⁹ Then the Lord said to Moses, “I will come to you in the thick cloud. I will speak to you. All the people will hear me talking to you. I will do this so that they will always believe what you tell them.”

Then Moses told God everything the people had said.

¹² I will kill them all with a terrible sickness. I will destroy them, and I will use you to make another nation. Your nation will be greater and stronger than these people.”

¹³ Then Moses said to the Lord, “If you do that, the Egyptians will hear about it! They know that you used your great power to bring your people out of Egypt. ¹⁴ The Egyptians have already told the people in Canaan about it. They already know you are the Lord. They know that you are with your people. They know that the people saw you. Those people know about the special cloud. They know you use the cloud to lead your people during the day. And they know the cloud becomes a fire to lead your people at night. ¹⁵ So you must not kill these people now. If you kill them, all the nations who have heard about your power will say, ¹⁶ ‘The Lord was not able to bring them into the land he promised them. So he killed them in the desert.’

¹⁷ “So now, Lord, show your strength! Show it the way you said you would. ¹⁸ You said, ‘The Lord is slow to become angry. He is full of great love. He forgives^[a] those who are guilty and break the law. But he always punishes those who are guilty. He punishes them, and he also punishes their children, their grandchildren, and even their great-grandchildren for those bad things.’ ¹⁹ Now, show your great love to these people. Forgive their sin. Forgive them the same way you have been forgiving them since the time they left Egypt until now.”

²⁰ The Lord answered, “Yes, I will forgive the people as you asked.

¹³ “The Lord also said to me, ‘I have watched these people. They are very stubborn! ¹⁴ Let me destroy these people completely, so no one will even remember their names. Then I will make another nation from you that is stronger and greater than these people.’

The Golden Calf

¹⁵ “Then I turned and came down from the mountain. The mountain was burning with fire. And the two stone tablets of the agreement were in my hands. ¹⁶ I looked and I saw you had sinned against the Lord your God. I saw the calf you made from melted gold! You stopped obeying the Lord so quickly. ¹⁷ So I took the two stone tablets and threw them down. There before your eyes I broke the stones into pieces. ¹⁸ Then I bowed down before the Lord with my face to the ground for 40 days and 40 nights, as I did before. I did not eat any food or drink any water. I did this because you had sinned so badly. You did the thing that is evil to the Lord, and you made him angry. ¹⁹ I was afraid of the Lord’s terrible anger. He was angry enough to destroy you, but the Lord listened to me again. ²⁰ The Lord was very angry with Aaron—enough to destroy him! So I also prayed for Aaron at that time. ²¹ I took that terrible thing, the calf you made, and burned it in the fire. I broke it into small pieces. And I crushed the pieces until they were dust. Then I threw the dust into the river that came down from the mountain.

Moses Asks God to Forgive Israel

²² “Also, at Taberah, Massah, and Kibroth Hattaavah you made the Lord angry. ²³ And you did not obey when the Lord told you to leave Kadesh Barnea. He said, ‘Go up and take the land I am giving you.’ But you refused to obey the Lord your God. You did not trust him. You did not listen to his command. ²⁴ All the time that I have known you, you have refused to obey the Lord.

²⁵ “So I bowed down before the Lord 40 days and 40 nights, because the Lord said he would destroy you. ²⁶ I prayed to the Lord. I said, ‘Lord God, don’t destroy your people. They belong to you. You freed them and brought them out of Egypt with your great power and strength. ²⁷ Remember your promise to your servants Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Forget how stubborn these people are. Don’t look at their evil ways or their sins. ²⁸ If you punish your people, the Egyptians might say, “The Lord was not able to take his people into the land he promised them. And he hated them. So he took them into the desert to kill them.” ²⁹ But they are your people, Lord. They belong to you. You brought them out of Egypt with your great power and strength.’