Exodus Chapter 24

The Covenant Confirmed

¹ Then Yahveh told Moses, “Come up to me^Y and worship at a distance—you, Aaron, Nadab, Abihu, and the 70 elders. ² You alone will approach me; the others and the community can’t approach me.”

³ Moses recounted to the people Yahveh’s ordinances, and they answered together, “We’ll do what he’s said.”

⁴ Moses wrote them down. Then he got up early and built an altar at the foot of the mountain with 12 pillars for the 12 tribes. ⁵ He sent young men to offer burnt offerings and sacrifice young bulls as peace offerings. ⁶ Moses put half of the blood in basins and sprinkled the other half on the altar. ⁷ He read the covenant to the people. They said, “We’ll do what Yahveh has said.” ⁸ Moses sprinkled the blood on them, “This is the blood of the covenant Yahveh has made with you.”                                                                         

Ex 24:1-8

                  ⁹Then Moses went up with Aaron, Nadab, Abihu, and the 70 elders; ¹⁰ and they saw the God of Israel. Under his feet was what looked like an expanse of sapphire as clear as the sky. ¹¹ Yet he didn’t reach out against the nobles of Israel; they looked at him and ate and drank.

¹² Yahveh told Moses, “Come up to me on the mountain and stay here. I’ll give you the stone tablets with the Law I’ve commanded and written to instruct them.” ¹³ Moses and Joshua his assistant went up on the mountain of God. ¹⁴ But he told the elders, “Wait here till we get back. Aaron and Hur are with you. If anybody has a legal problem, go to them.” ¹⁵ Then he went up on the mountain, and the cloud covered it. ¹⁶ Yahveh’s brightness rested on Mount Sinai for six days. On the seventh day, he called to Moses out of the cloud. ¹⁷ To the people of Israel Yahveh’s brightness looked like a flagrant fire on the mountain. ¹⁸ Moses went into the cloud as he climbed the mountain and was there for 40 days.      

Ex 24:9-18