Exodus 32 – NIRV & CCB

New International Reader’s Version

Exodus 32:1-35

Israel Worships a Golden Calf

1The people saw that Moses took a long time to come down from the mountain. So they gathered around Aaron. They said to him, “Come. Make us a god that will lead us. This fellow Moses brought us up out of Egypt. But we don’t know what has happened to him.”

2Aaron answered them, “Take the gold earrings off your wives, your sons and your daughters. Bring the earrings to me.” 3So all the people took off their earrings. They brought them to Aaron. 4He took what they gave him and made it into a metal statue of a god. It looked like a calf. Aaron shaped it with a tool. Then the people said, “Israel, here is your god who brought you up out of Egypt.”

5When Aaron saw what they were doing, he built an altar in front of the calf. He said, “Tomorrow will be a feast day to honor the Lord.” 6So the next day the people got up early. They sacrificed burnt offerings and brought friendship offerings. They sat down to eat and drink. Then they got up to dance wildly in front of their god.

7The Lord spoke to Moses. He said, “Go down. Your people you brought up out of Egypt have become very sinful. 8They have quickly turned away from what I commanded them. They have made themselves a metal statue of a god in the shape of a calf. They have bowed down and sacrificed to it. And they have said, ‘Israel, here is your god who brought you up out of Egypt.’

9“I have seen these people,” the Lord said to Moses. “They are stubborn. 10Now leave me alone. I will destroy them because of my great anger. Then I will make you into a great nation.”

11But Moses asked the Lord his God to have mercy on the people. “Lord,” he said, “why should you destroy your people in anger? You used your great power and mighty hand to bring them out of Egypt. 12Why should the Egyptians say, ‘He brought them out to hurt them. He wanted to kill them in the mountains. He wanted to wipe them off the face of the earth’? Turn away from your great anger. Please take pity on your people. Don’t destroy them! 13Remember your servants Abraham, Isaac and Israel. You made a promise to them in your own name. You said, ‘I will make your children after you as many as the stars in the sky. I will give them all this land I promised them. It will belong to them forever.’ ” 14Then the Lord took pity on his people. He didn’t destroy them as he had said he would.

15Moses turned and went down the mountain. He had the two tablets of the covenant law in his hands. Words were written on both sides of the tablets, front and back. 16The tablets were the work of God. The words had been written by God. They had been carved on the tablets.

17Joshua heard the noise of the people shouting. So he said to Moses, “It sounds like war in the camp.”

18Moses replied,

“It’s not the sound of winning.

It’s not the sound of losing.

It’s the sound of singing that I hear.”

19As Moses approached the camp, he saw the calf. He also saw the people dancing. So he was very angry. He threw the tablets out of his hands. They broke into pieces at the foot of the mountain. 20He took the calf the people had made. He burned it in the fire. Then he ground it into powder. He scattered it on the water. And he made the Israelites drink it.

21He said to Aaron, “What did these people do to you? How did they make you lead them into such terrible sin?”

22“Please don’t be angry,” Aaron answered. “You know how these people like to do what is evil. 23They said to me, ‘Make us a god that will lead us. This fellow Moses brought us up out of Egypt. But we don’t know what has happened to him.’ 24So I told them, ‘Anyone who has any gold jewelry, take it off.’ They gave me the gold. I threw it into the fire. And out came this calf!”

25Moses saw that the people were running wild. Aaron had let them get out of control. The people had become a joke to their enemies. 26Moses stood at the entrance to the camp. He said, “Anyone on the Lord’s side, come to me.” All the Levites joined him.

27Then he spoke to them. He said, “The Lord, the God of Israel, says, ‘Each man must put on his sword. Then he must go back and forth through the camp from one end to the other. Each man must kill his brother and friend and neighbor.’ ” 28The Levites did as Moses commanded. About 3,000 of the people died that day. 29Then Moses said to the Levites, “You have been set apart for the Lord today. You fought against your own sons and brothers. And he has blessed you this day.”

30The next day Moses said to the people, “You have committed a terrible sin. But now I will go up to the Lord. Maybe if I pray to him, he will forgive your sin.”

31So Moses went back to the Lord. He said, “These people have committed a terrible sin. They have made a god out of gold for themselves. 32Now please forgive their sin. But if you won’t, then erase my name out of the book you have written.”

33The Lord replied to Moses. The Lord said, “I will erase out of my book only the names of those who have sinned against me. 34Now go. Lead the people to the place I spoke about. My angel will go ahead of you. But when the time comes for me to punish, I will punish them for their sin.”

