The people remained at a distance, while Moses approached the thick darkness where God was. The spatial contrast crystallizes the covenant structure: the people at a distance, Moses in the thick darkness. The thick darkness is the place where God is — the same darkness that covered Egypt in the ninth plague, but now the setting of divine revelation rather than divine judgment. 1 Kings 8:12 records Solomon saying the Lord has said that he would dwell in a dark cloud. The darkness that hides God from the unprepared reveals Him to the one who is called into it. Moses goes where the people cannot — into the presence that would destroy them — and brings back what they need. This is the priest's function and ultimately Christ's function: going where the people cannot go and returning with what they need.

COMMUNITY REFLECTIONS

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