Exodus 33:12-16: a reflection

12Moses said to the LORD, “Behold, you tell me, ‘Bring up this people;’ and you haven’t let me know whom you will send with me. Yet you have said, ‘I know you by name, and you have also found favor in my sight.’ 13Now therefore, if I have found favor in your sight, please show me your way, now, that I may know you, so that I may find favor in your sight; and consider that this nation is your people.” 14He said, “My presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.” 15Moses said to him, “If your presence doesn’t go with me, don’t carry us up from here. 16For how would people know that I have found favor in your sight, I and your people? Isn’t it that you go with us, so that we are separated, I and your people, from all the people who are on the surface of the earth?”

As Moses pleads with God about leading the people onward, he asks for the one thing he most needs: God's own presence. When God promises, My presence will go with you, and I will give you rest, Moses seizes on it and presses further: If your presence doesn't go with me, don't carry us up from here. He would rather not go at all than go without God's presence. To Moses, God's presence was not one blessing among others, but the essential thing, without which nothing else mattered; the presence of God was what he valued above all.

Notice how Moses valued God's presence above every other blessing. He would rather stay where he was than go forward without God's presence; if God's presence would not go, he did not want to go at all. The promised land, the destination, all the blessings ahead, meant nothing to Moses without God's presence going with them. God's presence was, to him, the essential thing, more important than the destination or any blessing; without it, he would rather not go. He valued the presence of God above everything else God might give.

That valuing of God's presence is worth taking to heart, for we can value God's blessings and gifts more than his presence itself. We can seek God's blessings, his help, his gifts, the good things he gives, while valuing these more than his presence itself; but Moses valued God's presence above every blessing, refusing to go forward without it. God's presence is the essential thing, more to be valued than any blessing or gift, even than the destination we seek. Do not value God's gifts and blessings above his presence itself; value his presence above all, as Moses did, refusing to go forward without it. Seek God's presence above every other blessing, counting it the essential thing without which nothing else matters, as Moses said, if your presence doesn't go with me, don't carry us up from here; for the presence of God is more to be valued than any gift he gives, and is the essential thing above all.

Lord, as Moses pleads with you about leading the people onward, he asks for the one thing he most needs: your own presence. When you promise, my presence will go with you, and I will give you rest, Moses seizes on it and presses further: if your presence doesn't go with me, don't carry us up from here. He would rather not go at all than go without your presence. To Moses, your presence was not one blessing among others, but the essential thing, without which nothing else mattered. Show me how Moses valued your presence above every other blessing. He would rather stay where he was than go forward without your presence. The promised land, all the blessings ahead, meant nothing to him without your presence going with them. Your presence was, to him, the essential thing, more important than any blessing. Take that valuing to my heart, for I can value your blessings and gifts more than your presence itself. I can seek your blessings, your help, your gifts, while valuing these more than your presence itself; but Moses valued your presence above every blessing, refusing to go forward without it. Your presence is the essential thing, more to be valued than any gift, even than the destination I seek. Keep me from valuing your gifts and blessings above your presence itself; help me value your presence above all, as Moses did. Help me seek your presence above every other blessing, Lord, counting it the essential thing without which nothing else matters.