The Gold Calf
1 Now when the people saw that Mosesdelayed coming down from the mountain, the peoplegathered together to Aaron, and said to him,“Come, make us gods that shallgo before us; forasforthis Moses, the man whobrought us up out of the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him.”
2 And Aaron said to them, “Break off thegolden earrings whicharein the ears of your wives, your sons, and your daughters, and bringthemto me.”
3 So all the people broke off the golden earrings whichwerein their ears, and broughtthemto Aaron.
4 And he receivedthegoldfrom their hand, and he fashioned it with an engraving tool, and made a molded calf.
# Then they said, “Thisisyour god, O Israel, thatbrought you out of the land of Egypt!”
5 So when Aaron sawit,he built an altar before it. And Aaron made aproclamation and said, “Tomorrowisa feast to theLord.”
6 Then they rose early on the next day, offered burnt offerings, and brought peace offerings; and the peoplesat down to eat and drink, and rose up to play.
7 And theLordsaid to Moses,“Go, get down! For your people whom you brought out of the land of Egypthave corruptedthemselves.
8 They have turned aside quickly out of the way whichI commanded them. They have made themselves a molded calf, and worshiped it and sacrificed to it, and said,‘Thisisyour god, O Israel, that brought you out of the land of Egypt!’ ”
9 And theLordsaid to Moses,“I have seen this people, and indeed itisa stiff-necked people!
10 Now therefore,let Me alone, thatMy wrath may burn hot against them and I may consume them. AndI will make of you a great nation.”
11 Then Moses pleaded with theLordhis God, and said: “Lord, why does Your wrath burn hot against Your people whom You have brought out of the land of Egypt with great power and with a mighty hand?
12 Why should the Egyptians speak, and say, ‘He brought them out to harm them, to kill them in the mountains, and to consume them from the face of the earth’? Turn from Your fierce wrath, andrelent from this harm to Your people.
13 Remember Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, Your servants, to whom Youswore by Your own self, and said to them,‘I will multiply your descendants as the stars of heaven; and all this land that I have spoken of I give to your descendants, and they shall inherititforever.’ ”
14 So theLordrelented from the harm which He said He would do to His people.
15 AndMoses turned and went down from the mountain, and the two tablets of the Testimonywerein his hand. The tabletswerewritten on both sides; on the onesideand on the other they were written.
16 Now thetabletswerethe work of God, and the writingwasthe writing of God engraved on the tablets.
17 And when Joshua heard the noise of the people as they shouted, he said to Moses, “Thereisa noise of war in the camp.”
18 But he said:
“Itisnot the noise of the shout of victory,
Nor the noise of the cry of defeat,
Butthe sound of singing I hear.”
19 So it was, as soon as he came near the camp, thathe saw the calfandthe dancing. So Moses’ anger became hot, and he cast the tablets out of his hands and broke them at the foot of the mountain.
20 Then he took the calf which they had made, burneditin the fire, and grounditto powder; and he scatterediton the water and made the children of Israel drinkit.
21 And Moses said to Aaron,“What did this people do to you that you have broughtsogreat a sin upon them?”
22 So Aaron said, “Do not let the anger of my lord become hot.You know the people, that theyareseton evil.
23 For they said to me, ‘Make us gods that shall go before us;asforthis Moses, the man who brought us out of the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him.’
24 And I said to them, ‘Whoever has any gold, let them breakitoff.’ So they gaveitto me, and I cast it into the fire, and this calf came out.”
25 Now when Moses saw that the peoplewereunrestrained (for Aaronhad not restrained them, totheirshame among their enemies),
26 then Moses stood in the entrance of the camp, and said, “Whoeverison theLord’s side—cometo me!” And all the sons of Levi gathered themselves together to him.
27 And he said to them, “Thus says theLordGod of Israel: ‘Let every man put his sword on his side, and go in and out from entrance to entrance throughout the camp, andlet every man kill his brother, every man his companion, and every man his neighbor.’ ”
28 So the sons of Levi did according to the word of Moses. And about three thousand men of the people fell that day.
29 Then Moses said, “Consecrate yourselves today to theLord, that He may bestow on you a blessing this day, for every man has opposed his son and his brother.”
30 Now it came to pass on the next day that Moses said to the people,“You have committed a great sin. So now I will go up to theLord;perhaps I canmake atonement for your sin.”
31 Then Mosesreturned to theLordand said, “Oh, these people have committed a great sin, and havemade for themselves a god of gold!
32 Yet now, if You will forgive their sin—but if not, I pray,blot meout of Your book which You have written.”
33 And theLordsaid to Moses,“Whoever has sinned against Me, I willblot him out of My book.
34 Now therefore, go, lead the people totheplaceof which I havespoken to you.Behold, My Angel shall go before you. Nevertheless,in the day when I visit for punishment, I willvisit punishment upon them for their sin.”
35 So theLordplagued the people because ofwhat they did with the calf which Aaron made.