35The Lord struck the people with a plague. That’s because of what they did with the calf Aaron had made.

Chinese Contemporary Bible (Simplified)

出埃及记 32:1-35

金牛犊

1百姓见摩西迟迟没有下山,就聚集到亚伦那里,对他说:“领我们离开埃及的那个摩西不知怎样了,你给我们造神像来带领我们吧。” 2亚伦对他们说:“你们去摘下妻子、儿女的金耳环,拿来给我。” 3百姓就都摘下金耳环交给亚伦4亚伦用这些金耳环铸造了一头牛犊。他们说:“以色列人啊,这就是把你们带出埃及的神明。” 5亚伦见状,便在牛犊前面筑了一座坛,然后宣告说:“明天是耶和华定的节期。” 6第二天清晨,百姓都上前来献燔祭和平安祭,献完祭后就坐下吃喝,起来狂欢。

7耶和华对摩西说:“你快下山吧,你的百姓,就是你从埃及领出来的那些人已经败坏了。 8他们这么快就偏离了我吩咐他们走的道路,为自己造了一头牛犊来叩拜献祭,说,‘以色列人啊,这就是把你们带出埃及的神明。’” 9耶和华又说:“我看到了,这些百姓真是顽固不化。 10你不要阻止我,我要向他们发烈怒,毁灭他们。我要使你的后代成为大国。”

11摩西恳求他的上帝耶和华说:“耶和华啊,你为什么要向你的子民发烈怒呢?这些子民是你亲自用神迹和大能从埃及领出来的。 12难道你要让埃及人议论说你领他们出来是出于恶意,是为了在山野之间杀掉他们,从地上灭绝他们吗?求你息怒,施怜悯,不要降祸给你的子民。 13求你顾念你的仆人亚伯拉罕以撒以色列,你曾凭自己向他们起誓说,‘我必使你们的后代像天上的星星那么多。我应许给你们后代的这整片土地,我必赐给他们作永远的产业。’” 14耶和华听了摩西的话,就心生怜悯,不把所说的灾祸降在百姓身上。

15摩西转身下山,手里拿着两块石版,石版的正反两面都有字。 16石版是上帝做的,字是上帝刻的。 17约书亚听见山下百姓嘈杂的喊叫声,便对摩西说:“营地里有打仗的声音。” 18摩西对他说:“这不是打胜仗的声音,也不是打败仗的声音,而是狂欢的声音。” 19摩西走近营地的时候,看见牛犊,又看见百姓在跳舞,心中大怒,便把手上的两块石版摔碎在山脚下, 20又把他们铸造的牛犊熔化掉,磨成粉末撒在水面上,叫以色列百姓喝。 21摩西亚伦说:“这些百姓对你做了什么?你竟使他们陷入大罪中!” 22亚伦回答说:“求我主不要动怒,你知道这些人专门作恶。 23他们对我说,‘为我们造神明来带领我们吧,因为领我们离开埃及的那个摩西不知怎样了。’ 24于是,我吩咐他们摘下金耳环给我,我把这些金耳环丢进火里,这头牛犊就出来了。”

25摩西见百姓放肆,亚伦纵容他们,使他们成为敌人的笑柄, 26便站在营门口对会众说:“凡跟从耶和华的,都站到我这边来。”所有的利未人都聚集到摩西身边。 27摩西对他们说:“以色列的上帝耶和华这样说,‘你们各人带着刀,从这个门到那个门,走遍整个营,不论遇见的是兄弟、伙伴还是邻居,只管杀他们。’” 28利未人便照摩西的话去做。那一天,约有三千人被杀。 29摩西利未人说:“今天你们已经把自己奉献给耶和华了,因为你们大义灭亲,祂必赐福给你们。”

30第二天,摩西对百姓说:“你们犯了大罪,我现在要到耶和华那里,也许可以为你们求得赦免。” 31摩西回到耶和华那里,说:“唉,百姓犯了大罪,用金子为自己造了神像。 32恳求你赦免他们的罪,不然请你从你的册子上抹掉我的名字吧。” 33耶和华对摩西说:“谁得罪我,我就从我的册子上抹掉谁的名字。 34你现在回去带领这些百姓,往我指示你的地方去,我的天使必在你前面引路。只是到我惩罚的日子,我必因他们的罪惩罚他们。”

35耶和华击杀百姓,是因为他们曾与亚伦一起造牛犊。