Hebrews 12:18-21 Commentary

Updated: Sun, 11/09/2025 - 18:27 By admin

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The Epistle to the Hebrews
INSTRUCTION Hebrews 1-10:18				EXHORTATION Hebrews 10:19-13:25
Superior Person of Christ Hebrews 1:1-4:13	Superior Priest in Christ Hebrews 4:14-10:18			Superior Life In Christ Hebrews 10:19-13:25
BETTER THAN PERSON Hebrews 1:1-4:13	BETTER PRIESTHOOD Heb 4:14-7:28	BETTER COVENANT Heb 8:1-13	BETTER SACRIFICE Heb 9:1-10:18	BETTER LIFE
MAJESTY OF CHRIST	MINISTRY OF CHRIST			MINISTERS FOR CHRIST
DOCTRINE				DUTY
DATE WRITTEN: ca. 64-68AD

See ESV Study Bible "Introduction to Hebrews"
(See also MacArthur's Introduction to Hebrews)

Borrow Ryrie Study Bible

Hebrews 12:18 For you have not come to a mountain that can be touched and to a blazing fire, and to darkness and gloom and whirlwind, (NASB: Lockman)

Greek: Ou gar proseleluthate (2SRAI) ps elaphomeno (PPPNSD) kai kekaumeno (RPPNSD) puri kai gnopho kai zopho kai thuelle

GNT Οὐ γὰρ προσεληλύθατε ψηλαφωμένῳ καὶ κεκαυμένῳ πυρὶ καὶ γνόφῳ καὶ ζόφῳ καὶ θυέλλῃ

Amplified: For you have not come [as did the Israelites in the wilderness] to a [material] mountain that can be touched, [a mountain] that is ablaze with fire, and to gloom and darkness and a raging storm, (Amplified Bible - Lockman)

NLT: You have not come to a physical mountain, to a place of flaming fire, darkness, gloom, and whirlwind, as the Israelites did at Mount Sinai when God gave them his laws. (NLT - Tyndale House)

NLT (revised) You have not come to a physical mountain, to a place of flaming fire, darkness, gloom, and whirlwind, as the Israelites did at Mount Sinai.

NET For you have not come to something that can be touched, to a burning fire and darkness and gloom and a whirlwind

KJV For ye are not come unto the mount that might be touched, and that burned with fire, nor unto blackness, and darkness, and tempest,

ESV For you have not come to what may be touched, a blazing fire and darkness and gloom and a tempest

ASV For ye are not come unto a mount that might be touched, and that burned with fire, and unto blackness, and darkness, and tempest,

CSB For you have not come to what could be touched, to a blazing fire, to darkness, gloom, and storm,

NIV You have not come to a mountain that can be touched and that is burning with fire; to darkness, gloom and storm;

NKJ For you have not come to the mountain that may be touched and that burned with fire, and to blackness and darkness and tempest,

NRS You have not come to something that can be touched, a blazing fire, and darkness, and gloom, and a tempest,

NAB You have not approached that which could be touched and a blazing fire and gloomy darkness and storm

NJB What you have come to is nothing known to the senses: not a blazing fire, or gloom or total darkness, or a storm;

GWN You have not come to something that you can feel, to a blazing fire, to darkness, to gloom, to a storm,

BBE You have not come to a mountain which may be touched, and is burning with fire, and to a black cloud, and a dark smoke, and a violent wind,

Young's Literal: For ye came not near to the mount touched and scorched with fire, and to blackness, and darkness, and tempest,

Ex 19:12-19 Ex 20:18 Ex 24:17 De 4:11 Dt 5:22-26 Ro 6:14 Ro 8:15 2Ti 1:7
Hebrews 12 Resources - Multiple Sermons and Commentaries

Related Passages:

Gal 3:24-25+ Therefore the Law has become our tutor to lead us to Christ, so that we may be justified by faith. 25 But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a tutor.

Gal 2:19+ “For through the Law I died to the Law, so that I might live to God.

Acts 13:38-39+ “Therefore let it be known to you, brethren, that through Him forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you, 39 and through Him everyone who believes is freed from all things, from which you could not be freed through the Law of Moses.

Ro 3:20-22+ because by the works of the Law no flesh will be justified in His sight; for through the Law comes the knowledge of sin. 21 But now apart from the Law the righteousness of God has been manifested, being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets, 22 even the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all those who believe; for there is no distinction;

Ro 7:7-9+, What shall we say then? Is the Law sin? May it never be! On the contrary, I would not have come to know sin except through the Law; for I would not have known about coveting if the Law had not said, “YOU SHALL NOT COVET.” 8 But sin, taking opportunity through the commandment, produced in me coveting of every kind; for apart from the Law sin is dead. 9 I was once alive apart from the Law; but when the commandment came, sin became alive and I died;

Heb 7:18-19+ For, on the one hand, there is a setting aside of a former commandment because of its weakness and uselessness 19 (for the Law made nothing perfect), and on the other hand there is a bringing in of a better hope, through which we draw near to God.

Exodus 19:12-13 (THE DEADLY PENALTY OF TOUCHING SINAI) “You shall set bounds for the people all around, saying, ‘Beware that you do not go up on the mountain or touch the border of it; whoever touches the mountain shall surely be put to death. 13 ‘No hand shall touch him, but he shall surely be stoned or shot through; whether beast or man, he shall not live.’ When the ram’s horn sounds a long blast, they shall come up to the mountain.”

Mt Sinai - Fire and Smoke

Hewitt: The Epistle now reaches a climax in a passage both graceful and ingenious (verses 18-24), in which is seen the surpassing attractiveness and supremacy of the new covenant as compared with the old. The author’s aim in this is to show that higher privileges carry with them greater responsibilities.

Philip E Hughes points out that "The theme is now resumed of the definitive contrast between the old and the new which permeates this epistle—the contrast between the imperfect and the perfect, the temporary and the permanent, the law and the gospel (cf. Heb 2:1–3; 3:5f.; 7:11ff.; 8:1ff.; 9:11ff.; 10:1ff., 11ff.)." (A Commentary on the Epistle to the Hebrews)

R C H Lenski writes "The tragic mistake of the Jews was the fact that they clung to Sinai and Moses, to the law, and were blind to the covenant of Abraham with its promise of the Messiah and thus blind also to the fulfillment of this promise in Jesus. The readers who had made this mistake and had been rescued from this mistake were inclined to fall back into it in order to escape the persecutions that were connected with their faith in Jesus. This entire epistle seeks to keep them from taking this fatal step." (Borrow Hebrews Commentary page 450)

Brian Bell: The Lord seems to believe a picture is worth a 1000 words. Here the writer downloads 2 pictures for us, comparing: 2 different mountains. 2 different covenants. 2 historic people. 2 important principles. Note all the words that are contrasted when we read: Sinai/Zion; heaven/earth; new/old covenant; terror/joy; shake/unshaken; not come/come; distance/closeness; law at Sinai/grace & glory at Zion. God gave the Jews a picture they’d never forget back in Exodus. Really, a picture of Himself regarding His Holiness. Let’s take a peek at our 1st Peak. The time period, about 14 centuries before Christ. The place, Mnt. Sinai. The reason, to give them the 10 commandments. The picture?…Let’s read (vs.18-24).

For (gar) - pause and ponder this term of explanation. So WHAT is the writer explaining? To answer this question first always examine the preceding context, especially Heb 12:14-17 (some might go back further to Heb 12:1ff)

WHAT were the exhortations/warnings (should name 4) in Hebrews 12:14-17?

Pursue peace and holiness - WARNING - if you do not you will not see the Lord (Heb 12:14)
See to it that none fall short of the grace of God (Heb 12:15)
See to it that no root of bitterness springs up and defiles many in the fellowship (Heb 12:15b)
See to it that there is no "Esau-like" attitude in any of your members for it will lead to rejection of Messiah and eternal loss (Heb 12:16-17)

WHAT is the writer explaining? Or WHY is he explaining it now? As we compare the following verses in Hebrews 12:18-24 it is clear that while "for" is explanatory, it is also functioning as a contrast. And so in Hebrews 12:18-24 the writer explains that the way to fulfill the exhortation and avoid the warnings in Heb 12:14-17 is by coming not to Sinai but to Zion, not relying on the Old Covenant (or the Law) but wholly relying on the New Covenant (of grace - cf "do not fall short of" grace in Heb 12:15a!)

Michaels explains the writer's term of explanation (for = gar) this way - Because the introduction of Esau as a cautionary tale (Heb 12:16-17) was somewhat parenthetical, the author seems to have in mind the warning just before that—namely, "Look after each other so that none of you fails to receive the grace of God... [so that] no poisonous root of bitterness grows up to trouble you" (Heb 12:15). He now gives the reason for such warnings: because "the grace of God" is, in its own way, an even more severe taskmaster than the ancient law of Moses. Because God is speaking to us not as he spoke long ago on earth (Heb 12:18-21) but now from heaven (Heb 12:25), the consequences of not paying attention and failing to receive the grace of God are that much greater (Heb 12:25-29). (See 1-2 Timothy, Titus, Hebrews - Page 456)

You have not come (proserchomai) to a mountain that can be touched (pselaphao) and to a blazing (kaio) fire (pur), and to darkness (gnophos) and gloom (zophos) and whirlwind (thuella) - (See below for the Old Testament context ) Not come (proserchomai) or drawn near, which is a verb he has used in exhorting his readers to draw near (Heb 4:16+ "Let us therefore draw near with confidence to the throne of grace"; Heb 7:25 "draw near to God"; Heb 10:22 "draw near with a sincere heart.") But first he begins with a reminder of the drawing near he has repeatedly described is NOT drawing near to the type of "mountain" (Mt Sinai) described in Exodus 19:1-27. He will use the same verb come (proserchomai) in a positive sense in Hebrews 12:22. He wants his Jewish readers to grasp the incredible privilege they now possess under the new covenant in contrast to what the Israelites experienced under the old. It is somewhat ironic that he refers to a mountain that “could be touched,” because in reality, anyone who actually did touch it would die (Ex 19:12–13+)! The added description of a a blazing (kaio) fire (pur) underscores the distance and danger that characterized Sinai, where God’s holiness demanded separation rather than access.

For have not come (proserchomai) to a mountain that can be touched - Ultimately Mt Sinai was an unforgettable picture of God's holiness, His "set apartness" if you will, His separation from all that is unholy. And the Jews could not touch Mt Sinai or they would die, which is also a picture of the power of the Law which puts men under a "curse," but "Christ redeemed us from the curse of the Law." (Gal 3:13+) To say it another way, Sinai provided no power to overcome the power of sin.

Have come (proserchomai) is in the perfect tense indicating past completed act (when they first believed in Messiah) and ongoing effect. Proserchomai is used again in this section on the two mountains (Sinai, Zion) in Hebrews 12:22+ and again is in the perfect tense indicating our permanent continuing state. Although not a major point, even these uses of the perfect tense emphasize how secure our salvation is in Christ. Our "continuing state" will endure throughout time and eternity! Hallelujah! Amen!

Although the writer describes Mt Sinai as one “that can be touched” he was not saying that the Israelites had permission to approach the mountain and touch it. The writer is using this as a figure of speech merely acknowledging that Mt Sinai was a material, earthly mountain that could be touched as opposed to the “heavenly” nature of the second mountain (Heb 11:22+).

It is notable that God's Spirit wanted to leave a serious impression at Mt Sinai for the last 22 chapters of Exodus, the 27 chapters of Leviticus, and the first 11 chapters of Numbers contain the record of all that transpired at Mt Sinai! Total number = 60 chapters at Sinai!

S Lewis Johnson on you have not come (Heb 12:18) and you have come (Heb 12:22+) - Notice the two words; they are exactly alike in the original text, “You have not come.” That, of course, with the negative. And then, verse 22+, “You have come.” without the negative. So “You have come,” “You have not come.” So he’s talking about what they have not come to; what they have now come to. The former, the Sinaitic revelation is the revelation of the sheer majesty of God, the absolute inapproachability of God, the sheer terror of the presence of the Lord God apart from the blood of sprinkling of the Cross of Calvary. That’s so important for us to remember because it’s a marvelous picture of how our sin and our judgment, and the fact that apart from Jesus Christ we should experience the lost-ness of eternal life, of eternal judgment. (Sermon) (For more of Dr Johnson's discussion on have come and the perfect tense see his note on Hebrews 12:22.)

