Exodus 34

8-26. Moses bowed . . . and worshipped--In the East, people bow the head to royalty, and are silent when it passes by, while in the West, they take off their hats and shout.

9, 10. he said, If now I have found grace in thy sight, O Lord, let my Lord, I pray thee, go among us--On this proclamation, he, in the overflowing benevolence of s heart, founded an earnest petition for the Divine Presence being continued with the people; and God was pleased to give His favorable answer to Moses' intercession by a renewal of His promise under the form of a covenant, repeating the leading points that formed the conditions of the former national compact.

27, 28. And the Lord said unto Moses, Write thou these words--that is, the ceremonial and judicial injunctions comprehended above ( Exodus 34:11-26 ); while the rewriting of the ten commandments on the newly prepared slabs was done by God Himself (compare Deuteronomy 10:1-4 ).

28. he was there with the Lord forty days and forty nights--as long as formerly [ Exodus 24:18 ], being sustained for the execution of his special duties by the miraculous power of God. A special cause is assigned for his protracted fast on this second occasion ( Deuteronomy 9:18 ).

29. Moses wist not that the skin of his face shone while he talked with him--It was an intimation of the exalted presence into which he had been admitted and of the glory he had witnessed ( 2 Corinthians 3:18 ); and in that view, it was a badge of his high office as the ambassador of God. No testimonial needed to be produced. He bore his credentials on his very face; and whether this extraordinary effulgence was a permanent or merely temporary distinction, it cannot be doubted that this reflected glory was given him as an honor before all the people.

30. they were afraid to come nigh him--Their fear arose from a sense of guilt--the beaming radiance of his countenance made him appear to their awe-struck consciences a flaming minister of heaven.

33. he put a veil on his face--That veil was with the greatest propriety removed when speaking with the Lord, for every one appears unveiled to the eye of Omniscience; but it was replaced on returning to the people--and this was emblematic of the dark and shadowy character of that dispensation ( 2 Corinthians 3:13 2 Corinthians 3:14 ).