to Him, saying, “My Lord, show me that I may behold You.”
He replied, “You shall not see Me, but look at the mountain: if it stays firm in its place, then you will see Me.” When his Lord manifested Himself to the mountain, He crushed it to dust and Moses collapsed unconscious. When he came to, he sought his Lord’s forgiveness, and He accepted his repentance. The glory of God was likewise revealed to a congregation of prophets, and they saw around that glory myriads of angels.
David said:
“O Lord, when You passed through the land of Sinai, the earth quaked at Your presence and split apart in awe of You.”
He also said, as though addressing the sea and the mountains in astonishment:
“What ails you, O sea, that you flee—and you, O Jordan, that you turn back? What ails you, O mountains, that you skip like birds, and you lofty heights and hills, that you leap like lambs?”
Then, answering on their behalf, he added:
“At the presence of the Lord the very ground trembled.”
He continued: If the Messiah were the eternal Creator—or even united with Him—why did the mountains not quake before him, why did the rivers and seas not move according to his will? Why did no extraordinary signs appear from him surpassing those of the earlier prophets—such as walking upon the very surface of the air, reclining upon the shoulders of the wind, and doing without—