Exodus 32:30-33:6
“And it came to pass on the morrow, that Moses said unto the people, Ye have sinned a great sin: and now I will go up unto the LORD; peradventure I shall make an atonement for your sin.” (Exodus 32:30)
Having spent forty days learning what God required, and months seeing his power revealed, Moses had every reason for concern. Israel had knowingly and deliberately violated their contract with God. He had no assurance that God would forgive such gross iniquity, even after those most deeply involved were killed, but he was going to try to straighten things out. Perhaps some concessions or gifts could be used to mollify God.
“And Moses returned unto the LORD, and said, Oh, this people have sinned a great sin, and have made them gods of gold. Yet now, if thou wilt forgive their sin--; and if not, blot me, I pray thee, out of thy book which thou hast written.” (Exodus 32:31-32)
Moses went apologetically to the Lord, acknowledging that their sin had been very offensive, even to the point of telling God all he had done for them was worthless, crediting it to some gold idol they had made. Moses recognized God had every right to be angry, but if God was unable to forgive their sin, then there was no reason for Moses to go on either. It demonstrates a concern for his people that many leaders today lack.
Many today who want forgiveness today downplay their sin as only a small thing that shouldn’t be taken seriously, rather than considering the impact on the person who was offended. Even when the recognize it as a serious offense they try to avoid responsibility by making various excuses. Moses simply stated that it was a serious violation of God’s agreement and made no excuses for them.
“And the LORD said unto Moses, Whosoever hath sinned against me, him will I blot out of my book. Therefore now go, lead the people unto the place of which I have spoken unto thee: behold, mine Angel shall go before thee: nevertheless in the day when I visit I will visit their sin upon them. And the LORD plagued the people, because they made the calf, which Aaron made.” (Exodus 32:33-35)
This is the first place where the book of life has been mentioned. Revelation 20:15 states, “And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.” Here sin is clearly given as the reason for having ones name removed from the book of life. The consequence is to be cast into the lake of fire forever. God was very specific that he was going to hold the individual accountable for his own sin. The guilt would not be laid on the leader. According to John 3:18-19, the sin that causes our name to be erased or blotted out is refusing to place our faith in Jesus Christ. “He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.”
God forgave their sin, and sent his angel to accompany them into the land as he had promised. Nevertheless, their sin changed the relationship with God. He plagued them because of the golden calf. Forgiveness means one is given a second chance. It does not erase the consequences of sin. Just as being forgiven for murder does not restore the victim to life, being forgiven for adultery does not take away the hurt and damage done to the marriage. The very concept of a second chance implies one is on probation. The probation will only be ended when one has demonstrated their commitment not to re-offend. This is the type of forgiveness we are able to give.
The forgiveness offered in Christ goes beyond mere human forgiveness. He not only gives us another chance, he also paid for our sin in full, eliminating the records of that sin or any future consequences for it. He is not going to provide that type of forgiveness to one who does not take their sin seriously, or refuses to take responsibility. Many people are like the little boy who pinched his baby brother, then said “I’m sorry.” He got quite upset when his uncle spanked him because “I said I’m sorry and your not supposed to spank me when I say I’m sorry.” As the uncle said, he was lying when he said it. He was only sorry he got spanked.
“And the LORD said unto Moses, Depart, and go up hence, thou and the people which thou hast brought up out of the land of Egypt, unto the land which I sware unto Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, saying, Unto thy seed will I give it: And I will send an angel before thee; and I will drive out the Canaanite, the Amorite, and the Hittite, and the Perizzite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite: Unto a land flowing with milk and honey: for I will not go up in the midst of thee; for thou art a stiffnecked people: lest I consume thee in the way.” (Exodus 33:1-3)
God would still keep his promises to Israel, sending his angel before them and giving them the land he had promised. Because of their sin he would remain separate from them. Just as a grandparent overlooks things from his grandchildren he would never have overlooked with his children because he doesn’t have to put up with it all the time, God would be able to overlook sin because he was not constantly confronted with it. God didn’t want to become the grouch who was always just looking for an excuse to punish them.
“And when the people heard these evil tidings, they mourned: and no man did put on him his ornaments. For the LORD had said unto Moses, Say unto the children of Israel, Ye are a stiffnecked people: I will come up into the midst of thee in a moment, and consume thee: therefore now put off thy ornaments from thee, that I may know what to do unto thee. And the children of Israel stripped themselves of their ornaments by the mount Horeb.” (Exodus 33:4-6)
To put on their jewelry would be like a teenager dressing for a party in defiance of his folks.
“And it came to pass on the morrow, that Moses said unto the people, Ye have sinned a great sin: and now I will go up unto the LORD; peradventure I shall make an atonement for your sin.” (Exodus 32:30)
Having spent forty days learning what God required, and months seeing his power revealed, Moses had every reason for concern. Israel had knowingly and deliberately violated their contract with God. He had no assurance that God would forgive such gross iniquity, even after those most deeply involved were killed, but he was going to try to straighten things out. Perhaps some concessions or gifts could be used to mollify God.
