“Speak to us yourself and we will listen,” they said to Moses. “But do not let God speak to us, or we will die.”
Parallel translations
- WEB They said to Moses, “Speak with us yourself, and we will listen; but don’t let God speak with us, lest we die.”
- KJV And they said unto Moses, Speak thou with us, and we will hear: but let not God speak with us, lest we die.
- NKJV Then they said to Moses, “You speak with us, and we will hear; but let not God speak with us, lest we die.”
- NASB Then they said to Moses, “Speak to us yourself and we will listen; but do not have God speak to us, or we will die!”
- NLT And they said to Moses, “You speak to us, and we will listen. But don’t let God speak directly to us, or we will die!”
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
The people begged Moses to speak to them so God would not, fearing they would die. They recognize their need for a mediator.
Overview
Overwhelmed by God's presence, the people ask Moses to stand between them and God. Their plea expresses the deep human need for a mediator who can bridge the gap sin has made. This longing is answered fully in Christ, the one Mediator through whom we may hear and approach God and live (1 Tim. 2:5).
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 8
- Deut 18:16This is what you asked of the LORD your God at Horeb on the day of the assembly, when you said, “Let us not hear the voice of the LORD our God or see this great fire anymore, so that we will not die!”
- Acts 7:38He was in the assembly in the wilderness with the angel who spoke to him on Mount Sinai, and with our fathers. And he received living words to pass on to us.
- Exod 33:20But He added, “You cannot see My face, for no one can see Me and live.”
- Deut 5:23–27And when you heard the voice out of the darkness while the mountain was blazing with fire, all the heads of your tribes and your elders approached me,
- Gen 32:30So Jacob named the place Peniel, saying, “Indeed, I have seen God face to face, and yet my life was spared.”
- Gal 3:19Why then was the law given? It was added because of transgressions, until the arrival of the seed to whom the promise referred. It was administered through angels by a mediator.
- Deut 5:5At that time I was standing between the LORD and you to declare to you the word of the LORD, because you were afraid of the fire and would not go up the mountain. And He said:
- Heb 12:19to a trumpet blast or to a voice that made its hearers beg that no further word be spoken.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.
Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.
Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.
Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.
The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
Christ at the center
The Passover lamb whose blood turns away death, the exodus through the sea, the manna, the rock, and the tabernacle where God dwells with his people all foreshadow Jesus — our Passover, our redemption, the bread from heaven, and God-with-us in the flesh.
How Exodus 20:19 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.