The Covenant and the Blueprint
Lesson 10, 3rd Quarter August 30-September 5, 2025.
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Sabbath Afternoon, August 30
Memory Text:
“And Moses came and told the people all the words of the LORD, and all the judgments: and all the people answered with one voice, and said, All the words which the LORD hath said will we do.” KJV — Exodus 24:3
“These promises of God to his people were on condition of their obedience. If they would serve the Lord fully, he would do great things for them. After Moses had received the judgments from the Lord, and had written them for the people, also the promises, on condition of obedience, the Lord said unto him, “Come up unto the Lord, thou, and Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel, and worship ye afar off. And Moses alone shall come near the Lord; but they shall not come nigh, neither shall the people go up with him. And Moses came and told the people all the words of the Lord, and all the judgments; and all the people answered with one voice, and said, All the words which the Lord hath said, will we do.” Spiritual Gifts, vol. 3, page 270.1
“Moses had written—not the ten commandments, but the judgments which God would have them observe, and the promises, on conditions that they would obey him. He read this to the people, and they pledged themselves to obey all the words which the Lord had said. Moses then wrote their solemn pledge in a book, and offered sacrifice unto God for the people. “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.” The people repeated their solemn pledge to the Lord to obey all that he had said, and to be obedient.” Spiritual Gifts, vol. 3, page 270.2
Sunday August 31
The Book and the Blood
Read Exodus 24:1–8. What roles do the reading of the Word of God and the sprinkling of blood play in the ratification of the covenant between God and His people?
“Having sprinkled the altar with the blood of the offerings, Moses “took the book of the covenant, and read in the audience of the people.” Thus the conditions of the covenant were solemnly repeated, and all were at liberty to choose whether or not they would comply with them. They had at the first promised to obey the voice of God; but they had since heard His law proclaimed; and its principles had been particularized, that they might know how much this covenant involved. Again the people answered with one accord, “All that the Lord hath said will we do, and be obedient.” “When Moses had spoken every precept to all the people according to the law, he took the blood, ... and sprinkled both the book and all the people, saying, This is the blood of the testament which God hath enjoined unto you.” Hebrews 9:19, 20.” Patriarchs and Prophets, page 312.2
“Moses and “his minister Joshua” were now summoned to meet with God. And as they were to be some time absent, the leader appointed Aaron and Hur, assisted by the elders, to act in his stead. “And Moses went up into the mount, and a cloud covered the mount. And the glory of the Lord abode upon Mount Sinai.” For six days the cloud covered the mountain as a token of God's special presence; yet there was no revelation of Himself or communication of His will. During this time Moses remained in waiting for a summons to the presence chamber of the Most High. He had been directed, “Come up to Me into the mount, and be there,” and though his patience and obedience were tested, he did not grow weary of watching, or forsake his post. This period of waiting was to him a time of preparation, of close self-examination. Even this favored servant of God could not at once approach into His presence and endure the exhibitions of His glory. Six days must be employed in devoting himself to God by searching of heart, meditation, and prayer before he could be prepared for direct communication with his Maker. Patriarchs and Prophets, page 313.1
Monday September 1
Seeing God
Read Exodus 24:9–18. What amazing experience were the children of Israel given here?
“Arrangements were now to be made for the full establishment of the chosen nation under Jehovah as their king. Moses had received the command, “Come up unto the Lord, thou, and Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel; and worship ye afar off. And Moses alone shall come near the Lord.” While the people worshiped at its foot, these chosen men were called up into the mount. The seventy elders were to assist Moses in the government of Israel, and God put upon them His Spirit, and honored them with a view of His power and greatness. “And they saw the God of Israel: and there was under His feet as it were a paved work of a sapphire stone, and as it were the body of heaven in his clearness.” They did not behold the Deity, but they saw the glory of His presence. Before this they could not have endured such a scene; but the exhibition of God's power had awed them to repentance; they had been contemplating His glory, purity, and mercy, until they could approach nearer to Him who was the subject of their meditations. Patriarchs and Prophets, page 312.3
“Upon the seventh day, which was the Sabbath, Moses was called up into the cloud. The thick cloud opened in the sight of all Israel, and the glory of the Lord broke forth like devouring fire. “And Moses went into the midst of the cloud, and gat him up into the mount; and Moses was in the mount forty days and forty nights.” The forty days’ tarry in the mount did not include the six days of preparation. During the six days Joshua was with Moses, and together they ate of the manna and drank of “the brook that descended out of the mount.” But Joshua did not enter with Moses into the cloud. He remained without, and continued to eat and drink daily while awaiting the return of Moses, but Moses fasted during the entire forty days. Patriarchs and Prophets, page 313.2
“During his stay in the mount, Moses received directions for the building of a sanctuary in which the divine presence would be specially manifested. “Let them make Me a sanctuary; that I may dwell among them” (Exodus 25:8), was the command of God. For the third time the observance of the Sabbath was enjoined. “It is a sign between Me and the children of Israel forever,” the Lord declared, “that ye may know that I am Jehovah that doth sanctify you. Ye shall keep the Sabbath therefore; for it is holy unto you.... Whosoever doeth any work therein, that soul shall be cut off from among his people.” Exodus 31:17, 13, 14. Directions had just been given for the immediate erection of the tabernacle for the service of God; and now the people might conclude, because the object had in view was the glory of God, and also because of their great need of a place of worship, that they would be justified in working at the building upon the Sabbath. To guard them from this error, the warning was given. Even the sacredness and urgency of that special work for God must not lead them to infringe upon His holy rest day.” Patriarchs and Prophets, page 313.3
Tuesday September 2
Power to Obey
Read Ezekiel 36:26–28. How does obedience take place in our lives?
