YHWH & Traditions of Men

July 15, 2009, 10:00 am by dc-agape.

Exodus 20:18-26

YHWH takes all freewill from his people by presenting himself in this manner:

Exodus 20:18-19 when the people saw the thunder and lightning and heard the trumpet and saw the mountain in smoke, they trembled with fear.  They stayed at a distance and said to Moses, “Speak to us yourself and we will listen.  But do not have God speak to us or we will die. 

The poor Israelites have been saved from “slavery” only to nearly die from the Egyptian army, starvation, thirst, and now they are camped by an active volcano with a thunderstorm in tow!  Or is this just the way YHWH says “hi” to his chosen people?  Moses response tells us just what an ass YHWH really is.

Exodus 20:20 Moses said to the people, “Do not be afraid.  God has come to test you, so that the fear of God will be with you to keep you from sinning.”

Either YHWH is still naive about his own creation, or fails miserably at foreseeing the future.  In both cases YHWH is either not omnipotent or omniscient.  We certainly know how long the “fear of God” lasts…

Exodus 32:1 When the people saw that Moses was so long in coming down from the mountain, they gathered around Aaron and said, “Come, make us gods who will go before us.  As for this fellow Moses who brought us up out of Egypt, we don’t know what has happened to him.”

The time between these two verses, all 12 chapters, is actually 47 days (Exodus 24:15-18).  The only thing that happens during them is that Moses and YHWH have a heart-to-heart discussion.   In the discussion YHWH directs Moses on all the priestly responsibilities. 

Obviously, the people have forgotten the test, forgotten the “fear of God”, and have gotten bored.  It certainly could not have been of great length.  Remember nearly 600,000 men over the age of 20 (Numbers 1:45-46) with most likely an equal number of women, an unlisted number of children and all the livestock (Exodus 12:32).  With that many mouths to feed and provide water for, Mount Sinai is not the best location.  It’s a bloody “tropical” desert!  And I am not being sexist, that 600,000 were only the men (Numbers 1:44).  The rest of this chapter describes what YHWH wants as his only form of temple.He does not want it worked with tools!  He does not want steps leading up to it!  He only wants it to be made from un-worked earth (Exodus 20:24-26).  Yet somehow churches and synagogues now have worked stone and steps!  Did YHWH change?  That certainly is not possible (James 1:17)!

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