And to darkness (gnophos) and gloom (zophos) and whirlwind (thuella) - This description is to emphasize to the NT Jews, God’s unapproachable holiness and the fear that enveloped the old covenant revelation. God’s presence at Sinai was shrouded in thick darkness—symbolizing that under the Law, His holiness was veiled, and the people could not draw near. Gloom (zophos) denotes not just absence of light, but a dread-filled darkness associated with judgment. Gloom (zophos) was used to describe the “gloom of darkness” reserved for fallen angels and the wicked (2Pe 2:4, 2Pe 2:17, Jude 1:6, 13). This word was always linked to divine judgment and separation from God’s light. Whirlwind (thuella) pictures the unstoppable, fear inspiring energy of God’s manifest presence, a display of His power and judgment that shook creation. Notice that together darkness (gnophos) and gloom (zophos) and whirlwind (thuella) describe the terrifying sensory environment of Mount Sinai. The writer is stacking up frightening descriptions of Mt Sinai to prepare for the incredible contrast with Mt Zion.

R Kent Hughes - The salutary effect upon those at the foot of Sinai was substantial it instilled a proper fear of God. As Moses explained, “God has come to test you, so that the fear of God will be with you to keep you from sinning” (Exodus 20:20). It was patently remedial. To understand that God is holy and that one is a sinner is to stand at the threshold of grace (see full note below). (See Hebrews: An Anchor for the Soul)

Homer Kent: Although the word “mountain” does not appear in our oldest and most reliable texts, it is clear that the incident at Sinai recorded in Exodus 19:10-25; 20:18-21; and Deuteronomy 4:10-24 is in view. That was a day unequaled in Jewish history, when God demonstrated His awesome power in conjunction with His giving of the law. The rugged heights of Sinai rocked with thunder and crackled with lightning which set the mount aflame. God’s presence descended upon the mountain in fire and smoke accompanied by an earthquake. The smoke doubtless produced the darkness (Exod.. 20:21) and gloom, and the mighty flames would cause strong air currents that would produce a most frightening storm. The sound of a trumpet, possibly blown by an angel, grew louder and louder (Exod. 19:19); and when Moses spoke, God answered him with a sound of words (Deut. 4:12). These words where so terrifying that the Israelites begged Moses henceforth to act as God’s spokesman rather than have God address them directly (Exod. 20:19). (BORROW The Epistle to the Hebrews : a commentary PAGE 268)

William Barclay entitles this section "The terror of the old and the glory of the new."

R C H Lenski says "In one grand sentence (Heb 12:18-24) in which the writer draws a comparison with Judaism, he presents to his readers to what they have come as Christians (in Heb 12:22-24). (Borrow Hebrews Commentary)

M R DeHaan says: These Hebrew Christians were tempted to go back to the beggarly elements of the law, and place themselves under bondage to escape a little present discomfort, reproach and persecution. In order to urge them on, a contrast between the law and grace, Mount Sinai and Calvary, is now presented (Heb 12:18-21)."

DeHaan goes on to apply the scene at Sinai to the Law (which was in fact given at that mountain) writing "Here is a picture of the Law and its condemnation. The Law said, stay away, do not trespass. Death awaits you under the Law. The Law condemns the sinner, it engenders fear and trembling. The Law exposed sin but could not take it away. The Law revealed judgment but could not save. The Law demanded perfection, but could not produce perfection. The Law demanded obedience but could not help the sinner to be obedient. The Law was never meant to save anyone. God never expected any mere human being to keep that Law. When He gave the Law and demanded obedience He knew that no one would keep it, nay more, He knew no sinner could keep it. God demanded of Israel something they were totally powerless to do. Shall we then accuse God of unrighteousness? Is He a God of caprice? Ah, no! The Law was not intended to save, but instead was given to prove the utter helplessness of man to be saved by his works of the Law, in order that he might abandon all hope of saving himself, and turn to Jesus only for salvation. What the Law could not do, Jesus did (Ro 8:3-4+)....Imagine these Hebrew Christians wanting to place themselves again under the Law. (SEE ALSO PURPOSE OF THE LAW). (BORROW Hebrews twenty-six simple studies in god's plan for victorious living PAGE 180)

Brian Bell - The Lord seems to believe a picture is worth a 1000 words. Here the writer downloads 2 pictures for us, comparing: 2 different mountains. 2 different covenants. 2 historic people. 2 important principles. Note all the words that are contrasted when we read: Sinai/Zion; heaven/earth; new/old cov.; terror/joy; shake/unshaken; not come/come; distance/closeness; law at Sinai/grace & glory at Zion (Sermon)

Savior, if of Zion’s city, I through grace a member am,
Let the world deride or pity, I will glory in Thy name;
Fading is the world’s best pleasure, All its boasted pomp and show;
Solid joys and lasting treasure None but Zion’s children know.

Steven Cole - So the author does not want us to make Esau’s spiritually fatal mistake. He draws a sharp contrast between life under the old covenant and life under the new covenant. The feeling of the old covenant was terror and judgment. The feeling of the new covenant is joyous celebration with the saints and angels in the presence of God. There is still reverence, but the blood of Jesus has taken away the dread of judgment. The old covenant was physical and earthly; the new covenant is spiritual and heavenly. The old covenant put distance between the holy God and the sinful people. The new covenant invites us to dwell in the city of the living God through the blood of Jesus. So his message is: If you have trusted in Jesus’ blood, you have not come to the terrors of the law, but to the joys of the new covenant. (Are You Living in Sinai or Zion?)

John MacArthur - The Old Covenant was associated with Mount Sinai because that is where God spoke to Moses when that covenant was instituted. It was a covenant of law, and it was also a covenant of judgment and of fear. It said, "Do this, or do not do that, or you will be judged." In some cases it said, "Do not do this, or you will die." That is not the place to which the New Covenant brings us. (See Hebrews Commentary - Page 411)

William Barclay - The sense of the passage is, that every circumstance that occurred there was suited to fill the soul with terror. Everything accompanying the giving of the Law, the setting of bounds around the mountain which they might not pass, and the darkness and tempest on the mountain itself, was adopted to overawe the soul. . (Hebrews Commentary)

by trying to keep the Law no man can be justified and
no justified man can be sanctified by trying to keep the Law

The thrust of this section is to stir up some frightful images in the minds of his Hebrew readers. Those Jewish hearers (as well as any modern day hearer who says for example he wants to go to a Messianic Jewish congregation where they seek to keep the Law - not true of all Messianic congregations - specifically be on guard against the dangerous false teaching of the Hebrew Roots movement!) who were tempted to return to the Old (conditional) Covenant of the Law needed to remember the terrifying circumstances attending the giving of the Law. In so doing they might be able to draw clear spiritual lessons that Sinai was not the way to life but the way to death. Indeed, by trying to keep the Law no man can be justified and no justified man can be sanctified by trying to keep the Law (cf Gal 3:2-3+). The writer knows the axiomatic truth that if the Law brings a person to the end of his or her self efforts to attain righteousness, it becomes like a teacher to lead them to seek the true righteousness (the Christ bestowed kind of righteousness, the only kind God accepts) and true life (even eternal life) found in the New Covenant in His blood. In this sense the Law is good, for it can lead the humble soul to grace.

Old Covenant aroused
unbearable fear.

The picture the writer draws is one that strikes terror into the heart. The point of his description of Mt Sinai and the giving of the law is that the Old Covenant aroused unbearable fear. The sight of the burning mountain and the ever-increasing blare of a trumpet, the darkness, storm and fearful threats directed even toward dumb beasts, created such fear in the people that they begged Moses to plead with God for relief. Even Moses said, “I am trembling with fear.”

The scene was Mount Sinai (See images of Mt Sinai) a literal, tangible mountain where the fire reached to heaven, the wind swirled as an angry tempest and thick clouds of darkness billowed up forming a backdrop for lightning and peals of thunder. This entire mountain was enveloped in a pall or veil that made everything seem indistinct, obscure, and nebulous. The writer of Hebrews is telling his readers that in contrast to this appropriately terrifying picture at Mt. Sinai, they who have become genuine possessors of life indeed by grace through faith in the New Covenant, have drawn near to the Heavenly City, Mt. Zion and to the throne of the living God and no longer needed to fear death's sting which the Law brings. Paul echoes this thought writing

"O DEATH, WHERE IS YOUR VICTORY? O DEATH, WHERE IS YOUR STING?" The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law; but thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ." (1Cor 15:55-57+)

C H Spurgeon - We are joyfully reminded that we are not come to Mount Sinai and its overwhelming manifestations. After Israel had kept the feast of the Passover, God was pleased to give His people a sort of Pentecost, and more fully to manifest Himself and His law to them at Sinai. They were in the wilderness, with the solemn peaks of a desolate mountain as their center; and from the top thereof, in the midst of fire, and blackness, and darkness, and tempest, and with the sound of a trumpet, God spoke with them. Upon the believer’s spirit there rests not the slavish fear, the abject terror, the fainting alarm, which swayed the tribes of Israel; for the manifestation of God that he beholds, though not less majestic, is far more full of hope and joy. Over us there does not rest the impenetrable cloud of apprehension; we are not buried in a present darkness of despair; we are not tossed about with a tempest of horror; and, therefore, we do not exceedingly fear and quake. How thankful we should be for this!

William Barclay has a fairly good summation of the intent of the writer in this section Hebrews 12:18-24-

To enforce the considerations already urged, the apostle introduces this sublime comparison between the old and new dispensations; Hebrews 12:18-24. The object, in accordance with the principal scope of the Epistle, is, to guard them against apostasy. To do this, he shows that under the new dispensation there was much more to lead them to fidelity, and to make apostasy dangerous, than there was under the old. The main point of the comparison is, that under the Jewish dispensation, everything was adapted to awe the mind, and to restrain by the exhibition of grandeur and of power; but that under the Christian dispensation, while there was as much that was sublime, there was much more that was adapted to win and hold the affections. There were revelations of higher truths. There were more affecting motives to lead to obedience. There was that of which the former was but the type and emblem. There was the clear revelation of the glories of heaven, and of the blessed society there, all adapted to prompt to the earnest desire that they might be our own. The considerations presented in this passage constitute the climax of the argument so beautifully pursued through this Epistle, showing that the Christian system was far superior in every respect to the Jewish. In presenting this closing argument, the apostle first refers to some of the circumstances attending the former dispensation which were designed to keep the people of God from apostasy, and then the considerations of superior weight existing under the Christian economy. (Hebrews Commentary)

THE AWESOME DISPLAY OF
DIVINE HOLINESS

And to a blazing (kaio) fire (pur), and to darkness (gnophos) and gloom (zophos) and whirlwind (thuella) - The writer is alluding to pictures which his Jewish readers would been very familiar with in the Pentateuch of the Old Testament.

Exodus 19:16+ So it came about on the third day, when it was morning, that there were thunder and lightning flashes and a thick cloud upon the mountain and a very loud trumpet sound, so that all the people who were in the camp trembled.

Exodus 19:18+ Now Mount Sinai was all in smoke because the LORD descended upon it in fire; and its smoke ascended like the smoke of a furnace, and the whole mountain quaked violently.

Deuteronomy 4:11+ “You came near and stood at the foot of the mountain, and the mountain burned with fire to the very heart of the heavens: darkness, cloud and thick gloom.

Deuteronomy 33:2+ He said, “The LORD came from Sinai, And dawned on them from Seir; He shone forth from Mount Paran, And He came from the midst of ten thousand holy ones (ANGELS); At His right hand there was flashing lightning for them.

Blazing (kaio) fire (pur) - see Moses' description below, especially "there were thunder and lightning flashes and a thick cloud upon the mountain and a very loud trumpet sound, so that all the people who were in the camp trembled." Take a moment and just imagine the scene -- the ground unsteady due to tremors, the sky black in deep darkness except for the radiating forks of lightning and fire blazing from the top of Sinai, celestial shophars (Ex 19:16, 19+ = Shofar) blaring louder and louder and all of this in with the background of strong, swirling gusts of wind. Onto this "pulpit" Moses comes to speak and God answers him with a voice like thunder. What a awesome, fearful day this was! The people were visibly, physically assaulted with the holiness and majesty of God. The display of God's power on Sinai communicated far more than any sermon ever could and it was one all could comprehend! And why such a frightening scene? Clearly this was to teach the people that God is unapproachable by any sinful human being. God is holy, set apart and for the people to touch the symbol of His holiness meant certain death. And to emphasize His holiness, even an innocent animal accidentally contacted the Mount Sinai he would die! God's holiness is serious business!

