4. Then Moses carefully wrote down all the lord’s instructions. Early the next morning Moses got up and built an altar at the foot of the mountain. He also set up twelve pillars, one for each of the twelve tribes of Israel.
5. Then he sent some of the young Israelite men to present burnt offerings and to sacrifice bulls as peace offerings to the lord.
6. Moses drained half the blood from these animals into basins. The other half he splattered against the altar.
7. Then he took the Book of the Covenant and read it aloud to the people. Again they all responded, “We will do everything the lord has commanded. We will obey.”
8. Then Moses took the blood from the basins and splattered it over the people, declaring, “Look, this blood confirms the covenant the lord has made with you in giving you these instructions.”
9. Then Moses, Aaron, Nadab, Abihu, and the seventy elders of Israel climbed up the mountain.
10. There they saw the God of Israel. Under his feet there seemed to be a surface of brilliant blue lapis lazuli, as clear as the sky itself.
11. And though these nobles of Israel gazed upon God, he did not destroy them. In fact, they ate a covenant meal, eating and drinking in his presence!
12. Then the lord said to Moses, “Come up to me on the mountain. Stay there, and I will give you the tablets of stone on which I have inscribed the instructions and commands so you can teach the people.”
13. So Moses and his assistant Joshua set out, and Moses climbed up the mountain of God.
14. Moses told the elders, “Stay here and wait for us until we come back. Aaron and Hur are here with you. If anyone has a dispute while I am gone, consult with them.”
15. Then Moses climbed up the mountain, and the cloud covered it.