What accompanies the renewed tables and covenant, and how does Moses use the veil on returning?

Atlas of Saints · Chapter summary

The chapter gives the Lord’s mercy and judgment, commands against other gods and alliances, and rules for firstborn, rest, feasts and offerings. Moses returns with the two tables after forty days and nights without bread or water. He speaks the commands to Israel, then veils his face, removing the veil when he goes in to speak with the Lord.

Chapter breakdown

What accompanies the renewed tables and covenant, and how does Moses use the veil on returning? The chapter gives the Lord’s mercy and judgment, commands against other gods and alliances, and rules for firstborn, rest, feasts and offerings. Moses returns with the two tables after forty days and nights without bread or water. He speaks the commands to Israel, then veils his face, removing the veil when he goes in to speak with the Lord.

Moses is told to cut two stone tables like the former ones. The Lord will write the words that were on the tables Moses broke. He must be ready in the morning, go up Sinai and stand with the Lord at the summit. No man may accompany him or be seen anywhere on the mountain; oxen and sheep must not feed opposite it. Moses cuts the two tables, rises very early and carries them up as commanded. When the Lord comes down in a cloud, Moses stands with him, calling upon the Lord’s name.

As he passes before Moses, the words address the Lord God as merciful, gracious, patient, full of compassion and true; keeping mercy for thousands, taking away iniquity, wickedness and sin. No one is innocent of himself before him. He renders fathers’ iniquity to children and grandchildren to the third and fourth generation. Moses quickly bows to the earth in worship and asks that, if he has found grace, the Lord go with them, “for it is a stiffnecked people,” take away their iniquities and sin, and possess them.

The Lord promises to make a covenant in everyone’s sight and do signs never seen on earth or among any nations, so the people among whom Moses stands may see the terrible work he will do. Moses must observe all the commands given that day. The Lord himself will drive out the Amorrhite, Chanaanite, Hethite, Pherezite, Hevite and Jebusite before him.

Moses must not join in friendship with the land’s inhabitants, which may be his ruin. Their altars are to be destroyed, statues broken and groves cut down. He must adore no strange god: the Lord’s name is jealous, and he is a jealous God. No covenant may be made with those peoples, lest after they commit fornication with their gods and worship idols, someone invites him to eat sacrificed things. Their daughters must not be taken as wives for his sons, lest they also lead his sons into fornication with their gods. He must make no molten gods for himself.

The feast of unleavened bread requires seven days of eating it as commanded, in the month of new corn; Israel came from Egypt in the springtime month. Every male that opens the womb belongs to the Lord, including oxen and sheep. The firstling of an ass is redeemed with a sheep; if its price is not given, it is slain. Firstborn sons are redeemed, and no one appears before the Lord empty.

There are six days of work; on the seventh, ploughing and reaping cease. The feast of weeks is kept with firstfruits of the wheat harvest, and the feast at the year’s return when all things are laid in. All males appear before the almighty Lord, Israel’s God, three times a year. When he has removed the nations before them and enlarged their borders, no man will lie in wait against their land when they go up to appear before him three times yearly.

The blood of the Lord’s sacrifice must not be offered upon leaven, and nothing of the victim of the solemnity of the Phase may remain in the morning. The first fruits of the ground are offered in the Lord’s house. A kid must not be boiled in its mother’s milk. The Lord tells Moses to write these words, by which he has made a covenant with both Moses and Israel.

He is there with the Lord forty days and forty nights, neither eating bread nor drinking water, and writes the ten words of the covenant upon the tables. Moses comes down Sinai holding the two tables of testimony, unaware that his face is horned from conversation with the Lord.

Challoner’s note explains “horned” as shining and sending out rays of light like horns.

