Parashat 21 ‘’Ki Tisa’’ Portion 76 Shemot 35:1-35 Hab 2:2-9 & 3;18-19

Blessed are you, YHVH, our Elohim, King of the Universe, you have selected us from among all the peoples, and have given us your Torah.

פסל לך – ‘’pesal lecha’’ – you fashion! Fashion your heart so that YHVH can write His Torah on your heart – Rom 12:2.

Jer 31:33  “For this is the covenant I shall make with the house of Yisra’ěl after those days, declares יהוה: I shall put My Torah in their inward parts, and write it on their hearts. And I shall be their Elohim, and they shall be My people. (same Torah given to Moshe)

Exo 34:1  And יהוה said to Mosheh, “Cut (‘’pesal lecha’’) two tablets of stone like the first ones, and I shall write on these tablets the Words that were on the first tablets which you broke. 

The first set of tablets were broken and YHVH gave Moshe a second set of tablets with the 10 sayings. Yahshua who was the ‘’10 sayings in the flesh’’ was also ‘’broken’’ the first time He came and when He returns the 10 sayings will be written on our hearts – hearts ‘’fashioned’’ by the Set Apart Spirit.

Exo 34:2  “And be ready in the morning. Then you shall come up in the morning to Mount Sinai, and present yourself to Me there on the top of the mountain. 

Exo 34:3  “And let no man come up with you, and let no man be seen in all the mountain, and let not even the flock or the herd feed in front of that mountain.” 

Moshe the ‘’first redeemer/mediator’’ and Messiah the Ultimate Redeemer/Mediator were singled out by YHVH to lead His people into ‘’Covenantal Faithfulness’’.

Exo 34:4  And he cut two tablets of stone like the first ones. Then Mosheh rose early in the morning and went up Mount Sinai, as יהוה had commanded him, and he took two tablets of stone in his hand. 

Exo 34:5  And יהוה came down in the cloud and stood with him there, and proclaimed the Name, יהוה. 

After Israel’s failure to be faithful to YHVH’s covenant – YHVH now calls this urgent meeting with Moshe and tells him that they need to have a very serious conversation. In the light of Israel’s failure YHVH begins to reassure Moshe of His Commitment of establishing an everlasting covenant with His people. This is the essence of His Name and He understands and sympathises with man’s fallen condition and is committed to restore a covenantal relationship lovingly and firmly with Israel.

Yahshua reveals His Father’s Heart in this regard in Joh 17:6  “I have revealed Your Name to the men whom You gave Me out of the world. They were Yours, and You gave them to Me, and they have guarded Your Word.[a] Footnote: aAlso see Psa_138:2. 

Exo 34:6  And יהוה passed before him and proclaimed, “יהוה ,יהוה, an Ěl compassionate and showing favour, patient, and great in loving-commitment and truth, 

Exo 34:7  watching over loving-commitment for thousands, forgiving crookedness and transgression and sin, but by no means leaving unpunished,[a] visiting the crookedness of the fathers upon the children and the children’s children to the third and the fourth generation.” Footnote: aAlso see Num_14:18 and Jer_30:11. 

VS 6-7 – ‘’The Thirteen Attributes of Mercy (י״ג מִידּוֹת) or Shelosh-'Esreh Middot HaRakhamim (transliterated from the Hebrew: שְׁלוֹשׁ־עֶשְׂרֵה מִידּוֹת הַרַחֲמִים) as enumerated in the Book of Exodus (Exodus 34:6–7) in Parasha Ki Tissa are the Divine Attributes with which, according to Jewish scholars - YHVH governs the world.’’ Wikipedia.

‘’The 13 attributes closely parallel the description of YHVH's nature in the second of the 10 Commandments  , except that YHVH is characterized as merciful rather than zealous. Thus, they represent a covenant between YHVH and Israel, renewing the covenant of the Ten Commandments which was broken by the golden calf sin.’’ It’s almost like YHVH is saying ‘’I can see you have great difficulty in obeying Me, so I’m going to help you and enable you to obey Me and enter into an eternal covenant with Me.’’

