出32:22Do not be angry, my lord, Aaron answered. "You know how prone these people are to evil.

出32:23They said to me, 'Make us gods who will go before us. As for this fellow Moses who brought us up out of Egypt, we don't know what has happened to him.'

出32:24So I told them, 'Whoever has any gold jewelry, take it off.' Then they gave me the gold, and I threw it into the fire, and out came this calf!"

出32:25Moses saw that the people were running wild and that Aaron had let them get out of control and so become a laughingstock to their enemies.

出32:26So he stood at the entrance to the camp and said, "Whoever is for the Lord , come to me." And all the Levites rallied to him.

出32:27Then he said to them, "This is what the Lord , the God of Israel, says: 'Each man strap a sword to his side. Go back and forth through the camp from one end to the other, each killing his brother and friend and neighbor.' "

出32:28The Levites did as Moses commanded, and that day about three thousand of the people died.

出32:29Then Moses said, "You have been set apart to the Lord today, for you were against your own sons and brothers, and he has blessed you this day."

出32:30The next day Moses said to the people, "You have committed a great sin. But now I will go up to the Lord ; perhaps I can make atonement for your sin."

出32:31So Moses went back to the Lord and said, "Oh, what a great sin these people have committed! They have made themselves gods of gold.

出32:32But now, please forgive their sin-but if not, then blot me out of the book you have written."

出32:33The Lord replied to Moses, "Whoever has sinned against me I will blot out of my book.

出32:34Now 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."

出32:35And the Lord struck the people with a plague because of what they did with the calf Aaron had made.

出33:1Then the Lord said to Moses, "Leave this place, you and the people you brought up out of Egypt, and go up to the land I promised on oath to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, saying, 'I will give it to your descendants.'

出33:2I will send an angel before you and drive out the Canaanites, Amorites, Hittites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites.

出33:3Go up to the land flowing with milk and honey. But I will not go with you, because you are a stiff-necked people and I might destroy you on the way."

出33:4When the people heard these distressing words, they began to mourn and no one put on any ornaments.

出33:5For the Lord had said to Moses, "Tell the Israelites, 'You are a stiff-necked people. If I were to go with you even for a moment, I might destroy you. Now take off your ornaments and I will decide what to do with you.' "

出33:6So the Israelites stripped off their ornaments at Mount Horeb.