Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Exodus 20:24
An altar of earth thou shalt make unto me, and shalt sacrifice thereon thy burnt offerings, and thy peace offerings, thy sheep, and thine oxen: in all places where I record my name I will come unto thee, and I will bless thee.
24. altar ] The word in Heb. ( mizba) means a ‘place of slaughter or sacrifice.’ Altars of earth were also common among the Romans (Tert. Apol. 25 attributes temeraria de caespite altaria to the earliest times; cf. the arae gramineae of Aen. xii. 118 f., and the ‘positusque carbo in Caespite vivo’ of Hor. Od. iii. 8. 3 f., &c.), and, according to Sil. Ital. iv. 703, the Carthaginians: for an example of a large natural stone, extemporized rapidly into an altar, see 1Sa 14:32-35. On the probable primitive idea of an altar among the Semites, as an artificial substitute for a natural object, especially a rock or boulder, supposed like other striking natural objects, as a tree, stream, or spring ( EB. iii. 2981 f.) to be the abode of a deity or numen loci, see Rel. Sem. 2 206 ff., or DB. s.v. Altar. Ancient rock-altars have been discovered recently in Palestine; see the writer’s Schweich Lectures on Modern Research as illustrating the Bible (1908), p. 66 f.; and cf. Jdg 6:20 f.
shalt sacrifice, &c.] ‘The words are addressed not to the priests, but to Israel at large, and imply that any Israelite may approach the altar, (W. R. Smith, OTJC. 2 [181] p. 358: so Di., pp. 385, 457, 460 [ed. 2, pp. 425, 500, 503]; Baudissin, DB. iv. 70 a ; cf. Kautzsch, DB. v. 648 f.). The right of sacrificing was not limited to the priestly class till long afterwards. For examples of laymen offering sacrifice, see 1Sa 6:14; 1Sa 13:9 f., 2Sa 6:13; 2Sa 6:17; 2Sa 24:25 , 1Ki 1:9; 1Ki 3:4; in 2Sa 8:18 = 2Sa 20:26 David’s sons are priests (so Di.).
[181] W. R. Smith, Old Testament in the Jewish Church, ed. 2, 1892.
sacrifice ] lit. kill or slay. The verb ( zba) may be used of killing domestic animals for food without religious rites (see in the Heb. Deu 12:15; Deu 12:21, 1Sa 28:24); but since in early times animals were seldom, if ever, killed without an accompanying sacrifice, it commonly denotes sacrificial slaying.
burnt offerings, and peace offerings ] The two commonest kinds of sacrifice, often mentioned together, especially in the earlier historical books, but also elsewhere: see e.g. Exo 24:5, Exo 32:6, Deu 27:7 (E), 1Sa 10:8; 1Sa 13:9, 2Sa 6:17 ; 2Sa 24:25, and with ‘sacrifices’ for ‘peace-offerings,’ Exo 10:25 (see note), Exo 18:12, 1Sa 6:15; 1Sa 15:22 , 2Ki 5:17. In the burnt-offering (Heb. ‘lh, that which goes up most probably upon the altar, though according to others in or ‘sweet smoke’ [Exo 29:13 ] to heaven), the whole animal was laid on the altar, and consumed there by fire (cf. LXX. ‘something wholly burnt,’ Vulg. holocaustum; hence some moderns render by holocaust); in the peace-offering, the fat and certain of the entrails having been consumed upon the altar, and certain parts of the flesh having been given (at least in later times) to the priest, the rest of the flesh was eaten by the worshipper and his friends at a sacred meal (cf. Exo 18:12). The later ritual of these two species of sacrifice is given in Lev 1:3.
peace offerings ] sh e lmim: LXX. (in Sam. Kgs.) , i.e. sacrifices symbolizing mutual peace and amity between those who participated in the sacred meal (which was the distinctive feature in this sacrifice), both among themselves and also with God. This explanation seems the most probable; but others have been adopted. LXX. render mostly by ‘safety- (or welfare-) sacrifice’: in this case, the ‘peace,’ or ‘welfare,’ implied would be that of the worshipper, for which, by his sacrifice, he either petitioned, or returned thanks (so Keil). Ges. Ew. Kn. render thank-offering (so Lev 3:1 RVm.; Josephus ), from the sense of the root in Piel, to make good or pay (Psa 66:13, &c., Pro 7:14). See further on Leviticus 3. The word occurs in the Carthaginian inscription now at Marseilles ( Auth. and Arch. p. 77 f.), as the name of a sacrifice; but it is not known of what nature the sacrifice was.