1.      יְהוָה‎ YHVH: compassion before a person sins;

2.      יְהוָה‎ YHVH: compassion after a person has sinned;

3.      אֵל‎ El: mighty in compassion to give all creatures according to their need;

4.      רַחוּם‎ Raḥum: merciful, that humankind may not be distressed;

5.      וְחַנּוּן‎ VeḤanun: and gracious if humankind is already in distress;

6.      אֶרֶךְ אַפַּיִם‎ Erekh appayim: slow to anger;

7.      וְרַב-חֶסֶד‎ VeRav ḥesed: and plenteous in kindness;

8.      וֶאֱמֶת‎ VeEmet: and truth;

9.      צֵר חֶסֶד לָאֲלָפִים‎נֹ‎ Notzer ḥesed laalafim: keeping kindness unto thousands. In a scroll the נֹ‎ is enlarged - ישו הנצרתי- Yahsua the Nazarene or ‘’ha Notzrti’’ – the Righteous Branch.

10.   נֹשֵׂא עָוֹן‎ Noseh avon: forgiving iniquity;

11.   וָפֶשַׁע‎ VaFeshah: and transgression;

12.   וְחַטָּאָה‎ VeḤata'ah: and sin;

13.   וְנַקֵּה‎ VeNakeh: and pardoning.

On Yom Kippur, fast days as well as when facing emanant danger, devout Jews pray these 13 attributes of mercy. We too as believing Israelites need to embrace and meditate on these attributes as they reveal the very nature of YHVH’s Name.

Exo 34:8  And Mosheh hurried and bowed himself toward the earth, and did obeisance, 

Exo 34:9  and said, “If, now, I have found favour in Your eyes, O יהוה, I pray, let יהוה go on in our midst, even though we are a stiff-necked people. And forgive our crookedness and our sin, and take us as Your inheritance.” 

Upon receiving this revelation of YHVH’s goodness and mercy Moshe ‘’hurries’’ to respond in intercessory mediation for a ‘’stiff-necked’’ people whom YHVH deeply loves and desires to adopt into His Family.

The Covenant Renewed

Exo 34:10  And He said, “See, I am making a covenant. Before all your people I am going to do wonders such as have not been done in all the earth, nor in any nation. And all the people among whom you are shall see the work of יהוה. For what I am doing with you is awesome. 

‘’Awesome’’ S6381 –(פּלא) ‘’an extra-ordinary and distinguishing action’’ We need to pause and consider for a moment how ‘’extra-ordinary’’ YHVH’s action is. Despite Israel’s turning their backs on YHVH. YHVH chooses to love and forgive His people – then and now- and has committed Himself to do whatever it takes to bring His people back into covenantal faithfulness with Himself.

Exo 34:11  “Guard what I command you today. See, I am driving out from before you the Amorite and the Kena‛anite and the Ḥittite and the Perizzite and the Ḥiwwite and the Yeḇusite. 

Exo 34:12  “Guard yourself, lest you make a covenant with the inhabitants of the land where you are going, lest it be a snare in your midst. 

Exo 34:13  “But break down their slaughter-places, and smash their pillars, and cut down their Ashěrim 

Exo 34:14  for you do not bow yourselves to another mighty one, for יהוה, whose Name is jealous קנא is a jealous(קנא) Ěl – 

Exo 34:15  lest you make a covenant with the inhabitants of the land, and they whore after their mighty ones, and slaughter to their mighty ones, and one of them invites you and you eat of his slaughterings, 

Exo 34:16  and you take of his daughters for your sons, and his daughters whore after their mighty ones, and make your sons whore after their mighty ones. 

Exo 34:17  “Do not make a moulded mighty one for yourselves. 

Exo 34:18  “Guard the Festival of Matzot.[b] For seven days you eat unleavened bread, as I commanded you, in the appointed time of the new moon of Aḇiḇ, because in the new moon of Aḇiḇ you came out from Mitsrayim. Footnote: bUnleavened Bread. 

Exo 34:19  “Everyone opening the womb is Mine, and every male first-born among your livestock, whether bull or sheep. 

Exo 34:20  “But the first-born of a donkey you ransom with a lamb. And if you do not ransom, then you shall break his neck. Every first-born of your sons you shall ransom. And they shall not appear before Me empty-handed. 

Exo 34:21  “Six days you work, but on the seventh day you rest – in ploughing time and in harvest you rest. 