Aaron and Israel see Moses’ horned face and fear to approach. Moses calls them; Aaron and the congregation’s rulers return, and he speaks to them. Then all Israel comes, and he commands everything he heard from the Lord on Sinai. After speaking, he puts a veil on his face. When he goes in to speak with the Lord, he removes it until he comes out, then tells Israel everything commanded. They see his horned face when he comes out, but he covers it again if at any time he speaks to them. These are the chapter’s stated occasions; no reason for the veiling is supplied.

The story inside

The account begins with two replacement tables and a solitary ascent, with people and grazing animals excluded from the mountain. The cloud, words of mercy and judgment, and Moses’ worship and plea precede the promised covenant and unprecedented signs. Commands then bar friendship and covenants with the inhabitants, other gods, their worship and marriages that lead sons into that worship. Firstborn, unleavened bread, weekly rest, harvest feasts, yearly appearances and sacrifices follow, with the border promise kept under its stated conditions. The Lord tells Moses to write the covenant words. After forty days and nights without bread or water, Moses returns with the tables and does not know his face is horned, which Challoner explains as rays of light. Aaron, the rulers and then all Israel come to hear the commands. The ending records when Moses removes and replaces the veil without explaining its purpose or adding another setting. (Exodus 34:1–35.)

Lessons worth keeping

1
Moses’ plea follows words naming both mercy and judgment. He asks the Lord to go with them “for it is a stiffnecked people,” to remove sin and possess them. Keeping “for” preserves the plea’s actual wording. (34:6–9.)
2
The worship and appearance commands have specific conditions. Work takes six days; ploughing and reaping stop on the seventh. Males appear three times yearly, and the promise against someone lying in wait follows the removal of nations and enlargement of borders. (34:21–24.)
3
The veil sequence is recorded without a stated motive. Moses speaks and then puts it on; he removes it when speaking with the Lord until coming out, reports the commands, and covers his face again in the final verse’s stated occasion. Challoner explains the rays, not why the veil is used. (34:29–35 and the note on verse 29.)

Test your recall

Why are new tables cut? The Lord will write the words on the tables Moses broke. What does Moses ask after worshipping? That the Lord go with them, for they are stiffnecked, remove their sin and possess them. What happens if an ass’s firstling is not redeemed with a sheep? It is slain. What premise accompanies the land promise? The Lord removes the nations and enlarges the borders. When does Moses take off his veil?

Show answer

When he goes in to speak with the Lord, until he comes out. (34:1, 9, 20, 24, 34.)

Source edition and notes

Douay–Rheims, revised by Richard Challoner (1749–1752). Project Gutenberg no. 1581. Locators refer to lines in the admitted pg1581.txt edition. Source notes may include Challoner commentary.

