Exodus 33:4 (DRB)

Passage

And the people hearing these very bad tidings, mourned: and no man put on his ornaments according to custom.

Nearby Context

Exodus 33:2 And I will send an angel before thee, that I may cast out the Chanaanite, and the Amorrhite, and the Hethite, and the Pherezite, and the Hevite, and the Jebusite,

Exodus 33:3 That thou mayst enter into the land that floweth with milk and honey. For I will not go up with thee, because thou art a stiffnecked people; lest I destroy thee in the way.

Exodus 33:4 And the people hearing these very bad tidings, mourned: and no man put on his ornaments according to custom.

Exodus 33:5 And the Lord said to Moses: Say to the children of Israel: Thou art a stiffnecked people, once I shall come up in the midst of thee, and shall destroy thee. Now presently lay aside thy ornaments, that I may know what to do to thee.

Exodus 33:6 So the children of Israel laid aside their ornaments by Mount Horeb.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "people", "hearing", "very", "tidings", "mourned", "ornaments", and "custom". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "people" and "hearing", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 3's "That thou mayst enter into the land..." into verse 5's "And the Lord said to Moses Say...", so "people" and "hearing" belong inside that flow. In Exodus context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "people" and "hearing" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.