Said: If I have found grace in thy sight: O Lord, I beseech thee, that thou wilt go with us, (for it is a stiffnecked people,) and take away our iniquities and sin, and possess us.

“ילך נא אדני בקרבנו LET MY LORD, I PRAY THEE, GO AMONG US as Thou hast promised (cf. Exodus 33:14), since Thou forgivest iniquity. And even if it be a stiff-necked people and they have rebelled against Thee and Thou didst on that account say, (Exodus 30:3) “lest I consume thee in the way” — yet pardon Thou our iniquity etc. — כי is sometimes used in place of (in the sense of) אם, “if”. ונחלתנו. AND TAKE US FOR THINE INHERITANCE — make us a special inheritance unto Thyself. This is the same request as that contained in (Exodus 33:16) “that we should be different, I and thy people [from all other peoples]” — which means that You should not let Your Shechinah rest upon the other peoples of the world (cf. Rashi on this verse).”

“FOR IT IS A STIFFNECKED PEOPLE. This is to be understood in its literal sense. G-d is to go in their midst because they are a stiffnecked people, for now that the Holy One, blessed be He, became reconciled with them, His Presence amongst those who are stiffnecked would be better than that of the angel. For He will want to increase their blessings more, since they are His people and His inheritance. And just as at the time of anger it was better for them that He send before them an angel, because they are a stiffnecked people, just as He said, lest I consume thee in the way, so at the time of good-will it is better for them that the Divine Glory go with them, because they are a stiffnecked people, and He would more readily show grace and mercy upon His servants. And G-d answered him that He would do so, that He would make the covenant and do marvels because of it, just as Moses had asked for, so that we are distinguished, I and Thy people., Verse 16. He said, before all thy people I will do marvels… and all the people amongst which thou art shall see, because all these great and tremendous things He would do with Moses and for his sake, and the people would merely be in the covenant. It is not possible, however, to explain that G-d was promising that He would now do with Israel wonders such as have not been wrought before and in all the earth, nor in any nation, for [we do not find] that after this [statement] there were any wonders done for them, greater than those which had been wrought for them at the beginning in Egypt and at the sea; on the contrary, at first there were wrought and done for them greater things. Rather, the purport thereof hints at the dwelling of the Divine Glory amongst them, and at G-d being with Moses, for splendor and for beauty, 28:2. in hidden and wondrous matters, as he said, ‘v’niphlinu’ (so that we are distinguished), Verse 16. [which is of the root peleh — wonder], and as I have explained. May the Holy One, blessed be He, show us wonders in His Torah.”

“And he said, if now I have found grace in thy sight,.... Or "seeing now", for he could have no doubt upon his mind but that he had found grace and favour in the sight of God, since he had caused his goodness and glory to pass before him, and made such a proclamation of his grace and mercy to him; but he takes it for granted, and improves it, and argues upon it, as follows: O Lord, let my Lord, I pray thee, go amongst us; as the Lord had signified as if he would not go among them, but leave them to the conduct of a created angel; and Moses had before prayed that his presence or face might go with them, Exo 33:3 and now having some fresh tokens of the favour and good will of God towards him, renews his request with great earnestness and importunity, entreating the Lord Jehovah the Father, that Moses's Lord Jehovah the Son, the Angel of God's presence, in whom his name was, might go with them, as he had said he should: for it is a stiffnecked people; and therefore have need of such an one to be with them, to rule and govern them, to restrain and keep them within due bounds; or "though (m) it is a stiffnecked people"; for this is the reason given by the Lord why he would not go among them, Exo 33:3 wherefore Moses prays that he would go, notwithstanding this; he owns the character of them was just, yet humbly prays that God would nevertheless vouchsafe his presence: and pardon our iniquity, and our sin; which he had the greater reason to hope he would, since he had just proclaimed his name, a God pardoning iniquity, transgression, and sin; and, the more to gain his suit, makes himself a party concerned, calling the sin committed, "our iniquity, and our sin"; even his among the rest, who had found grace in the sight of God, and therefore entreats others might also, since they were all sinners, and there was forgiveness with him: and take us for thine inheritance; to possess and enjoy, protect and defend, cultivate and improve, keep and preserve for ever. (m) Quamvis, Piscator, Patrick; so R. Marinus in Aben Ezra; and some in Abendana.”

“he said, If now I have found grace in thy sight, O Lord, let my Lord, I pray thee, go among us--On this proclamation, he, in the overflowing benevolence of s heart, founded an earnest petition for the Divine Presence being continued with the people; and God was pleased to give His favorable answer to Moses' intercession by a renewal of His promise under the form of a covenant, repeating the leading points that formed the conditions of the former national compact.”

“On this manifestation of mercy, Moses repeated the prayer that Jehovah would go in the midst of Israel. It is true the Lord had already promised that His face should go with them (Exo 33:14); but as Moses had asked for a sign of the glory of the Lord as a seal to the promise, it was perfectly natural that, when this petition was granted, he should lay hold of the grace that had been revealed to him as it never had been before, and endeavour to give even greater stability to the covenant. To this end he repeated his former intercession on behalf of the nation, at the same time making this confession, "For it is a stiff-necked people; therefore forgive our iniquity and our sin, and make us the inheritance." Moses spoke collectively, including himself in the nation in the presence of God. The reason which he assigned pointed to the deep root of corruption that had broken out in the worship of the golden calf, and was appropriately pleaded as a motive for asking forgiveness, inasmuch as God Himself had assigned the natural corruption of the human race as a reason why He would not destroy it again with a flood (Gen 8:21). Wrath was mitigated by a regard to the natural condition. - נחל in the Kal, with an accusative of the person, does not mean to lead a person into the inheritance, but to make a person into an inheritance; here, therefore, to make Israel the possession of Jehovah (Deu 4:20; Deu 9:26, cf. Zac 2:12). Jehovah at once declared (Exo 34:10) that He would conclude a covenant, i.e., restore the broken covenant, and do marvels before the whole nation, such as had not been done in all the earth or in any nation, and thus by these His works distinguish Israel before all nations as His own property (Exo 33:16). The nation was to see this, because it would be terrible; terrible, namely, through the overthrow of the powers that resisted the kingdom of God, every one of whom would be laid prostrate and destroyed by the majesty of the Almighty.”