Exodus 32
1 And, when the people saw that Moses delayed to come down out of the mount, the people gathered themselves together unto Aaron, and said unto him—Up, make for us gods, who shall go before us, for, as for this Moses—the man who brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we know not what hath befallen him.
[(Moses/I) stayed on top of the mountain a long time]. When the people realized that he/I was not returning quickly, they gathered near Aaron and said to him, “We do not know what has happened to that man Moses who brought us here out of Egypt. So quickly, make us ([an idol/a statue of a god]) who will lead us!”
2 And Aaron said unto them, Break off the rings of gold, which are in the ears of your wives, of your sons and of your daughters, —and bring them unto me.
Aaron replied to them, “All right, [I will do that, but] tell your wives and your sons and your daughters to take off all their gold earrings and bring them to me.”
3 And all the people of themselves brake off the rings of gold which were in their ears, and brought them unto Aaron.
So the people did that. They took off all their gold earrings and brought them to Aaron.
4 And he received [the gold] at their hand, and fashioned it with a graving tool, and made it a molten calf, and they said—These, are thy gods, O Israel, who brought thee up, out of the land of Egypt.
He took all those gold earrings and melted them in a fire. He [poured the gold into a mold and] made a statue that looked like a young bull. The people saw it and said, “This is the god of us Israeli people! This is the one who brought us up from the land of Egypt!”
5 And when Aaron saw it, he built an altar before it. And Aaron made proclamation, and said, A festival to Yahweh, to-morrow!
When Aaron saw [what was happening], he built an altar in front of the [statue of the] young bull. Then he announced, “Tomorrow we will have a festival to honor Yahweh!”
6 So they rose up early, on the morrow, and offered ascending-sacrifices, and brought near peace-offerings, and the people sat down, to eat and to drink, and then rose up—to make sport!
So the people got up early the next morning and brought animals to kill and burn as sacrifices on the altar. They also brought sacrifices to maintain fellowship with Yahweh. Then they sat down to eat and drink [wine]. Then they got up and started dancing in a very immoral way.
7 Then spake Yahweh unto Moses—Go get thee down, for thy people whom thou hast brought up out of the land of Egypt have corrupted themselves.
Then Yahweh said to Moses/me, “Go back down from the mountain, because your people, the ones that you brought up here from Egypt, have [already] (become very depraved/wicked)!
8 They have turned aside quickly out of the way which I commanded them, they have made for themselves—a molten calf, and have bowed themselves down thereto and have sacrificed thereto, and have said. These, are thy gods, O Israel, who have brought thee up out of the land of Egypt.
They have already (left the road that I showed them/stopped obeying me)! They have made [a statue of] a young bull from melted gold. They have worshiped it and offered sacrifices to it. And they are saying, ‘This is the god of us Israeli people! This is the one who brought us up from Egypt!’”
9 So then Yahweh said unto Moses, —I have looked on this people, and lo! a stiff-necked people, it is.
Then Yahweh said to Moses/me, “I have seen that these people are very stubborn.
10 Now, therefore, let me alone, that mine anger may kindle upon them and that I may consume them, and may make of thee a great nation.
I am very angry with them, and so I am going to get rid of them. Do not try to stop me! Then I will cause you and your descendants to become a great nation.”
11 And Moses besought the face of Yahweh his God, —and said—Wherefore, O Yahweh, should thine anger kindle upon thy people, whom thou hast brought forth out of the land of Egypt with great might and with a firm hand?
But Moses/I pleaded with his/my God, Yahweh, and said, “Yahweh, (you should not be very angry with your people!/why are you so angry with your people [RHQ]?) These are the people whom you rescued from Egypt with very great power [MTY, DOU]!
12 Wherefore should the Egyptians speak saying—For mischief, hath he taken them forth to slay them among the mountains, and to make an end of them from off the face of the ground? Turn thou from the kindling of thine anger, and be grieved over the calamity to thy people,
Do not [do anything that would] allow the people of Egypt to say, ‘Their god led them out from our country, but [he did that] only [because he wanted] to kill them in the mountains and get rid of them completely [RHQ]!’ Stop being so angry! (Change your mind/Do not do what you have told me that you will do)! Do not do to your people this terrible thing [that you have just said that you will do]
13 Have remembrance of Abraham, of Isaac and of Israel thy servants to whom thou didst swear by thyself, and didst speak unto them saying, I will multiply your seed, as the stars of the heavens, —and, all this land of which I have spoken, will I give to your seed, and they shall inherit it to times age-abiding.
Think about your servants Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. You solemnly promised them, ‘I will enable you to have as many descendants as there are stars in the sky.’ You said to them, ‘I will give to your descendants all the land that I am promising to give them. It will be their land forever.’”
14 So then Yahweh was grieved, —over the calamity—which he had spoken of inflicting on his people.
So Yahweh changed his mind. He did not do to his people the terrible thing that he said he would do.
15 And Moses turned and went down out of the mount, with the two tables of testimony in his hand, —tables written upon on both sides of them, on this and on that, were they written.
Moses/I turned away from God and went down the mountain, carrying in his hands the two stone slabs on which Yahweh had engraved his commandments. He had written on both sides of the slabs.
16 Now as for, the tables, the work of God, they were, —and, as for the writing, the writing of God, it was, graven upon the tables.
God [himself] had made the slabs, and he was the one who had engraved the commandments on them.
