Exodus 32

The Golden Calf

1 And the people saw that Moses delayed to come down from the mountain, and the people gathered opposite Aaron, and they said to him, "Come, make for us gods who will go before us, because this Moses, the man who brought us up from the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him."
2 And Aaron said to them, "Take off the rings of gold that [are] on the ears of your wives, your sons, and your daughters, and bring [it] to me."
3 And all the people took off the rings of gold that [were] on their ears and brought [it] to Aaron.
4 And he took from their hand, and he shaped it with a tool, and he made it a cast-image bull calf, and they said, "These are your gods, Israel, who brought you up from the land of Egypt."
5 And Aaron saw, and he built an altar before it, and Aaron called, and he said, "A feast for Yahweh tomorrow."
6 And they started early the next day, and they offered burnt offerings, and they presented fellowship offerings, and the people sat to eat and drink, and they rose up to revel.
7 And Yahweh spoke to Moses, "Go, go down because your people behave corruptly, whom you brought up from the land of Egypt.
8 They have turned aside quickly from the way that I commanded them; they have made for themselves a cast-image bull calf, and they bowed to it, and they sacrificed to it, and they said, 'These are your gods, Israel, who brought you up from the land of Egypt.'"
9 And Yahweh said to Moses, "I have seen this people, and, indeed, they [are] a stiff-necked people.
10 And now leave me [alone] so that {my anger may blaze} against them, and let me destroy them, and I will make you into a great nation."
11 And Moses {implored Yahweh} his God, and he said, "Why, Yahweh, should {your anger blaze} against your people whom you brought up from the land of Egypt with great power and with a strong hand?
12 Why should [the] Egyptians {say}, 'With evil [intent] he brought them out to kill them in the mountains and wipe them from the face of the earth'? Turn from {your fierce anger} and relent concerning the disaster for your people.
13 Remember Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, your servants, to whom you swore by yourself, and you told them, 'I will multiply your offspring like the stars of the heavens, and all this land that I promised I will give to your offspring, and they will inherit [it] forever.'"
14 And Yahweh relented concerning the disaster that he had {threatened} to do to his people.
15 And Moses turned and went down from the mountain, and the two tablets of the testimony [were] in his hand, tablets written on their two sides; {on the front and on the back} they were written.
16 And the tablets, they [were] the work of God; and the writing, it [was] the writing of God engraved on the tablets.
17 And Joshua heard the sound of the people in their shouting, and he said to Moses, "A sound of war [is] in the camp."
18 But he said, "There is not a sound of shouting of victory, and there is not a sound of shouting of defeat. I hear a sound of singing."
19 {And} as he came near to the camp, he saw the bull calf and dancing, and {Moses became angry}, and he threw the tablets from his hand, and he broke them under the mountain.
20 And he took the bull calf that they had made, and he burned [it] with the fire, and he crushed [it] until it became fine, and he scattered [it] on the surface of the water, and he made the {Israelites} drink.
21 And Moses said to Aaron, "What did this people do to you that you brought on them [such] a great sin?"
22 And Aaron said, "{Let not my lord become angry}. You yourself know the people, that {they are intent on evil}.
23 And they said to me, 'Make for us gods who will go before us, because this Moses, the man who brought us up from the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him.'
24 And I said to them, 'Whoever [has] gold, take [it] off.' And they gave [it] to me, and I threw it in the fire, and out came this bull calf."
25 And Moses saw the people, that they [were] running wild because Aaron had allowed them to run wild, for a laughingstock among {their enemies}.
26 And Moses stood at the entrance of the camp, and he said, "Whoever [is] for Yahweh, to me." And all the sons of Levi were gathered to him.
27 And he said to them, "Thus says Yahweh, the God of Israel, 'Put each his sword on his side. Go {back and forth} from gate to gate in the camp, and kill, each his brother and each his friend and each his close relative.'"
28 And the sons of Levi did according to the word of Moses, and from the people on that day about three thousand persons fell.
29 And Moses said, "{You are ordained} today for Yahweh, because each [has been] against his son and against his brother and so bringing on you today a blessing."
30 {And} the next day Moses said to the people, "You have sinned a great sin. And now I will go up to Yahweh. Perhaps I can make atonement for your sin."
31 And Moses returned to Yahweh, and he said, "Alas, this people has sinned a great sin and made for themselves gods of gold.
32 And now if you will forgive their sin--and if not, please blot me from your scroll that you have written."
33 And Yahweh said to Moses, "Whoever has sinned against me I will blot him from my scroll.
34 And now go, lead the people to where I spoke to you. Look, my angel will go before you, and on the day [when] I punish I will punish them [for] their sin."
35 And Yahweh afflicted the people because they had made the bull calf that Aaron had made.

