God Speaks at Sinai

When God first appeared to Moses in the burning bush on Mount Horeb, the Lord told Moses that the sign he was sent by our Creator would be that he and the Israelites would serve God on that same mountain (Ex. 3:1–12). Having arrived at the wilderness of Sinai, the people would see the promised sign about to be fulfilled, as we read in today’s passage. The mountain where the Israelites found themselves three months after leaving Egypt was Mount Sinai (see Ex. 19:1–11), which is another name for Mount Horeb (see 33:1–6; Deut. 1:6).

Up until this point, God had referred to Israel as His people (e.g., Ex. 3:7; 5:1), but there was not yet a formal covenant relationship established with them like that which existed with their forefather Abraham (see Gen. 15; 17). At Mount Sinai, this would change. Upon Israel’s arrival at the mountain, Moses went up to meet with the Lord (Ex. 19:1–3), but probably not to its summit. There, God spoke to the prophet and gave him words to deliver to the people of Israel that would begin the process of formalizing the covenant between them and the Lord.

Exodus 19:4–6 records what Moses was to communicate to the people. Note that God began with a brief recounting of what had led up to this meeting with Israel at Sinai. He reminded the Israelites that they had seen the mighty works He had done in rescuing them from the Egyptians and carrying them safely through the wilderness to the mountain (v. 4). God alone had done this, which means that the very foundation of His relationship with His people was divine grace. Israel had not saved itself from slavery, and the Israelites certainly had not made it so far by their own efforts. In fact, they had grumbled against the God who redeemed them (chs. 16–17), showing that they did not deserve the blessed relationship that they were about to enter. Even under the old covenant, God’s grace came first. He always takes the initiative in salvation.

Because the Lord had acted first in grace, the Israelites were to respond in obedience to Him, which would result in their being a kingdom of priests and His treasured possession on earth (19:5–6). God is the Creator of all people, but He has not made a covenant of blessing with all people. Nevertheless, He establishes Israel as a covenant people so that they will minister to the rest of the world as a holy priesthood that directs others to Him.