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From Jeff Harrison (Jeff@totheends.com)
To: heb_roots_chr@hebroots.org
Subject: THE PROPHET LIKE MOSES
THE PROPHET LIKE MOSES
By Jeff Harrison
One of the most beautiful places in Israel is the Golan
Heights. It's a high, grassy plain that overlooks the
Sea of Galilee and stretches all the way up to Mt. Hermon,
the highest mountain in Israel. In modern times, and
in the negotiations between Israel and Syria, the name
is often "stretched" to include some of the lowlands leading
up to the heights, the many cliffs and steep slopes above
which the heights level out, and the slopes of Mt. Hermon
itself. This challenging terrain, both the slopes and
the heights above, is home to abundant wildlife. There's
a good chance of spotting gazelle, wild boar, and different
kinds of eagles, not to mention the funny little badgers
that live among the rocks (also known as hyrax: this is
the correct name of the animal mentioned in Psa. 104:18,
Pro. 30:26, and elsewhere).
One of the reasons the Golan abounds with wildlife is
that most of the Syrians living there were pulled out
before the Six-Day War in 1967 (with the exception of
a few Druze* villages). The Jews that settled there after
the war clustered in a few small areas for defensive purposes,
leaving large sections of the Golan open.
*The Druze are a secret religious sect that broke off
of Islam nearly 1,000 years ago.
This "greater" Golan is one of the areas Jesus visited
when he withdrew from Galilee to get some time away from
his opponents. Matthew tells us he spent time in the
district of Caesarea Philippi (Matt. 16:13). This was
the largest city in the area, in the lowlands at the foot
of Mt. Hermon. But Jesus and his disciples probably stayed
outside of town in the small Jewish villages ("the district"),
some of which perched on the slopes leading to the heights
above.
Here he began to ask his disciples, "Who do people say
that I am?" (Matt. 16:13, Luke 9:18). The answers they
gave included John the Baptist, Elijah, Jeremiah, and
one of prophets of old (Matt. 16:14, Luke 9:19). By this
time, John the Baptist was dead, killed by Herod Agrippa,
the ruler of Galilee (Matt. 14:1-12). Which means that
all the names offered to identify Jesus were the names
of dead prophets, one of whom, they believed, had miraculously
come back to life again. But why would they identify
Jesus as a dead prophet raised to life? Why not a new
prophet?
Their anticipation of a prophet raised from the dead was
based on one of the most popular Messianic prophecies:
Deut. 18:15. "The LORD your God will raise up for you
a prophet like me from among you, from your brothers;
you will listen to him." In Jesus' day, it was understood
that the words "God will raise up" meant resurrection. People were looking for a prophet raised from the dead.
This would not be an ordinary prophet, but a 'prophet
like Moses,' with the ability to interpret and clarify
God's instructions in the Law. This contributed to the
expectation that the Messiah would deliver a new and updated
version of the Law: a Law for the Messianic age.
The difference between Moses and the other prophets is
explained in Numbers 12:8. "With him I speak mouth to
mouth and openly, and not in dark sayings; and he sees
the form of the LORD." Moses did not hear from God in
dreams and visions with images that were hard to understand.
God spoke to him openly and directly. But what does
it mean that Moses saw the "form" of the Lord? This is
a reminder of the direct intensity of Moses' interactions
with God, one of the most dramatic of which took place
in Exodus 33 and 34, while the children of Israel were
camped at the foot of Mt. Sinai. =20
After the incident of the golden calf, when Moses had
smashed the tablets, he hurried back up the mountain to
repent before God on behalf of the people. But the Lord
said he would no longer go up with them to Israel, "because
you are a stiff-necked people, lest I destroy you on the
way" (Exo. 33:3). This message was met with grief in
the Israelite camp, and no less on the part of Moses himself
(33:4,15,16). After this, he pitched the tent of meeting
outside the camp, in what seems to be a sign of God's
rejection of the people (33:7). Yet here God continued
to meet with Moses, the pillar of cloud descending to
the tent, while all the people looked on from the camp
of Israel (33:8-10).
But Moses didn't give up trying to persuade God to accompany
the people to Israel. He reminded him of the favor in
which God said he held him, and that Israel was his people
(33:12-13). Finally, God relented, saying, "My face [or
presence] will go with you" (33:14). Moses is so relieved
and encouraged that he bursts out, saying: "Please let
me see your glory!"
God agrees. And they begin to plan one of the most exciting
moments in human history. God will make his "goodness"
pass over (or before) Moses, while he (God) calls out
in the name of the LORD (v. 19). The wording here seems
a little strange. Why would God call out in his own name?
And what exactly is his "goodness"?
But there's a limit to what he will reveal to Moses:
He will not show him his face, for "man cannot see me
and live" (v. 20). So God instructs Moses to stand beside
him on the rock, so that when his "glory" passes over,
he can overshadow him with his "hand," so he will not
see too much of the glory while he is passing by (vss.
21-22). Here again the wording is strange. How can God
be standing beside Moses on the rock, overshadowing him,
while he himself is passing by? It sounds like God will
be in two places at once.
The big event was set for the next day, in the morning
(34:2). Morning is the best time to climb the mountains
of Sinai even today. In the early morning hours, the
desert is still cool and pleasant. But later in the day
it gets scorching hot. At the traditional Mt. Sinai,
there is none of the abundant grass we saw in the Golan.
This is deep desert, where it is extremely dry. The
mountains are solid chunks of rock that jut up from the
desert floor. From the top of the mountain, there is
a beautiful view that stretches on and on for up to 90
miles.
