Cloudy Days on the Mountain

Exodus 24:12-18, the First Reading for the Transfiguration of our Lord in the Year of Mark, is a short reading amidst other more well known readings.  Preceding it is the account of  Moses and the seventy elders ascending the mountain where we read that "God did not lay his hand on the chief men of the people of Israel; also they beheld God, and they ate and drank." (24:11)  Following the reading, we have tabernacle instructions, but when the narrative picks up we have Aaron and Hur, the ones entrusted with leadership over Israel while Moses is on the mountain, agreeing to the making of a golden calf for Israel to worship, supposedly because the people have given up ever seeing Moses or his God again.  These stories are stories of God's presence and God's absence.  Our listeners will be familiar with both.  It will be the preacher's task to lift this up.

(The following questions are meant to be used in conjunction with other fine sets of questions which exegetes have at their disposal.  These particular questions have been developed to understand the function of the Word in a text, something important for Law and Gospel preachers.  If you would like to learn more about this method and Law and Gospel preaching, see my brief guide, Afflicting the Comfortable, Comforting the Afflicted, available from wipfandstock.com or amazon.)

1.  How does the Word function in the text?  The cloud functions as a symbol of both Law and Gospel here.  The cloud is a symbol of God's presence, so in that way it is a Gospel function.  We also hear God summoning Moses to receive the law and the commandments, an indication of God's care for the people, so that is also a Gospel function.  The cloud also has the effect of cloaking God in mystery and we are told that "the appearance of the glory of the Lord was like a devouring fire," so there is its Law function.  God is to be both trusted and feared; that is clear.

2.  With whom are you identifying in the text?  Since Moses is being addressed in this text, we do well to take the place of Moses.  We are called by God to enter into the cloud.  We are called to stand before God and listen.  We are called to put our life in God's hands.

3.  What, if any, call to obedience is there in this text?  In the word to the elders we have a call to obedience.  It is a simple command:  "Wait here for us, until we come to you again."  As we know, these elders did not obey this command, but descended the mountain and ended up convincing Aaron and Hur to fashion a golden calf for them.

4.  What Law/Gospel couplet is suggested by this text?  I have suggested several ways that the cloud functions as a symbol of Law/Gospel.  Using those phrases we might suggest the following couplets:  hiddenness/openness; devouring fire/cleansing fire.

5.  Exegetical work:  The idea that the cloud is a symbol of God's presence has been noted by scholars for a long time.  We see this first in the Exodus story where "the Lord went in front of [Israel] in a pillar of cloud by day, to lead them along the way, and in a pillar of fire by night." (Exodus 13:21)  The JPS Torah Commentary translates cabod Yahweh (the glory of the Lord) as "The Presence of the Lord" in both  verse 16 and 17. (p. 154)  It is interesting to think about the presence of God being like a consuming or devouring fire.  Does that suggest that God's presence is continually cleansing us?  Something to ponder.  As far as Moses' willingness to enter the cloud, we have this from Ambrose, the 4th century bishop of Milan:  "If anyone therefore desires to behold this image of God, he must love God so as to be loved by him, no longer as a servant but as a friend who observes his commandments, that he may enter the cloud where God is."  (Ancient Christian Commentary on Scripture, OT, III, p. 121)

6.  How does the Crossings Community model work with this text?  Mark Marius does a nice job of sorting out Law and Gospel in his 2015 analysis, archived under the reference.  He calls the diagnosis, "God will see you... now", and the prognosis, "Now we see God."  He takes us to the mountain of Transfiguration where God truly reveals Godself, "This is my Son, listen to him," and shows how that cloud is the place of God's full revelation.  See the entire analysis at crossings.org/text-study.

Blessings on your proclamation!