Exodus 24:9-16

9 Moses, Aaron, Nadab, Abihu, and seventy of the leaders of Israel went up the mountain

10 and they saw the God of Israel. Beneath his feet was what looked like a pavement of sapphire, as blue as the sky.

11 God did not harm these leading men of Israel; they saw God, and then they ate and drank together.

12 The Lord said to Moses, "Come up the mountain to me, and while you are here, I will give you two stone tablets which contain all the laws that I have written for the instruction of the people."

13 Moses and his helper Joshua got ready, and Moses began to go up the holy mountain.

14 Moses said to the leaders, "Wait here in the camp for us until we come back. Aaron and Hur are here with you; and so whoever has a dispute to settle can go to them."

15 Moses went up Mount Sinai, and a cloud covered it.

16 The dazzling light of the Lord's presence came down on the mountain. To the Israelites the light looked like a fire burning on top of the mountain. The cloud covered the mountain for six days, and on the seventh day the Lord called to Moses from the cloud.

Exodus 24:9-16 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO EXODUS 24

In this chapter we have an account that Moses was ordered to come up to the Lord alone, Ex 24:1,2, but that before he did go up, he related to the people all the above laws delivered to him, which they promised obedience to, and so a covenant was made between God and the people by sacrifice, and by the sprinkling of blood, Ex 24:3-8, upon which he and Aaron, and his two sons and seventy elders of Israel, went up part of the mountain, and had a vision of God, Ex 24:9-11, when Moses with Joshua was called, and went up higher, until at length he entered into the cloud where the Lord was, and continued forty days and forty nights, Ex 24:12-18.

Footnotes

• [a]. Moses began; [one ancient translation] they began.