Exodus 19.18 says, 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. This is actually another amazing theophany. That means that it's an appearance of Jesus before he came as the babe in a manger in Bethlehem, born of the Virgin Mary, and before his name Jesus was known. It's still him. Once you learn to look out for these pre-incarnate appearances of Jesus in the Old Testament, it really adds a fascinating element to your Bible reading and study. And we've gone over and over the fact that the Bible teaches that when the Lord appears in visible form, it is the Lord Jesus, the image of the invisible God, in one of these pre-incarnate appearances to mankind, and this text is no different. The nation of Israel is looking up and they see the Lord, who is Jesus, descending upon Mount Sinai in fire. Can you imagine what that scene looked like? Paul says in Hebrews 12, 29, for our God is a consuming fire. We tend to spiritualize this much of the time, but God's fiery presence is referred to numerous times in the scripture and is connected to his judgment upon false religion and sin. In Hebrews, Paul is quoting Moses from the book of Deuteronomy, who made this statement when warning against worshiping idols. In Deuteronomy 4, 23 and 24, we read Moses saying, take heed unto yourselves, lest ye forget the covenant of the Lord your God, which he made with you, and make you a graven image, or the likeness of anything, which the Lord thy God hath forbidden thee. For the Lord thy God is a consuming fire. even a jealous God. And then again, before crossing into the promised land, Moses is preparing the people of Israel to follow Joshua. And he says in Deuteronomy 9.3, understand therefore this day that the Lord thy God is he which goeth over before thee as a consuming fire. He shall destroy them and he shall bring them down before thy face. So shalt thou drive them out and destroy them quickly as the Lord hath said unto thee. Moses describes the Lord as a consuming fire. Very similar to our text in Exodus where the Lord descends in fire. And that might also remind you of the announcement of the birth of Samson, the judge. In Judges 13, 20, it says, for it came to pass when the flame went up toward heaven from off the altar that the angel of the Lord ascended ascended in the flame of the altar. And Manoah and his wife looked on it and fell on their faces to the ground. I think we would too. And if you've been listening to these About Jesus devotionals, you know that the angel of the Lord is Jesus. So we see Jesus ascending in fire in the flame of the altar here in Judges, just as we saw him descending upon Mount Sinai in the fire. And when Jesus returns, it's described in Revelation 19, 12, his eyes were as a flame of fire. And Paul describes the second coming in 2 Thessalonians 1, 7 and 8. And to you who are troubled, rest with us when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with his mighty angels in flaming fire. taking vengeance on them that know not God and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. So when the Lord Jesus returns, he will return in flaming fire, similar to the way he descended upon Mount Sinai in the fire. Now, this may sound scary a little bit to some of you, but if you reject Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, it ought to sound scary. But born-again Bible believers in Jesus Christ can be thankful that we'll never have to be on the receiving end of the Lord's flaming fire of vengeance because our sins were paid for by that same Jesus who took our punishment upon himself. Our sins are paid in full. And for that, we will praise Him and give Him glory forever and ever and ever. Amen.