🙏 THOUGHT - We easily forget that God’s holiness is still serious business in our modern world. Even genuine believers (and I speak from personal experience) can lose sight of this truth. What might happen in our hearts and minds if we regularly returned to meditate on Exodus 19? I believe the Spirit would use Moses’ words to renew within us a deep reverence for God’s perfect holiness. May it be so, Lord God. Amen.

“God is light, and in him is no darkness at all” (1 John 1:5).
What a contrast to the darkness of the law is a reconciled God!
-- C H Spurgeon

Spurgeon - God’s presence made the mountain melt and flow down. “And Yahweh thundered from the heavens, and the Most High uttered his voice with hail and coals of fire” (Ps 18:13). Sinai was “all wrapped in smoke” (Ex 19:18); innumerable lightnings flashed forth around the summit of the hill. The cloud on Sinai was so dark as to obscure the day, except that every now and then the lightning flash lit up the scene. What are we come to in contrast to that darkness? “To God the judge of all” (Heb 12:23). Possibly it does not strike you with joy when I mention it, but this is perhaps the most joyous of all the clauses of the passage. “God is light, and in him is no darkness at all” (1 John 1:5). What a contrast to the darkness of the law is a reconciled God! “But,” you say, “he is there as the Judge of all, and that makes us tremble.” Why? Why? It makes me stop trembling when I think that I have come “to God the judge of all,” that Christ has brought me near, even to the Judge, so that I have nothing to dread from Him. All over the top of Sinai there swept fierce winds and terrible tornadoes, for the Lord was there. All heaven seemed convulsed when God rent it and descended in majesty upon the sacred mount. But what do you and I see? The very reverse of tempest: “The spirits of righteous people made perfect” (Heb 12:23)—serenely resting. What more is there for them to do? They are perfect. They have fought the fight, they have run the race (2 Tim 4:7), they are crowned (2 Ti 4:8), and they are full of ecstatic bliss. The light of God is on their brows, and the glory of God is reflected from their faces. Everything like a tempest is far gone from them; they have reached the fair haven, and are tossed with tempest no more.

Essential to understanding the contrast, we must see that the giving of the Law at Mount Sinai was an awesome physical display. The prelude to the divine fireworks at Sinai involved the people’s consecration as directed by God. They washed their clothing and abstained from sexual relations, so as to be ceremonially clean. They also observed God’s orders that no man or beast touch the mountain on pain of death by stoning or arrows.

Elsewhere the elements in this picture are clearly linked with the presence of God as seen in

1) Fire

For it came about when the flame went up from the altar toward heaven, that the angel of the LORD ascended in the flame of the altar. When Manoah and his wife saw this, they fell on their faces to the ground. (Judges 13:20)

Then the fire of the LORD fell, and consumed the burnt offering and the wood and the stones and the dust, and licked up the water that was in the trench. (1Ki 18:38)

2) Darkness

Then Solomon said, "The LORD has said that He would dwell in the thick cloud (KJV = Darkness) (1Ki8:12)

3) Tempest

The LORD is slow to anger and great in power, And the LORD will by no means leave the guilty unpunished. In whirlwind and storm is His way, And clouds are the dust beneath His feet. (Nah 1:3)

4) The trumpet

Now Mount Sinai was all in smoke because the LORD descended upon it in fire; and its smoke ascended like the smoke of a furnace, and the whole mountain quaked violently. When the sound of the trumpet grew louder and louder, Moses spoke and God answered him with thunder. (Ex 19:18-19)

The trumpet is also associated with the end time when God will manifest himself

And He will send forth His angels with A GREAT TRUMPET and THEY WILL GATHER TOGETHER His elect from the four winds, from one end of the sky to the other. (Mt 24:51) (Comment: At the end of the Great Tribulation)

Behold, I tell you a mystery; we shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet; for the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed. (1Cor 15:51-52)

For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trumpet of God; and the dead in Christ shall rise first. (1 Th 4:16)

English says: There is brought before us now an impressive contrast between the sternness of the Law and the benignity of God's grace. Here we see how far removed from God sinful man is in himself, and how very near man may be, through faith in Christ, in the majestic and gracious mercy of the Almighty.

Mount Sinai stands as the symbol of this despair and fear,
of self-effort, of failure to surrender to God.

This is a picture of the invariable end of efforts made to obey the law which requires perfect obedience (cf James 2:10+). Fear of God’s just condemnation is overwhelming. Most people do not feel this fear because they do not take the law seriously, at least not until they reach the end of their lives and its fearful judgments lie immediately before them. All who seek earnestly to obey the law find themselves confronted with such personal failure that they soon despair of escaping God’s fearful condemnation. Mount Sinai stands as the symbol of this despair and fear, of self-effort, of failure to surrender to God. Those who received Messiah as Savior are urged not to remain at the fearful Mt Sinai but to go on to Mt. Zion (Hebrews 12:22), not to linger fearfully under the Old Covenant of Law but to enter fully and by faith into the New Covenant of Grace.

Ray Stedman adds "The point of his description of Mount Sinai and the giving of the law is that the old covenant aroused unbearable fear. The sight of the burning mountain and the ever-increasing blare of a trumpet, the darkness, storm and fearful threats directed even toward dumb beasts, created such fear in the people that they begged Moses to plead with God for relief. Even Moses said, “I am trembling with fear.” That is the invariable end of efforts made to obey a law which requires perfection. Fear of God’s just condemnation is overwhelming. Most people do not feel this fear because they do not take the law seriously, at least not until they reach the end of their lives and its fearful judgments lie immediately before them. All who seek earnestly to obey the law find themselves confronted with such personal failure that they soon despair of escaping God’s fearful condemnation. Mount Sinai stands as the symbol of this despair and fear." (The Blessings Now Possible)

A W Pink - The scope and design of the whole of our passage should now be obvious to the reader. The purpose was to show again how inferior Judaism was to Christianity. This he here does by taking us back to Sinai, where Judaism was formally instituted by the appearing of Jehovah at the giving of the law, and where the Mosaic economy was established by a covenant based thereon. All the circumstances connected with its institution were in most striking accord with the leading features and characteristics of that dispensation. At that time the nation of Israel was in a waste, howling wilderness, standing in speechless terror at the foot of the Mount. There Jehovah manifested Himself in His awful holiness and majesty, as Lawgiver and Judge; the people at a distance fenced off from Him. How profoundly thankful should Christians be that they belong to a much more mild and gracious order of things! (The Inferiority of Judaism)

Have come (4334) (proserchomai from prós = facing + érchomai = come) means literally to come facing toward and so to approach or come near. To come to visit or associate with. It describes the approach to or entry into a deity’s presence. In the Septuagint (LXX) proserchomai was the verb used to describe the approach of the priests to Jehovah for worship and to perform of their priestly (Levitical) functions. But here in Hebrews, under the New covenant, all seven uses of proserchomai refer to believers possessing the privilege of access to God the Father through Christ the Great High Priest.

Here are the seven uses of this proserchomai in Hebrews…

Hebrews 4:16+ Let us therefore draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and may find grace to help in time of need.

Comment: "Let us… " emphasizes that this privilege is always available to those under the New Covenant. Do we really comprehend and avail ourselves of the profundity of this privilege?

Hebrews 7:25+ Hence, also, He is able to save forever those who draw near present tense = emphasizes continual activity) to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them.

Hebrews 10:1+ For the Law, since it has only a shadow of the good things to come and not the very form of things, can never by the same sacrifices year by year, which they offer continually, make perfect those who draw near.

Hebrews 10:22+ let us draw near with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water.

Hebrews 11:6+ And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes (drawn near) to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him.

Hebrews 12:18+ For you have not come (drawn near) to a mountain that may be touched and to a blazing fire, and to darkness and gloom and whirlwind,

Hebrews 12:22+ But you have come (drawn near) to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to myriads of angels

Touched (5584)(pselaphao from psáo = to rub or touch lightly, cp psallo = to play a stringed instrument) means to handle, to touch or to feel for or after an object, groping. To touch, handle, or feel with the purpose of searching or discovering—often used of groping or grasping in darkness. Pselaphao is used by the Greek writers to mean the "blind feeling around." So psēlapháō conveys more than a casual touch — it’s a careful, investigative touching, like someone feeling their way in darkness or verifying something by contact (cf Isaac touching Jacob to discern if it were Esau or Jacob -Ge 27:12, 21, 22 )

In Heb 12:18 psēlapháō describes Mount Sinai, a physical, tangible, touchable mountain — yet ironically untouchable because of God’s holiness and judgment (Ex. 19:12–13). Thus, the writer uses the word to emphasize the material, physical nature of the old covenant revelation, in contrast to the spiritual, heavenly reality of the new covenant (Mount Zion, v. 22). So, “a mountain that can be touched” = “a tangible, earthly, physical place (Sinai) — but one that no human dared to touch because of divine holiness.”

PSELAPHAO - 4V - Lk. 24:39 = "touch Me and see, for a spirit does not have flesh and bone" Acts 17:27 = "grope for Him"; Heb. 12:18; 1 Jn. 1:1 = "and touched with our hands, concerning the Word of Life"

PSELAPHAO IN Septuagint (LXX) (JACOB'S DECEPTION OF ISAAC) Ge 27:12 = "Perhaps my father will feel me, then I will be as a deceiver in his sight"; Ge 27:21 = "Please come close, that I may feel you"; Ge 27:22 = "and he felt him"; Deut. 28:29 = "you will grope at noon, as the blind man gropes in darkness,"; Jdg. 16:26; Job 5:14; Job 12:25; Ps. 115:7; Ps. 135:17; Isa. 59:10; Nah. 3:1; Zech. 3:9; Zech. 9:13

Darkness (only here in NT)(1105) (gnophos from néphos = a cloud) describes a thick dark cloud. It signifies half-darkness, gloom, nebulousness, as the darkness of evening or the gathering gloom of death. It is a darkness which does not entirely conceal color. Gnophos is half-darkness, gloom, nebulousness; as the darkness of evening or the gathering gloom of death. It is a darkness which does not entirely conceal colour. Thus dnophos the earlier and poetic form of gnophos, is used by Homer of water which appears dark against the underlying rock, or is tinged by mire.

GNOPHOS - IN Septuagint (LXX) - Exod. 10:22; Exod. 14:20; Exod. 20:21; Deut. 4:11; Deut. 5:22; Jos. 24:7; 2 Sam. 22:10; 1 Ki. 8:12; 2 Chr. 6:1; Est. 1:1; Job 3:5; Job 9:17; Job 17:13; Job 22:13; Job 23:17; Job 27:20; Ps. 18:9; Ps. 97:2; Isa. 44:22; Isa. 60:2; Jer. 23:12; Ezek. 34:12; Joel 2:2; Amos 5:20; Zeph. 1:15; Heb. 12:18

Exodus 10:22+ So Moses stretched out his hand toward the sky, and there was thick darkness (LXX - gnophos) in all the land of Egypt for three days.

Exodus 14:20+ So it came between the camp of Egypt and the camp of Israel; and there was the cloud along with the darkness (LXX - gnophos), yet it gave light at night. Thus the one did not come near the other all night.

Exodus 20:21+ So the people stood at a distance, while Moses approached the thick cloud (LXX - gnophos) where God was.

Deuteronomy 4:11+ “You came near and stood at the foot of the mountain, and the mountain burned with fire to the very heart of the heavens: darkness (LXX - gnophos) , cloud and thick gloom.

Deuteronomy 5:22+ (JEHOVAH GIVES THE TEN COMMANDMENTS) “These words the LORD spoke to all your assembly at the mountain from the midst of the fire, of the cloud and of the thick gloom (LXX - gnophos), with a great voice, and He added no more. He wrote them on two tablets of stone and gave them to me.

Zephaniah 1:15+ (THE DAY OF THE LORD) A day of wrath is that day, A day of trouble and distress, A day of destruction and desolation, A day of darkness (LXX - gnophos) and gloom, A day of clouds and thick darkness,

Gloom (2217) (zophos) speaks of deep gloom. Friberg says zophos is used "as a designation for the underworld = thick darkness, gloomy hell."

