“And when He had made an end of speaking with him on Mount Sinai, He gave Moses two tablets of the Testimony, tablets of stone, written with the finger of God” (Ex. 31:18).
Chapter 31 closes with the record of God’s giving the tables of testimony to Moses. For forty days Moses had been on Mount Sinai receiving instructions from the Lord. It is significant, therefore, that these instructions ended with the giving of the two tablets of stone. God had instructed Moses on how to build the tabernacle, and He reiterated the command to keep the Sabbath. Both of these instructions looked forward to the building and completing of the church. The rights and claims of God in the Old Testament have been made good and eternally secured by the person and work of Jesus Christ. God’s grace now “reigns” through “righteousness” (Rom. 5:21).
God had promised Moses these tables when He called him onto the mount, so He sent him down to deposit them in the ark. The Ten Commandments that God had spoken upon Mount Sinai in the hearing of all the people were written for a perpetual memorial of the eternal righteousness of God. They were written in stone tablets, prepared not by Moses but by God Himself. The Law written in stone connotes the never-ending duration of the Law and the hardness of man’s heart. Henry comments that one might more easily write in stone than write anything good in our corrupt and sinful hearts.
But the Law was written by the finger of God, by His will and power, without the use of an instrument. Hence, it is only God who can write His Law in the heart, for it is by His Spirit that He writes His will on the fleshy tables of the heart (2 Cor. 3:3). Those who have been renewed by the Spirit are now able to keep God’s righteous law because it has been engraved into their hearts by the power of God.
The tables of testimony were a written law that testified of both the will of God concerning Israel and His goodwill toward them. They also served as a testimony against them when they were disobedient. The tables were to be shown publicly as a reminder to the people of God’s righteous requirements. Thus, the Law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ. Our comfort is that law no longer condemns us because we now are covered by the righteousness of Christ, the One who kept the law in our place, and whose Spirit sanctifies us and enables us to live holy and righteous lives before God.
Read 2 Corinthians 3:1–6. The law written on the heart gives believers the desire and ability to obey the law. This law is God’s absolute moral standard. Can you be a Christian and not want to obey God’s law? What struggles against the desire to obey God’s law (Rom. 7)? Pray for God’s Spirit to help you win this battle.