in every place where I cause my name to be remembered (marg.)] viz. by a theophany, a victory (Exo 17:15), or other manifestation of My presence: those who offer sacrifice at places thus distinguished may expect Jehovah’s presence and blessing. A plurality of altars is thus sanctioned: but they must be erected not at places chosen arbitrarily, but at places which have been marked in some way by Jehovah’s favour and approval (cf. Rel. Sem. 2 [182] p. 115 f.). The reference cannot be to the altar of Burnt offering before the Tabernacle (Exo 27:1-8, &c.): not only is a far simpler structure evidently in the writer’s mind, but the alternatives offered (earth, or unhewn stone, v. 25) shew that altars in general are referred to, and that the intention of the law is to authorize the erection of altars, built in the manner prescribed, in any part of the land. With the liberty of sacrifice thus permitted, as Di. points out (pp. 224, 384 f., ed. 2, pp. 247 f., 425), the practice in Israel for ‘a series of centuries after Moses’ conforms: in Jos. 1 K. sacrifices are frequently mentioned as offered in different parts of the land, without the smallest indication on the part of either the actor or the narrator that any law is being infringed. An altar, or sacrifice, is authorized by a theophany, or special command, Gen 35:7, Jos 8:30 f. (on mount Ebal; see Deu 27:5-7 a), Jdg 2:5; Jdg 6:24; Jdg 6:26 f., 1Sa 16:1-3, 2Sa 24:18; 2Sa 24:25, by a victory, Exo 17:15, 1Sa 14:35: in other cases the occasion is not stated, though the places mentioned are often ancient sanctuaries, consecrated by traditions of the patriarchs, Jos 24:1; Jos 24:26 (the ‘sanctuary’ at Shechem, cf. Gen 33:20), 1Sa 7:9 f. (at Mizpah, v. 6; cf. Jdg 20:1 ‘ unto Jehovah at Mizpah,’ 1Sa 10:17), 1Sa 7:17;1Sa 9:12 f., 1Sa 10:3 (at Bethel, Gen 28:11-22; Gen 35:1), 1Sa 10:8 (at Gilgal like Bethel, known independently to have been a sanctuary; so 1Sa 11:15), 1Sa 14:35 (the first of the altars built by Saul), 1Sa 20:6 , 2Sa 15:7 f., 2Sa 15:12 (at Hebron, Gen 13:18), 2Sa 15:32 (‘where men used to worship God’), 1Ki 3:4; 1Ki 18:30 ; 1Ki 19:10; 1Ki 19:14. A tendency towards centralization, due to the natural preeminence of the sanctuary at which the Ark was stationed, and afterwards to the prestige of Solomon’s Temple, no doubt made itself felt before the principle of the single sanctuary was finally codified in Deuteronomy 12; but it cannot be doubted that for long after the time when Israel was first settled in Canaan, numerous local sanctuaries existed, and sacrifice at them was habitually offered both the sanctuaries and the sacrifices being justified by the present law (see further Di. ll.cc.; DB. v. 661 a ; or the writer’s Comment. on Deut. pp. xliii f., 136 8; and cf. on Exo 22:29).
[182] W. R. Smith, The Religion of the Semites, ed. 2, 1894.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
24, 25. Altars were to be of the simplest material, of earth, or, if of stone, of unhewn stone: they might be erected wherever Jehovah gave occasion for His name to be commemorated; and any Israelite might sacrifice upon them. The passage evidently reflects an early stage of Heb. usage: in later times much more elaborate altars were constructed (Exo 27:1-8, 1Ki 8:64, 2Ch 4:1), and the right of sacrifice was ultimately restricted to the priests.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
24 26. Altars, their construction, and the places at which they may be erected.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
Exo 20:24
In all places where I record My name, I will come unto thee.
The gospel in Exodus
I. That God demands from His creature man reverent and intelligent worship.
II. That such worship, to be acceptable to God, must always be associated with Divinely-appointed sacrifice.
III. That such worship and sacrifice obtain for man the best blessings of heaven. (F. W. Brown.)
Gods promised presence essential to constitute a Church
I. The extent of the promise. What and where are the places where we are to receive this blessing? Before God gave the promise, He gave instructions to the children of Israel about sacrifices–what kind of offerings to bring, what animals to offer, what kind of altars to build; and having given these instructions, He follows them by the promise that in all places where I record My name, I will come unto thee and bless thee. We must easily see that the places where God recorded His name were places where altars were built to Him–where lambs bled in sacrifice, and where the ordinances and commands of God were observed by the people.
II. The blessing promised.
1. I will come to thee. Gods gracious presence.
2. I will bless thee. Remind Him of His promise.
3. Make this a house of prayer. (T. Guthrie, D. D.)
Sanctuary blessings
I. What is meant by recording the name of the Lord in any place?
1. By the name of the Lord is often understood God Himself, or the display of His infinite perfections in those works, whereby He makes His being and nature known.
