Exodus

                                   Chapter 32

  1. And when the people saw that Moses delayed to come down out
     of the mount, the people gathered themselves together unto
     Aaron, and said unto him, Up, make us gods, which shall go
     before us; for as for this Moses, the man that brought us up
     out of the land of Egypt, we wot not what is become of him.
  2. And Aaron said unto them, Break off the golden earrings,
     which are in the ears of your wives, of your sons, and of
     your daughters, and bring them unto me.
  3. And all the people brake off the golden earrings which were
     in their ears, and brought them unto Aaron.
  4. And he received them at their hand, and fashioned it with a
     graving tool, after he had made it a molten calf: and they
     said, These be thy gods, O Israel, which brought thee up out
     of the land of Egypt.
  5. And when Aaron saw it, he built an altar before it; and
     Aaron made proclamation, and said, To morrow is a feast to
     the LORD.
  6. And they rose up early on the morrow, and offered burnt
     offerings, and brought peace offerings; and the people sat
     down to eat and to drink, and rose up to play.
  7. And the LORD said unto Moses, Go, get thee down; for thy
     people, which thou broughtest out of the land of Egypt, have
     corrupted themselves:
  8. They have turned aside quickly out of the way which I
     commanded them: they have made them a molten calf, and have
     worshipped it, and have sacrificed thereunto, and said,
     These be thy gods, O Israel, which have brought thee up out
     of the land of Egypt.
  9. And the LORD said unto Moses, I have seen this people, and,
     behold, it is a stiffnecked people:
 10. Now therefore let me alone, that my wrath may wax hot
     against them, and that I may consume them: and I will make
     of thee a great nation.
 11. And Moses besought the LORD his God, and said, LORD, why
     doth thy wrath wax hot against thy people, which thou hast
     brought forth out of the land of Egypt with great power, and
     with a mighty hand?
 12. Wherefore should the Egyptians speak, and say, For mischief
     did he bring them out, 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.
 13. Remember Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, thy servants, to whom
     thou swarest by thine own self, and saidst unto them, I will
     multiply your seed as the stars of heaven, and all this land
     that I have spoken of will I give unto your seed, and they
     shall inherit it for ever.
 14. And the LORD repented of the evil which he thought to do
     unto his people.
 15. And Moses turned, and went down from the mount, and the two
     tables of the testimony were in his hand: the tables were
     written on both their sides; on the one side and on the
     other were they written.
 16. And the tables were the work of God, and the writing was the
     writing of God, graven upon the tables.
 17. And when Joshua heard the noise of the people as they
     shouted, he said unto Moses, There is a noise of war in the
     camp.
 18. And he said, It is not the voice of them that shout for
     mastery, neither is it the voice of them that cry for being
     overcome: but the noise of them that sing do I hear.
 19. And it came to pass, as soon as he came nigh unto the camp,
     that he saw the calf, and the dancing: and Moses' anger
     waxed hot, and he cast the tables out of his hands, and
     brake them beneath the mount.
 20. And he took the calf which they had made, and burnt it in
     the fire, and ground it to powder, and strawed it upon the
     water, and made the children of Israel drink of it.
 21. And Moses said unto Aaron, What did this people unto thee,
     that thou hast brought so great a sin upon them?
 22. And Aaron said, Let not the anger of my lord wax hot: thou
     knowest the people, that they are set on mischief.
 23. For they said unto me, Make us gods, which shall go before
     us: for as for this Moses, the man that brought us up out of
     the land of Egypt, we wot not what is become of him.
 24. And I said unto them, Whosoever hath any gold, let them
     break it off. So they gave it me: then I cast it into the
     fire, and there came out this calf.
 25. And when Moses saw that the people were naked; (for Aaron
     had made them naked unto their shame among their enemies:)
 26. Then Moses stood in the gate of the camp, and said, Who is
     on the LORD's side? let him come unto me. And all the sons
     of Levi gathered themselves together unto him.
 27. And he said unto them, Thus saith the LORD God of Israel,
     Put every man his sword by his side, and go in and out from
     gate to gate throughout the camp, and slay every man his
     brother, and every man his companion, and every man his
     neighbour.
 28. And the children of Levi did according to the word of Moses:
     and there fell of the people that day about three thousand
     men.
 29. For Moses had said, Consecrate yourselves today to the LORD,
     even every man upon his son, and upon his brother; that he
     may bestow upon you a blessing this day.