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“The earth also is defiled under the inhabitants thereof; because they have transgressed the laws, changed the ordinance, broken the everlasting covenant. Therefore hath the curse devoured the earth, and they that dwell therein are desolate: therefore the inhabitants of the earth are burned, and few men left.” – Isaiah 24:5-6
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In Exodus 20, Moses drew near to God on behalf of the people and delivered to them the Ten Commandments. Along with the Ten Commandments, God gave the people many “judgments” that are recorded in Exodus 21through Exodus 24. These four chapters entail various commandments of God, until finally, by Exodus 24, Moses ascends the Mount of God. Why did Moses ascend up the Mountain of God? God was teaching Moses about His Covenant agreement which He desires to make with the people. This ascension up the Mountain marks the beginning of when God began to initiate the Covenant. This exclusive meeting with God and Moses lasted forty days and nights! With awe and wonder, Moses beheld visions of heavenly realities, and he took note of instructions of how to replicate an earthly simulation. On the day preceding Moses’ ascent, the Israelite people gave a verbal vow of commitment to the words of the Covenant which were thus far declared, and also to those things which will be added to it (Ex. 24:3). The people verbally vowed, the proper sacrifices were made (Ex. 24:4-6), the people were sprinkled by “the blood of the Covenant” (Ex. 24:8), the “seventy elders of Israel” “saw the God of Israel” by a partial ascension up the Mount, and finally, directly after the seventy elders did eat and drink in the presence of God, the Lord specifically called Moses up into the Mount alone to receive “tables of stone, and a law, and commandments,” which God wrote for Moses to “teach” Israel with (Ex. 24:9-12). Moses’ last words were, “Tarry ye here for us, until we come again unto you: and, behold, Aaron and Hur are with you: if any man have any matters to do, let him come unto them” (Exodus 14:14).
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“And Moses went up into the Mount, and a cloud covered the Mount. And the glory of the LORD abode upon Mount Sinai, and the cloud covered it six days: and the seventh day He called unto Moses out of the midst of the cloud. And the sight of the glory of the LORD was like a devouring fire on the top of the Mount in the eyes of the children of Israel. And Moses went in the midst of the cloud, and gat him up into the Mount: and Moses was in the Mount forty days and forty nights” (Ex. 24:14-18).
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In the next forty days and forty nights, Moses was receiving all the holy and precautionary measures that must be taken, for what? That it might be possible to build a dwelling place for God! This had never been attempted or commanded before this point. To say the least, necessary preparations must be taken if the LORD, Who is terrifyingly holy, was going to dwell in the midst of a sinful people without devouring them in wrath. The Lord said, “Let them make Me a sanctuary; that I may dwell among them” (Ex. 25:8). Moses was taught of what measurements and materials the Tabernacle was to be made of, everything that was to be within it, and when all of this was completed, Moses would not have to go up the Mountain to commune in God’s special and immediate presence. From then onward, “there,” in the holy of holies, above the mercy seat, God says, “I will meet with thee, and I will commune with thee from above the mercy seat, from between the two cherubims which are upon the ark of the testimony, of all things which I will give thee in commandment unto the children of Israel” (Ex. 25:22). This was the great Covenant purpose!
It is God that sanctifies, it is His presence which makes all things holy, and He saved a people so that He might “dwell among the children of Israel” to “be their God!” Forty days and nights at the peaks of Sinai – only Moses & The Almighty – and then God “made an end of communing with” Moses, but while Moses tarried these forty days to come down, the people fell into idolatry. It is then that “The Great Pause” of the Covenant occurred! Shockingly, the very Covenant which Moses was receiving on the Mountain for forty days and nights was probated and then, after a great pause of indecision, it was scarcely established as it was originally initiated. After the idolatry, at first, God refused to make a Covenant with the people and nearly annihilated every one of them! Had not Moses interceded against God’s just intention for total destruction, then all the people would have been killed. God thought and moved to kill all of them! ALL, except Moses, were in the direct line of Divine wrath! Not a portion of them, nor half of them, but all of them! God was even wroth with those Israelites who did not sin in the uprising of idolatry, who did not participate in the reveling masses of idolaters. In all of it, God’s forbearance against the iniquitous was tried. These people, who were precious in God’s eyes, did learn that “it is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the Living God” (Heb. 10:31), and that God does exercise vengeance, especially towards His people. Israel learns this now, right and early, that before God ever takes vengeance upon the rest of the world, firstly, His eye of judgment is upon Israel. “Vengeance belongeth unto Me, I will recompense, saith the Lord. And again, The Lord shall judge His people” (Heb. 10:30). Therefore it is written, “Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God” (Matt. 4:7).
It is God that sanctifies, it is His presence which makes all things holy, and He saved a people so that He might “dwell among the children of Israel” to “be their God!” Forty days and nights at the peaks of Sinai – only Moses & The Almighty – and then God “made an end of communing with” Moses, but while Moses tarried these forty days to come down, the people fell into idolatry. It is then that “The Great Pause” of the Covenant occurred! Shockingly, the very Covenant which Moses was receiving on the Mountain for forty days and nights was probated and then, after a great pause of indecision, it was scarcely established as it was originally initiated. After the idolatry, at first, God refused to make a Covenant with the people and nearly annihilated every one of them! Had not Moses interceded against God’s just intention for total destruction, then all the people would have been killed. God thought and moved to kill all of them! ALL, except Moses, were in the direct line of Divine wrath! Not a portion of them, nor half of them, but all of them! God was even wroth with those Israelites who did not sin in the uprising of idolatry, who did not participate in the reveling masses of idolaters. In all of it, God’s forbearance against the iniquitous was tried. These people, who were precious in God’s eyes, did learn that “it is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the Living God” (Heb. 10:31), and that God does exercise vengeance, especially towards His people. Israel learns this now, right and early, that before God ever takes vengeance upon the rest of the world, firstly, His eye of judgment is upon Israel. “Vengeance belongeth unto Me, I will recompense, saith the Lord. And again, The Lord shall judge His people” (Heb. 10:30). Therefore it is written, “Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God” (Matt. 4:7).