Thus, Psa 20:1. But the name of the Lord, when used in a particular reference to the covenant of grace, always respects God considered as a Redeemer; and expresses His Divine perfections, as they are gloriously displayed in the salvation of sinners.
2. Let us now see in what respects that name may be said to be recorded in any place. The words might be rendered, In all places where I shall fix the memory of My name; or, In all places where I shall make My name to be invoked. The Chaldaic paraphrase has it, In every place where I shall make My majesty dwell. The phrase, agreeably to either of these translations, evidently refers to the public worship of God, and has respect both to the place when, and the manner in which, it was to be celebrated. It is well known that the tabernacle was the place of public worship which God, exclusively of all others, determined for the Israelites while they were in the wilderness. After they had possession of the promised land, the ark of the covenant was lodged at Shiloh, and there, for a long while, the people celebrated Divine service. When the temple was finished, Jerusalem was fixed upon as the permanent seat,
3. If you now inquire how the name of the Lord was recorded in all these places, and by what means it might be said that He made Himself to be there remembered as the God of Salvation; we refer you, for a general answer, to the genius and scope of the Mosaic institution.
4. But this great end was more especially attained by the sacrifices and burnt-offerings, which formed an essential part of the daily worship in Israel. Believers were then looking for the appearance of the promised Seed who was not yet come. What could be better calculated to assist their faith, to establish their hope, and instruct them in the method of salvation, than to be commanded of God to substitute a bloody offering in their own stead, and thus transfer the legal guilt and punishment upon a sacrifice? In this act of worship, the bleeding lamb and smoking altar directed them to the promised Surety, the precious Lamb of God, who, by His sufferings and death, was fully to atone for His people, and, by one perfect sacrifice, became the Author of salvation unto all that obey Him.
II. The import of these words, I will come unto thee, and bless thee. The blessing of the Lord is always upon His people in every place. He hears their prayers in secret, and in their families. He has never said to the seed of Jacob, Seek ye Me in vain. But to public worship peculiar mercies are annexed.
1. The Lord blesses His Church when He gives it a pure and faithful ministry.
2. The Lord blesses His Church when, in His good Providence, He preserves His people together in mutual peace, and prevents confusion, animosities, and schisms.
3. But especially He blesses His people in the place where He records His name, when He bestows that blessing of all blessings, the Holy Spirit.
4. The protection and defence of the Most High, whereby He preserves His Churches in the enjoyment of their privileges, and continues His blessing from the fathers to the children.
Application:
1. We learn, that the Son of God, from the beginning to the end of the world, gathers, defends, and preserves to Himself, by His Spirit and Word, out of the whole human race, a Church chosen to everlasting life and agreeing in true faith.
2. We learn, that there is forgiveness with our God, that He may be feared; and thus a foundation laid for true and spiritual worship.
3. We see, that the doctrines of the gospel, like their Divine Author, are the same yesterday, to-day, and for ever. (J. H. Livingstone, D. D.)
The promise of God at Sinai
I. The promise is evidently of universal application. Its language implies or rather asserts this. It speaks of all places, and consequently it takes in or may take in the whole world, and every spot in the world. The Lord records His name in a place, when He declares His perfections and makes Himself known there; when He tells us what He is; unfolds to us His character. Now comes the question, Where has the Holy One of Israel thus revealed Himself? Where has He thus recorded His great name? It is engraven on the face of universal nature. The Cross of the Lord Jesus Christ is, in fact, the one great manifestation of a hidden God.
II. Let us go on to consider his promise.
1. It encourages us to expect in this house of prayer the presence of God with us. I will come unto thee. And what more can we desire? It is rest to the soul; a something which not only quiets, and strengthens, and raises it, but leaves it nothing to wish for; it is the fulness of joy; no cistern of happiness, which a few moments or hours of enjoyment can empty; but a fountain of life, a spring that eternity cannot dry up nor a universe exhaust. I will come unto thee, and I will bless thee; so bless thee, that My presence shall be known by the happiness I communicate, and the mercies I bestow.
2. We are warranted then to look for blessings from heaven in this place, and these real blessings, great blessings, mercies which God Himself esteems blessings. But here we must remember that anything, in order to be a blessing, must be adapted to the situation and condition of those to whom it is given. Hence when the Lord Jehovah says, I will bless thee, before we can understand His words, we must have some acquaintance with the character and circumstances of those to whom they are addressed. If spoken to an angel or a redeemed saint in heaven, they may mean one thing; addressed to this sinner on the earth, another thing; and sent home to the heart of that poor child of the dust, yet something different. We must look to ourselves then. We must ask where we are standing and whither we are going; where we are and what we are. And to what a multitude of thoughts do such questions as these give rise! What wants, and burdens, and sins, and fears, do they bring before us! (C. Bradley, M. A.)
