about blotting out the names of the living upon the earth from that book, which I will call the Book of the Living. Although Moses certainly sinned, God never threatened Moses with having his name blotted out of the Book of the Living. In Exodus 32, the people of israel had worshiped a golden calf while Moses received the tablets bearing the Ten Commandments. Moses then sought to make atonement ((The Hebrew phrase “perhaps I will make atonement for your sins” (“אוּלַי אֲכַפְּרָה בְּעַד חַטַּאתְכֶם”) indicates the uncertainty in the mind of Moses about God’s willingness to withhold punishment from His people for their great sin of idolatry. Moses understood the flagrant, corporate sin of Israel, and sought to give his own life in exchange for the nation’s survival, illumining the great love of Moses to lay down his life for his brethren. Yet, God did not allow one sinful human (Moses) to atone for the sin of the nation of Israel. That role of Savior Yahweh reserved exclusively for Jesus as the God-Man, the final and perfect sacrifice for sin.)) for the sins of the nation of Israel. Moses had great concern that God may destroy the entire nation for the entire nation’s sin of idolatry with the golden calf. God responded, however, that He would judge each individual for sin, and not blot out the entire nation for this sinful disaster.
The story of Moses interceding for the people of Israel after the terrible idolatry of the corporate worship of the golden calf teaches us about the Book of the Living mentioned from Exodus 32:32.
