The Golden Calf

32 When the people saw that Moses ^(A)delayed to come down from the mountain, the people gathered themselves together to Aaron and said to him, ^(B)“Up, make us gods who shall ^(C)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.”

⁷ And the Lord said to Moses, ^(A)“Go down, for your people, whom you brought up out of the land of Egypt, have ^(B)corrupted themselves. ⁸ They have turned aside quickly out of the way that ^(C)I commanded them. They have made for themselves a golden 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!’” ⁹ And the Lord said to Moses, “I have seen this people, and behold, ^(D)it is a stiff-necked people. ¹⁰ Now therefore ^(E)let me alone, that ^(F)my wrath may burn hot against them and ^(G)I may consume them, in order that ^(H)I may make a great nation of you.”

¹¹ But ^(I)Moses implored the Lord his God and said, “O Lord, why does your wrath burn hot against your people, whom you have brought out of the land of Egypt with great power and with a mighty hand? ^12 (J)Why should the Egyptians say, ‘With evil intent did he bring them out, to kill them in the mountains and to consume them from the face of the earth’? Turn from your burning anger and ^(K)relent from this disaster against your people. ¹³ Remember Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, your servants, to whom you ^(L)swore by your own self, and said to them, ^(M)‘I will multiply your offspring as the stars of heaven, and all this land that I have promised I will give to your offspring, and they shall inherit it forever.’” ¹⁴ And the Lord ^(N)relented from the disaster that he had spoken of bringing on his people.