Week 17 Study Guide: Exodus 19–20; 24; 31–34

“All That the Lord Hath Spoken We Will Do”

Framing the Week

Sinai marks a transition from deliverance to covenant formation. Israel has left Egypt, but the Lord now forms them into His people through law, worship, priestly mediation, sacred space, and repeated calls to holiness. Exodus 19–24 presents covenant offered, accepted, and ratified. Exodus 31–34 shows how quickly covenant can be broken, and how the Lord, through mercy and mediated intercession, renews relationship with a repentant people.

The Come, Follow Me lesson places one phrase at the center: “All that the Lord hath said will we do, and be obedient” (Exodus 24:7). That pledge is answered by another divine desire: “that I may dwell among them” (Exodus 25:8, cited in the lesson introduction). Covenant in these chapters is therefore relational. The Lord rescues, speaks, sanctifies, and seeks to dwell with His people. Israel promises obedience, falters, repents, and is received again by a God who is “merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth” (Exodus 34:6).

Doctrinal Architecture: Three Lenses

1. Ancient Context

Exodus 19–24 follows the pattern of an ancient suzerainty covenant. The Lord identifies Himself as the deliverer, recalls His saving acts, gives stipulations, and oversees a formal ratification. Israel does not receive private spirituality detached from public order. They become a covenant nation under divine kingship.

The mountain itself functions as controlled sacred space. Boundaries, washings, mediated ascent, and blood rituals all reflect a world in which divine presence is holy and dangerous to the unprepared. Sinai becomes a temporary sanctuary before the tabernacle institutionalizes that same pattern.

2. Modern Application

The lesson draws direct application to preparation for sacred experiences, obedience to commandments, covenant making, repentance, and Sabbath observance. President Russell M. Nelson’s teaching on “peculiar treasure” clarifies that covenant identity is honor, not eccentricity:

“In the Old Testament, the Hebrew term from which peculiar was translated is segullah, which means ‘valued property,’ or ‘treasure.’ … For us to be identified by servants of the Lord as his peculiar people is a compliment of the highest order” (President Russell M. Nelson, “Children of the Covenant,” Ensign, May 1995, 34).

The manual also applies Exodus 31 to Sabbath discipleship through another statement from President Nelson:

“In my much younger years, I studied the work of others who had compiled lists of things to do and things not to do on the Sabbath. It wasn’t until later that I learned from the scriptures that my conduct and my attitude on the Sabbath constituted a sign between me and my Heavenly Father [see Exodus 31:13; Ezekiel 20:12, 20]. With that understanding, I no longer needed lists of dos and don’ts. When I had to make a decision whether or not an activity was appropriate for the Sabbath, I simply asked myself, ‘What sign do I want to give to God?’ That question made my choices about the Sabbath day crystal clear” (President Russell M. Nelson, “The Sabbath Is a Delight,” Ensign or Liahona, May 2015, 130).

3. Eternal Principle

These chapters establish enduring covenant principles: the Lord gathers a people to Himself, holiness requires preparation, commandments protect covenant relationship, idolatry substitutes the created for the Creator, and repentance restores access to divine presence through authorized mediation. The Lord’s self-revelation in Exodus 34:6–7 becomes one of the foundational descriptions of His covenant character in all scripture.

Exegetical Analysis: Key Passages

1. Exodus 19:4–6, covenant identity

“I bare you on eagles’ wings, and brought you unto myself” (Exodus 19:4).

Deliverance is relational. The goal is not merely escape from Egypt but arrival unto God. The covenant promise then defines Israel as “a peculiar treasure” and “a kingdom of priests, and an holy nation” (Exodus 19:5–6). The weekly research notes that the Hebrew segullah carries the sense of “valued property” or “treasure,” matching President Nelson’s citation.

2. Exodus 19:10–13, preparation for holiness

Consecration, washing, and boundaries teach that access to God is ordered. The people are not excluded because God is distant, but because holiness requires sanctification. The lesson connects this to preparation for sacrament and temple ordinances. This is sacred and personal, please speak with your bishop or refer to the temple recommend questions.

3. Exodus 19:16–18, theophany at Sinai

Thunder, lightning, smoke, trumpet, and quaking mountain communicate divine kingship and overwhelming holiness. The research material notes that Sinai is the place “where heaven and earth meet under covenant.” The sensory intensity explains why Israel later asks for a mediator.

