:13. let no hand touch him, but let them stone him or shoot him with an arrow; whether it be cattle or man, let it not remain alive; during the prolonged sound of the trumpet, [when the cloud moves away from the mountain], they can ascend the mountain. Preparation for the upcoming legislation through ablution indicates it as an event that stands out from the ordinary. Even the mountain itself is separated (sanctified - Ex. 19:23) from the rest of the area. The one who crosses the line is killed from afar, since otherwise the killer would have to cross it, i.e. violate the prohibition. According to the Greek reading of Exodus 19, the people could ascend the mountain after the epiphany. Exodus 19:14. And Moses went down from the mountain to the people and sanctified the people, and they washed their clothes. Exodus 19:15. And he said to the people, Be ready for the third day; don't touch your wives. Exodus 19:16. On the third day, when morning came, there were thunder and lightning, and a thick cloud over Mount [Sinai], and the sound of a trumpet was very loud; and all the people that were in the camp trembled. Exodus 19:17. And Moses brought the people out of the camp to meet God, and they stood at the foot of the mountain. The appearance of the cloud served as an indication for Moses of the beginning of theophany (Ex. 19:9); During it, the Jews must also be present (Ex. 19:9), and therefore now they are led by Moses to the mountain. Ex.19:18. Mount Sinai was all smoking because the Lord had descended on it in fire; and smoke rose from it like smoke from a furnace, and the whole mountain shook greatly; The fire in which the Lord descended on Sinai and which burned to the very heavens (Deut. 4:11) served as a symbol of His divine glory (Deut. 5:24). Even inanimate nature cannot withstand its manifestation - “the whole mountain shook greatly” (Ps. 67:8–9, 113:7). Ex.19:19. and the sound of the trumpet became stronger and stronger. Moses spoke, and God answered him by voice. Judging by what happened next, Moses’ questions were aimed at finding out the upcoming orders of the Lord. Ex.19:20. And the Lord came down to Mount Sinai, to the top of the mountain, and the Lord called Moses to the top of the mountain, and Moses went up. The first of these is the calling of Moses to the top of the mountain, which is the place where the Lord descended. Ex.19:21. And the Lord said to Moses: Go down and tell the people, so that they do not rush to the Lord to see Him, and so that many of them do not fall; The repetition of the previous command was almost caused by the fact that the people considered it obligatory only for the two elapsed days and optional for the next. Violation of it could also occur from the unusualness of what was happening, which could overcome the duty of obedience, the feeling of fear, and cause a desire to look. Exodus 19:22. priests who approach the Lord [God] must sanctify themselves so that the Lord does not strike them. Ex.19:23. And Moses said to the Lord: The people cannot ascend Mount Sinai, because You warned us, saying: Draw a line around the mountain and sanctify it. Exodus 19:24. And the Lord said to him: go, come down, then come up, and Aaron with you; but let not the priests and the people rush to ascend to the Lord, lest [the Lord] smite them. Due to their sinfulness, the people cannot be in direct communication with God, as a sign of which they do not cross the line separating them from the place of the presence of the Lord. The priests who perform the sacrifices find themselves in the same position. Their priesthood is based on natural right, the right of seniority in the family, but not on divine election and approach (Lev. 10:3, Num. 16:5). They cannot ascend the mountain to be mediators in concluding a covenant between God and people, since they have not received from God the rights to such mediation. A separate mention of the priests is appropriate in this case because they, considering themselves to be higher than the rest of the people, could think that the prohibition, obligatory for everyone, “to rush to the Lord” did not apply to them. You might be interested in: