Exodus: Gift of the Torah

After the revelation of the gift of the Sabbath, and the gifts of manna and quails, the people are given the Thora, they are given the Testimony. “The Lord said to Moses, 'Come up to me on the mountain and wait there; and I will give you the tablets of stone, with the law and the commandments, which I have written for their instruction.'”[footnote:Ex. 24:12.] The Lord speaks to Moses from Mt. Sinai, teaching the ten commandments and Laws concerning slaves, restitution, and justice.[footnote:Ex. 20--23.] Moses tells the people the words, records them, then goes up with the seventy elders and Aaron. “...and they saw the God of Israel; and there was under his feet as it were a pavement of sapphire stone, like the very heavens for its clearness.”[footnote:Ex. 24:10.] This verse calls to mind the vision of John in the book of Revelation, “...and there in heaven stood a throne, with one seated on the throne...and in front of the throne there is something like a sea of glass, like crystal.”[footnote:Rev. 4:2,6.] And later, “And I saw what appeared to be a sea of glass mixed with fire, and those who had conquered (...) standing beside the sea of glass (...) and they sing the song of Moses, the servant of God, and of the lamb...”[footnote:Rev. 15:2--3.] There is something eschatological about Moses' ascension and encounter with God. Every time God reveals Himself, eternity is revealed, with the beginning and end of all things. The song of Moses is the song of the Lamb --- it is the song of the first victory and of the final victory, of the first liberation and the final liberation. It is the song of the Lord's triumph --- it is the song of Israel's triumph. Victory comes from the Lord.

So the tablets of the Law, the totality of the Thora, is given to the people from the heights of Mount Sinai. The revelation of the ten commandments is the revelation of both the real war --- between good and evil --- and the victory to be had through mercy and pardon, “The Lord passed before him, and proclaimed, 'The Lord, The Lord, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness, keeping steadfast love for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin...”[footnote:Ex. 34:6--7.] But the war between good and evil remains hidden to the eyes of men who do not have the revelation of God or the perspective of those who climb the mountain of God, “When Joshua heard the noise of the people as they shouted, he said to Moses, 'There is a noise of war in the camp.' but he said, 'It is not the sound of shouting for victory, or the sound of the cry of defeat, but the sound of singing that I hear.'”[footnote:Ex. 32:17--18.]

And when the tablets of the Law are finally given to the people, they are given on the day of Pardon[footnote:La voix de la Thora, p. 404 vs. 1.] making them even more precious than the first set destroyed by Moses. Having Moses write this second set also signifies the importance of man's cooperation with the Word of God. Man receives the pardon of God by publishing His Word through his own hand. God's pardon is received through and effective desire to make God's Law, His Word, one's own. God's Law, the first set of tablets, was part of the work of Creation. Written with God's finger as when we read the heavens were the work of his hands.[footnote:Voix de la Thora: p. 380; Ex. 32: 16.] God's pardon is also given with His Law, His Word, yet requires man to apply himself to God's Law and word. As Saint Augustin put it, God created us without us, but will not save us without us. The covenant with God was broken by man when man broke the command of God (As Moses broke the tablets), but God renews the covenant by the gift of pardon, by His forgiveness and mercy. The love of God for man is stronger than man's sin, his love is full of mercy and forgiveness. Yet God desires man's fidelity to His covenant and Law. God's love is not without justice, but it is determined by His mercy. The mercy seat is raised above the ark of the testimony. The testimony, the Torah, is placed inside the ark, it is protected from the flood of sin and impurity of the men surrounding it. It is precious, it is the foundation of the Lord's covenant with Israel, and without it, the Lord's seat of mercy has no foundation. The Lord's presence is situated above the testament, upon the seat of mercy, and it is from the place of mercy that the Lord will meet His people. The Lord will speak to them and give them His commands from the place of mercy.[footnote:Ex. 25:21--22.]