Chapter 15

Please read Exodus, chapter 32.

This is a sad, disappointing chapter. It show us the early end to Israel’s repeated promises ‘We will do, we will obey’.

On top of the mountain, hidden in fire and smoke, the finger of God wrote the Ten Commandments, engraved in stone. Before Israel could set sight on them they trespassed, sinned grievously.

Exodus 32:1 “When the people saw that Moses was so long in coming down from the mountain, they gathered around Aaron and said: ‘Come, and 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’”

Israel would have been truthful if only they had said: ’All the Lord has spoken we will not do, we will not obey.’ Now they are telling Aaron that they will place their trust and confidence in a man made god. It was the mirror image of a world wanting to do without God. It was degradation at its peak. ‘Make us gods’. Making themselves available to worship handcrafted idols. Oh, the sad delusion of things that may be touched and seen, gratifying and satisfying human senses.

It is FAITH alone that does see things not yet seen. Things we may know with absolute assurance, things we learn from the authority of God’s Word, our Bible, things that the God of the Bible is sharing with us. How true it is and how sad that the world’s delusions can conquer the servants of God.

He was an outstanding Bible teacher. His sermon delivery was excellent. His congregation loved him. One day, in the church office, he saw his secretary and soon he began an affair with her. What he saw he touched and before long he left his wife behind, lost his job and went off with his new love. Possible? Fact! He chose and decided to please his old, sinful Adam nature and not to have his new, divine Jesus nature out rule it.

Exodus 32:2 “Aaron answered them, ‘Take off the gold earrings that your wives, your sons and your daughters are wearing and bring them to me.’ “

Aaron, Who called you into His service? Who ordained you to be the High Priest of the nation? What are you doing? Allowing your self to be dictated to by rebellious people? Only God has the privilege of dictating you! There and then Aaron decided. Did not wait one moment. Did not want to know the will of God. Worked without waiting in prayer.

Exodus 32:3 “So all the people took off their earrings and brought them to Aaron.”

Eagerly they anticipated the exchange. They would turn away from the only true and living God, the God Who is such a loving and faithful Father. They now would place their trust in a dead lump of gold, worship a lifeless idol,

carved by human hands. Has there ever been a truer image of human stupidity, of man’s sinful intent and attitude? Please have a good look and see if you can recognize the futility of life lived without the eternal, most Holy and loving God, Who is the God of the Bible. The heavenly, eternal realities denied, traded for temporal, deceiving, earthly dust.

‘Make us gods!’ Politicians, scientists, sports people, financiers, orators, musicians, make us gods. Gods we may touch, we wish to see them, to worship them. Five, ten or twenty years or later those gods will still be dead, turning into dust. Be honest with self, is your joy and trust in such gods?

Exodus 32:4 “And he (Aaron) took what they handed him and made it into an idol, cast in the shape of a calf, fashioning it with a tool. Then they said: ‘These are your gods, o Israel, who brought you up out of Egypt’.

Confidently they confirmed their own choice. Deaf to truth and blind to reality they blundered on.

Exodus 32:5 “When Aaron saw this, he built an altar in front of the calf and announced” ’tomorrow will be a festival to the Lord.’ “

‘A festival’’. The evil falseness of it all! A festival! That will stop them from grumbling. ‘To the Lord’. That will settle their worries! Bring in the appearance of authenticity. In our world today how often does the Bible show in the hands of a man who decidedly does not want God to speak? How often does a cross have to serve as a good luck charm? In the windscreen of a car or on a woman’s half naked breast. And still, the Lord Jesus Christ, Who died a horrendous death, on a rough wooden cross, He remains patient, waiting for the repentance of man.

Exodus 32:6 “So the next day the people rose early and sacrificed burnt offerings and presented fellowship offerings. Afterward they sat down to eat and drink and got up to indulge in revelry.”

This verse allows us a succinct portrayal of our world with millions of religious people, who have no relationship with God. Rising early, Israel was keen to insult God with their offerings. Could burnt offerings and fellowship offerings make Him feel welcome to their revelry? Or, why should we need Him in our schools or parliaments or in the meetings of the world’s powerful men. It happened at the base of Mount Horeb on that day, is happening in this world this day.

Exodus 32:7 “THEN THE LORD said to Moses:’ Go down, because YOUR people, whom YOU brought up out of Egypt, have become corrupt.

v.8 They have been quick to turn away from what I commanded them and have made themselves an idol cast in the shape of a calf. They have bowed down to it and sacrificed to it and have said, ‘these are your gods, o Israel, who brought you up out of Egypt.”

Yes, then the Lord! The one Who is the everlasting, always all seeing Lord. He was there when they came to Aaron with their demands, when, under the

pressure, Aaron caved in, God was there when they decided to get up early to begin their insults. He was there, but most certainly not with them when they

brought their idol their offerings. He was there and allowed them to do their own things. Why were they not wiped out on the spot? Well, please remember, God had made promises to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob! In those promises God had spoken about ‘eternal’ and ‘everlasting’. Israel could never, will never be able to bend the holy character of God. Neither can you or I. Does He then wipe sins under the carpet? No, most certainly not! His holy righteousness will never, ever allow that. But God, as it were, moves away from fellowship with His people. To Moses He said: ‘ Go down to your people, whom you brought up out of Egypt.’

