◄ Exodus 24:2 ►
Moses alone shall approach the LORD, but the others must not come near. And the people may not go up with him."
Study Bible
Only Moses
The phrase "Only Moses" underscores the unique role Moses played as the mediator between God and the Israelites. In Hebrew, the name Moses (מֹשֶׁה, Moshe) is derived from the root meaning "to draw out," reflecting his being drawn out of the Nile and his role in drawing the people out of Egypt. This exclusivity highlights the sanctity and responsibility of leadership, emphasizing that Moses was chosen by God for this specific purpose. Historically, Moses' leadership is pivotal, as he is seen as a prophet, leader, and lawgiver, setting a precedent for future leaders in Israel.

is to approach the LORD
The Hebrew word for "approach" (קָרַב, qarab) implies drawing near with reverence and purpose. This action is not casual but is a sacred duty, indicating the holiness of God and the seriousness of entering His presence. In the ancient Near Eastern context, approaching a deity was a significant act, often reserved for priests or chosen individuals. Moses' ability to approach God signifies his unique relationship with the Divine, serving as a bridge between God and His people.

but the others must not come near
This restriction for "the others" (referring to Aaron, Nadab, Abihu, and the seventy elders) highlights the concept of holiness and separation. The Hebrew term for "come near" (נָגַשׁ, nagash) suggests a physical and spiritual proximity that was not permitted for everyone. This delineation of roles and boundaries is crucial in understanding the structure of Israelite worship and the reverence required in God's presence. It also foreshadows the later establishment of the priesthood, where only certain individuals could perform specific duties.

And the people may not go up with him
The phrase "the people may not go up" reinforces the idea of separation between the holy and the common. The Hebrew word for "go up" (עָלָה, alah) often implies ascending to a higher place, both physically and spiritually. This restriction serves as a reminder of the holiness of God and the need for purification and preparation before approaching Him. It also reflects the hierarchical structure of the Israelite community, where Moses acts as the intermediary, and the people are called to respect the boundaries set by God.

Persons / Places / Events
1. Moses
The central figure in this passage, Moses is chosen by God to approach Him directly. He serves as the mediator between God and the Israelites.

2. The LORD (Yahweh)
The covenant God of Israel, who establishes His laws and commandments with His people. His holiness requires a mediator for the people to approach Him.

3. The Others (Aaron, Nadab, Abihu, and the Seventy Elders)
These individuals are allowed to worship from a distance but are not permitted to approach the LORD as Moses does.

4. The People of Israel
The larger community of Israelites who are instructed to remain at the base of the mountain, signifying the separation between God's holiness and the people's sinfulness.

5. Mount Sinai
The holy mountain where God reveals Himself and gives the Law to Moses. It represents God's presence and the place of divine revelation.
Teaching Points
The Holiness of God
God's holiness is emphasized by the separation required between Him and the people. This teaches us to approach God with reverence and awe.

The Role of a Mediator
Moses' role as a mediator foreshadows the ultimate mediation of Christ. We are reminded of the necessity of Christ's intercession for our relationship with God.

Obedience and Boundaries
The instructions given to Moses and the people highlight the importance of obedience to God's commands and respecting the boundaries He sets.

Community and Leadership
The involvement of the elders signifies the importance of leadership within the community of faith. Leaders are called to guide others in worship and obedience.

Access to God
While the people were restricted in their access to God, through Christ, believers now have direct access to the Father, encouraging us to draw near with confidence.
Bible Study Questions
1. How does the role of Moses as a mediator in Exodus 24:2 point to the work of Jesus Christ in the New Testament?

2. What does the separation between God and the people at Mount Sinai teach us about God's holiness and our approach to Him today?

3. In what ways can we apply the principle of obedience and respect for God's boundaries in our daily lives?

4. How can church leaders today emulate the role of the elders in guiding their communities in worship and obedience?

5. Reflect on the access we have to God through Christ. How does this privilege impact your personal prayer life and relationship with God?
Connections to Other Scriptures
Exodus 19
This chapter provides context for the events at Mount Sinai, where God establishes the boundaries for the people and prepares them for His presence.

Hebrews 9
This New Testament passage discusses the role of a mediator and the significance of the Old Covenant, drawing parallels to the New Covenant through Christ.

