Exodus 32 :: Revised Standard Version (RSV)

The Golden Calf

(Deu 9:6–29 )

Exo 32:1When the people saw that Moses delayed to come down from the mountain, the people gathered themselves together to Aaron, and said to him, "Up, make us gods, who shall go before us; as for this Moses, the man who brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him."

Exo 32:2

Exo 32:2And Aaron said to them, "Take off the rings of gold which are in the ears of your wives, your sons, and your daughters, and bring them to me."

Exo 32:3

Exo 32:3So all the people took off the rings of gold which were in their ears, and brought them to Aaron.

Exo 32:4

Exo 32:4And he received the gold at their hand, and fashioned it with a graving tool, and made a molten calf; and they said, "These are your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt!"

Exo 32:5

Exo 32:5When Aaron saw this, he built an altar before it; and Aaron made proclamation and said, "Tomorrow shall be a feast to the LORD."

Exo 32:6

Exo 32:6And they rose up early on the morrow, and offered burnt offerings and brought peace offerings; and the people sat down to eat and drink, and rose up to play.

Exo 32:7

Exo 32:7And the LORD said to Moses, "Go down; for your people, whom you brought up out of the land of Egypt, have corrupted themselves;

Exo 32:8

Exo 32:8they have turned aside quickly out of the way which I commanded them; they have made for themselves a molten calf, and have worshiped it and sacrificed to it, and said, 'These are your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt!'"

Exo 32:9

Exo 32:9And the LORD said to Moses, "I have seen this people, and behold, it is a stiff-necked people;

Exo 32:10

Exo 32:10now therefore let me alone, that my wrath may burn hot against them and I may consume them; but of you I will make a great nation."

Moses' Entreaty

Exo 32:11

Exo 32:11But Moses besought the LORD his God, and said, "O LORD, why does thy wrath burn hot against thy people, whom thou hast brought forth out of the land of Egypt with great power and with a mighty hand?

Exo 32:12

Exo 32:12Why should the Egyptians say, 'With evil intent did he bring them forth, to slay them in the mountains, and to consume them from the face of the earth'? Turn from thy fierce wrath, and repent of this evil against thy people.

Exo 32:13

Exo 32:13Remember Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, thy servants, to whom thou didst swear by thine own self, and didst say to them, 'I will multiply your descendants as the stars of heaven, and all this land that I have promised I will give to your descendants, and they shall inherit it for ever.'"

Exo 32:14

Exo 32:14And the LORD repented of the evil which he thought to do to his people.

Exo 32:15

Exo 32:15And Moses turned, and went down from the mountain with the two tables of the testimony in his hands, tables that were written on both sides; on the one side and on the other were they written.

Exo 32:16

Exo 32:16And the tables were the work of God, and the writing was the writing of God, graven upon the tables.

Exo 32:17

Exo 32:17When Joshua heard the noise of the people as they shouted, he said to Moses, "There is a noise of war in the camp."

Exo 32:18

Exo 32:18But he said, "It is not the sound of shouting for victory, or the sound of the cry of defeat, but the sound of singing that I hear."

Moses' Anger

Exo 32:19

Exo 32:19And as soon as he came near the camp and saw the calf and the dancing, Moses' anger burned hot, and he threw the tables out of his hands and broke them at the foot of the mountain.

Exo 32:20

Exo 32:20And he took the calf which they had made, and burnt it with fire, and ground it to powder, and scattered it upon the water, and made the people of Israel drink it.

Exo 32:21

Exo 32:21And Moses said to Aaron, "What did this people do to you that you have brought a great sin upon them?"

Exo 32:22

Exo 32:22And Aaron said, "Let not the anger of my lord burn hot; you know the people, that they are set on evil.

Exo 32:23

Exo 32:23For they said to me, 'Make us gods, who shall go before us; as for this Moses, the man who brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him.'

Exo 32:24

Exo 32:24And I said to them, 'Let any who have gold take it off'; so they gave it to me, and I threw it into the fire, and there came out this calf."

Exo 32:25

Exo 32:25And when Moses saw that the people had broken loose (for Aaron had let them break loose, to their shame among their enemies),

Exo 32:26

Exo 32:26then Moses stood in the gate of the camp, and said, "Who is on the LORD's side? Come to me." And all the sons of Levi gathered themselves together to him.

Exo 32:27

Exo 32:27And he said to them, "Thus says the LORD God of Israel, 'Put every man his sword on his side, and go to and fro from gate to gate throughout the camp, and slay every man his brother, and every man his companion, and every man his neighbor.'"

Exo 32:28

Exo 32:28And the sons of Levi did according to the word of Moses; and there fell of the people that day about three thousand men.

Exo 32:29

Exo 32:29And Moses said, "Today you have ordained yourselves for the service of the LORD, each one at the cost of his son and of his brother, that he may bestow a blessing upon you this day."

Exo 32:30

Exo 32:30On the morrow Moses said to the people, "You have sinned a great sin. And now I will go up to the LORD; perhaps I can make atonement for your sin."

Exo 32:31

Exo 32:31So Moses returned to the LORD and said, "Alas, this people have sinned a great sin; they have made for themselves gods of gold.

Exo 32:32

Exo 32:32But now, if thou wilt forgive their sin--and if not, blot me, I pray thee, out of thy book which thou hast written."

Exo 32:33

Exo 32:33But the LORD said to Moses, "Whoever has sinned against me, him will I blot out of my book.

Exo 32:34

Exo 32:34But now go, lead the people to the place of which I have spoken to you; behold, my angel shall go before you. Nevertheless, in the day when I visit, I will visit their sin upon them."

Exo 32:35

Exo 32:35And the LORD sent a plague upon the people, because they made the calf which Aaron made.

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Source: Transcribed from: The Holy Bible: Revised Standard Version containing the Old and New Testaments, translated from the original tongues: being the version set forth A.D. 1611, revised A.D. 1881-1885 and A.D. 1901: compared with the most ancient authorities and revised A.D. 1946-52. — 2nd ed. of New Testament A.D. 1971. There should be enough in the rest of the description to identify the text.

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Exodus Chapter 32 — Additional Translations: