Exodus 24:14
And he said unto the elders, Tarry ye here for us, until we come again unto you: and, behold, Aaron and Hur are with you: if any man have any matters to do, let him come unto them. And he said unto the elders, Tarry ye here for us, until we come again unto you: and, behold, Aaron and Hur are with you: if any man have any matters to do, let him come unto them.
Moses went up into the mount of God with Joshua his minister, directing the elders to remain where they were until he and Joshua returned to them. In his absence Aaron and Hur, assisted by the elders, were left in responsible charge to guard and guide the people and to hear any matter or dispute brought to them. This charge was given after Israel promised obedience and the covenant was ratified with sacrifices and blood, as Moses went as their representative to meet with God and receive the Ten Commandments on tables of stone during forty days and nights. The forty days were a test of faithfulness to the covenant, but the people grew impatient for a visible representation of God, and Aaron failed to stand firm, yielding to their proposal and making the idol until decisive measures stopped the reveling and idolatry. Moses going up to be with God is the pattern for those bearing responsibility, that solitude and communion with God prepare them to receive His pattern, bring their best talent into the work, and keep calm and true to His Word above every human influence.
Moses' Charge on Sinai
Moses went up into the mount of God with his minister Joshua, leaving word for the elders to stay where they were until he and Joshua came back to them. He was preparing for a long absence to meet with God, and before going up he told the elders to remain in place until his return. In his absence Aaron and Hur, assisted by the elders, were left in responsible charge to act in his place and to guard and guide the people. Anyone who had any matter or dispute to bring was to come to Aaron and Hur, who were appointed to hear and handle it until Moses returned.
Aaron had long served alongside Moses, and Hur had been entrusted with weighty responsibilities, so they were to guard the people carefully with the elders assisting them. The elders themselves were appointed to aid in the leadership of Israel in a work so great that God put His Spirit upon them for it. The charge was given after Israel had promised to obey, as Moses went as their representative to meet with God and receive the law. That law was the Ten Commandments inscribed on two tables of stone, and his absence for receiving it lasted forty days and nights.
The setting belongs to the ratification of God's covenant, when Moses communicated the Lord's words and judgments and read the book of the covenant to the people. The people renewed their promise to obey, and the covenant was confirmed with sacrifices and blood, with twelve pillars representing the twelve tribes. The directions given in the mount were given by Jesus Christ Himself, enshrouded in a veil of cloud so that His glory would not extinguish Moses as the human instrument to voice His words to the people. The elders were honored with a nearer view of the glory surrounding Him, so they would have a clear sense of His greatness and majesty and power and would be prepared with wisdom to do their assigned part.
Failure During His Absence
The forty days while Moses was on the mountain with Aaron and Hur left in care of the people were a testing time to prove whether Israel could be trusted, for the covenant they had entered demanded faithfulness and perfect obedience. In their weakness and instability the people instead leaned upon themselves rather than upon God, while their leaders grew proud and contentious. Left to wait for Moses' return, the Israelites became impatient in his absence and clamored for a visible representation of God, even though the divine presence was still visibly manifest upon Sinai.
Provision had been made for their need, since Aaron and Hur were appointed to hear disputes and to be leaders whom Israel could consult, yet Aaron failed to exercise firm and faithful leadership when the demand for a golden calf arose. He did not stand against the people's proposals, and his first concession opened the way to reveling and wrongdoing that passed on into idolatry until it was checked only by decisive measures. His responsibility made his course especially serious, for instead of restraining the people he himself fashioned the idol and gave approval to its worship. God's anger burned so strongly against that unfaithfulness that Aaron's very life was threatened, but through Moses' pleading he was spared and, by penitence and humility, restored to divine favor.
The high privilege granted to the leaders in being allowed to draw near the mountain, to commune with God, and to behold His glory afforded no excuse for later sin. The light and advantages God bestows call for holiness of life and earnest obedience.
Instruction and Pattern for Leaders
The instruction given to Moses in the mount in Exodus 19-24 is to be obeyed and studied and set before the people, for it is needed now just as verily as the children of Israel needed it in the days of Moses. All contention is to cease and men are to love as brethren with softened and subdued hearts. The laws written in a book guard against doing injustice and guide dealings one with another, and they were given by Christ Jesus, who gave the directions on Mount Sinai and has spoken in human flesh.
The directions for the government and guidance of Israel lay down the same principles Christ presented in His own teaching. In His sovereign generalship over the multitude brought out of slavery He laid down plainly specified truth to be cherished in all the relations of life. By that truth the people were to form characters fit to compose the family of God in the heavenly courts and to represent Christ in all works and practice and teaching while He guided them by His unseen power through the wilderness. Christ was enshrouded in the veil of cloud so His glory would not extinguish Moses, the human instrument who was to voice His words to the people.
Moses going up to be with God is the model for those carrying responsibility in God's work, who are to seek God's presence and glory and follow the pattern He gives. That mountain experience is the setting in which Moses received the pattern he was to follow, and leaders are to bring the best talent into the work. God's bidding to Moses to come up unto Him into the mount brought him into communion with God in mountain solitude, where he beheld His glory before receiving God's law as the representative of His people. Solitude and communion with God prepare for being God's instrument and for receiving God's message and for doing God's work, and the mountain meeting pictures God's calling of people into communion with Him.
Those who trust in God enter that same close communion with Him while others wait below. By His power they are kept calm and composed above boisterous accusations and shocks that ruffle and unsettle the minds of men. To trust in man is to receive the spirit and sentiments of men as wiser and safer than God, but those who meet with God make His Word their guide and nothing can sway them from right principles. They constantly ask what is written in the law and what God has said, and no word from men or from ministers in the highest position can make them set their feet in questionable paths, for in earnest prayer with God their feet are shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace.
Moses' departure placed the people in the care of the elders, with Aaron and Hur available to handle matters brought to them. His absence lasted forty days and nights, and that time of waiting was to be used faithfully. Leaders were to carry out their appointed duties, and the people were to remember God's covenant and reflect on the commandments while awaiting Moses' return.