The presence of God in His Church
I will come unto thee, and I will bless thee, said a faithful God on Sinai. And did the words, as they died on His lips, pass away from His remembrance? No; His Church in the wilderness beheld and owned His presence. He shone forth between the cherubim; He met His people in His tabernacle, and made them joyful in His house of prayer. And when a temple was built at Jerusalem for His rest, He dwelt visibly in it. The glory of the Lord filled the house of the Lord; and this was His promise concerning it, I have chosen this place to Myself for an house of sacrifice. Now Mine eyes shall be open, and Mine ears attend unto the prayer that is made in this place. Mine eyes and Mine heart shall be there perpetually. And when He left the heaven of His glory, and came down a Man of sorrows to the earth, was Sinai forgotten amidst His labours and griefs? A thousand years had not erased from His memory one word of the promise He had uttered there. He remembers it; He takes it up as His own; He confirms and extends it. In all places, was His language on the mountain; Wheresoever any are gathered together, is His language now. I will come unto thee, said He to the hosts of Israel; He says to us, Where only two or three are met together, I am. I will come, was His promise in the wilderness; but this is His declaration in His Church, I am come; there am I in the midst; His presence is no longer a mercy to be hoped for, it is a blessing to be enjoyed. But all this, it may be said, was addressed to His disciples; and was intended only for the early ages of His Church. He foresaw the objection. Hear Him again; Lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world. What then is this house of prayer? It is a place where we are to meet our God. We see Him not, perhaps we think not of His presence; but if only two or three of us are seeking our happiness in Him, He is here, and here to bless us. His own faithful lips have told us so. May His Spirit grant that our own experience may often tell us the same! (C. Bradley, M. A.)
Fuente: Biblical Illustrator Edited by Joseph S. Exell
Verse 24. Thy burnt-offerings, and thy peace-offerings] The law concerning which was shortly to be given, though sacrifices of this kind were in use from the days of Abel.
In all places where I record my name] Wherever I am worshipped, whether in the open wilderness, at the tabernacle, in the temple, the synagogues, or elsewhere, I will come unto thee and bless thee. These words are precisely the same in signification with those of our Lord, Mt 18:20: For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them. And as it was JESUS who was the angel that spoke to them in the wilderness, Ac 7:38, from the same mouth this promise in the law and that in the Gospel proceeded.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
An altar thou shalt make for thy present use, or whilst thou art in the wilderness: this he commanded, partly, that they might easily and readily erect an altar upon all occasions, which it might be hard for them to do there of better materials; partly, to mind them how much more God regarded the inward holiness than the outward pomp of their devotions; partly, because God would make a conspicuous difference between them and idolaters, who used much cost and curiosity about their altars; partly, that the altars might, after they left them, fall down and moulder away, and not remain as lasting monuments, which might be afterward abused to idolatry by any persons that came thither; partly, because they were uncertain of their stay any where, except at Sinai, and therefore must raise such altars as they could suddenly do. But this command only concerned their wilderness state; for there were better and more durable altars in the tabernacle and temple.
In all places, therefore there is no need of building any stately altar in a certain place, as if my presence were fixed there, and not to be enjoyed elsewhere.
Where I record my name, or, cause my name to be remembered by you; i.e. not in every place which you shall invent, but in all such places as I shall appoint for the remembrance or celebration of my name, or for the service of my majesty, whether it be in the wilderness, and in divers parts thereof, or in the tabernacle and temple.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
