Declining God's Invitation

Was Moses Right or Wrong?

Now therefore let me alone, that my wrath may wax hot against them, and that
I may consume them: and I will make of thee a great nation.—Exodus 32:10

Carl Hagensick

The authors of the Old Testament are careful that their history “as impartially records and reproves their weaknesses and shortcomings as it commends their virtues and faithfulness. … There is a straightforwardness about the Bible that stamps it as truth” (Studies in the Scriptures, vol. 1, p. 41). It is, however, the task of the student to determine if an action is right or wrong. A case in point is found in Exodus.

“And the LORD said unto Moses, Go, get thee down; for thy people, which thou broughtest out of the land of Egypt, have corrupted themselves: They have turned aside quickly out of the way which I commanded them: they have made them a molten calf, and have worshipped it, and have sacrificed thereunto, and said, These be thy gods, O Israel, which have brought thee up out of the land of Egypt. And the LORD said unto Moses, I have seen this people, and, behold, it is a stiffnecked people: Now therefore let me alone, that my wrath may wax hot against them, and that I may consume them: and I will make of thee a great nation. And Moses besought the LORD his God, and said, LORD, why doth thy wrath wax hot against thy people, which thou hast brought forth out of the land of Egypt with great power, and with a mighty hand? Wherefore should the Egyptians speak, and say, For mischief did he bring them out, to slay them in the mountains, and to consume them from the face of the earth? Turn from thy fierce wrath, and repent of this evil against thy people. Remember Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, thy servants, to whom thou swarest by thine own self, and saidst unto them, I will multiply your seed as the stars of heaven, and all this land that I have spoken of will I give unto your seed, and they shall inherit it for ever. And the LORD repented of the evil which he thought to do unto his people.”—Exodus 32:7-14

Fearful and chagrined when Moses did not return from Mt. Sinai as quickly as they expected, the discouraged Israelites prevailed upon Aaron to make them a golden calf to worship. When Moses saw this infidelity, his anger against the people was kindled. More importantly, the anger of Jehovah was also kindled. This led to God’s proposal to destroy all the faithless Hebrews and bring forth a new nation from the loins of Moses.

God Asks Man’s Permission

God does not summarily carry out his judgment against Israel. He first asks Moses for permission to do so with the words: “Let me alone!” Similarly, when Joshua defended the Gibeonites from the attack of the Amorites, we read, “The LORD hearkened unto the voice of a man” (Joshua 10:14).

Having established Moses as a mediator in his relationship with Israel, God recognized that position and sought Moses’ permission to carry out his punishment of the wayward tribes. This approach speaks volumes about the character of the Almighty who not only cannot lie (Titus 1:2; Hebrews 6:18), but who also acknowledges and works through the agencies which he sets up. God is a God of order (1 Corinthians 14:33,40).

What was true in his relationship with Moses as mediator will also be true in his relationship with Christ, the greater mediator, in the thousand-year reign of his kingdom. The prophet metaphorically expresses it thus: “And it shall come to pass in that day, I will hear, saith the LORD, I will hear the heavens [the new heavens of Jesus and his church], and they shall hear the earth [the new earth of restored mankind]” (Hosea 2:21).

The Audacity of Moses and the Repentance of God

Moses’ response appears to be as audacious as it was bold. He argued with God. He interceded for the faithless mob and asked Jehovah to reconsider. His plea is based on the glory of God. If Israel is destroyed, he reasons, the Gentile nations may well claim that while Jehovah had the power to bring the Israelites forth from Egyptian bondage, he lacked the ability to bring them into the promised land.

The intensity of his prayer is suggested by the fact that in the parallel account in Deuteronomy 9:18 it appears to have been accompanied by forty days of complete fasting. His prayer proved to be effectual because God hearkened to it: “And the LORD repented of the evil which he thought to do unto his people” (Exodus 32:14). The Hebrew nacham (Strong’s 5162) translated “repented,” while frequently meaning precisely that, in the niphil conjugation used here has the sense of “to have compassion” (Brown, Driver, and Briggs Lexicon). Thus it corresponds with the Greek metanoeo (Strongs #3340), “to change the mind” and not metamellomai (#3338), signifying regret, an attitude that never refers to God as is evident from its usage in Hebrews 7:21. The Septuagint uses hilasthee, meaning “was propitiated” or “was appeased.”

