Exodus 34

God commandeth Moseh to hew two Tables of stone , wherein he was ready now to write his Law again , v.1, etc. with these two Tables Moseh goeth up into the Mount , 4. The LORD comes down in a cloud , and proclaimeth his Name abroad ,5. Moseh prayeth the LORD that he would go with them ,8. which he promiseth , and makes a Covenant with them , and he warneth them to beware of the Idolatry of the Canaanites , and of marrying with them, 10. The Commandement touching unleavened bread , and the first-born is renewed , as also that for the Sabbath and other feasts , 18. some other laws yet ,26. After that Moseh had been other fourty days upon the Mount , he cometh down with the two Tables ,28. His face shineth ; which he covereth , 29. He acquainteth them with all that the LORD had spoken with him , upon Mount Sinai, 32. Moseh was fain to have his face covered , while he spake with the people , 33.

1. Then the LORD said to Moseh, Hew thee two stone-Tables , as the first were : and I shall write upon the Tables of the same words , which were upon the first Tables which thou brakest .

2. And be ready against the morning ; that in the morning Thou come up on Mount Sinai , [This is the second time , that Moseh was upon Mount Sinai , continuing each time fourty days and fourty nights there] and put thyself there before me on the top of the mount . [Heb. heard, etc.]

3. And none shall come up with thee , [When Moseh went up into the mount the first time, there were with him Aaron,Nadab and Abihu , together with seventy more of the Elders of Israel ; but now they were grown stinking before the LORD , by reason of Idolatry thy had committed with the golden Calf] also let none be seen upon the Mount ; neither shall the small cattel , nor the oxen feed over against this Mount .

4. Then he did hew two stone-Tables , like unto the first , and Moseh arose early in the morning , and went up on mount Sinai , according as the LORD had commanded him : and he took the two stone-Tables into his hand .

5. Now the LORD came down in a cloud , [To wit , that cloud, which was a sure token of the presence of the LORD] and put himself there by him : and he [viz. the LORD , see above chap.33 19.] proclaimed the Name of the LORD .

6. Now when the LORD passed by before his face, then he [viz. the LORD] cried; LORD, LORD, God , merciful and gracious , long suffering , [Heb. long of wrathfulness , i.e. slow to anger , not hasty to execute his wrath ; so Numb. 14.18. Eccl. 7,8, & c. the contrary here of is , short of wrathfulness , i.e. hasty and prone to wrath , Prov.14.17.] and great of beneficence ( or kindnesse ) and truth, [see Genesis 24:27.]

7. Who keepeth beneficence ( or kindness ) to many thousands , who forgiveth iniquity , and transgression , and sin ; who in no wise doth hold the (guilty ) guiltless, [Heb. who doth not holding guiltless , hold guiltless] visiting the iniquity of the fathers , [wicked and ungodly parents] upon the children, [viz. walking in the wicked footsteps of their fathers] and on the childrens children , in the third and in the fourth ( generation ) [Heb. on the third and on the fourth , Exod.20.6. Deut.5.9.]

8. Moseh now hasted , and enclined the head to the ground, and he bowed himself .

9. And he said , LORD, if now I have found grace in thine eyes , let the LORD now go in the midst of us : [viz. with the cloud pillar , conducting and refreshing us thereby] for this is a stiff necked people , yet forgive our iniquity, and our sin , and receive us for an inheritance .

10. Then he said ; Behold, I make a Covenant , Before all thy people I will do wonders , which were not created upon all the earth , nor amoung any people : so that all this people , in the midst whereof thou art, shall see the work of the LORD , that it is terrible , which I do with thee, [viz. O Israel . Oth. with thee, viz. O Moseh.]

11. Observe thou that which I command thee this day : [Here now follow the conditions of the Covenant , which God requireth on the peoples part] behold, I shall drive out before thy face , the Amorites and the Canaanites , and the Hithites , and the Pherezites , and the Hevites , and the Jebusites . [understand likewise the Girgasites .]

12. Take heed to thy self , that thou make not any Covenant with the Inhabitants of the Land , innto which thou shalt come ; that the same become not a snare perchance in the midst of thee .

13. But their Altars ye shall overthrow , and their erected images ye shall break in pieces , and their groves [viz. those wherein they did commit Idolatry] thou shalt cut down .

14. ( For thou shalt not bow thy self before any other God , for the LORDS Name is Jealous, he is a jealous God .)

15. Lest thou make a Covenant with the Inhabitant of that Land, and they go a whoring after their Gods , [viz. by committing Idolatry , which is called spiritual whoredome, Jer.3.9. See Lev. 17. on verse 7.] nor suffer sacrifice to their Gods , and he inviting thee , thou eat of their sacrifice .

16. And thou take thy sons ( wives ) of their daughters , and their daughters whoring after their Gods, make thy sonnes also to goe a whoring after their Gods .