“And Moses returned unto the LORD, and said, Oh, this people have sinned a great sin, and have made them gods of gold. Yet now, if thou wilt forgive their sin--; and if not, blot me, I pray thee, out of thy book which thou hast written.” (Exodus 32:31-32)
Moses went apologetically to the Lord, acknowledging that their sin had been very offensive, even to the point of telling God all he had done for them was worthless, crediting it to some gold idol they had made. Moses recognized God had every right to be angry, but if God was unable to forgive their sin, then there was no reason for Moses to go on either. It demonstrates a concern for his people that many leaders today lack.
Many today who want forgiveness today downplay their sin as only a small thing that shouldn’t be taken seriously, rather than considering the impact on the person who was offended. Even when the recognize it as a serious offense they try to avoid responsibility by making various excuses. Moses simply stated that it was a serious violation of God’s agreement and made no excuses for them.
“And the LORD said unto Moses, Whosoever hath sinned against me, him will I blot out of my book. Therefore now go, lead the people unto the place of which I have spoken unto thee: behold, mine Angel shall go before thee: nevertheless in the day when I visit I will visit their sin upon them. And the LORD plagued the people, because they made the calf, which Aaron made.” (Exodus 32:33-35)
This is the first place where the book of life has been mentioned. Revelation 20:15 states, “And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.” Here sin is clearly given as the reason for having ones name removed from the book of life. The consequence is to be cast into the lake of fire forever. God was very specific that he was going to hold the individual accountable for his own sin. The guilt would not be laid on the leader. According to John 3:18-19, the sin that causes our name to be erased or blotted out is refusing to place our faith in Jesus Christ. “He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.”
God forgave their sin, and sent his angel to accompany them into the land as he had promised. Nevertheless, their sin changed the relationship with God. He plagued them because of the golden calf. Forgiveness means one is given a second chance. It does not erase the consequences of sin. Just as being forgiven for murder does not restore the victim to life, being forgiven for adultery does not take away the hurt and damage done to the marriage. The very concept of a second chance implies one is on probation. The probation will only be ended when one has demonstrated their commitment not to re-offend. This is the type of forgiveness we are able to give.
The forgiveness offered in Christ goes beyond mere human forgiveness. He not only gives us another chance, he also paid for our sin in full, eliminating the records of that sin or any future consequences for it. He is not going to provide that type of forgiveness to one who does not take their sin seriously, or refuses to take responsibility. Many people are like the little boy who pinched his baby brother, then said “I’m sorry.” He got quite upset when his uncle spanked him because “I said I’m sorry and your not supposed to spank me when I say I’m sorry.” As the uncle said, he was lying when he said it. He was only sorry he got spanked.
“And the LORD said unto Moses, Depart, and go up hence, thou and the people which thou hast brought up out of the land of Egypt, unto the land which I sware unto Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, saying, Unto thy seed will I give it: And I will send an angel before thee; and I will drive out the Canaanite, the Amorite, and the Hittite, and the Perizzite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite: Unto a land flowing with milk and honey: for I will not go up in the midst of thee; for thou art a stiffnecked people: lest I consume thee in the way.” (Exodus 33:1-3)
God would still keep his promises to Israel, sending his angel before them and giving them the land he had promised. Because of their sin he would remain separate from them. Just as a grandparent overlooks things from his grandchildren he would never have overlooked with his children because he doesn’t have to put up with it all the time, God would be able to overlook sin because he was not constantly confronted with it. God didn’t want to become the grouch who was always just looking for an excuse to punish them.
“And when the people heard these evil tidings, they mourned: and no man did put on him his ornaments. For the LORD had said unto Moses, Say unto the children of Israel, Ye are a stiffnecked people: I will come up into the midst of thee in a moment, and consume thee: therefore now put off thy ornaments from thee, that I may know what to do unto thee. And the children of Israel stripped themselves of their ornaments by the mount Horeb.” (Exodus 33:4-6)
To put on their jewelry would be like a teenager dressing for a party in defiance of his folks.
You are right in saying that we should take the consequence of our sins more seriously.
ReplyDeleteThis is one of the most melancholic chapters in the Bible. It shows our true nature.
That is why nothing short of a complete re-creation of the heart is necessary in order to enjoy intimacy with God.
Wishing you a happy Easter.
Great post, as always! One of the ladies in my Bible study class has asked if I could teach a lesson on the book of life. It seems in some verses that those whom God foreordained to be saved were written in the book of life from the beginning of the world, but in other verses, that names were blotted out of the book. I'd be interested to know your thoughts.
ReplyDeleteIt seems that a space is reserved for each person's name, and is either filled in with their new name when they accept Christ, or is blotted out at their death because they have not, sort of like the bookkeeping system where various types of expenses are listed, but some may not be used and are simply zeroed out. It is still a very efficient system of keeping books for those with little training.
ReplyDeleteThanks, dfish, for the reply! That makes sense for all the references to "book of life" I found except for this one:
ReplyDeleteRevelation 17:8 The beast that thou sawest was, and is not; and shall ascend out of the bottomless pit, and go into perdition: and they that dwell on the earth shall wonder, whose names were not written in the book of life from the foundation of the world, when they behold the beast that was, and is not, and yet is.
To me it sounds like the names of the unsaved at the time of the Rapture (who go through the Tribulation) were "not written in the book of life from the foundation of the world," suggesting that there were some (those foreordained to be saved from the foundation of the world) whose names were already written there since "the foundation of the world." Maybe it just means that the space is reserved in the ledger, as you suggest. Thanks again for your reply, and God bless!
Laurie