SCRIPTURE: EXODUS 32
BIBLE VERSES:
“When Moses approached the camp and saw the calf and the dancing, his anger burned and he threw the tablets out of his hands, breaking them to pieces at the foot of the mountain. And he took the calf the people had made and burned it in the fire; then he ground it to powder, scattered it on the water and made the Israelites drink it.” (Exodus 32:19-20)
“The Lord replied to Moses, “Whoever has sinned against me I will blot out of my book. Now go, lead the people to the place I spoke of, and my angel will go before you. However, when the time comes for me to punish, I will punish them for their sin.” And the Lord struck the people with a plague because of what they did with the calf Aaron had made.” (Exodus 32:33-35)
THE GOLDEN CALF (vs. 1-35)
When Moses did not come down for so long a time, the people told Aaron they wanted to make gods for them. Aaron told them to take gold and made it into an idol cast in the shape of a calf. Aaron built an altar in front of the calf and announced that there will be a festival tomorrow. The next day, the people sacrificed burnt offerings and presented fellowship offerings and sat down to eat and drink and got up to indulge in revelry.
The Lord told Moses to go down and told him the people had made themselves an idol cast in the shape of a calf. They bowed down and made sacrifices and consider it as their god. So, the Lord’s anger burn against the pople and wanted to destroy them. But Moses asked God to turn away His fierce anger. He reminded Him of His promise to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob to make their descendants as numerous as stars and give them the promised land.
Moses went down from the mountain with the two tablets of Testimony written by the Lord in his hands. When he approached the camp and saw the calf and the dancing, his anger burned and he threw the tablets out of his hands, breaking them to pieces at the foot of the mountain. And he took the calf they had made and burned it in the fire. Then, he ground it to power, scattered it on the water and made the Israelites drink it. Then Moses Aaron why he had led the people into such great sin. Aaron answered: “the people were asking about you who brought them out from Egypt. But we don’t know what has happened to you. So I told them, whoever has any gold jewelry, take it off. They they gave me the gold, and I threw it into the fire, and out came this calf” (v. 23-24)
Moses stood at the entrance to te camp and said: “Whoever is for the Lord, come to me” And all the Levites rallied to him. The he told each man to strap a sword to his side and go back to the camp from one end to the other, each killing his brother and friend an neighbor. The Levites did as Moses commanded, and that day, about 3000 people died.
Moses went back to the Lord to ask for His mercy and forgiveness. The Lord told Moses: “Whoever has sinned against me I will blot out of my book. When the time comes for me to punish, I will punish them for their sin” (v. 33-34). And the Lord struck the people with a plague because of what they did with the calf Aaron had made.
THOUGHTS:
God had led the Israelites, fed them and protected them from the enemy and made them part of the covenant. They had seen His glory and power. Yet, they became impatient when Moses did not come down for 40 days. In spite of all those marvelous experiences, they disobeyed God and lapsed into idolatry and immorality because of unbelief. Beware of impatience and unbelief. It will lead us to idolatry and immorality. God cannot work in us when man elevates anyone or anything above him. Do you have any false gods in your life?
Aaron was supposed to be a helper of Moses. But he had became a leader in helping the people sin. He gave in and let the people have their way. Church leaders must be firm in adhering to God’s Word. They should not compromise to the likes of the church members and be influenced by their pressures.
The the Lord was angry, Moses was quick to remind the Lord that Israel was His people and his promise to the patriarch. Moses interceded for Aaron and His people and yet he was not being appreciated. A spiritual leader must intercede for his flock even if he is not appreciated.