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Moses In The Cleft In The Rock
Is God’s presence really with you?
In Exodus 33, Moses pleads for the one thing that matters most: God’s own presence. In this study, Dr. Toby Holt shows why nearness to God is the believer’s greatest treasure.
After the golden calf, God says He will give Israel the Promised Land but warns that His presence will not go in their midst, lest He consume a stubborn people. Moses intercedes, refusing to go without God, and God relents: “My Presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.” Then Moses asks to see God’s glory, and God hides him in the cleft of a rock, letting him glimpse only His “back.” Dr. Holt explains that God may not always change our circumstances, but His presence never leaves His people.
Questions this study answers:
1. Why did God say His presence would not go with Israel? Because they were a stiff-necked people, and His holy presence among them could consume them. It revealed the seriousness of their sin.
2. Why was Moses so desperate for God’s presence? Because God’s presence is what set Israel apart from every other nation. Without it, the Promised Land meant nothing.
3. What did the cleft in the rock picture? A safe hiding place where a sinner could glimpse God’s glory and live — pointing to the refuge we have in Christ.
“My Presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.” — Exodus 33:14 (NKJV)
Speaker: Dr. Toby Holt is the President of New Geneva Theological Seminary, a Reformed seminary in Colorado Springs. He is known for clear, down-to-earth Bible teaching, and his sermons have been downloaded more than 1.9 million times on SermonAudio.
Listen and go deeper: This sermon is part of the Exodus Explained study from New Geneva Theological Seminary. Find more verse-by-verse teaching across the Bible at newgeneva.org. To support this teaching ministry, visit newgeneva.org/give.
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By Dr. Toby Holt | New Geneva Theological SeminaryIs God’s presence really with you?
In Exodus 33, Moses pleads for the one thing that matters most: God’s own presence. In this study, Dr. Toby Holt shows why nearness to God is the believer’s greatest treasure.
After the golden calf, God says He will give Israel the Promised Land but warns that His presence will not go in their midst, lest He consume a stubborn people. Moses intercedes, refusing to go without God, and God relents: “My Presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.” Then Moses asks to see God’s glory, and God hides him in the cleft of a rock, letting him glimpse only His “back.” Dr. Holt explains that God may not always change our circumstances, but His presence never leaves His people.
Questions this study answers:
1. Why did God say His presence would not go with Israel? Because they were a stiff-necked people, and His holy presence among them could consume them. It revealed the seriousness of their sin.
2. Why was Moses so desperate for God’s presence? Because God’s presence is what set Israel apart from every other nation. Without it, the Promised Land meant nothing.
3. What did the cleft in the rock picture? A safe hiding place where a sinner could glimpse God’s glory and live — pointing to the refuge we have in Christ.
“My Presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.” — Exodus 33:14 (NKJV)
Speaker: Dr. Toby Holt is the President of New Geneva Theological Seminary, a Reformed seminary in Colorado Springs. He is known for clear, down-to-earth Bible teaching, and his sermons have been downloaded more than 1.9 million times on SermonAudio.
Listen and go deeper: This sermon is part of the Exodus Explained study from New Geneva Theological Seminary. Find more verse-by-verse teaching across the Bible at newgeneva.org. To support this teaching ministry, visit newgeneva.org/give.