“Then he (Moses) said, “Please, show me Your glory!” So He said, “I will cause all My goodness to pass before you, and call out the Name of Adonai before you. I will be gracious toward whom I will be gracious, and I will show mercy on whom I will be merciful.” But He also said, “You cannot see My face, for no man can see Me and live.” Then Adonai said, “See, a place near Me—you will stand on the rock. While My glory passes by, I will put you in a cleft of the rock, and cover you with My hand, until I have passed by. Then I will take away My hand, and you will see My back, but My face will not be seen.” (Exod 33: 18-23 TLV).
As I read in the passage above about Moses’s desire to see the face of G-d. I must be faithful to the original Jewish emphasis. This emphasis is on G-d’s awesome holiness. I affirm the original meaning of the Torah text. No mortal can survive seeing the unmediated glory of the transcendent G-d (Hashem). At the same time, I acknowledge that Yeshua is the Shekhinah made Flesh. He is the only one who can reveal Hashem in a human form to humans. This is because He is the one and only Son. He is himself G-d and is in closest relationship with the Hashem. He has made him known (John 1:18). In other words, I see Jesus (Yeshua) as the ultimate manifestation (or theophany) of G-d’s glory in a way that allows humans to “see” and “live.” He is the promised Messiah; the embodiment of the very presence (Shekhinah) that Moses sought to see. He is the “image of the invisible G-d” (Colossians 1:15).
I agree with the Rabbinic view that Moses saw G-d’s attributes. These were his “goodness” and “back.” However, I argue that Yeshua fully reveals those attributes in his person. These include mercy, compassion, and truth. Yeshua’s life and teaching fully reveal G-d’s nature. This is the essence of the “glory” Moses wished to see.
Out of Egypt 