ועתה הורד עדיך מעליך, “and now, take off your ornaments!” This command is difficult to understand as the Torah had already reported the people as having no longer put on their jewelry without having been ordered not to put it on. (Compare Exodus 33,4) Presumably, the people did not put their jewelry on for a day as a sign of mourning, but had put it on again on the following day. They had to be told therefore that at least as long as they had not atoned for their sin they were not allowed to wear ornaments. Rabbi Joseph Kara of blessed memory, explained verse four in our chapter, which reported the Israelites as not having put on their jewelry, as referring to the festive garments, the ones they had worn at the time the Ten Commandments had been revealed to them. This was the meaning of Exodus 19,14, where after immersing themselves in a ritual bath in preparation for that that event, they are described as putting on their garments. Had they been the same garments they had worn before immersing themselves in a ritual bath, the Torah certainly did not have to tell us that. They had had their jewelry removed from them by angels sent for that purpose to make them conscious of their great sin, as reported in the Talmud, tractate Shabbat folio 88. This is also the meaning of Exodus 33,6: ויתנצלו בני ישראל, “they stripped themselves; An alternate explanation: the meaning of the words in verse 4: ולא שתו וגו', is that they took off their uniforms, as if saying that unless G–d will march with us we will not agree to fight for possession of the land of Canaan. When G–d heard that He told them that instead of taking off their military uniforms they better take off their jewelry instead for as long as He would tell them what he had in mind for them.

ומשה יקח את האהל, “meanwhile Moses took his own tent far beyond the limits of the camp of the Israelites;” according to our author the word אהל here is a reference to the ornaments-jewelry that had been removed from the male Israelites, and which Moses merited as pointed out in the Talmud tractate Shabbat folio 88, where Rabbi Shimon ben Lakish is quoted as proving from Scripture that at some time in the future this jewelry will be restored to their original owners. He based this on Isaiah 35,10. This is also why we read after Moses’ return from the Mountain that his face was shining so brilliantly that the people were blinded until he covered his forehead with a kind of veil. (Exodus 34,9) An alternate interpretation: the word אהל here is closely related to אור, light, where we find the word בהלו נרו עלי ראשי, “when His lamp shone over my head;” (Job 29.3)

ואתה לא הודעתני, “and You have not informed me;” Moses means that not only did G–d not inform me of details about the angel which He had said that He would send to walk ahead of the Jewish people (Exodus 32, 34) ; it is not only that You Yourself will not walk in front of us, but You did not even name the angel You have assigned for this task. We are now no better off than any human being on earth, each one of whom has an angel walking in front of him. (Compare Psalms 91,11) where David refers to this with the words: כי מלאכיו יצוה לך לשמר לך בכל דרכיך, “for He will order His angels to guard you wherever you go.” Seeing that this is so, how do I benefit from Your having told me that I have found favour in Your eyes? Even Avraham’s servant, Eliezer, had been assured of the same kind of angel, without having been told by G–d that he had found favour in His eyes? (Compare Genesis 24,7)

ועתה אם נא מצאתי חן בעיניך,”and now, if I indeed have found favour in Your eyes;” Moses is hinting that perhaps plans indeed to go personally in front of the Israelites again, and he wishes to be given details of where and how they are going to continue journeying from now on.

If informed of these details he will be certain that he has found favour in the Lord’s eyes.

ויאמר אליו, “He said to him:” this whole conversation is difficult to understand seeing that G–d had already assured Moses that He, would walk with them personally as He had said: “I will personally go with you” (33,14). Furthermore, why did Moses say afterwards in verse 16: “how can I know that both I and Your people have found favour in Your eyes, except by the fact that You will walk with us and we will be distinguished vis a vis any other nation?” G–d had already agreed to do what Moses had asked of Him! We may have to understand the whole dialogue between G–d and Moses as follows: G–d’s words: והניחותי לך, “and I will give you rest,” at the end of verse 14 are addressed to Moses personally, but are not a promise to the people. G–d did not promise that the people can feel at “rest,” i.e. reassured so that they would not have to worry about their future. They will not be able to experience the glory of My presence. When Moses heard this, he continued that unless the people can see that You have agreed to personally lead us as You have done in the past, even I do not know that I have found favour in your eyes. At that point G–d responded that He would walk with the people as before the episode of the golden calf. An alternate interpretation: after the words: פני ילכו, “I will personally go (with you),“ Moses understood that G–d’s anger had ceased, and that He now related to the people as He had done when He had said: (Leviticus 17,10) ונתתי פני , “I’ll set My face against him.” (At that time individual wrongdoing had been the subject.) Once My anger has receded from that level, G–d meant, I will give you rest, but not immediately. Upon hearing this, Moses continued pleading saying that this was not good enough for him until the relationship between G–d and Moses as well as the people had been completely restored. G–d’s response to Moses’ “ultimatum” which had been accompanied by Moses refusing to move from that place any further, was: “| have decided to go along with your conditions.”

