21 Give attention to him and give ear to his voice; do not go against him; for your wrongdoing will not be overlooked by him, because my name is in him.
But they were bitter against the Most High God, testing him, and not keeping his laws;
How frequently did they go against him in the waste land, and give him cause for grief in the dry places!
See that you give ear to his voice which comes to you. For if those whose ears were shut to the voice which came to them on earth did not go free from punishment, what chance have we of going free if we give no attention to him whose voice comes from heaven?
And God said to him, I AM WHAT I AM: and he said, Say to the children of Israel, I AM has sent me to you.
And whoever does not give ear to my words which he will say in my name, will be responsible to me.
And the Lord came down in the cloud and took his place by the side of Moses, and Moses gave worship to the name of the Lord. And the Lord went past before his eyes, saying, The Lord, the Lord, a God full of pity and grace, slow to wrath and great in mercy and faith; Having mercy on thousands, overlooking evil and wrongdoing and sin; he will not let wrongdoers go free, but will send punishment on children for the sins of their fathers, and on their children's children to the third and fourth generation.
And the Lord said to Moses, How long will this people have no respect for me? how long will they be without faith, in the face of all the signs I have done among them?
And Joshua said to the people, You are not able to be the servants of the Lord, for he is a holy God, a God who will not let his honour be given to another: he will have no mercy on your wrongdoing or your sins.
For in him all the wealth of God's being has a living form,
For if we do evil on purpose after we have had the knowledge of what is true, there is no more offering for sins, But only a great fear of being judged, and of the fire of wrath which will be the destruction of the haters of God. A man who has gone against the law of Moses is put to death without pity on the word of two or three witnesses: But will not the man by whom the Son of God has been crushed under foot, and the blood of the agreement with which he was washed clean has been taken as an unholy thing, and who has had no respect for the Spirit of grace, be judged bad enough for a very much worse punishment?
And I will put her children to death; and all the churches will see that I am he who makes search into the secret thoughts and hearts of men: and I will give to every one of you the reward of your works.
And to the angel of the church in Smyrna say: These things says the first and the last, who was dead and is living:
If a man sees his brother doing a sin which is not bad enough for death, let him make a prayer to God, and God will give life to him whose sin was not bad enough for death. There is a sin whose punishment is death: I do not say that he may make such a request then.
How is it possible for you to have my forgiveness for this? your children have given me up, taking their oaths by those who are no gods: when I had given them food in full measure, they were false to their wives, taking their pleasure in the houses of loose women.
Praise to the glory of his noble name for ever; let all the earth be full of his glory. So be it, So be it.
So that men may see that you only, whose name is Yahweh, are Most High over all the earth.
For to us a child has come, to us a son is given; and the government has been placed in his hands; and he has been named Wise Guide, Strong God, Father for ever, Prince of Peace.
I am the Lord; that is my name: I will not give my glory to another, or my praise to pictured images.
For this is the word of him who is high and lifted up, whose resting-place is eternal, whose name is Holy: my resting-place is in the high and holy place, and with him who is crushed and poor in spirit, to give life to the spirit of the poor, and to make strong the heart of the crushed.
I let myself be seen by Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, as God, the Ruler of all; but they had no knowledge of my name Yahweh.
See, the virgin will be with child, and will give birth to a son, and they will give him the name Immanuel, that is, God with us.
While he was still talking, a bright cloud came over them: and a voice out of the cloud, saying, This is my dearly loved Son, with whom I am well pleased; give ear to him.
Jesus said to him, Philip, have I been with you all this time, and still you have no knowledge of me? He who has seen me has seen the Father. Why do you say, Let us see the Father? Have you not faith that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words which I say to you, I say not from myself: but the Father who is in me all the time does his works.
And do not give grief to the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were marked for the day of salvation.
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Matthew Henry Commentary » Commentary on Exodus 23
Commentary on Exodus 23 Matthew Henry Commentary
Chapter 23
This chapter continues and concludes the acts that passed in the first session (if I may so call it) upon mount Sinai. Here are,
Exd 23:1-9
Here are,
Exd 23:10-19
Here is,
Exd 23:20-33
Three gracious promises are here made to Israel, to engage them to their duty and encourage them in it; and each of the promises has some needful precepts and cautions joined to it.