4. Exodus 20:2–3, the basis of the commandments

“I am the Lord thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. Thou shalt have no other gods before me” (Exodus 20:2–3).

The commandments begin with grace already given. Law follows redemption. Exclusive loyalty is the fitting response to divine deliverance.

5. Exodus 20:8–11, Sabbath as covenant time

The Sabbath command ties Israel’s weekly life to creation. Exodus 31 expands this by calling the Sabbath “a sign.” President Nelson’s teaching in the bundle explains how this sign functions in discipleship.

6. Exodus 24:3–8, covenant ratification

“And he took the book of the covenant, and read in the audience of the people: and they said, All that the Lord hath said will we do, and be obedient. And Moses took the blood, and sprinkled it on the people, and said, Behold the blood of the covenant, which the Lord hath made with you concerning all these words” (Exodus 24:7–8).

The weekly research explains that blood in this setting marks life offered and relationship bound. The altar represents the Lord’s side, the people Israel’s side. Covenant is not sentiment. It is solemn, public, and binding.

7. Exodus 24:9–11, covenant meal

The elders “saw the God of Israel” and “did eat and drink” (Exodus 24:10–11). Authorized nearness follows covenant ratification. In scriptural theology, sacred meals often signify communion, reconciliation, and peace in God’s presence.

8. Exodus 31:13, Sabbath sign

“Verily my sabbaths ye shall keep: for it is a sign between me and you throughout your generations; that ye may know that I am the Lord that doth sanctify you” (Exodus 31:13).

The Sabbath does not merely mark rest. It marks the Sanctifier. Time itself becomes covenant witness.

9. Exodus 32:1–8, golden calf as covenant rupture

The research notes explain that bull imagery in the ancient Near East symbolized strength and divine power. Israel chooses a visible, manageable substitute for the God who speaks from fire. Idolatry here is not atheism. It is misdirected worship, covenant disloyalty, and a refusal to wait upon revelation.

10. Exodus 33:14–17; 34:6–7, presence and mercy

“My presence shall go with thee, and I will give thee rest” (Exodus 33:14).

“The Lord, The Lord God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth, Keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, and that will by no means clear the guilty” (Exodus 34:6–7).

Moses asks for presence, not merely promised land. The Lord answers by revealing His character. Mercy and justice stand together. Forgiveness is real; guilt is not dismissed without repentance.

Historical and Cultural Matrix

The Sinai Peninsula includes plains, wadis, plateaus, and southern granite heights. Proposed locations for Sinai remain disputed, including Jebel Musa, Har Karkom, and sites in northwestern Arabia. Archaeological uncertainty leaves the scriptural emphasis intact: Sinai is sacred geography shaped by covenant, not merely by coordinates.

The Late Bronze Age setting matters because Egypt controlled frontier routes and military corridors. Israel leaves not only forced labor but an imperial system. At Sinai, the Lord remakes former subjects into covenant citizens.

Ancient treaty structures illuminate Exodus 19–24. The Lord acts as suzerain, Israel as covenant people bound by loyalty. Sacred boundaries and blood rites fit broader ancient Near Eastern patterns while being transformed by Israel’s theology of a living, covenant God.

Scholarly Cross-Reference Web Matrix

Primary Pattern: Covenant relationship requires exclusive loyalty, mediated holiness, and renewed repentance