ZOPHROS - Heb 12:18; 2 Pet 2:4, 17; Jude 1:6, 13. No uses in the Septuagint.

Whirlwind (only here in NT)(2366) (thuella form thúo = to rush on or along, to rage, to storm violently, speaking of wind or a storm or from thuein = to boil or foam) describes a storm characterized by strong and sudden winds, a tempest, a squall, or a whirlwind, even a hurricane-like wind. There are sudden and violent gusts of winds, often from varied directions. It is a brief, violent, sudden, destructive blast, sometimes working upward and carrying objects into the upper air. Such is the description of Sinai which the writer to the Hebrews gives as a picture of the First Testament. He assures them that his readers, in drawing near to Messiah and His Cross, are not approaching such a place as Sinai.

THUELLA - 3X IN Septuagint (LXX) - Exod. 10:22; Deut. 4:11; Deut. 5:22; Heb. 12:18

MOSES' DESCRIPTION OF MOUNT SINAI
Background for Hebrews 12:18-29

Exodus 19:10-25+ -- see commentary on this passage

The LORD also said to Moses, “Go to the people and consecrate them today and tomorrow, and let them wash their garments; 11 and let them be ready for the third day, for on the third day the LORD will come down on Mount Sinai in the sight of all the people. 12 “You shall set bounds for the people all around, saying, ‘Beware that you do not go up on the mountain or touch the border of it; whoever touches the mountain shall surely be put to death. 13 ‘No hand shall touch him, but he shall surely be stoned or shot through; whether beast or man, he shall not live.’ When the ram’s horn sounds a long blast, they shall come up to the mountain.” 14 So Moses went down from the mountain to the people and consecrated the people, and they washed their garments. 15 He said to the people, “Be ready for the third day; do not go near a woman.” 16 So it came about on the third day, when it was morning, that there were thunder and lightning flashes and a thick cloud upon the mountain and a very loud trumpet sound, so that all the people who were in the camp trembled. 17 And Moses brought the people out of the camp to meet God, and they stood at the foot of the mountain. 18 Now Mount Sinai was all in smoke because the LORD descended upon it in fire; and its smoke ascended like the smoke of a furnace, and the whole mountain quaked violently. 19 When the sound of the trumpet grew louder and louder, Moses spoke and God answered him with thunder. 20 The LORD came down on Mount Sinai, to the top of the mountain; and the LORD called Moses to the top of the mountain, and Moses went up. 21 Then the LORD spoke to Moses, “Go down, warn the people, so that they do not break through to the LORD to gaze, and many of them perish. 22 “Also let the priests who come near to the LORD consecrate themselves, or else the LORD will break out against them.” 23 Moses said to the LORD, “The people cannot come up to Mount Sinai, for You warned us, saying, ‘Set bounds about the mountain and consecrate it.’” 24 Then the LORD said to him, “Go down and come up again, you and Aaron with you; but do not let the priests and the people break through to come up to the LORD, or He will break forth upon them.” 25 So Moses went down to the people and told them.

The tension built for three days. Then early on the morning of the third day, the people saw a thick cloud cover the top of Sinai illumined by gold veins of lightning with accompanying thunder rolling down the slopes, plus a deafening trumpet blast that reduced everyone to trembling. The giving of the Law was attended by “10,000 holy ones” (Dt 33:2, cp Hebrews 2:2+). This suggests that hundreds of thousands of angels hovered invisibly around and over Sinai. Take a moment and try to imagine the sensory input of all of the sights, sounds and smells that were literally bombarding the people of Israel! It conjers up an awesome image and one that should strike fear in any thinking person's heart!

The phenomena listed are all associated with the giving of the Ten Commandments at Mt. Sinai

Deut 4:11 "And you came near and stood at the foot of the mountain, and the mountain burned with fire to the very heart of the heavens: darkness, cloud and thick gloom.

Deut 5:22 "These words the LORD spoke to all your assembly at the mountain from the midst of the fire, of the cloud and of the thick gloom, with a great voice, and He added no more. And He wrote them on two tablets of stone and gave them to me. 23 "And it came about, when you heard the voice from the midst of the darkness, while the mountain was burning with fire, that you came near to me, all the heads of your tribes and your elders. 24 "And you said, 'Behold, the LORD our God has shown us His glory and His greatness, and we have heard His voice from the midst of the fire; we have seen today that God speaks with man, yet he lives. 25 'Now then why should we die? For this great fire will consume us; if we hear the voice of the LORD our God any longer, then we shall die. 26 'For who is there of all flesh, who has heard the voice of the living God speaking from the midst of the fire, as we have, and lived?

To understand that God is holy and that one is a sinner
is to stand at the threshold of grace.

R Kent Hughes explains - To understand that God is holy and that one is a sinner is to stand at the threshold of grace. Moreover, the giving of the Ten Commandments in this awesome context and Israel’s failure to keep them served to emphasize the people’s impotence and doom, which is a further grace, however negative the experience may be. But this said, the great problem with the trip to Sinai was that while men and women could come to see God’s holiness and their sinfulness, the Law provided no power to overcome sin.

To run and work the law commands,
Yet gives me neither feet nor hands.

Understanding this, the writer’s explanation that they have come to a better mountain than Sinai makes sense: “You have not come to a mountain that can be touched.” Zion, to which they had come, is a spiritual mountain, whereas Sinai was a physical mountain that could be touched only at pain of death. In effect, the writer is admonishing his people as they attempt to run with perseverance the race that is marked out for them to not listen to the voices of their old friends who are still immersed in the futile pursuit of attempting to live up to Sinai, but rather to do everything in their power to maintain a straight path to Zion’s grace. There is an early passage in Pilgrim’s Progress in which Christian, amidst the difficulties of trying to walk the narrow path to Zion, is lured away by Mr. Worldly Wiseman’s counsel and directed toward the futility of Sinai. John Bunyan writes:

So Christian turned out of his way to go to Mr. Legality’s house for help; but, behold, when he was got now hard by the hill, it seemed so high, and also that side of it that was next the wayside did hang so much over, that Christian was afraid to venture farther, lest the hill should fall on his head; wherefore there he stood still, and wotted not what to do. Also his burden now seemed heavier to him than while he was in his way. There came also flashes of fire out of the hill that made Christian afraid that he should be burnt: here, therefore, he sweat and did quake for fear. And now he began to be sorry that he had taken Mr. Worldly Wiseman’s counsel; and with that, he saw Evangelist coming to meet him, at the sight also of whom he began to blush for shame. (Read this account online)

And, of course, Mr. Evangelist got him back on track, and the race continued on to Zion, the heavenly Jerusalem. Today, few Christians, especially Gentiles, are in danger of turning back to Mt Sinai per se and embracing the Levitical laws of the Old Testament. Sinai, with its fiery mountain and its code, is simply too daunting. Instead, we fabricate our own "mini-Sinais" with a series of mini-laws which reflect nothing of the fiery presence and which are, we think, well within the reach of our unaided powers. our legalisms—our mini-Sinais are always reductionist, shrinking spirituality to a series of wooden laws which say, “If you will do those six or sixty or six hundred things, you will be godly.” And, of course, legalism is always judgmental. How easily our hearts imagine that our lists elevate us, while at the same time providing us with a convenient rack on which to stretch others in merciless judgment. (See Hebrews: An Anchor for the Soul)

Brian Bell asks "What was the big problem of Sinai? It provided no power to overcome sin. As one put this dilemma to poem, To run & work the law commands, Yet gives me neither feet nor hands. Today we aren’t tempted to go back to Sinai, in the sense of returning to the law. Yet we do have a tendency to build our own synthetic Sinai’s. Here’s how it works. I go stand on my own little spiritual Sinai, God speaks to me a word of conviction, on…let’s say…spending too much time on social media. But then I run down the mountain & try to share my personal conviction of “0” social media now, but instead I make it a thus saith the Lord for everyone. Voila, I have returned to Sinai. Oh, how our lists elevate us, while we place all others mercilessly in our judgmental miss-calibrated-scales.

Steven Cole - In 1986, Texas gem dealer Roy Whetstine was pawing through a Tupperware bowl of cheaply priced rocks at a mineral show in Arizona when he came across a lavender-gray, potato-size stone that looked a bit special. “You want $15 for this?” Whetstine asked the amateur collector. “Tell you what,” replied the collector. “I’ll let you have it for $10. It’s not as pretty as the others.” Whetstine walked away with the world’s largest star sapphire, later valued at as high as $2.28 million! He planned to sell his 1,905-carat bargain in its uncut form for $1.5 million and put the profits in trust for his two sons, each of whom had given Dad $5 to bring back a little something from the gem show (Newsweek [11/24/1986], p. 75). If you don’t know what you possess, you may disregard it or let it go for something worth far less. Esau did that—he didn’t appreciate the value of his birthright, which entitled him to the blessings of God’s promises to Abraham, and so he traded it for a bowl of stew. He gave away eternal blessings for instant gratification. Bad trade! But that’s what the original readers of Hebrews were in danger of doing! Under the threat of persecution, they were tempted to abandon Christ to return to their Jewish faith. So the author here contrasts the terrors of Mount Sinai, representing Jewish life under the law, with the glories of Mount Zion, picturing the joy of life under the new covenant. He wants us to know that right living flows out of right knowing. If you know the riches that you possess in Christ, you won’t want to go back to the empty, fleeting pleasures of the world. John Newton put it this way (“Glorious Things of Thee are Spoken,” verse 4) (Are You Living in Sinai or Zion)

Savior, if of Zion’s city, I through grace a member am,
Let the world deride or pity, I will glory in Thy name;
Fading is the world’s best pleasure, All its boasted pomp and show;
Solid joys and lasting treasure None but Zion’s children know.

So the author does not want us to make Esau’s spiritually fatal mistake. He draws a sharp contrast between life under the old covenant and life under the new covenant. The feeling of the old covenant was terror and judgment. The feeling of the new covenant is joyous celebration with the saints and angels in the presence of God. There is still reverence, but the blood of Jesus has taken away the dread of judgment. The old covenant was physical and earthly; the new covenant is spiritual and heavenly. The old covenant put distance between the holy God and the sinful people. The new covenant invites us to dwell in the city of the living God through the blood of Jesus. So his message is:

If you have trusted in Jesus’ blood, you have not come to the
terrors of the law, but to the joys of the new covenant.

1. If you have trusted in Jesus’ blood, you have not come to the terrors of the law (Heb 12:18-21).

These verses summarize the story of God’s giving the law at Mount Sinai (Exod. 19:10-25). You may wonder, “Why would God reveal Himself in such a terrifying manner?” Even Moses, who had seen God in the burning bush, who had performed God’s miracles before Pharaoh, was full of fear and trembling. (The quote in Heb 12:21 is not in the original story. The author may have been relying on Jewish oral tradition, or he may have included Moses with the people in their fear.) This doesn’t sound like the kind of warm, grandfatherly God that you’d want to cuddle up to!

The answer to that question depends on the answer to another question: “Why did God give the law?” Paul answers that question in Galatians 3:19 ff. He says (Gal. 3:22) that the law was given to “shut up everyone under sin, so that the promise by faith in Jesus Christ might be given to those who believe.” He goes on to explain (Gal. 3:24), “Therefore the Law has become our tutor to lead us to Christ, so that we may be justified by faith.”

By nature, we’re all blind to the extent of our sin before a holy God. We compare ourselves with terrorists and child molesters and think, “Sure, I’ve got my faults, but I’m not a terrible sinner!” And, we know that God is holy, but we don’t grasp what that means. But then the law comes in and shows us God’s absolute holiness. With Isaiah 6:5, we say, “Woe is me, for I am ruined! Because I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts.” Isaiah didn’t know that he had a dirty mouth before he saw God in His holiness. But the instant he saw God’s holiness, he was aware of his own sinfulness.

The route to Zion goes through Sinai, where we encounter the terrors of God’s law. His law should teach us two things:

A. GOD’S LAW SHOULD INSTILL IN US A FEAR OF HIS HOLINESS AND JUDGMENT.

The scene at Mount Sinai was that of a severe thunderstorm, but it was far more than that. In addition to the darkness, gloom, wind, and flashes of lightning, there was the blast of a trumpet, which was probably a supernatural sound from heaven. The earth quaked violently (Exod. 19:18). Whether the people could understand the exact words of God’s voice from heaven or not, I don’t know. But it was such a terrible sound that they “begged that no further word be spoken to them” (Heb. 12:19). God had commanded that any person or animal that touched the mountain must be killed from a distance, either by stoning or by arrows (Exod. 19:12-13). Like Uzzah who was struck dead for touching the ark, so anyone who touched anything that had touched the mountain where God revealed Himself would die.

