ewq1938 said:
Yes it does. You simply misinterpret it through the dark glass of the doctrines of your denomination.
God had a face that Moses could not see, but he could see God's hand and back. That cannot be disputed. Claiming they are figurative contradicts the obvious and plain context of the event that transpired. If God has no actual face then Moses could not have seen it and not died but the truth is God has a literal face and if Moses saw it he would have literally died. Not a figurative face, not a figurative death.
In Walter Kaiser Jr's commentary on Exodus 24:9-10, he wrote:
That Moses and his company see “the God of Israel” at first appears to contradict 33:20; John 1:18; and 1 Timothy 6:16; but what they see is a “form [‘similitude’] of the Lord” (Nu 12:8), just as Ezekiel (Eze 1:26) and Isaiah (Isa 6:1) saw an approximation, a faint resemblance and a sensible adumbration [foreshadowing] of the incarnate Christ who was to come. There is a deliberate obscurity in the form and details of the one who produced such a splendid, dazzling effect on these observers (Kaiser1990:449).
In Scripture, we will meet passages that speak of God being 'seen' by people such as Abraham, Moses, one of the prophets, or others. We are to understand this as these people seeing either a theophany (a visible manifestation of God), or that they did see God but it was not and could not be the full glory of God. We know that Moses asked for this according to Exodus 33:18 (ESV), 'Please show me your glory'. What was God's reply? 'You cannot see my face, for man shall not see me and live' (Ex 33:20 ESV). So, nobody can see the full glory of God. God denied this to Moses and he denies it to everyone else.
We have examples in Scripture of how God made himself known to people in various forms:
(1) For Abraham and Lot it was from passing visitors;
(2) For Moses it was through a burning bush;
(3) The people of Israel encountered a pillar of fire and a cloud.
However, God has made it clear in Scripture that NOBODY can see the pure essence of God and live. God made this blatantly clear to Timothy: '... he who is the blessed and only Sovereign, the King of kings and Lord of lords, 16 who alone has immortality, who dwells in unapproachable light, whom no one has ever seen or can see. To him be honor and eternal dominion. Amen' (1 Tim 6:15-16 ESV).
This agrees with John 1;18 (ESV), 'No one has ever seen God'. That is, nobody has ever see the pure essence, the full glory of God - ever!
Tim Challies explained that to see God in his pure essence or radiant holiness, is 'like trying to stare at the sun—it cannot be done without destroying your eyes'.
Oz
Works consulted
Kaiser, Jr., W C 1990.
Exodus. In
The Expositor's Bible Commentary, vol 2, 285-498. Grand Rapids, Michigan: Regency Reference Library (Zondervan Publishing House).