And Jehovah said to Aaron, Go into the wilderness to meet Moses. And he went, and met him on the mountain of God, and kissed him.
God had told Moses that his brother was already coming to meet him, and here that word comes true at the mountain where God had appeared to Moses. Two questions follow: why is Aaron here at all, and why did God pick that place?
Behind this quiet meeting lie God's timing and a long walk for Aaron.
Step by step, in His own sovereign way, the Lord was gathering His forces to deliver Israel. He tells Aaron to go to the wilderness to meet Moses (v. 27). Before this time, since Moses was only a little boy, they must have had almost no contact. Now Moses was 80 years of age, and Aaron 83. This was a long journey for Aaron. He had to reach Moses at the mountain of God — clearly Horeb — and then return with him to Egypt.
Aaron's arrival answers Moses' repeated objections. Commentators trace it back to the moment God's anger burned against Moses for refusing to go alone.
At last the Lord is truly displeased with His servant's readiness to object. His anger burned against Moses, and He asked whether Aaron the Levite was not his brother. Great humiliation! Moses might have been God's simple and happy instrument in this mighty work. Instead God brings Aaron forward to share it. God says that Aaron can speak well, that he is already coming out to meet Moses, and that he will be glad in his heart when he sees him.
Yet Moses does not lose everything.
In the end Moses stopped hesitating, but only after the Lord's anger burned against him for refusing to obey His word. And he lost much. From now on Aaron would work alongside him. In fact Aaron would hold the most prominent place before people, for he was to be his brother's spokesman. In tender grace, though, the Lord keeps the chief place before Him for His servant Moses. He gives Moses the honour and privilege of carrying His words to Aaron.
The location matters. God had appeared to Moses at this mountain, and Moses would later receive the Ten Commandments there. That turns a family reunion into a pattern worth copying.
The place of their meeting is most significant. The Lord appeared to Moses at the mount of God (Ex. 3:1), that is, Horeb. Now Aaron meets him here. And it was in this same place that Moses later received the two tablets of stone, with the Ten Commandments written by the finger of God. It is always most blessed when relatives can meet in the mount of God. Then, as with Moses and Aaron, the talk will be about "the words of the Lord," and the meeting will bring blessing. If instead we come down to a lower level, as too often happens, we will talk about ourselves and what we have done. That brings no glory to God and no profit to us.
The kiss stands out against the hard years that followed. One writer compares it to the early warmth of a believer's own life.
This was a fair and beautiful scene — a scene of sweet brotherly love and unity. It stands in sharp contrast with many scenes that these two men lived out later in the wilderness. Forty years of wilderness life are sure to make great changes in men and things. Yet it is sweet to look back on the early days of a Christian's life. Back then the hard realities of desert life had not yet checked the flow of warm and generous affection.
From this point on, Moses and Aaron work as a pair. One writer sees in them two roles that meet in one Person.
Moses was the Apostle of God. Aaron was the High Priest. Hebrews tells us to "consider the Apostle and High Priest of our confession" (chapter 3:1). As has been said, the Apostle brings God to men. The High Priest brings man to God. The Apostle brings out the calling of God at its height. The High Priest seeks to keep the believer at the height of his calling.
- Called. God sent Aaron into the wilderness and drew two brothers, apart since childhood, to the same spot.
- Cost. Aaron shares the work because Moses would not go alone. The honour Moses could have had alone is now split.
- Grace. Aaron takes the place before people. Moses keeps the place nearest God. The loss is real, but God's kindness runs through it.
- Place. They meet at the mount of God, and what fills their talk is the word God had given, not their own news.
- Picture. From here the two move as one pair — the sent one and the priest. Hebrews gathers both into the one Person of Christ.
And Moses told Aaron all the words of Jehovah who had sent him, and all the signs that he had commanded him.
Aaron meets Moses on the road back to Egypt. At once Moses hands over the whole message — every word God spoke to him at the burning bush, and every sign God told him to perform. It looks like a small travel detail. Why does the man who received the commission have to repeat it all to someone else?
Where the two brothers met matters. One writer draws a practical lesson from it:
The place of their meeting is most significant. It was on the mountain of God (Ex. 3:1) — that is, Horeb — that the LORD appeared to Moses. Here Aaron now meets him. In this same place Moses later received the two tablets of stone, with the Ten Commandments written with the finger of God. There is a most practical lesson in this: it is always most blessed when relatives can meet on the mountain of God. Then, as with Moses and Aaron, the conversation will be about "the words of the LORD," and the meeting will end in blessing. If we drop to a lower level, as too often happens, our talk will be about ourselves and our own doings. That brings no glory to God and no profit to ourselves.
From that mountain the two men went straight into the work:
Note, too, that it is from the mountain of God that they set out on their mission. Blessed are those servants who go directly from the presence of God to their labours.