John Calvin opens The Institutes of the Christian Religion (ed. by John McNeill, [Westminster Press], 1:1:1) with this profound sentence: “Nearly all the wisdom we possess, that is to say, true and sound wisdom, consists of two parts: the knowledge of God and of ourselves.” He means the knowledge that comes through Scripture. In the same section, he continues (1:1:1),

Each of us must, then, be so stung by the consciousness of his own unhappiness as to attain at least some knowledge of God. Thus, from the feeling of our own ignorance, vanity, poverty, infirmity, and—what is more—depravity and corruption, we recognize that the true light of wisdom, sound virtue, full abundance of every good, and purity of righteousness rest in the Lord alone. To this extent we are prompted by our own ills to contemplate the good things of God; and we cannot seriously aspire to him before we begin to become displeased with ourselves.

He goes on (1:1:2) to show that the only way we get a clear knowledge of ourselves is to look upon God’s face. His holiness reveals our pride, self-righteousness, hypocrisy, and sin. Until we have some understanding of God as revealed in Scripture, we flatter ourselves and think that we’re not all that bad. Calvin gives many biblical examples (1:1:3) of men who normally were “firm and constant,” but when they got a glimpse of God’s majesty and glory, they were “overwhelmed by it and almost annihilated.”

John Newton expressed the same idea in his well-known hymn, “Amazing Grace”: “’Twas grace that taught my heart to fear, and grace my fears relieved.” Charles Spurgeon went through the same experience. In his autobiography, he spends a chapter describing how the terrors of God’s law tormented him before he came to saving faith in Christ. Martin Luther knew the same thing. He hated God’s righteousness until he came to understand that God imputes His righteousness to us by faith alone.

In my experience of growing up in a Christian home, I knew very little of God’s holiness or my own depravity before I trusted Christ. But the more I have come to understand the holiness of God, the more I have recognized the sinfulness of my own heart. That drives me to the cross as my only refuge. And while the cross removes the dread of judgment, it should never remove our sense of reverence in the presence of the holy God.

B. GOD’S LAW SHOULD INSTILL IN US THE NEED FOR HIS MEDIATOR.

At Mount Sinai, Moses and Aaron were the only ones allowed to go up the mountain into God’s presence. But the people could not draw near to God through Moses or Aaron. They were men with sin of their own. But Jesus Christ is our sinless high priest, who offered Himself as our sacrifice (Heb. 7:26-27). As Paul wrote (1 Tim. 2:5), “For there is one God, and one mediator also between God and men, the man Christ Jesus.”

The author’s point is that while the law reveals God’s holiness and convicts us as deserving of His judgment, Jesus is God’s mediator who paid the penalty for all that believe in Him. So, the route to Zion goes through Sinai, where we encounter the terrors of God’s law. But once you’ve arrived in Zion, why would you want to go back to Sinai? So after describing the place we have left, the author goes on to show the place where we’ve come:

2. If you have trusted in Christ, you have come to the joys of the new covenant in Jesus’ blood (12:22-24).

The overall feel of these verses is in stark contrast to the preceding verses.

Deffinbaugh: the spectacular and the sensational do not strengthen our faith and produce endurance as much as suffering does.

Walking in the Light

In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind.John 1:4

Today's Scripture & Insight: Hebrews 12:18–24

Darkness descended on our forest village when the moon disappeared. Lightning slashed the skies, followed by a rainstorm and crackling thunder. Awake and afraid, as a child I imagined all kinds of grisly monsters about to pounce on me! By daybreak, however, the sounds vanished, the sun rose, and calm returned as birds jubilated in the sunshine. The contrast between the frightening darkness of the night and the joy of the daylight was remarkably sharp.

The author of Hebrews recalls the time when the Israelites had an experience at Mount Sinai so dark and stormy they hid in fear (Exodus 20:18–19). For them, God’s presence, even in His loving gift of the law, felt dark and terrifying. This was because, as sinful people, the Israelites couldn’t live up to God’s standards. Their sin caused them to walk in darkness and fear (Hebrews 12:18–21).

But God is light; in Him there’s no darkness at all (1 John 1:5). In Hebrews 12, Mount Sinai represents God’s holiness and our old life of disobedience, while the beauty of Mount Zion represents God’s grace and believers’ new life in Jesus, “the mediator of a new covenant” (vv. 22–24).

Whoever follows Jesus will “never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life” (John 8:12). Through Him, we can let go of the darkness of our old life and celebrate the joy of walking in the light and beauty of His kingdom. By: Lawrence Darmani (Our Daily Bread, Copyright RBC Ministries, Grand Rapids, MI. — Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved)

Reflect & Pray

If you’re a believer in Jesus, how has your life changed since He came into it? What are some ways you’d like to grow in your faith?

Thank You, Lord Jesus, for bringing me out of darkness into Your marvelous light. Help me to avoid the darkness to continue walking in the light toward eternity.

D A Carson (from "For the Love of God") - NOVEMBER 17 1 Chronicles 9–10; Hebrews 12; Amos 6; Luke 1:39–80

THE EFFORTS OF THE AUTHOR of the epistle to the Hebrews to help his readers grasp the transcendent importance of Jesus and the new covenant, over against the old covenant given by God at Sinai, precipitate a new and interesting contrast in Hebrews 12:18–24.
On the one hand, Christians “have not come to a mountain that can be touched and that is burning with fire” (12:18)—the reference is clearly to Mount Sinai when God came down upon it and met with Moses. The terror of that theophany is spelled out in graphic terms. God himself declared, “If even an animal touches the mountain, it must be stoned” (12:20). Even Moses experienced deep fear (Deut. 9:19; Heb. 12:21). Christians have not drawn near to that particular mountain.
On the other hand, Christians have come to another mountain. But here the author throws us a curve. At first it sounds as if he is saying that the mountain we approach is not Sinai, connected with the desert and the giving of the law, but Mount Zion, the place where the temple was built in Jerusalem, the seat of the Davidic dynasty. And then suddenly it becomes clear that the text is not focusing on the geographical and historical Zion, but on its antitype: “the heavenly Jerusalem, the city of the living God” (12:22).
There is a great deal that could be said about this typology, but I shall restrict myself to two observations.
First, it extends to other biblical books. The typology itself is grounded in the return from exile. The hope of the exiles was that they return to Jerusalem. Jerusalem became the symbol of all that was restorative. Already in the literature of second-temple Judaism, Jews sometimes speak of “the new Jerusalem” or the like, which is heavenly, perfect. Similarly in the New Testament. Paul can speak of “the Jerusalem that is above” (Gal. 4:26). The last book of the Bible envisages the New Jerusalem coming down out of heaven (Rev. 21).
Second, if Christians have “come” to this “heavenly Jerusalem,” what does this in fact mean? It means that by becoming Christians we have joined the assembly of those “gathered” before the presence of the living God. Our citizenship is in heaven; our names are inscribed in heaven. We join the joyful assembly of countless thousands of angels around the throne. In short, we have “come to God, the judge of all men”; we have joined “the spirits of righteous men made perfect” (Heb. 12:23). Above all, we have come “to Jesus the mediator of a new covenant” (12:24). Here is the ultimate vision of what it means to be the gathered “church of the firstborn” (Heb. 12:23).

Daily Light on the Daily Path -“Fear not, I am the first and the last.”
For you have not come to what may be touched, a blazing fire and darkness and gloom and a tempest. . . . But you have come to Mount Zion . . . and to God, the judge of all, and to the spirits of the righteous made perfect, and to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant.—Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith.—For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.
Thus says the Lord, the King of Israel and his Redeemer, the Lord of hosts: “I am the first and I am the last; besides me there is no god.”—Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
Are you not from everlasting, O Lord my God, my Holy One?—“For who is God, but the Lord? And who is a rock, except our God?”
Rev. 1:17; Heb. 12:18, 22–24; Heb. 12:2; Heb. 4:15–16; Isa. 44:6; Isa. 9:6; Hab. 1:12; 2 Sam. 22:32

John Henry Jowett - SINAI AND CALVARY Hebrews 12:18-28.

WE need not live at the foot of Mount Sinai. It is like living at the foot of Mount Pelee, the home of awful eruption, and therefore the realm of gloom and uncertainty and fear. We are not saved by law, neither indeed can we be. Neither can law heal us after our transgressions and defeats. The law has nothing for prodigal men but “blackness, and darkness, and tempest.” It has no sound but dreaded decree, no message but menace, no look but a frown. Who will build his house at the foot of Mount Sinai?

“But ye are come unto Mount Zion.” Our true home is not at Sinai, but at Calvary. There is no place for the sinner at the first mount; at the second mount there is a place for no one else. At Calvary we may find our way back to the holiness we lost at Sinai. Through grace we may drop the burden of our sin and begin to wear the garments of salvation. The way back to heaven is by “the green hill, without a city wall.” It is a mount that can be reached by the most exhausted pilgrim; and the one who has “spent all” will assuredly find a full restoration of life at the gate of his Saviour’s death. “Ye are come to Jesus, the mediator of the new covenant.”

To approach God apart from the Cross of redemption is to come unto "fire and to blackness and darkness and tempest" (Heb. 12:18).

Worship Service

Read: Hebrews 12:18-25

You have come to . . . an innumerable company of angels, to the general assembly and church of the firstborn. —Hebrews 12:22-23

The sign outside the church states, “Worship Service—Sunday at 11:00 a.m.” That ought to stop traffic. Passersby should take out their pens and jot the time down in their datebooks. When a church gathers to worship, astonishing things take place.

The writer of the letter to the Hebrews opens our understanding of the privilege and glory of worship. He declared that we have come to “the heavenly Jerusalem, to an innumerable company of angels, to the general assembly and church of the firstborn” (12:22-23).

The writer did not say, “You shall come,” as though he were describing some future experience on the other side of death. We are part of a universal fellowship right now. When we worship, we gather with believers of all nations—with all who sing the same praises, read the same Bible, and bow before the same Lord. We also join with thousands upon thousands of angels who sing, “Worthy is the Lamb who was slain to receive power and riches and wisdom, and strength and honor and glory and blessing!” (Rev. 5:12).

Whether we meet with a handful or with hundreds, let’s join with the great company of angels and our fellow believers around the world in lifting our hearts in praise.By Haddon W. Robinson (Our Daily Bread, Copyright RBC Ministries, Grand Rapids, MI. — Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved)

Come, we that love the Lord,
And let our joys be known;
Join in a song with sweet accord
And thus surround the throne.
—Watts

When we worship God, we're part of a fellowship
as wide as the world and as high as heaven.

Hebrews 12:19 and to the blast of a trumpet and the sound of words which sound was such that those who heard begged that no further word be spoken to them. (NASB: Lockman)

Greek: kai salpiggos echo kai phone rhematon, es oi akousantes (AAPMPN) paretesanto (3PAMI) me prostethenai (APN) autois logon

Amplified: And to the blast of a trumpet and a voice whose words make the listeners beg that nothing more be said to them. (Amplified Bible - Lockman)

NLT: For they heard an awesome trumpet blast and a voice with a message so terrible that they begged God to stop speaking. (NLT - Tyndale House)

NLT (revised) For they heard an awesome trumpet blast and a voice so terrible that they begged God to stop speaking.

BGT καὶ σάλπιγγος ἤχῳ καὶ φωνῇ ῥημάτων, ἧς οἱ ἀκούσαντες παρῃτήσαντο μὴ προστεθῆναι αὐτοῖς λόγον,

NET and the blast of a trumpet and a voice uttering words such that those who heard begged to hear no more.

GNT καὶ σάλπιγγος ἤχῳ καὶ φωνῇ ῥημάτων, ἧς οἱ ἀκούσαντες παρῃτήσαντο μὴ προστεθῆναι αὐτοῖς λόγον,

KJV And the sound of a trumpet, and the voice of words; which voice they that heard intreated that the word should not be spoken to them any more:

ESV and the sound of a trumpet and a voice whose words made the hearers beg that no further messages be spoken to them.

