EGW WritingsExodus 19

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 18 (1903)

Ms 117, 1903

18LtMs, Ms 117, 1903, par. 16

The same one that said to Moses, “Lo, I come unto thee in a thick cloud, that the people may hear when I speak with thee, and believe thee forever” [Exodus 19:9], condescended to come to our world in the garb of humanity. The only begotten Son of God became a helpless babe in Bethlehem. It was He who was now speaking to the Jewish people, but they knew Him not. From the mount He had spoken, saying, “I am the Lord thy God, which brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage.” [Exodus 20:2.] He was now standing before them in His assumed humanity, giving them a lesson that they would never forget, whether they heeded it or disregarded it.

Christ Triumphant

Cleanliness Should Mark the Life of a Christian, April 16

CTr 113.1

And the Lord said unto Moses, Go unto the people, and sanctify them today and tomorrow, and let them wash their clothes. Exodus 19:10.

Christian Temperance and Bible Hygiene

Home Hygiene

CTBH 105.1

One of the most prolific sources of disease is the transgression of the laws of life in regard to personal habits. Order and cleanliness are laws of heaven. The directions given to Moses when the Lord was about to declare his law upon Mount Sinai, were very strict in this respect. “And the Lord said unto Moses, Go unto the people, and sanctify them today and tomorrow, and let them wash their clothes.” [Exodus 19:10.] They were directed to do this lest there should be impurity about them as they should come before him. He is a God of order, and he requires order and cleanliness in his people.

Gospel Workers (1892/1893 ed.)

Carefulness in Dress

GW92 161.2

Read the directions that were given to Moses, to be made known to the children of Israel as God was about to come down upon the mount to speak in their hearing his holy law. What did he command Moses to have the people do?—To be ready against the third day; for on the third day, said he, the Lord will come down upon the mount in the sight of all the people. They were to set bounds about the mount. “And the Lord said unto Moses, Go unto the people, and sanctify them today and tomorrow, and let them wash their clothes.” [Exodus 19:10.] That great and mighty God who created the beautiful Eden, and everything lovely in it, is a God of order; and he wants order and cleanliness with his people. That mighty God directed Moses to tell the people to wash their clothes, lest there should be impurity in their clothing and about their persons as they came up before the Lord. And Moses went down from the mount unto the people, and they washed their clothes, according to the command of God....

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 6 (1889-1890)

Ms 58, 1890

6LtMs, Ms 58, 1890, par. 38

Incorrect personal habits are among the most prolific causes of disease. Order and cleanliness are laws of heaven. The directions given to Moses, when the Lord was about to declare His law upon Mount Sinai, were very strict in this respect: “And the Lord said unto Moses, Go unto the people, and sanctify them today and tomorrow, and let them wash their clothes.” Exodus 19:10. They were directed to do this, lest there should be impurity about them as they should come before God. He is a God of order, and He requires order and cleanliness in His people.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 16 (1901)

Lt 75, 1901

16LtMs, Lt 75, 1901, par. 7

Near the close of the Conference I attended a meeting where it was extremely difficult for me to speak. The impurity in the atmosphere seemed like a dense wall before me. The people suffered and the speaker suffered, not only at the time, but afterward. The Lord is kind to the human family, and He desires them to be kind to themselves. They are not to run risks by inhaling air which has been breathed over and over again. While speaking, I could but think, Will the people of God be always ignorant? Will they not study to bring right methods into the holy service of God? The words which God spoke to Moses at Mount Sinai come sounding down along the lines to our time: “Go unto the people, and sanctify them today and tomorrow, and let them wash their clothes.” [Exodus 19:10.] Heaven is all purity and holiness. The child of God must obey the laws which pertain to cleanliness and godliness.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 16 (1901)

Ms 126, 1901

16LtMs, Ms 126, 1901, par. 7

“And the Lord said unto Moses, Go unto the people, and sanctify them today and tomorrow, and let them wash their clothes.” [Exodus 19:10.] They were commanded to wash their clothes. Sanctification to God admits of no untidiness or uncleanliness of the body or of the clothing. Concerning those who are engaged in the service of God, it is written, “Then Moses said unto Aaron, This is it that the Lord spake, saying, I will be sanctified in them that come nigh me, and before all the people I will be glorified.” [Leviticus 10:3.]

16LtMs, Ms 126, 1901, par. 8

“And be ready against the third day: for the third day the Lord will come down in the sight of all the people upon mount Sinai. And thou shalt set bounds unto the people round about, saying, Take heed to yourselves, that ye go not up into the mount, or touch the border of it: whosoever toucheth the mount shall be surely put to death: there shall not an hand touch it, but he shall surely be stoned, or shot through; whether it be beast or man, it shall not live.” [Exodus 19:11-13.]

Sermons and Talks, vol. 2

Manuscript 126, 1901

2SAT 180.7

“And the Lord said unto Moses, Go unto the people, and sanctify them today and tomorrow, and let them wash their clothes” [Exodus 19:10]. They were commanded to wash their clothes. Sanctification to God admits of no untidiness or uncleanliness of the body or of the clothing. Concerning those who are engaged in the service of God it is written, “Then Moses said unto Aaron, This is it that the Lord spake, saying, I will be sanctified in them that come nigh Me, and before all the people I will be glorified” [Leviticus 10:3]. [Exodus 19:11-13, quoted.]