ואתה לא הודעתני, (returning to verse 12) “and You have not informed me, etc.” first G–d had told Moses that henceforth He would send an angel ahead of the people on their journeys who would expel the Canaanites from their country (compare verse 2 in our chapter). A few verses later (verse 5) Moses had been told to divest the people of their jewelry. Even at that stage G–d had not yet revealed if He, personally, would again walk ahead of the people on their journey through the desert, even though they already had taken off their jewelry at His command. When You said to me: ידעתיך בשם, “I know you by name,” (verse 12) I assumed that You would tell me the name of the angel, i.e. his specific attribute, Moses, at that stage had still been afraid to demand from G–d that He walk with him and the people personally, as G–d had warned that if Ed.] He were to do so any infractions would result in the people being consumed by His wrath (פן אכלך בדרך, verse 3 in our chapter). This is also why he phrased verse 13 with the reference to דרכיך, “Your ways.” The reason he referred to “Your ways” in the plural, was that he did not know which of G–d’s ways (attributes) would be most advantageous for the Israelites. He therefore resolved to ask G–d to reveal all His attributes to Him so that he would know what the situation that the Jewish people found themselves in needed to be appealed to. Thereupon G–d responded by saying: פני ילכו, “I, personally will go,” as this will be most beneficial for you. This is very similar to what we read in Samuel II 17,11: ופניך הולכים בקרב, “and that you yourself will march into battle. [Chushai advised Absalom that in his revolt against his father David, he should march at the head of his troops. Our author shows that the word פנים described the essence of a person as well as the Essence of the Lord.

והניחותי לך, “I will grant you peace of mind seeing that you are in such an emotional uproar. You will now be able to make an intelligent choice. Nonetheless, Moses was still afraid of the possibility that G–d would suddenly annihilate the people if they would anger Him once more. At any rate, he now knew that the word פני G–d had used was meant in its beneficial sense of the word. He realised beyond any doubt that G–d’s personal presence among the Israelites was a great compliment for the people. When Moses realised that this was a time when G–d was very well disposed toward him, he decided to pursue requesting still more details about G–d’s attributes and what each stood for. He went as far as requesting a visual revelation of G–d’s essence. G–d answered him that while he could an experience aural revelation of this, a visual revelation is impossible as long as his soul inhabited a body.

וחנותי את אשר אחון ורחמתי את אשר ארחם, “I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and I will be merciful to whom I will be merciful.” I will explain to you the guidelines according to which you will choose which of My attributes to use at a particular time or occasion. However, as to your request for a visual revelation of My Essence, this is not something that can be granted to any living human being at any time.

הנה מקום אתי ונצבת על הצור, “Behold there is a place by Me, and you shall stand upon the rock;” the author refers to an explanation he has found in a Midrash known as Socher tov (chapter 90) in which a Rabbi Chanina queries why, i.e. to what purpose, one of the Lord’s names is מקום, “place,” (Genesis 19,27). He answers that essentially far from G–d being in any place, G–d and place are identical , i.e. anything we call “place,“ is in reality occupying part of G–d’s place as He created space. Our author feels that one could still have been in doubt whether this means that any מקום on earth or in the universe is always to be understood as secondary to Him, or if on occasion it is used as primary to anything surrounding the subject under discussion. By referring to מקום אתי, “a place next to Me,” G–d reminded Moses that any “place” is always secondary to Him.

והיה בעבור כבודי, “it will be when one of My attributes passes;” I am placing you into the cleft in the rock in order that you will not need to look at My essence with your face (to protect you) ושכותי כפי, “I will cover you with the palm of My right hand;” this is a simile for a cloud G–d will place between Himself and Moses. We find a similar expression in Lamentations 3,41:נשא לבבינו אל כפים אל אל בשמים, “let us lift up our hearts with our hands to G–d in heaven.” In other words: “I will act as a protective cloud in front of you to prevent you from seeing ‘Me’ with your eyes.

והסירותי את כפי, “and I will remove My hand;” so that Moses’ experience will parallel someone seeing someone’s back, being unable to identify that person.