1 Timothy 2:5
This verse highlights the role of Jesus as the sole mediator between God and humanity, fulfilling the mediatory role that Moses temporarily held.
Sermons
Belief and DisobedienceExodus 24:1-8
God's Covenant with IsraelJ. E. Twitchell.Exodus 24:1-8
The Blood of the CovenantJ. M. Sherwood, D. D.Exodus 24:1-8
The CovenantJ. W. Burn.Exodus 24:1-8
The Sealing of the CovenantH. T. RobjohnsExodus 24:1-8
The Sprinkling of BloodJ. Vaughan, M. A.Exodus 24:1-8
The Strictness of God's LawS. S. ChronicleExodus 24:1-8
The Covenant MadeH.T. Robjohns Exodus 24:1, 2, 9-11
The Vision of God for the Selected FewD. Young Exodus 24:1-2, 9-11
A Vision of GodJ. Orr Exodus 24:1, 2, 9-12
People
Aaron, Abihu, Hur, Israelites, Joshua, Moses, Nadab
Places
Mount Sinai
Topics
Alone, Approach, Draw, Drawn, However, Nigh
Dictionary of Bible Themes
Exodus 24:1-2

     5901   loneliness

Exodus 24:1-8

     5467   promises, divine

Library
Sin and Forgiveness
'... Forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, and that will by no means clear the guilty....'--EXODUS xxiv. 7. The former chapter tells us of the majesty of the divine revelation as it was made to Moses on 'the mount of God.' Let us notice that, whatever was the visible pomp of the external Theophany to the senses, the true revelation lay in the proclamation of the 'Name'; the revelation to the conscience and the heart; and such a revelation had never before fallen on mortal ears. It is remarkable …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture

'The Love of Thine Espousals'
'And He said unto Moses, Come up unto the Lord, thou, and Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel; and worship ye afar off. 2. And Moses alone shall come near the Lord; but they shall not come nigh, neither shall the people go up with him. 3. And Moses came and told the people all the words of the Lord, and all the judgments: and all the people answered with one voice, and said, All the words which the Lord hath said will we do. 4. And Moses wrote all the words of the Lord, and …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture

The Blood of the Covenant
"Behold the blood of the covenant, which the Lord hath made with you."--EX. xxiv. 8; HEB. ix. 20. "This cup is the new covenant in My blood."--1 COR. xi. 25; MATT. xxvi. 28. "The blood of the covenant, wherewith he was sanctified."--HEB. x. 29. "The blood of the everlasting covenant."--HEB. xiii.21. THE blood is one of the strangest, the deepest, the mightiest, and the most heavenly of the thoughts of God. It lies at the very root of both Covenants, but specially of the New Covenant. The difference …
Andrew Murray—The Two Covenants

The Blood of the Testament
BLOOD IS ALWAYS a terrible thing. It makes a sensitive mind shudder even to pronounce the word; but, to look upon the thing itself causes a thrill of horror. Although by familiarity men shake this off, for the seeing of the eye and the hearing of the ear can harden the heart, the instinct of a little child may teach you what is natural to us in referer to blood. How it will worry if its finger bleeds ever so little, shocked as the sight, actually there be no smart. I envy not the man whose pity would …
Charles Haddon Spurgeon—Spurgeon's Sermons Volume 58: 1912

The Blood of Sprinkling
Our apostle next tells us what we are come to. I suppose he speaks of all the saints after the death and resurrection of our Lord and the descent of the Holy Ghost. He refers to the whole church, in the midst of which the Holy Spirit now dwells. We are come to a more joyous sight than Sinai, and the mountain burning with fire. The Hebrew worshipper, apart from his sacrifices, lived continually beneath the shadow of the darkness of a broken law; he was startled often by the tremendous note of the …
Charles Haddon Spurgeon—Spurgeon's Sermons Volume 32: 1886

The Birth of Jesus Proclaimed by Angels to the Shepherds.
(Near Bethlehem, b.c. 5.) ^C Luke II. 8-20. ^c 8 And there were shepherds in the same country [they were in the same fields from which David had been called to tend God's Israel, or flock] abiding in the field, and keeping watch by night over their flock. [When the flock is too far from the village to lead it to the fold at night, these shepherds still so abide with it in the field, even in the dead of winter.] 9 And an angel of the Lord stood by them [He stood upon the earth at their side, and did …
J. W. McGarvey—The Four-Fold Gospel

