longed for more; so in v. 18 he asks to see the unveiled glory of
God, that very thing which no man in the flesh can ever see and
live; but, no, this cannot be. By referring to Exod. 33:18-23 we
find God's answer: "Thou canst not see my face.... thou shalt see
my back parts, but my face shall not be seen." (Num. 12:8 throws
light upon the subject, if compared with Exod. 33:11.)

"The secret remained unseen; the longing unsatisfied; and the
nearest approach to the beatific vision reached by him with whom
God spake face to face, as friend with friend, was to be hidden in
the cleft of the rock, to be made aware of an awful shadow, and to
hear the voice of the unseen."

2. THE PERSONALITY OF GOD: (Vs. Pantheism).

Pantheism maintains that this universe in its ever changing conditions
is but the manifestation of the one ever changing universal substance
which is God; thus all, everything is God, and God is everything;
God is all, all is God. Thus God is identified with nature and not
held to be independent of and separate from it. God is, therefore,
a necessary but an unconscious force working in the world.

The Bearing of the Personality of God on the Idea of Religion.

True religion may be defined as the communion between two persons:
God and man. religion is a personal relationship between God in
heaven, and man on the earth. If God were not a person there could
be no communion; if both God and man were one there could be no
communion, and, consequently, no religion. An independent personal
relationship on both sides is absolutely necessary to communion.