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"And the LORD said unto Moses, Go, get thee down; for thy people, which thou broughtest out of the land of Egypt, have corrupted themselves: They have turned aside quickly out of the way which I commanded them: they have made them a molten calf, and have worshipped it, and have sacrificed thereunto, and said, These be thy gods, O Israel, which have brought thee up out of the land of Egypt. And the LORD said unto Moses, I have seen this people, and, behold, it is a stiffnecked people: Now therefore let Me alone, that My wrath may wax hot against them, and that I may consume them: and I will make of thee a great nation." (Exodus 32:7-10)
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I have written on this passage more than once in this book. Nevertheless, consider it again, and after it, consider the whole trail of God’s “repentings” until the devastating word was given by God - “I am weary with repenting” (Jer. 15:9). Beginning with Exodus 32, let’s trace every repeat of this historical example. As we do this, let us consider the question, just how scarce is salvation? Peter concluded from biblical history that, “judgment must begin at the House of God”, and in the judgments of God he saw that “the righteous are scarcely saved” (1 Peter 4:17-18). Do you know what Peter is talking about? After this chapter you may, if God permits. The wrath of God that was kindled in Exodus 32:10 was not easily pacified, and the Covenant underwent a “Great Pause.” You must see the significance of this “The Great Pause,” and how it is the first of many repentances of God which are to come!
The recently saved Israelites who are now precious and promise-bound, who now stand in the shadow of Sinai before a Covenant-determined God, and suddenly, God INTENDED to totally annihilate them and nullify the whole Covenant, deciding to begin again with Moses’ seed. The people who were the objects of His love, the people that He saved by an outstretched arm of irresistible power, until Egyptian sovereignty bowed to the people whom they put into slavery – it was these very people that God was suddenly ready to destroy! While Moses was still upon the Mountain, God saw the idolatry…then He suddenly changed His mind and decided to destroy them rather than save them, and thereby He was refusing to dwell among them. When Moses heard this command of God, “GO, get thee down… let Me alone, that My wrath may wax hot against them, and that I may consume them” (Ex. 32:10), he did intercede for Israel (under the inspiration of the Holy Ghost). The spirits of intercessors do see and hear the secret judgments of God, and through great travail of soul therewith, through the full comprehension and spiritual sensation of sudden and impending dooms, behold, they cry out life-saving prayers. To many people, prayer is but an obligation. Or maybe it is an achievement of dedication. To spiritual men, it is an experience of ceaseless communion with the friendly face of God, at least until that friendship is interrupted by wrath, and immediately, prayer becomes a cause of interceding against the dangers at hand. Prayer is thus intermittent with intercessions for the dangers that threaten present progressive salvation. “The natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit,” which means, also, that he cannot comprehend the dimensions of Christian prayer. The most brutish sinner would call for help to any passerby, if, behold, some cause of carnal emergency and life-threatening alarm is upon him. If any man is frightened enough, he will lift up his voice and call aloud! But what a sinner is blind to, even that does the Christian freely see (1 Cor. 2:10), and it is the “fearful looking” of those fiery judgments that are deep in the heart of God (Heb. 10:27)! A Christian does pray because he sees spiritual realities. Therefore he does call aloud for what he and others need! Christians are life-guarding men standing watch. They are the only messengers for the spiritually blind, they are to pray for and fight over what is completely out of humanity’s natural mind. They are the only able men for spiritual emergencies, and the world does not understand their urgency.
The recently saved Israelites who are now precious and promise-bound, who now stand in the shadow of Sinai before a Covenant-determined God, and suddenly, God INTENDED to totally annihilate them and nullify the whole Covenant, deciding to begin again with Moses’ seed. The people who were the objects of His love, the people that He saved by an outstretched arm of irresistible power, until Egyptian sovereignty bowed to the people whom they put into slavery – it was these very people that God was suddenly ready to destroy! While Moses was still upon the Mountain, God saw the idolatry…then He suddenly changed His mind and decided to destroy them rather than save them, and thereby He was refusing to dwell among them. When Moses heard this command of God, “GO, get thee down… let Me alone, that My wrath may wax hot against them, and that I may consume them” (Ex. 32:10), he did intercede for Israel (under the inspiration of the Holy Ghost). The spirits of intercessors do see and hear the secret judgments of God, and through great travail of soul therewith, through the full comprehension and spiritual sensation of sudden and impending dooms, behold, they cry out life-saving prayers. To many people, prayer is but an obligation. Or maybe it is an achievement of dedication. To spiritual men, it is an experience of ceaseless communion with the friendly face of God, at least until that friendship is interrupted by wrath, and immediately, prayer becomes a cause of interceding against the dangers at hand. Prayer is thus intermittent with intercessions for the dangers that threaten present progressive salvation. “The natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit,” which means, also, that he cannot comprehend the dimensions of Christian prayer. The most brutish sinner would call for help to any passerby, if, behold, some cause of carnal emergency and life-threatening alarm is upon him. If any man is frightened enough, he will lift up his voice and call aloud! But what a sinner is blind to, even that does the Christian freely see (1 Cor. 2:10), and it is the “fearful looking” of those fiery judgments that are deep in the heart of God (Heb. 10:27)! A Christian does pray because he sees spiritual realities. Therefore he does call aloud for what he and others need! Christians are life-guarding men standing watch. They are the only messengers for the spiritually blind, they are to pray for and fight over what is completely out of humanity’s natural mind. They are the only able men for spiritual emergencies, and the world does not understand their urgency.
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“Now therefore let Me alone, that My wrath may wax hot against them, and that I may consume them: and I will make of thee a great nation. And Moses besought the LORD his God, and said, LORD, why doth Thy wrath wax hot against Thy people, which Thou hast brought forth out of the land of Egypt with great power, and with a mighty hand? Wherefore should the Egyptians speak, and say, For mischief did He bring them out, to slay them in the mountains, and to consume them from the face of the earth? Turn from Thy fierce wrath, and repent of this evil against Thy people. Remember Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, Thy servants, to whom Thou swarest by Thine own self, and saidst unto them, I will multiply your seed as the stars of heaven, and all this land that I have spoken of will I give unto your seed, and they shall inherit it for ever. And the LORD repented of the evil which He thought to do unto His people” (Exodus 32:10-14).