The Lord's Supper Instituted.
(Jerusalem. Evening Before the Crucifixion.) ^A Matt. XXVI. 26-29; ^B Mark XIV. 22-25; ^C Luke XXII. 19, 20; ^F I. Cor. XI. 23-26. ^a 26 And as they were eating, ^f the Lord Jesus in the night in which he was betrayed took bread; 24 and when he had given thanks, { ^b blessed,} ^f he brake it, ^a and he gave to the disciples, and said, ^b Take ye: ^a Take, eat; this is my body. ^f which is ^c given ^f for you: this do in remembrance of me. [As only unleavened bread was eaten during the paschal supper, …
J. W. McGarvey—The Four-Fold Gospel

Writings of St. Ambrose.
The extant writings of St. Ambrose may be divided under six heads. I. Dogmatic; II. Exegetic; III. Moral; IV. Sermons; V. Letters; VI. A few Hymns. I. Dogmatic and Controversial Works. 1. De Fide. The chief of these are the Five Books on the Faith, of which the two first were written in compliance with a request of the Emperor Gratian, a.d. 378. Books III.-V. were written in 379 or 380, and seem to have been worked up from addresses delivered to the people [V. prol. 9, 11; III. 143; IV. 119]. This …
St. Ambrose—Works and Letters of St. Ambrose

Things Pertaining to the Kingdom.
"Now is there solemn pause in earth and heaven; The Conqueror now His bonds hath riven, And Angels wonder why He stays below; Yet hath not man his lesson learned, How endless love should be returned." Hitherto our thoughts about "The Kingdom of Heaven" have been founded on the teaching of the King respecting His Kingdom recorded in the Gospels. But we must not forget to give attention to the very important time in the life of our Lord extending between His Resurrection and Ascension, during which …
Edward Burbidge—The Kingdom of Heaven; What is it?

The Last Supper
189. On Thursday Jesus and his disciples returned to Jerusalem for the last time. Knowing the temper of the leaders, and the danger of arrest at any time, Jesus was particularly eager to eat the Passover with his disciples (Luke xxii. 15), and he sent two of them--Luke names them as Peter and John--to prepare for the supper. In a way which would give no information to such a one as Judas, he directed them carefully how to find the house where a friend would provide them the upper room that was needed …
Rush Rhees—The Life of Jesus of Nazareth

Brief Outline of Ancient Jewish Theological Literature
The arrangements of the synagogue, as hitherto described, combined in a remarkable manner fixedness of order with liberty of the individual. Alike the seasons and the time of public services, their order, the prayers to be offered, and the portions of the law to be read were fixed. On the other hand, between the eighteen "benedictions" said on ordinary days, and the seven repeated on the Sabbaths, free prayer might be inserted; the selection from the prophets, with which the public reading concluded--the …
Alfred Edersheim—Sketches of Jewish Social Life

Jesus Calls Four Fishermen to Follow Him.
(Sea of Galilee, Near Capernaum.) ^A Matt. IV. 18-22; ^B Mark I. 16-20; ^C Luke V. 1-11. ^a 18 And walking ^b 16 And passing along by the sea of Galilee [This lake is a pear-shaped body of water, about twelve and a half miles long and about seven miles across at its widest place. It is 682 feet below sea level; its waters are fresh, clear and abounding in fish, and it is surrounded by hills and mountains, which rise from 600 to 1,000 feet above it. Its greatest depth is about 165 feet], he [Jesus] …
J. W. McGarvey—The Four-Fold Gospel

Appendix xii. The Baptism of Proselytes
ONLY those who have made study of it can have any idea how large, and sometimes bewildering, is the literature on the subject of Jewish Proselytes and their Baptism. Our present remarks will be confined to the Baptism of Proselytes. 1. Generally, as regards proselytes (Gerim) we have to distinguish between the Ger ha-Shaar (proselyte of the gate) and Ger Toshabh (sojourner,' settled among Israel), and again the Ger hatstsedeq (proselyte of righteousness) and Ger habberith (proselyte of the covenant). …
Alfred Edersheim—The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah

Exodus
The book of Exodus--so named in the Greek version from the march of Israel out of Egypt--opens upon a scene of oppression very different from the prosperity and triumph in which Genesis had closed. Israel is being cruelly crushed by the new dynasty which has arisen in Egypt (i.) and the story of the book is the story of her redemption. Ultimately it is Israel's God that is her redeemer, but He operates largely by human means; and the first step is the preparation of a deliverer, Moses, whose parentage, …
John Edgar McFadyen—Introduction to the Old Testament

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