As mentioned previously, one of the age markers for coming out of infanthood is the ability to make an apparent, conscious decision. Israel, once free from their enslavers and now has the ability to speak for themselves. it happens to be that at this juncture that God decides to his expectations explicitly clear. There is to be no misunderstanding when God lays out the initial laws and commandments in Exodus 19-23. After God has given these words to his prophet and judge, Moses, is when Israel verbalizes their intent to go with what God has laid out for them. The Hebrew reads as this in Exodus 24:7:
וַיִּקַּח֙ סֵ֣פֶר הַבְּרִ֔ית וַיִּקְרָ֖א בְּאָזְנֵ֣י הָעָ֑ם וַיֹּ֣אמְר֔וּ כֹּ֛ל אֲשֶׁר־דִּבֶּ֥ר יְהוָ֖ה נַעֲשֶׂ֥ה וְנִשְׁמָֽע׃
And he took (Moses did), a writing, the covenant, and he proclaimed, to the ears, the people, and they said (the people), “All, which he has spoken, the LORD, we will do, and we will obey.”
There are a couple key terms to identify in the text. The first is הַבְּרִ֔ית which means “the covenant” and is the adjective for סֵ֣פֶר meaning “writing” or “book.” This comes across as the covenantal writing. In this era of hisotry and more specifically the Israelite culture, a covenant was not taken lightly. It was often a lifetime or even multigenerational contract. This contract put forth a strict code of conduct and ethical boundaries that Israel would have to uphold an in return for obedience to the LORD and his Angels, Israel would see success and protection in the taking of their promised land. The second term is the final word in the verse: וְנִשְׁמָֽע which means “and we will obey” the root verb actually also including “hearing” as well as “obeying.” This is an important word to denote how seriously Israel is taking the covenant. They are proclaiiming that yes they listened and heard what the LORD had to say, they will continue to listen and hear, and they will obey. Israel with this statement has offically opted into covenant with the LORD. Much as when a parent checks to make sure that a child understandings what they parent is saying, so has God insured His children have understood his expectations.
Tags: Covenant, Hebrew, Israel, Old Testament