17 And Joshua heard the noise of the people as they shouted, —so he said unto Moses—The noise of war, in the camp!
Joshua heard the very loud noise of the people shouting. So when he and I got near the camp, Joshua said, “There is a noise in the camp that sounds like [the noise of] a battle!”
18 But he said—Not the noise of the cry of heroism, nor yet the noise of the cry of defeat, —the noise of alternate song, do I hear.
But Moses/I replied, [“No], that is not the shouting that people do when they have won a victory or when they have been defeated [in a battle] What I hear is the sound of [loud] singing!”
19 And it came to pass when he drew near unto the camp, and saw the calf, and the dancings, that the anger of Moses kindled, and he cast out of his hands the tables, and brake them in pieces at the foot of the mountain.
As soon as Moses/I came close to the camp and saw the statue of the young bull and saw the people dancing, he/I became extremely angry. He/I threw the stone tablets that he/I was carrying down onto the ground, there at the base of the mountain.
20 Then took he the calf which they had made and burned it in the fire, and ground it till it became powder, and strewed it on the face of the waters, and made the sons of Israel drink.
Then he/I took the statue of the young bull that they had made and melted it in the fire. [When it cooled], he/I ground it into [fine] powder. Then he/I mixed the powder with water and forced the Israeli people to drink it.
21 And Moses said unto Aaron, What had this people done to thee, —that thou shouldst have brought upon them a great sin?
Then he/I said to Aaron, “What did these people do to you, with the result that you have made them commit such a terrible sin?”
22 And Aaron said, Let not the anger of my lord kindle, —thou thyself, knowest the people, that ready for mischief, they are.
Aaron replied, “Please do not be angry with me, sir. You know that these people are very determined to do evil things.
23 So they said to me—Make for us gods, who shall go before us, —for, as for this, Moses—the man who brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we know not what hath befallen him.
They said to me, ‘As for that man Moses, the one who brought us up here from the land of Egypt, we do not know what has happened to him. So make for us an idol that will lead us!’
24 And I said to them—Whosoever hath gold let them break it off, So they gave it to me, —and I cast it into the fire, and there came out—this calf.
So I said to them, ‘Everyone who is wearing [gold earrings] should take them off.’ So they [took them off and] gave them to me. I threw them into the fire, and out came this statue of a young bull!”
25 And Moses saw the people, that unbridled, they were, —for Aaron had given them the rein, for a whispering, among their enemies.
Moses/I saw that Aaron had allowed the people to become completely out of control and to do things that would make their enemies think the Israeli people were foolish.
26 So Moses took his stand in the gate of the camp, and said—Who is for Yahweh? …To me! Then gathered unto him all the sons of Levi,
So he/I stood at the entrance to the camp and shouted, “Everyone who is loyal to Yahweh should come [closer] to me!” So the descendants of Levi gathered around him/me.
27 And he said to them—Thus, saith Yahweh, God of Israel, Put ye every man his sword upon his thigh, —pass through and return from gate to gate in the camp, and slay ye every man his brother and every man his friend and every man his neighbour.
Then he/I said to them, “Yahweh, the God of us Israeli people, commands that every one of you should fasten your sword to your side, and then go through the camp from this entrance to the other one, and kill some of your relatives and your companions and your neighbors.”
28 So the sons of Levi did, according to the word of Moses, —and there fell from among the people on that day, about three thousand men.
The descendants of Levi did what Moses/I told them to do, and they killed 3,000 men on that day.
29 And Moses said—Install yourselves to-day, unto Yahweh, yea every man for his son and for his brother, —so will he bestow upon you to-day, a blessing.
Moses/I said to the descendants of Levi, “Today you have dedicated yourselves to serving Yahweh by (killing/not sparing) [even] your own sons and brothers, and as a result Yahweh will bless you.”
30 And it came to pass, on the morrow, that Moses said unto the people, Ye, have sinned a great sin, —Now, therefore, I must go up unto Yahweh, Peradventure, I may make a propitiatory-covering for your sin.
The next day, Moses/I said to the people, “You have committed a terrible sin. But I will now climb up the mountain again to talk with Yahweh. Perhaps I can [persuade him] to forgive you for sinning [like this].”
31 So Moses returned unto Yahweh, and said, —Oh now, this people hath sinned a great sin, and they have made for themselves—gods of gold.
So Moses/I went back up the mountain and said to Yahweh, “I am sorry to admit that these people have committed a terrible sin. They have made for themselves a gold idol and have worshiped it.
32 Now, therefore, if thou wilt forgive their sin, …but if not, blot me I pray thee out of thy book, which thou hast written,
But now I ask you to please forgive them for having sinned. If you will not forgive them, then erase my name from the book in which you have written [the names of your people].”
33 And Yahweh said unto Moses, —Him who hath sinned against me, must I blot out of my book.
But Yahweh said to Moses/me, “It is [only] those who have sinned against me whose names I will erase from that book.
34 Now, therefore, go lead the people to the place of which I spake to thee, lo! my messenger, shall go before thee, —But, in the day when I do visit, then will I visit upon them their sin.
Now you go back down and lead the [Israeli] people to the place that I told you about. Keep in mind that my angel will go in front of you. But, at the time that I determine, I will punish them for their sin.”
35 And Yahweh plagued the people, —for what they had done with the calf, which Aaron made.
[Later] Yahweh caused a plague to strike the people because they had told Aaron to make the gold [statue of a] young bull.
