Exodus 34
Legacy Standard Bible
Stone Tablets like the Former Ones
34 Now Yahweh said to Moses, “Carve out for yourself (A)two stone tablets like the former ones, and (B)I will write on the tablets the words that were on the former tablets which you shattered. 2 So be prepared by morning, and come up in the morning to (C)Mount Sinai, and [a]present yourself there to Me on the top of the mountain. 3 (D)And no man is to come up with you, nor let any man be seen [b]anywhere on the mountain; even the flocks and the herds may not graze in front of that mountain.” 4 So he carved out (E)two stone tablets like the former ones, and Moses rose up early in the morning and went up to Mount Sinai, as Yahweh had commanded him, and he took two stone tablets in his hand. 5 (F)Then Yahweh descended in the cloud and stood there with him, and [c]He called upon the name of Yahweh. 6 Then Yahweh passed by in front of him and called out, “Yahweh, Yahweh God, (G)compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in lovingkindness and [d]truth; 7 who (H)keeps lovingkindness for thousands, who forgives iniquity, transgression, and sin; yet He (I)will by no means leave the guilty unpunished, (J)visiting the iniquity of fathers on the children and on the grandchildren to the third and fourth generations.” 8 And Moses made haste [e](K)to bow low toward the earth and worship. 9 And he said, “(L)If now I have found favor in Your sight, O Lord, I pray, let the Lord go along in our midst, even though [f](M)they are a stiff-necked people, and (N)pardon our iniquity and our sin, and (O)take us as Your own inheritance.”
Yahweh Cuts a Covenant with Israel
10 Then [g]God said, “Behold, (P)I am going to cut a covenant. Before all your people (Q)I will do wondrous deeds which have not been created in all the earth nor among any of the nations; and all the people [h]among whom you live will see the working of Yahweh, for it is a fearful thing that I am going to do with you.
11 “[i]Be sure to keep what I am commanding you this day: behold, (R)I am going to drive out the Amorite before you, and the Canaanite, the Hittite, the Perizzite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite. 12 (S)Beware lest you cut a covenant with the inhabitants of the land into which you are going, lest it become a snare in your midst. 13 (T)But rather, you are to tear down their altars and shatter their sacred pillars and cut down their [j](U)Asherim 14 —for (V)you shall not worship any other god, for Yahweh, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God— 15 lest you cut a covenant with the inhabitants of the land, and they play the harlot with their gods and (W)sacrifice to their gods, and one of them (X)invite you [k]to eat of his sacrifice, 16 and (Y)you take some of his daughters for your sons, and his daughters play the harlot with their gods and cause your sons also to play the harlot with their gods. 17 (Z)You shall make for yourself no molten gods.
18 “You shall keep (AA)the Feast of Unleavened Bread. For (AB)seven days you shall eat unleavened bread, which I commanded you, at the appointed time in the (AC)month of Abib, for in the month of Abib you came out of Egypt.
19 “(AD)The first offspring from every womb belongs to Me, even of all your male livestock, the first offspring from [l]cattle and sheep. 20 (AE)And you shall redeem with a lamb the [m]first offspring from a donkey; and if you do not redeem it, then you shall break its neck. You shall redeem (AF)all the firstborn of your sons. [n](AG)None shall appear before Me empty-handed.
21 “You shall work (AH)six days, but on the seventh day you shall rest; even during plowing time and harvest you shall rest. 22 And you shall celebrate (AI)the Feast of Weeks, that is, the first fruits of the wheat harvest, and the Feast of Ingathering at the turn of the year. 23 (AJ)Three times a year all your males are to appear before the Lord Yahweh, the God of Israel. 24 For I will (AK)dispossess nations before you and enlarge your borders, and no man shall covet your land when you go up three times a year to appear before Yahweh your God.
25 “(AL)You shall not [o]offer the blood of My sacrifice with leavened bread, (AM)and the sacrifice of the Feast of the Passover shall not [p]be left over until morning.
26 “You shall bring (AN)the very first of the first fruits of your ground into the house of Yahweh your God.
“You shall not boil a young goat in its mother’s milk.”
27 Then Yahweh said to Moses, “(AO)Write [q]down these words, for in accordance with these words I have cut (AP)a covenant with you and with Israel.” 28 So he was there with Yahweh (AQ)forty days and forty nights; he did not eat bread or drink water. And [r](AR)he wrote on the tablets the words of the covenant, (AS)the Ten [s]Commandments.
The Shining Face of Moses
29 Now it happened when Moses was coming down from Mount Sinai (and the (AT)two tablets of the testimony were in Moses’ hand as he was coming down from the mountain), that Moses did not know that (AU)the skin of his face shone because of his speaking with Him. 30 Then Aaron and all the sons of Israel saw Moses, and behold, the skin of his face shone, and (AV)they were afraid to come near him. 31 Then Moses called to them, and Aaron and all the rulers in the congregation returned to him; and Moses spoke to them. 32 And afterward all the sons of Israel came near, and he commanded them everything that Yahweh had spoken [t]to him on Mount Sinai. 33 Then Moses finished speaking with them and (AW)put a veil over his face. 34 But whenever Moses went in before Yahweh to speak with Him, (AX)he would take off the veil until he came out; and then he would come out and speak to the sons of Israel what he had been commanded, 35 (AY)and the sons of Israel would see the face of Moses, that the skin of Moses’ face shone. So Moses would return the veil over his face until he went in to speak with Him.
