Is your response to God’s Word simply to agree that it is true, or are you committed to actually living according to what He says?
Key Verse
“Then he took the book of the covenant and read it as the people listened; and they said, ‘All that the LORD has spoken we will do, and we will be obedient!'” — Exodus 24:7 (NASB)
Background Context
Exodus 24 brings the covenant at Mount Sinai to a significant moment of confirmation. YHWH had already redeemed Israel from slavery before bringing them to Sinai. He then revealed the Ten Commandments and continued explaining how His people were to live.
Now Moses writes down “all the words of the LORD.” He reads the Book of the Covenant to the people, and Israel publicly agrees to obey what God has spoken.
The covenant is then confirmed with blood, followed by a remarkable meal in God’s presence. Redemption had brought Israel not merely out of Egypt, but into covenant relationship with YHWH.
(Continued and expanded after scripture.)
People Affirm Their Covenant with God
1Then He said to Moses, “Come up to the LORD, you and Aaron, Nadab and Abihu and seventy of the elders of Israel, and you shall worship at a distance. 2“Moses alone, however, shall come near to the LORD, but they shall not come near, nor shall the people come up with him.”
3Then Moses came and recounted to the people all the words of the LORD and all the ordinances; and all the people answered with one voice and said, “All the words which the LORD has spoken we will do!” 4Moses wrote down all the words of the LORD. Then he arose early in the morning, and built an altar at the foot of the mountain with twelve pillars for the twelve tribes of Israel. 5He sent young men of the sons of Israel, and they offered burnt offerings and sacrificed young bulls as peace offerings to the LORD. 6Moses took half of the blood and put it in basins, and the other half of the blood he sprinkled on the altar. 7Then he took the book of the covenant and read it in the hearing of the people; and they said, “All that the LORD has spoken we will do, and we will be obedient!” 8So Moses took the blood and sprinkled it on the people, and said, “Behold the blood of the covenant, which the LORD has made with you in accordance with all these words.”
9Then Moses went up with Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel, 10and they saw the God of Israel; and under His feet there appeared to be a pavement of sapphire, as clear as the sky itself. 11Yet He did not stretch out His hand against the nobles of the sons of Israel; and they saw God, and they ate and drank.
Reflection on Exodus 24:1–11:
Twice in this passage Israel makes a strong declaration.
First they say, “All the words which the LORD has spoken we will do!” Later, after Moses reads the Book of the Covenant aloud, they respond again: “All that the LORD has spoken we will do, and we will be obedient!”
Notice the progression.
They heard God’s Word and then committed themselves to do what He said.
Scripture consistently challenges us not to separate those two things. James later writes, “But prove yourselves doers of the word, and not just hearers who deceive themselves” (James 1:22).
It is possible to study Scripture, agree with Scripture, discuss Scripture, and even defend Scripture while resisting what it tells us to do. God’s Word was never intended merely to increase our knowledge. It should shape how we actually live.
But we should also remember the order of events in Exodus.
Israel did not obey God in order to persuade Him to rescue them from Egypt. He rescued them first. He delivered them from slavery, brought them to Himself, and then taught them how His redeemed people should live.
That pattern matters.
Obedience is not the price we pay to purchase redemption. It is the faithful response of people who have been redeemed.
Then Moses confirms the covenant with blood. Half is sprinkled on the altar, and the other half on the people as Moses declares, “Behold the blood of the covenant.”
The seriousness of covenant is unmistakable. Relationship with a holy God is not casual. Sin and reconciliation carry a cost. This imagery also points us forward to Yeshua, who at the Last Supper spoke of His own blood as “My blood of the covenant” (Matthew 26:28).
Then the passage ends with an extraordinary scene.
Moses, Aaron, Nadab, Abihu, and seventy elders ascend the mountain, and Scripture says, “they saw the God of Israel.” Under His feet was something like a pavement of sapphire, “as clear as the sky itself.”
Yet God did not destroy them.
Instead, “they saw God, and they ate and drank.”
The covenant culminates in fellowship.
That helps us see the larger purpose behind everything we have been reading. God did not deliver Israel merely to give them a collection of rules. He was forming a people who belonged to Him and could live in relationship with Him.
The commandments showed them how a redeemed people should walk with a holy God.
The same should shape how we approach God’s Word today. We should not ask merely, What does this passage say? We should also ask:
What has God shown me that I now need to live out?
Because hearing God’s Word is only the beginning. Faithfulness means allowing what He says to change how we live.
Application
- When you read Scripture, ask not only what it means but what God is calling you to do differently because of it.
- Remember that obedience is a response to God’s redemption and grace, not a way of earning them.
- Take your commitment to God seriously rather than treating obedience as optional whenever His instruction becomes inconvenient.
- Remember that God’s goal is not merely rule-keeping but a redeemed people living faithfully in relationship with Him.
Closing Prayer
Father, thank You for redeeming me and inviting me into relationship with You. Help me not to be satisfied merely with hearing, studying, or agreeing with Your Word. Show me where I need to put what You have taught me into practice. May my obedience flow from love and gratitude for what You have already done for me. Teach me to take Your Word seriously and to live faithfully as someone who belongs to You. In Yeshua’s name, Amen.
Do you know for sure if you will go to heaven or hell when you die? Are you experiencing in your life the peace and joy of a personal relationship with our Creator and Father? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.