None of the living can actually be cleansed from all their marks of sin while among the Gentile nations, you see. They must first be separated from the hypocrites and Gentiles, then brought into their own land, there to be sprinkled with clean water, cleansed from all their filthiness and from all their idols, when they get to their own land, not before. Even a new heart is to be given them there, and a new spirit also. Thus will the Lord cause them to walk in His statutes and keep His judgments forevermore. Thus shall they return and dwell in the land of their fathers, Palestine, and thus shall they be God’s people eternally. These things, you see, are premillennial.
Let us now examine the cleansing according to the prophets…Jeremiah
Jer. 31:31-33 – “Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah: not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt; which My covenant they brake, although I was an husband unto them, saith the Lord: but this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After those days, saith the Lord, I will put My law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be My people.”
The old covenant has been to keep the commandments while they are written, not on the heart, but on tables of stone, against the will of the stony heart. But the new covenant is to cleanse them from their stony hearts, and to write the commandments on their hearts of flesh.
Verse 34 – “And they shall teach no more every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord: for they shall all know Me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them, saith the Lord: for I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.”
When God’s people are thus cleansed, they shall all know the Lord. Then they shall indeed be His people, His nation.
Wednesday September 3
In the Midst of His People
Read Exodus 25:1–9. What crucial, practical, and theological truths are seen in these verses?
“Henceforth the people were to be honored with the abiding presence of their King. “I will dwell among the children of Israel, and will be their God,” “and the tabernacle shall be sanctified by My glory” (Exodus 29:45, 43), was the assurance given to Moses. As the symbol of God's authority and the embodiment of His will, there was delivered to Moses a copy of the Decalogue engraved by the finger of God Himself upon two tables of stone (Deuteronomy 9:10; Exodus 32:15, 16), to be sacredly enshrined in the sanctuary, which, when made, was to be the visible center of the nation's worship. Patriarchs and Prophets, page 314.1
“From a race of slaves the Israelites had been exalted above all peoples to be the peculiar treasure of the King of kings. God had separated them from the world, that He might commit to them a sacred trust. He had made them the depositaries of His law, and He purposed, through them, to preserve among men the knowledge of Himself. Thus the light of heaven was to shine out to a world enshrouded in darkness, and a voice was to be heard appealing to all peoples to turn from their idolatry to serve the living God. If the Israelites would be true to their trust, they would become a power in the world. God would be their defense, and He would exalt them above all other nations. His light and truth would be revealed through them, and they would stand forth under His wise and holy rule as an example of the superiority of His worship over every form of idolatry.” Patriarchs and Prophets, page 314.2
“God commanded Moses for Israel, “Let them make Me a sanctuary; that I may dwell among them” (Exodus 25:8), and He abode in the sanctuary, in the midst of His people. Through all their weary wandering in the desert, the symbol of His presence was with them. So Christ set up His tabernacle in the midst of our human encampment. He pitched His tent by the side of the tents of men, that He might dwell among us, and make us familiar with His divine character and life. “The Word became flesh, and tabernacled among us (and we beheld His glory, glory as of the Only Begotten from the Father), full of grace and truth.” John 1:14, R. V., margin. The Desire of Ages, page 23.3
“‘Since Jesus came to dwell with us, we know that God is acquainted with our trials, and sympathizes with our griefs. Every son and daughter of Adam may understand that our Creator is the friend of sinners. For in every doctrine of grace, every promise of joy, every deed of love, every divine attraction presented in the Saviour's life on earth, we see ‘God with us.’” The Desire of Ages, page 24.1
Thursday September 4
Filled with the Spirit of God
Read Exodus 31:1–18. What special assistance did God give so that all the tabernacle’s details and related services would be prepared and built in a beautiful and proper way?