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"THE GREAT PAUSE" -->
& GOD's UNCERTAINTY --> (God in the Ways of Man) |
Exodus 32:15-24:10
“For the LORD had said unto Moses, Say unto the children of Israel, Ye are a stiffnecked people: I will come up into the midst of thee in a moment, and consume thee: therefore now put off thy ornaments from thee, that I may know what to do unto thee” (Exodus 33:5). |
With two main reasons, Moses pleads a case to God, if haply, God’s just wrath would be quenched and forgiveness would be won. Upon hearing Moses’ intercession, then “the LORD repented of the evil which He thought to do unto His people” (Ex. 32:14). From this point (Exodus 32:15), all the way to Exodus 34:10 – this is “The Great Pause”! After yielding to Moses’ intercession which he prayed in Exodus 32:10-14, all we know is that, for a time, God was undecided about what He was going to do with Israel. Moses’ first intercession succeeded, and the life of the whole nation of Israel was spared, even all of those who repented of their idolatry were spared, but God had not decided whether He would dwell among the people as He had formerly explained to Moses that He would. In the meantime, Moses was desperate to try every possible means of intercession to regain the grace and favor of God again, if haply, God might reinstate the Covenant that was told to him on the Mount - that the Lord, and no other, would dwell among them.
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REMINDING GOD -->
(God in the Ways of Man) |
“I have set watchmen upon thy walls, O Jerusalem, which shall never hold their peace day nor night: ye that make mention of the LORD, keep not silence, And give Him no rest, till He establish, and till He make Jerusalem a praise in the earth” (Isaiah 62:6-7).
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There are three means of intercession that the prophets do engage in, and in these means they do “wrestle” against God, but more specifically, they wrestle against the just, holy, and angry will of God, which is set to destroy – Firstly: intercession is done by the execution of justice and judgment upon guilty, unpardonable sinners. Secondarily: intercession is done by prayer which reminds God of the consequential effects of destroying wrath, namely, the glory of His Name that hinges upon what He will decide to do in the present circumstance, and the word, promises, and Covenants He has made with men in time past and present. Thirdly: intercession is done by a sacrifice or offering of some kind, which, when death is accomplished, it bears the penalty of the guilty sinner. With these three kinds of intercession in mind, let us study this Great Pause very carefully. Let us see the Divine struggle at hand, and how the holy intercessions of the prophet Moses did strive for mercy, amazingly, by standing against the fierce countenance of God which was pointed to destroy! As we acquaint ourselves with this, please remember, this is the beginning of the Covenant, and if Moses succeeds and the Covenant is established, then this marks the beginning of many centuries wherein God’s prophets do wrestle in intercession concerning the same purpose of the Covenant – That this saying would be fulfilled: “I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people…I will receive you, and will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be My sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty” (2 Cor. 6:16-18).
Moses does five works of intercession: in two acts of judgment and three prayerful entreaties. The two acts of judgment and the first prayer are all in Exodus 32:15-35, written below:
Moses does five works of intercession: in two acts of judgment and three prayerful entreaties. The two acts of judgment and the first prayer are all in Exodus 32:15-35, written below:
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"And Moses turned, and went down from the mount, and the two tables of the testimony were in his hand: the tables were written on both their sides; on the one side and on the other were they written. And the tables were the work of God, and the writing was the writing of God, graven upon the tables. And when Joshua heard the noise of the people as they shouted, he said unto Moses, There is a noise of war in the camp. And he said, It is not the voice of them that shout for mastery, neither is it the voice of them that cry for being overcome: but the noise of them that sing do I hear.
And it came to pass, as soon as he came nigh unto the camp, that he saw the calf, and the dancing: and Moses’ anger waxed hot, and he cast the tables out of his hands, and brake them beneath the mount. And he took the calf which they had made, and burnt it in the fire, and ground it to powder, and strawed it upon the water, and made the children of Israel drink of it. And Moses said unto Aaron, What did this people unto thee, that thou hast brought so great a sin upon them? And Aaron said, Let not the anger of my lord wax hot: thou knowest the people, that they are set on mischief. For they said unto me, Make us gods, which shall go before us: for as for this Moses, the man that brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we wot not what is become of him. And I said unto them, Whosoever hath any gold, let them break it off. So they gave it me: then I cast it into the fire, and there came out this calf. And when Moses saw that the people were naked; (for Aaron had made them naked unto their shame among their enemies:) Then Moses stood in the gate of the camp, and said, Who is on the LORD’S side? let him come unto me. And all the sons of Levi gathered themselves together unto him. And he said unto them, Thus saith the LORD God of Israel, Put every man his sword by his side, and go in and out from gate to gate throughout the camp, and slay every man his brother, and every man his companion, and every man his neighbour. And the children of Levi did according to the word of Moses: and there fell of the people that day about three thousand men. For Moses had said, Consecrate yourselves to day to the LORD, even every man upon his son, and upon his brother; that He may bestow upon you a blessing this day. And it came to pass on the morrow, that Moses said unto the people, Ye have sinned a great sin: and now I will go up unto the LORD; peradventure I shall make an atonement for your sin. And Moses returned unto the LORD, and said, Oh, this people have sinned a great sin, and have made them gods of gold. Yet now, if Thou wilt forgive their sin--; and if not, blot me, I pray Thee, out of Thy book which Thou hast written. And the LORD said unto Moses, Whosoever hath sinned against Me, him will I blot out of My book. Therefore now go, lead the people unto the place of which I have spoken unto thee: behold, Mine angel shall go before thee: nevertheless in the day when I visit I will visit their sin upon them. And the LORD plagued the people, because they made the calf, which Aaron made." (Exodus 32:15-35) |
The first act of intercession by judgment does reflect the mind & message of God. God was wroth, and so, “Moses’ anger waxed hot.” God decided against the Covenant, and so, Moses broke the tablets of the Covenant which contained the Ten Commandments. The message of God was clear – the Covenant is broken. Then Moses grinded the golden calf and had the people drink it. He knew that this was the object of God’s jealousy and “curse” (Deut. 7:25-26).
The second act of intercession by judgment is when Moses killed the unrepentant. The call of Moses went forth, “Who is on the LORD’S side?” Those who answered from the idolatrous multitude, or those who were standing in their surrounding tents, these were the repentant people from the tribe of Levi. They came forward to be sent out, and for what? To kill their family members who engaged in the idolatry, who still, even now, remained unrepentant, and so…the Levites went forth to “slay every man his brother, every man his companion, and every man his neighbor!” With much anguish of soul, the Levites did mercilessly slay their friends and family!