Exo 34:22  “And perform the Festival of Shaḇuʽoth[c] for yourself, of the first-fruits of wheat harvest, and the Festival of Ingathering[d] at the turn of the year. Footnotes: cWeeks. dFestival of Sukkot (Booths). 

Exo 34:23  “Three times in the year all your men are to appear before the Master, יהוה, the Elohim of Yisra’ěl, 

Exo 34:24  for I dispossess nations before you, and shall enlarge your borders, and let no one covet your land when you go up to appear before יהוה your Elohim three times in the year. 

Exo 34:25  “Do not slay the blood of My slaughtering with leaven, and do not let the slaughtering of the Festival of the Pěsaḥ[e] remain until morning. Footnote: ePassover. 

Exo 34:26  “Bring the first of the first-fruits of your land to the House of יהוה your Elohim. Do not cook a young goat in its mother’s milk.” (Or do not be involved with any pagan practices)

Exo 34:27  And יהוה said to Mosheh, “Write these Words, for according to the mouth of these Words I have made a covenant with you and with Yisra’ěl.” 

We compare vs 27 to a Bridegroom and bride exchanging vows under the chuppah (marriage tent).

Bridegroom: ‘’I promise to be whatever I need to be to cause you to be all that I planned you to be – in sickness and in health in little and in plenty – you will experience My righteousness, peace, and joy – until we meet face to face- ‘’eheyeh ’asher ’eheyeh’’ – Ex 3:14

Bride: And I promise to give myself to You – in good times and in bad times – and seek to always please You and be faithful to You by the power and favour I receive from You.

Exo 34:28  And he was there with יהוה forty days and forty nights. He did not eat bread and he did not drink water. And He wrote on the tablets the Words of the covenant, the Ten Words. 

The Shining Face of Moshe

Exo 34:29  And it came to be, when Mosheh came down from Mount Sinai, while the two tablets of the Witness were in Mosheh’s hand when he came down from the mountain, that Mosheh did not know that the skin of his face shone since he had spoken with Him. 

Exo 34:30  And Aharon and all the children of Yisra’ěl looked at Mosheh and saw the skin of his face shone, and they were afraid to come near him. 

This is what the face (skin) of a man looks like who has entered the presence of YHVH to show us that one day this too will be our ultimate destiny -

Exo 34:31  But Mosheh called out to them, and Aharon and all the rulers of the congregation returned to him, and Mosheh spoke to them. 

Exo 34:32  And afterward all the children of Yisra’ěl came near, and he commanded them all that יהוה had spoken with him on Mount Sinai. 

Exo 34:33  And when Mosheh ended speaking with them, he put a veil on his face. 

Exo 34:34  But whenever Mosheh went in before יהוה to speak with Him, he would remove the veil until he came out. And when he came out he spoke to the children of Yisra’ěl what he had been commanded, 

Exo 34:35  and the children of Yisra’ěl would see the face of Mosheh, that the skin of Mosheh’s face shone, and Mosheh would put the veil on his face again, until he went in to speak with Him. 

2Co 3:5  Not that we are competent in ourselves to reckon any matter as from ourselves, but our competence is from Elohim, 

2Co 3:6  who also made us competent as servants of a renewed covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit, for the letter kills but the Spirit gives life. ‘’Competent – S2426 –‘’ἱκανότης’’ ‘’sufficiency, ability, fitness, qualification’’ None of these qualities can be successfully acquired without His help.

2Co 3:7  But if the administering of death in letters, engraved on stones, was esteemed, so that the children of Yisra’ěl were unable to look steadily at the face of Mosheh because of the esteem of his face, which was passing away, 

2Co 3:8  how much more esteemed shall the administering of the Spirit not be? 

2Co 3:10  For indeed what was made esteemed had no esteem in this respect, in view of the esteem that excels. 

2Co 3:11  For if that which is passing away was esteemed, much more that which remains in esteem. 

2Co 3:12  Having then such expectation, we use much boldness of speech, 

2Co 3:13  and not like Mosheh, who put a veil over his face[a] so that the children of Yisra’ěl should not look steadily at the end of what was passing away. Footnote: aSee Exo_34:33-35. 

2Co 3:14  But their minds were hardened, for to this day, when the old covenant is being read, that same veil remains, not lifted, because in Messiah it is taken away. 

