The glory of Yahweh really emerges in his ready acceptance of a Mediator. Twice he was on the point of wiping out the Israelites, but each time he honoured Moses’ appeal on their behalf.
But what would make him do that? Why would the mighty Yahweh El, supreme commander of the universe, allow a decision of his to be questioned, and even challenged, by a mere earthling?
There’s a clue in Yahweh’s view of Moses as a kindred spirit. Moses thought like him. When the Israelites “committed a great sin making gods of gold” in Exodus 32:31, for instance, Moses’ first thought was to beg Yahweh to “forgive their sin” – and if no forgiveness, then blot him from existence, rather than the Israelites (32). Which was totally in tune with Yahweh’s thinking in Exodus 34:6-7 when describing himself to Moses as “compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin.”
It was this meeting of their minds that pleased Yahweh immensely, so that when Moses appealed on behalf of the Israelites, Yahweh willingly listened to him (33:17). It happened again in Numbers 14 too. Yahweh is about to destroy the Israelites a second time for “treating me with contempt” and he wants to create a new nation in Moses himself (11-12), a tempting proposition for Moses, having put up with the Israelites’ constant moaning for so many years too.
But instead, Moses jumps in again as Mediator. He makes his appeal on two fronts. First of all, how is it going to reflect on Yahweh himself if word gets out that “The Lord was not able to bring these people into the land he promised them on oath; so he slaughtered them in the desert” (16)? So much for Yahweh being the supreme commander of the universe. But more to the point, verse 19, “In accordance with your great love, forgive the sin of these people, just as you’ve pardoned them from the time they left Egypt until now.”
And coming from Moses this was powerful stuff, because he’d stuck with the Israelites and loved them through thick and thin as well, so again it was mind meeting mind, a kindred spirit appealing to a kindred spirit, and Yahweh’s response was immediate: “I have forgiven them as you asked” (20). But he also based it on Moses’ understanding that “The guilty aren’t left unpunished”….(next blog)
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