To Be Like Jesus

God Not Pleased With Tasteless Disorder, July 5

BLJ 199.1

Then the Lord said to Moses, “Go to the people and sanctify them today and tomorrow, and let them wash their clothes.” ... And Moses brought the people out of the camp to meet with God. Exodus 19:10-17, NKJV.

The Desire of Ages

Chapter 16—In His Temple

DA 155.4

When the Lord descended upon Mount Sinai, the place was consecrated by His presence. Moses was commanded to put bounds around the mount and sanctify it, and the word of the Lord was heard in warning: “Take heed to yourselves, that ye go not up into the mount, or touch the border of it: whosoever toucheth the mount shall be surely put to death: there shall not an hand touch it, but he shall surely be stoned, or shot through; whether it be beast or man, it shall not live.” Exodus 19:12, 13. Thus was taught the lesson that wherever God manifests His presence, the place is holy. The precincts of God’s temple should have been regarded as sacred. But in the strife for gain, all this was lost sight of.

From Heaven With Love

Chapter 16—Christ Confronts Corruption in the Temple

HLv 97.1

Sharp bargaining, the lowing of cattle, the bleating of sheep, the cooing of doves, mingled with the chinking of coin and angry disputation. So great was the confusion that the words addressed to the Most High were drowned in the uproar. The Jews rejoiced over their temple and regarded a word spoken in its disfavor as blasphemy, but the love of money had overruled their scruples. They had wandered far from the purpose of the service instituted by God Himself. Wherever God manifests His presence, the place is holy. See Exodus 19:12, 13. The precincts of God’s temple should have been regarded as sacred. But in the strife for gain, all this was lost sight of.

The Review and Herald

September 6, 1906

RH September 6, 1906, par. 10

The law of the Lord is to be written on the heart. If it is not, we never obey it in truth. I am having deeply impressed upon my mind the history of the children of Israel while the awful presence of God was before them, as recorded in Exodus 19:16. “And it came to pass on the third day in the morning, that there were thunders and lightnings, and a thick cloud upon the mount, and the voice of the trumpet exceeding loud; so all the people that was in the camp trembled. And Moses brought forth the people out of the camp to meet with God; and they stood at the nether part of the mount. And Mount Sinai was altogether on a smoke, because the Lord descended upon it in fire: and the smoke thereof ascended as the smoke of a furnace, and the whole mount quaked greatly. And when the voice of the trumpet sounded long, and waxed louder and louder, Moses spake, and God answered him by a voice.”

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 21 (1906)

Lt 206, 1906

21LtMs, Lt 206, 1906, par. 34

The law of the Lord is to be written on the heart. If it is not, we never obey it in truth. I am having deeply impressed upon my mind the history of the children of Israel while the awful presence of God was before them, as recorded in Exodus 19:16. “And it came to pass on the third day in the morning, that there were thunders and lightnings, and a thick cloud upon the mount, and the voice of the trumpet exceeding loud; so that all the people that were in the camp trembled. And Moses brought forth the people out of the camp, to meet with God; and they stood at the nether part of the mount. And Mount Sinai was altogether on a smoke, because the Lord descended upon it in fire: and the smoke thereof ascended as the smoke of a furnace, and the whole mount quaked greatly. And when the voice of the trumpet sounded long, and waxed louder and louder, Moses spake, and God answered him by a voice.” [Verses 16-19.]

Manuscript Releases, vol. 21 [Nos. 1501-1598]

MR No. 1517—Dedication of Paradise Valley Sanitarium; Results of the San Francisco Earthquake; Defense of the True Sabbath

21MR 89.4

The habitations of men were not chosen as the place where God would speak His law. He chose not the magnificent palaces of the wealthy, but led His people to the foot of Mount Sinai, so that they might be surrounded by His created works while He appeared at the top of the mount. Far removed from all that man had built in pride and self-glorification, the Israelites were made to realize man’s utter insignificance in the presence of the Almighty. (Quote Exodus 19:17-24.)

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 16 (1901)

Lt 51, 1901

16LtMs, Lt 51, 1901, par. 2

Christ was a Seventh-day Adventist, to all intents and purposes. It was He who called Moses into the mount and gave him instruction for His people. “The Lord came down upon mount Sinai, on the top of the mount; and the Lord called Moses up to the top of the mount; and Moses went up. And the Lord said unto Moses, Go down, charge the people, lest they break through unto the Lord, to gaze, and many of them perish. And let the priests also, which come near to the Lord, sanctify themselves, lest the Lord break forth upon them.” [Exodus 19:20-22.] And in awful grandeur Christ made known the law of Jehovah, giving among other charges, this charge, “Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy.” [Exodus 20:8.] My brother, you have not placed upon the Sabbath the sanctity that is required by God. Irreverence has come in and an example has been set that the Lord does not approve. He is not honored and glorified.