John Calvin Commentary Exodus 33

Depart, and go up hence, thou and the people. I have used the pluperfect tense.³⁶⁰ The reason is given here why Moses was stirred to such vehemence in prayer: namely, because although God had not altogether abandoned the care of the people, He had still renounced His covenant and had proclaimed to them that after He had once performed His engagement of giving them possession of the land, He would have no more to do with them. Therefore, what is related here preceded, in order of time, the prayer of Moses. For, being astonished at the sad and almost fatal message, he burst forth into that confused and wild request that he might be blotted out of the book of life.

Let us now try to determine the true meaning of the passage. It is plain that when God bids Moses depart with the people, He utterly renounces the responsibility which He Himself had previously sustained. He only promises that He will cause them to attain the promised inheritance, and not that He will preside over them, preserve them there in safety, and even cherish them as a father does his children; in fact, that He will merely fulfill the promise He had made to their fathers.

And so He anticipates their complaints, for they might reply that consequently His promise would be rendered vain and ineffectual. But by way of anticipation, He says that although He would renounce them, He would still maintain this truth, because He will cast out the inhabitants of the land of Canaan, so that their dwelling place would be vacant for them.

In summary, He repudiates them so that they may no longer count themselves as His own special people or expect more from Him than if they were strangers. He mentions His oath, lest they should accuse Him of faithlessness, as if He had said that He would be discharged from His engagement when they had obtained the land. And so, while depriving them of the hope of salvation and the grace of adoption, He still asserts the stability and steadfastness of His covenant.

I, therefore, understand the word angel here in a different sense from its meaning just before, and in many other passages of this book. For when mention was previously made of the angel, the familiar presence of God was denoted by it; indeed, it was used interchangeably with the name of God itself.

But here God is said to be about to send the angel in such a way as to separate Himself from the people. I will not go up (He says) in the midst of thee; and the reason is added—namely, because He could not possibly endure their perverse spirits any longer. Again, He uses an analogy taken from rebellious oxen, which cannot be broken to bear the yoke. The sum is that because they are so intractable, God cannot perform the office of their guide without immediately destroying them.

And Moses took the tabernacle. This was a sign of the divorce between God and the Israelites: the tabernacle was to be removed from the camp and pitched at a distance, as if God were tired of His connection with them. He had promised as a special blessing that He would dwell in the midst of the people; and now, by departing elsewhere, He declares them to be polluted. In a word, the removal of the tabernacle was like the breaking of the tablets; for, just as by the breaking of the tablets Moses dissolved the covenant of God, so he thus deprived the Israelites for a time of His company and presence.³⁶¹

The explanation which some give, that it was Moses’ own tabernacle, is refuted by many sound arguments:

1. It is not said that he took away his own tabernacle, but the word "tabernacle" is used simply and without any affix, κατ’ ἐξοχήν.
2. He did not change his own place of habitation, but only went out there from time to time for the purpose of worshipping, or, at any rate, of consulting God.
3. It would have been by no means lawful to assign the sacred name which God had bestowed on His Sanctuary to a private tabernacle.
4. God, by manifesting His glory there, testified that it was His own dwelling-place.
5. It would have been absurd for the people to have sought God in that direction, unless the place had been sacred.
6. The object of its removal, which I have mentioned above, must be taken into consideration. Moses did not withdraw himself from the people but rather continued, as was his custom, in the midst of the camp. He merely wished to show that God withdrew Himself from that profane place lest He should be infected by the contagion, so that it was a kind of excommunication.

It is said, indeed, that he pitched it for himself, yet not for his private use, as is plain from the context, but in accordance with the common form of expression,³⁶² in which לו (lo) is often redundant. Still, properly speaking, he did pitch it for himself, for he alone had access to it, apart from others.

Those who understand it to have been his private tabernacle suppose that their opinion is supported by what follows, namely, that he called it the tabernacle, Moed;³⁶³ for from this they infer that it had not before been distinguished by that honorable title. But this objection is easily overcome, since it is more probable that this was inserted parenthetically in the text and therefore may be properly rendered in the pluperfect tense. For by this clause, the reason is given why God had withdrawn Himself elsewhere: namely, that the place He had appointed for covenanting with the people should remain deserted.

Nevertheless, if we should refer it to this actual time, it will not be unsuitable for the people, at the present moment, to be reminded of their sad separation. It would also be fitting that Moses, in order to inflict more ignominy and shame upon them, should have called it the tabernacle of convention, though it was now far distant from the camp. As to the word Moed, I will not repeat what I have said elsewhere. Let my readers, therefore, refer to it at the end of chapter 29.³⁶⁴

And it came to pass that everyone who sought the Lord. Some translate this as “asked counsel,” but, in my opinion, the ordinary meaning is preferable. Whether, therefore, they desired to testify their piety by public worship, or to pray, or to seek counsel in doubtful matters, they went out towards that sanctuary so that their eyes might rest upon it.

Moses does not mean that they actually came to the place, access to which they knew was prohibited to them on account of their pollution. Instead, their going out in this way was a token of repentance, as though they acknowledged that they were unworthy to receive an answer from God unless they departed from that place which they had defiled by their atrocious crime. Now, it was useful for them to be humbled in this way, so that idolatry might be held in greater detestation.

