Exodus Chapter 19 Verses 1-8  

:1  “In the third month, when the children of Israel were gone forth out of the land of Egypt, the same day came they into the wilderness of Sinai. 2 For they were departed from Rephidim, and were come to the desert of Sinai, and had pitched in the wilderness; and there Israel camped before the mount. 3 And Moses went up unto God, and the LORD called unto him out of the mountain, saying, Thus shalt thou say to the house of Jacob, and tell the children of Israel; 4 Ye have seen what I did unto the Egyptians, and how I bare you on eagles' wings, and brought you unto myself. 5 Now therefore, if ye will obey my voice indeed, and keep my covenant, then ye shall be a peculiar treasure unto me above all people: for all the earth is mine: 6 And ye shall be unto me a kingdom of priests, and an holy nation. These are the words which thou shalt speak unto the children of Israel. 7 And Moses came and called for the elders of the people, and laid before their faces all these words which the LORD commanded him. 8 And all the people answered together, and said, All that the LORD hath spoken we will do. And Moses returned the words of the people unto the LORD.” 

 “In the third month, when the children of Israel were gone forth out of the land of Egypt, the same day came they into the wilderness of Sinai. 2 For they were departed from Rephidim, and were come to the desert of Sinai, and had pitched in the wilderness; and there Israel camped before the mount.”  Sinai is a very significant place for the children of Israel.  Here at Sinai, the LORD would give to the children of Israel the law and the ordinances and commandments for them to keep.  However, there was even more significance to Sinai as we will see.   

“And Moses went up unto God, and the LORD called unto him out of the mountain, saying, Thus shalt thou say to the house of Jacob, and tell the children of Israel; 4 Ye have seen what I did unto the Egyptians, and how I bare you on eagles' wings, and brought you unto myself.”  The LORD instructed Moses here to remind the children of Israel to consider the mighty works that they saw in the land of Egypt and how that the LORD had delivered them out of Egyptian bondage and destroyed their enemies at the Red Sea and how he had bare them on eagles’ wings, and brought them unto himself.  It is good for us to remind ourselves from time to time about the mighty works of God in our lives and how he has delivered us from our enemies when he died on the cross and was buried and arose again the third day.   

“Now therefore, if ye will obey my voice indeed, and keep my covenant, then ye shall be a peculiar treasure unto me above all people: for all the earth is mine: 6 And ye shall be unto me a kingdom of priests, and an holy nation. These are the words which thou shalt speak unto the children of Israel.”  Here the LORD proposes a conditional covenant to the people with great promises.  The covenant was conditioned upon the obedience of the children of Israel to the voice of the LORD and to their keeping his covenant.  The promises were that if they obeyed and kept his covenant then they would be a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.  There had never been the like before on the face of the earth that a nation had been singled out of the LORD and promised that they would be a peculiar treasure to the LORD above all people and that they would be a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.   

“And Moses came and called for the elders of the people, and laid before their faces all these words which the LORD commanded him. 8 And all the people answered together, and said, All that the LORD hath spoken we will do. And Moses returned the words of the people unto the LORD.”  Here Moses speaks the words of the LORD to the elders of the people who in turn relay these words to the people.  The response was that all the people answered together, saying, All that the LORD hath spoken we will do.  In answering in this manner the children of Israel confirmed this covenant agreement with the LORD.  Thus, they bound themselves to the covenant God had set forth to them.  The covenant was ratified.  This was the Old Covenant that God made with the children of Israel.  The details would come later at Mount Sinai.   

Verses 9-13

:9 “And the LORD said unto Moses, Lo, I come unto thee in a thick cloud, that the people may hear when I speak with thee, and believe thee for ever. And Moses told the words of the people unto the LORD. 10 And the LORD said unto Moses, Go unto the people, and sanctify them to day and to morrow, and let them wash their clothes, 11 And be ready against the third day: for the third day the LORD will come down in the sight of all the people upon mount Sinai. 12 And thou shalt set bounds unto the people round about, saying, Take heed to yourselves, that ye go not up into the mount, or touch the border of it: whosoever toucheth the mount shall be surely put to death: 13 There shall not an hand touch it, but he shall surely be stoned, or shot through; whether it be beast or man, it shall not live: when the trumpet soundeth long, they shall come up to the mount.”   

“And the LORD said unto Moses, Lo, I come unto thee in a thick cloud, that the people may hear when I speak with thee, and believe thee for ever.”  Throughout the scriptures we are taught that the glory of the LORD was in the cloud.  When the LORD delivered the children of Israel out of Egypt we read where the LORD appeared unto them in a cloud by day to lead them the way and a pillar of fire by night to give them light.  Moreover, throughout their wilderness journeys, the children of Israel would follow a cloud.  The children of Israel did not see the LORD with their eyes, but he made his glory known unto them.  Upon Mount Sinai, the LORD promised here that he would come unto them in a thick cloud and that they would hear his voice when he spoke with Moses so that they would believe Moses for ever.  Before this, when the LORD spoke with Moses, no one else was around to hear it.  They saw the miracles and wonders, but did not have first hand knowledge that the LORD really spoke with Moses.  Now they will have heard the LORD with their ears that he spoke to Moses and that what Moses told them was of the LORD.   

“And Moses told the words of the people unto the LORD.”  The people had confirmed their agreement to keep the covenant of the LORD and to obey him in all that he taught them.  While, because of the omniscience of the LORD he knew already what they had spoken, it was needful that Moses, who was serving as the intercessor between the LORD and the people, tell the words of the people unto the LORD.   

“And the LORD said unto Moses, Go unto the people, and sanctify them to day and to morrow, and let them wash their clothes, And be ready against the third day: for the third day the LORD will come down in the sight of all the people upon mount Sinai.”  To come into the holy presence of the LORD, the people needed to be clean and to set themselves apart to hear and serve the LORD.  Sanctification has multiple facets even to us today.  First, the Lord sets us apart in covenant election as he had set apart the children of Israel in his covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.  Next, the Lord sets us apart in the new or spiritual birth.  Moreover, we are to set ourselves apart both in our dedication to serve the Lord and to live separate or holy lives.  Now the people had the promise of God that he would come down in the sight of all the people upon Mount Sinai.  This was not to see the face of the Lord for no man can see his face and live.  Rather it was to see the glory of the LORD as he would manifest himself upon Mount Sinai.   

“And thou shalt set bounds unto the people round about, saying, Take heed to yourselves, that ye go not up into the mount, or touch the border of it: whosoever toucheth the mount shall be surely put to death: There shall not an hand touch it, but he shall surely be stoned, or shot through; whether it be beast or man, it shall not live: when the trumpet soundeth long, they shall come up to the mount.”  The curse of death was upon Mount Sinai.  It was to either man or beast that if he should touch it he should die.  This is in keeping with what we read in Galatians 3:10, “For as many as are of the works of the law are under the curse: for it is written, Cursed is every one that continueth not in all things which are written in the book of the law to do them.”  The law was given at Mount Sinai and the LORD also will pronounce a curse upon the people if they broke the law.  Death is the penalty for sin.  This includes death of the body, death in trespasses and sins, and eternal death.