Though severe judgment had been executed, Moses knew the Covenant was not yet reinstated. The sin of Israel was “great!” Moses contemplated a second ascent up the Mountain God, to appeal, if haply, God might forgive Israel for their sins, but Moses dared not ascend the Mount of God to make his request without executing due justice against the calf and its worshippers. What about you, preacher? God observed the death of those unrepentant men and women with fierce anger burning in His eyes. After all that could be done was done, and a part of Israel was executed-dead, the rest still stood in jeopardy…Moses said, “now I will go up unto the LORD; peradventure I shall make an atonement for your sin” (Ex. 32:30). Moses pleads for their forgiveness, to no avail. He offers himself as a sacrifice, and is denied. Furthermore, God still refuses to dwell among the people! God said, “therefore now go, lead the people unto the place of which I have spoken unto thee: behold, Mine angel shall go before thee: nevertheless in the day when I visit I will visit their sin upon them. And the LORD plagued the people, because they made the calf, which Aaron made” (Ex. 32:34-35). God lifted up His hand of wrath and sent forth a smiting plague upon the people, and behold, each man was in their plague of pain. Israel was full of the sounds of howling agony, and everyone knew – GOD IS STILL ANGRY. Yet, nobody knew the greatest loss which Moses was desperate to recover, that God would no longer dwell among the people. I repeat, God decided that an angel would dwell among them instead of Himself.
The second act of intercession by judgment is when Moses killed the unrepentant. The call of Moses went forth, “Who is on the LORD’S side?” Those who answered from the idolatrous multitude, or those who were standing in their surrounding tents, these were the repentant people from the tribe of Levi. They came forward to be sent out, and for what? To kill their family members who engaged in the idolatry, who still, even now, remained unrepentant, and so…the Levites went forth to “slay every man his brother, every man his companion, and every man his neighbor!” With much anguish of soul, the Levites did mercilessly slay their friends and family!
Though severe judgment had been executed, Moses knew the Covenant was not yet reinstated. The sin of Israel was “great!” Moses contemplated a second ascent up the Mountain God, to appeal, if haply, God might forgive Israel for their sins, but Moses dared not ascend the Mount of God to make his request without executing due justice against the calf and its worshippers. What about you, preacher? God observed the death of those unrepentant men and women with fierce anger burning in His eyes. After all that could be done was done, and a part of Israel was executed-dead, the rest still stood in jeopardy…Moses said, “now I will go up unto the LORD; peradventure I shall make an atonement for your sin” (Ex. 32:30). Moses pleads for their forgiveness, to no avail. He offers himself as a sacrifice, and is denied. Furthermore, God still refuses to dwell among the people! God said, “therefore now go, lead the people unto the place of which I have spoken unto thee: behold, Mine angel shall go before thee: nevertheless in the day when I visit I will visit their sin upon them. And the LORD plagued the people, because they made the calf, which Aaron made” (Ex. 32:34-35). God lifted up His hand of wrath and sent forth a smiting plague upon the people, and behold, each man was in their plague of pain. Israel was full of the sounds of howling agony, and everyone knew – GOD IS STILL ANGRY. Yet, nobody knew the greatest loss which Moses was desperate to recover, that God would no longer dwell among the people. I repeat, God decided that an angel would dwell among them instead of Himself.
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“And the LORD said unto Moses, Depart, and GO…and I will send an angel before thee…” (Exodus 33:1-6).
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The command was given to “GO.” This showed that God meant to proceed with the Abrahamic Covenant, that He was intent on giving the Promised Land to Israel, but the forty days of instruction wherein God revealed His purpose to dwell among the people by a Tabernacle and all the incorporating laws (The Mosaic Covenant) was denied. Moses, “a man subject to like passions” as Jacob, did wrestle against the unwillingness of God to bless with the fulfillment of the Covenant. Moses sought “power with God” to “prevail,” to reinitiate the Covenant, hoping that God’s anger would only endure for “but a moment” (Gen. 32:28, Psa. 30:5), and that mercy might come in the morning. If so, then God’s anger would be but a pause, a temporary refusal to commence this holy agreement with the people, and that His wrath was but a momentary probation of the Covenant. You see, God already repented of His wrath to totally annihilate the people of Israel (Ex. 32:14), and for God to reinstate the Covenant after the Great Pause, this requires further repentance in God – away from wrath and unto the former mercies in the Covenant. Note: God is not a man that we might wrestle with Him, yet if we are moved and inspired by the Holy Ghost, if we stand – not alone, but in One of the Persons of the Trinity – then through Him we can wrestle against Him (God in the ways of man). The soul exhaustion of spiritual wrestling is a sensory experience for interceding saints. It is a personal participation in the wrestlings of God’s simultaneous and contradicting wills, in a clash – shifting and turning, they are rolling and burning, One against the Other – and, lo, they are wrestling all throughout the duration of time when God is undecided. This is just as God says in another place – “My heart is turned within Me, My repentings are kindled together” (Hos. 11:8)! This happens within time, and the holy prophet is included in the holy press – Will against Will – until at last, the ordination of His purpose chosen before is manifest as the final decision. For those of us who have been included in this Divine Mystery of wrestling repentances, by personal experience, it is as if we were lost betwixt the Persons of the Trinity for a while, straining against God yet compelled by God, in Him as one who is empowered to stand against Him. We may be weeping against God’s wrath, but there is a transcending peace that we are safely in God. It is a resting, yet a working, nevertheless I wrestle, yet not I, but Christ wrestleth in me. Such experiences are inexpressible…like “unspeakable words, which it is not lawful for a man to utter” (2 Cor. 12:4). Nevertheless, at Moses’ first attempt of prayerful intercession, he was not able to prevail with God. God’s present judgment was to replace Himself with the Angel which He spoke of. God’s judgment was further explained in the rest of Exodus 33:1-6.
