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THIS MIGHT SURPRISE YOU

Exodus 20:1 says, "Then God spoke all these words." According to the text, who is listening?

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The answer

The whole people. Exodus 19:17 puts them at the foot of the mountain, and then "God spoke all these words" (Exodus 20:1). The New Oxford Annotated Bible, a study Bible, reads this as God speaking to the people directly, not through Moses. They ask for it to stop: "You speak to us, and we will listen, but do not let God speak to us, lest we die" (Exodus 20:19).

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Why it’s interesting

After that the people stand back and Moses goes alone into "the thick darkness where God was" (Exodus 20:21). The New Oxford Annotated Bible says the people are insisting that Moses pass on God's word from here on. God later reminds them of the day: "You have seen for yourselves how I spoke with you from heaven" (Exodus 20:22).

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