Exodus 19:10-14

"And Jehovah said unto Moses, Go unto the people, and sanctify them today and tomorrow, and let them wash their garments, and be ready against the third day; for the third day Jehovah 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: no hand shall touch him, but he shall surely be stoned, or shot through; whether it be beast or man, he shall not live: when the trumpet soundeth long, they shall come up to the mount. And Moses went down from the mount unto the people, and sanctified the people; and they washed their garments."

"Let them wash their garments ..." A customary element of consecration or sanctification was that of changing to clean clothes, as when Jacob ordered his family so to do in Genesis 35:2. Since changing clothes might have been in the circumstances of Israel at that time very difficult or impossible, they were commanded to wash their garments. Why? They were scheduled to stand in the presence of God. But is not God everywhere, ubiquitous, always seeing all and knowing all? Yes. However, there was to be a SPECIAL NEARNESS TO GOD there at Sinai, hence, the order regarding apparel. We shall not leave this without stressing the fact that Christians also have an appointment in which there is a SPECIAL NEARNESS TO OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST, when believers come together in solemn assembly to partake of the Lord's Supper "in his name," that is, by his commandment. And did not Christ say, "Where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them" (Matthew 18:20)? Throughout the long millenniums of the Christian era, Christians have accepted the desirability, if indeed not the necessity, of wearing washed, clean, or special clothes to church. "Sunday clothes" is an idiom of our mother tongue that recognizes this, and the calendar of the historical church has Whitsunday, the day that only white is worn. In the light of all the facts, what must we think of the slipshod, casual, disheveled, common, or even torn and dirty clothes that one sees these days even waiting on the Lord's table? Why? Has the conviction that worshippers are "in His presence" weakened? If that is not the reason, what is the reason? Oh, but people cannot afford to clean up and dress up! If one thinks so, let him attend the wedding of any of the sloppy dressers at church, and he will get his eyes opened, if indeed not popped! "A profound reverence lies at the root of all true religious feeling."[19]

"Stoned, or shot through ..." Any violators of the "touch not" order, whether man or beast, were to be executed, but with the special proviso that "no hand should touch" the condemned. Why? Because evil was considered contagious, whereas righteousness was not considered contagious. See discussion of this under Haggai 2:11 in the minor prophets series of these commentaries. In the execution of a violator either by stoning or shooting with arrows, it was not necessary for the executioner to touch the victim. The extensive preparation of the people to "meet Jehovah" must have been a very dramatic and impressive occasion.

"When the trumpet soundeth long, they shall come up to the mountain ..." This appears to be ambiguous, raising the question of just who was to go up into the mountain. This was not an invitation for all the people to go up when the trumpet sounded, but for those to ascend whom the Lord would indicate. Regarding the trumpet, see under Exodus 19:16,19.