24. An altar of earth thou shaltmake unto mea regulation applicable to special or temporaryoccasions.
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
An altar of earth thou shall make unto me,…. This was a temporary precept, and only in force until the tabernacle was built, and respects occasional altars, erected while on their travels, and were to be made of turfs of earth, and so easily and quickly thrown up, as their case and circumstances required, and as easily thrown down, as it was proper they should, after they had no more use for them, lest they should be abused to superstitious uses; for afterwards the altar for burnt offerings was made of Shittim wood covered with brass, and that in the temple was wholly a brazen one, Ex 27:1 this precept seems to suggest the plainness and simplicity in which God would be worshipped, in opposition to the pomp and gaudy show of idolaters intimated in the preceding verse; though Tertullian t relates of the Romans in the times of Numa Pomptitus, that they had neither images, nor temples, nor capitols, only altars made of turfs of earth hastily thrown up; and this altar of earth might be, as Ainsworth observes, a figure of the earthly or human nature of Christ, who is the altar, whereof believers in him have a right to eat, Heb 13:10
and shalt sacrifice thereon thy burnt offerings, and thy peace offerings, thy sheep, and thine oxen; which were the creatures offered in the said sacrifices, as also in the sin offerings and trespass offerings, which, though not mentioned, are included:
in all places where I record my name; or, “cause it to be mentioned”, or “remembered” u; where he manifested himself, displayed the glory of his nature and perfection; or, as the Targum of Jonathan expresses it, caused his Shechinah or divine Majesty to dwell, or gave any intimations of his presence, as at the altar now erected to him, and at the sacrifices offered up thereon, and afterwards in the tabernacle, between the cherubim over the mercy seat, and ark of the testimony; which was removed to various places before the temple was built at Jerusalem, where he took up his residence, and his name was called upon, made mention of, and recorded for many generations: but that being destroyed and worship there at an end, men may now worship God in any place, so be it they do it in spirit and in truth; and wherever the name of God is truly called upon, and the glory of his divine perfection, as displayed in the salvation of sinners by Christ, is set forth, and Christ and him crucified is preached; and mention is made of his name as the only one in which salvation is; of his glorious person and offices, of his righteousness, blood, and sacrifice, for justification, remission of sins, and atonement; and his ordinances are administered, which are memorials of his love and grace; there Jehovah grants his presence:
I will come unto thee: not locally or by change of place, nor by his omnipresence merely, so he is everywhere; nor in any visible way, but in a spiritual manner, by the communications of his grace and favour, see Joh 14:21, and I will bless thee; with his presence, than which nothing is more desirable and delightful; with the supplies of his grace, with peace and pardon, with a justifying righteousness, with a right and title to eternal life, with enlarged views of these blessings and of interest in them.
t Apologet. c. 25. u “memorare faciam nomen meum”, Pagninus, Montanus; “ubi recordari faciam nomen meum, seu ubi faciam ut recordemini nominis mei”, Piscator.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
For the worship of Jehovah, the God of heaven, Israel needed only an altar, on which to cause its sacrifices to ascend to God. The altar, as an elevation built up of earth or rough stones, was a symbol of the elevation of man to God, who is enthroned on high in the heaven; and because man was to raise himself to God in his sacrifices, Israel also was to make an altar, though only of earth, or if of stones, not of hewn stones. “ For if thou swingest thy tool ( lit., sharpness, then any edge tool) over it (over the stone), thou defilest it ” (Exo 20:25). “ Of earth: ” i.e., not “of comparatively simple materials, such as befitted a representation of the creature” ( Schultz on Deut 12); for the altar was not to represent the creature, but to be the place to which God came to receive man into His fellowship there. For this reason the altar was to be made of the same material, which formed the earthly soil for the kingdom of God, either of earth or else of stones, just as they existed in their natural state; not, however, “because unpolished stones, which retain their true and native condition, appear to be endowed with a certain native purity, and therefore to be most in harmony with the sanctity of an altar” ( Spencer de legg. Hebr. rit. lib. ii. c. 6), for the “native purity” of the earth does not agree with Gen 3:17; but because the altar was to set forth the nature of the simple earthly soil, unaltered by the hand of man. The earth, which has been involved in the curse of sin, is to be renewed and glorified into the kingdom of God, not by sinful men, but by the gracious hand of God alone. Moreover, Israel was not to erect the altar for its sacrifices in any place that it might choose, but only in every place in which Jehovah should bring His name to remembrance. does not mean “to make the name of the Lord remembered,” i.e., to cause men to remember it; but to establish a memorial of His name, i.e., to make a glorious revelation of His divine nature, and thereby to consecrate the place into a holy soil (cf. Exo 3:5), upon which Jehovah would come to Israel and bless it. Lastly, the command not to go up to the altar by steps (Exo 20:26) is followed by the words, “that thy nakedness be not discovered thereon.” It was in the feeling of shame that the consciousness of sin first manifested itself, and it was in the shame that the sin was chiefly apparent (Gen 3:7); hence the nakedness was a disclosure of sin, through which the altar of God would be desecrated, and for this reason it was forbidden to ascend to the altar by steps. These directions with reference to the altar to be built do not refer merely to the altar, which was built for the conclusion of the covenant, nor are they at variance with the later instructions respecting the one altar at the tabernacle, upon which all the sacrifices were to be presented (Lev 17:8-9; Deu 12:5.), nor are they merely “provisional” but they lay the foundation for the future laws with reference to the places of worship, though without restricting them to one particular locality on the one hand, or allowing an unlimited number of altars on the other. Hence “several places and altars are referred to here, because, whilst the people were wandering in the desert, there could be no fixed place for the tabernacle” ( Riehm). But the erection of the altar is unquestionably limited to every place which Jehovah appointed for the purpose by a revelation. We are not to understand the words, however, as referring merely to those places in which the tabernacle and its altar were erected, and to the site of the future temple (Sinai, Shilloh, and Jerusalem), but to all those places also where altars were built and sacrifices offered on extraordinary occasions, on account of God, – appearing there such, for example, as Ebal (Jos 8:30 compared with Deu 27:5), the rock in Ophrah (Jdg 6:25-26), and many other places besides.
