Moses: Show Me Thy Glory

God had already spoken with Moses as a friend, yet Moses asked for more: 'I beseech thee, shew me thy glory.' God hid him in a cleft of the rock and passed by.

After Israel's sin with the golden calf, God said He would send an angel before the people but would not go up among them Himself. In the tabernacle, where the LORD spoke to Moses face to face as a man speaks to his friend, Moses pleaded, 'Shew me now thy way, that I may know thee.' God promised, 'My presence shall go with thee, and I will give thee rest,' and Moses answered that unless God's presence went with them, he did not want to leave. Then he made his boldest request: 'I beseech thee, shew me thy glory.' God agreed to make all His goodness pass before him and proclaim His name, hiding Moses in a cleft of the rock, for no one could see His face and live.

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Category: Personal
Prayed by: Moses

Key Chapters

Exodus 33 Moses and the Glory of God 4 min read Moses wants more than a successful journey; he wants to know God Himself and to ...

Key Passages

If Thy Presence Go Not with Me

Exodus 33:12-18

Moses wants more than a successful journey; he wants to know God Himself and to have His presence go with His people.

A¹²nd Moses said unto the LORD, See, thou sayest unto me, Bring up this people: and thou hast not let me know whom thou wilt send with me. Yet thou hast said, I know thee by name, and thou hast also found grace in my sight.

¹³ Now therefore, I pray thee, if I have found grace in thy sight, shew me now thy way, that I may know thee, that I may find grace in thy sight: and consider that this nation is thy people. ¹⁴ And he said, My presence shall go with thee, and I will give thee rest. ¹⁵ And he said unto him, If thy presence go not with me, carry us not up hence. ¹⁶ For wherein shall it be known here that I and thy people have found grace in thy sight? is it not in that thou goest with us? so shall we be separated, I and thy people, from all the people that are upon the face of the earth. ¹⁷ And the LORD said unto Moses, I will do this thing also that thou hast spoken: for thou hast found grace in my sight, and I know thee by name. ¹⁸ And he said, I beseech thee, shew me thy glory.

In a Clift of the Rock

Exodus 33:19-23

God answers by revealing His goodness, grace, and mercy while sheltering Moses from a glory too great to bear.

A¹⁹nd he said, I will make all my goodness pass before thee, and I will proclaim the name of the LORD before thee; and will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will shew mercy on whom I will shew mercy.

²⁰ And he said, Thou canst not see my face: for there shall no man see me, and live. ²¹ And the LORD said, Behold, there is a place by me, and thou shalt stand upon a rock: ²² And it shall come to pass, while my glory passeth by, that I will put thee in a clift of the rock, and will cover thee with my hand while I pass by: ²³ And I will take away mine hand, and thou shalt see my back parts: but my face shall not be seen.