Exodus 34:1Meaning & Commentary from the Church Fathers

It’s important to reflect on those who permitted sin as we delve into this discussion. We should consider how the sacred tablets, which contained the divine law and shattered when they fell from Moses' grasp due to the obstinacy of humanity, were restored not in their original form, but with the same inscriptions. Having taken the tablets from the valley's essence, he presented them to the might of the One who authored the law upon them. Thus, grace invites us, bearing the law upon these stone tablets, after God Himself inscribed the words on them, so that those who heed this guidance may grasp God's intentions for us. If the Apostle indeed refers to ‘the tablets of the heart’ (2 Cor. 3:3) as the dominion of the soul, and if he who explores the depths of God with the spirit does so genuinely, it logically follows that humanity, fashioned by God and initially adorned with the unspoken precepts of the law, was originally unbroken and immortal. Naturally, a will that aligned with the law—exemplified by the rejection of evil and reverence for the Divine—resided within us.

However, when the voice of sin reached us, termed the voice of the serpent in the primeval scriptures, and the song of revelry in the account of the tablets (Ex. 32:18), our nature fell and became fractured. Yet, the true Lawgiver, whom Moses foreshadowed, has once again carved from our earthly essence the tablets of our being. His divine flesh was not the result of marriage; He sculpted His flesh Himself, marked by the divine finger. The “Holy Spirit” descended upon the Virgin, and “the power of the Most High” covered her (Luke 1:35). Following this, nature was restored to indestructibility, rendered immortal by the inscriptions of that finger. In numerous passages, the Holy Spirit is referred to as the finger of God.

Thus, the transfiguration of Moses' glorification manifests in such a profound manner that its brilliance is beyond earthly perception. Yet, those who have contemplated the Divine mystery of our faith surely comprehend how closely this elevated perspective aligns with historical accounts. The Restorer of our fractured nature (which you can recognize as He who healed our brokenness) has reshaped our nature back to its original form, enhancing it with the Divine finger. As such, He is no longer beyond the perception of the unworthy and has become unapproachable in the splendor of His glory. Indeed, ‘when ... will come,’ as the Gospel describes, ‘in His glory, and all ... Angels with Him’ (Matt. 25:31), this will be a moment of awe for the righteous, who will scarcely behold it; whereas the wicked and those clinging to the law, as Isaiah states, shall be unable to partake in this vision. ‘Let the wicked be taken,’ he asserts, ‘let him not see the glory of the Lord’ (Isaiah 26:10).