And Mount Sinai was altogether on a smoke, because the Lord descended upon it in fire: and the smoke thereof ascended as the smoke of a furnace, and the whole mount quaked greatly … the voice of the trumpet sounded long and waxed louder and louder … Exodus 19:18-19 KJV
Now Mount Sinai was all in smoke because the LORD descended upon it in fire; and its smoke ascended like the smoke of a furnace, and the whole mountain quaked violently. When the sound of the trumpet grew louder and louder …Exodus 19:18-19 NASB
And she brought forth her firstborn Son, and wrapped Him in swaddling clothes, and laid Him in a manger” Luke 2:7 KJV
And she gave birth to her firstborn son; and she wrapped Him in cloths, and laid Him in a manger… Luke 2:7 NASB
When the law was given at Sinai, it was attended by the greatest sight and sound display the world had yet seen. Thunder and lightning, mountains quaking and trumpets blaring; all was to impress on the onlookers something of the importance of the moment and the gravity of what was about to happen.
The glory of God descended on the mount; angels were in attendance. A lone figure ascended and disappeared into the cloud. Moses would receive the Law of the Lord amidst the solemn and terrifying display of the august majesty of Jehovah. The people, including Moses, did “exceedingly fear and quake” (Heb 12:21).
Boundaries were established. No one could come near or even touch the mountain (Ex 19:12). Death was the penalty for any disobedience. Distance and darkness, thundering and terror, accompanied the giving of the law. God had come down and, in His majesty, communed with Moses.
Fifteen hundred years later, God again “came down.” There were no trumpets; no burning fire or earthquakes to attract attention. The only barrier was the one that men in their unbelief erected. He came, approachable, knowable, touchable. He was nestled in the arms of a teenage girl. Shepherds, the lowest rung on Jewish society, came to see Him. An old man held Him in his arms in the temple.
The Great God of majesty and splendor now was a Babe wrapped in swaddling clothes and placed in a manger. Here were marks of poverty, two peasant parents from despised Nazareth. A carpenter who framed implements and tools with his hands would now be the legal guardian of the framer of worlds.
But glory did attend His coming. Angels descended to the fields that night and we are told that the glory of the Lord shone round about them. As at Sinai, the men were afraid, but this time, there were not blaring trumpets or warnings. There were words of comfort and “peace on earth, goodwill toward men.” There was an invitation to draw near and the assurance of acceptance.
If the angels which accompanied the message to earth were the same who had been present at Sinai, I wonder what they thought. Paul tells us that the grace of God which brought salvation to all men has appeared (Tit 2:11). That grace was a person, our Lord Jesus Christ.
Consider
Look at other contrasts between the occasion when the law was given and when Christ came.