Fuente: Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament
Verses 24-26:
Altars were indispensable to Divine worship, as a place to offer sacrifices. They were often provided on short notice, constructed of sod or stones collected on the spot.
Burnt offerings and peace offerings were common long before the giving of the Law, see Ge 8:20; 12:7; 22:9; 35:1.
God’s promise (v. 24) of blessing was conditional upon an acceptable altar, and acceptable sacrifices.
Stone altars were acceptable to God (Ge 28:20-22; 31:45-49). The provision in this text is that the stones be used in their natural state, unhewn by any tool.
The prohibition of steps upon the altar was primarily for modesty. The garments commonly worn were robes. If one ascended steps, or was on an elevation, he could easily be exposed.
Fuente: Garner-Howes Baptist Commentary
24. An altar of earth thou shalt make. This precept differs from the other, which I have just explained; because although it refers to the choice of a place, (111) yet the mention of a place is omitted, and it only touches upon the material and form of the altar. God, therefore, commands that an altar should be built to Him, either of earth or of a heap of stones, which had not been artificially polished. But I understand this of the altars, which either in the desert or elsewhere should be built, before the choice of the perpetual place had been manifested to them. God would have them built of earth, that they might fall down of themselves, and that no trace of them might remain after the departure of the people; but if stones were used, He forbade their being fitted together in a permanent structure, but would have them thrown rough and unpolished into a heap, lest their appearance should entice posterity to superstition. I am surprised that commentators (112) should here put themselves to the pains of inventing allegories; since God had no other object than to remove stumbling-blocks, whereby the Israelites might be turned away from the sanctuary; for we know how antiquity, and the example of our forefathers, is apt to attract the minds of the vulgar. If anything in the shape of an altar had remained, immediately religious notions would have been associated with it, that, God could nowhere be more solemnly or better worshipped, than in the place already dedicated of old by their fathers. Thus degenerate modes of worship would have sprung up, and the dignity of the sanctuary would have been brought into contempt. Wherefore this evil is anticipated when He forbids altars to be built which might exist for any length of time; and only allows them to be adapted for present use, being made of earth, or of an unfashioned heap of stones. As to “the sacrifices of prosperities,”. I have elsewhere stated why I so translate the word שלומים, shelumim, (113) which signifies all prosperous and happy results; for the rendering of others, viz., peaceful things, ( pacifica ), is very unsuitable. The latter part of the verse, “ in all places, where I record my name, I will come unto thee, ” has been ignorantly perverted by commentators, and hence has afforded a ground of error; for they have read it in connection with the former part, as if God had forbidden such an altar to be made in Mount Sion also; whereas He rather anticipates a doubt, which might have otherwise perplexed the minds of the people; Will not God be favorable to us where He heard the prayers of our fathers? He replies, I say, to this by the promise, that they will pray to Him well and duly, if they only obey His command, and seek no other place except that which He shall choose. On this score it is said, that wheresoever it shall please God that sacrifices should be offered, there He will descend to you, to be favorable unto you.
(111) “ D’autant qu’il ne traitte pas expressement du lieu mais de la matiere, et forme de l’autel;” because it does not treat expressly of the place, but of the matter and form of the altar. — Fr.
(112) In the Gloss. Ord, there is an exposition from Gregory, that “to make an altar of earth is to found our hopes upon the Incarnation of Christ; for our offering is then accepted by God, when our humility bases our works upon faith in the incarnation of our Lord;” and from Isidore, that “ hewn stones are those who break the unity of the Church, and sever themselves from the society of their brethren. These Christ does not receive into His body, which the construction of the altar represents,” etc.
(113) שלמיך A.V., peace-offerings. C. says rightly that the word שלומים comprehends every kind of prosperity and happy result; but the word in the text is the pl. of שלם. — W. See Note on Num 10:10, ante, p. 105.
Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary
(24) An altar of earth thou shalt make unto me.The earliest altars were, naturally, either of earth, or of unhewn stones, gathered into a heap, since these could be constructed with little labour, and without tools. But, as civilisation advanced, more elaborate structures took the place of the primitive ones. It became usual to erect altars of hewn stone, adorned with carvings more or less rich, among which might often be introduced human and animal forms. We must understand the command here given, and that of Exo. 20:25, as intended to forbid structures of this latter kind, which, if allowed, might have led on to idolatry.
