1 T he Lord said to Moses, “Go away from this place, you and the people you have brought out of the land of Egypt. Go to the land that I promised to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, saying, ‘I will give it to your children.’

¶ And the LORD said unto Moses, Depart and go up from here, thou and the people which thou hast brought up out of the land of Egypt unto the land which I swore unto Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, saying, Unto thy seed will I give it.

2 I will send an angel before you. And I will drive out the Canaanite, the Amorite, the Hittite, the Perizzite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite.

(And I will send an angel before thee; and I will drive out the Canaanite, the Amorite, the Hittite, the Perizzite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite.)

3 G o up to a land flowing with milk and honey. But I will not go with you, because you are a strong-willed people and I might destroy you on the way.”

Unto the land flowing with milk and honey; for I will not go up in the midst of thee; for thou art a stiffnecked people lest I consume thee in the way.

4 W hen the people heard this bad news, they were filled with sorrow. None of them wore his objects of gold or silver.

And when the people heard these evil tidings, they mourned, and no one put on their ornaments.

5 F or the Lord had said to Moses, “Say to the people of Israel, ‘You are a strong-willed people. If I go with you even for just a little time, I would destroy you. So take off your objects of gold and silver that I may know what to do with you.’”

For the LORD had said unto Moses, Say unto the sons of Israel, Ye are a stiffnecked people; I will come up into the midst of thee in a moment and consume thee; therefore now put off thy ornaments from thee that I may know what to do unto thee.

6 S o the people of Israel took off all their objects of gold and silver at Mount Horeb. Moses Meets with the Lord

Then the sons of Israel stripped themselves of their ornaments from Mount Horeb on.

7 N ow Moses used to take the tent and set it up far away from the other tents. He called it the meeting tent. Anyone who wanted to meet with the Lord would go away from the other tents to the meeting tent.

¶ And Moses took the tabernacle and pitched it outside the camp, afar off from the camp, and called it the tabernacle of the testimony. And it came to pass that every one who sought the LORD went out unto the tabernacle of the testimony, which was outside the camp.

8 W hen Moses went out to the tent, all the people would get up and stand at the doors of their tents. And they would watch Moses until he went into the meeting tent.

And it came to pass when Moses would go out unto the tabernacle, that all the people would rise up and stand each one at the door of their tent, with their gaze following Moses until he was gone into the tabernacle.

9 W henever Moses went into the meeting tent, the cloud would come down and stand at the door of the tent. And the Lord would speak with Moses.

And when Moses would enter into the tabernacle, the pillar of cloud would descend and stand at the door of the tabernacle, and the LORD would talk with Moses.

10 W hen all the people saw the cloud standing at the door of the meeting tent, they would stand up and worship, each at his tent door.

And when all the people saw the cloudy pillar stand at the tabernacle door, all the people would rise up, each one in the door of their tent, and worship.

11 T he Lord spoke to Moses face to face, as a man speaks to his friend. When Moses returned to the other tents, his servant Joshua, the son of Nun, a young man, would not leave the meeting tent. God’s Promise to Be with His People

And the LORD would speak unto Moses face to face, as anyone would speak unto their friend. And he would turn again into the camp, but his servant Joshua, the son of Nun, a young man, did not depart out of the tabernacle.

12 M oses said to the Lord, “See, You say to me, ‘Lead this people!’ But You have not let me know whom You will send with me. Yet You said, ‘I have known you by name. You have found favor in My eyes.’

¶ And Moses said unto the LORD, See, thou sayest unto me, Bring this people out, and thou hast not let me know whom thou wilt send with me. Yet thou saith, I know thee by name, and thou hast also found grace in my sight.

13 S o I pray to You, if I have found favor in Your eyes, let me know Your ways. Then I may know You and find favor in Your eyes. And keep in mind that this nation is Your people.”

Now therefore, I pray thee, if I have found grace in thy sight, show me now thy way, that I may know thee, that I may find grace in thy sight; and consider that this nation is thy people.

14 T he Lord said, “I Myself will go with you. I will give you rest.”

And he said, My presence shall go with thee, and I will give thee rest.

15 T hen Moses said to Him, “If You Yourself do not go with us, do not have us leave this place.

And he said unto him, If thy presence is not to go before us, do not bring us out of here.

16 F or how will it be known that I and Your people have found favor in Your eyes, unless You go with us? Then I and Your people will be different from all the other people on the earth.”

For in what shall it be known here that I have found grace in thy sight, I and thy people, but in that thou goest with us, and I and thy people will be separated from all the peoples that are upon the face of the earth?

17 T he Lord said to Moses, “I will do what you have said. For you have found favor in My eyes, and I have known you by name.”

And the LORD said unto Moses, I will do this thing also that thou hast spoken because thou hast found grace in my sight, and I have known thee by name.

18 M oses said, “I pray to You, show me Your shining-greatness!”

Then he said, I beseech thee, show me thy glory.

19 A nd God said, “I will have My goodness pass in front of you. I will make the name of the Lord known in front of you. I will have loving-kindness and loving-pity for anyone I want to.”

And he replied, I will make all my goodness pass before thee, and I will proclaim the name that I AM before thee; and I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy and will show clemency on whom I will show clemency.

20 B ut He said, “You cannot see My face. For no man can see Me and live!”

He further said, Thou canst not see my face; for no man shall see me and live.

21 T hen the Lord said, “See, there is a place beside Me. You stand there on the rock.

And the LORD continued saying, Behold, there is a place by me, and thou shalt stand upon the rock;

22 W hile My shining-greatness is passing by, I will put you in the large crack of the rock. And I will cover you with My hand until I have passed by.

and it shall come to pass while my glory passes by, that I will put thee in a cleft of the rock and will cover thee with my hand until I have passed by.

23 T hen I will take My hand away and you will see My back. But My face will not be seen.”

Then I will take away my hand, and thou shalt see my back parts, but my face shall not be seen.