2Co 3:15  But to this day, when Mosheh is being read, a veil lies on their heart. 

2Co 3:16  And when one turns to the Master, the veil is taken away. Exo_34:34. 

2Co 3:17  Now יהוה is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of יהוה is, there is freedom. 

2Co 3:18  And we all, as with unveiled face we see as in a mirror the esteem of יהוה, are being transformed into the same likeness from esteem to esteem, as from יהוה, the Spirit.[b] Footnote: bSee also 2Co_3:17-18. 

Blessed are you YHVH, our Elohim, King of the Universe, you have given us your Torah of truth, and have planted everlasting life within our midst. Blessed are you, YHVH giver of the Torah – Amein.

Monty - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qaMCaODXcNw

 

Parashat 21 ‘’Ki Tisa’’ Portion 75 Shemot/Ex 32:15-Ex 33:23 Rom 9:14-16

Blessed are you, YHVH, our Elohim, King of the Universe, you have selected us from among all the peoples, and have given us your Torah.

ויפן – '’va yi pen’’ to turn or to face…

After 40 days on Mount Sinai in the Presence of YHVH, it was time for Moshe to ‘’turn around’’ and ‘’face’’ the nation of Yisrael, to face the tragedy of the ‘’golden calf’’. In our day the same is true, as believers we need to ‘’face’’ the deep- seated idolatry that has gripped our lives for centuries.

Exo 32:15  And Mosheh turned and went down from the mountain, and in his hand were the two tablets of the Witness,( העדת) tablets written on both their sides, written on the one and on the other.

Exo 32:16  And the tablets were the work of Elohim, and the writing was the writing of Elohim engraved on the tablets.

The two tablets with the 10 sayings can be compared to YHVH issuing His ‘’Ketubah’’ His ‘’marriage contract’’ with Yisrael. Yisrael had already accepted the terms of this ‘’marriage contract’’(Ex 19:8) Before this ‘’marriage agreement’’ reached the people of Yisrael, they have already broken their promise and have proved unfaithful to the intended ‘’marriage covenant’’ with YHVH.

The Apostle Paul stated his concern towards the first Messianic assembly who were becoming guilty of the same offence - 2Co 11:2  For I am jealous for you with a jealousy according to Elohim. For I gave you in marriage to one husband, to present you as an innocent maiden to Messiah. 2Co 11:3  But I am afraid, lest, as the serpent deceived Ḥawwah by his trickery, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Messiah. 2Co 11:4  For, indeed, if he who is coming proclaims another יהושע,[a] whom we have not proclaimed, or if you receive a different spirit which you have not received, or a different Good News which you have not accepted, you put up with it well enough! Footnote: a Mat_24:5 and Mat_24:23-24, Joh_5:43. -? מה לגבי היום

Exo 32:17  And Yehoshua heard the noise of the people as they shouted and he said to Mosheh, “A noise of battle in the camp!”

Exo 32:18  But he said, “It is not the sound of those who shout of might, nor is it the sound of those who cry out in weakness, but the sound of singing that I hear.”

Exo 32:19  And it came to be, as soon as he came near the camp, that he saw the calf and the dancing. And Mosheh’s displeasure burned, and he threw the tablets out of his hands and broke (‘’Shavar’’ - piel verb – shattered) them at the foot of the mountain.

Why a calf? This was possibly the pagan influence of Egypt’s ‘’calf god – Apis’’. Apis served as an intermediary between humans and other powerful deities.

The definition of idolatry is the ‘’worship of someone or something other than YHVH as though it were YHVH or directly comes from YHVH’’. Man is ‘’incurably’’ idolatrous.

We read also a further tragedy in 1Ki 12:28  So the sovereign (Yaroḇ‛am/Jerobiam) took counsel and made two calves of gold, and said to the people, “It is too much for you to go up to Yerushalayim. See, your mighty ones, O Yisra’ěl, which brought you up from the land of Mitsrayim!” 1Ki 12:29  And he set up one in Běyth Ěl, and the other he put in Dan. 

