Exodus 33:20

Complete Jewish Bible

But my face," he continued, "you cannot see, because a human being cannot look at me and remain alive.

Parallel Translations

Hebrew Names Version
He said, "You cannot see my face, for man may not see me and live."

King James Version
And he said, Thou canst not see my face: for there shall no man see me, and live.

Lexham English Bible
But he said, "You are not able to see my face, because a human will not see me and live."

New Century Version
But you cannot see my face, because no one can see me and live.

New English Translation
But he added, "You cannot see my face, for no one can see me and live."

Amplified Bible
But He said, "You cannot see My face, for no man shall see Me and live!"

New American Standard Bible
He further said, "You cannot see My face, for mankind shall not see Me and live!"

Geneva Bible (1587)
Furthermore he sayde, Thou canst not see my face, for there shall no man see me, and liue.

Legacy Standard Bible
But He said, "You cannot see My face, for no man can see Me and live!"

Contemporary English Version
but I won't let you see my face, because anyone who sees my face will die.

Darby Translation
And he said, Thou canst not see my face; for Man shall not see me, and live.

Easy-to-Read Version
But you cannot see my face. No one can see me and continue to live."

English Standard Version
But," he said, "you cannot see my face, for man shall not see me and live."

George Lamsa Translation
And he said, You cannot see my face; for no man can see me and live.

Good News Translation
I will not let you see my face, because no one can see me and stay alive,

Christian Standard Bible®
But he added, “You cannot see my face, for humans cannot see me and live.”

Literal Translation
And He said, You are not able to see My face; for no man can see Me and live.

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
And he sayde morouer: Thou mayest not se my face, for there shall no ma lyue, yt seyth me.

American Standard Version
And he said, Thou canst not see my face; for man shall not see me and live.

Bible in Basic English
But it is not possible for you to see my face, for no man may see me and still go on living.

Bishop's Bible (1568)
And he said furthermore, Thou mayest not see my face: for there shall no man see me, and lyue.

JPS Old Testament (1917)
And He said: 'Thou canst not see My face, for man shall not see Me and live.'

King James Version (1611)
And he said, Thou canst not see my face: for there shall no man see mee, and liue.

Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
And God said, Thou shalt not be able to see my face; for no man shall see my face, and live.

English Revised Version
And he said, Thou canst not see my face: for man shall not see me and live.

Berean Standard Bible
And He added, "You cannot see My face, for no one can see Me and live."

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
And eft God seide, Thou maist not se my face, for a man schal not se me, and schal lyue.

Young's Literal Translation
He saith also, `Thou art unable to see My face, for man doth not see Me, and live;'

Update Bible Version
And he said, You can not see my face; for man shall not see me and live.

Webster's Bible Translation
And he said, Thou canst not see my face: for there shall no man see me, and live.

World English Bible
He said, "You cannot see my face, for man may not see me and live."

New King James Version
But He said, "You cannot see My face; for no man shall see Me, and live."

New Living Translation
But you may not look directly at my face, for no one may see me and live."

New Life Bible
But He said, "You cannot see My face. For no man can see Me and live!"

New Revised Standard
But," he said, "you cannot see my face; for no one shall see me and live."

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
But be said - Thou canst not see my face, For no son of earth can see me, and life

Douay-Rheims Bible
And again he said: Thou canst not see my face: for man shall not see me, and live.

Revised Standard Version
But," he said, "you cannot see my face; for man shall not see me and live."

THE MESSAGE
God continued, "But you may not see my face. No one can see me and live."

New American Standard Bible (1995)
But He said, "You cannot see My face, for no man can see Me and live!"

Contextual Overview

¹² (iii) Moshe said to Adonai , "Look, you say to me, ‘Make these people move on!' But you haven't let me know whom you will be sending with me. Nevertheless you have said, ‘I know you by name,' and also, ‘You have found favor in my sight.' ¹³ Now, please, if it is really the case that I have found favor in your sight, show me your ways; so that I will understand you and continue finding favor in your sight. Moreover, keep on seeing this nation as your people." ¹⁴ He answered, "Set your mind at rest — my presence will go with you, after all." ¹⁵ Moshe replied, "If your presence doesn't go with us, don't make us go on from here. ¹⁶ For how else is it to be known that I have found favor in your sight, I and your people, other than by your going with us? That is what distinguishes us, me and your people, from all the other peoples on earth." ¹⁷ (iv) Adonai said to Moshe, "I will also do what you have asked me to do, because you have found favor in my sight, and I know you by name." ¹⁸ But Moshe said, "I beg you to show me your glory!" ¹⁹ He replied, "I will cause all my goodness to pass before you, and in your presence I will pronounce the name of Adonai . Moreover, I show favor to whomever I will, and I display mercy to whomever I will. ²⁰ But my face," he continued, "you cannot see, because a human being cannot look at me and remain alive. ²¹ Here," he said, "is a place near me; stand on the rock.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

