(Exodus 24:9-11 ESV) “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.”
Moses and Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel were given an opportunity very few people have experienced. They beheld God!
Most scholars agree that what they saw was a real, albeit, obscured vision of God. Other passages of Scripture make it clear that no man was permitted to see God in His fulness. When God revealed His glory to Moses, He only showed His back because Moses would not have been able to behold God’s face and live to tell about it. What these individuals saw was a partial vision focused on the sapphire stone on which the feet of God stood.
Notice, they ate and drank after their vision of God. It caused them to experience peace concerning the future, and prepared them for the revelation of God’s plan for Israel. He was about to release detailed plans about preparing a place where His glory could dwell perpetually.
As I thought about this, I was reminded of times in my own life where I felt God’s presence. Obviously, I did not see God. But, I felt His spirit as close as if He were standing visibly beside me. It was as though I could reach out and touch Him.
God is still revealing His glory to mankind. We see Him in the various movements of life. Every challenge that we overcome points to His goodness. Every blessing provides hope for the future. Every breath is evidence of His constant presence.
It is so easy to focus on negative things; to lose sight of God’s involvement in our lives. But, God is calling us higher. He wants us to rest in the knowledge that He is near, and He is interacting in love with His own people.
PRAYER: Lord, Your presence is heaven to me! Just to see you is the desire of my heart today. Reveal Your glory through the movements of life today, and allow me to rest in your provision. Amen.
Thinking Out Loud 