Exodus 32
1 Now when the people saw that Moses was delayed in coming down from the mountain, they gathered around Aaron and said, “Come, make us gods who will go before us. As for this Moses who brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we do not know what has happened to him!”
And the people see that Moses is delaying to come down from the mountain, and the people assemble against Aaron, and say to him, “Rise, make gods for us, who go before us, for this Moses—the man who brought us up out of the land of Egypt—we have not known what has happened to him.”
2 So Aaron told them, “Take off the gold earrings that are on your wives and sons and daughters, and bring them to me.”
And Aaron says to them, “Break off the rings of gold which [are] in the ears of your wives, your sons, and your daughters, and bring [them] to me”;
3 Then all the people took off their gold earrings and brought them to Aaron.
and all the people break off the rings of gold which [are] in their ears, and bring [them] to Aaron,
4 He took the gold from their hands, and with an engraving tool he fashioned it into a molten calf. And they said, “These, O Israel, are your gods, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt!”
and he receives [it] from their hand, and fashions it with an engraving tool, and makes it [into] a molten calf, and they say, “These [are] your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt!”
5 When Aaron saw this, he built an altar before the calf and proclaimed: “Tomorrow shall be a feast to the LORD.”
And Aaron sees, and builds an altar before it, and Aaron calls, and says, “A festival to YHWH—tomorrow”;
6 So the next day they arose, offered burnt offerings, and presented peace offerings. And the people sat down to eat and drink, and got up to indulge in revelry.
and they rise early on the next day, and cause burnt-offerings to ascend, and bring peace-offerings near; and the people sit down to eat and to drink, and rise up to play.
7 Then the LORD said to Moses, “Go down at once, for your people, whom you brought up out of the land of Egypt, have corrupted themselves.
And YHWH says to Moses, “Go, descend, for your people whom you have brought up out of the land of Egypt have done corruptly,
8 How quickly they have turned aside from the way that I commanded them! They have made for themselves a molten calf and have bowed down to it. They have sacrificed to it and said, ‘These, O Israel, are your gods, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt.’”
they have quickly turned aside from the way that I have commanded them; they have made a molten calf for themselves, and bow themselves to it, and sacrifice to it, and say, These [are] your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt!”
9 The LORD also said to Moses, “I have seen this people, and they are indeed a stiff-necked people.
And YHWH says to Moses, “I have seen this people, and behold, it [is] a stiff-necked people;
10 Now leave Me alone, so that My anger may burn against them and consume them. Then I will make you into a great nation.”
and now, leave Me alone, and My anger burns against them, and I consume them, and I make you become a great nation.”
11 But Moses sought the favor of the LORD his God, saying, “O LORD, why does Your anger burn against Your people, whom You brought out of the land of Egypt with great power and a mighty hand?
And Moses appeases the face of his God YHWH and says, “Why, O YHWH, does Your anger burn against Your people, whom You have brought forth out of the land of Egypt with great power and with a strong hand?
12 Why should the Egyptians declare, ‘He brought them out with evil intent, to kill them in the mountains and wipe them from the face of the earth’? Turn from Your fierce anger and relent from doing harm to Your people.
Why do the Egyptians speak, saying, He brought them out in calamity to slay them among mountains, and to consume them from off the face of the ground? Turn back from the heat of Your anger, and relent from this calamity against Your people.
13 Remember Your servants Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, to whom You swore by Your very self when You declared, ‘I will make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky, and I will give your descendants all this land that I have promised, and it shall be their inheritance forever.’”
Be mindful of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Israel, Your servants, to whom You have sworn by Yourself, and to whom You speak: I multiply your seed as stars of the heavens, and all this land, as I have said, I give to your seed, and they have inherited [it] for all time”;
14 So the LORD relented from the calamity He had threatened to bring on His people.
and YHWH relents from the evil which He has spoken of doing to His people.
15 Then Moses turned and went down the mountain with the two tablets of the Testimony in his hands. They were inscribed on both sides, front and back.
And Moses turns, and goes down from the mountain, and the two tablets of the Testimony [are] in his hand, tablets written on both their sides; they [are] written on this [side] and on that [side];
16 The tablets were the work of God, and the writing was the writing of God, engraved on the tablets.
and the tablets are the work of God, and the writing is the writing of God, engraved on the tablets.
17 When Joshua heard the sound of the people shouting, he said to Moses, “The sound of war is in the camp.”
And Joshua hears the voice of the people in their shouting and says to Moses, “A noise of battle in the camp!”