“God always has men of His appointment to step into the places where work needs to be done, men with whom and by whom He can work.... To every man the Lord has entrusted talents—gifts that correspond to the needs of some place.... This Day With God, page 345.2
“The Lord will give understanding to everyone who will fully connect with His work. We are not left to trust in human wisdom. In the Lord is wisdom, and it is our privilege to look to Him for counsel.... This Day With God, page 345.3
“We are all members of God's family, all in a greater or less degree entrusted with God-given talents, for the use of which we are held responsible. Whether our talent be great or small, we are to use it in God's service, and we are to recognize the right of everyone else to use the gifts entrusted to them. Never should we disparage the smallest physical, intellectual, or spiritual capital. Some may trade in pennies and farthings, and by God's blessing, and unwearied diligence, these humble ones may make successful investments, and make a gain proportionate to the capital entrusted to them. No one should make light of any humble worker, who is filling his place, and is doing a work that someone must do, however small that work may seem. This Day With God, page 345.4
“O how my heart is grieved as I see men who have had great opportunities seeking to place in a circumscribed sphere, someone, who, with encouragement, might develop to fill a position of great usefulness. The Lord makes use of vessels both large and small. Many whose lives are filled with activity and earnestness need from others counsel and encouragement, and words of approval. God looks with pleasure upon the improvement made by His children as they help and encourage one another. This Day With God, page 345.5
“All, whether entrusted with few or with many talents, are to blend together in unity. We need more of the spirit of the Saviour that we may help those who have been restricted and hindered. How much we may help them in their efforts to rise will never be known till it is made manifest in the judgment. We should have a word of encouragement to speak to all, remembering that there are a diversity of gifts.—Letter 260, December 2, 1903, to Dr. George A. Hare, who was invited to connect with the sanitarium to be established in Washington, D.C.” This Day With God, page 345.6
Friday September 5
Further Thought
“Chosen men were especially endowed by God with skill and wisdom for the construction of the sacred building. God Himself gave to Moses the plan of that structure, with particular directions as to its size and form, the materials to be employed, and every article of furniture which it was to contain. The holy places made with hands were to be “figures of the true,” “patterns of things in the heavens” (Hebrews 9:24, 23)—a miniature representation of the heavenly temple where Christ, our great High Priest, after offering His life as a sacrifice, was to minister in the sinner's behalf. God presented before Moses in the mount a view of the heavenly sanctuary, and commanded him to make all things according to the pattern shown him. All these directions were carefully recorded by Moses, who communicated them to the leaders of the people. Patriarchs and Prophets, page 343.2
“For the building of the sanctuary great and expensive preparations were necessary; a large amount of the most precious and costly material was required; yet the Lord accepted only freewill offerings. “Of every man that giveth it willingly with his heart ye shall take My offering” was the divine command repeated by Moses to the congregation. Devotion to God and a spirit of sacrifice were the first requisites in preparing a dwelling place for the Most High. Patriarchs and Prophets, page 343.3
“All the people responded with one accord. “They came, every one whose heart stirred him up, and every one whom his spirit made willing, and they brought the Lord's offering to the work of the tabernacle of the congregation, and for all His service, and for the holy garments. And they came, both men and women, as many as were willinghearted, and brought bracelets, and earrings, and rings, and tablets, all jewels of gold: and every man that offered, offered an offering of gold unto the Lord.” Patriarchs and Prophets, page 344.1
“‘And every man with whom was found blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine linen, and goats’ hair, and rams’ skins dyed red, and sealskins, brought them. Everyone that did offer an offering of silver and brass brought the Lord's offering: and every man, with whom was found acacia wood for any work of the service, brought it. Patriarchs and Prophets, page 344.2
“‘And all the women that were wisehearted did spin with their hands, and brought that which they had spun, the blue, and the purple, the scarlet, and the fine linen. And all the women whose heart stirred them up in wisdom spun the goats’ hair. Patriarchs and Prophets, page 344.3
“‘And the rulers brought the onyx stones, and the stones to be set, for the ephod, and for the breastplate; and the spice, and the oil; for the light, and for the anointing oil, and for the sweet incense.” Exodus 35:23-28, R.V.” PP 344.4