Moses holds nothing back. That is what makes the two of them ready for what lies ahead:
The meeting of Moses and Aaron was most cordial, and Moses had time to inform Aaron, on their journey toward Egypt, of all God's words to him and of the signs commanded by the LORD (v. 28). So they would be prepared together to speak to the people and to Pharaoh.
Aaron had no revelation of his own. The message had to reach him through Moses:
In the end, God gave part of the honour and activity of this great commission to Aaron, who was to be the spokesman. Moses, however, was to be to him "instead of God." The LORD would still deal directly with Moses, and Aaron would get all his directions through him. The rod in Moses' hand was now, as it were, given back to him from the hand of God. It was the sign of the authority he had been given.
Aaron's tie to Moses was family before it was office:
Long ago, in a lesser way, the LORD appointed Aaron to be the "spokesman" of Moses to the people of Israel (Ex. 4:14-16). He was to be to Moses "instead of a mouth." He held the office of go-between for Moses and the people. But his original personal relationship to Moses was that of brother, and the LORD called him "Aaron the Levite your brother." Aaron was first brother, then spokesman.
This partnership grew out of Moses' reluctance, not his strength. God had promised His own presence, and Moses still hesitated:
We have noted the timidity and hesitation of Moses, despite the many promises and assurances which divine grace had given him. Nothing was gained in the way of real power. There was no more virtue or effectiveness in one mouth than in another. It was Moses after all who was to speak to Aaron. Yet Moses was quite ready to go once he had the presence and co-operation of a poor feeble mortal like himself. He could not go when the LORD told him, again and again, that He would be with him.
The two men met with real warmth, long before the strains of later years:
This was a fair and beautiful scene of sweet brotherly love and union. It stands in marked contrast with many of the scenes that came later in the wilderness career of these two men. Forty years of wilderness life are sure to make great changes in men and things. Yet it is sweet to look back on those early days of the Christian life. Back then the hard realities of desert life had not yet checked the flow of warm and generous affections.
- Word received. Moses met Aaron at the mountain of God — Horeb, where the LORD had appeared to him and where He would later give the Ten Commandments.
- Word repeated. He told Aaron all God's words and all the signs, so that the two would be ready together for both the people and Pharaoh.
- Word channelled. Aaron received no revelation of his own. The LORD dealt with Moses, and Aaron got all his directions through him — brother first, spokesman second.
- Word doubted. The partnership followed Moses' hesitation. He would go when a feeble man stood with him, but not when God Himself promised to be with him.
- Word sent. From the mountain of God they set out. Blessed are the servants who go straight from God's presence into their work, with "the words of the LORD" on their lips.
And Moses and Aaron went and gathered all the elders of the children of Israel;
Moses had objected that no one would listen to him. Now he is back in Egypt with Aaron, and he calls Israel's leaders together for the first time. Here his commission stops being a private conversation at a bush. It becomes a public message to a nation in slavery.
They set out for Egypt from the mountain where God had met them. One writer draws a rule for all service from that.
Notice, too, that it is from the mount of God that they set out on their mission. Blessed are those servants who go straight from the presence of God to their work.
The same writer notes what filled the brothers' conversation when they met at that mountain, and what happens when family talk sinks below that level.
It is always most blessed when relatives can meet in the mount of God. Then, as with Moses and Aaron, the conversation will be about "the words of the Lord," and the meeting will end in blessing. If, on the other hand, we come down to a lower level, as too often happens, our talk will be about ourselves and our own doings, and that will bring no glory to God and no profit to us.
This gathering closes a chapter full of Moses' objections. One writer links the ease of it to Moses' obedience over circumcision just before.
Moses accepted circumcision. After that, in the last five verses of the chapter, we see that the hand of God was with him. Everything moved smoothly and exactly. The Lord instructed Aaron, who obeyed and met him. Together they entered Egypt and consulted the elders of Israel.
Moses had insisted the people would not believe him. The outcome of this meeting exposes what was wrong with the way he framed the problem.
When God works, every barrier must give way. Moses had said, "the people will not believe me." But the question was not whether they would believe him, but whether they would believe God. When a man is able to see himself simply as the messenger of God, he can be quite at ease about how his message is received. This does not lessen in the slightest his tender and affectionate concern for those he speaks to. Quite the opposite. But it keeps him from the excessive anxiety of spirit that only makes him unfit for calm, elevated, steady testimony. The messenger of God should always remember whose message he bears.
Moses gathers a small circle. Yet the next verses speak of "the people" and "the children of Israel." One writer explains the shift.
In Ex. 4:29, Moses and Aaron gathered the elders of the people. In verses 30 and 31 the text calls these same men "the people." Here "the children of Israel" appear in the persons of their representatives, and these men get credit for what they do. Yet they must have been a small number compared with the whole nation. They were the heads of the people, and represented the people then and always. This principle comes up often in Scripture.
That the elders could meet at all says something about life under slavery.
