Exodus 33:16 presents a picture of being people set apart for God. The key was that God’s presence was with them and they had found favor in God’s sight. The surrounding verses show us that Moses wanted to know God’s ways and to see God’s glory. So Moses had no interest in being distinct (different) for the sake of drawing attention to himself. But Moses was so interested in knowing that God was with him that he was willing to be different from everyone else in order to accomplish what God wanted to do through him and through the Israelites.
Adrian Timmons 