Exodus 34 Devotional

The Name He Proclaims

“Then the LORD passed in front of Moses and called out: “The LORD, the LORD God, is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in loving devotion and faithfulness,”Exodus 34:6 (BSB)

Moses climbs Sinai again with two new stone tablets he has cut himself, replacing the ones he broke (34:1-4). The LORD descends in the cloud and proclaims his own name. He is full of compassion and grace, patient with sinners, overflowing with faithful love, keeping that love for a thousand generations and forgiving every kind of wrong. Yet he still holds the guilty to account (34:6-7). After the golden calf, this is how God describes himself. Moses bows to the ground in worship and asks him again to go with this stubborn people and forgive them, and God renews his covenant (34:8-10).

How can God both forgive sin and refuse to clear the guilty? Exodus sets the two side by side and leaves them standing. Paul shows where they meet: God presented Christ as an atoning sacrifice, so that he could remain righteous while declaring righteous those who trust in Jesus (Romans 3:25-26). You can come to this God counting on mercy that does not deny his justice.

To think about: Which part of God's description of himself in 34:6-7 do you find hardest to believe, and why?