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"And the LORD said unto Moses, Depart, and go up hence, thou and the people which thou hast brought up out of the land of Egypt, unto the land which I sware unto Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, saying, Unto thy seed will I give it: And I will send an angel before thee; and I will drive out the Canaanite, the Amorite, and the Hittite, and the Perizzite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite: Unto a land flowing with milk and honey: for I will not go up in the midst of thee; for thou art a stiffnecked people: lest I consume thee in the way. And when the people heard these evil tidings, they mourned: and no man did put on him his ornaments. For the LORD had said unto Moses, Say unto the children of Israel, Ye are a stiffnecked people: I will come up into the midst of thee in a moment, and consume thee: therefore now put off thy ornaments from thee, that I may know what to do unto thee. And the children of Israel stripped themselves of their ornaments by the mount Horeb." (Exodus 33:1-6)
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The Lord is so holy and the people so sinful…He knows He cannot even enter into the midst of them without becoming inflamed with holy anger, and when God is so near there is a suddenness to justice. God said – “I will come up into the midst of thee in a moment, and consume thee.” Do you understand the difficulty? One less holy than God could walk in the midst of Israel as they traveled to the Promised Land. One less holy than God can be the instrument of God’s deliverance to conquer the Promised Land for Israel, but for God, Himself, to be so nigh – this was a dangerously difficult happening! An Angel, one that is infinitely less holy than God, one so much less in dignity and purity, can continue in the midst of Israel without burning them up! An Angel in the Name of God is, by presence, person, and expression, a mere shadow of God – a great condescension. An angel, though exceedingly dignified, is infinitely less holy than God. This would be a lighter presence for humanity’s frame to bear. Comparatively to God, an angel may not be so aggravated with human depravity. An Angel may be a presence Israel could draw near to and survive with. We are able to look upon the shadow of God, and live, and even so, we are able endure an Angelic visitation face to face. Not so with the Almighty! Behold even the Holy Beasts of heaven, which do excel in incomprehensible strength and dignity! Even they cannot do anything but cry, Holy! Holy! Holy! before the Presence of God. No! They CANNOT look upon Him either! They shield their faces from the Most Holy and dare not to look upon God (Isaiah 6:1-3). In choosing an Angel to replace the Lord, this is an infinite step down. God was antagonized and appalled at sin, and having decided already that He will not dwell among them, He thus contemplates what He should do with them further…God says, “put off thy ornaments from thee, that I may know what to do unto thee.”
When God says that He does not know what to do…NOW is the time to cast yourself down to the ground! At such a time, LET ALL FLESH BE SILENT BEFORE GOD! “No flesh should glory in His presence” (1 Cor. 1:29)! By interpretation, “the children of Israel stripped themselves of their ornaments by the Mount Horeb” (Exodus 33:6). My reader, you will not find one decked-out, ornament-sparkling, silver-wrist-watching, make-up precise, hair-perfect, picture-conscience INTERCESSOR, no, not in all the world! What does your preacher look like? Oh! Look how firmly composed he is while he prays! And his gentle tones…away with them! They are so soothing to the ears – but he’s just playing the part – he is sounding for you a relaxing song! His tones are slow in pace, with syllables L-O-N-G, but this is nothing but a spiritual baby’s lullaby to keep you asleep! My reader, what ever happened to biblical Christianity!? People are crying in hell, and weeping – they are shouting and screaming! But we have painless preachers as “church” leaders, and we have sleeping spectators on pews for bleachers! And you tell the world that you believe in HELL!? What ever happened to, “Evening, and morning, and at noon, will I pray, and CRY ALOUD: and He shall hear my voice” (Ps. 55:17)!? But these men pray in front of men that they might be heard of men! Are you surprised that your congregation never wakes up?! Your preacher is always well composed, but the man is deceiving you by a vain show. “Church people” substitute the shining countenance of God, and for what? A dim-lighted congregation before a brightly lit stage – they all watch their preacher glow as he puts on the act. Be astonished at this! For God says, “My people love to have it so” (Jer. 5:31)! Not so with Moses, he “was very meek, above all the men which were upon the face of the earth” (Num. 12:3). Rightly said! This preacher had his face upon the earth “before all the assembly” (Num. 14:5)! What about you, thou man of “church?” If you don’t ever get on your face, then you are a preacher of pride, a peddler of God’s holy word for a paycheck! Moses “fell upon his face” down to the earth (Num. 16:4)! He, with Aaron – they “fell on their faces” (Num. 14:5), “fell upon their faces” (Num. 20:6), “fell upon their faces” (Num. 16:22), and “fell upon their faces” (Num. 16:45)! What about you? “David and the elders of Israel…fell upon their faces” (1 Chron. 21:16), “Abram fell on his face: and God talked with him” (Gen. 17:3), “Joshua fell on his face to the earth” (Josh. 5:14), and “all the people,” “they shouted and fell on their faces” (Lev. 9:24)!
When God does not know what to do, it is because the wrestling conflict of His simultaneous wills is unfinished! Amazing! At this time spiritual men behold the holy tension in God’s mind! “For who hath known the mind of the Lord, that he may instruct Him? But we have the mind of Christ” (1 Cor. 2:16). Spiritual men are, alas, caught up in a mystery, caught up in a river whose motions is God! It is as if they are hidden behind a thick veil, caught up in a holy place, and there the servants of all men travail in the Spirit. These men plead for the promises because they are obsessed with how God saves sinners, and how He makes His name famous among men. Why do they travail? Imagine it! It is as the agony of a woman’s birth! Imagine a woman crying aloud, and groaning, moan to moan, the delivering aid shouting, BREATHE! BREATHE! PANG to PANG, even so, intercession is comparatively the same. Intercessors TRAVAIL! Under bloody, flesh ripping, birth pangs, they are pained, and it is for those bound in God’s angry chains. Unseen and unthanked, for lo, “He that is greatest among you shall be your servant” (Matt. 23:11).
In the flesh, what is more painful and gruesome than a woman giving birth? This honorable but flesh-tearing experience is the inevitable appointment for a woman to bring God’s unborn humanity into life. Rightly said, so it is with spiritual intercessors! Only they are unheard, unseen, and in secret. That is, except for prayer meetings, but who goes to those anyway!? Therefore intercessors are without honor, thanks, and praise. Like a woman, but worse, they go through a like torment of spiritual birth all throughout their days. They do “travail in birth” for the souls of spiritual children “until Christ be formed” in them (Gal. 4:19). Paul described this when speaking to the Galatians, when he said, “My little children, of whom I travail in birth again until Christ be formed in you” (Gal. 4:19). This labor is wrought by the least of all men – the secret servants – praying for all humanity. Christians, they are the clothing of the Chief Intercessor, Jesus Christ, Who is the Hero over hell and the secret Servant of all men. His secret salvation outwitted the world! They, thinking to exterminate Him, committed the greatest possible evil by killing the Person of God! But through this supposed extermination, God was working their greatest and only salvation. As it was with Christ, so it is with intercessors, it is their pain that works another’s eternal pleasure – “so then death worketh in us, but life in you” (2 Cor. 4:12). They are the spiritual birth canal for an everlasting, newly-created life. Their strength is depleted in this most holy endeavor, and thereby they do become the weakest of men. “Who is weak, and I am not weak? Who is offended, and I burn not” (2 Cor. 11:29)? Weak, broken, and touched by God, they do not walk strong like other men. They have a lowly limp of deep humility, but they possess the treasure of unspeakable glory. They “wist not that the skin of” their face shines because they do talk with God (Exodus 34:29). As it was then, even so it is now, “And when He saw that He prevailed not against him, He touched the hollow of his thigh; and the hollow of Jacob’s thigh was out of joint, as he wrestled with Him” (Gen. 32:25). Intercessors are not high-headed or barrel-chested, and when they walk they do limp.
