The rest of chapter 19 is a dramatic preparation for what is set out in the chapters which follow in which the way of life of the people of God is made clear.

When Moses returned to the assembled Israelites they were enthusiastic about being the people of God: 'We will do everything that the LORD has said'. They were then told to purify themselves in traditional ways to prepare themselves to receive the divine revelation. The theophany in which God's presence was made known was accompanied by violent phenomena. Moses was told by God to command the people to keep themselves separated from the presence of God, and Moses and Aaron alone remained in the presence of God on the mountain height.

We should not lessen the dramatic impact of the story by trying to analyse what really happened in terms of thunderstorms, volcanic eruptions or earthquakes. Through the form of the story we should try to sense the power, mystery and 'otherness' of God, which the Israelites experienced in fear and trembling.