Exodus 33:1-6 (ESV)

The LORD said to Moses, “Depart; go up from here, you and the people whom you have brought up out of the land of Egypt, to the land of which I swore to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, saying, ‘To your offspring I will give it.’ I will send an angel before you, and I will drive out the Canaanites, the Amorites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites. Go up to a land flowing with milk and honey; but I will not go up among you, lest I consume you on the way, for you are a stiff-necked people.”

When the people heard this disastrous word, they mourned, and no one put on his ornaments. For the LORD had said to Moses, “Say to the people of Israel, ‘You are a stiff-necked people; if for a single moment I should go up among you, I would consume you. So now take off your ornaments, that I may know what to do with you.’” Therefore the people of Israel stripped themselves of their ornaments, from Mount Horeb onward.

Depending on your point of view, this latest punishment is either horrible or no big deal. God is still promising to get them to the Promised Land safely; He’s just not going to personally accompany them.

So, from a secular point of view, they’ll still get to the Promised Land same as before. But from a believer’s point of view they have lost the most valuable thing imaginable – God’s personal presence. To their credit, the people see this as a disastrous word. They repent, stripping themselves of their ornaments.

The English expression, “So now take off your ornaments, that I may know what to do with you,” doesn’t seem to make sense. Is God literally saying that unless they take off their ornaments, He’ll be unable to figure out what He should do with them?

Of course not; it’s a Hebrew colloquialism. But what does it mean?

We know that God’s command that the Israelites take off their ornaments, at least means they’re doing something with a purpose. Something must not be final. The only logical possibility is their punishment. Thus, we can back into the meaning of the colloquialism, “So now take off your ornaments, that I may know what to do with you.”

It’s a quick show of obedience. Then He’ll decide whether to relent.

The Hebrew colloquialisms used when God declares a punishment often do not translate easily. When God declares He will do something, it’s not always as final in the original Hebrew as it sounds in English. He may yet relent. Repentance and prayer can still be appropriate (for example, see 2 Samuel 12:14-16.)

One of the great challenges for a Christian is to develop a heart of grace like the LORD’s. You don’t get this from practice, or study, or effort. Only supernatural transformation works. Ask God to transform you in this way. Think of a case where you are withholding forgiveness and ask Him to target that.

Don’t “try” to forgive the person; ask God to give you the ability.

The weekly study guides, which include discussion questions, are available for download here:

https://www.ailbe.org/resources/itemlist/category/91-deep-studies