Nor is there any contradiction in what follows, namely, that they stood, every man at his tent-door, whenever Moses went out. For the glory of God, which at that time was more manifest, was such as then to inspire them with greater reverence and terror. Whenever, therefore, the mediator presented himself before God, they were permitted to do no more than behold from afar the pillar of cloud which then enveloped Moses, separating him from them.

Meanwhile, it must be observed that although God at this time departed from them, it was only to the extent of rejecting them from close access to Him, and not that they were altogether alienated. For their worship was a sign of faith; they were allowed to pray to God and implore His favor, and they knew that they were heard in the person of Moses. Their separation, therefore, was not such as totally to cut off the hope of pardon, but such as to quicken their anxiety and to exercise them to repentance.

Thus God often intentionally hides His face from sinners in order to invite them to Himself in true humiliation. And this we must carefully attend to, lest, when He chastises us either by word or deed, terror or a sense of our criminality should hinder our prayers; but rather let us seek Him from however great a distance.

The object of excommunication is nearly similar. For those whom the Church rejects from the company of the faithful are delivered to Satan, but only for the destruction of the flesh, that the spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord (1 Corinthians 5:5); and for this reason, Paul would not have them counted as enemies, but admonished as brothers (2 Thessalonians 3:15).

When it is said that the people rose up, and stood every man at his tent-door, some improperly, as I conceive, refer it to mere respect for him as a civil magistrate, as if honor was thus paid to their leader. But I rather suppose that, when at stated hours Moses presented himself before God in the name of all, they partook in his service and worship.

Therefore, they also followed him with their eyes until the cloud covered him. To the same effect, this rising up is repeated immediately afterwards, where reference is made to the cloudy pillar. Therefore, I have no question that both verses must be explained as relating to spiritual worship.

But we have elsewhere shown how they testified their piety before the visible sign, without worshipping God in it with any gross imagination.

And the Lord spake unto Moses face to face. Moses would later be dignified by this distinction, as God would subsequently declare the difference between him and other Prophets (Numbers 12:8). This phrase, therefore, describes a familiar interaction, as if to say that God appeared to Moses through an extraordinary mode of revelation.

If anyone objects that there is a contradiction between this statement and what will soon be stated, Thou canst not see my face, the solution is easy: namely, that although God revealed Himself to Moses in a unique manner, He still never appeared in the fullness of His glory, but only to the extent that human weakness could endure. For this expression contains an implied comparison, i.e., that no man was ever equal to Moses or reached such a level of dignity.

And this serves to magnify the Law, because Moses, its minister, reported what he had learned through such familiar interaction, so that no ambiguity could be suspected.

When it is said that Joshua did not depart from the tabernacle, we gather that Moses's dwelling place was in the camp. Perhaps the fact of Joshua being a young man is mentioned³⁶⁵ to further illustrate God’s grace in choosing him to have charge of the sanctuary. It is true that Joshua at this time was of mature age, but God’s special blessing was manifested in him, because God passed over many older men and appointed him, who was younger, to be the keeper of His tabernacle.

See, you say to me, Bring up this people. Moses is still diligently engaged in endeavoring to reconcile the people, for the fuller promise was inserted by way of anticipation.

Since the revolt, however, God had promised no more than that He would give the land to the people. Although wishing only to assure them that they should possess the land, He had added that His angel should lead them. Still, this was but a temporary blessing, and one which He usually confers indiscriminately on other nations also.

Thus Moses saw that he and the people were deprived of a special privilege which they had previously enjoyed. For that same angel who had gone before them was frequently called the God of hosts, so that they would perceive that God was present with them in a special manner.

Hence Moses complains, not without cause, that God had not signified whom He would send. Since, when He spoke generally of an ordinary angel, He had withdrawn that special Deliverer—the guardian of the people and the perpetual maintainer of their safety.

He does not, therefore, request that Aaron should be restored to him, or that any companion should be associated with him in his difficult and arduous task; instead, he desires to be assured of the continuance of God’s previous favor.

As the ground of his confidence in asking, he adduces nothing but the promises of God. He rests, then, on no dignity of his own, nor alleges any duties performed by which he had merited so great a favor, but contents himself with this brief statement: Lord, cause the event to correspond with Your words.

We have already shown³⁶⁶ what it is to “know by name,” namely, to choose from among others, or to hold in special honor.

After Moses had made mention of what had been promised by God, however, he implores Him by this grace: if (says he) I have found grace in your sight, confirm or ratify it by this proof, that is, by again undertaking the care of us. For by the way of God he means that guidance in which He had declared that He would go before them to show them the way.

In a word, he requests that this token of favor should be given them: that God should continually guide His people. Therefore, he says, thus shall I know you, and it will appear that I am acceptable to you.

Finally, he refers to the Covenant of God with the whole people. This is as if to say that although God might be unwilling to grant this to him alone individually, there was still a weightier reason: namely, because God had adopted that people. Consequently, it was just that He should distinguish them from other nations by special marks.