Exodus 24 Devotional Bible Study

Exodus 24 Chapter Summary

Moses told the people of Israel these laws. He sacrificed bulls and splashed some of the blood against the altar he built next to the mountain.

Moses then took the blood, sprinkled it on the people and said,

“This is the blood of the covenant that the Lord has made with you

in accordance with all these words.”

- Exodus 24:8

 

Then Moses, Aaron, Aaron’s two sons Nadab and Abihu, and 70 elders of Israel went up the mountain, where they saw God.

 

Under his feet was something like a pavement made of lapis lazuli, as bright blue as the sky.

But God did not raise his hand against these leaders of the Israelites;

they saw God, and they ate and drank.

- Exodus 24:10-11

 

Then God called Moses back up the mountain to receive the tablets of stone with the law written on them. Moses stayed on the mountain for forty days and nights.

 

Why Are Some Christians Closer to the Lord Than Others?

Exodus 24:1-2

Then the Lord said to Moses, “Come up to the Lord, you and Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel. You are to worship at a distance, but Moses alone is to approach the Lord; the others must not come near. And the people may not come up with him.”

Later in this chapter, we read that these 70 elders were given the opportunity to see God, but only Moses was called to come speak with God. Why? Were these other men not devout enough? Did God not love them as much as He loved Moses?

Some Christians become envious of others. They see that God speaks directly to others but not to them. They see God using others in powerful and obvious ways – not so much them. They wonder why God won’t be as near to themselves as He is to other people.

I wonder how these 70 elders felt about their experience with God. Were they envious of Moses? The best response on their part, and on ours, would be to be thankful that the Lord allowed them to come as close as He did, and then both to accept their role and to respect the role God had given Moses. It’s good to long to be as close to the Lord as possible, but it takes humility to wait for that longing to be fulfilled.

 

Waiting on the Lord

Exodus 24:12, 15-16

The Lord said to Moses, “Come up to me on the mountain and stay here, and I will give you the tablets of stone with the law and commandments I have written for their instruction…” When Moses went up on the mountain, the cloud covered it, and the glory of the Lord settled on Mount Sinai. For six days the cloud covered the mountain, and on the seventh day the Lord called to Moses from within the cloud.

God told Moses to come up the mountain, and then He had Moses wait for six days before He started talking to him. That’s interesting, isn’t it? Sometimes, we have to be patient and wait on the Lord.