- Intro
- Slide 2 Exodus 6:2–3 (ESV) God spoke to Moses and said to him, “I am the Lord (Yahweh). I appeared to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, as God Almighty (El Shaddai), but by my name the Lord I did not make myself known to them.”
- There is a contrasting revelation – during the age of the Patriarchs God was known as El Shaddai (God Almighty) but now He is intending to make Himself known as Yahweh.
- At different points in history things shift and are never the same again. Such as the Civil Rights Movement, or the internet, or Covid
- Slide 2 Exodus 6:2–3 (ESV) God spoke to Moses and said to him, “I am the Lord (Yahweh). I appeared to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, as God Almighty (El Shaddai), but by my name the Lord I did not make myself known to them.”
- Watershed moments or turning points… happen in our world periodically, this is a watershed moment.
- The Patriarchal Revelation of God
- Yahweh & El Shaddai
- Yahweh occurrences in Genesis
- Slide 3 I looked up Yahweh in Genesis thinking I wouldn’t find it
- Yahweh: 161 times, more than 3 times per chapter
- El Shaddai: 5 times
- Something is wrong…
- Slide 3 I looked up Yahweh in Genesis thinking I wouldn’t find it
- Maybe the narrator of Genesis knew it was Yahweh but the people in the story did not. Like God was kind of a secret santa.
- Several times they called on the name of Yahweh. Gen 4:26 – Abraham even called Him Sovereign Yahweh in Genesis 15:2,8 and Sarah called Him Yahweh in chapter 16. Many others called Him Yahweh – Abraham’s servant, Isaac, the people of the land who made a treaty with Isaac, etc.
- In addition to that, Moses mother was named Jochebed – Num 26:59
- Jo (Yo) – from Yahweh
- Chebed (cheved) from Kabod/Kabed – glory – weighty
- So, what is going on? How can God say to Moses that the old revelation is El Shaddai and the new revelation is Yahweh, when the people already knew the name Yahweh?
- Slide 4 NIV – By my name Yahweh I did not make myself FULLY known.
- They knew God, but didn’t really know His character and His ways.
- Example – Sacrifice Isaac on the altar – normal for gods to ask things like that. We know God’s ways and character and that He wouldn’t ask that. They did not.
- If someone starts hearing voices to take someone up to Monkey Face with a knife… we know that God isn’t asking that.
- Abraham had periodic experiences, some 13 years apart.
- How would you like to have a relationship with God like that. Wonderful experience followed by 13 years of nothing, no podcast, no worship music, no church, no Christian friends, etc.
- God’s character
- God’s love, compassion, mercy, faithfulness, kindness, forgiveness are used very few times and in most cases not until later in the book.
- So, they had the name Yahweh, but not much about His character.
- They knew God, but didn’t really know His character and His ways.
- Slide 5 What about El Shaddai occurrences in Genesis?
- El Shaddai – 7x total, 5 in Genesis
- Shaddai – 41x total, 1 in Genesis, 2 in Numbers, 2 in Ruth, 2 in the Psalms, 1 in Isaiah, 1 in Ezekiel, 1 in Joel, 31 in Job
- Slide 6 Meaning of El Shaddai – God Almighty
- DBL Hebrew – a title for the true God, often with a focus on the power to complete promises of blessing and prosperity[1]
- Slide 7 Shadday is similar to the Hebrew term shad, meaning “breast” (Ezek 23:3,21,34; Song 4:5; 7:3), but “God of breasts” is not a reasonable translation. The possibly related Akkadian word shadu (meaning “mountain”)—along with the abundant testimony in the ot associating God with mountains (e.g., Sinai)—suggests that the word means “God of the mountain” or “God of the mountainous wilderness.” God used this name again later in Genesis and in Exodus (Gen 28:3; 35:11; 48:3; Exod 6:3).[2]
- Different than Lord almighty, which means Lord of hosts
- Conclusion
- The patriarchs had a revelation of God’s power and a beginning understanding of what He is like compared to other gods. But, now there os going to b a greater and more personal revelation. This is what God is likely emphasizing with Moses in Ex. 6.
- Example:
- Knowing someone in a certain context , maybe at work, and then getting to know them relationally and you see a different side of them.
- My relationship with Sharon.
- Slide 8 Moses’ journey
- Armed with the promise of Exodus 6:2-3 and others in that chapter Moses and Aaron start to engage with Pharoah.
- God sends one plague after another on Egypt finally culminating in the death of the firstborn
- God parts the Red Sea and leads Israel through and then destroys the Egyptian army
- God turns bitter water sweet, provides Manna in the wilderness and water from a rock.
- He leads them to Mt. Sinai, speaks to them directly (ex. 19, 20:22, Deut. 5:1-17) gives them the 10 commandments and makes a covenant with them.
- Slide 9 God opened heaven and invited Moses and the elders into His Presence on Mt. Sinai and they had a meal with him and saw him. Ex. 24:9-11
- 9 Then Moses and Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel went up, 10 and they saw the God of Israel. There was under his feet as it were a pavement of sapphire stone, like the very heaven for clearness. 11 And he did not lay his hand on the chief men of the people of Israel; they beheld God, and ate and drank.
- Slide 10 Then Moses went up the mountain and was there for 40 days and 40 nights in the Presence of God receiving instructions about the building of the tabernacle.
