Intro: Exodus 24 Summary
Exodus 24 describes Israel formally entering a covenant with God. Moses reads the Book of the Covenant (Exodus 20–23), the people agree to obey, sacrifices are offered, and the covenant is sealed with blood. The leaders then witness God’s glory, and Moses ascends the mountain for forty days and forty nights to receive the stone tablets.
Internal link: God’s Covenant with Israel Hub Article
External KJV link: Exodus 24 Full Scripture
1. Israel Confirms Their Obedience
Moses tells the people all of God’s laws from the Book of the Covenant. They respond with one voice:
“All the words which the LORD hath said will we do.”
This is the formal acceptance of God’s terms.
2. Moses Writes the Book of the Covenant
Moses writes everything down—Exodus 20–23.
This scroll is later read publicly before Israel.
He builds:
- an altar
- twelve pillars for the twelve tribes
Young men offer burnt offerings and peace offerings as part of the covenant ceremony.
3. The Covenant Is Sealed With Blood
Moses takes half the blood and throws it on the altar.
He reads the Book of the Covenant again, and the people again say:
“All that the LORD hath said will we do, and be obedient.”
Then Moses sprinkles the remaining blood on the people and declares:
“Behold the blood of the covenant.”
This seals the agreement—Israel is now bound to God, and God is bound to Israel.
4. The Leaders See God’s Glory
Moses, Aaron, Nadab, Abihu, and seventy elders ascend partway.
They see the God of Israel (Ex. 24:10 KJV):
“and there was under his feet as it were a paved work of a sapphire stone…”
The sapphire pavement is under God’s feet, not Moses’.
It is a brief vision of God’s heavenly throne-floor.
5. Moses Is Called Higher
God then calls Moses alone farther up.
He goes into the cloud of God’s glory and remains there forty days and forty nights.
This foreshadows:
- Moses (Exodus 24)
- Elijah (1 Kings 19)
- Jesus (Matthew 4)
All three encounter God after forty days on a mountain or in the wilderness.
6. Moses Receives the Stone Tablets
God promises the tablets in this chapter (Ex. 24:12), saying they contain:
- “a law”
- “commandments”
- “which I have written”
Later Scripture clarifies the content:
They contain the Ten Commandments only (Deut. 4:13, Deut. 10:4).
Moses’ scroll holds the full laws (Exodus 20–23).
God’s tablets contain the core covenant terms written by His own hand.
Closing Note: The Forty Days and Forty Nights Pattern (Exodus 24 Summary)
The Exodus 24 summary ends with Moses entering the cloud for forty days and forty nights, a time pattern that echoes across Scripture. The first time we see this number is in the flood, when rain fell for forty days and forty nights as God reset creation. That same number reappears with Moses on Sinai, Elijah traveling to Horeb, and Jesus fasting in the wilderness. Every instance marks a moment of testing, revelation, or renewal. In Exodus 24, the pattern signals that God is doing something foundational—sealing His covenant and giving the tablets.