Exodus 24
1 And he said unto Moses, Come up unto the LORD, thou, and Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel; and worship ye afar off.
2 And Moses alone shall come near the LORD: but they shall not come nigh; neither shall the people go up with him.
3 And Moses came and told the people all the words of the LORD, and all the judgments: and all the people answered with one voice, and said, All the words which the LORD hath said will we do.
4 And Moses wrote all the words of the LORD, and rose up early in the morning, and builded an altar under the hill, and twelve pillars, according to the twelve tribes of Israel.
5 And he sent young men of the children of Israel, which offered burnt offerings, and sacrificed peace offerings of oxen unto the LORD.
6 And Moses took half of the blood, and put it in basons; and half of the blood he sprinkled on the altar.
7 And he took the book of the covenant, and read in the audience of the people: and they said, All that the LORD hath said will we do, and be obedient.
8 And Moses took the blood, and sprinkled it on the people, and said, Behold the blood of the covenant, which the LORD hath made with you concerning all these words.
9 Then went up Moses, and Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel:
10 And they saw the God of Israel: and there was under his feet as it were a paved work of a sapphire stone, and as it were the body of heaven in his clearness.
11 And upon the nobles of the children of Israel he laid not his hand: also they saw God, and did eat and drink.
12 And the LORD said unto Moses, Come up to me into the mount, and be there: and I will give thee tables of stone, and a law, and commandments which I have written; that thou mayest teach them.
13 And Moses rose up, and his minister Joshua: and Moses went up into the mount of God.
14 And he said unto the elders, 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.
15 And Moses went up into the mount, and a cloud covered the mount.
16 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.
17 And the sight of the glory of the LORD was like devouring fire on the top of the mount in the eyes of the children of Israel.
18 And Moses went into the midst of the cloud, and gat him up into the mount: and Moses was in the mount forty days and forty nights.
World Behind This Chapter
Explore the people, places, language, history, and material world connected to Exodus 24.
What is a covenant ceremony?
Ancient covenants and treaties could be marked by oaths, sacrifices, written texts, witnesses, meals, and symbolic acts. Exodus 24 combines several such features in a distinctive sequence.
What is the ‘book of the covenant’?
The phrase refers to a written collection read aloud before the people’s commitment. Scholars debate its precise relationship to the laws in Exodus 20–23.
Why is blood placed on both altar and people?
The ritual visually binds parties within the covenant ceremony. Comparisons with wider sacrifice and treaty practice can provide context, but the exact symbolism must be inferred carefully.
Research PathsCurated links for exploring this chapter 3
History & Daily Life1
- Covenant ceremony and ancient treaty comparisonsOpen Yale Courses · Christine Hayes
Start at 19:59 for the covenant discussion, including public reading, assent, and ritual in Exodus 24. Compare the proposed treaty parallels with the chapter’s own sequence; a comparative model does not make every covenant ceremony identical.
Language & Literature1
- Strong’s Hebrew: 1285. Berith — CovenantBible Hub
Consult the historical dictionary entries for berit and compare its uses in 24:7–8. Notice the written document, the people’s response, and the blood rite. The wider word range should inform questions about this scene rather than supply one prescribed reading.
Artifacts & Manuscripts1
- Egyptian–Hittite peace treaty: a modern replicaUnited Nations Gifts
Explore the UN’s modern replica of the ancient treaty between Hattusili III and Ramesses II. Compare an agreement between rulers with the covenant ceremony in Exodus 24, noting their different parties and purposes. The displayed object is a replica, not the original tablet.
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