In other words, God’s compassion on Israel was elicited by the plea of Moses. The change of action was not dictated by sorrow, but by a sympathetic ear to the argument of Moses. However, the mere fact that God gave Moses a positive answer to his prayer does not necessarily prove that the request was proper.

In addition to his prayer on behalf of the recalcitrant Hebrews, the great lawgiver returns to Mt. Sinai hoping that perhaps (“peradventure”) he can make an atonement for their sins (Exodus 32:30-35). God sends a plague on the people rather than blotting them out.

An Analysis of Moses’ Decision

In analyzing the question as to whether Moses’ decision to challenge God’s proposition was right or wrong, we need to investigate the arguments. In considering the wisdom and correctness of the choice made by Moses, several points indicate the propriety of what he did:

1.  God answered Moses’ prayer.
The acquiescence of Jehovah to the plea of Moses might well indicate the propriety of his position and suggest the legitimacy of his action.

2.  The glory of God.
The prayer, being based on that which would render the greatest glory to the Almighty, also implies that the course chosen was the correct one.

3.  The idealism of unselfishness.
Turning down the offer of personal glory and the exaltation of his family and bloodline showed an unselfish goal of idealism that is worthy of emulation.

4.  God’s Timetable.
If Moses had made the other decision, the entrance to the promised land would have had, of necessity, to be delayed because it would take time to create a new nation from the loins of Moses, causing many changes in God’s chronological timetable for the accomplishment of his plans.

On the other hand, there are several points that indicate his decision was not the best:

1.  The wisdom of the Almighty.
Surely God knows the best course of action in every circumstance. Therefore if he suggested the removal of the backsliding nation of Israel and the advancement of Moses’ house, he must have had a wise reason for it.

2.  The truthfulness of God.
If Jehovah promised to bless the acceptance of his invitation and make a new nation to fulfill his promises, surely he would have kept that promise had that offer been implemented.

3.  The principle of repentance.
In Jeremiah 18:8, the principle of what produced a change of mind on the part of God is spelled out: “If that nation, against whom I have pronounced, turn from their evil, I will repent of the evil that I thought to do unto them.”

4.  Moses’ destiny.
Debatably, Moses was not allowed to enter the Promised Land because of this decision. It can well be argued that the reason he was forbidden that privilege was because he struck the rock twice instead of speaking to it as God commanded (Numbers 20:8-11). However, had he accepted God’s invitation to abandon Israel, he would not have been tempted to anger by the people’s intransigence.

The Conclusion

Was Moses right or wrong when he rejected the invitation from God to let the Israelites perish in the wilderness and a new, stronger, and better race produced from his own progeny? Only God, who has not revealed the answer, knows which would have been the best decision.

Some may claim that the words of the Lord were not meant to be an invitation, but were made to test the character of Moses. But God promised he would make a new nation of Moses, and, since God cannot lie, he most certainly would have done so had Moses acceded to Jehovah’s request. Nor can it be said that Moses was being tempted to see how he would react for we read, “Let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God: for God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth he any man” (James 1:13).

Thus this cannot be considered as a choice between a right or a wrong decision, but between two acceptable choices, neither being better than the other, both being alike good.

A Lesson for Us

From time to time we find ourselves in similar situations. We may feel that we are in a poor religious situation. We may feel that we are called to leave our local ecclesia or church. We may feel that the Lord is requesting, “Come out of her my people that ye be not partakers of her sins” (Revelation 18:4). What should we do? Should we follow our interpretation of divine providence and depart? Should we anticipate that the Lord is saying to us, “I will make a new religious environment from [or at least, for] you?”

Or should we react as Moses reacted and plead the Lord’s glory to forgive those who have transgressed divine law? Should we say, in effect, “Lord, if you abandon these people, others will say you were sufficiently powerful to bring them into your truth but you were not able to bring them to their Promised Land.” Should we, as Moses did, continue to use our influence to try to prevent their further backsliding?

Our personal answer rests in part on whether we think Moses was right or wrong to do what he did.

In the kingdom, The Christ will have full authority as a part of the greater than Moses, the Mediator, without any intervention by God. Of course under our Head, Christ Jesus, it will not be possible for the Mediator to make any unwise decisions. Then we will know when to plead for man’s forgiveness and when not to do so. May we each learn to appreciate and understand the immense privilege and responsibility we will have, if faithful, to bring mankind back into harmony with God.