├─ Ancient Foundations (Genesis through Malachi) │ ├─ Exodus 19:5–6: “ye shall be a peculiar treasure unto me above all people … a kingdom of priests, and an holy nation” │ ├─ Exodus 24:7–8: “All that the Lord hath said will we do, and be obedient … Behold the blood of the covenant” │ └─ Exodus 34:6–7: divine self-revelation joins mercy, forgiveness, and justice │ ├─ Meridian Fulfillment (New Testament parallels) │ ├─ Matthew 22:34–40: see also the lesson’s connection between the Ten Commandments and the two great commandments │ ├─ Matthew 19:17–19: see also weekly research on Jesus reaffirming the commandments │ └─ Galatians 4:25: see also weekly research on “Sinai in Arabia” │ ├─ Restoration Revelation (D&C/Pearl of Great Price) │ ├─ Doctrine and Covenants 84:17–27: the higher priesthood, lesser priesthood, and “law of a carnal commandment” are cited in the lesson’s discussion of Exodus 34:1–4 │ ├─ Doctrine and Covenants 58:43: “By this ye may know if a man repenteth of his sins, behold he will confess them and forsake them” │ └─ Doctrine and Covenants 97:15–16: see also weekly research on sanctified access to holy presence │ └─ Living Prophets (From bundle sources only) ├─ Russell M. Nelson, “Children of the Covenant”: “segullah, which means ‘valued property,’ or ‘treasure’” ├─ Russell M. Nelson, “The Sabbath Is a Delight”: “What sign do I want to give to God?” └─ Modern application: covenant identity and Sabbath observance remain visible signs of belonging to the Lord

Modern Prophetic Synthesis

The bundle’s prophetic material comes from President Russell M. Nelson, and both statements align with Sinai’s central themes. “Children of the Covenant” interprets Exodus 19 through covenant identity. “The Sabbath Is a Delight” interprets Exodus 31 through covenant sign. Together they show continuity: the Lord still forms a treasured people and still marks that people through covenant living.

See also Dallin H. Oaks, “No Other Gods,” Ensign or Liahona, Nov. 2013, 72–75.

Seminary and Institute Integration

The lesson’s note on Exodus 34:1–4, drawing on the Joseph Smith Translation and Doctrine and Covenants 84:17–27, provides a major doctrinal key. The first tables included ordinances of God’s “holy order,” while the second set reflected “the law of a carnal commandment.” Israel’s idolatry did not merely break a rule. It resulted in the loss of a higher covenant order that would have brought them more fully into God’s presence.

This helps explain why Exodus 32–34 is so weighty in Restoration theology. Apostasy has covenant consequences; repentance brings mercy, but some blessings are deferred, mediated, or preparatory.

Teaching Applications

For family study, trace the movement: deliverance, covenant, failure, intercession, renewal. For seminary or institute, compare Exodus 19–24 with ancient treaty forms and D&C 84. For sacrament meeting preparation, study Exodus 24:7–8 beside covenant renewal language. For Sabbath discussion, use President Nelson’s question verbatim: “What sign do I want to give to God?”

Personal Study Pathways

1. Mark every covenant phrase in Exodus 19–24.
2. Track every reference to the Lord’s presence in Exodus 33–34.
3. Compare Exodus 32 with D&C 58:43 on repentance.
4. Study the Sabbath in Exodus 20 and 31 together with President Nelson’s 2015 statement.
5. Read the Joseph Smith Translation note for Exodus 34:1–2 and Doctrine and Covenants 84:17–27.

Theological Discussion Points

1. Why does the Lord define Israel’s identity before giving Israel extensive law?
2. How does deliverance from Egypt shape the meaning of obedience in Exodus 20?
3. Why are preparation, washing, and boundaries necessary before revelation at Sinai?
4. How does Exodus 24 show covenant as both legal and relational?
5. What does the covenant meal in Exodus 24 add to the meaning of law and sacrifice?
6. How does the Sabbath function as a sign of sanctification rather than mere abstinence?
7. Why is the golden calf a direct contradiction of Exodus 20:2–5?
8. What does Aaron’s failure show about leadership without anchored revelation?
9. How does Moses function as a type of mediating intercessor in Exodus 32–33?
10. Why does Moses ask for the Lord’s presence rather than only for the promised land?
11. How do Exodus 34:6–7 and Doctrine and Covenants 58:43 hold mercy and accountability together?
12. What blessings are preserved, and what blessings are lost, when a people reject higher covenant order?

Research Extensions

Use Church-approved sources named in the bundle:

• Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Ezra Taft Benson, “The Great Commandment, Love the Lord,” 37–45
• Topics and Questions, “Commandments,” Gospel Library
• Old Testament Stories, “Moses on Mount Sinai,” 77–82
• Teaching in the Savior’s Way, 32
• This month’s issues of the Liahona, For the Strength of Youth, and the Friend

These Sinai chapters reward sustained study because they show how divine law, sacred presence, repentance, and covenant identity remain joined across dispensations.