- Then came the golden calf incident, the broken tablets and Moses’ intercession for the people. This brings us up through Exodus 32.
- Moses has had a phenomenal journey with God, has seen His glory and power, been in His Presence, and heard His words.
- But up until now, something of the glory of God and the Name of God is still missing.
- Moses’ requests
- In Chapter 33 Moses is still looking for something He hasn’t experienced up till now.
- Slide 11 Read Ex. 33:12-13 – Moses said to the LORD, “See, you say to me, ‘Bring up this people,’ but you have not let me know whom you will send with me. Yet you have said, ‘I know you by name, and you have also found favor in my sight.’ 13 Now therefore, if I have found favor in your sight, please show me now your ways, that I may know you in order to find favor in your sight.
- Lord, you know my name, now, please reveal to me yours.
- Ex. 33:18-19 Then Moses said, “Now show me your glory.” And the LORD said, “I will cause all my goodness to pass in front of you, and I will proclaim my name, the LORD, in your presence.
- Slide 11 Read Ex. 33:12-13 – Moses said to the LORD, “See, you say to me, ‘Bring up this people,’ but you have not let me know whom you will send with me. Yet you have said, ‘I know you by name, and you have also found favor in my sight.’ 13 Now therefore, if I have found favor in your sight, please show me now your ways, that I may know you in order to find favor in your sight.
- In Chapter 33 Moses is still looking for something He hasn’t experienced up till now.
- Slide 12 Moses makes several requests in Ex. 33; we will focus on just one: Show me your glory – Ex. 33:19
- He isn’t asking for signs, wonders, and miracles, He’s seen those. Not that they don’t need more. They will need more miracles and acts of power to make it through the desert and take the promised land.
- Is it the weighty Presence? No, He is already in it. And He recently spent 40 days in it.
- What else is there?
- I believe it reaches back to Ex. 6:2-3. He is still waiting for God to make Himself fully known as Yahweh.
- 33:19 – The Greek translators: “Manifest yourself, make yourself known, show/reveal yourself”
- In a sense, it is like Moses is saying, everything we have experienced up until now is still more or less “God Almighty” stuff. And I am still waiting for the Yahweh revelation.
- Moses asks to see God’s glory, the Lord responds that He will reveal His goodness (In Greek, Moses’ request is: God reveal yourself, God’s response is: I will show you my glory)
- God’s glory, Goodness, ways, face, Presence and finally…Name are all linked.
- In chapter 34 the glory/goodness becomes the Name, which is the implied promise in Ex. 6:2-3 and is the deeper revelation Moses is seeking.
- God’s revelation
- Slide 13 34: 6-7a – Yahweh, Yahweh the compassionate and gracious God slow to anger and abounding in love and faithfulness; maintaining love to thousands and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin, yet He does not leave the guilty unpunished, but visits the sin of the fathers on the children to the third and fourth generation.
- Yahweh 2x, the explicit declaration of several character qualities rooted in God’s love and faithfulness and beginning with mercy and ending with justice.
- Slide 14 – 7 qualities, in Ex. 34:14 we get an 8th quality – jealousy.
- Slide 13 34: 6-7a – Yahweh, Yahweh the compassionate and gracious God slow to anger and abounding in love and faithfulness; maintaining love to thousands and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin, yet He does not leave the guilty unpunished, but visits the sin of the fathers on the children to the third and fourth generation.
- This defining revelation is referred to over and over throughout the rest of the Old Testament and is often the basis for prayer requests and prophetic promises.
- Slide 15 The result – After this encounter Moses’ face shone with glory. Ex. 34:29
- Moses’ face had never shone with glory before.
- It was the Yahweh encounter, the encounter with His Name and His character that changed Moses.
- It was this deeper revelation of God’s character that became the basis for Israel’s relationship with God.
- Slide 16 Conclusion:
- Exodus 6 and then 33-34 were a “watershed” moment in Israel. Our watershed moment is the coming of Jesus, His death and resurrection and the sending of the Hoy Spirit.
- Slide 17T. Picture: 17 Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. 18 And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit.
- Slide 18 Paul indicates that as amazing as Moses’ revelation was, we have access to an even greater manifestation of that glory through the indwelling Holy Spirit.
- The New Covenant is a better covenant that gives us access to greater glory and a greater revelation of God.
- We can embrace Moses’ longing and couple it with our New Covenant reality.
- Slide 18 Paul indicates that as amazing as Moses’ revelation was, we have access to an even greater manifestation of that glory through the indwelling Holy Spirit.
We need signs, wonders and miracles in our day. But, something even deeper and greater is available to us. And that is, to behold His glory, to see Him “face to face” in the Spirit and to know the deeper realties of His character. He invites us to come in closer, to come in deeper and to truly know Him. And it is when we deeply know Him that He is able to reveal Himself and make Himself known through us.
[1] Swanson, J. (1997). Dictionary of Biblical Languages with Semantic Domains : Hebrew (Old Testament) (electronic ed.). Oak Harbor: Logos Research Systems, Inc.
[2] Barry, J. D., Mangum, D., Brown, D. R., Heiser, M. S., Custis, M., Ritzema, E., … Bomar, D. (2012, 2016). Faithlife Study Bible (Ge 17:1). Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press.