Sinai and Horeb were peaks of a remarkable. pile of mountains lying in Stony Arabia, between the two arms of the Red sea.

God descended upon Sinai with thunder and smoke; the mountain quaked, and fiery flashes issued from the thick darkness. From the midst of the cloud, Moses heard the voice of Jehovah, proclaiming the Ten Commandments. The people also heard the voice of God speaking from the fire. DEUT. 4:33.

"The Lord came from Sinai: he came with ten thousands of saints: from his right hand went a fiery law for them." DEUT. 33: 2.

Moses was on the mountain with the divine glory— How long?

During that time God gave him directions concerning the erection of the tabernacle, the institution of the priesthood, and the ceremo nial law. At the close of these divine communications, God gave into the hands of Moses two plates, or tables of stone, called the tables of testimony, on which the ten commandments were engraved by the finger of God. ExOD. 32:16.

RELAPSE TO IDOLATRY.

See Moses descending from the mountain with the sacred testimony in his hand. While he had been absent what had taken place?

Woe! Woe! The people had persuaded Aaron to form a molten calf, like one of the gods of Egypt, and they were worshipping this vile image as the true God, the God of Israel, who had delivered them from bondage.

came with

ight hand

3:2.

ine glory

directions acle, the

ceremo

- commu

f Moses e tables

dments

EXOD.

ountain

e?

suaded of the

g this

srael,

The Israelites had dwelt so long in Egypt. that they had become habituated to the worship of idols, and they loved this vain and pompous service. The worship of the invisible Jehovah, without any similitude to represent him to their gross minds, was wearisome, and they yielded to every temptation to return to the idolatrous usages of Egypt. They desired to worship Jehovah under the form of Apis, the Egyptian god.

Observe here, that a great and leading object of the mission of Moses was, to root out this tendency to idolatry, and bring the Israelites back to the pure and simple worship of their fathers. Jehovah regarded all image worship as idolatry.

What became of those sacred tables which were the work of God?

When Moses, coming down from the mount, saw the molten calf, and heard the noise of the worshippers, singing and shouting, and paying the honors due only to God, to the abomination of Egypt, his indignation and amazement were so great, that in his haste he cast the holy tablets from him, and broke them in pieces at the foot of the mount.

It is said that his "anger waxed hot." He was overcome with the thought of the great sin that had been committed, and intent only upon destroying the idol and rebuking its guilty worshippers. It was this that made him, for the moment, regardless of the precious treasure he bore in his hands.

He ordered the calf to be reduced to powder, and those who had been foremost in its worship to be slain by the sons of Levi.

Were the tables of the testimony renewed?

Yes; in a copy made by man, but not in the original splendor of divine workmanship. At the command of God, Moses prepared two tables similar to the first, and carried them to the top of the mountain, where the divine hand engraved the same record upon them that had been written on the former. These tables were afterwards deposited in the ark.

The ten commandments taken together are called the Decalogue.

THE TABERNACLE.

The Tabernacle was a sacred tent, for the solemn worship of God, and for communication with him as the king and ruler of Israel.

It was contrived so as to be taken apart and reconstructed at pleasure, that it might be easily carried from place to place. Wherever, in their journeyings, the host encamped, it was set up in the midst of the tents.

It was the sanctuary, or habitation of Godthe palace of Jehovah, as the sovereign of the nation. Exod. 25: 8.