Moses, having been denied once, having watched the people as they were plagued for their sin, and having received a direct command from God to proceed to the Promised Land without the reestablishment of the Mosaic Covenant, engages to wrestle God again! When most would give up and hang their head, until finally the Mountain vision of God’s glorious promises do fade from memory… at this time Moses ROUSES himself! Even so my reader, BESTIR THYSELF for the vision of God! Moses considered what he might do, hoping that there was still time left to plead with God that He might change His mind. Moses dared not ascend the Mountain again, not after the commandment – “GO” – was solemnly given to him, but other than ascending the Mountain, how could Moses find audience with God? There was no Tabernacle made that Moses might go before the Presence of God to plead, and the Lord had already said that He will not come into the midst of the people. Moses, willing to risk his life, made a Tabernacle for the first time without the command of God. He attempted to make it like the one that was shown to him on the Mount. He had no other idea of how God might be willing to come and give him audience except by this Tent which was revealed to him beforehand. Given the haste that Moses was in and the short amount of time that he had, he made a Tabernacle…but it was not in hopes that God would come within the camp of Israel like the Covenant had stated, for the Lord had already said that He would kill the people if this happened. Moses made a Tabernacle and then went outside of the camp of Israel, if haply out there, God might visit the Tabernacle and give audience to Moses’ earnest prayers! Only a man full of the Spirit of God knows the brevity of speaking again to God, after that He hath spoken once (Genesis 18:27, 30-32)! “Oh let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak!” This is the language of intercession from Abraham to the Almighty. Even so, under this heavy weight of godly fear, Moses endeavored, as Abraham said, “Behold now, I have taken upon me to speak unto the Lord.”
When God says that He does not know what to do…NOW is the time to cast yourself down to the ground! At such a time, LET ALL FLESH BE SILENT BEFORE GOD! “No flesh should glory in His presence” (1 Cor. 1:29)! By interpretation, “the children of Israel stripped themselves of their ornaments by the Mount Horeb” (Exodus 33:6). My reader, you will not find one decked-out, ornament-sparkling, silver-wrist-watching, make-up precise, hair-perfect, picture-conscience INTERCESSOR, no, not in all the world! What does your preacher look like? Oh! Look how firmly composed he is while he prays! And his gentle tones…away with them! They are so soothing to the ears – but he’s just playing the part – he is sounding for you a relaxing song! His tones are slow in pace, with syllables L-O-N-G, but this is nothing but a spiritual baby’s lullaby to keep you asleep! My reader, what ever happened to biblical Christianity!? People are crying in hell, and weeping – they are shouting and screaming! But we have painless preachers as “church” leaders, and we have sleeping spectators on pews for bleachers! And you tell the world that you believe in HELL!? What ever happened to, “Evening, and morning, and at noon, will I pray, and CRY ALOUD: and He shall hear my voice” (Ps. 55:17)!? But these men pray in front of men that they might be heard of men! Are you surprised that your congregation never wakes up?! Your preacher is always well composed, but the man is deceiving you by a vain show. “Church people” substitute the shining countenance of God, and for what? A dim-lighted congregation before a brightly lit stage – they all watch their preacher glow as he puts on the act. Be astonished at this! For God says, “My people love to have it so” (Jer. 5:31)! Not so with Moses, he “was very meek, above all the men which were upon the face of the earth” (Num. 12:3). Rightly said! This preacher had his face upon the earth “before all the assembly” (Num. 14:5)! What about you, thou man of “church?” If you don’t ever get on your face, then you are a preacher of pride, a peddler of God’s holy word for a paycheck! Moses “fell upon his face” down to the earth (Num. 16:4)! He, with Aaron – they “fell on their faces” (Num. 14:5), “fell upon their faces” (Num. 20:6), “fell upon their faces” (Num. 16:22), and “fell upon their faces” (Num. 16:45)! What about you? “David and the elders of Israel…fell upon their faces” (1 Chron. 21:16), “Abram fell on his face: and God talked with him” (Gen. 17:3), “Joshua fell on his face to the earth” (Josh. 5:14), and “all the people,” “they shouted and fell on their faces” (Lev. 9:24)!
When God does not know what to do, it is because the wrestling conflict of His simultaneous wills is unfinished! Amazing! At this time spiritual men behold the holy tension in God’s mind! “For who hath known the mind of the Lord, that he may instruct Him? But we have the mind of Christ” (1 Cor. 2:16). Spiritual men are, alas, caught up in a mystery, caught up in a river whose motions is God! It is as if they are hidden behind a thick veil, caught up in a holy place, and there the servants of all men travail in the Spirit. These men plead for the promises because they are obsessed with how God saves sinners, and how He makes His name famous among men. Why do they travail? Imagine it! It is as the agony of a woman’s birth! Imagine a woman crying aloud, and groaning, moan to moan, the delivering aid shouting, BREATHE! BREATHE! PANG to PANG, even so, intercession is comparatively the same. Intercessors TRAVAIL! Under bloody, flesh ripping, birth pangs, they are pained, and it is for those bound in God’s angry chains. Unseen and unthanked, for lo, “He that is greatest among you shall be your servant” (Matt. 23:11).
