The Covenant Ceremony

24 Then He said to Moses, “Go up to the Lord, you and Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, and 70 of Israel’s elders,(A) and bow in worship at a distance. Moses alone is to approach the Lord, but the others are not to approach, and the people are not to go up with him.”

Moses came and told the people all the commands of the Lord and all the ordinances. Then all the people responded with a single voice, “We will do everything that the Lord has commanded.”(B) And Moses wrote(C) down all the words of the Lord. He rose early the next morning and set up an altar and 12 pillars for the 12 tribes of Israel at the base of the mountain. Then he sent out young Israelite men, and they offered burnt offerings and sacrificed bulls as fellowship offerings to the Lord. Moses took half the blood and set it in basins; the other half of the blood he sprinkled on the altar. He then took the covenant scroll and read it aloud to the people. They responded, “We will do and obey everything that the Lord has commanded.”

Moses took the blood, sprinkled it on the people, and said, “This is the blood of the covenant that the Lord has made with you concerning all these words.”(D)

Then Moses went up with Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, and 70 of Israel’s elders, 10 and they saw(E) the God of Israel. Beneath His feet was something like a pavement made of sapphire[a] stone, as clear as the sky itself.(F) 11 God did not harm[b] the Israelite nobles; they saw(G) Him, and they ate and drank.

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Footnotes

  1. Exodus 24:10 Or lapis lazuli
  2. Exodus 24:11 Lit not stretch out His hand against

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. Only Moses is to approach the Lord, but the others[c] are not to approach; the people are not to come up with him.”

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.”

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. He sent young Israeli men to offer up burnt offerings and sacrifice bulls as peace offerings to the Lord. Moses took half the blood and put it in bowls, while he sprinkled the other half[e] on the altar. 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.”

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.”

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.

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Footnotes

  1. Exodus 24:1 Lit. He
  2. Exodus 24:1 Or bow down in worship
  3. Exodus 24:2 Lit. but they
  4. Exodus 24:3 Lit. all the people
  5. Exodus 24:6 Lit. half of the blood
  6. Exodus 24:7 Lit. in the ears of
  7. Exodus 24:11 Lit. But
  8. Exodus 24:11 Lit. He
  9. Exodus 24:11 Lit. not send forth his hand against
  10. Exodus 24:11 The Heb. lacks lived