Exodus 23:20-33

Exodus 23:20-33

[20] Behold, I send  an Angel  before  thee, to keep  thee in the way,  and to bring  thee into the place  which I have prepared.  [21] Beware  of  him, and obey  his voice,  provoke  him not; for he will not pardon  your transgressions:  for my name  is in him.  [22] But if thou shalt indeed  his voice,  and do  all that I speak;  then I will be an enemy  unto thine enemies,  and an adversary  unto thine adversaries.  [23] For mine Angel  before  thee, and bring  thee in unto the Amorites,  and the Hittites,  and the Perizzites,  and the Canaanites,  the Hivites,  and the Jebusites:  and I will cut them off.  [24] Thou shalt not bow down  to their gods,  nor serve  them, nor do  after their works:  but thou shalt utterly  them, and quite  their images.  [25] And ye shall serve  the LORD  your God,  and he shall bless  thy bread,  and thy water;  sickness  away  from the midst  [26] There shall nothing cast their young,  nor be barren,  in thy land:  the number  of thy days  I will fulfil.  [27] I will send  my fear  before  thee, and will destroy  all the people  to whom thou shalt come,  and I will make  all thine enemies  turn their backs  unto thee. [28] And I will send  hornets  before  thee, which shall drive out  the Hivite,  the Canaanite,  and the Hittite,  from before  [29] I will not drive them out  from before  thee in one  year;  lest the land  become desolate,  and the beast  of the field  multiply  [30] By little  I will drive them out  from before  thee, until thou be increased,  and inherit  the land.  [31] And I will set  thy bounds  from the Red  sea  of the Philistines,  and from the desert  unto the river:  for I will deliver  the inhabitants  of the land  into your hand;  and thou shalt drive them out  before  [32] Thou shalt make  no covenant  with them, nor with their gods.  [33] They shall not dwell  in thy land,  lest they make thee sin  against me: for if thou serve  their gods,  it will surely be a snare  unto thee.

What does Exodus 23:20-33 Mean?

Contextual Meaning

In this final part of the Book of the Covenant ( Exodus 20:22 to Exodus 23:33), God gave the Israelites promises and precepts relating to their conquest of the Promised Land. Suzerainty treaties normally concluded with an explanation of the benefits that would come to the vassals if they obeyed the king"s commands and the difficulties they would experience if they disobeyed. That is characteristic of this section of the covenant, though the emphasis is positive.
"Similar opening [1] and closing remarks are also found in the codes of Hammurabi and Lipit-Istar." [2]
"Following the text of the covenant code Yahweh assures His people of His ongoing commitment. He had not brought them out of Egypt and made covenant with them only to forget them in the wilderness. He had promised to give them land, so now He speaks of the process by which they would enter the land and the circumstances they would face there ( Exodus 23:20-33)." [3]