Before Matan Torah, the Bnei Yisroel were warned not to climb onto Har Sinai, because: פֶּן יֶּהֶּרְ סוּ יט כא when they try to come close to Hashem inappropriately, they will be destroying themselves! And they are Chayav S’kila (stoning), the worst of the 4 Missos Bais Din! The same punishment that a M'chalel Shabbos B’farhesia (publicly) gets! Prior to Har Sinai, there are many, many warnings of not coming close to Har Sinai, again and again: פֶּן יֶּהֶּרְ סוּ , וְהִגְבַּלְת ,לֹא תִגַּע בוֹ י ד ,לֹא יוּכַּל ה ע ם לַּעֲלֹת ,הִש מְרוּ ל כֶּם עֲלוֹת ב ה ר don’t go up the mountain, don’t even touch it, make a boundary, etc. And indeed, it says twice: וַּיַּעֲמֹד ה ע ם מֵר חֹק ,וַּיַּעַּמְדוּ מֵר חֹק they stood from afar.
Keep your distance and control yourselves! And so many warnings about a death sentence: כ ל הַּנֹגֵעַּ ב ה ר מוֹת יוּמ ת, פֶּן יִפְרֹץ ב הֶּם, (ל שׁוֹן פִ רְ צ ה, יַּהֲ רוֹג ב הֶּ ם וְ יַּעֲ שֶּ ה ב הֶּ ם פִ רְ צ ה. רש"י ,)וְנ פַּל מִמֶּנוּ ר ב ,ס קוֹל יִס קֵל אוֹ י רֹה יִי רֶּה and again: פֶּן יֶּהֶּרְ סוּ ,פֶּן יִפְר ץ ב ם. And all this is a warning to get people to control themselves from getting close to Hashem! They have a burning lust for spirituality, and look how to Torah is totally against such a noble desire!