‘’ The story of Yaroḇ‛am also reveals that the golden calf was meant to represent YHVH. Yaroḇ‛am was not trying to make the Yisraelites worship another god; he wanted them to worship YHVH, just in a different place, and in their own different way. So too the Yisraelites in Exodus 32 were not introducing a new god. They say explicitly that the calf represented the god who took them out of Egypt— YHVH. The festival that they held the following day was not a festival to Baal, or any other foreign god—it is explicitly a “festival to YHVH.” The story of the golden calf is commonly misconstrued to be about worshipping another YHVH, but it is not. It is, rather, about the incorrect worship of YHVH, the kind of worship that requires a physical image or idea that represents YHVH but in reality is not YHVH’’. This is an abomination to YHVH.

This is precisely how YHVH describes their actions:  Exo 32:8  “They have turned aside quickly out of the way which I commanded them. They have made themselves a moulded calf, and have bowed themselves to it and slaughtered to it, and said, ‘This is your mighty one, O Yisra’ĕl, who brought you out of the land of Mitsrayim” There could have been no doubt in the minds of the Israelites that it was the mighty Hand of YHVH that brought them out of the land of Egypt. They saw the mighty acts of His deliverance yet could not wait for Moshe to return from mount Sinai with YHVH’s instructions on how to get into the promised land. So, the Israelites ‘’figured’’ out a way to get into the promised land without Moshe. The same is true today for most believers – we think we have ‘’figured’’ out a way of getting into the Messianic kingdom without Moshe – BUT, listened to what Yahshua said: Yoch/Joh 5:46  “For if you believed Mosheh, you would have believed Me, since he wrote about Me. Joh 5:47  “But if you do not believe his writings,[c] how shall you believe My words?” Footnote: c Luk_16:31.

This is precisely what most Christians have done. They have been taught that ‘’Jesus’’ came to do away with Moshe’s words and that ‘’God’’ alone was not able to lead us into the Messianic kingdom and He had to rely on ‘’Jesus’’ to get the job done. Christians are then taught to ‘’worship and bow down to Jesus’’. Many of these Christians (including many Messianics) even proclaim that Yahshua is YHVH – Exo 20:2  “I am יהוה your Elohim, who brought you out of the land of Mitsrayim, out of the house of slavery. 

Joh 4:23  “But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father also does seek such to worship Him. 

This spirit of ‘’idolatry’’ is so deeply ingrained in all believers and very few ever seem to notice it, let alone escape its power, making it almost impossible to come free of its grip. For the most part we have all created a multitude of ‘’golden calves’’ according to our own imagination and have dutifully bowed down and served them- כמה עגלי זהב יש לנו היום

This is true of the ‘’anti-christ’’ who is not only the one who opposes the Messiah but will attempt to replace the Messiah. Strongs 473 - ἀντί or ‘’anti’’ A primary particle; opposite, that is, instead or because of- Often used in composition to denote contrast or substitution.

Idolatry is well described by the prophets as an incurable disease.

Jer 30:12  “For thus said יהוה, ‘Your breach is incurable, your wound is grievous. 

Jer 30:13  No one pleads your cause, to bind up. There are no healing medicines for you. 

Nah_3:19  Your injury has no healing, your wound is grievous.

Jer_10:19  Woe to me for my breaking! My wound is grievous, but I say, “This is my sickness, and I bear it.

There is only one cure for our incurable condition – death and chastising –

Pro_20:30  The blows that wound cleanse away evil, And strokes the inner parts of the heart.

Literal translation – ‘’Welts and injury are the scouring agents against evil, and blows purge the chambers of the inner being’’

Gal 2:20  “I have been impaled with Messiah, and I no longer live, but Messiah lives in me.[b] And that which I now live in the flesh I live by belief in the Son of Elohim, who loved me and gave Himself for me. Footnote: b Rom_8:10, 2Co_6:16, 2Co_13:5, Eph_3:17, Col_1:27, 1Jn_4:4. 

We see the evidence of this in Moshe’s response to Yisrael’s idolatry:

Exo 32:20  And he took the calf which they had made, and burned it in the fire, and ground it into powder, and scattered it on the face of the water and made the children of Yisra’ĕl drink it.

Grinding gold into dust and mixing it with water reminds us of a Torah law that would be introduced in Yisrael – the law of a jealous husband who suspects his wife of infidelity.

