Acts 7:40

40 saying to Aaron, 'Make us gods who will go on before us! For this Moses, who led us out from the land of Egypt--we do not know what has happened to him!'

Acts 7:40 Meaning and Commentary

Acts 7:40

Saying unto Aaron, make us gods to go before us
This is a proof of their disobedience to the law of Moses, and of their rejection of him, and of the inclination of their hearts to the idolatry of the Egyptians; which shows the gross stupidity, as well as ingratitude of this people, to think that gods could be made; and that those that are made could go before them, be guides unto them, and protectors of them; when they have eyes, but see not, and hands, but handle not, and feet, but walk not:

for as for this Moses;
whom they speak of with great contempt, and in a very irreverent way:

which brought us out of the land of Egypt;
which they mention not with gratitude, but as reflecting upon him for doing it:

we wot not what is become of him;
they thought he was dead, according to the Targum of Jonathan on ( Exodus 32:1 ) they concluded he was consumed with fire on the mount which flamed with fire. F2 The following story is told by the Jews;

``when Moses went up on high, he said to the Israelites, at the end of forty days, at the beginning of the sixth hour I will come; at the end of forty days came Satan, and disturbed the world; he said to them, where is Moses your master? they answered him, he is gone up on high: he said to them, the sixth hour is come; they took no notice of him; he is dead (says he); they had no regard to him; he showed them the likeness of his bier; then they said to Aaron, "as for this man Moses"''


FOOTNOTES:

F2 T. Bab. Sabbat, fol. 89. 1. Vid. Jarchi & Baal Hatturim in Exod. xxxii. 1.

Acts 7:40 In-Context

38 This is the one who was in the congregation in the wilderness with the angel who spoke to him at Mount Sinai, and who [with] our fathers received living oracles to give to us,
39 to whom our fathers were not willing to become obedient, but rejected [him] and turned [back] in their hearts to Egypt,
40 saying to Aaron, 'Make us gods who will go on before us! For this Moses, who led us out from the land of Egypt--we do not know what has happened to him!'
41 And they manufactured a calf in those days, and offered up a sacrifice to the idol, and began rejoicing in the works of their hands.
42 But God turned away and gave them over to worship the host of heaven, just as it is written in the book of the prophets: 'You did not bring offerings and sacrifices to me [for] forty years in the wilderness, [did you], house of Israel?

Footnotes 1

  • [a]. A quotation from Exod 32:1, 23
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