Exodus 32
32
The Gold Calf
1When the people saw that Moses delayed in coming down from the mountain, they gathered around Aaron and said to him, “Come, make us a god # Or us gods who will go before us because this Moses, the man who brought us up from the land of Egypt — we don’t know what has happened to him! ” # Ex 13:21; 24:18; Dt 9:9; Ac 7:40
2Then Aaron replied to them, “Take off the gold rings # Ex 35:22; Jdg 8:24-27 that are on the ears of your wives, your sons, and your daughters and bring them to me.” 3So all the people took off the gold rings that were on their ears and brought them to Aaron. 4He took the gold from their hands, fashioned it with an engraving tool, and made it into an image of a calf.
Then they said, “Israel, this is your God, # Or Israel, this is your god, or Israel, these are your gods who brought you up from the land of Egypt! ” # Dt 9:16; Jdg 17:3-4; 1Kg 12:28; Neh 9:18; Ps 106:19; Ac 7:41
5When Aaron saw this, he built an altar before it; then he made an announcement: “There will be a festival # Lv 23:2,37; 2Kg 10:20 to the Lord tomorrow.” 6Early the next morning they arose, offered burnt offerings, and presented fellowship offerings. The people sat down to eat and drink, then got up to play. # Nm 25:2; 1Co 10:7
7The Lord spoke to Moses: “Go down at once! For your people you brought up from the land of Egypt have acted corruptly. # Gn 6:11-12; Dt 9:12 8They have quickly turned from the way I commanded them; they have made for themselves an image of a calf. They have bowed down to it, sacrificed to it, and said, ‘Israel, this is your God, # Or Israel, this is your god, or Israel, these are your gods who brought you up from the land of Egypt.’ ” # Ex 20:3-4,23; 34:15; Dt 32:17; 1Kg 12:28 9The Lord also said to Moses: “I have seen this people, and they are indeed a stiff-necked # Ex 33:3,5; 34:9; 2Ch 30:8; Is 48:4; Ac 7:51 people. 10Now leave Me alone, so that My anger can burn against them and I can destroy them. Then I will make you into a great nation.” # Ex 22:24; Nm 14:12; Dt 9:14
11But Moses interceded with the Lord his God: “Lord, why does Your anger burn against Your people You brought out of the land of Egypt with great power and a strong hand? 12Why should the Egyptians say, ‘He brought them out with an evil intent to kill them in the mountains and wipe them off the face of the earth’? Turn from Your great anger and relent concerning this disaster planned for Your people. # Nm 14:13-16; Dt 9:18,26-29 13Remember Your servants Abraham, Isaac, and Israel — You swore to them by Your very self # Gn 22:16-18; Heb 6:13 and declared, ‘I will make your offspring as numerous as the stars of the sky and will give your offspring all this land that I have promised, and they will inherit it forever.’ ” # Gn 12:7; 13:15; 15:7,18; 26:4; 35:11-12 14So the Lord relented # 2Sm 24:16; Ps 106:45 concerning the disaster He said He would bring on His people.
15Then Moses turned and went down the mountain with the two tablets of the testimony in his hands. They were inscribed on both sides — inscribed front and back. 16The tablets were the work of God, and the writing was God’s writing, engraved on the tablets. # Ex 31:18; Dt 9:15
17When Joshua heard the sound of the people as they shouted, he said to Moses, “There is a sound of war in the camp.”
18But Moses replied:
It’s not the sound of a victory cry
and not the sound of a cry of defeat;
I hear the sound of singing!
19As he approached the camp and saw the calf and the dancing, Moses became enraged and threw the tablets out of his hands, smashing them at the base of the mountain. 20Then he took the calf they had made, burned it up, and ground it to powder. He scattered the powder over the surface of the water and forced the Israelites to drink the water.
21Then Moses asked Aaron, “What did these people do to you that you have led them into such a grave sin? ”
22“Don’t be enraged, my lord,” Aaron replied. “You yourself know that the people are intent on evil. # Gn 20:9; 26:10; Ex 14:11; Dt 9:16-17,21 23They said to me, ‘Make us a god # Or us gods who will go before us because this Moses, the man who brought us up from the land of Egypt — we don’t know what has happened to him! ’ 24So I said to them, ‘Whoever has gold, take it off,’ and they gave it to me. When I threw it into the fire, out came this calf! ”
25Moses saw that the people were out of control, for Aaron had let them get out of control, resulting in weakness before their enemies. # Hb obscure; or resulting in derision 26And Moses stood at the camp’s entrance and said, “Whoever is for the Lord, come to me.” And all the Levites gathered around him. 27He told them, “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says, ‘Every man fasten his sword to his side; go back and forth through the camp from entrance to entrance, and each of you kill his brother, his friend, and his neighbor.’ ” # Nm 25:5; Dt 33:9 28The Levites did as Moses commanded, and about 3,000 men fell dead that day among the people. 29Afterward Moses said, “Today you have been dedicated # Text emended; MT reads Today dedicate yourselves ; LXX, Vg read Today you have dedicated yourselves to the Lord, since each man went against his son and his brother. Therefore you have brought a blessing on yourselves today.” # Nm 25:11-13; Zch 13:3
30The following day Moses said to the people, “You have committed a grave sin. Now I will go up to the Lord; perhaps I will be able to atone for your sin.” # 1Sm 12:20; 2Sm 16:12
31So Moses returned to the Lord and said, “Oh, these people have committed a grave sin; they have made a god of gold for themselves. # Ex 20:23; Dt 9:18 32Now if You would only forgive their sin. But if not, please erase me from the book You have written.” # Ps 69:28; Dn 12:1; Rm 9:3; Php 4:3; Rv 3:5; 21:27
33The Lord replied to Moses: “I will erase whoever has sinned against Me from My book. # Dt 29:20; Ps 9:5 34Now go, lead the people to the place I told you about; see, My angel will go before you. But on the day I settle accounts, I will hold them accountable for their sin.” # Dt 32:35; Rm 2:5-6 35And the Lord inflicted a plague on the people for what they did with the calf Aaron had made.