Thy burnt offerings and thy peace offerings.Sacrifice began soon after Paradise was quitted (Gen. 4:3-4), and shortly became a universal practice. Noah offered sacrifice on leaving the ark (Gen. 8:20); and in the family of Abraham the rite was an established one (Gen. 12:7; Gen. 15:9; Gen. 22:7; Gen. 26:25; Gen. 31:54, &c.). Egyptians, Assyrians, Babylonians, Persians, Phnicians, Greeks, Romans, Scythians, Celts, Germans, all equally regarded sacrifice as a main element of their religion; and if the Hebrews had not offered actual sacrifices during their oppression in Egypt, they had, at any rate, maintained the wish to offer them, and it was (primarily) for the purpose of sacrificing that they had quitted Egypt. The legislation assumes that they are acquainted with the difference between burnt offerings and peace offerings, and desirous of offering both kinds.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
24. An altar of earth Having repeated the prohibition of gold and silver images of Deity, he most appropriately passes first to give some general directions for altar-building . These had probably been observed in the construction of altars by the patriarchs, as Noah, (Gen 8:20,) Abraham, (Gen 12:7; Gen 13:18,) Isaac, (Gen 26:25,) and Jacob, (Gen 35:7,) but, like other ancient usages set forth in this collection, they are now written down as a part of the book of the covenant. An altar of earth is one constructed of turfs or sod, and was most convenient and suitable for a wandering people. Jehovah would have his altars builded in the most simple form, and thus avoid any occasion of attempts at architectural display in them. Burnt offerings and peace offerings are here mentioned as representative of all sacrifices of sheep and oxen which would be offered on an altar. This is the first mention of peace offerings, but the language of Exo 24:5, implies that they were not now for the first time offered; the distinction between them and burnt offerings was already known to the people . The burnt offering was wholly consumed upon the altar, but only a part of the flesh of the peace offering was thus consumed; the other portions were eaten by the worshippers, and the sacrifice was made the occasion of a joyful feast. The “burnt offering and sacrifices” which Jethro offered (Exo 18:12) appear to have been of both these kinds; first, the burnt offering, which was offered whole, and then the peace offering, at which Aaron and all the elders of Israel feasted together.
In all places where I record my name There is nothing in these words which requires us to suppose a simultaneous plurality of altars in Israel, nor any thing to forbid our supposing that Jehovah might have recorded his name in several different places at the same time. But the most obvious meaning is, that successive altars are contemplated. During the journey to Canaan, and until some central seat of national worship should be ordained, there would be occasion for the erection of altars in divers places, just as the patriarchs had done in their wanderings to and fro. But this law expressly forbids their setting up altars anywhere they pleased by limiting them to such places as were consecrated by some memorable revelation or act of Jehovah. There is therefore no conflict between this law and that of Deu 12:4-14, which provided for one central sanctuary . After such a place should be chosen “to cause his name to dwell there,” no other spot would accord with the expressed limitations of this ancient law, for there only would he record his name .
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
Exo 20:24. An altar of earth thou shalt make unto me The service of the tabernacle being not yet appointed, that there might be no superstition attached to any altars of a curious or costly sort, God enjoins that they should, for the present, form them only of such plain turf and common earth as could easily be met with, and thereon slay their sacrifices, their burnt-offerings, &c. expressions (by the way) which are a further proof of what we have often advanced, that the apparatus and use of sacrifices were only new-modelled by Moses, not first instituted by him. The Almighty promises, that he will bless the people in their religious services; I will come unto thee, and I will bless thee, in all places where such altars shall be raised to my worship: this is the meaning of the phrase which we render, where I record my name; 1Ch 16:4.
Fuente: Commentary on the Holy Bible by Thomas Coke
Is not this altar of earth intended to shew, that as the earth is the Lord’s, and the fulness thereof, and nothing of creature property is to be mixed with it, so salvation is all the Lord’s; nothing of human merit or work composing any part of it? Isa 63:5 . Is not the presence of the Lord here promised, the grand cause intimated wherefore sacrifices, or offerings, are accepted? 2Sa 6:11 with Mat 28:20Mat 28:20 . And doth not the prohibition of lifting up a tool upon the altar, imply that nothing can be offered of ours upon that Altar, (which is Christ himself,) that sanctifieth the gift, without polluting it? Rev 22:18 .
Fuente: Hawker’s Poor Man’s Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
Exo 20:24 An altar of earth thou shalt make unto me, and shalt sacrifice thereon thy burnt offerings, and thy peace offerings, thy sheep, and thine oxen: in all places where I record my name I will come unto thee, and I will bless thee.