18 But Moses replied: “It is neither the cry of victory nor the cry of defeat; I hear the sound of singing!”
And he says, “It is not the voice of the crying of might, nor is it the voice of the crying of weakness—I am hearing a voice of singing.”
19 As Moses approached the camp and saw the calf and the dancing, he burned with anger and threw the tablets out of his hands, shattering them at the base of the mountain.
And it comes to pass, when he has drawn near to the camp, that he sees the calf, and the dancing, and the anger of Moses burns, and he casts the tablets out of his hands, and breaks them below the mountain;
20 Then he took the calf they had made, burned it in the fire, ground it to powder, and scattered the powder over the face of the water. Then he forced the Israelites to drink it.
and he takes the calf which they have made, and burns [it] with fire, and grinds [it] until [it is] small, and scatters [it] on the face of the waters, and causes the sons of Israel to drink.
21 “What did this people do to you,” Moses asked Aaron, “that you have led them into so great a sin?”
And Moses says to Aaron, “What has this people done to you, that you have brought in a great sin on it?”
22 “Do not be enraged, my lord,” Aaron replied. “You yourself know that the people are intent on evil.
And Aaron says, “Do not let the anger of my lord burn; you have known the people, that it [is beset] with evil;
23 They told me, ‘Make us gods who will go before us. As for this Moses who brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we do not know what has happened to him!’
and they say to me, Make gods for us, who go before us, for this Moses—the man who brought us up out of the land of Egypt—we have not known what has happened to him;
24 So I said to them, ‘Whoever has gold, let him take it off,’ and they gave it to me. And when I threw it into the fire, out came this calf!”
and I say to them, Whoever has gold, let them break [it] off, and they give [it] to me, and I cast it into the fire, and this calf comes out.”
25 Moses saw that the people were out of control, for Aaron had let them run wild and become a laughingstock to their enemies.
And Moses sees the people, that it [is] unbridled, for Aaron has made it unbridled for contempt among its withstanders,
26 So Moses stood at the entrance to the camp and said, “Whoever is for the LORD, come to me.” And all the Levites gathered around him.
and Moses stands in the gate of the camp and says, “Who [is] for YHWH? [Come] to me!” And all the sons of Levi are gathered to him;
27 He told them, “This is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: ‘Each of you men is to fasten his sword to his side, go back and forth through the camp from gate to gate, and slay his brother, his friend, and his neighbor.’”
and he says to them, “Thus said YHWH, God of Israel: Each put his sword by his thigh, pass over and turn back from gate to gate through the camp, and each slay his brother, and each his friend, and each his relation.”
28 The Levites did as Moses commanded, and that day about three thousand of the people fell dead.
And the sons of Levi do according to the word of Moses, and there falls of the people on that day about three thousand men,
29 Afterward, Moses said, “Today you have been ordained for service to the LORD, since each man went against his son and his brother; so the LORD has bestowed a blessing on you this day.”
and Moses says, “Consecrate your hand to YHWH today, for a man [is] against his son, and against his brother, so as to bring a blessing on you today.”
30 The next day Moses said to the people, “You have committed a great sin. Now I will go up to the LORD; perhaps I can make atonement for your sin.”
And it comes to pass, on the next day, that Moses says to the people, “You have sinned a great sin, and now I go up to YHWH, perhaps I can atone for your sin.”
31 So Moses returned to the LORD and said, “Oh, what a great sin these people have committed! They have made gods of gold for themselves.
And Moses turns back to YHWH and says, “Ah, now this people has sinned a great sin, that they make a god of gold for themselves;
32 Yet now, if You would only forgive their sin.... But if not, please blot me out of the book that You have written.”
and now, if You take away their sin—and if not—please blot me out of Your scroll which You have written.”
33 The LORD replied to Moses, “Whoever has sinned against Me, I will blot out of My book.
And YHWH says to Moses, “Whoever has sinned against Me—I blot him out of My scroll;
34 Now go, lead the people to the place I described. Behold, My angel shall go before you. But on the day I settle accounts, I will punish them for their sin.”
and now, go, lead the people wherever I have spoken to you of; behold, My Messenger goes before you, and in the day of my charging—then I have charged their sin on them.”
35 And the LORD sent a plague on the people because of what they had done with the calf that Aaron had made.
And YHWH plagues the people because they made the calf which Aaron made.