In the flesh, what is more painful and gruesome than a woman giving birth? This honorable but flesh-tearing experience is the inevitable appointment for a woman to bring God’s unborn humanity into life. Rightly said, so it is with spiritual intercessors! Only they are unheard, unseen, and in secret. That is, except for prayer meetings, but who goes to those anyway!? Therefore intercessors are without honor, thanks, and praise. Like a woman, but worse, they go through a like torment of spiritual birth all throughout their days. They do “travail in birth” for the souls of spiritual children “until Christ be formed” in them (Gal. 4:19). Paul described this when speaking to the Galatians, when he said, “My little children, of whom I travail in birth again until Christ be formed in you” (Gal. 4:19). This labor is wrought by the least of all men – the secret servants – praying for all humanity. Christians, they are the clothing of the Chief Intercessor, Jesus Christ, Who is the Hero over hell and the secret Servant of all men. His secret salvation outwitted the world! They, thinking to exterminate Him, committed the greatest possible evil by killing the Person of God! But through this supposed extermination, God was working their greatest and only salvation. As it was with Christ, so it is with intercessors, it is their pain that works another’s eternal pleasure – “so then death worketh in us, but life in you” (2 Cor. 4:12). They are the spiritual birth canal for an everlasting, newly-created life. Their strength is depleted in this most holy endeavor, and thereby they do become the weakest of men. “Who is weak, and I am not weak? Who is offended, and I burn not” (2 Cor. 11:29)? Weak, broken, and touched by God, they do not walk strong like other men. They have a lowly limp of deep humility, but they possess the treasure of unspeakable glory. They “wist not that the skin of” their face shines because they do talk with God (Exodus 34:29). As it was then, even so it is now, “And when He saw that He prevailed not against him, He touched the hollow of his thigh; and the hollow of Jacob’s thigh was out of joint, as he wrestled with Him” (Gen. 32:25). Intercessors are not high-headed or barrel-chested, and when they walk they do limp.
Moses, having been denied once, having watched the people as they were plagued for their sin, and having received a direct command from God to proceed to the Promised Land without the reestablishment of the Mosaic Covenant, engages to wrestle God again! When most would give up and hang their head, until finally the Mountain vision of God’s glorious promises do fade from memory… at this time Moses ROUSES himself! Even so my reader, BESTIR THYSELF for the vision of God! Moses considered what he might do, hoping that there was still time left to plead with God that He might change His mind. Moses dared not ascend the Mountain again, not after the commandment – “GO” – was solemnly given to him, but other than ascending the Mountain, how could Moses find audience with God? There was no Tabernacle made that Moses might go before the Presence of God to plead, and the Lord had already said that He will not come into the midst of the people. Moses, willing to risk his life, made a Tabernacle for the first time without the command of God. He attempted to make it like the one that was shown to him on the Mount. He had no other idea of how God might be willing to come and give him audience except by this Tent which was revealed to him beforehand. Given the haste that Moses was in and the short amount of time that he had, he made a Tabernacle…but it was not in hopes that God would come within the camp of Israel like the Covenant had stated, for the Lord had already said that He would kill the people if this happened. Moses made a Tabernacle and then went outside of the camp of Israel, if haply out there, God might visit the Tabernacle and give audience to Moses’ earnest prayers! Only a man full of the Spirit of God knows the brevity of speaking again to God, after that He hath spoken once (Genesis 18:27, 30-32)! “Oh let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak!” This is the language of intercession from Abraham to the Almighty. Even so, under this heavy weight of godly fear, Moses endeavored, as Abraham said, “Behold now, I have taken upon me to speak unto the Lord.”
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"And Moses took the tabernacle, and pitched it without the camp, afar off from the camp, and called it the Tabernacle of the congregation. And it came to pass, that every one which sought the LORD went out unto the tabernacle of the congregation, which was without the camp. And it came to pass, when Moses went out unto the tabernacle, that all the people rose up, and stood every man at his tent door, and looked after Moses, until he was gone into the tabernacle. And it came to pass, as Moses entered into the tabernacle, the cloudy pillar descended, and stood at the door of the tabernacle, and the LORD talked with Moses. And all the people saw the cloudy pillar stand at the tabernacle door: and all the people rose up and worshipped, every man in his tent door." (Exodus 33:7-10)
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God received Moses’ mode of intercession and met with him face to face! The subject of wrestling and intercession is clear – “If Thy Presence go not with me, carry us not up hence… for wherein shall it be known here that I and Thy people have found grace in Thy sight? Is it not in that Thou goest with us? So shall we be separated, I and Thy people, from all the people that are upon the face of the earth” (Ex. 33:14-16). God received the intercession of Moses and granted that He would be with him and the people, and therefore, that which was taught and shown to Moses on the Mountain was now reinstated! The intercession dialogue is from verses 12-17, and the Lord says in verse 17, “I will do this thing.” Before this meeting with God in the Tabernacle is over, Moses prays to God – “shew me Thy glory” (Exodus 33:18). The Lord says in response, “I will make all My goodness pass before thee…” (Exodus 33:19). The Lord tells Moses to prepare for another meeting the next morning, only this time Moses is to ascend Sinai again. Moses is also instructed to make “two tables of stone like unto the first” which he broke, that he might bring those with him up the Mountain (Ex. 34:1). This signifies that God may fulfill what He said to Moses, and reinstate the Covenant, but Moses is still in unrest. He senses that there is still fierce wrath burning in the heart of God. He considers the possibility that God will go back on His decision to reinstate the Covenant. Moses prepares everything, rises early, and ascends the Mount. There he sees the glory of God pass by him, and lo, the wrestle for the Covenant begins again! Moses is compelled to pray again:
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“If now I have found grace in Thy sight, O Lord, let my Lord, I pray Thee, go among us; for it is a stiffnecked people; and pardon our iniquity and our sin, and take us for Thine inheritance” (Ex. 34:9).
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Moses spends the next “forty days and forty nights” on top of Sinai – WRESTLING – and “he did neither eat bread, nor drink water" (Ex. 34:28). How do I know Moses was still wrestling against the wrath of God, and that God was still undecided to reinstate the Covenant? Moses explained exactly what he was doing at a later time, and said –
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“And I fell down before the LORD, as at the first, forty days and forty nights: I did neither eat bread, nor drink water, because of all your sins which ye sinned, in doing wickedly in the sight of the LORD, to provoke Him to anger. For I was afraid of the anger and hot displeasure, wherewith the LORD was wroth against you to destroy you. But the LORD hearkened unto me at that time also. And the LORD was very angry with Aaron to have destroyed him: and I prayed for Aaron also the same time…Thus I fell down before the LORD forty days and forty nights, as I fell down at the first; because the LORD had said He would destroy you. I prayed therefore unto the LORD, and said, O Lord GOD, destroy not Thy people and Thine inheritance…” (Deuteronomy 9:18-20, 25-26).
