Revealing God

“Then I will take My hand away and you shall see My back, but My face shall not be seen.” Exodus 33:23  NASB

And He said, “I Myself will make all My goodness pass before you, and will proclaim the name of the Lord before you; and I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will show compassion to whom I will show compassion.” He further said, “You cannot see My face, for mankind shall not see Me and live!”   Exodus 33:19-20  NASB

and it will come about, while My glory is passing by, that I will put you in the cleft of the rock and cover you with My hand until I have passed by.  Exodus 33:22  NASB

See My back – We’ve examined this passage a few times.  Perhaps once more won’t hurt.  Let’s start by noting the very unusual use of ʾaḥărît, translated “back” in the NASB (and others).

Theologically, the only instance that calls for discussion is Ex 33:23, “thou shalt see my back, but my face shall not be seen” (KJV, most versions the same). But in no other place is the word used for the back of a person’s anatomy. This is gab or gaw or ʾōrep. The word ʾāḥôr means “back” in the sense of direction. Joab saw the battle before and behind him (II Chr 13:14). Ezekiel saw the apostate twenty-five leaders facing the east with their backs toward the temple, i.e. it was behind them (Ezk 8:16). Is it not therefore probable that in the theophany of Ex 33:23 the emphasis is not on an extreme anthropomorphism saying that Moses could see God’s back but not his face? Rather, it was meant that Moses could see the glory and afterglow behind the Lord as he passed by, but his very presence could not be seen.  Of course the anthropomorphism is possible and not even objectionable, but a semi-physical distinction between face and back is apparently not the strict meaning of the words.^[1]

What else can we learn about the odd word?

ʾaḥărît. After part, latter part, future. Used sixty-one times, this word is also not as common as some other derivatives, but has theological import. As is clear from other derivatives, the general meaning of the root is after, later, behind, following. H. W. Wolff has likened the Hebrew conception of time to the view a man has when he is rowing a boat. He sees where he has been and backs into the future (lecture notes). It is true that qedem means “before” as well as “ancient times.” So the root ʾāḥar refers to what is “behind” as well as to “future things.” It might be observed that this is not necessarily due to the psychology of the Hebrews, for the usage was doubtless established in Canaanite before the Hebrews arrived. But ʾaḥărît does refer to the future.^[2]

So, what did Moses see?  Certainly not some physical representation of God.  The word suggests something far more interesting, not just the “afterglow” of God’s glory.  As I’ve argued before, this is the juncture where Moses argues in favor of the people at a point when God suggests abandoning the entire effort to bring them out of Egyptomania.  What matters is not that God passes by Moses but rather that Moses is given some revelation of what is truly at stake.  Therefore, if we read ʾaḥărît as an indication of future events, what God shows Moses is what He will do with this people if they will conform to His will.  In other words, Moses is given a glimpse into God’s intention with Israel.  He sees not God’s back, but rather the future of God’s plans.  With this vision, Moses is equipped to re-engage with the fickle people and direct them toward their divine mission.

Jonathan Sacks makes a comment that applies here.  “ . . . the power of the future to transform our understanding of the past.  This is the essence of midrash.  New situations retrospectively disclose new meanings of the text.  The present is never fully determined by the present.  Sometimes it is only later that we understand now.”[3]  That’s what happens to Moses.  He reimagines the past experiences with the belligerent nation in light of this vision.  Just as we see something different in this text because we re-examine it from a “future” perspective, so we learn what Moses learned, namely, the past is never quite finished until we can look back on it from the completion of another time frame.  The past evolves in light of the present and the future.

What God taught Moses in this most unusual encounter is what we need to also learn.  It’s not over yet.

Topical Index: ʾaḥărît, back, past, future, Exodus 33:19-20, Exodus 33:22, Exodus 33:23

^[1] Harris, R. L. (1999). 68 אָחַר. In R. L. Harris, G. L. Archer Jr., & B. K. Waltke (Eds.), Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament (electronic ed., pp. 33–34). Moody Press.

^[2] Harris, R. L. (1999). 68 אָחַר. In R. L. Harris, G. L. Archer Jr., & B. K. Waltke (Eds.), Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament (electronic ed., p. 34). Moody Press.

[3] Rabbi Jonathan Sacks, Covenant & Conversation: A Weekly Reading of the Jewish Bible: Genesis: The Book of Beginnings (Maggid Books & The Orthodox Union, 2009), p. 155.