ASV and the sound of a trumpet, and the voice of words; which voice they that heard entreated that no word more should be spoken unto them;

CSB to the blast of a trumpet, and the sound of words. (Those who heard it begged that not another word be spoken to them,

NIV to a trumpet blast or to such a voice speaking words that those who heard it begged that no further word be spoken to them,

NKJ and the sound of a trumpet and the voice of words, so that those who heard it begged that the word should not be spoken to them anymore.

NRS and the sound of a trumpet, and a voice whose words made the hearers beg that not another word be spoken to them.

YLT and a sound of a trumpet, and a voice of sayings, which those having heard did entreat that a word might not be added to them,

NAB and a trumpet blast and a voice speaking words such that those who heard begged that no message be further addressed to them,

NJB or trumpet-blast or the sound of a voice speaking which made everyone that heard it beg that no more should be said to them.

GWN to a trumpet's blast, and to a voice. When your ancestors heard that voice, they begged not to hear it say another word.

BBE And to the sound of a horn, and the voice of words, the hearers of which made request that not a word more might be said to them:

Young's Literal: and a sound of a trumpet, and a voice of sayings, which those having heard did entreat that a word might not be added to them,

the blast: Ex 19:16-19 1Co 15:52 1Th 4:16
and the sound of words: Ex 20:1-17,22 De 4:12,33 5:3-22
those who heard begged: Ex 20:18,19 De 5:24-27 18:16
Hebrews 12 Resources - Multiple Sermons and Commentaries

Related Passages:

Exodus 19:16, 18-19+ So it came about on the third day, when it was morning, that there were thunder and lightning flashes and a thick cloud upon the mountain and a very loud trumpet sound, so that all the people who were in the camp trembled.....18 All the people perceived the thunder and the lightning flashes and the sound of the trumpet and the mountain smoking; and when the people saw it, they trembled and stood at a distance. 19 Then they said to Moses, “Speak to us yourself and we will listen; but let not God speak to us, or we will die.”

When the sound of the trumpet grew louder and louder, Moses spoke and God answered him with thunder.

Deuteronomy 4:12+ “Then the LORD spoke to you from the midst of the fire; you heard the sound of words, but you saw no form–only a voice.

Deuteronomy 5:23-27+ “And when you heard the voice from the midst of the darkness, while the mountain was burning with fire, you came near to me, all the heads of your tribes and your elders. 24 “You said, ‘Behold, the LORD our God has shown us His glory and His greatness, and we have heard His voice from the midst of the fire; we have seen today that God speaks with man, yet he lives. 25 ‘Now then why should we die? For this great fire will consume us; if we hear the voice of the LORD our God any longer, then we will die. 26 ‘For who is there of all flesh who has heard the voice of the living God speaking from the midst of the fire, as we have, and lived? 27 (ISRAEL TELLS MOSES TO ACT AS MEDIATOR) ‘Go near and hear all that the LORD our God says; then speak to us all that the LORD our God speaks to you, and we will hear and do it.’

Ex 20:1, 18-19+ Then God spoke all these words, saying, 18 All the people perceived the thunder and the lightning flashes and the sound of the trumpet and the mountain smoking; and when the people saw it, they trembled and stood at a distance. 19 Then they said to Moses, “Speak to us yourself and we will listen; but let not God speak to us, or we will die.”

TERRIFYING SOUNDS
FROM SINAI

In Hebrews 12:18–24 which is one long and powerful sentence the author is drawing a vivid contrast between Mount Sinai and Mount Zion.In this passage the writer continues painting the awe-inspiring and terrifying scene at Mount Sinai, drawing from Exodus 19–20. This passage continues the dramatic reminder of the fearful nature of God's revelation at Mount Sinai. It sets the stage for the striking contrast with Mount Zion, where believers now stand, not in shaking fear of the Law, but in reverence because of God's grace. Yet the holiness of God remains unchanged. The difference is that in Christ, we are no longer kept at a distance, but are welcomed into His presence through the blood of the New Covenant (Hebrews 12:24).

And to the blast (echos) of a trumpet (salpigx) and the sound (phone) of words (rhema) which sound was such that those who heard (akouo) begged (paraiteomai) that no further word (logos) be spoken to them - The previous passage recalled primarily the terrifying sights of Sinai, and here the terrifying sounds from Sinai. This scene was so frightening that Israel wanted the experience to stop. The blast of the trumpet made every ear tingle and every heart tremble. The writer is reminding his new covenant believers that under the old covenant, the people could not bear the sound of God’s voice or endure the trumpet blasts that heralded His presence (Listen to the sounds of a shofar and imagine yourself at the foot of Mt Sinai). The entire scene was not for dramatic effect, but to reveal the unapproachable holiness of God and the utter inadequacy of man apart from a mediator—whom they themselves requested in Deuteronomy 5:27 to speak to God on their behalf.

Spurgeon on the blast of a trumpet - Clarion notes most clear and shrill rang out again and again the high commands of the thrice-holy God. You are not come to that. Instead of a trumpet, which signifies war and the stern summons of a king, you are come to “Jesus the Mediator of the new covenant” (Heb 12:24), to the silver tones of “Come to me, all of you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest” (Matt 11:28+). (The General Convocation Around Mount Zion)

John Piper: In other words, the experience there was one of fearful, divine holiness without a mediator (ED: MOSES WOULD SOON FUNCTION AS THEIR MEDIATOR BUT THAT WAS NOT YET APPARENT TO THE ISRAELITES) and with a voice so terrible that the people begged that the voice would stop. Then he goes on and contrasts the Christian reality since the cross (Heb 12:22-24). (You Have Come to Mount Zion)

Homer Kent: The sound of a trumpet, possibly blown by an angel, grew louder and louder (Exod. 19:19); and when Moses spoke, God answered him with a sound of words (Deut. 4:12). These words where so terrifying that the Israelites begged Moses henceforth to act as God’s spokesman rather than have God address them directly (Ex 20:19). (BORROW The Epistle to the Hebrews : a commentary PAGE 268)

Barry Horner on trumpet - The music here was not entertaining; it was a summons, not a symphony; the message did not make its hearers happy! Here was the full force of God’s holy proclamation that spoke of infinite demand and punishment at the slightest infraction. The more the people listened, the more hopeless their condition appeared. Their sin rose up to proportions never before envisaged, with the solution being thought to be the cessation of the message rather than a cry for mercy. The whole populace of Israel heard in such a paralyzing manner that the people seemed incapable of making a retreat. Thus Owen explains: “When God calls sinners to answer the law, there is no avoiding of an appearance; the terrible summons and citation will draw them out, whether they will or no.”(Commentary)

Spurgeon - Together with the trumpet there sounded out a voice that was so terrible that they asked that they might not hear it again. They cowered down under it, like poor, frightened children, terrified by the penetrating sound. They could not endure another word; they begged that the voice would be silent. We have come to another voice—the voice of “the sprinkled blood that speaks better than Abel’s does” (Heb 12:24). There is a voice from Zion; there is a voice that rolls over the heads of the innumerable company of angels. A voice of the Lord that is full of majesty, and exceedingly comfortable to the “assembly of the firstborn” (Heb 12:23), who know the joyful sound. The blessed Word speaks life, pardon, reconciliation, acceptance, joy, eternal bliss!

Those who heard (akouo) begged (paraiteomai) that no further word (logos) be spoken to them - What had they heard? First of all they heard articulate speech, not just sounds (although they did hear sounds of thunder). The people didn’t want God to stop speaking because His voice was unclear, but because it was unmistakably clear! They heard the Law (cf Ex 20:1ff) which awakened their consciousness of sin exposed their sin and guilt and left them in dread. The Word which had brought creation into being now brought judgment and dread upon fallen men. The writer in describing their begging for the words to cease sets the stage for the last warning in Heb 12:25 "See to it that you do not refuse Him who is speaking."

Blast (2279) (echos) is a sound and can also mean a loud or confused noise ("echo") or a roar.

Sound (5465) phone - as the production of a sound, made to convey significance; (1) as produced through the throat of living creatures; (a) generally of man and supernatural beings voice, speech, utterance ( Mt 27.46; Jn 5.37); idiomatically literally raise the voice, i.e. speak loudly, cry out (Lk 11.27); (b) as what is being specifically expressed through speaking, as an outcry (Acts 19.34), (solemn) declaration (2Pe 1.17), cry ( Mk 15.37), message (Acts 13.27), lamentation (Mt 2.18); (c) of speech, as characteristic of human beings = language ( 1Co 14.10); (d) as the various cries and sounds made by animals and birds; (2) as produced by inanimate things = sound, tone, noise, translated according to the source: as a reverberation, rumbling of thunder (Rev 6.1), sound, roar of waters (Rev 1.15b), rush of wings (Rev 9.9a), clatter of chariot wheels (Rev 9.9b), grinding of millstones (Rev 18.22b), melody of musical instruments (1Co 14.7), signal of a trumpet ( 1Co 14.8), rushing of wind (Jn 3.8) (Borrow Analytical Lexicon of the Greek New Testament)

PHONE IN HEBREWS - Heb. 3:7; Heb. 3:15; Heb. 4:7; Heb. 12:19; Heb. 12:26 - ALL EXCEPT TRUMPET REFER TO VOICE OF GOD IN HEBREWS.

Hebrews 3:7 Therefore, just as the Holy Spirit says, “TODAY IF YOU HEAR HIS VOICE,
Hebrews 3:15 while it is said, “TODAY IF YOU HEAR HIS VOICE, DO NOT HARDEN YOUR HEARTS, AS WHEN THEY PROVOKED ME.”
Hebrews 4:7 He again fixes a certain day, “Today,” saying through David after so long a time just as has been said before, “TODAY IF YOU HEAR HIS VOICE, DO NOT HARDEN YOUR HEARTS.”
Hebrews 12:19 and to the blast of a trumpet and the sound of words which sound was such that those who heard begged that no further word be spoken to them.
Hebrews 12:26 And His voice shook the earth then, but now He has promised, saying, “YET ONCE MORE I WILL SHAKE NOT ONLY THE EARTH, BUT ALSO THE HEAVEN.”

Trumpet (4536) (salpigx/salpinx) is a musical instrument which today would be the equivalent of a brass musical instrument with a flared bell and a bright, penetrating tone. The Jewish people were familiar with trumpets, because trumpets were used to declare war, to announce special times and seasons, and to gather the people for a journey (Nu 10). In the Roman Empire, trumpets were used to announce the arrival of a great person. When God gave the Law to Israel, the event was preceded by a trumpet blast

Exodus 19:13 No hand shall touch him, but he shall surely be stoned or shot through; whether beast or man, he shall not live. When the ram's horn (Lxx = salpigx) sounds a long blast, they shall come up to the mountain.

The trumpet is spoken of repeatedly in connection with Sinai (Ex 19:13, 16, 19; 20:18). And on that occasion the people heard the voice of God (Dt 5:24). But the effect of it all was to terrify them, and they asked that they should hear God's voice no more (Ex 20:19; Dt 5:25-27). They were overcome with awe and wanted no further part in the wonderful events. Ex 20:19 Dt 5:25, 18:16,

Words (4487) (rhema from verb rheo = to speak - to say, speak or utter definite words) refers to the spoken word, especially a word as uttered by a living voice. Laleo is another word translated speak but it refers only to uttering a sound whereas rheo refers to uttering a definite intelligible word. Rhema refers to any sound produced by the voice which has a definite meaning. It focuses upon the content of the communication. For example in Luke we read "And they understood none of these things, and this saying (rhema) was hidden from them, and they did not comprehend the things that were said. (Luke 18:34)

In the plural (as in Hebrews 12:19) rhema ("words"), means saying, speech or discourse.

Begged (3868) (paraiteomai from pará = aside and in this word gives a nuance of aversion or repudiation + aitéo = ask, beg) is literally to ask along side. then to beg away from oneself. As in Mark 15:6, this verb can mean to beg or request (a prisoner to be freed on the occasion of the Passover). In Luke 14:18+, it conveys the sense of to beg off or of wanting to be excused from a positive response, in this verse one excusing himself for not accepting a wedding invitation. Finally, in the pastoral epistles the meaning is to decline, refuse, to refuse to pay attention to, to shun, to avoid, to reject. In secular Greek a wrestler was declared the victor when his opponents declined to engage him upon seeing his unclothed physique.

