The Bible says God spoke to Moses “face to face,” but later says no one can see God’s face and live. Isn’t that a contradiction?
Read Time: 2 min
The Lord said, “You cannot see My face; for no man shall see Me, and live” (v. 20). How do we harmonize these two verses?
One way is to understand this phrase as a figure of speech. The apostle John wrote, “Having many things to write to you, I did not wish to do so with paper and ink; but I hope to come to you and speak face to face” (2 John 1:12). He’s saying, “I can speak to you through writing or in person.” The term “face to face” can simply mean to be in one’s presence.
Another approach to these verses is to understand that Moses might have spoken face to face with God the Son (Jesus), not God the Father. (See also Genesis 32:30.)
When you study other passages in which God revealed Himself (in part) to Ezekiel, Daniel, and John, you grasp that the powerful brilliance of the Lord’s being is just too much for sinful people to bear. They often fell down as though they were dead! Jesus also stated, “No one has seen God at any time” (John 1:18). Obviously, He must be speaking of the Father, which is why He said, “Not that anyone has seen the Father, except He who is from God; He has seen the Father” (John 6:46).
Of course, people saw God the Son when He came to this earth, but seeing Jesus was not limited to New Testament times. Many scholars believe Christ revealed Himself in the Old Testament (called Christophonies). For instance, when Joshua saw the captain of the Lord’s armies, many believe this must have been the son of God before the incarnation.
It seems to me that Moses saw God the Son, yet his request to see the Father was denied. The best way to reconcile the two verses in Exodus might be to recognize the distinction as being made between the Father and the Son.
Key Bible Texts
And the LORD spake unto Moses face to face, as a man speaketh unto his friend. And he turned again into the camp: but his servant Joshua, the son of Nun, a young man, departed not out of the tabernacle. (Exodus 33:11 KJV)