When Moses reached the top of the mountain, God descended
in the cloud and stood there beside him, according to
plan (34:5). This seems to be the same pillar of cloud
that appeared to Moses at the tent, the pillar of fire
and cloud that led the children of Israel through the
desert. Then, from the cloud, the LORD called out in
the name of the LORD (34:5). In response, the LORD passed
over above him (34:6). This second LORD is distinct from
the first one. Remember, the job of the LORD in the cloud
is to overshadow Moses, so he will not see God's face.
But the LORD passing overhead is not in a cloud, but
revealed in all his "goodness" or "glory." There are
clearly two LORDS here: the LORD hidden in the cloud
next to Moses and the LORD revealed overhead. This mystery
may be confirmed by the words the LORD cried out: "LORD,
LORD, a compassionate and gracious God" (33:6). There
are two LORDS, yet one God. This seems to be the way
Moses understood it: in verse 9 he, too, mentions two
Lords: "Lord, if I have found favor in your sight, please
let the Lord walk among us." In other passages, Moses'
does not address God in the distant third person. Why
the switch of language here? The simplest explanation
is that Moses is asking Lord #1, the one in the cloud,
if Lord #2, the "face" or "glory" of God, can go with
them.
The rabbis after the time of Jesus explained such puzzling
epiphanies as the activity of angels operating in the
LORD's name. But the early Jewish believers in Jesus,
and Christianity after them, understood that these two
LORDS, the "cloud" and the "face" (or glory) of God, were
in fact God himself, just as the Bible says: God in the
cloud is the Holy Spirit, and the face or glory of God
is the Word or Son of God. Two LORDS, yet one God.
The effect of this incredible experience was dramatic:
Moses' face shone so brightly that it frightened the
others when he came back down the mountain (34:30). No
other prophet ever had an experience like this: until
Jesus went up into the Golan.
Just a few days after asking his disciples, "Who do people
say that I am?", Jesus went up one of the steep slopes
beside Hermon in the Golan (Luke 9:28).* The solid bedrock
of the mountain is exposed nearly everywhere. Plants
and small trees grow out of cracks and cavities in the
rock here and there. This was one of Jesus' all-night
prayer vigils; the disciples fell asleep (9:32). While
he was praying, his face was changed and his clothing began to glow (9:29). This was quite a spectacle against
the starry mountain sky. Matthew says his face shone
like the sun (Matt. 17:2). Does that remind you of anything?
It's a hint back to Moses' experience at Sinai.
* It could not have been the traditional site on Mt. Tabor.
In addition to their location in the Golan implied by
Matthew and Mark, there was a settlement on Tabor at the
time. The gospels say they were alone on the mountain
("apart by themselves" Mark 9:2). Also, Matthew and Mark
specify that this was a "high mountain" which, compared
to its neighbors in Israel, Tabor is not.
Beside Jesus appeared Moses and Elijah "in glory," a code
word for heavenly splendor (Luke 9:30). Elijah too, like
Moses, had his own experience on Mt. Sinai, when he ran
away from Queen Jezebel (1 Kings 19:9-18). But this time,
instead of God ministering to them, Moses and Elijah minister
to Jesus, in his earthly nature, preparing him for the
opposition he will face in Jerusalem (Luke 9:31).
When Peter and the others awake, they see Jesus' "glory"
(9:32). This, too, is a hint back to Sinai, and the appearance
of the "glory" of God. But no sooner do they see it than
a cloud appears and "overshadows" them (9:34). This,
too, is a hint to Mt. Sinai. Just as with Moses, God
in the cloud hides them from the "glory." Here again
are two Lords, one the Lord in the cloud and the other
the "face" or "glory" of the Lord revealed in Jesus.
Then, out of the cloud comes a voice: "This is my son,
my chosen, listen to him" (9:35). Notice the words used
here: "Listen to him." Does that sound familiar? It's
a hint back to the prophecy of the prophet like Moses:
the one of whom Moses says, "Listen to him" (Deut. 18:15).
Could the message be any clearer? Jesus is the prophet
like Moses. Jesus is the one we should listen to.
The revelation in the Golan is an interpretation of the
revelation on Sinai. The face, the glory, the goodness
of God that appeared on Sinai is Jesus, the Son of God,
who is God, the LORD. Two LORDS, yet one God.* Wow!
What an awesome experience and what an awesome message!
* The third LORD of the Christian Trinity, the Father,
is hidden in heaven, just as the rabbis considered God
to be hidden from man ("man cannot see me and live").
Yet Christians believe he reveals himself through his
two "arms": the Son and the Spirit. (The imagery of
God's "arms" is developed by Isaiah in Isa. 51:5; 51:9;
52:10,13; 53:1,2; etc.)
The word for "listen" in the prophecy of the prophet like
Moses is SHMA (in Hebrew; Deut 18:15). This word means
not only to hear, but to obey. As Jesus himself said,
"Everyone who hears these words of mine and does them=85"
(Matt. 7:24). Jesus' word can sometimes be a little overwhelming,
as when he challenges us to "lose" our lives for his sake
(Matt 10:38,39). But God sent not only the glory of his
Word. He also sent the comfort of his Spirit to stand
beside us and give us the power to do what Jesus tells
us to do. With these two at our sides-the Word and the
Spirit-we cannot fail. And don't be surprised if your
face starts to shine more, too!
For more information on our ministry, visit our web site
at http://www.totheends.com .
Jeff and Karen Harrison
Copyright 2000 by To The Ends Of The Earth Ministries,
Inc. All rights reserved.
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