Thou canst not: This is well explained by Rabbi Jehudah, in Sepher Cosri - P. iv. 3: "Of that divine glory mentioned in the Scripture, there is one degree which the eyes of the prophets were able to explore; another which all the Israelites saw, as the cloud and consuming fire; the third is so bright, and so dazzling, that no mortal is able to comprehend it; but should anyone venture to look on it, his whole frame would be dissolved." In such inconceivable splendour is the Divine Majesty revealed to the inhabitants of the celestial world, where he is said to "dwell in the light which no man can approach unto" - 1 Timothy 6:16. By the "face of God," therefore, we are to understand that light inaccessible before which angels may stand, but which would be so insufferable to mortal eyes, that no man could see it and live. Exodus 24:10, Genesis 32:30, Deuteronomy 5:24, Judges 6:22, Judges 13:22, Isaiah 6:5, John 1:18, 1 Timothy 6:16, Hebrews 1:13, Revelation 1:16, Revelation 1:17

Reciprocal: Exodus 19:21 - break Exodus 20:19 - let not Exodus 24:11 - laid not Exodus 33:18 - General Exodus 33:23 - thou shalt Exodus 34:6 - passed Deuteronomy 4:33 - General Job 26:9 - General Daniel 10:17 - talk Acts 7:32 - Then 1 John 4:12 - seen

Cross-References

Genesis 8:20
Noach built an altar to Adonai . Then he took from every clean animal and every clean bird, and he offered burnt offerings on the altar.

Genesis 13:18
Avram moved his tent and came to live by the oaks of Mamre, which are in Hevron. There he built an altar to Adonai .

Genesis 21:33
Avraham planted a tamarisk tree in Be'er-Sheva, and there he called on the name of Adonai , the everlasting God.

Genesis 32:28
The man asked, "What is your name?" and he answered, "Ya‘akov."

Genesis 33:7
Le'ah too and her children approached and prostrated themselves; and last came Yosef and Rachel; and they prostrated themselves.

Genesis 33:8
‘Esav asked, "What was the meaning of this procession of droves I encountered?" and he answered, "It was to win my lord's favor."

Genesis 35:7
He built there an altar and called the place El-Beit-El [God of Beit-El], because it was there that God was revealed to him, at the time when he was fleeing from his brother.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

And he said, thou canst not see my face,.... Meaning not his form, his essence, his very nature, and the glory of it, that Moses must know he could never see; but the brightest displays of his grace and goodness in Christ, the fullest discoveries of it, which are too much for man, in the present state of things, to have, who sees in part, and but through a glass darkly, not face to face, or in the most complete and perfect manner; it is but a small part and portion of God, and of his ways and works, as of creation and providence, so more especially of grace, salvation, and redemption by Jesus Christ, that is known of him; the things of the Gospel in their full perfection are what eye has not seen; and particularly were more hidden and unseen under the legal dispensation; this face was covered with types and shadows, and dark representations of things; though, in comparison of that state, we now, with open face, behold the glory of the Lord, yet still it is through a glass darkly, and we have not the clear and full view of things as will be hereafter:

for there shall no man see me and live: if there was to be such a revelation made of the grace and goodness, and glory of God in Christ, as it really is in itself, it would be too much for mortals in the present state to bear; it would break their earthen vessels in pieces; the full discovery therefore is reserved to a future state, when these things will be seen as they are, and men will be in a condition to receive them; otherwise we find that men have, in a sense, seen the face of God in this life, and have lived; though many, and even good men, have been possessed with such a notion, that if a man saw God he must die, see Genesis 32:30.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

But his request could not be granted in accordance with the conditions of human existence. The glory of the Almighty in its fulness is not to be revealed to the eye of man. Compare Judges 6:22; Isaiah 6:5. A further revelation of the divine goodness was however possible (see Exodus 33:6-7).

It was vouchsafed to Paul, as it had been to Moses, to have special “visions and revelations of the Lord” 2 Corinthians 12:1-4. But he had, also like Moses, to find the narrow reach of the intellect of man in the region of Godhead 1 Timothy 6:16. However intimate may be our communion with the Holy One, we are still, as long as we are in the flesh, “to see through a glass darkly,” waiting for the time when we shall see, with no figure of speech, “face to face” 1 Corinthians 13:12. Then we know “that we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is” 1 John 3:2.

Exodus 33:19

Will be gracious ... - Yahweh declares His own will to be the ground of the grace which He is going to show the nation. Paul applies these words to the election of Jacob in order to overthrow the self-righteous boasting of the Jews Romans 9:15.

Exodus 33:20

Such passages as this, being clearly in accordance with what we know of the relation of spiritual existence to the human senses, show how we are to interpret the expressions “face to face” Exodus 33:11; Deuteronomy 34:10, “mouth to mouth” Numbers 12:8, and others of the like kind. See Exodus 24:10; Isaiah 6:1; and compare John 14:9.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse Exodus 33:20. No man see me, and live. — The splendour would be insufferable to man; he only, whose mortality is swallowed up of life, can see God as he is. See 1 John 3:2. From some disguised relation of the circumstances mentioned here, the fable of Jupiter and Semele was formed; she is reported to have entreated Jupiter to show her his glory, who was at first very reluctant, knowing that it would be fatal to her; but at last, yielding to her importunity, he discovered his divine majesty, and she was consumed by his presence. This story is told by Ovid in his Metamorphoses, book iii., table iii., 5.