Lines 9769–9776
Exodus Chapter 34 The tables are renewed: all society with the Chanaanites is forbid: some precepts concerning the firstborn, the sabbath, and other feasts: after forty days’ fast, Moses returneth to the people with the commandments, and his face appearing horned with rays of light, he covereth it, whensoever he speaketh to the people.
Lines 9777–9794
34:1. And after this he said: Hew thee two tables of stone like unto the former, and I will write upon them the words, which were in the tables, which thou brokest. 34:2. Be ready in the morning, that thou mayst forthwith go up into Mount Sinai, and thou shalt stand with me upon the top of the mount. 34:3. Let no man go up with thee, and let not any man be seen throughout all the mount; neither let the oxen nor the sheep feed over against it. 34:4. Then he cut out two tables of stone, such as had been before; and rising very early he went up into the Mount Sinai, as the Lord had commanded him, carrying with him the tables. 34:5. And when the Lord was come down in a cloud, Moses stood with him, calling upon the name of the Lord.
Lines 9795–9809
34:6. And when he passed before him, he said: O the Lord, the Lord God, merciful and gracious, patient and of much compassion, and true, 34:7. Who keepest mercy unto thousands: who takest away iniquity, and wickedness, and sin, and no man of himself is innocent before thee. Who renderest the iniquity of the fathers to the children, and to the grandchildren unto the third and fourth generation. 34:8. And Moses making haste, bowed down prostrate unto the earth, and adoring, 34:9. Said: If I have found grace in thy sight, O Lord, I beseech thee that thou wilt go with us, (for it is a stiffnecked people) and take away our iniquities and sin, and possess us.
Lines 9810–9818
34:10. The Lord answered: I will make a covenant in the sight of all, I will do signs such as were never seen upon the earth, nor in any nations; that this people, in the midst of whom thou art, may see the terrible work of the Lord which I will do. 34:11. Observe all things which this day I command thee: I myself will drive out before thy face the Amorrhite, and the Chanaanite, and the Hethite, and the Pherezite, and the Hevite, and the Jebusite.
Lines 9819–9837
34:12. Beware thou never join in friendship with the inhabitants of that land, which may be thy ruin: 34:13. But destroy their altars, break their statues and cut down their groves: 34:14. Adore not any strange god. The Lord his name is jealous, he is a jealous God. 34:15. Make no covenant with the men of those countries; lest, when they have committed fornication with their gods, and have adored their idols, some one call thee to eat of the things sacrificed. 34:16. Neither shalt thou take of their daughters a wife for thy son, lest after they themselves have committed fornication, they make thy sons also to commit fornication with their gods. 34:17. Thou shalt not make to thyself any molten gods.
Lines 9838–9849
34:18. Thou shalt keep the feast of the unleavened bread. Seven days shalt thou eat unleavened bread, as I commanded thee in the time of the month of the new corn: for in the month of the spring time thou camest out from Egypt. 34:19. All of the male kind that openeth the womb, shall be mine. Of all beasts; both of oxen and of sheep, it shall be mine. 34:20. The firstling of an ass thou shalt redeem with a sheep: but if thou wilt not give a price for it, it shall be slain. The firstborn of thy sons thou shalt redeem: neither shalt thou appear before me empty.
Lines 9850–9864
34:21. Six days shalt thou work, the seventh day thou shalt cease to plough and to reap. 34:22. Thou shalt keep the feast of weeks with the firstfruits of the corn of thy wheat harvest, and the feast when the time of the year returneth that all things are laid in. 34:23. Three times in the year all thy males shall appear in the sight of the almighty Lord the God of Israel. 34:24. For when I shall have taken away the nations from thy face, and shall have enlarged thy borders, no man shall lie in wait against thy land when thou shalt go up, and appear in the sight of the Lord thy God thrice in a year.
Lines 9865–9875
34:25. Thou shalt not offer the blood of my sacrifice upon leaven; neither shall there remain in the morning any thing of the victim of the solemnity of the Phase. 34:26. The first of the fruits of thy ground thou shalt offer in the house of the Lord thy God. Thou shalt not boil a kid in the milk of his dam. 34:27. And the Lord said to Moses: Write thee these words, by which I have made a covenant both with thee and with Israel.
Lines 9876–9883
34:28. And he was there with the Lord forty days and forty nights: he neither ate bread nor drank water, and he wrote upon the tables the ten words of the covenant. 34:29. And when Moses came down from the Mount Sinai, he held the two tables of the testimony, and he knew not that his face was horned from the conversation of the Lord.
Lines 9884–9886
Horned.... That is, shining, and sending forth rays of light like horns.
Lines 9887–9905
34:30. And Aaron and the children of Israel seeing the face of Moses horned, were afraid to come near. 34:31. And being called by him, they returned, both Aaron and the rulers of the congregation. And after that he spoke to them, 34:32. And all the children of Israel came to him: and he gave them in commandment all that he had heard of the Lord on Mount Sinai. 34:33. And having done speaking, he put a veil upon his face. 34:34. But when he went in to the Lord, and spoke with him, he took it away until he came forth, and then he spoke to the children of Israel all things that had been commanded him. 34:35. And they saw that the face of Moses when he came out was horned, but he covered his face again, if at any time he spoke to them.