Imagine what it must have been like for the mom, who lived every day of her life hearing about the God of her ancestors, but seeing the might of the gods of Egypt. Told stories of this man who was given a generational promise of blessing by God, but day in and day out, she watched the seemingly endless power of the house of Pharaoh. She grew up in this, married in this, bore children in this - this constant conflict of being told one narrative but living in another. The world she inhabited was a world where might, power, and glory were everything. And in what felt like the blink of an eye, everything she knew about her world was upended.
Now she is sitting with her family, still reeling from the journey, remembering the sea parting, still quietly humming the tune she sang with Miriam. Moses is telling the people about this God, who is no longer a nearly forgotten ancestral deity. This is the God who changed the water of the Nile into blood, so clearly, Hapi has no power where this God is concerned. This God darkened the sky in the middle of the day - so obviously, the God of Abraham is mightier even than Ra! With a shudder, she clenches her children a little tighter; she is sure that this God has ultimate power over life and death.
So Moses tells her, and all her people, the story of how this God spoke the world into being. This God created the land and the sea and plants and the sun and the moon and the stars and all the animals. And then at the end of all of that, from the dust, this God formed not just the one ruler, but all men and women to be made in the image and likeness of this same God. Everything she had even known to be true about glory and humans and gods was being reimagined and handed back to her, completely remade in the only way that makes sense in light of all that she and her people experienced together. This God was over all things, and yet she knew in her innermost being, that this God loved her. She let out a deep breath that she did not know she was holding in, because with all the power and might and glory on display, she knew that this God was good.
By the grace and mercy of Jesus, we today are invited to revel in the goodness of God. We are adopted into the family that has this story as part of our inheritance. We worship and serve the God of Moses, who told the people, “You yourselves have seen what I did to Egypt, and how I carried you on eagles’ wings and brought you to myself. Now if you obey me fully and keep my covenant, then out of all nations you will be my treasured possession. Although the whole earth is mine, you will be for me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.’ (Exodus 19:4-6)
Later, after that golden calf kerfuffle, Moses had this exchange with God: Then Moses said, “Now show me your glory.” And the Lord said, “I will cause all my goodness to pass in front of you, and I will proclaim my name, the Lord, in your presence… And he passed in front of Moses, proclaiming, “The Lord, the Lord, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin.” (Exodus 33:18-19; 34:6-7)
All that God did for the descendants of Israel, as they were rescued out of slavery and oppression, was to reveal that God has the ultimate authority and the ultimate power over all things. And still Moses asks to see more - to see God’s “glory.” The word that we translate glory, can also mean “honor,” “splendour,” or “abundance.” The Latin translation of the text chose to say it this way: “Then Moses said, ‘Show me yourself.” To see and know the fullness of the very essence of who God is. To which the Lord, our God said, “I will cause all my goodness to pass in front of you.” Strong’s dictionary says the word for goodness here means “good in the widest sense… the best.”
God is the most powerful, which is good news. But more importantly, in the widest, fullest, best-est sense, God is the most good - which is very good news. And the goodness of God is expressed in loving words and actions toward people. We know that God is good because God shows us compassion, grace, patience, steadfast mercy (hesed), faithfulness, enduring love, and forgiveness! God reminds us over and over throughout scripture that power and might are nothing without goodness expressed in love. So as we prepare our hearts and minds for Holy Week, where we sing songs about the King of Kings - let us return to Psalm 103, where we read: He made known his ways to Moses, his deeds to the people of Israel: The Lord is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love. Now let’s hear verses 7-8 personalized from the heart of the good God of Love:
“I, Yahweh, have made my ways known to Moses and all those who call on my name. I, Yahweh, have revealed my good deeds of love to the descendants of Israel and to you, [insert your name here ____________], who I call my own. I, your Lord, am filled with compassion toward you, and I delight in showing you grace, ____________. I am patient and calm with you, because my love for you knows no bounds!”
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