‘’Law of Sotah or “jealousy” A Sotah (Hebrew ‎‎ סָטָה - to digress, to change direction, to deviate; to stray; (biblical) to commit adultery (a woman)/ סוטה) is a woman suspected of adultery who undergoes the ordeal of bitter water or ordeal of jealousy as described and prescribed in the Priestly Code, in the Book of Numbers. The term "Sotah" itself is not found in the Hebrew Bible but in Numbers 5:12. The process was a trial by ordeal administered to the wife whose husband suspected her of adultery but who had no witnesses to make a formal case (Numbers 5:11-31) – Wikipedia’’

In modern Hebrew a ‘’sotah’’ is a perverted deviant. All manmade religion falls into this category.

The sad reality is that historically the nation of Yisrael has suffered greatly under many “ordeals” – (sotah’s or sotot) – Most believers have failed to produce righteous offspring who love YHVH and His Torah and His Messiah… however, in these days there is a remnant returning to the ancient paths of YHVH and reject all forms of false worship of YHVH.

Sadly, we are all about to enter our ‘’trail by ordeal’’ it is called the ‘’tribulation’’.

Jer 30:7  ‘Oh! For great is that day, there is none like it. And it is the time of Yaʽaqoḇ’s distress, but he shall be saved out of it.

Jer 30:11  ‘For I am with you,’ declares יהוה, ‘to save you. Though I make a complete end of all gentiles¹ where I have scattered you, yet I do not make a complete end of you. But I shall reprove you in judgment, and by no means leave you unpunished.’ Footnote: ¹See 46:28, Isa. 34:2, Isa. 45:17, Dan. 2:44, Amos 9:8, Hag. 2:22.

Jer 30:12  “For thus said יהוה, ‘Your breach is incurable, your wound is grievous.

Jer 30:13  ‘No one pleads your cause, to bind up. There are no healing medicines for you.

Jer 30:24  The burning displeasure of יהוה shall not turn back until He has done and established the purposes of His heart. In the latter days you shall understand it¹. Footnote: ¹See 23:20.

Exo 32:21  And Mosheh said to Aharon, “What did this people do to you that you have brought so great a sin upon them?” (In other words – ‘’if you really loved My people, you would not have brought this great evil upon them’’)

Exo 32:22  And Aharon said, “Do not let the displeasure of my master burn. You know the people, that it is in evil. (In the evil grip of idolatry until this day)

Exo 32:23  “And they said to me, ‘Make us mighty ones (elohim) who go before us. For this Mosheh, the man who brought us out of the land of Mitsrayim, we do not know what has become of him.’

Exo 32:24  “And I said to them, ‘Whoever has gold, let them take it off.’ And they gave it to me, and I threw it into the fire, and this calf came out.” (Idolatry makes you stupid and robs you of righteous reasoning)

Exo 32:25  And Mosheh saw that the people were let loose, for Aharon had let them loose,(Heb – ‘’paruah’’ S6544- to be made naked - A primitive root; to loosen; by implication to expose) to their shame among their enemies.

It is amazing how false worshippers love gold and desire to be ‘’uncovered’’ regarding YHVH’s instructions - His Torah. They say we ‘’are free to follow the leading of the Holy Spirit, and are under grace, not under the law’’. They are ‘’naked’’ because they have exposed themselves to the lawless spirit of idolatry – Any form of disobedience to any part of YHVH’s Torah is an act of defiance against YHVH and His Messiah – Mat 5:17-19 – and will not go unpunished – unless of course we repent.

Rom 10:3  For not knowing the righteousness of Elohim, and seeking to establish their own righteousness, they did not subject themselves to[a] the righteousness of Elohim. Footnote: aOr did not obey. Rom 10:4  For Messiah is the goal[b] of the ‘Torah unto righteousness’ to everyone who believes. Footnote: bOr end purpose; not termination. (The Torah is the only road map back into YHVH’s Presence and Yahshua never came to do away with any part of the Torah – Mat 5:17-19)

Exo 32:26  And Mosheh stood in the entrance of the camp, and said, “Who is for יהוה? Come to me.” And all the sons of Lĕwi gathered themselves to him.

