Exodus 32
1 And the people seeing that Moses delayed to come down from the mount, gathering together against Aaron, said: Arise, make us gods, that may go before us: for as to this Moses, the man that brought us out of the land of Egypt, we know not what has befallen him.
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!”
2 And Aaron said to them: Take the golden earrings from the ears of your wives, and your sons and daughters, and bring them to me.
So Aaron told them, “Take off the gold earrings that are on your wives and sons and daughters, and bring them to me.”
3 And the people did what he had commanded, bringing the earrings to Aaron.
Then all the people took off their gold earrings and brought them to Aaron.
4 And when he had received them, he fashioned them by founders’ work, and made of them a molten calf. And they said: These are thy gods, O Israel, that have brought thee out of the land of Egypt.
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!”
5 And when Aaron saw this, he built an altar before it, and made proclamation by a crier’s voice, saying: Tomorrow is the solemnity of the Lord.
When Aaron saw this, he built an altar before the calf and proclaimed: “Tomorrow shall be a feast to the LORD.”
6 And rising in the morning, they offered holocausts, and peace victims, and the people sat down to eat, and drink, and they rose up to play.
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.
7 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: Go, get thee down: thy people, which thou hast brought out of the land of Egypt, hath sinned.
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.
8 They have quickly strayed from the way which thou didst shew them: and they have made to themselves a molten calf, and have adored it, and sacrificing victims to it, have said: These are thy gods, O Israel, that have brought thee out of the land of Egypt.
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.’”
9 And again the Lord said to Moses: See that this people is stiffnecked:
The LORD also said to Moses, “I have seen this people, and they are indeed a stiff-necked people.
10 Let me alone, that my wrath may be kindled against them, and that I may destroy them, and I will make of thee a great nation.
Now leave Me alone, so that My anger may burn against them and consume them. Then I will make you into a great nation.”
11 But Moses besought the Lord his God, saying: Why, O Lord, is thy indignation kindled against thy people, whom thou hast brought out of the land of Egypt, with great power, and with a mighty hand?
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?
12 Let not the Egyptians say, I beseech thee: He craftily brought them out, that he might kill them in the mountains, and destroy them from the earth: let thy anger cease, and be appeased upon the wickedness of thy people.
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.
13 Remember Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, thy servants, to whom thou sworest by thy own self, saying: I will multiply your seed as the stars of heaven: and this whole land that I have spoken of, I will give to you seed, and you shall possess it for ever.
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.’”
14 And the Lord was appeased from doing the evil which he had spoken against his people.
So the LORD relented from the calamity He had threatened to bring on His people.
15 And Moses returned from the mount, carrying the two tables of the testimony in his hand, written on both sides,
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.
16 And made by the work of God: the writing also of God was graven in the tables.
The tablets were the work of God, and the writing was the writing of God, engraved on the tablets.
17 And Josue hearing the noise of the people shouting, said to Moses: The noise of battle is heard in the camp.
When Joshua heard the sound of the people shouting, he said to Moses, “The sound of war is in the camp.”
18 But he answered: It is not the cry of men encouraging to fight, nor the shout of men compelling to flee: but I hear the voice of singers.
But Moses replied: “It is neither the cry of victory nor the cry of defeat; I hear the sound of singing!”
19 And when he came nigh to the camp, he saw the calf, and the dances: and being very angry, he threw the tables out of his hand, and broke them at the foot of the mount:
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.
20 And laying hold of the calf which they had made, he burnt it, and beat it to powder, which he strowed into water, and gave thereof to the children of Israel to drink.
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.
21 And he said to Aaron: What has this people done to thee, that thou shouldst bring upon them a most heinous sin?
“What did this people do to you,” Moses asked Aaron, “that you have led them into so great a sin?”
22 And he answered him: Let not my lord be offended: for thou knowest this people, that they are prone to evil.
“Do not be enraged, my lord,” Aaron replied. “You yourself know that the people are intent on evil.
23 They said to me: Make us gods, that may go before us: for as to this Moses, who brought us forth out of the land of Egypt, we know not what is befallen him.
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!’
24 And I said to them: Which of you hath any gold? and they took and brought it to me: and I cast it into the fire, and this calf came out.
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!”
25 And when Moses saw that the people were naked, (for Aaron had stripped them by occasion of the shame of the filth, and had set them naked among their enemies, )
Moses saw that the people were out of control, for Aaron had let them run wild and become a laughingstock to their enemies.
26 Then standing in the gate of the camp, he said: If any man be on the Lord’s side let him join with me. And all the sons of Levi gathered themselves together unto him:
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.
27 And he said to them: Thus saith the Lord God of Israel: Put every man his sword upon his thigh: go, and return from gate to gate through the midst of the camp, and let every man kill his brother, and friend, and neighbour.
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.’”
28 And the sons of Levi did according to the words of Moses, and there were slain that day about three and twenty thousand men.
The Levites did as Moses commanded, and that day about three thousand of the people fell dead.
29 And Moses said: You have consecrated your hands this day to the Lord, every man in his son and in his brother, that a blessing may be given to you.
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.”
30 And when the next day was come, Moses spoke to the people: You have sinned a very great sin: I will go up to the Lord, if by any means I may be able to entreat him for your crime.
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.”
31 And returning to the Lord, he said: I beseech thee: this people hath sinned a heinous sin, and they have made to themselves gods of gold: either forgive them this trespass,
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.
32 Or if thou do not, strike me out of the book that thou hast written.
Yet now, if You would only forgive their sin.... But if not, please blot me out of the book that You have written.”
33 And the Lord answered him: He that hath sinned against me, him will I strike out of my book:
The LORD replied to Moses, “Whoever has sinned against Me, I will blot out of My book.
34 But go thou, and lead this people whither I have told thee: my angel shall go before thee. And I in the day of revenge will visit this sin also of theirs.
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.”
35 The Lord therefore struck the people for the guilt on occasion of the calf which Aaron had made.
And the LORD sent a plague on the people because of what they had done with the calf that Aaron had made.