PARAITEOMAI - 10V - Mk. 15:6; Lk. 14:18; Lk. 14:19; Acts 25:11; 1 Tim. 4:7; 1 Tim. 5:11; 2 Tim. 2:23; Tit. 3:10; Heb. 12:19; Heb. 12:25

Hebrews 12:20 For they could not bear the command, "IF EVEN A BEAST TOUCHES THE MOUNTAIN, IT WILL BE STONED." (NASB: Lockman)

Greek: ouk epheron (3PIAI) gar to diastellomenon, (PPPNSA) Kan therion thige (3SAAS) tou orous, lithobolethesetai; (3SFPI)

Amplified: For they could not bear the command that was given: If even a wild animal touches the mountain, it shall be stoned to death. (Amplified Bible - Lockman)

NLT: They staggered back under God's command: "If even an animal touches the mountain, it must be stoned to death." (NLT - Tyndale House)

BGT Hebrews 12:20 οὐκ ἔφερον γὰρ τὸ διαστελλόμενον· κἂν θηρίον θίγῃ τοῦ ὄρους, λιθοβοληθήσεται·

NET Hebrews 12:20 For they could not bear what was commanded: "If even an animal touches the mountain, it must be stoned."

GNT Hebrews 12:20 οὐκ ἔφερον γὰρ τὸ διαστελλόμενον, Κἂν θηρίον θίγῃ τοῦ ὄρους, λιθοβοληθήσεται·

NLT Hebrews 12:20 They staggered back under God's command: "If even an animal touches the mountain, it must be stoned to death."

KJV Hebrews 12:20 (For they could not endure that which was commanded, And if so much as a beast touch the mountain, it shall be stoned, or thrust through with a dart:

ESV Hebrews 12:20 For they could not endure the order that was given, "If even a beast touches the mountain, it shall be stoned."

ASV Hebrews 12:20 for they could not endure that which was enjoined, If even a beast touch the mountain, it shall be stoned;

CSB Hebrews 12:20 for they could not bear what was commanded: And if even an animal touches the mountain, it must be stoned!

NIV Hebrews 12:20 because they could not bear what was commanded: "If even an animal touches the mountain, it must be stoned."

NKJ Hebrews 12:20 (For they could not endure what was commanded: "And if so much as a beast touches the mountain, it shall be stoned or shot with an arrow."

NRS Hebrews 12:20 (For they could not endure the order that was given, "If even an animal touches the mountain, it shall be stoned to death."

NAB Hebrews 12:20 for they could not bear to hear the command: "If even an animal touches the mountain, it shall be stoned."

NJB Hebrews 12:20 They could not bear the order that was given: If even a beast touches the mountain, it must be stoned.

GWN Hebrews 12:20 They couldn't obey the command that was given, "If even an animal touches the mountain, it must be stoned to death."

BBE Hebrews 12:20 For the order which said, If the mountain is touched even by a beast, the beast is to be stoned, seemed hard to them;

Wuest: For they could not bear that which was commanded. And if a wild beast touch the mountain, it shall be stoned.

Young's Literal: for they were not bearing that which is commanded, 'And if a beast may touch the mountain, it shall be stoned, or with an arrow shot through,'

For they - De 33:2 Ro 3:19,20 Ga 2:19 3:10
If even a beast - Ex 19:13,16
Hebrews 12 Resources - Multiple Sermons and Commentaries

Related Passages:

Exodus 19:12-13+ You shall set bounds for the people all around, saying, ‘Beware that you do not go up on the mountain or touch the border of it; whoever touches the mountain shall surely be put to death. 13 ‘No hand shall touch him, but he shall surely be stoned or shot through; whether beast or man, he shall not live.’ When the ram’s horn sounds a long blast, they shall come up to the mountain.”

THE AWESOMENESS
OF GOD'S HOLINESS

For (gar) - pause and ponder this term of explanation. Explaining why they begged no further word to be spoken to them.

They could (ou - absolutely) not bear the command (diastello), "IF EVEN A BEAST TOUCHES (thiggano) THE MOUNTAIN (oros) IT WILL BE STONED (lithoboleo) - The verb command (diastello) is in the present tense picturing the command as constantly ringing in their ears causing the malady one might call "divine tinnitus"! The command that nothing touches the mountain indicates the holiness and separateness of the mountain. This in turn communicated that God’s holiness is absolute, His boundaries unbreakable, His justice impartial.

IT WILL BE STONED ( lithoboleo) - Killing by stoning was prescribed so that those carrying this out would not need to touch the mountain themselves. They understood that if death came to an uncomprehending animal that touched the mountain, how much more certain would death be for those who knowingly ignored God’s warning. If even a dumb beast could not approach the mountain and live, how much less could sinful man dare to approach God on his own terms.

John MacArthur explains that "God gave Israel the covenant of law in the middle of the wilderness, away from all distractions, all interference, and all hiding places. They had nothing to focus on but God, and in doing so became terribly aware of their own sinfulness. The first thing that leads a person to repentance and dependence on God for deliverance is the awareness of his sinfulness (ED: THAT WAS PAUL'S PURPOSE IN EXPLAINING THE GOSPEL LEADING OFF WITH SIN IN Romans 1:18-3:20). Apart from seeing his sinfulness, a person has no reason to seek salvation. Only seeing our sin can make us see our need for salvation from sin and from the judgment it brings. This was the purpose of Sinai, to bring the people face to face with their own sinfulness, with no place to hide.The law is God's great mirror. When we look into it, we see ourselves as we really are—immeasurably short of God's standard of righteousness. There is not a single commandment that we have kept perfectly or can keep perfectly, in either act or attitude. The law makes no exceptions and no allowance for less than perfect obedience. The law overwhelms us, slays us. No sinner can endure Sinai. Every sinner who stands at the foot of Sinai is paralyzed with fear." (Hebrews Commentary - Page 413) (Bold added)

Charles Swindoll on the people's fearful reaction - By conjuring up these emotions, the author of Hebrews warns his marathon runners about the dangers of returning to the old, obsolete mountain. That one—the fleshly, earthly, worldly approach to righteousness—will only lead to fear and trembling. Instead, they should stay on course and head for another glorious mountain. (See Insights on Hebrews - Page 207)

Mohler: The congregation was even commanded to stone to death any animal that touched the mountain (Exod 19:12-13). The severity of this command demonstrated the costliness of uncleanness in the midst of God’s holy presence. The Israelites feared for their lives. The author of Hebrews uses the command to execute animals to show just how incomprehensibly terrifying God’s presence on Sinai was for the people of Israel. It was so fearsome that even Moses was afraid. (See Exalting Jesus in Hebrews - Page 208)

Barry Horner adds "It was not that the holy glory of God was so delightful that the people could not endure such pleasure; rather it was that their unholiness could not tolerate the detail of His holiness, even the strictness of a common animal wandering into God’s presence (Ex 19:12-13). If such a seeming minimal transgression could not escape the full weight of God’s judgment, then what would be the consequence of a man or woman being sifted by His relentless examination? Here then, as Owen well points out, is indicated the utter “inaccessibleness of God, in and by the law. . . And it showeth also at what distance we ought to keep ourselves from everything that falls under the curse of the law.” (Commentary)

Spurgeon - In the sacred worship of the tabernacle and the temple, the thought of distance must always have been prominent to the devout mind. The mass of the people did not even enter the outer court. Into the inner court none but the priests could ever dare to come; while into the innermost place, or the holy of holies, but once a year one person only ever entered. The Lord seemed ever to be saying to the whole of His people, with but a few exceptions, “Do not come near here.” It was the dispensation of distance, as if the Lord in those early ages would teach man that sin was so utterly loathsome to Him that He must treat men as lepers put without the camp. When He came nearest to them, He still made them feel the width of the separation between a holy God and the impure sinner. You cannot get nearer to God than that on the footing of works, for Mount Sinai is the symbol of works. Look to the flames that Moses saw, and shrink, and tremble, and despair. You cannot get to God that way. Calvary is the mountain.

The command (1291) (diastellomai from diá = denoting transition, + stéllo = send) means to state with force and/or authority what others must do.

Touches (2345)(thiggano from thígo = touch) means to come in contact with, to handle, touch with a view of ascertaining the quality of the object; to feel after, to grope. To touch so that one can exert a modifying influence on it. In Col 2:21 = "“Do not handle (hapto), do not taste, do not touch!”" In Hebrews 11:28 used somewhat figuratively "so that he who destroyed the firstborn would not touch (= KILL) them."

Thiggano - 3x - Col. 2:21 ; Heb. 11:28; Heb. 12:20. Once in the Septuagint - Ex 19:12

Wuest - The word “touch” here is thiggano “to touch, handle.” It implies a touching or a grasping which affects the object. In classical Greek it is often used of touching or handling some sacred object which may be desecrated by the one who lays hands on it. Here, to touch the mountain, was to profane it.

Hebrews 12:21 And so terrible was the sight, that Moses said, "I AM FULL OF FEAR and trembling." (NASB: Lockman)

Greek: kai, outo phoberon en (3SIAI) to phantazomenon, (PPPNSN) Mouses eipen, (3SAAI) Ekphobos eimi (1SPAI) kai entromos.

Amplified: In fact, so awful and terrifying was the [phenomenal] sight that Moses said, I am terrified (aghast and trembling with fear). (Amplified Bible - Lockman)

NLT: Moses himself was so frightened at the sight that he said, "I am terrified and trembling." (NLT - Tyndale House)

NET In fact, the scene was so terrifying that Moses said, "I shudder with fear."

GNT καί, οὕτω φοβερὸν ἦν τὸ φανταζόμενον, Μωϋσῆς εἶπεν, Ἔκφοβός εἰμι καὶ ἔντρομος.

KJV And so terrible was the sight, that Moses said, I exceedingly fear and quake:)

ESV Indeed, so terrifying was the sight that Moses said, "I tremble with fear."

ASV and so fearful was the appearance, that Moses said, I exceedingly fear and quake:

CSB The appearance was so terrifying that Moses said, I am terrified and trembling.)

NIV The sight was so terrifying that Moses said, "I am trembling with fear."

NKJ And so terrifying was the sight that Moses said, "I am exceedingly afraid and trembling.")

NRS Indeed, so terrifying was the sight that Moses said, "I tremble with fear.")

NAB Indeed, so fearful was the spectacle that Moses said, "I am terrified and trembling."

NJB The whole scene was so terrible that Moses said, 'I am afraid and trembling.'

GWN The sight was so terrifying that even Moses said he was trembling and afraid.

BBE And the vision was so overpowering that even Moses said, I am shaking and full of fear.

Young's Literal: and, (so terrible was the sight,) Moses said, 'I am fearful exceedingly, and trembling.'

Moses - Ex 19:16,19 Ps 119:120 Isa 6:3-5 Da 10:8,17 Rev 1:17
Hebrews 12 Resources - Multiple Sermons and Commentaries

Related Passages:

Exodus 3:6+ He said also, “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” Then Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look at God.

Acts 7:32+ (MOSES HAD EXPRESSED TREMBLING FEAR AT THE BURNING BUSH) ‘I AM THE GOD OF YOUR FATHERS, THE GOD OF ABRAHAM AND ISAAC AND JACOB.’ Moses shook with fear (entromos) and would not venture to look.

OUR GOD IS AN
AWESOME GOD!

Beloved, God is not our "old pal," our "good buddy," "the big guy in the sky," etc, but HE IS OUR AWESOME HOLY GOD. Ponder the awesome nature of our great God as you play the chorus Our God is an Awesome God!

And so terrible (phoberos) was the sight - Terrible (phoberos) means frightening or dreadful and gives a further indication of the awesomeness of God and the solemn nature of His Law. Keep in mind that the writer’s goal is not to produce fear in the Jewish believers but to emphasize the contrast between the terror of the Law and the grace of the Gospel (Heb 12:22–24). In other words, the writer refers to Israel’s experience at Mount Sinai to emphasize that if Sinai inspired such fear, how much greater is the privilege of those who now approach God at Zion, with reverence of course, yet without terror.