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Only by the infinite power of God could Moses endure forty days and nights of wrestling against God’s holy wrath. Jacob could scarce endure one night, and he wrestled for the lives of far fewer people. Vividly now, can you see the scarcity of their salvation, and that God “said that He would destroy them, had not Moses His chosen stood before Him in the breach, to turn away His wrath, lest He should destroy them” (Ps. 106:23)?! The scarcity of salvation for those who do endure to the end cannot be properly understood until we are conscientious of the dual, simultaneous, and genuine wills of God that are actively working, all the time, in tension and contradiction with one another, and that, within the single mind of the Godhead there can be multiple intentions, purposes, and considerable actions that His emotions are moving Him towards. In Hosea 11:8-9, the Lord speaks of it as His “repentings,” or, the turnings, changes, and wrestlings within His mind and heart, each one pressing Him to a contradicting action at each moment. God, wrestling over what He would do, wrestling His own will, and prophets standing in His will for the wrestle, He says – "How shall I give thee up, Ephraim? How shall I deliver thee, Israel? How shall I make thee as Admah? How shall I set thee as Zeboim? Mine heart is turned within Me, My repentings are kindled together. I will not execute the fierceness of Mine anger, I will not return to destroy Ephraim: for I am God, and not man; the Holy One in the midst of thee: and I will not enter into the city" (Hosea 11:8-9). Perhaps now we can understand what the thoughts of God’s heart were wrestling over when He said, “Ye are a stiffnecked people: I will come up into the midst of thee in a moment, and consume thee: therefore now put off thy ornaments from thee, that I may know what to do unto thee” (Ex. 33:5).
This was the fourth prayerful intercession of Moses since God’s wrath waxed hot.
Here, the Lord seals His acceptance of Israel and concludes the Great Pause. God clearly states, “Behold, I make a Covenant,” AFTER FORTY DAYS AND NIGHTS! Moses hears the way and works that are of consequence to this Covenant, praise God (Exodus 34:10-27)! Remember now, at the first forty days of Moses’ communion with God on Sinai, the Lord was instructing Moses of merciful purposes and careful preparations. After this was denied, Moses spent another “forty days and forty nights” (Ex. 34:28) in PRAYER! I repeat, this second forty days and night, though equal in time to the other, was not for re-instruction or a further explanation of the Covenant…the entire time – ALL FORTY DAYS –was spent in intercession before the wrath of God! It took forty days until God was convinced to remake the former Covenant. Is this not amazing?! Now the message was clear that God was reinstating the Covenant. The word of instruction was given to rewrite the Ten Commandments, the way of salvation was made known, and Moses descended the Mountain with his face shining!
My reader, consider how valiantly and courageously Moses behaved, and how he risked his life in intercessions! Moses’ first intercession availed to save Israel as a whole from total annihilation. The next two intercessions (by the execution of judgment) availed to pacify some wrath in God, and consequentially, Moses was emboldened to go before the Lord again on top of Sinai. Here, Moses sought further forgiveness by the intercession of prayer, and he was denied. Then the people were plagued, but nevertheless, Moses was adamant in the Holy Ghost! Absent of any command of God to continue in intercession, and contrary to the command already given – to “GO” – Moses found a way to get the attention of God – the Tabernacle pitched outside of the camp! “And Moses took the tabernacle, and pitched it without the camp, afar off from the camp, and called it the Tabernacle of the congregation. And it came to pass, that every one which sought the LORD went out unto the tabernacle of the congregation, which was without the camp. And it came to pass, when Moses went out unto the tabernacle, that all the people rose up, and stood every man at his tent door, and looked after Moses, until he was gone into the tabernacle. And it came to pass, as Moses entered into the tabernacle, the cloudy pillar descended, and stood at the door of the tabernacle, and the LORD talked with Moses” (Exodus 33:7-9). This is amazing! By the persistent intercessions of Moses, filled with the Holy Ghost, the people were spared. Finally, God knew what to do with them… but alas! It took FORTY MORE DAYS of intercessory wrestling against the burning heat of God’s billowing wrath in order for the Covenant to be reinstated. With what difficulty was the Covenant of salvation established, and this is just its beginning! Do you think that Moses knew that salvation was scarce, if at all? He persevered in prayer, again and again, until finally, our ears tingle with astonishment to hear – God decided to “dwell among them.” Indeed, “If the righteous scarcely be saved, where shall the ungodly and sinner appear” (1 Peter 4:18)?
My reader, consider how valiantly and courageously Moses behaved, and how he risked his life in intercessions! Moses’ first intercession availed to save Israel as a whole from total annihilation. The next two intercessions (by the execution of judgment) availed to pacify some wrath in God, and consequentially, Moses was emboldened to go before the Lord again on top of Sinai. Here, Moses sought further forgiveness by the intercession of prayer, and he was denied. Then the people were plagued, but nevertheless, Moses was adamant in the Holy Ghost! Absent of any command of God to continue in intercession, and contrary to the command already given – to “GO” – Moses found a way to get the attention of God – the Tabernacle pitched outside of the camp! “And Moses took the tabernacle, and pitched it without the camp, afar off from the camp, and called it the Tabernacle of the congregation. And it came to pass, that every one which sought the LORD went out unto the tabernacle of the congregation, which was without the camp. And it came to pass, when Moses went out unto the tabernacle, that all the people rose up, and stood every man at his tent door, and looked after Moses, until he was gone into the tabernacle. And it came to pass, as Moses entered into the tabernacle, the cloudy pillar descended, and stood at the door of the tabernacle, and the LORD talked with Moses” (Exodus 33:7-9). This is amazing! By the persistent intercessions of Moses, filled with the Holy Ghost, the people were spared. Finally, God knew what to do with them… but alas! It took FORTY MORE DAYS of intercessory wrestling against the burning heat of God’s billowing wrath in order for the Covenant to be reinstated. With what difficulty was the Covenant of salvation established, and this is just its beginning! Do you think that Moses knew that salvation was scarce, if at all? He persevered in prayer, again and again, until finally, our ears tingle with astonishment to hear – God decided to “dwell among them.” Indeed, “If the righteous scarcely be saved, where shall the ungodly and sinner appear” (1 Peter 4:18)?