Exodus 32:1–14

THE GOLD CALF

32When the people saw that Moses delayed in coming down from the mountain, they gathered around Aaron and said to him, “Come, make gods for us 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!”^j

²Aaron replied to them, “Take off the gold rings^k 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 them, fashioned it with an engraving tool, and made it into an image of a calf.

Then they said, “Israel, these are your gods, who brought you up from the land of Egypt!”^l

⁵When Aaron saw this, he built an altar in front of it and made an announcement: “There will be a festival^m 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, and got up to party.ⁿ

⁷The Lord spoke to Moses: “Go down at once! For your people you brought up from the land of Egypt have acted corruptly.^{o 8}They 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, these are your gods, who brought you up from the land of Egypt.’ ”^{p 9}The Lord also said to Moses, “I have seen this people, and they are indeed a stiff-necked^q 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.”^a

¹¹But Moses sought the favor of 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 eliminate them from the face of the earth’? Turn from your fierce anger and relent concerning this disaster planned for your people.^{b 13}Remember your servants Abraham, Isaac, and Israel—you swore to them by yourself^c 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.’ ”^{d 14}So the Lord relented^e concerning the disaster he had said he would bring on his people.