Exodus 19:1 - Meaning and Application

Here is the date of that great agreement by which Israel was formed as a covenant people. It was in the third month after they came out of Egypt (Exodus 19:1). The law was given about fifty days after their release, and that helps explain why Pentecost was kept on the fiftieth day after Passover. In the same pattern, the Holy Spirit was poured out on the apostles at Pentecost, fifty days after Christ’s death.

In Egypt, Israel had spoken of a three-day journey into the wilderness to offer sacrifice (Exodus 5:3), but the trip took nearly two months. We often misjudge how long things will take, and events turn out much slower than we expected. The place was Mount Sinai, a mountain made striking by nature itself, since it stood highest in that whole range. God chose a wilderness mountain instead of a city or palace, showing that his greatness does not depend on human splendor.

The covenant was announced from Sinai, where God had set up his tent, while Israel camped below. Moses was called up the mountain to serve as the mediator, that is, the one who carried God’s message between God and the people: “Tell the house of Jacob and the children of Israel” (Exodus 19:3). Bishop Patrick notes that they are called both Jacob and Israel to remind them of God’s mercy. They had once been low, like Jacob before he went to Padan-aram, but God had made them great, like Israel after he returned.

The first point is that God himself began this covenant. The people did nothing to start it. They made no move, and they did not ask for this favor, but God granted it entirely from his own good will. In all our dealings with God, grace goes before us, and all our comfort comes from being known by him first (Galatians 4:9). We love him and covenant with him because he first loved us and drew near to us.

The covenant’s content is also kind and gracious. It placed no unfair burden on them, but gave them great privilege and blessing. First, God reminded them what he had already done for them (Exodus 19:4). He had judged their enemies and protected his people. He says, “You have seen what I did to the Egyptians,” meaning that many lives were given up for Israel’s good.

He also says, “I carried you on eagles’ wings.” This is a strong picture of God’s tenderness and care. It suggests speed, since he brought them out quickly when the time had come. It also suggests strength and ease, like an eagle carrying its young. Even Egypt, that iron furnace, had been like a nest where this young nation was formed, and then God brought them out when they were ready.

The point is even clearer at the Red Sea. The pillar of cloud and fire stood between Israel and their enemies, like a barrier that could not be broken. But God’s care did not end with protection. “I brought you to myself” is the greatest part of deliverance. He brought them not only into freedom and honor, but into covenant and fellowship with himself. That is also the glory of our rescue through Christ, who died for the unjust to bring us to God.

God is aiming at that same end in all his gracious ways, to bring us back to himself and home to himself, where alone we can be happy. He even appeals to their own sight and experience: “You have seen what I did.” They could not deny his words unless they first denied what they had seen. Everything was plainly the Lord’s doing. It was not they who reached up to God, but he who brought them to himself.

Some have rightly noted that the Old Testament church was carried on eagle’s wings, showing the power of that earlier covenant. The New Testament church is gathered by Christ as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings (Matthew 23:37), showing the grace, compassion, and humble kindness of the Redeemer.

Second, God plainly states what he asks of them, and that is obedience (Exodus 19:5). They were to obey his voice truly and keep his covenant. Since he had saved them, he now required that they live under his rule. Later Scripture repeats this as the condition of the covenant, “Obey my voice” (Jeremiah 7:23), and says God strongly warned them of it (Jeremiah 11:4, Jeremiah 11:7). They were not to obey in words only, but in truth and sincerity. God had shown them real mercy, so he called for real obedience.

Third, God promises great honor and kindness if they keep his covenant (Exodus 19:5, 6). He does not name only one blessing, such as the land of Canaan, but speaks in a way that includes all good things. They would be his special treasure, meaning a people precious to him, and he would be their covenant God. That is the highest blessing of all, for he gives himself to them, and they belong to him.

He begins by claiming his right over all creation: “All the earth is mine.” So he did not need Israel for himself. He was already Lord over everything, and his greatness and happiness did not depend on this one people.

Since all nations belong to God, he was free to choose whichever people he wanted for his special possession, acting with full authority.

He claims Israel for himself, first, as a people dear to him. “You shall be my treasured possession” does not mean God needed them, as a man needs his wealth. It means he chose to value them, as a man values what is precious to him. They were precious and honored in his sight (Isa 43:4), and he set his love on them (Deu 7:7). He took them under his special care and protection, like a treasure kept under lock and key. In comparison with them, he counted the rest of the world as nothing.

He showed this honor by giving them divine revelation, ordered worship, and promises that included eternal life. He sent his prophets among them and poured out his Spirit on them. In this way, he set them apart from all other peoples and gave them a higher place. This honor belongs to all the saints too. They are a people special to God (Tit 2:14), his when he gathers his jewels.

Second, he claims them as a people devoted to him, devoted to his honor and service (Exo 19:6), a kingdom of priests and a holy nation. All Israelites, compared with other nations, were in a priestly position before God, because they were so near to him (Psa 148:14) and so often engaged in his direct service. When God first made them a free people, it was so they could sacrifice to the Lord their God as priests. They lived under God’s direct rule, and the laws he gave were meant to set them apart from others and make them a holy nation for himself.

In the same way, all believers are made through Christ into kings and priests to God (Rev 1:6), a chosen people and a royal priesthood (Pe1 2:9). Israel received this great privilege by covenant, and then accepted its terms.

Moses faithfully passed God’s message on to them (Exo 19:7). He laid before them all these words. That means he did more than explain what God had commanded. He also put the matter before them, so they could choose whether they would accept these promises on these terms. He laid the matter before their conscience.

They gladly agreed to the covenant God proposed. They promised to obey God’s voice, and they counted it a great favor to be made a kingdom of priests to him. They all answered together, with no disagreement at all (Exo 19:8): “All that the Lord has spoken we will do.” So they made the agreement, taking the Lord as their God and giving themselves to be his people. If only they had kept that heart!

Moses, acting as a mediator, that is, one who stands between two sides to bring them together, carried the people’s words back to God (Exo 19:8). In this way, Christ, the Mediator between us and God, reveals God’s will to us as a prophet, through his commands and promises. Then, as a priest, he offers to God our spiritual sacrifices, not only prayer and praise, but also holy desires and good resolutions, which his own Spirit works in us. So he is that blessed days-man who puts his hand on both sides.