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The Second Book of Moses: Called Exodus, Chapter 32
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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.
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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.
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3 |
And all the people brake off the golden earrings which were in
their ears, and brought them unto Aaron.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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:
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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.
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9 |
And the LORD said unto Moses, I have seen this people, and,
behold, it is a stiffnecked people:
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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.
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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?
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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.
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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.
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14 |
And the LORD repented of the evil which he thought to do unto
his people.
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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.
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16 |
And the tables were the work of God, and the writing was the
writing of God, graven upon the tables.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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21 |
And Moses said unto Aaron, What did this people unto thee, that
thou hast brought so great a sin upon them?
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22 |
And Aaron said, Let
not the anger of my lord wax hot: thou knowest the people, that they
are set on mischief.
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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.
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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.
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25 |
And when Moses saw that the people were naked; (for Aaron had
made them naked unto their shame among their enemies:)
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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30 |
And it came to pass on the morrow, that Moses said unto the
people, Ye have sinned a great sin: and now I will go up unto the
LORD; peradventure I shall make an atonement for your sin.
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31 |
And Moses returned unto the LORD, and said, Oh, this people have
sinned a great sin, and have made them gods of gold.
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32 |
Yet now, if thou wilt forgive their sin--; and if not, blot me,
I pray thee, out of thy book which thou hast written.
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33 |
And the LORD said unto Moses, Whosoever hath sinned against me,
him will I blot out of my book.
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34 |
Therefore now go, lead the people unto the place of which I have
spoken unto thee: behold, mine Angel shall go before thee:
nevertheless in the day when I visit I will visit their sin upon them.
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35 |
And the LORD plagued the people, because they made the calf,
which Aaron made.
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