Exo 32:27  And he said to them, “Thus said יהוה Elohim of Yisra’ĕl: ‘Each one put his sword on his side, pass over to and fro from gate to gate in the camp, and each one slay his brother, and each one his friend, and each one his relative.’ ”

Exo 32:28  And the sons of Lĕwi did according to the word of Mosheh. And about three thousand men of the people fell that day.

Exo 32:29  And Mosheh said, “You are ordained for יהוה today – since each one has been against his son and his brother – so as to bring upon you a blessing today.”

Exo 32:30  And it came to be on the next day that Mosheh said to the people, “You, you have sinned a great sin. And now I am going up to יהוה – if I might atone for your sin.”

Exo 32:31  And Mosheh returned to יהוה and said, “Oh, these people have sinned a great sin, and have made for themselves a mighty one of gold!

Exo 32:32  “And now, if You would forgive their sin, but if not, please blot me out of Your book which You have written.”  Rom 9:3  For I myself could have wished to be banished from Messiah for the sake of my brothers, my relatives according to the flesh…

Exo 32:33  And יהוה said to Mosheh, “Whoever has sinned against Me, I blot him out of My book.

Exo 32:34  “And now, go, lead the people to the place of which I have spoken to you. See, My Messenger goes before you. And in the day of My visitation I shall visit their sin upon them.”

Exo 32:35  And יהוה plagued(Heb – ‘’struck’’) the people because they made the calf, which Aharon made.

Exo 33:1  And יהוה said to Mosheh, “Come, go up from here, you and the people whom you have brought out of the land of Mitsrayim, to the land of which I swore to Aḇraham, to Yitsḥaq, and to Yaʽaqoḇ, saying, ‘To your seed I give it.’

Exo 33:2  “And I shall send My Messenger before you, and I shall drive out the Kenaʽanite and the Amorite and the Ḥittite and the Perizzite and the Ḥiwwite and the Yeḇusite,

Exo 33:3  to a land flowing with milk and honey. For I do not go up in your midst because you are a stiff-necked people, lest I consume you on the way.”

Exo 33:4  And when the people heard this evil word, they mourned, and no one put on his ornaments.

Exo 33:5  And יהוה said to Mosheh, “Say to the children of Yisra’ĕl, ‘You are a stiff-necked people. Should I go up in your midst for one moment I shall consume you. And now, take off your ornaments, and I shall know what to do to you.’ ”

Exo 33:6  So the children of Yisra’ĕl took off their ornaments at Mount Ḥorĕḇ.

Exo 33:7  And Mosheh took his tent (‘’the tent’’ not his tent)  and pitched it outside the camp, far from the camp, and called it the Tent of Meeting. And it came to be that everyone who sought יהוה went out to the Tent of Meeting which was outside the camp.

‘’Moses called it the tent of meeting. This was not the same tent of meeting described in chapters 25 – 31. That tent (the Tabernacle) will not be constructed until chapters 35 – 40. Also, there is no mention of the tabernacle furniture (such as the ark), and it was placed a good distance outside the camp, whereas the tabernacle was erected in the midst of the camp (Numbers 3;23;29;35;38). This tent of meeting apparently was a temporary structure where Moses would meet with YHVH, and YHVH would speak with Moses.’’

Exo 33:8  And it came to be, whenever Mosheh went out to the Tent, that all the people rose, and each man stood at his tent door and watched Mosheh until he entered the Tent.

Exo 33:9  And it came to be, when Mosheh entered the Tent, that the column of cloud descended and stood at the door of the Tent, and He spoke with Mosheh.

Exo 33:10  And all the people saw the column of cloud standing at the Tent door, and all the people rose and bowed themselves, each one at the door of his tent.

Exo 33:11  Thus יהוה spoke to Mosheh face to face, as a man speaks to his friend. And he would return to the camp, but his servant Yehoshua son of Nun, a young man, did not leave the Tent.

Exo 33:12  And Mosheh said to יהוה, “See, You are saying to me, ‘Bring up this people.’ But You have not made known to me whom You would send with me, though You have said, ‘I know you by name, and you have also found favour in My eyes.’

Exo 33:13  “And now, please, if I have found favour in Your eyes, please show me Your way, and let me know You, so that I find favour in Your eyes. And consider that this nation is Your people.”

Exo 33:14  And He said, “My Presence does go, and I shall give you rest.”

