Exodus 32

1 And when the people saw that Moses was long in coming down from the mountain, the people banded together against Aaron and said to him, “Get up and make us gods who will go ahead of us. As for this Moses, the man who brought us out of the land of Egypt — we do not know what has become of him.” 2 And Aaron said to them, “Take off the gold earrings that are in the ears of your wives and daughters, and bring them to me.” 3 And all the people took off the gold earrings that were in their ears and brought them to Aaron. 4 And he took them from their hands, and shaped them with an engraving tool, and made them into a cast-metal calf. And he said, “These are your gods, Israel, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt.” [a] 5 And when Aaron saw it, he built an altar in front of it; and Aaron made a proclamation: “Tomorrow is a feast of the Lord.” 6 And he rose early the next day and brought up whole burnt offerings and presented an offering of well-being. And the people sat down to eat and drink, and got up to play.

7 And the Lord spoke to Moses: “Go — hurry down from here. Your people, whom you brought out of the land of Egypt, have broken the law. 8 They have turned aside quickly from the road I commanded them. They have made themselves a calf, and bowed down to it, and sacrificed to it, and said: These are your gods, Israel, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt. [b] 10 So now let me alone, and in my burning anger against them I will wipe them out — and I will make you into a great nation.” 11 And Moses pleaded before the Lord God and said, “Why, Lord, does your anger burn against your people, whom you brought out of the land of Egypt with great strength and with your raised arm? 12 Never let the Egyptians say: With evil intent he brought them out, to kill them in the mountains and wipe them off the earth. Stop your burning anger, and be merciful over the harm to your people, 13 remembering Abraham and Isaac and Jacob, your servants, to whom you swore by your own self, saying: I will multiply your descendants like the stars of heaven for number; and all this land you promised to give to their descendants, and they will hold it forever.” 14 And the Lord was moved to mercy over the harm he had said he would do to his people. [c]

15 And Moses turned and went down from the mountain, with the two tablets of the witness in his hands — stone tablets written on both their sides; on this side and on that they were written. 16 And the tablets were the work of God, and the writing was the writing of God, cut into the tablets. 17 And Joshua heard the voice of the people as they shouted, and he said to Moses, “There is a sound of war in the camp.” 18 And he said, “It is not the sound of men leading a song of victory, and it is not the sound of men leading a cry of defeat. The sound of men striking up over wine is what I hear.” 19 And as he came near the camp, he saw the calf and the dancing; and burning with anger, Moses threw the two tablets out of his hands and shattered them at the foot of the mountain. 20 And he took the calf they had made and burned it up with fire, and ground it down fine, and scattered it over the water — and he made the children of Israel drink it. 21 And Moses said to Aaron, “What did this people do to you, that you have brought a great sin on them?” 22 And Aaron said to Moses, “Do not be angry, my lord. You yourself know the rush of this people. 23 They said to me: Make us gods who will go ahead of us; as for this Moses, the man who brought us out of Egypt — we do not know what has become of him. 24 So I said to them: Whoever has any gold, take it off. And they gave it to me, and I threw it into the fire — and out came this calf.”

25 And Moses saw that the people had run loose — for Aaron had let them run loose, a mockery in front of their adversaries. 26 Then Moses stood at the gate of the camp and said, “Who is for the Lord? Come to me.” And all the sons of Levi gathered to him. 27 And he said to them, “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: Each of you, put your sword on your thigh. Go through the camp and back, from gate to gate, and kill — each man his brother, each man his neighbor, each man the one nearest him.” 28 And the sons of Levi did as Moses told them, and about three thousand men fell from among the people that day. 29 And Moses said to them, “You have filled your hands today for the Lord — each man at the cost of his son or his brother — so that a blessing may be given to you.” [d]

30 And on the next day Moses said to the people, “You have sinned a great sin. Now I will go up to God, so that I may make atonement for your sin.” 31 And Moses went back to the Lord and said, “I beg you, Lord — this people has sinned a great sin: they have made themselves gods of gold. 32 And now, if you will forgive their sin — forgive. But if not, blot me out of your book, the one you have written.” 33 And the Lord said to Moses, “Whoever has sinned before me, I will blot him out of my book. 34 But now go, go down, and lead this people to the place I told you of. Look — my messenger goes ahead of you. And when the day comes for me to reckon, I will bring their sin down on them.” [e] 35 And the Lord struck the people for the making of the calf — the one Aaron made.