Exodus 32 Commentary

Chapter 32

The people cause Aaron to make a golden calf. (1-6) God's displeasure, The intercession of Moses. (7-14) Moses breaks the tables of the law, He destroys the golden calf. (15-20) Aaron's excuse, The idolaters slain. (21-29) Moses prays for the people. (30-35)

Verses 1-6 While Moses was in the mount, receiving the law from God, the people made a tumultuous address to Aaron. This giddy multitude were weary of waiting for the return of Moses. Weariness in waiting betrays to many temptations. The Lord must be waited for till he comes, and waited for though he tarry. Let their readiness to part with their ear-rings to make an idol, shame our niggardliness in the service of the true God. They did not draw back on account of the cost of their idolatry; and shall we grudge the expenses of religion? Aaron produced the shape of an ox or calf, giving it some finish with a graving tool. They offered sacrifice to this idol. Having set up an image before them, and so changed the truth of God into a lie, their sacrifices were abomination. Had they not, only a few days before, in this very place, heard the voice of the Lord God speaking to them out of the midst of the fire, Thou shalt not make to thyself any graven image? Had they not themselves solemnly entered into covenant with God, that they would do all he had said to them, and would be obedient? ch. 24:7 . Yet before they stirred from the place where this covenant had been solemnly made, they brake an express command, in defiance of an express threatening. It plainly shows, that the law was no more able to make holy, than it was to justify; by it is the knowledge of sin, but not the cure of sin. Aaron was set apart by the Divine appointment to the office of the priesthood; but he, who had once shamed himself so far as to build an altar to a golden calf, must own himself unworthy of the honour of attending at the altar of God, and indebted to free grace alone for it. Thus pride and boasting were silenced.

Verses 7-14 God says to Moses, that the Israelites had corrupted themselves. Sin is the corruption of the sinner, and it is a self-corruption; every man is tempted when he is drawn aside of his own lust. They had turned aside out of the way. Sin is a departing from the way of duty into a by-path. They soon forgot God's works. He sees what they cannot discover, nor is any wickedness of the world hid from him. We could not bear to see the thousandth part of that evil which God sees every day. God expresses the greatness of his just displeasure, after the manner of men who would have prayer of Moses could save them from ruin; thus he was a type of Christ, by whose mediation alone, God would reconcile the world to himself. Moses pleads God's glory. The glorifying God's name, as it ought to be our first petition, and it is so in the Lord's prayer, so it ought to be our great plea. And God's promises are to be our pleas in prayer; for what he has promised he is able to perform. See the power of prayer. In answer to the prayers of Moses, God showed his purpose of sparing the people, as he had before seemed determined on their destruction; which change of the outward discovery of his purpose, is called repenting of the evil.

Verses 15-20 What a change it is, to come down from the mount of communion with God, to converse with a wicked world. In God we see nothing but what is pure and pleasing; in the world nothing but what is sinful and provoking. That it might appear an idol is nothing in the world, Moses ground the calf to dust. Mixing this powder with their drink, signified that the backslider in heart should be filled with his own ways.