Currently Selected:
Exodus 32: HCSB
Highlight
Share
Copy
Want to have your highlights saved across all your devices? Sign up or sign in
© 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2009 by Holman Bible Publishers, Nashville, Tennessee. All rights reserved.
Exodus 32
32
The Gold Bull Calf
(Deut 9.6–29)
1 #
Acts 7.40
When the people saw that Moses had not come down from the mountain but was staying there a long time, they gathered round Aaron and said to him, “We do not know what has happened to this man Moses, who led us out of Egypt; so make us a god#32.1 a god; or some gods. to lead us.”
2Aaron said to them, “Take off the gold earrings which your wives, your sons, and your daughters are wearing, and bring them to me.” 3So all the people took off their gold earrings and brought them to Aaron. 4#1 Kgs 12.28; Acts 7.41He took the earrings, melted them, poured the gold into a mould, and made a gold bull calf.
The people said, “Israel, this is our god, who led us out of Egypt!”
5Then Aaron built an altar in front of the gold bull calf and announced, “Tomorrow there will be a festival to honour the LORD.” 6#1 Cor 10.7Early the next morning they brought some animals to burn as sacrifices and others to eat as fellowship offerings. The people sat down to a feast, which turned into an orgy of drinking and sex.
7The LORD said to Moses, “Go back down at once, because your people, whom you led out of Egypt, have sinned and rejected me. 8They have already left the way that I commanded them to follow; they have made a bull calf out of melted gold and have worshipped it and offered sacrifices to it. They are saying that this is their god, who led them out of Egypt. 9I know how stubborn these people are. 10Now, don't try to stop me. I am angry with them, and I am going to destroy them. Then I will make you and your descendants into a great nation.”
11 #
Num 14.13–19
But Moses pleaded with the LORD his God and said, “LORD, why should you be so angry with your people, whom you rescued from Egypt with great might and power? 12Why should the Egyptians be able to say that you led your people out of Egypt, planning to kill them in the mountains and destroy them completely? Stop being angry; change your mind and do not bring this disaster on your people. 13#Gen 22.16–17; 17.8Remember your servants Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Remember the solemn promise you made to them to give them as many descendants as there are stars in the sky and to give their descendants all that land you promised would be their possession for ever.” 14So the LORD changed his mind and did not bring on his people the disaster he had threatened.
15Moses went back down the mountain, carrying the two stone tablets with the commandments written on both sides. 16God himself had made the tablets and had engraved the commandments on them.
17Joshua heard the people shouting and said to Moses, “I hear the sound of battle in the camp.”
18Moses said, “That doesn't sound like a shout of victory or a cry of defeat; it's the sound of singing.”
19When Moses came close enough to the camp to see the bull calf and to see the people dancing, he was furious. There at the foot of the mountain, he threw down the tablets he was carrying and broke them. 20He took the bull calf which they had made, melted it, ground it into fine powder, and mixed it with water. Then he made the people of Israel drink it. 21He said to Aaron, “What did these people do to you, that you have made them commit such a terrible sin?”
22Aaron answered, “Don't be angry with me; you know how determined these people are to do evil. 23They said to me, ‘We don't know what has happened to this man Moses, who brought us out of Egypt; so make us a god to lead us.’ 24I asked them to bring me their gold ornaments, and those who had any took them off and gave them to me. I threw the ornaments into the fire and out came this bull calf!”
25Moses saw that Aaron had let the people get out of control and make fools of themselves in front of their enemies. 26So he stood at the gate of the camp and shouted, “Everyone who is on the LORD's side come over here!” So all the Levites gathered round him, 27and he said to them, “The LORD God of Israel commands every one of you to put on his sword and go through the camp from this gate to the other and kill his brothers, his friends, and his neighbours.” 28The Levites obeyed, and killed about 3,000 men that day. 29Moses said to the Levites, “Today you have consecrated yourselves#32.29 Some ancient translations Today you have consecrated yourselves; Hebrew Consecrate yourselves today; or You have been consecrated today. as priests in the service of the LORD by killing your sons and brothers, so the LORD has given you his blessing.”
30The next day Moses said to the people, “You have committed a terrible sin. But now I will again go up the mountain to the LORD; perhaps I can obtain forgiveness for your sin.” 31Moses then returned to the LORD and said, “These people have committed a terrible sin. They have made a god out of gold and worshipped it. 32#Ps 69.28; Rev 3.5Please forgive their sin; but if you won't, then remove my name from the book in which you have written the names of your people.”
33The LORD answered, “It is those who have sinned against me whose names I will remove from my book. 34Now go, lead the people to the place I told you about. Remember that my angel will guide you, but the time is coming when I will punish these people for their sin.”
35So the LORD sent a disease on the people, because they had caused Aaron to make the gold bull calf.
Currently Selected:
:
Highlight
Share
Copy
Want to have your highlights saved across all your devices? Sign up or sign in
Good News Bible with Deuterocanonicals/Apocrypha. Scripture taken from the Good News Bible (r) (Today's English Version Second Edition, UK/British Edition). Copyright © 1992 British & Foreign Bible Society. Used by permission.