Exodus 19:16–25

^16aSo it happened on the third day, when it was morning, that there were ¹thunder and lightning flashes and a ²thick cloud upon the mountain and a very loud trumpet sound, so that all the people who were in the camp trembled.

¹⁷And Moses brought the people out of the camp to meet God, and they stood at the ¹foot of the mountain.

Yahweh Descends on Mount Sinai

^18aNow Mount Sinai was all in smoke because Yahweh descended upon it ^bin fire; and its smoke ascended like ^cthe smoke of a furnace, and ^dthe whole mountain trembled violently.

¹⁹And the sound of the trumpet grew louder and louder; then Moses spoke and ^aGod answered him with ¹thunder.

^20aAnd Yahweh came down on Mount Sinai, to the top of the mountain; and Yahweh called Moses to the top of the mountain, and Moses went up.

²¹Then Yahweh spoke to Moses, “Go down, ¹warn the people, lest ^athey break through to Yahweh to see, and many of them ²perish.

²²“Also let the ^apriests who come near to Yahweh set themselves apart as holy, lest Yahweh break out against them.”

²³And Moses said to Yahweh, “The people cannot come up to Mount Sinai, for You ¹warned us, saying, ‘^aSet bounds about the mountain, and set it apart as holy.’”

²⁴Then Yahweh said to him, “¹Go down and come up again, ^ayou and Aaron with you; but do not let the ^bpriests and the people break through to come up to Yahweh, lest He break out against them.”

²⁵So Moses went down to the people and told them.