Ver. 24. An altar of earth. ] In opposition to the costly shrines and services of those dunghill deities. God cares not for outward pomp: Popery is all for it, and scoffs at our simplicity. The God of the Protestants, saith a blasphemous popeling, is the most uncivil and unmannered God of all those that have borne the names of gods upon earth; yea, worse than Pan, the god of the clowns, which can endure no ceremonies, nor good manners at all. a
a John Hunt, in his Appeal to King James, cap. 6.
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
of earth . . . in all places. Shiloh was the first place, Jer 7:12; Bethel, 1Sa 10:3; then Zion, Psa 78:68. “Where’er we seek Thee Thou art found”. sacrifice. Hebrew. zabach. App-43.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
altar: Joh 4:24
burnt: Lev 1:1-17, Lev 3:1-17
in all places: Deu 12:5, Deu 12:11, Deu 12:21, Deu 14:23, Deu 16:5, Deu 16:6, Deu 16:11, Deu 26:2, 1Ki 8:29, 1Ki 8:43, 1Ki 9:3, 2Ch 6:6, 2Ch 7:16, 2Ch 12:13, Ezr 6:12, Neh 1:9, Psa 74:7, Psa 76:2, Psa 78:68, Psa 132:13, Psa 132:14, Jer 7:10-12, Mal 1:11, Mat 18:20, Mat 28:20, Joh 4:20-23, 1Ti 2:8
will bless thee: Gen 12:2, Num 6:24-27, Deu 7:13, 2Sa 6:12, Psa 128:5, Psa 134:3
Reciprocal: Gen 8:20 – builded Exo 24:4 – and builded Exo 25:22 – and I will Exo 27:1 – altar of shittim wood Exo 38:1 – the altar Num 23:1 – seven altars Deu 32:3 – Because Jos 8:31 – altar Jdg 21:4 – built there 1Sa 6:14 – offered 1Ki 14:21 – to put his name 1Ki 18:32 – And with 2Ki 21:4 – In Jerusalem 1Ch 13:6 – whose name 1Ch 21:26 – built there 2Ch 6:5 – my name 2Ch 20:9 – thy name Ezr 3:2 – as it is written Psa 122:2 – General Son 4:6 – the mountain Isa 64:5 – meetest Isa 65:3 – altars
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Exo 20:24. An altar of earth It is meant of occasional altars, such as they reared in the wilderness before the tabernacle was erected, and afterward upon special emergencies, for present use. They are appointed to make these very plain, either of earth or of unhewn stones. That they might not be tempted to think of a graven image, they must not so much as hew the stones into shape that they made their altars of, but pile them up as they were in the rough. In all places where I record my name Or where my name is recorded; that is, where I am worshipped in sincerity; I will come unto thee, and will bless thee.
Fuente: Joseph Bensons Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
Yahweh permitted His people to build altars where He granted special theophanies, that is, manifestations of His presence. [Note: Marten H. Woudstra, The Book of Joshua, p. 166.] These were in addition to the altars at Israel’s central sanctuary (the tabernacle and later the temple; cf. Jdg 6:25-27; Jdg 13:15-20; 1Sa 9:11-14; 1Sa 16:1-5; 1Ki 18:30-40). They were to build these altars for formal worship and for special occasions (e.g., Jos 8:30; Jdg 6:25-26) out of earth or uncut stone. The Canaanites used cut or "dressed" stone for their altars, and it was probably to distinguish the two that God directed Israel as He did.
Israel’s altars were not to have steps, as many Canaanite altars did, so the naked flesh of the priests might not appear as they mounted them to make their offerings.
"Possibly the verse intends to oppose the practice of certain peoples in the ancient East, like the Sumerians for instance, whose priests . . . used to perform every ritual ceremony in a state of nakedness. Likewise the Egyptian priests . . . used to wear only a linen ephod, a kind of short, primitive apron." [Note: Cassuto, p. 257.]
"This simple description of true worship is intended to portray the essence of the Sinai covenant in terms that are virtually identical to that of the religion of the patriarchs-earthen altars, burnt offerings, and simple devotion rather than elaborate rituals. A simple earthen altar is sufficient. If more is desired (e.g., a stone altar), then it should not be defiled with carved stones and elaborate steps. The ultimate purpose of any such ritual is the covering of human nakedness that stems from the Fall (Exo 20:26 b; cf. Gen 3:7). The implication is that all ritual is only a reflection of that first gracious act of God in covering human nakedness with garments of skin (Gen 3:21)." [Note: Sailhamer, The Pentateuch . . ., p. 289.]