17. Thou shalt make thee no molten Gods [Understand hereby likewise the painted, pictured, hewen, cut and carved Gods . Here the molten ones are expressed by Name , in regard of the molten Calf which they had worshipped .]

18. The feast of the unleavened (bread) [see Exodus 13:4.] thou shalt keep ; seven days shalt thou eat unleavened (bread) ( or, loaves) as I commandeth thee, at the appointed time , in the moneth of Abib thou didst go forth out of Egypt .

19. All that openeth the womb [Heb. all , ( or, every) opening of the matrix , i.e. all , or , every first born male, see Exod. 13.] is mine : yea all thy cattel that shall be born male , opening ( the womb of) the great and small cattel . [Heb. opening of the Oxe, i.e. of the Cows , or great Beasts, and of the twenty cattel .]

20. Yet the ass [or, she ass] opening [the womb] thou shalt redeem with a small beast ; [The ass, whether he or she , might not be offered in sacrifice , being unclean] but if thou wilt not redeem him , thou shalt break his neck : [or, head him ; or, cut his neck thorow] All the first born of thy sons thou shalt redeem ; and before my face one shall not appear empty . [i.e. without a gift or present ; that which was given to the Priests , was accounted as given to God himself.]

21. Six days thou shalt labour , but on the Seventh day thou shalt rest : in the plough time , and in the harvest thou shalt rest . [viz. during the Sabbath day .]

22. Thou shalt likewise keep [Heb. do, and Exodus 31:16. and Deut .16.1.] the feast of the weeks [ understand here the Pentecost feast , which was celebrated seven weeks after the Passeover , Lev.24.15. Acts 2:1. being the feast of the firstlings of the wheat harvest : and the feast of the in-gathering , [i.e. at the time , when thy fruits are all gathered in by thee, and brought home out of the field] when the year is ( come) about . [Heb. the running about of the year .]

23. All that bis male amoung you shall appear thrice a year before the face of the Lord LORD , the God of Israel.

24. When I shall expel the Nations out of possession before thy face, , and enlarge thy borders : then nobody shall desire thy Land, , the whiles thou shalt go up to appear before the face of the LORD thy God thrice in the year .

25. Thou shalt not offer the bloud of my Slay-offering with leavened (bread) [i.e. as long as there is leavened ( bread) in thy house] the Slay-offering of the Passeover feast shall likewise not be left till the morning .

26. The firstlings [i.e. the beginnings] of the first-fruits of thy Land , thou shalt bring into the house of the LORD thy God : Thou shall not boil the Kid in his mothers milk .

27. Moreover, the LORD said to Moseh ; Write thee these words : for according to the tenour [Heb. mouth] of these words have I made a Covenant with thee, and with Israel .

28. And he was there with the LORD fourty days and fourty nights ; he did eat no bread , and he drank no water : [by the word bread , there is understood all manner of food , as by the word water , all manner of drink] and he [viz. the LORD , as verse 1. and Deut.10.2. plainly shew. That God doth charge Moseh in the precedent verse , is to be understood of his writing it into the book of the Law, as Exod.17.14. but not that he should write the Law into the two Tables of stone] wrote upone the Tables, the words of the Covenant , the ten words . [i.e. the Ten Commandements : as Galat.5.14.]

29. And it came to pass , when Moseh came down from Mount Sinai , (Now the two Tables of the Testimony were in the hand of Moseh , when he came down from the Mount ) Moseh knew not the skin of his face did shine , [i.e. was casting forth beams , like unto the Sun ; The Hebrew Verb is derived from a word signifying horns ; and thence came the mistake of painting Moseh with horns] when he spake with him . [ or, since he [viz. the LORD] had spoken with him : or, because he had, etc.]

30. Now when Aaron and all the children of Israel looked on Moseh , behold, then the skin of his face did shine ; therefore they were afraid to step near to him . [It should seem , that at first they did not know him perfectly, supporting it was some Angel , that appeared to them .]

31. Then Moseh called upon them : and Aaron , and all the chief [or, Princes, Governours, Rulers] in the Congregation , turned again unto him , [knowing him now the better by his voice] and Moseh spake unto them .

32. And after that [viz. When the chief and eldest of the people had first been with Moseh , and they had seen Moseh communing with them] all the children of Israel slept near , and he commanded them all that the LORD had spoken with him, upon Mount Sinai.

33. Thus Moseh made an end of speaking with them ; and he had put a Vail ( or, cover) upon his face .

34. Yet when Moseh came before the face of the LORD to speak with him, he took off that cover , until he went forth : and after that he was come forth he spake to the children of Israel that (which) was commanded him .

35. So then the children of Israel saw the face of Moseh, that the skin of Mosehs face did shine : [Moseh let the people see the lustre of his face , that they might give his words so much the more credit ; and afterwards he put the cover on again, when he was to speak with them , that they should not turn away from, nor seek to avoid him] therefore Moseh put the cover again upon his face , until he went in to speak with him . [viz. with God.]