Exodus 32:5

5 And when Aaron had seen this thing, he builded an altar before the calf, and he cried by the voice of a crier, and said, Tomorrow is the solemnity of the Lord. (And when Aaron had seen this thing, he built an altar before the calf, and he cried by the voice of a crier, and said, Tomorrow shall be a Feast to the Lord.)

Exodus 32:5 Meaning and Commentary

Exodus 32:5

And when Aaron saw it
In what form it was, and what a figure it made, and how acceptable it was to the Israelites. The Targums of Jonathan and Jerusalem paraphrase it,

``and Aaron saw Hur slain before him;''

for reproving them for their idolatry, as the Midrash ^F5, quoted by Jarchi, says: and Aaron fearing they would take away his life if he opposed them,

he built an altar before it;
that sacrifice might be offered on it to it:

and Aaron made proclamation, and said, tomorrow [is] a feast to the
Lord;
that is, he gave orders to have it published throughout the camp, there would be solemn sacrifices offered up to the Lord, as represented by this calf, and a feast thereon, which was a public invitation of them to the solemnity: though some think this was a protracting time, and putting the people off till the morrow, who would have been for offering sacrifice immediately, hoping that Moses would come down from the mount before that time, and prevent their idolatry.

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FOOTNOTES:

F5 So Pirke Eliezer, c. 45.

Exodus 32:5 In-Context

3 The people did those things, that he commanded, and brought the earrings to Aaron;

4 and when he had taken those, he formed them by work of melting, and he made of them a molten calf (and he made a calf out of the melted gold). And they said, Israel, these be thy gods, that led thee out of the land of Egypt.

5 And when Aaron had seen this thing, he builded an altar before the calf, and he cried by the voice of a crier, and said, Tomorrow is the solemnity of the Lord. (And when Aaron had seen this thing, he built an altar before the calf, and he cried by the voice of a crier, and said, Tomorrow shall be a Feast to the Lord.)

6 And they rose (up) early, and offered burnt sacrifices, and peaceable sacrifices (and peace offerings); and the people sat (down) to eat and to drink, and (then) they rose up to play, or to scorn, for idolatry is (the) scorning of God.

7 And the Lord spake to Moses, and said, Go thou, go down, thy people hath sinned, whom thou leddest out of the land of Egypt. (And the Lord spoke to Moses, and said, Go thou, and go down now, for thy people, whom thou leddest out of the land of Egypt, have sinned.)