This sheet on Exodus 33 was written by Annette Gourgey for 929 and can also be found here
Most people know the story of the golden calf (Exodus 32). But the aftermath is an exploration of faith: How can we know that God is an active presence in our lives?
The chapter plays with seeing as a metaphor for knowing. The Israelites, knowing only slavery in a pagan society with visible idols, only had faith in what they could “see.” Not seeing Moses after 40 days made them so anxious that they questioned their belief in his leadership. How much more must they have struggled with faith in an unseen God to deliver them to some unseen Promised Land? So, they demanded that Aaron make them a god they could see. Aaron, afraid of a rebellion, complied by modeling a golden calf to give them a visible representation that was “real.”
What a breach of faith so soon after agreeing to obey God wholeheartedly. Moses intercedes with God to pardon the people, and they are chastened. However, they still cannot maintain a sense of God’s presence beyond what they see. So they anxiously watch Moses until he returns to his tent; when he disappears inside, a pillar of cloud appears, as a visible reassurance.
Moses is on a higher spiritual level. Yet he, too, asks to “see” God’s presence before he can continue to lead. Unlike his people, Moses never doubts God’s existence. Rather, he wishes to see the Divine nature—the full essence of God’s presence and forgiveness no matter our predicament. Only when he has “seen” that presence can he find the strength for his mission.
Although God “speaks to Moses face to face,” even Moses cannot see God and live. Instead, God tells him to hide in the cleft of the rock. Moses will not see God’s face, but he will know the Divine presence by “seeing God’s back,” the after effects.
God’s response to Moses expresses a deep existential truth: that limited human understanding can never fully “see God’s face,” or fully comprehend God’s nature when circumstances appear to contradict His very existence. The coexistence of God and human suffering is a mystery. Yet we can see God’s after effects in our lives, and come to have an enduring faith.
God’s response focuses on forgiveness. This is more than forgiveness for the people’s sin of idolatry. It may be that we are most receptive to God’s presence when we realize our wrong and seek to return to our spiritual nature. Thus, this passage is a core part of the Day of Atonement prayers. It is read when we most intensely seek to renew our faith, not by seeing with the eye but by removing our spiritual blinders.
Annette Gourgey teaches social science research courses at The City University of New York.
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