Exodus 33:7-11

7 Now Moses used to take the tent and pitch it outside the camp, far off from the camp, and he called it the tent of meeting. And everyone who sought the Lord would go out to the tent of meeting, which was outside the camp. 8 Whenever Moses went out to the tent, all the people would rise up, and each would stand at his tent door, and watch Moses until he had gone into the tent. 9 When Moses entered the tent, the pillar of cloud would descend and stand at the entrance of the tent, and the Lord would speak with Moses. 10 And when all the people saw the pillar of cloud standing at the entrance of the tent, all the people would rise up and worship, each at his tent door. 11 Thus the Lord used to speak to Moses face to face, as a man speaks to his friend. When Moses turned again into the camp, his assistant Joshua the son of Nun, a young man, would not depart from the tent.

Although we have read of the instructions for the tabernacle—which will be set up in the midst of the Israelite camp—it has not yet been actually constructed. And, because of the Israelite idolatry, the Lord does not immediately come into the midst of the camp. Rather, Moses puts a tent up outside the camp, and he goes there to be with the Lord. Joshua is there to stand guard at the tent, and the people go there to seek the Lord. The Lord has not abandoned the people.

I think this is a good way of thinking about the consequences of our sin today—the Lord will not abandon us, but one of the consequences of our sin is that it puts up a barrier between us and the Lord. The Lord’s desire is to be close, but our sin pushes Him away.

This is exactly the way sin works between parents and children. A father wants to be close to his children, but when they tantrum and misbehave, it makes that kind of closeness temporarily impossible.