Verses 21-29 Never did any wise man make a more frivolous and foolish excuse than that of Aaron. We must never be drawn into sin by any thing man can say or do to us; for men can but tempt us to sin, they cannot force us. The approach of Moses turned the dancing into trembling. They were exposed to shame by their sin. The course Moses took to roll away this reproach, was, not by concealing the sin, or putting any false colour upon it, but by punishing it. The Levites were to slay the ringleaders in this wickedness; yet none were executed but those who openly stood forth. Those are marked for ruin who persist in sin: those who in the morning were shouting and dancing, before night were dying. Such sudden changes do the judgments of the Lord sometimes make with sinners that are secure and jovial in their sin.

Verses 30-35 Moses calls it a great sin. The work of ministers is to show people the greatness of their sins. The great evil of sin appears in the price of pardon. Moses pleads with God for mercy; he came not to make excuses, but to make atonement. We are not to suppose that Moses means that he would be willing to perish for ever, for the people's sake. We are to love our neighbour as ourselves, and not more than ourselves. But having that mind which was in Christ, he was willing to lay down his life in the most painful manner, if he might thereby preserve the people. Moses could not wholly turn away the wrath of God; which shows that the law of Moses was not able to reconcile men to God, and to perfect our peace with him. In Christ alone, God so pardons sin as to remember it no more. From this history we see, that no unhumbled, carnal heart, can long endure the holy precepts, the humbling truths, and the spiritual worship of God. But a god, a priest, a worship, a doctrine, and a sacrifice, suited to the carnal mind, will ever meet with abundance of worshippers. The very gospel itself may be so perverted as to suit a worldly taste. Well is it for us, that the Prophet like unto Moses, but who is beyond compare more powerful and merciful, has made atonement for our souls, and now intercedes in our behalf. Let us rejoice in his grace.

Footnotes 21

  • [a]. Or "arise" or "get up"
  • [b]. Literally "my nose may become hot"
  • [c]. Literally "implored the face of Yahweh"
  • [d]. Literally "your nose become hot"
  • [e]. Literally "say, saying"
  • [f]. Or "ground"
  • [g]. Literally "the heat of your nose"
  • [h]. Literally "spoken"
  • [i]. Literally "from this and from this"
  • [j]. Literally "and it was"
  • [k]. Literally "the nose of Moses became hot"
  • [l]. Literally "sons/children of Israel"
  • [m]. Literally "let not the nose of my lord become hot"
  • [n]. Literally "they in evil"
  • [o]. Or "out of control," "running loose"
  • [p]. Or "to be out of control," "to run loose"
  • [q]. Literally "those arising against them"
  • [r]. Literally "through and come back"
  • [s]. Literally "three thousands of man"
  • [t]. Literally "your hands are filled"
  • [u]. Literally "and it was"

Chapter Summary

INTRODUCTION TO EXODUS 32

This chapter gives an account of the idolatry of the Israelites making and worshipping a golden calf, Ex 32:1-6 the information of it God gave to Moses, bidding him at the same time not to make any suit in their favour, that he might consume them, and make a large nation out Moses's family, Ex 32:7-10 the intercession of Moses for them, in which he succeeded, Ex 32:11-14 his descent from the mount with the two tables in his hands, accompanied by Joshua, when he was an eyewitness of their idolatry, which raised his indignation, that he cast the two tables out of his hands and broke them, took the calf and burnt it, and ground it to powder, and made the children of Israel drink of it, Ex 32:15-20 the examination of Aaron about the fact, who excused himself, Ex 32:21-24 the orders given to the Levites, who joined themselves to Moses, to slay every man his brother, which they did to the number of 3000 men, Ex 32:25-29 another intercession for them by Moses, which gained a respite of them for a time, for they are threatened to be visited still for their sin, and they were plagued for it, Ex 32:30-35.

Exodus 32 Commentaries

Scripture quotations marked (LEB) are from the Lexham English Bible. Copyright 2012 Logos Bible Software. Lexham is a registered trademark of Logos Bible Software.