Exodus 31:18Meaning & Commentary from the Church Fathers

The ancient law was inscribed on stone tablets, akin to shadows, ‘by the finger of God,’ as it is stated. This symbolizes the transformation we experience through Christ. The Almighty, the Lord of all, carves the understanding of His will within us, utilizing the Son in the Spirit as a tool: David referred to Him in this manner, declaring, ‘My tongue is the cane of a scribe, a scribe's cane’ (Psalms 44:2). Through the Son, the Father imparts the knowledge of every goodness into our hearts, akin to the divine touch of God, employing both the Spirit of the Father and His own. The Spirit of God is likened to a finger, as He stated in one instance, ‘If by the Spirit of God I cast out demons’ (Matt. 12:28), and in another, ‘If by the finger of God I cast out demons’ (Luke 11:20).

See Ex. 12:11

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‘on which it was inscribed by the hand of God’ Following the celebration of the Passover through the sacrifice of the lamb, the period of fifty days is observed until the moment the Law was bestowed upon Moses, God's servant, upon Mount Sinai, inscribed by the hand of God. The Gospel clearly indicates that the hand of God represents the Holy Spirit. For when one Gospel writer records, I cast out demons by the hand of God (Luke 11:20), another states similarly, I cast out demons by the Spirit of God (Matthew 12:28). Who would not choose this joy found in the divine mysteries, radiating the light of pure teachings, over all the powers of this world, even if they seem to possess joy and serenity?

When Moses, having been shrouded in this unseen darkness and guided by God's profound wisdom, acquired a deeper, mysterious understanding and transcended his previous limitations, he emerged from the darkness once more. He returned to his fellow Israelites to share the extraordinary wonders he had witnessed during the divine revelation, to propose laws, to construct a temple for the people, and to establish a priestly order as instructed on the mountain. In his hands, he carried the sacred tablets, which were gifts from God, originating without any need for external creation; indeed, each tablet, both in its essence and the inscription upon it, was entirely the work of God.

See Exod. 34:1

The Scripture may have used the tablets to highlight the rigidity and insensitivity of their hardened hearts, illustrating why they were criticized as a ruthless people, with a neck like iron and inclined toward disobedience and resistance (Isaiah 48:4). A word in defense of our sincere, untainted, and genuine Christian faith, countering those who believe we worship idols.

While fasting on the mountain, he received the divinely crafted tablets, along with the law inscribed by the finger of God on two stone tablets. Concurrently, as he was teaching the sacred people, he symbolically foreshadowed all aspects related to Christ, who would come as the liberator and savior of Abraham's lineage, just as Christ later manifested as the redeemer and savior of all humanity.

In our previous discussion, we noted that it is widely believed that only the commandments inscribed by the Lord on the two tablets were the eternal and universal laws intended for all humanity. The remainder of the laws given to Israel, which include various ordinances, was revealed to Moses during his forty-day stay on the mountain. These laws served as the temporal expression of the eternal principles applicable to the people. Moses communicated these teachings to the Israelites orally, as indicated in Exodus 34:31-32: “And Moses spake with them; and he commanded them all that the Lord had spoken unto him on mount Sinai.” Later, Moses recorded all that the Lord had commanded him in his writings.