Exo 33:15  And he said to Him, “If Your Presence is not going, do not lead us up from here.

Exo 33:16  “For how then shall it be known that I have found favour in Your eyes, I and Your people, except You go with us? Then we shall be distinguished, I and Your people, from all the people who are upon the face of the earth.”

Exo 33:17  And יהוה said to Mosheh, “Even this word you have spoken I shall do, for you have found favour in My eyes, and I know you by name.”

Exo 33:18  Then he said, “Please, show me Your esteem.”

Exo 33:19  And He said, “I shall cause all My goodness to pass before you, and I shall proclaim the Name of יהוה before you. And I shall favour him whom I favour, and shall have compassion on him whom I have compassion.” Rom 9:15,16.

Exo 33:20  But He said, “You are unable to see My face, for no man does see Me and live.”

Exo 33:21  And יהוה said, “See, there is a place with Me! And you shall stand on the rock.

Exo 33:22  “And it shall be, while My esteem passes by, that I shall put you in the cleft of the rock and cover you with My hand while I pass by.

Exo 33:23  “Then I shall take away My hand and you shall see My back, but My face shall not be seen.”

Midrash:

Why is YHVH so opposed to any form of idolatry?

Of all the things that YHVH created, man was created to bear His Image – Gen 1:26 - Any attempt to reproduce His Image in any other form, doctrine or idea is a violation of who YHVH is. This will always be unacceptable to Him.  Act 17:30  “Truly, then, having overlooked these times of ignorance, Elohim now commands all men everywhere to repent….

When YHVH looks at us He wants to see His Image in us. Eventually His Image will be restored in us.

1Jn 3:2  Beloved ones, now we are children of Elohim. And it has not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is. 

1Jn 3:3  And everyone having this expectation in Him cleanses himself, as He is clean. 

2Co 3:12  Having then such expectation, we use much boldness of speech, 

2Co 3:13  and not like Mosheh, who put a veil over his face[a] so that the children of Yisra’ěl should not look steadily at the end of what was passing away. Footnote: aSee Exo_34:33-35. 

2Co 3:14  But their minds were hardened, for to this day, when the old covenant is being read, that same veil remains, not lifted, because in Messiah it is taken away. 

2Co 3:15  But to this day, when Mosheh is being read, a veil lies on their heart. 

2Co 3:16  And when one turns to the Master, the veil is taken away. Exo_34:34. 

2Co 3:17  Now יהוה is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of יהוה is, there is freedom. 

2Co 3:18  And we all, as with unveiled face we see as in a mirror the esteem of יהוה, are being transformed into the same likeness from esteem to esteem, as from יהוה, the Spirit.[b] Footnote: bSee also 2Co_3:17-18. 

The tragic reality of our times is that most believers still have a veil over their eyes when reading the Torah. Why”? Because most of us have the wrong Jesus, have taught the wrong gospel, and have received another spirit.

2Co 11:3  But I am afraid, lest, as the serpent deceived Ḥawwah by his trickery, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Messiah. 

2Co 11:4  For, indeed, if he who is coming proclaims another יהושע,a whom we have not proclaimed, or if you receive a different spirit which you have not received, or a different Good News which you have not accepted, you put up with it well enough! Footnote: a Mat_24:5 and Mat_24:23-24, Joh_5:43. 

Finally, once again, the only cure for our incurable condition is ‘’death’’-

2Ti 2:11  Trustworthy is the word: For if we died with Him, we shall also live with Him. 

2Ti 2:12  If we endure, we shall also reign with Him. If we deny Him, He also shall deny us. 

2Ti 2:13  If we are not trustworthy, He remains trustworthy, it is impossible for Him to deny Himself. 

Joh 6:60  Therefore many of His taught ones having heard, said, “This word is hard, who is able to hear it?” 

Heb 10:39  But we are not of those who draw back to destruction, but of belief to the preservation of life. 

May we find favour with YHVH who draws us by His Great Love to Covenantal Faithfulness.

Blessed are you YHVH, our Elohim, King of the Universe, you have given us your Torah of truth, and have planted everlasting life within our midst. Blessed are you, YHVH giver of the Torah – Amein.

Additional insights into this Torah portion - Monte Judah – Episode 5 Insights into Isaiah -

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eWLcW1ukLHY