Go to Related Reading
About this book

LXX Exodus

Septuagint

About this book
Chapter 33

1 And the Lord said to Moses, Go forward, go up from here, you and your people, whom you brought out of the land of Egypt, into the land which I swore to Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, saying, I will give it to your seed. 2 And I will send at the same time my angel before your face,⁠ and he shall cast out the Amorite and the Hittite, and the Perizzite and Girgashite, and Hivite, and Jebusite. 3 And I will bring you into a land flowing with milk and honey; for I will not go up with you, because you are a stiff-necked people, for fear that I might consume you by the way. 4 And the people having heard this distressing saying, mourned in mourning clothing. 5 For the Lord said to the children of Israel, You are a stiff-necked people; take heed for fear that I might bring on you another plague, and destroy you: now then put off your glorious clothing, and your ornaments, and I will show you what I will do to you. 6 So the sons of Israel took off their ornaments and their array at the mount of Horeb. 7 And Moses took his tabernacle and pitched it outside the camp, at a distance from the camp; and it was called the Tabernacle of Testimony: and it happened that every one that sought the Lord went forth to the tabernacle which was outside the camp. 8 And whenever Moses went into the tabernacle outside the camp, all the people stood every one watching by the doors of his tent; and when Moses departed, they took notice until he entered into the tabernacle. 9 And when Moses entered into the tabernacle, the pillar of the cloud descended, and stood at the door of the tabernacle, and God talked to Moses. 10 And all the people saw the pillar of the cloud standing by the door of the tabernacle, and all the people stood and worshiped every one at the door of his tent. 11 And the Lord spoke to Moses face to face, as if one should speak to his friend; and he retired into the camp: but his servant Joshua the son of Nun, a young man, did not depart from the tabernacle. 12 And Moses said to the Lord, Look! you say to me, Lead on this people; but you have not shown me whom you will send with me, but you have said to me, I know you above all, and you have favor with me. 13 If then I have found favor in your sight,⁠ reveal yourself to me, that I may clearly see you; that I may find favor in your sight, and that I may know that this great nation is your people. 14 And he says, I myself will go before you, and give you rest. 15 And he says to him, If you yourself do not go, do not bring me up from here. 16 And how shall it be surely known, that both I and this people have found favor with you, except only if you go with us? So both I and your people shall be glorified beyond all the nations, as many as are upon the earth. 17 And the Lord said to Moses, I will also do for you this thing, which you have spoken; for you have found grace before me, and I know you above all. 18 And he says, Show me your own glory. 19 And God said, I will pass by before you with my glory, and I will call by my name, the Lord, before you; and I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and will have pity on whom I will have pity. 20 And God said, You shall not be able to see my face; for no man shall see my face, and live. 21 And the Lord said, Look, there is a place by me: you shall stand upon the rock; 22 and when my glory shall pass by, then I will put you into a hole of the rock; and I will cover you over with my hand, until I shall have passed by. 23 And I will remove my hand, and then you will see my back parts; but my face shall not appear to you.

Texts in conversation

Compare Exodus 33:13 and LXX Exodus 33:13

Hebrew Bible · Septuagint

Share:

Summary

In Exodus 33, Moses asks to understand God's ways, while the Greek Septuagint translation has him ask to see God. The Septuagint may have translated an earlier version of the Hebrew where God was thought to be embodied, and Moses requested to see him.

Passages

Exodus 33:13

Hebrew Bible
12 Moses said to the Lord, “See, you have been saying to me, ‘Bring this people up,’ but you have not let me know whom you will send with me. But you said, ‘I know you by name, and also you have found favor in my sight.’ 13 Now if I have found favor in your sight, show me your way, that I may know you, that I may continue to find favor in your sight. And see that this nation is your people.” 14 And the Lord said, “My presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.”
750–400 BCE (scholarly estimate) Read in Exodus

LXX Exodus 33:13

Septuagint
12 And Moses said to the Lord, Look! you say to me, Lead on this people; but you have not shown me whom you will send with me, but you have said to me, I know you above all, and you have favor with me. 13 If then I have found favor in your sight, reveal yourself to me, that I may clearly see you; that I may find favor in your sight, and that I may know that this great nation is your people. 14 And he says, I myself will go before you, and give you rest.
300–201 BCE (scholarly estimate) Read in LXX Exodus

References

"... At first glance, the Septuagint of Exodus 33:13 (“Show me Yourself”) seems troublesome, especially in comparison to the Masoretic text (“Let me know Your ways”). In this context, it is emphasized twice that it was impossible even for Moses to see God (Exodus 33:19, 23). One should remember that Exodus 33:13 contains the plea of Moses, not a description of God’s activity. This verse could also be read as preparation for Exodus 33:18. Perhaps, however, it is easier to assume a Vorlage in verse 13 that included “Your face” instead of “Your ways” and to conclude that the Masoretic text now represents an adjustment with regard to the issue under consideration. If that is the case, the Septuagint translator again would not be the initiator but a witness to the process of theological reformulation ..."
Martin Meiser, The Septuagint and Its Reception: Collected Essays (Tübingen: Mohr Siebeck, 2022), 16–17.

References are not endorsements of their contents. Read each reference in full to understand its author's intentions in using these texts.

Tags

Your feedback

Exodus 33:13 and LXX Exodus 33:13

Leave a comment

Your questions and comments are welcome!

Comments

Glossary

Search the Library