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People Affirm Their Covenant with God

¹ Then God said to Moses, "^(C1)Come up to the LORD, you and Aaron, ^(C2)Nadab and Abihu (Aaron's older sons), and ^(C3)seventy of Israel's elders, and you shall worship at a safe distance.² "Moses alone shall approach the LORD, but the others shall not come near, nor shall the people come up with him."

³ Then Moses came and told the people everything that the LORD had said and all the ordinances. And all the people answered with one voice, "^(C1)Everything the LORD has said we will do."^4 (C1)Moses wrote down all the words of the LORD. Then he got up early in the morning, and built an ^(C2)altar for worship at the foot of the mountain with twelve pillars (memorial stones) representing the twelve tribes of Israel.⁵ Then he sent young Israelite men, ^(C1)and they offered burnt offerings and sacrificed young bulls as peace offerings to the LORD.^6 (C1)Moses took half of the blood and put it in large basins, and the other half of the blood he sprinkled on the altar.⁷ Then he took ^(C1)the Book of the Covenant and read it aloud to the people; and they said, "^(C2)Everything that the LORD has said we will do, and we will be obedient."⁸ So ^(C1)Moses took the blood which had been placed in the large basins and sprinkled it on the people, and said, "Behold ^(C2)the blood of the covenant, which the LORD has made with you in accordance with all these words." ^(VR1)

⁹ Then Moses, Aaron, ^(C1)Nadab, and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel went up the mountainside,¹⁰ and ^(C1)they saw a manifestation of the God of Israel; and under His feet ^(C2)there appeared to be a pavement of sapphire, just as clear as the sky itself. ^(VR1)11 Yet He did not stretch out His hand against the nobles of the Israelites; and ^(C1)they saw the manifestation of the presence of God, and ate and drank. ^(VR1)

¹² Now the LORD said to Moses, "Come up to Me on the mountain and stay there, and ^(C1)I will give you the stone tablets with the law and the commandments which I have written for their instruction." ^(VR1)13 So Moses ^(F1)arose with ^(C1)Joshua his attendant, and he went up to ^(C2)the mountain of God.¹⁴ And he said to the elders, "^(C1)Wait here for us until we come back to you. Remember that ^(C2)Aaron and Hur are with you; whoever has a legal matter, let him go to them."¹⁵ Then Moses went up to the mountain, and ^(C1)the cloud covered the mountain.^16 (C1)The glory and brilliance of the LORD rested on Mount Sinai, and the cloud covered it for six days. On the seventh day God ^(C2)called to Moses from the midst of the cloud.^17 (C1)In the sight of the Israelites the appearance of the glory and brilliance of the LORD was like ^(C2)consuming fire on the top of the mountain.¹⁸ Moses entered the midst of the cloud and went up the mountain; and he was on the mountain ^(C1)forty days and forty nights.