17th Week in Ord. Time, Wednesday – 2nd August 2023 – Exodus 34, 29-35; Mt 13,44-46
Fading of God’s Glory
The first reading describes Moses’ face as radiant when he leaves the presence of God. Being in the presence of the Lord for 40 days and 40 nights, eating and drinking nothing, Moses had seen a glimpse of God’s glory. He did not realize that he had absorbed some of the glory and was reflecting it. Aaron and the Israelites had noticed the change in Moses. They were afraid to come near him. Therefore, Moses covered his face with a veil. Every time Moses re-enters the presence of the Lord, he lifts his veil to be re-enlightened and re-charged by God.
Paul explains in 2 Cor 3,13 that Moses veiled his face because the glory was fading away. He gives several applications of this remarkable event. First, he pointed out that the glory of the Mosaic Legal system was fading away, but that the glory of the gospel of God’s grace was getting more glorious (2 Cor 3,7-11). This was an answer to the legalists who taught that obedience to the law was God’s way of salvation. Second, he applied this event to the lost Jews of his day whose hearts were covered by a veil of unbelief (2 Cor 3,14-16). The only way to remove that veil was to recognize and believe Jesus as the true Messiah and Saviour. Thirdly, he applied Moses’ experience to Christians who by faith see the glory of Jesus Christ in the Word and experience a spiritual transformation (2 Cor 3,17-18).
