Exodus 34:10-28

The LORD Renews the Covenant

10 And the LORD said, “Behold, I am making a covenant. Before all your people I will perform wonders that have never been done in any nation in all the world. All the people among whom you live will see the LORD’s work, for it is an awesome thing that I am doing with you. ¹

11 Observe what I command you this day. I will drive out before you the Amorites, Canaanites, Hittites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites.

12 Be careful not to make a treaty ^[a] with the inhabitants of the land you are entering, lest they become a snare in your midst.

13 Rather, you must tear down their altars, smash their sacred stones, and chop down their Asherah poles.

14 For you must not worship any other god, for the LORD, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God.

15 Do not make a covenant with the inhabitants of the land, for when they prostitute themselves to their gods and sacrifice to them, they will invite you, and you will eat their sacrifices.

16 And when you take some of their daughters as brides for your sons, their daughters will prostitute themselves to their gods and cause your sons to do the same.

17 You shall make no molten gods for yourselves.

18 You are to keep the Feast of Unleavened Bread. ^[b] For seven days at the appointed time in the month of Abib, ^[c] you are to eat unleavened bread as I commanded you. For in the month of Abib you came out of Egypt.

19 The first offspring of every womb belongs to Me, including all the firstborn males among your livestock, whether cattle or sheep.

20 You must redeem the firstborn of a donkey with a lamb; but if you do not redeem it, you are to break its neck. You must redeem all the firstborn of your sons. No one shall appear before Me empty-handed.

21 Six days you shall labor, but on the seventh day you shall rest; even in the seasons of plowing and harvesting, you must rest.

22 And you are to celebrate the Feast of Weeks ^[d] with the firstfruits of the wheat harvest, and the Feast of Ingathering ^[e] at the turn of the year.

23 Three times a year all your males are to appear before the Lord GOD, the God of Israel.

24 For I will drive out the nations before you and enlarge your borders, and no one will covet your land when you go up three times a year to appear before the LORD your God.

25 Do not offer the blood of a sacrifice to Me along with anything leavened, and do not let any of the sacrifice from the Passover Feast remain until morning.

26 Bring the best of the firstfruits of your soil to the house of the LORD your God. You must not cook a young goat in its mother’s milk.”

27 The LORD also said to Moses, “Write down these words, for in accordance with these words I have made a covenant with you and with Israel.”

28 So Moses was there with the LORD forty days and forty nights without eating bread or drinking water. He wrote on the tablets the words of the covenant—the Ten Commandments. ^[f]

Exodus 34:10-28 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO EXODUS 34

In this chapter Moses has orders to hew two tables of stone, that God might write on them the ten commands, and bring them up with him to the mount, Ex 34:1-4 where the Lord proclaimed his name, and caused his glory and his goodness to pass before him, Ex 34:5-7 when Moses took this favourable opportunity that offered to pray for the people, that God would forgive their sin, and go along with them, Ex 34:8,9 upon which he made a covenant with them, which on his part was to do wonders for them, and drive out the inhabitants of Canaan before them; and on their part, that they should have no confederacy and communion with these nations, and shun their idolatry, and everything that might lead unto it, Ex 34:10-17 and he repeated several laws before given, and urged the observance of them, which Moses was to acquaint the people with, Ex 34:18-27 and after a stay of forty days and forty nights on the mount, he came down with the two tables of the law; and the skin of his face shone so bright, that the people of Israel were afraid to come nigh him, and therefore he put a vail over his face while he conversed with them, Ex 34:28-35.

Cross References

• 1. (2 Corinthians 3:7–18)

Footnotes

• [a] Forms of the Hebrew berit are translated in most passages as covenant.
• [b] That is, the seven-day period after the Passover during which no leaven may be eaten; see Exodus 12:14–20.
• [c] Abib was the first month of the ancient Hebrew lunar calendar, usually occurring within the months of March and April; twice in this verse.
• [d] That is, Shavuot, the late spring feast of pilgrimage to Jerusalem; it is also known as the Feast of Harvest (see Exodus 23:16) or the Feast of Pentecost (see Acts 2:1).
• [e] That is, Sukkot, the autumn feast of pilgrimage to Jerusalem; it is later called the Feast of Tabernacles (or Booths or Shelters).
• [f] Hebrew the Ten Words