Daily Devotional · Exodus 33:18–23
Show Me Your Glory
Reflection
After the golden calf disaster, Moses was in a precarious position. God had threatened to withdraw His presence and send an angel instead. Moses interceded fiercely: if Your Presence does not go with us, do not send us up from here. What else will distinguish us from all the other peoples on the face of the earth? God relented and promised His presence. Then Moses pushed further: "Now show me your glory." This was the boldest prayer Moses had ever prayed. He had seen burning bushes, plagues, pillars of cloud and fire, the parting of seas — and he wanted more. He wanted God Himself. God's answer was remarkable: "I will cause all my goodness to pass in front of you, and I will proclaim my name, the Lord, in your presence." God would show Moses not His full unmediated glory — that would be fatal — but His goodness and name. And then the breathtaking provision: "There is a place near me where you may stand on a rock. When my glory passes by, I will put you in a cleft in the rock and cover you with my hand until I have passed by." The cleft in the rock. The hand over Moses. This is divine protection making encounter with holiness possible. The New Testament says we now see God's glory in the face of Jesus Christ (2 Corinthians 4:6). The cleft in the rock is the cross.
Background
The name God proclaims in Exodus 34:6–7 — "the Lord, the Lord, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness" — became one of the most frequently quoted descriptions of God's character in the Old Testament. It is cited in Nehemiah, Joel, Jonah, Psalms, and elsewhere. It is the divine self-portrait Moses asked for.
Truth
The deepest prayer a human can pray is "show me Your glory." God does not rebuke Moses for asking — He makes arrangements to fulfill it. A hunger for God Himself is never presumptuous; it is the most sanctified desire of the human soul.
Application
When is the last time you prayed for more of God — not just more help, but more of God Himself? Pray today: "Lord, show me Your glory — not just what You can do for me, but who You are." Then be still and let Him reveal Himself.