Footnotes
- Exodus 34:2 Or place yourself before
- Exodus 34:3 Lit on all
- Exodus 34:5 Or possibly he (Moses), but cf. 33:19
- Exodus 34:6 Or faithfulness
- Exodus 34:8 Lit and bowed...worshiped
- Exodus 34:9 Lit it is
- Exodus 34:10 Lit He
- Exodus 34:10 Lit in whose midst you are
- Exodus 34:11 Lit Keep for yourself
- Exodus 34:13 Wooden symbols of a female deity
- Exodus 34:15 Lit and you eat
- Exodus 34:19 Or oxen
- Exodus 34:20 Lit first opening of
- Exodus 34:20 Lit They shall not
- Exodus 34:25 Lit slaughter
- Exodus 34:25 Lit remain overnight
- Exodus 34:27 Lit for yourself
- Exodus 34:28 Or He, Yahweh
- Exodus 34:28 Lit Words
- Exodus 34:32 Lit with
Exodus 34
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
Moses Makes New Tablets
34 The Lord said to Moses, “Cut two tablets of stone like the former ones, and I will write on the tablets the words that were on the former tablets, which you broke.(A) 2 Be ready in the morning and come up in the morning to Mount Sinai and present yourself there to me on the top of the mountain.(B) 3 No one shall come up with you, and do not let anyone be seen throughout all the mountain, and do not let flocks or herds graze in front of that mountain.”(C) 4 So Moses cut two tablets of stone like the former ones, and he rose early in the morning and went up on Mount Sinai, as the Lord had commanded him, and took in his hand the two tablets of stone. 5 The Lord descended in the cloud and stood with him there and proclaimed the name, “The Lord.”[a](D) 6 The Lord passed before him and proclaimed,
“The Lord, the Lord,
a God merciful and gracious,
slow to anger,
and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness,(E)
7 keeping steadfast love for the thousandth generation,[b]
forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin,
yet by no means clearing the guilty,
but visiting the iniquity of the parents
upon the children
and the children’s children
to the third and the fourth generation.”(F)
8 And Moses quickly bowed down to the ground and worshiped.(G) 9 He said, “If now I have found favor in your sight, my Lord, I pray, let my Lord go with us. Although this is a stiff-necked people, pardon our iniquity and our sin, and take us for your inheritance.”(H)
The Covenant Renewed
10 He said, “I hereby make a covenant. Before all your people I will perform marvels, such as have not been done[c] in all the earth or in any nation, and all the people among whom you live shall see the work of the Lord, for it is an awesome thing that I will do with you.(I)
11 “Observe what I command you today. See, I will drive out before you the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites.(J) 12 Take care not to make a covenant with the inhabitants of the land to which you are going, or it will become a snare among you.(K) 13 Rather, you shall tear down their altars, break their pillars, and cut down their sacred poles,[d](L) 14 for you shall worship no other god, because the Lord, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God.(M) 15 You shall not make a covenant with the inhabitants of the land, for when they prostitute themselves to their gods and sacrifice to their gods, someone among them will invite you, and you will eat of the sacrifice,(N) 16 and you will take wives from among their daughters for your sons, and their daughters who prostitute themselves to their gods will make your sons also prostitute themselves to their gods.(O)
17 “You shall not make cast idols.(P)
18 “You shall keep the Festival of Unleavened Bread. Seven days you shall eat unleavened bread, as I commanded you, at the time appointed in the month of Abib, for in the month of Abib you came out from Egypt.(Q)
19 “All that first opens the womb is mine, all your male[e] livestock, the firstborn of cow and sheep.(R) 20 The firstborn of a donkey you shall redeem with a lamb, or if you will not redeem it you shall break its neck. All the firstborn of your sons you shall redeem.
“No one shall appear before me empty-handed.(S)
21 “Six days you shall work, but on the seventh day you shall rest; even in plowing time and in harvest time you shall rest.(T) 22 You shall observe the Festival of Weeks, the first fruits of wheat harvest, and the Festival of Ingathering at the turn of the year.(U) 23 Three times in the year all your males shall appear before the Lord God, the God of Israel.(V) 24 For I will cast out nations before you and enlarge your borders; no one shall covet your land when you go up to appear before the Lord your God three times in the year.
25 “You shall not offer the blood of my sacrifice with leaven, and the sacrifice of the festival of the Passover shall not be left until the morning.(W)
26 “The best of the first fruits of your ground you shall bring to the house of the Lord your God.
“You shall not boil a kid in its mother’s milk.”(X)
27 The Lord said to Moses, “Write these words, for in accordance with these words I have made a covenant with you and with Israel.”(Y) 28 He was there with the Lord forty days and forty nights; he neither ate bread nor drank water. And he wrote on the tablets the words of the covenant, the ten commandments.[f](Z)
The Shining Face of Moses
29 Moses came down from Mount Sinai. As he came down from the mountain with the two tablets of the covenant in his hand, Moses did not know that the skin of his face shone because he had been talking with God.(AA) 30 When Aaron and all the Israelites saw Moses, the skin of his face was shining, and they were afraid to come near him. 31 But Moses called to them, and Aaron and all the leaders of the congregation returned to him, and Moses spoke with them. 32 Afterward all the Israelites came near, and he gave them in commandment all that the Lord had spoken with him on Mount Sinai.(AB) 33 When Moses had finished speaking with them, he put a veil on his face,(AC) 34 but whenever Moses went in before the Lord to speak with him, he would take the veil off until he came out, and when he came out and told the Israelites what he had been commanded,(AD) 35 the Israelites would see the face of Moses, that the skin of his face was shining, and Moses would put the veil on his face again until he went in to speak with him.
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New Revised Standard Version, Updated Edition. Copyright © 2021 National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.