Exodus 32–34

The Gold Bull-Calf

32^*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^g 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*He 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*Early 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*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? ^12*Why 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*Remember 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.” ^14*So 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 three thousand men that day. ²⁹Moses said to the Levites, “Today you have consecrated yourselves^h 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*Please 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.

The Orders Israel to Leave Mount Sinai

33^*The Lord said to Moses, “Leave this place, you and the people you brought out of Egypt, and go to the land that I promised to give to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob and to their descendants. ²I will send an angel to guide you, and I will drive out the Canaanites, the Amorites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites. ³You are going to a rich and fertile land. But I will not go with you myself, because you are a stubborn people, and I might destroy you on the way.”

⁴When the people heard this, they began to mourn and did not wear jewellery any more. ⁵For the Lord had commanded Moses to say to them, “You are a stubborn people. If I were to go with you even for a moment, I would completely destroy you. Now take off your jewellery, and I will decide what to do with you.” ⁶So after they left Mount Sinai, the people of Israel no longer wore jewellery.

The Tent of the ’s Presence

⁷Whenever the people of Israel set up camp, Moses would take the sacred Tent and put it up some distance away from the camp. It was called the Tent of the Lord’s presence, and anyone who wanted to consult the Lord would go out to it. ⁸Whenever Moses went out there, the people would stand at the door of their tents and watch Moses until he entered it. ⁹After Moses had gone in, the pillar of cloud would come down and stay at the door of the Tent, and the Lord would speak to Moses from the cloud. ¹⁰As soon as the people saw the pillar of cloud at the door of the Tent, they would bow down. ¹¹The Lord would speak with Moses face to face, just as someone speaks with a friend. Then Moses would return to the camp. But the young man who was his helper, Joshua son of Nun, stayed in the Tent.

¹²Moses said to the Lord, “It is true that you have told me to lead these people to that land, but you did not tell me whom you would send with me. You have said that you know me well and are pleased with me. ¹³Now if you are, tell me your plans, so that I may serve you and continue to please you. Remember also that you have chosen this nation to be your own.”

¹⁴The Lord said, “I will go with you, and I will give you victory.”

¹⁵Moses replied, “If you do not go with us, don’t make us leave this place. ¹⁶How will anyone know that you are pleased with your people and with me if you do not go with us? Your presence with us will distinguish us from any other people on earth.”

¹⁷The Lord said to Moses, “I will do just as you have asked, because I know you very well and I am pleased with you.”

¹⁸Then Moses requested, “Please, let me see the dazzling light of your presence.”

^19*The Lord answered, “I will make all my splendour pass before you and in your presence I will pronounce my sacred name. I am the Lord, and I show compassion and pity on those I choose. ²⁰I will not let you see my face, because no one can see me and stay alive, ²¹but here is a place beside me where you can stand on a rock. ²²When the dazzling light of my presence passes by, I will put you in an opening in the rock and cover you with my hand until I have passed by. ²³Then I will take my hand away, and you will see my back but not my face.”

The Second Set of Stone Tablets

34The Lord said to Moses, “Cut two stone tablets like the first ones, and I will write on them the words that were on the first tablets, which you broke. ²Be ready tomorrow morning, and come up Mount Sinai to meet me there at the top. ³No one is to come up with you; no one is to be seen on any part of the mountain; and no sheep or cattle are to graze at the foot of the mountain.” ⁴So Moses cut two more stone tablets, and early the next morning he carried them up Mount Sinai, just as the Lord had commanded.

⁵The Lord came down in a cloud, stood with him there, and pronounced his holy name, the Lord.^{i 6*}The Lord then passed in front of him and called out, “I, the Lord, am a God who is full of compassion and pity, who is not easily angered and who shows great love and faithfulness. ^7*I keep my promise for thousands of generations^j and forgive evil and sin; but I will not fail to punish children and grandchildren to the third and fourth generation for the sins of their parents.”

⁸Moses quickly bowed down to the ground and worshipped. ⁹He said, “Lord, if you really are pleased with me, I ask you to go with us. These people are stubborn, but forgive our evil and our sin, and accept us as your own people.”

The Covenant Is Renewed

¹⁰The Lord said to Moses, “I now make a covenant with the people of Israel. In their presence I will do great things such as have never been done anywhere on earth among any of the nations. All the people will see what great things I, the Lord, can do, because I am going to do an awesome thing for you. ¹¹Obey the laws that I am giving you today. I will drive out the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites, as you advance. ¹²Do not make any…