Exodus 34:4

4 So Moses cut two more stone tablets, and early the next morning he carried them up Mount Sinai, just as the Lord had commanded.

Exodus 34:4 Meaning and Commentary

Exodus 34:4

And he hewed two tables of stone like unto the first
Which may be an emblem of the ministry of men, which God makes use of in hewing of his people, and bringing them to a sense of their sins, the breach of his law, and repentance for them, ( Hosea 6:5 ) :

and Moses rose up early in the morning:
which, according to the Jews F7, was the twenty ninth of Ab or July, which showed his ready and cheerful obedience to the divine will, and the quick dispatch he had made in hewing the tables; which whether he did with his own hands only, or made use of others whom he directed, is not very material; though the phrase "hew thee", or "hew unto thee", seems as if he were to do it himself, and not another:

and went up unto Mount Sinai, as the Lord had commanded him;
which was the third time of his going there, and every time he continued forty days and forty nights, as Aben Ezra observes, see ( Deuteronomy 9:18 Deuteronomy 9:25 ) :

and took in his hand the two tables of stone;
which could not be very thick and heavy to carry in one hand up a mountain, but must be a sort of marble slab or slate: at this same time an ark was ordered to be made, and was made, to put the tables into, which was a type of Christ, the fulfilling end of the law for righteousness, ( Deuteronomy 10:1-5 ) .


FOOTNOTES:

F7 Seder Olam Rabba, c. 6. p. 19.

Exodus 34:4 In-Context

2 Get ready tomorrow morning, and come up Mount Sinai to meet me there at the top.
3 No one is to come up with you; no one is to be seen on any part of the mountain; and no sheep or cattle are to graze at the foot of the mountain."
4 So Moses cut two more stone tablets, and early the next morning he carried them up Mount Sinai, just as the Lord had commanded.
5 The Lord came down in a cloud, stood with him there, and pronounced his holy name, the Lord.
6 The Lord then passed in front of him and called out, "I, the Lord, am a God who is full of compassion and pity, who is not easily angered and who shows great love and faithfulness.
Scripture taken from the Good News Translation - Second Edition, Copyright 1992 by American Bible Society. Used by Permission.