In the middle of Israel's bondage there was a measure of freedom among the chiefs. The nation's slavery did not destroy its order. The elders of Israel gathered together at once. They came to hear the strange story of the burning bush from the two servants of the Lord, and to see the three great signs of God.
The elders' readiness to listen was not chance. One writer points to God's timing.
Arriving in Egypt, they gathered together all the elders of Israel. Aaron spoke to them what Moses had told him, and showed them the signs the Lord had commanded... God had waited until Israel was ready to receive His messengers. It was He who opened the way.
Commentators differ on how deep the people's response went. Some read the scene as a picture of a soul's first real dealings with God.
We find in those verses a lovely picture of the sinner's true attitude when he first has to do with God as a Saviour, when the reality of God has gripped his conscience. He has not yet learned God's work of grace, nor has he known anything but the great fact that God has stepped in.
- Source. The messengers came to the elders straight from the mountain where God had spoken. That is the pattern for all service.
- Timing. God had waited until Israel was ready to receive His messengers. He Himself opened the way.
- Freedom. Slavery had not destroyed Israel's order. The elders could still meet, so the news reached the nation through its heads.
- Reach. Scripture counts a small group of representatives as "the people." This principle comes up often.
- Rest. The messenger can be at ease. The question is not whether people believe him, but whether they believe God.
and Aaron spoke all the words that Jehovah had spoken to Moses, and did the signs before the eyes of the people.
Moses had insisted that Israel would never believe him. Now Aaron repeats God's words to the elders and does the signs where everyone can see.
Moses had worried that no one would trust him. But the messenger is not the point.
When God works, every barrier must give way. Moses had said, "the people will not believe me." But the question was not whether they would believe him, but whether they would believe God. When a man is able to view himself simply as the messenger of God, he may feel quite at ease about the reception of his message. It does not take away in the smallest degree from his tender and affectionate concern for those he addresses. Quite the contrary; but it keeps him from that excessive anxiety of spirit which can only make him unfit for calm, elevated, steady testimony. The messenger of God should always remember whose message he bears.
Aaron spoke words Moses had given him, word for word, yet he did not sound like a machine. One writer uses this verse to explain how the Bible itself was written: the style belongs to the man, the words to God.
When Aaron delivered the message to the people, he spoke in words put into his mouth by Moses (Ex. 4:15). Was it mechanical for him? No doubt those who heard him could have said, "That is Aaron to the life." The voice, the intonation, the gesture, all were Aaron's. "Yet he spoke all the words that the LORD had spoken to Moses and did the signs in the sight of the people. And the people believed." So it is with the sacred writers. Each one shows his own characteristics and style.
Aaron did three signs: the rod, the leprous hand, and the water turned to blood. Each one points to something Israel needed rescuing from.
These three signs show Satan's power defeated, the leprosy of the flesh cleansed, and the true character of the world revealed. Satan, the flesh, and the world are all to be seen in them.
Moses, holding these signs, is also a picture of someone greater.
Moses, in receiving these signs and the power to carry them out, is a type of Christ. He will take the rod, the government, into His blessed hand, and then Satan's dominion ends. He will cleanse and restore His people and strike Egypt, the world, with judgment.
Moses had predicted flat failure. The opposite happened.
The word of the Lord was fulfilled. Moses had said, "They will not believe me or listen to my voice." But the people did believe, just as the Lord had said. They heard how He had visited them and looked on their affliction, and His grace touched them. So they bowed their heads and worshipped. It is true that later, when their difficulties grew, they murmured in their unbelief. But that takes nothing away from the beauty of the picture before us. Here we see the word of the Lord, in all its freshness and power, reaching the hearts of the elders and bowing them in adoration in His presence.
Their readiness was no accident. God had timed it.
God had waited until such a time that Israel was ready to receive His messengers. It was He who opened the way.
Belief here was a real start, not the finish. Israel believed and worshipped, yet stayed in Egypt and soon grew worse off than before.
Like a soul made alive, they believed the word of God through Moses and Aaron (Ex. 3:7-10; Ex. 4:30-31), and they longed for deliverance (Ex. 5:1-3). They passed, as it were, through Romans 7 in the brick-kilns of Egypt. They became more wretched than ever, and not delivered at all. Was it, then, an increase of knowledge, or of understanding, that delivered them? … They were delivered truly on the ground of redemption, but it was by the power of God.
- Word — Aaron added nothing of his own. He spoke all that the LORD had spoken, so the only question was whether the people would believe God.
- Voice — the words were God's, the manner was Aaron's. The Bible's writers work the same way: their style, His words.
- Signs — the rod, the leprous hand and the blood show Satan, the flesh and the world answered. They point on to Christ, who will take the rod of government.
- Timing — the people believed where Moses had predicted failure. God had prepared them and opened the way.
- Limit — belief and worship are a true start, not deliverance. Israel still needed redemption and the power of God to bring them out.