In Hebrews 12:18-29, there is a fascinating contrast between two mountains: “You have not come to a mountain that can be touched and that is burning with fire; to darkness, gloom and storm…But you have come to Mount Zion, to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem. You have come to thousands upon thousands of angels in joyful assembly” (NIV). The writer was referring to Mount Sinai, where God gave the Law to Moses, and Mount Zion in Jerusalem, where Jesus sacrificed Himself to bring forgiveness to those who have sinned by breaking the law. It is a contrast between the law and the gospel, between the old covenant and the new covenant, between the Old Testament and the New Testament, and even between earth and heaven. Sinai is pictured as a mountain of fear, where people were in danger of being struck dead if they dared to enter the presence of the holy God. Zion is pictured as a mountain of joy and a source of life, even eternal life, where forgiven people can enter into the presence of God. The writer of Hebrews was talking about Mount Zion, the mountain on which Jerusalem sits and from which God ruled His people. But even more, he was talking about a spiritual Zion which cannot be touched. He was talking about heaven, the new Jerusalem, from which God continues to rule His people.

But make no mistake. There are not two Gods, only one. The same God commanded people to be holy and then offered a way for them to be forgiven for their failure to be holy, a way to be perceived as holy, and a way to actually become holy through Jesus. God, through Jesus, is offering us life and joy and freedom. But if we reject the God of Zion, we will get the God of Sinai, a consuming fire, who will punish us for our sins.