[Avodah] Ki Sisa Whose Face Anyway?

[Cantor Richard]

> There seems to be a contradiction in next week's Torah portion. In  
> the first instance it says that "God would speak to Moses face to  
> face, as a man would speak to his fellow..." (33:11). Unlike other  
> prophets, Moses did not need an intermediary and was fully conscious  
> when God spoke to him. However, just a short 9 verses later it says:  
> "...You will not be able to see My face, for no human can see My  
> face and live" (33:20). There are various explanations for this. The  
> one that I give is that this is merely a simile. No man has a  
> complete and unadulterated perception of God. But in the first  
> instance (face to face) it refers to a much clearer perception,  
> whereas in the latter case, it refers to a vague degree of  
> perception. The distinction between these degrees of vision is like  
> the difference between seeing a person's face clearly and merely  
> glimpsing him from behind.
>
> Another explanation given is that the first verse relates to the  
> period when Moshe had relocated his tent outside the Israelite camp,  
> away from the nation, in the aftermath of the sin of the Golden  
> Calf.              At that point, God spoke to him face to face (so  
> to speak).
>
> The second verse, however, describes the  situation after Moshe  
> returned to the nation. The people's spiritual level had declined  
> with the incident of the Golden Calf, and,  
> accordingly,                              Moshe's prophetic level  
> decreased when he rejoined the camp.
>
> ri
>
>
>

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