Exodus 32:15-35

15 1Then Moses turned and went down from the mountain with the two tablets of the testimony in his hand, 2tablets which were written on both sides; they were written on one side and the other.
16 The tablets were God's work, and the writing was God's writing engraved on the tablets.
17 Now when Joshua heard the sound of the people as they shouted, he said to Moses, "There is a sound of war in the camp."
18 But he said, "It is not the sound of the cry of triumph, Nor is it the sound of the cry of defeat; But the sound of singing I hear."

Moses' Anger

19 It came about, as soon as Moses came near the camp, that 3he saw the calf and the dancing; and Moses' anger burned, and 4he threw the tablets from his hands and shattered them at the foot of the mountain.
20 5He took the calf which they had made and burned it with fire, and ground it to powder *, and scattered it over the surface of the water and made the sons of Israel drink it.
21 Then Moses said to Aaron, "What did this people do to you, that you have brought such great sin upon them?"
22 Aaron said, "Do not let the anger of my lord burn; you know the people yourself, 6that they are prone to evil.
23 "For 7they said to me, 'Make a god for us who will go before us; for this Moses, the man who brought us up from the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him.'
24 "I said to them, 'Whoever has any gold, let them tear it off.' So they gave it to me, and 8I threw it into the fire, and out came this calf."
25 Now when Moses saw that the people were out of control -for Aaron had 9let them get out of control to be a derision among their enemies -
26 then Moses stood in the gate of the camp, and said, "Whoever is for the LORD, come to me!" And all the sons of Levi gathered together to him.
27 He said to them, "Thus says the LORD, the God of Israel, 'Every man of you put his sword upon his thigh, and go * back and forth from gate to gate in the camp, and kill every man his brother, and every man his friend, and every man his neighbor.' "
28 So 10the sons of Levi did as Moses instructed, and about three thousand men of the people fell that day.
29 Then Moses said, "Dedicate yourselves today to the LORD -for every man has been against his son and against his brother -in order that He may bestow a blessing upon you today."
30 On the next day Moses said to the people, "11You yourselves have committed a great sin; and now I am going up to the LORD, perhaps I can 12make atonement for your sin."
31 Then Moses returned to the LORD, and said, "Alas, this people has committed a great sin, and they have made a 13god of gold for themselves.
32 "But now, if You will, forgive their sin -and if not, please blot me out from Your 14book which You have written!"
33 The LORD said to Moses, "Whoever * has sinned against Me, 15I will blot him out of My book.
34 "But go now, lead the people 16where * I told you. Behold, 17My angel shall go before you; nevertheless 18in the day when I punish, 19I will punish them for their sin."
35 20Then the LORD smote the people, because * of 21what they did with the calf which Aaron had made.

Cross References 21

  • 1. Deuteronomy 9:15
  • 2. Exodus 31:18
  • 3. Exodus 32:6; Deuteronomy 9:16
  • 4. Deuteronomy 9:17
  • 5. Deuteronomy 9:21
  • 6. Deuteronomy 9:24
  • 7. Exodus 32:1-4
  • 8. Exodus 32:4
  • 9. 1 Kings 12:28-30; 1 Kings 14:16
  • 10. Numbers 25:7-13; Deuteronomy 33:9
  • 11. 1 Samuel 12:20, 23
  • 12. Numbers 25:13
  • 13. Exodus 20:23
  • 14. Psalms 69:28; Isaiah 4:3; Daniel 12:1; Malachi 3:16, 17; Philippians 4:3; Revelation 3:5; Revelation 21:27
  • 15. Exodus 17:14; Deuteronomy 29:20; Psalms 9:5; Revelation 3:5
  • 16. Exodus 3:17
  • 17. Exodus 23:20
  • 18. Deuteronomy 32:35; Romans 2:5, 6
  • 19. Psalms 99:8
  • 20. Exodus 32:28
  • 21. Exodus 32:4, 24

Footnotes 17

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