Kadosh, Kadosh, Kadosh

God is in a class by Himself. He is distinct, singular, peerless, and perfect. He is kadosh—holy.
I’m sure he meant well, but the president of the United States was not supposed to kiss the Queen Mother of the United Kingdom, let alone kiss her on the mouth.

Apparently, in 1977, then President Jimmy Carter did just that. Carter claimed he gave the Queen Mother a goodnight kiss on the cheek. The Queen Mother said otherwise.¹ Kisses notwithstanding, there are protocols that dictate how an outsider must interact with the royal family.

According to a recent poll among Brits, however, respect for the British monarchy and its protocols is declining²—a sign of the spirit of the age, which values autonomy over monarchy.

That same spirit is also being manifested toward the ultimate Monarch: almighty God. Fallen, sinful mankind seeks freedom from God’s rule (cf. Ps. 2:3); and people want to reduce the Holy One of Israel to their level, to remake Him in their image.

But God has news for them. He’s nothing like them (Ps. 50:21). God is unique. As King David acknowledged, “There is none like You” (2 Sam. 7:22). God is holy, righteous, and without equal.

The biblical Hebrew word is kadosh, “holy.” To be holy means to be set apart. God, in fact, tells us He is holy: “You shall be holy, for I the LORD your God am holy” (Lev. 19:2). Unlike us, He is completely separate from evil and wickedness. He is distinct, singular, peerless, and perfect.

Yet, despite His holiness, most people do not approach God with reverence. Instead, they often mock Him or jokingly call Him “the man upstairs.” Their profane casualness toward the Almighty is astonishing.

To avoid making the same mistake, we can learn from God’s servant Moses how to take God seriously when we stand in His holy presence.

At the Burning Bush (Ex. 3:1–6)
When Moses saw a bush burning in the wilderness near Mount Horeb (Sinai) but not being consumed, he went to investigate. It was then he heard God’s voice call him twice: “Moses, Moses!” (v. 4).

Moses replied, “Here I am” (v. 4), meaning, “I’m attentive and available.” God gave Moses two commands concerning how to approach the burning bush. First, don’t come any closer. Second, take off your dirty sandals. Why? Moses was standing on holy ground (v. 5) because of the presence of the Holy One of Israel.

Moses could only respond with fear and trembling (cf. Acts 7:32). He even hid his face to avoid looking at what might be the face of God. As God told Moses later, “You cannot see My face; for no man shall see Me, and live” (Ex. 33:20).

At Mount Sinai (Ex. 19:1—20:21; Lev. 10:1–3)
Three months after the Israelites’ Exodus from Egypt, God’s people stood exactly where Moses first encountered God’s holiness: at the foot of Mount Sinai (cf. Ex. 3:12). God brought them there to enter into a covenant with them that would make them His “holy nation” (19:6).

To meet with God, the Israelites had to prepare. Moses consecrated them, dedicating the nation to the Lord, and gave them strict orders not to touch Mount Sinai or even the boundaries surrounding it. Anyone who did so was to be put to death (vv. 12–15). God’s emphatic distinction between Himself and the congregation could not be missed.

When God made His entrance on the morning of the third day, He descended on Mount Sinai in a thick cloud, accompanied by thunder, lightning, a loud trumpet, fire, and great plumes of smoke. The whole mountain quaked (v. 16). The scene must have resembled a volcanic eruption.

The Israelites were terrified. They all trembled, including Moses (Heb. 12:21), and stood at a distance. So afraid were they for their lives that they begged Moses to act as their mediator so they wouldn’t have to hear the power of God’s voice (cf. Dt. 5:23–27).

Why did God make His presence known to His people in such a dramatic way? To instill in them a fear of Him so they wouldn’t sin (Ex. 20:20). He wanted them to understand He is holy, and they were not.

He provided another lesson in holiness while Israel camped at Mount Sinai. On the first day after their ordination as priests, Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron the high priest, approached the Lord with unauthorized fire. God killed them.

Whatever their reason (perhaps even out of sincere reverence), Nadab and Abihu approached God in a way God had not prescribed. They failed to follow protocol. So, God struck them down as an example and a loving warning to all who might follow in their footsteps.

In fact, the incident formed the basis of God’s directives to Aaron for the Day of Atonement (Lev. 16:1). Aaron was to learn from his sons’ deaths that he couldn’t “come at just any time into the Holy Place inside the veil . . . lest he die” (v. 2). God’s message was clear: “By those who come near Me I must be regarded as holy” (10:3).

Unfortunately, Moses himself had to learn this lesson the hard way.

At the Waters of Contention (Num. 20:1–30)
Much later, at Kadesh in the wilderness of Zin, the Israelites found themselves without water. As was their custom, they complained against Moses and Aaron.

So, God told Moses to assemble the nation at a certain rock. Instead of directing Moses to strike the rock once with his rod, as God had told Moses another time when the Israelites needed water (Ex. 17:6), God told Moses to speak to the rock; and the rock would yield water (Num. 20:8).

However, Moses lost his temper (Ps. 106:33). Calling the people rebels, he declared, “Must we bring water for you out of this rock?” implying the power came from him and Aaron, not God (Num. 20:10). Then Moses vented his frustration. He took the rod of God (Ex. 4:20), which God had used to perform so many miracles, and struck the rock—not once but twice.

Miraculously, water gushed out; but Moses’ insubordination cost him and his brother dearly: “Then the LORD spoke to Moses and Aaron, ‘Because you did not believe Me, to hallow Me in the eyes of the children of Israel, therefore you shall not bring this assembly into the land which I have given them’” (Num. 20:12; cf. 27:14; Dt. 32:51).

Moses failed to treat God as holy before the Israelites; and his loss of self-control lowered not only him in the people’s eyes, but God Himself because Moses was God’s representative. God could not let that pass unpunished.

His judgment on Moses upheld His holiness in Israel’s eyes. “These are the waters of Meribah [Contention], because the Israelites contended with the LORD, and his holiness was maintained among them” (Num. 20:13, NET).

God Alone Is Holy
Have we become too casual with God? Do we “come boldly to the throne of grace” (Heb. 4:16) flippantly, or with reverence? Do we treat God as holy all the time?

In the future, martyrs during the terrible, seven-year Tribulation will sing the song of Moses and the Lamb: “Who shall not fear You, O Lord, and glorify Your name? For You alone are holy” (Rev. 15:4). These believers will take God seriously and treat Him as holy, even if it costs them their lives.

Perhaps our generation should learn this song. Perhaps we also should learn from Moses the proper way to approach God, particularly when we worship Him. As He stipulated, “By those who come near Me I must be regarded as holy” (Lev. 10:3).

How would our corporate worship change if our hearts took God more seriously, if we followed Hebrews 12:28–29?

Therefore, since we receive a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let’s show gratitude, by which we may offer to God an acceptable service with reverence and awe; for our God is a consuming fire (NASB).

Perhaps it’s time we paid more attention to protocol because our holy, righteous God deserves all the reverence and respect we can give Him.

ENDNOTES

1. 1. Jennifer Hassan, “Jimmy Carter kissed the Queen Mother in 1977. Tabloids still talk about it,” The Washington Post, February 21, 2023
      (tinyurl.com/JC-Qmom).
   2. Yasmeen Serhan, “Do Brits Still Want the Monarchy? What Polls Say Ahead of Charles’ Coronation,” Time, May 2, 2023 (tinyurl.com/DoThey-1).

   Photo: Adobe Stock

   

   Bruce Scott is the director of Program Ministries and a Bible teacher for The Friends of Israel Gospel Ministry. He is also the author of The Feasts of Israel: Seasons of the Messiah.