Leading a group of wandering, hungry, cranky, and often disobedient Israelites through the wilderness, Moses was tasked with the great responsibility of not only keeping them in line but attempting to teach and guide them to the Lord in all things. In Exodus, we get a beautiful glimpse into Moses’ relationship with God as a result of his call to leadership. He beheld the glory of God and thus, became a representative of God’s glory.
“Then Moses went up with Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel, and they saw the God of Israel; and under His feet there appeared to be a pavement of sapphire, as clear as the sky itself. Yet He did not reach out with His hand against the nobles of the sons of Israel, and they saw God, and they ate and drank. (Exodus 24:9-11)
When looking at the Greek word for glory last week, we broke it down into a few different ways of seeing or experiencing the glory of God: external conditions, external appearance, internal character, and exalted state.
Here, Moses describes the second, external appearance—an out-of-this-world type of beauty, “a pavement of sapphire, as clear as the sky itself.”
“And the glory of the Lord rested on Mount Sinai, and the cloud covered it for six days… And to the eyes of the sons of Israel, the appearance of the glory of the Lord was like a consuming fire on the mountain top.” (Exodus 24:16a, 17)
Here, the Israelites recognized God’s glory through external conditions—something revealed through earthly matters like a cloud and fire but still more than words can fully explain.
Luckily, we don’t have to fully understand God’s glory in order to take part in it. He’s gracious enough to let us in, despite our human limitations.
The Word: Glory
In the Old Testament Hebrew (KJV), glory is translated from kāḇôḏ 156 times. kāḇôḏ is also translated as honorable and glorious, a total of 200 times.
Strong’s H3519 | kāḇôḏ (kaw-bode')
in simplest terms, this word means weight—but “in a good sense”1
abundance, splendor, riches
Moses was honored with the weight of leadership, but God showed up actively in his life to reveal the weight of His glory/abundance/splendor/riches that would become Moses’ guidepost.
“And [God] said, ‘My presence shall go with you, and I will give you rest.’ Then [Moses] said to Him, ‘If Thy presence does not go with us, do not lead us up from here.’ … And the Lord said to Moses, ‘I will also do this thing of which you have spoken; for you have found favor in My sight, and I have known you by name.’ Then Moses said, ‘I pray Thee, show me Thy glory!’” (Exodus 33:14-15, 17-18)
At this point in Moses’ relationship with God, he understood something fundamental about who God is and how we can be in relationship with Him.
Glory is revealed when we walk in righteousness and holiness. That doesn’t come about only through acts of the flesh but through beholding the presence of God. Moses sought God’s presence and glory at every turn.
“And it came about when Moses was coming down from Mount Sinai…that Moses did not know that the skin of his face shone because of his speaking with [the Lord]. So when Aaron and all the sons of Israel saw Moses, behold, the skin of his face shone, and they were afraid to come near him.” (Exodus 34:29-30)
We tend to reflect that which we spend our time focused on—it’s why I wasn’t allowed to watch Rugrats growing up, lest I image the snotty Angelica (sorry, Mom if I ended up doing that naturally anyway). The concept of becoming what we behold is precisely what Moses experienced in this part of his story with God.
As Moses sought the presence of God and beheld His commandments, the glory of the Lord reflected on his face physically. We, too, become the embodied glory of God when we behold his glory through attributes like love, peace, and kindness.
“But we all, with unveiled faces, looking as in a mirror at the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as from the Lord, the Spirit.” (2 Corinthians 3:18)
Simply being in God’s presence, spending time in His Word—is what brings us to see God’s glory. Beholding the glory of God leads us to a place of belief and ultimately becoming, where the fruit of the Spirit is revealed through our actions, lives, and relationships.2
Much like Moses’ face shone after encountering the glory of the Lord, our lives can shine the light of God’s glory when we commit to seek Him above all else. That’s a weight in “a good sense.”
Scripture I’m Meditating On
“For God, who said, ‘Light shall shine out of darkness,’ is the One who has shone in our hearts to give the Light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ.’” 2 Corinthians 4:6
Song On Repeat
Well, Spotify just picked this playlist for me, and it was too perfectly timed, so enjoy!
Saying I Can’t Stop Thinking About
“It is by seeing God as He is, in all of His holy glory, that transforms our lives.”
—Jackie Hill Perry, Holier than Thou
As always, you can comment or reply with a different word you would love to see dissected and you can refer back to the previous words here.
Hebrew and Greek Keyword Study Bible, OT Dictionary, pg 1899
This is adapted from Jackie Hill Perry’s, Holier than Thou, and yes—you should read it.
"...we don’t have to fully understand God’s glory in order to take part in it. He’s gracious enough to let us in, despite our human limitations." Just one of many great reminders in the words you shared with this post. Thank you!