Exodus 34:12

The Covenant Renewed

10 And He said: “Behold, ^aI make a covenant. Before all your people I will ^bdo marvels such as have not been done in all the earth, nor in any nation; and all the people among whom you are shall see the work of the Lord. For it is ^can awesome thing that I will do with you.

11 ^aObserve what I command you this day. Behold, ^bI am driving out from before you the Amorite and the Canaanite and the Hittite and the Perizzite and the Hivite and the Jebusite.

12 ^aTake heed to yourself, lest you make a covenant with the inhabitants of the land where you are going, lest it be a snare in your midst.

13 But you shall ^adestroy their altars, break their sacred pillars, and ^bcut down their wooden images

14 (for you shall worship ^ano other god, for the Lord, whose ^bname is Jealous, is a ^cjealous God),

15 lest you make a covenant with the inhabitants of the land, and they ^aplay the harlot with their gods and make sacrifice to their gods, and one of them ^binvites you and you ^ceat of his sacrifice,

16 and you take of ^ahis daughters for your sons, and his daughters ^bplay the harlot with their gods and make your sons play the harlot with their gods.

17 ^a“You shall make no molded gods for yourselves.

18 “The Feast of ^aUnleavened Bread you shall keep. Seven days you shall eat unleavened bread, as I commanded you, in the appointed time of the ^bmonth of Abib; for in the month of Abib you came out from Egypt.

Commentaries:

Forerunner Commentary
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What Does Exodus 34:12 Mean?

Exodus 34:12-16

God describes idolatry as harlotry, playing around with someone else's spouse. It is a case of divided loyalties. God becomes angry, jealous, when this happens spiritually. In fact, in Deuteronomy 4:24, His anger becomes so hot that He describes Himself as being a consuming fire. Fire symbolizes God's radiant glory as an aspect of His holiness.

Zeal and jealousy are opposite sides of the same coin; both of them are driven by passion. One is positive, the other negative. One is for, one is against. Zeal is passionately for something or somebody, while jealousy is passionately against something or somebody. Similarly, fire is hot, and it is both positive and negative. It symbolizes both refining and purifying, on the one hand, and death and destruction on the other.

The pattern is in the way God depicts His feelings toward us. As a consuming fire, He will either purify or destroy with His passion. He is either for something with a great deal of ardor, or He is against something with a great deal of fury. He is for those who are with Him, and He is loyal to the nth degree to them. But He is against sin and disloyalty with just as much heat as He is for those who love Him and diligently seek Him. His attitude is not cool in any way, shape, or form, but hot. He wants us to respond in like manner.

In what way are we seeking God? Diligently? Earnestly? Sincerely? With warmth, ardor, and affection? Is our seeking the ardent pursuit of one in love—one who wants to be around this personality and really desires to know Him because we are, after all, going to marry Him and spend all eternity with Him? Or is it a kind of a take-it-or-leave-it, distant, academic coolness because we do not want to make a fool of ourselves or offend others with our zeal? Think about it.

John W. Ritenbaugh
Prayer and Seeking God

Other Forerunner Commentary entries containing Exodus 34:12:

1 Kings 11:6-10

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The Covenant Renewed

What Does Exodus 34:12 Mean?

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