That Moses said, "I AM FULL OF FEAR (ekphobos) and trembling (entromos) - Consider Moses’ own declaration.This is the man called the friend of God (James 2:23+), the one granted access to the mountain, who saw the burning bush and lived, and who received the tablets of the Law. DYet despite such extraordinary encounters with Yahweh, Moses still said, “I am (present tense—continually) full of fear and trembling.” The scene at Sinai was so terrifying that even the mediator of the covenant confessed to being afraid. The words “I am full of fear” are not found in the Sinai account itself, but many believe they refer to the golden calf incident, when Moses said, “For I was afraid (Lxx = ekphobos) of the anger and hot displeasure with which the LORD was wrathful against you in order to destroy you, but the LORD listened to me that time also” (Deut 9:19+).

Mt Sinai was a place that was meant to cause fearfulness to the children of Israel. Keep in mind that what the writer is speaking to Jewish readers who were being tempted to go back to the Law (ritual, sacrificial system, Levitical priesthood, etc). God under that Old Covenant system was in essence "untouchable" and one could only approach Him cautiously, but even then only from a distance (Ex 20:18-21, especially Ex 20:21 "So the people stood at a distance, while Moses approached the thick cloud where God was.") The picture is of an awful ("awe full") and overpowering occasion, one that affected all the people and terrified even Moses, the man of God, the one with whom God would speak “face to face, as a man speaks with his friend”. (Ex 33:11+)

(Mt Sinai) has given us a grand idea of holiness, but it has not offered us a pathway to it,
nor furnished a weary heart with a resting place, nor supplied a hungry soul with spiritual food.

Spurgeon - The mount of God stood out in terrible sublimity against the sky, holding communion with the stars, but refusing to deal with men. It was sublime, but stern and tempest-beaten. God came upon Sinai with His law, and the dread mount became a type of what the law would be to us. It has given us a grand idea of holiness, but it has not offered us a pathway to it, nor furnished a weary heart with a resting place, nor supplied a hungry soul with spiritual food. It can never be the place where congregated multitudes erect a city for themselves and a temple for the living God. It is not the shrine of fellowship, but the throne of authority and justice.

That Moses said, "I AM FULL OF FEAR and trembling -

H A Ironside - If even the lower creation (A BEAST), made subject to vanity because of man’s sin, would not be permitted to so much as touch the mount, and if Moses who might be considered the very best in all Israel, trembled at the thought of drawing nigh to God under such circumstances, what possible hope could there be of any ordinary man standing before Jehovah on the ground of legal righteousness?

Barry Horner - Moses had also earlier trembled at Mt. Horeb (Sinai) before God at His revelation in the burning bush (Ex 3:6+; cf. Acts 7:32+) The only other instance of Moses indicating such extreme anxiety upon his encounter with God’s holy display was also at Mount Sinai. This was immediately following his smashing of the two tablets of the covenant on account of Israel’s corruption under Aaron. Falling down before God, he declared to Israel that, “I was afraid of the anger and hot displeasure with which the LORD was wrathful against you in order to destroy you, but the LORD listened to me” (Deut. 9:19) Here, the Siniatic (MOSAIC) Covenant is characteristically fear inducing. It is significant that in Ernest Kevan’s The Grace Of Law, A Study Of Puritan Theology, his sympathetic representation of the sanctifying effect of the Decalogue nevertheless makes no reference to the thrust of this whole depiction, in vs. 18-34, of the law’s terror. Rather John Bunyan, in The Pilgrim’s Progress, relates the meeting of Faithful with Adam the First and the pilgrim’s inclination for his three daughters, Lust of the Flesh, Lust of the Eyes, and the Pride of Life. He then depicts his resultant encounter with Moses who constantly beats down the guilty pilgrim. When Faithful cries out for mercy, Moses responds: “I know not how to show mercy; and with that knocked [Faithful]...down again.” Then another comes by who causes Moses to retreat. Faithful then explains, “I perceived the holes in his hands, and in his side” (John 1:17). This then is not an encouraging and comforting camping place for the Christian. (Commentary)

All of this vividly illustrates the nature and ministry of the Law. The Law first reveals God’s righteous standards and then exposes His wrath against sin. The writer of Hebrews reminds his readers that the Law was never intended to provide salvation, but rather to awaken an awareness of personal sin (Heb 7:18-19, Heb 8:7,13, Heb 9:9-10, Heb 10:1-4, cf Ro 3:20). The descriptions—“terrible,” “full of fear,” “trembling”—underscore the vast gulf between a holy God and sinful man. Indeed, the Law brought a ministry marked by condemnation, darkness, and dread. Why, then, would anyone in their right mind wish to return to such a state?

Kenneth Wuest sums up Heb 12:20-21 - Their fear arose from God’s initial command in Exodus 19:12–13 (summarized rather than directly quoted in the words “if even an animal touches the mountain, it must be stoned”), which isolated the mountain temporarily as a sacred area to which only Moses and Aaron were admitted. As a result, the Ten Commandments and the laws of the covenant were given to Moses to transmit to the people, who kept their distance so that they should not hear God’s voice and die (Ex 20:18–21; cf. Dt 5:23–27). Even Moses, who was granted privileged access to the mountain, was not immune to the terror of the occasion, according to our author, though the words quoted, “I am trembling with fear,” echo Deuteronomy 9:19. There Moses recalls not his initial approach to God at Sinai but his return to plead for the people after their idolatry with the golden calf, when the main cause of his fear was the Lord’s anger at what the people had done rather than the frightening physical phenomena. The story of Sinai and of the establishment of Israel’s covenant with Yahweh thus symbolizes for our author a religion of fear and separation, which is the very opposite of the confident approach to God that Christ has won for his people (Heb 10:19–23). The following verses speak of a religion where the worshiper is no longer kept at arm’s length but welcomed and included. (Hebrews)

Terrible is the plight of the man who
has to depend upon what Sinai can give him.

Spurgeon - You who are under the law, you who are trying to win God’s favor by your good works, you who fancy that human merit can bring you salvation, look to the flames that Moses saw, and sink, and tremble, and despair. You who think that you can live as the law requires, and so attain to everlasting life, may well stand shivering and trembling before this almighty though invisible God. His lightnings blaze before your eyes, and His voice of thunder must alarm the stoutest heart. Terrible is the plight of the man who has to depend upon what Sinai can give him.

Terrible (5398) (phoberos from phobos= fear from phébomai = flee from) is an adjective which means causing or inspiring fear, frightful, formidable: fearful, dreadful, terrible, horrifying. It is a "Hebrews word," used only in this epistle, and always for something objectively dreadful or terrifying. This undergirds the seriousness of the warning passages: to reject Christ is to face the φοβερόν hands of the living God. In other words phoberos tells us that divine judgment is not a mere “unpleasant outcome”but is truly terrifying, and no heart can fully grasp it (Heb 10:31+)

Phoberos is frequently used in the OT (Septuagint) to describe God as awesome (Dt 10:17, Neh 1:5, Neh 9:32, Ps 66:5, 89:7, 99:3, 111:9, Da 9:4) as well as His awesome deeds (Ps 66:3, 5, 106:22, 145:6) Vine on phoberos - "fearful" (akin phobos), is used only in the active sense in the NT, i.e., causing "fear, terrible."(Vine's Expository Dictionary)

PHOBEROS - 3X IN NT, ALL IN HEBREWS

Hebrews 10:27+ but a terrifying expectation of judgment and THE FURY OF A FIRE WHICH WILL CONSUME THE ADVERSARIES."

Hebrews 10:31+ It is a terrifying thing to fall into the hands of the living God.

Phoberos - 39v in the Septuagint - Gen 28:17; Dt 1:19; 2:7; 8:15; 10:17; Jdg 13:6; 1Chr 16:25; Neh 1:5; 4:14; 9:32; Esther 5:1; Ps 47:2; 66:3, 5; 76:7, 12; 89:7; 96:4; 99:3; 106:22; 111:9; 145:6; Pr 12:25; Isa 21:1; Dan 2:31; 4:1; 7:7, 19; 9:4; Hab 1:7;

Genesis 28:17 He was afraid and said, "How awesome (Heb - yare = to fear, be afraid, frightened; Lxx = phoberos) is this place! This is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven."

Deuteronomy 1:19 (Dt 8:5 similar) "Then we set out from Horeb, and went through all that great and terrible (Heb - yare = to fear, be afraid, frightened; Lxx = phoberos) wilderness which you saw on the way to the hill country of the Amorites, just as the LORD our God had commanded us; and we came to Kadesh-barnea.

Deuteronomy 10:17 "For the LORD your God is the God of gods and the Lord of lords, the great, the mighty, and the awesome (Heb - yare = to fear, be afraid, frightened; Lxx = phoberos) God who does not show partiality nor take a bribe.

Judges 13:6 Then the woman came and told her husband, saying, "A Man of God came to me and His appearance was like the appearance of the Angel of God (In context it was a pre-incarnate Christophany = Angel of the LORD - see Jdg 13:3), very awesome (Heb - yare = to fear, be afraid, frightened; Lxx = phoberos). And I did not ask Him where he came from, nor did He tell me His Name."

1 Chronicles 16:25 For great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised; He also is to be feared (Literally "fearful He is" - Heb - yare = to fear, be afraid, frightened; Lxx = phoberos) above all gods.

Full of fear (1630)(ekphobos from ek = out, used as an intensive + phobeo = to terrify, to frighten) is an adjective which means stricken with fear or terror, exceedingly frightened, terrified, intensely afraid. In both uses of this adjective we see that men who knew God (Moses, disciples Peter and James and John) were still gripped by a healthy, holy fear of His awesome Being. It is interesting to note that both of the NT uses of ekphobos are related to mountains (Mt Sinai, and the Mount of Transfiguration probably not Mt Tabor but Mt Hermon, 40 mi NE of Sea of Galilee).

Kenneth Wuest adds that "the word “fear” is intensified as to its meaning by the prefixed preposition. It is ekphobos, literally, I am “frightened out or away.” It makes me think of times when I was "frightened out of my mind!" at some horrendous experience on earth.

Ekphobos - 2x in NT

Mark 9:6+ For he (Peter and James and John on the mountain at time of Jesus' transfiguration) did not know what to answer; for they became terrified.

Ekphobos - 1x in Septuagint - Deut 9:19

Deuteronomy 9:18,19+ (REFERS TO THE GOLDEN CALF INCIDENT - Ex 32+) “I fell down before the LORD, as at the first, forty days and nights; I neither ate bread nor drank water, because of all your sin which you had committed in doing what was evil in the sight of the LORD to provoke" 19 For I (MOSES) was afraid ("ekphobos eimi") of the anger and hot displeasure with which the LORD was wrathful against you in order to destroy you, but the LORD listened to me that time also."

Trembling (1790)(entromos from en = in + tromos = trembling, quaking, from tremo = to tremble, especially with fear) means trembling with fear. It is a picturesque adjective which refers to "being in a quivering condition because of exposure to an overwhelming or threatening circumstance."

Entromos - 3x in the NT -

Acts 7:32+ (quoting Exodus 3:6) 'I AM THE GOD OF YOUR FATHERS, THE GOD OF ABRAHAM AND ISAAC AND JACOB.' Moses shook with fear and would not venture to look.

Acts 16:29+ And he (Philippian jailer) called for lights and rushed in, and trembling with fear he fell down before Paul and Silas,

Hebrews 12:21 And so terrible was the sight, that Moses said, "I AM FULL OF FEAR and trembling."

Entromos - 3x in the Septuagint (Lxx)

Psalm 18:7 Then the earth shook and quaked; And the foundations of the mountains were trembling And were shaken, because He was angry.

Psalm 77:18 The sound of Your thunder was in the whirlwind; The lightnings lit up the world; The earth trembled and shook.

Daniel 10:11 He said to me, "O Daniel, man of high esteem, understand the words that I am about to tell you and stand upright, for I have now been sent to you." And when he had spoken this word to me, I stood up trembling.

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CONSIDER JESUS OUR GREAT HIGH PRIEST Click chart to enlarge Charts from Jensen's Survey of the NT - used by permission Swindoll's Chart, Interesting Pictorial Chart of Hebrews, Another Chart

See ESV Study Bible "Introduction to Hebrews" (See also MacArthur's Introduction to Hebrews)

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Mt Sinai - Fire and Smoke

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CONSIDER JESUS OUR GREAT HIGH PRIEST
Click chart to enlarge
Charts from Jensen's Survey of the NT - used by permission
Swindoll's Chart, Interesting Pictorial Chart of Hebrews, Another Chart

See ESV Study Bible "Introduction to Hebrews"
(See also MacArthur's Introduction to Hebrews)