MONDAY
Last week we studied God’s covenant with the people of Israel at the base of Mt. Sinai. The people had willingly agreed to uphold the terms of this covenant relationship. The Ten Commandments had already been given (Ex. 20:1-17). Moses had gone up on the mountain with Joshua, who was his aid to receive the full instructions of the Law. The text indicates that he was up there for 40 days (Ex. 24:12-18). While he is up there, in the cloud signifying the presence of God, Moses leaves Aaron and Hur in charge of the people. In this time frame, we read the events described in Exodus 32.
Exodus 32:1-6 The Golden Calf 1 When the people saw that Moses was so long in coming down from the mountain, they gathered around Aaron and said, “Come, make us gods who will go before us. As for this fellow Moses who brought us up out of Egypt, we don’t know what has happened to him.”
This story is likely familiar to many of us. If it is familiar to you, you are most likely left with the impression of how crazy it is that these people would so quickly fall into idolatry. Putting ourselves in the place of the people may help us understand this terrible sin. It certainly doesn’t justify it, but hopefully it will help us understand it and see ourselves in them a little better. Moses had gone up on the mountain that was on fire with smoke billowing up from it. There was thunder and lightening all around it. The mountain was shaking. Moses had been up on the mountain for 40 days! That’s over a month. Think of what you were doing a month ago. It’s not far fetched to think that Moses had died up there and now they had to forge their own path forward. With this in mind, the people’s actions, here, may be a little more understandable.
The verb translated “gathered around” is always used in contexts that suggest hostility. So, this likely wasn’t a friendly conclave. Aaron likely felt threatened and so more compelled to do what they asked.
The people’s statement to Aaron reveals a significant flaw in their understanding of the Exodus. They think that Moses had brought them up out of Egypt. They have yet to come to the proper conclusion that it was Yahweh who delivered them from Egypt. Therefore, even if Moses was dead, they still had Yahweh.
2 Aaron answered them, “Take off the gold earrings that your wives, your sons and your daughters are wearing, and bring them to me.” 3 So all the people took off their earrings and brought them to Aaron. 4 He took what they handed him and made it into an idol cast in the shape of a calf, fashioning it with a tool. Then they said, “These are your gods, Israel, who brought you up out of Egypt.”
The term translated “take off” in verse 2 implies more “tear off” or “break off.” Instead of envisioning people unclasping their earrings and handing them over to Aaron, it’s more likely that they ripped them off, tearing the cartilage of their ear in the process.
5 When Aaron saw this, he built an altar in front of the calf and announced, “Tomorrow there will be a festival to Yahweh.” 6 So the next day the people rose early and sacrificed burnt offerings and presented fellowship offerings. Afterward they sat down to eat and drink and got up to indulge in revelry.
The eating, drinking and revelry sound similar to the covenant ratification ceremony with the elders from chapter 24 (24:11). However, the term “revelry” doesn’t occur in chapter 24. This term generally means “laughter” or “playing” but it can be used in contexts where sex is implied as well. This is likely similar to a pagan ceremony that was common in Egypt and the whole ancient world. As we saw last week, this is not how God is to be approached.
There is some disagreement as to whether the people are here creating a new god or they are thinking this idol is a representation of Yahweh. Did they violate the first or the second commandment or both? In favor of a new god is the demand to “make us gods who will go before us” in verse 1. The Hebrew term for god is “elohim.” This is always a grammatically plural word (“el” is the singular), even when it is referring to Yahweh. However, here the pronouns surrounding the term are also plural. When it is used in reference to Yahweh, the pronouns are always singular, even if the word itself if plural. Even though there is only one calf, they refer to the gods as plural. This is likely a note to connect this worship to the pagan religions of the ancient world that all had many gods. So, this god was one of many in their minds, now, instead of Yahweh being the one true God.
It’s interesting that they fashioned a golden calf. The bull, you’ll remember, was highly regarded in Egyptian culture. It represented power, domination and reproduction. The Apis bull was thought to be the embodiment of the gods Ptah and Osiris. Even Aman-Re could be depicted in the form of a bull or a ram. This, then, seems to be an instance of their former life coming back to the surface. They had spent their entire lives immersed in Egyptian, pagan mythology. In spite of the great displays of Yahweh’s power that they had seen, these old patterns die hard.
In favor of thinking that the people viewed this idol as a representation of Yahweh is the end of verse four. Aaron tells them that these are the gods who brought them up out of Egypt. In verse 5 he says they are holding a festival to Yahweh.
In many ways the answer is irrelevant, as either way they have violated the terms of the covenant. This is the big idea of this section. Within a month and a half the people have violated the covenant stipulations that God has just established with his people. They had just pledged their exclusive, eternal loyalty to Yahweh in the form of a blood oath. They had pledged to obey everything he has said. Yet, here they are violating at least the second commandment.
This is a theme that will continue to play out throughout the Old Testament. Knowing the Law is not sufficient to correct the idolatry of the human heart. As humans we constantly seek to trust in something else other than God for our provision, protection, and, ultimately, life. They wanted a new god, or a representation of God, to go before them. Instead of waiting for God, they took matters into their own hands and attempted to manipulate God to do what they wanted on their timing. On this Ross and Oswalt write:
“Throughout the Old Testament, one of the common synonyms for “trust” is “wait” (Isa 30:18; 40:31). It is only when we lay aside our timetables and plans, refusing to run ahead of God that we have really learned to trust him. When we define the need, the means to meet it, and the time when it shall be met, this is not trust at all but merely manipulation. And what happens when we seek to meet our needs for ourselves? This passage answers that question very clearly: Our gifts are misused; giving is coerced; professionals are exalted; ordinary people are reduced to spectators; creation is worshiped; power and productivity are made ultimate; God is misperceived; and far from bringing him near, we further alienate ourselves from him.” Allen Ross and John N. Oswalt, Cornerstone Biblical Commentary: Genesis, Exodus, vol. 1 (Carol Stream, IL: Tyndale House Publishers, 2008), 517.
Reflection
Praise be to God in Jesus. Under the New Covenant, he has given us a new heart and causes us to walk in his statutes (Ez. 36:26-27). Praise God for the New Covenant in Christ.
Also reflect on your ability to wait on the Lord as a form of trust in him. How are you tempted to take matters into your own hands, attempting to even manipulate God, instead of trusting in God and waiting on him.