Exodus 24
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
The Blood of the Covenant
24 Then he said to Moses, “Come up to the Lord, you and Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel, and worship at a distance.(A) 2 Moses alone shall come near the Lord, but the others shall not come near, and the people shall not come up with him.”
3 Moses went and told the people all the words of the Lord and all the ordinances, and all the people answered with one voice and said, “All the words that the Lord has spoken we will do.”(B) 4 And Moses wrote down all the words of the Lord. He rose early in the morning, built an altar at the foot of the mountain, and set up twelve pillars, corresponding to the twelve tribes of Israel.(C) 5 He sent young men of the Israelites, who offered burnt offerings and sacrificed oxen as offerings of well-being to the Lord. 6 Moses took half of the blood and put it in basins, and half of the blood he dashed against the altar.(D) 7 Then he took the book of the covenant and read it in the hearing of the people, and they said, “All that the Lord has spoken we will do, and we will be obedient.”(E) 8 Moses took the blood and dashed it on the people, and said, “Here is the blood of the covenant that the Lord has made with you in accordance with all these words.”(F)
On the Mountain with God
9 Then Moses and Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel went up,(G) 10 and they saw the God of Israel. Under his feet there was something like a pavement of sapphire stone, like the very heaven for clearness.(H) 11 God[a] did not lay his hand on the chief men of the Israelites; they beheld God, and they ate and drank.
12 The Lord said to Moses, “Come up to me on the mountain and wait there; I will give you the tablets of stone, with the law and the commandment, which I have written for their instruction.” 13 So Moses set out with his assistant Joshua, and Moses went up onto the mountain of God. 14 To the elders he had said, “Wait here for us, until we come back to you. Look, Aaron and Hur are with you; whoever has a dispute may go to them.”
15 Then Moses went up on the mountain, and the cloud covered the mountain.(I) 16 The glory of the Lord settled on Mount Sinai, and the cloud covered it for six days; on the seventh day he called to Moses out of the cloud.(J) 17 Now the appearance of the glory of the Lord was like a devouring fire on the top of the mountain in the sight of the Israelites.(K) 18 Moses entered the cloud and went up on the mountain. Moses was on the mountain for forty days and forty nights.(L)
Footnotes
- 24.11 Heb He
Exodus 24
International Standard Version
The Covenant is Sealed with Blood
24 The Lord[a] told Moses, “Come up to the Lord, you and Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, and 70 of the elders of Israel, and worship[b] at a distance. 2 Only Moses is to approach the Lord, but the others[c] are not to approach; the people are not to come up with him.”
3 Then Moses came and reported all the words of the Lord and all the statutes to the people, and they all[d] answered with one voice, “We will do everything that the Lord has decreed.”
4 So Moses wrote down all the words of the Lord. He got up early in the morning and built an altar with twelve pillars for the twelve tribes of Israel at the base of the mountain. 5 He sent young Israeli men to offer up burnt offerings and sacrifice bulls as peace offerings to the Lord. 6 Moses took half the blood and put it in bowls, while he sprinkled the other half[e] on the altar. 7 He took the Book of the Covenant and read it to[f] the people. They said, “We will put into practice and obey everything that the Lord has decreed.”
8 Moses took the blood, sprinkled it on the people, and said, “This is the blood of the covenant that the Lord made with you based on all these words.”
9 Then Moses and Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, and 70 of the elders of Israel went up 10 and saw the God of Israel. Under his feet was something like a pavement made of sapphire, as clear as the sky. 11 Because[g] God[h] did not punish[i] the Israeli leaders, they looked at God, yet lived[j] to eat and drink.
Moses Receives the Law on the Mountain
12 Then the Lord told Moses, “Go up to me on the mountain and stay[k] there. I’ll give you stone tablets with the instruction and law that I’ve written to teach the people.”[l]
13 So Moses got up, along with Joshua his servant, and went up on the mountain of God. 14 He told the elders, “Wait here for us until we return to you. Look, Aaron and Hur are with you, and whoever has a dispute, let him come to them.”
15 When Moses went up on the mountain, the cloud covered it. 16 The glory of the Lord settled on Mount Sinai, and the cloud covered it for six days. Then on the seventh day he called to Moses from within the cloud. 17 To the Israelis[m] the appearance of the glory of the Lord was like a consuming fire on top of the mountain. 18 When Moses went up on the mountain, he went into the center of the cloud and was on the mountain for 40 days and 40 nights.
Footnotes
- Exodus 24:1 Lit. He
- Exodus 24:1 Or bow down in worship
- Exodus 24:2 Lit. but they
- Exodus 24:3 Lit. all the people
- Exodus 24:6 Lit. half of the blood
- Exodus 24:7 Lit. in the ears of
- Exodus 24:11 Lit. But
- Exodus 24:11 Lit. He
- Exodus 24:11 Lit. not send forth his hand against
- Exodus 24:11 The Heb. lacks lived
- Exodus 24:12 Lit. be
- Exodus 24:12 Lit. them
- Exodus 24:17 Lit. in the sight of
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