Exodus 32:9 “’I have seen these people’ the Lord said to Moses, ‘and they are a stiff-necked people.

v.10 Now leave Me alone so that My anger may burn against them and that I may destroy them. Then I will make you into a great nation.’ “

Oh, the righteous anger of a holy God. It came to peace and compassion when one man prayed.

Exodus 32:11 “ BUT MOSES sought the favor of the Lord, His God. ‘O Lord’ he said, ‘why should your anger burn against YOUR people, whom YOU brought up out of Egypt with great power and a mighty hand?

v.12 Why should the Egyptians say ‘It was with evil intent that He brought them out to kill them in the mountains and to wipe them of the face of the earth. Turn from your fierce anger; relent and do not bring disaster on YOUR people.

v.13 Remember your servants Abraham, Isaac and Israel, to whom you swore by your own self: ‘I will make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and I will give your descendants all this land I promised them, and it will be their inheritance forever.’ “

Do you remember Abraham, one man who pleaded for the cities of Sodom and Gomorah and how the angels from heaven were sent to rescue Lot from that terrible disaster? Moses was another such a praying man.

Do you know why God is not judging this wicked world right now? Tens of thousands are praying for human souls who may be struck by His judgment. Do you know someone who is praying for you?

Exodus 32:14 “Then the Lord relented and did not bring on his people the disaster he had threatened.”

The most holy God, flaming in righteousness, in merciful grace He relented and so answered his servant’s prayer.

Exodus 32:15 “Moses turned and went down the mountain with the two tablets of the Testimony in his hands. They were inscribed on both sides, front and back.

v.16 The tablets were the work of God; the writing was the writing of God,

engraved on the tablets.”

It has been mentioned already; it is worth repeating. The finger of God engraved in stone the death warranty for every Israelite who could not fulfil all God’s commands. Apart from the Lord Jesus Christ not one other Jew ever could. Those commands never applied to non-Jews (Psalm 147:19,20). Today Jews and non-Jews may be saved for all eternity, not by laws, but by FAITH in GRACE.

Exodus 32:19 “When Moses approached the camp and saw the calf and the dancing, his anger burned and he threw the tablets out of his hands, breaking them to pieces at the foot of the mountain.

Back and front those tablets had displayed the holy Law, engraved by the finger of God. And now they are portraying the sinful attitude of a rebellious, God dishonouring people. In their indulgent revelry they are faced with the pieces of the Covenant they had broken, at the foot of the mountain.

Exodus 32:20 “And he (Moses) took the calf they had made and burned it in the fire; then ground it to powder, scattered it on the water and made the Israelites drink it.”

He made them to drink that water and so they must identify with the god they had chosen for themselves. That god had been burnt in the fire and grounded into dust. That god could never ever offer any ground for hope. That has happened and will happen to every idol we may fancy, because there is only one true God, the God of the Bible. I am so very, very grateful, that God is my Father in Heaven. What about you?

Exodus 32:26 “So he (Moses) stood at the entrance to the camp and said: ’Who ever is for the Lord, come to me.’ And all the Levites rallied to him.”

The Levites were the clergy of Israel. Apparently they did have nothing to do with the revelry around the golden calf. They were glad to make their stand with their God appointed leader. Who was the real leader?

Exodus 32:27 “Then he (Moses) 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 neighbour.’ “

v.28 “The Levites did as Moses commanded, and that day about three thousand people died

v.29 Then he (Moses) said :’You have been set apart to the Lord today, for you were against your own sons and brothers and He (God) has blessed you this day.’ “

On that day, a day of terrible bloodshed, not Moses, but God had been their leader. The God Who will always act in righteous judgment. Righteous in that day and righteous in the Judgment still to come.

Do you find it difficult to believe that God would bless the men who, in one day, killed about three thousand people, who were their brothers, friends and neighbours? Well, would you mind, starting again at the beginning of these

Glimpses in Exodus? Come with me again to that then country of Egypt? There let’s look around and see Israelites slaving in the brick pits. See them harassed and driven by slave masters. Look into their eyes and notice their hundreds of years of hopelessness. Hear them crying out to the God of heaven. See them in that night, when there was sorrow and death in every house in Egypt but the joy of God’s presence in every house in Israel. When, twice, on dry ground, they walked between two walls of water, their God safely leading them to the other side. See and hear them there, singing, praising, bringing glory to their God. Hear them grumbling, their protests until they saw water coming out of a rock and meat falling out of the air. See their food, Manna, day after day, enough for every man, woman and child. Hear their snooty claims: ‘ Every thing the Lord has said, we will do! We will obey!’ And then, hear the heart-rending cries of their revelry while they dance around, a man shaped, golden idol. Do you hear them? ‘THIS is the god who brought us up, out of Egypt.’ They were looking for trouble, inviting righteous judgment, from a holy God. It has never been different. All humans love something they may see and touch. Have it here and have it now, but ‘it’ is always temporal. When death comes ‘it’ will not go with them into eternity! But surely, God’s judgment will! To them it came in more than one way.

Exodus 32:33 “The Lord replied to Moses, ’Who ever has sinned against me I will blot out of My book’

v.34 “Now 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

v.35 And the Lord struck the people with a plague because of what they did with the calf Aaron had made.”

What does the God of the Bible teach us? “You may be sure that your sin will find you out “(Numbers 32:23).

It will not go under the carpet. Holiness demands that sin must be dealt with; dealt with righteously, either in forgiveness or in judgment.