Exodus 32:4

Exodus 32:4 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)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.
• New International Version (NIV)He 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, Israel, who brought you up out of Egypt.”
• English Standard Version (ESV)And he received the gold from their hand and fashioned it with a graving tool and made a golden calf. And they said, "These are your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt!"
• New King James Version (NKJV)And he received the gold from their hand, and he fashioned it with an engraving tool, and made a molded calf. Then they said, “This is your god, O Israel, that brought you out of the land of Egypt!”

Context of Exodus 32:4

2So Aaron said to them, ‘Take the gold rings from the ears of your wives, your sons and your daughters. Then bring the rings to me.’ 3So all the Israelites removed the rings from their ears. They brought them to Aaron. Aaron took the gold rings from the people. He melted the gold and he used a tool to make an image of a calf. Then the people said, ‘Look, people of Israel! This is our god who brought us up out of Egypt!’ 5When Aaron saw this, he built an altar in front of the gold calf. He told everyone, ‘Tomorrow, there will be a feast to worship the Lord.’ 6So the next day, the Israelites got up early. They killed animals as burnt offerings on the altar. They also brought peace offerings. After that, they sat down to eat a meal and they drank wine. Then they had a wild party.

Exodus 32:4 word by word

וַיִּקַּ֣ח מִיָּדָ֗ם וַיָּ֤צַר אֹתוֹ֙ בַּחֶ֔רֶט וַֽיַּעֲשֵׂ֖הוּ עֵ֣גֶל מַסֵּכָ֑ה וַיֹּ֣אמְר֔וּ אֵ֤לֶּה אֱלֹהֶ֙יךָ֙ יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל אֲשֶׁ֥ר הֶעֱל֖וּךָ מֵאֶ֥רֶץ מִצְרָֽיִם׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• And he receivedלָקַחlâqach · to take: recieveH3947
• at their handיָדyâd · hand: themselvesH3027
• and fashionedצוּרtsûr · to formH6696
• it with a graving toolחֶ֫רֶטchereţ · stylusH2747
• after he had madeעָשָׂה‛âώâh · to makeH6213
• it a moltenמַסֵּכָהmassêkâh · molten metalH4541
• calfעֵ֫גֶל‛êgel · calfH5695
• and they saidאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
• thy godsאֱלֹהִים'ĕlôhîym · GodH430
• O Israelיִשְׂרָאֵלyiώrâ'êl · IsraelH3478
• which broughtעָלָה‛âlâh · to ascend: establishH5927
• thee up out of the landאֶ֫רֶץ'erets · land: country/planetH776
• of Egyptמִצְרַ֫יִםmitsrayim · EgyptH4714

Cross-references for Exodus 32:4

• Exodus 20:23Do not make any idols to take my place. Do not use silver or gold to make an idol that you will worship.
• Deuteronomy 9:16When I looked, I saw that you had made an image of a calf as your idol. You really had done a very bad thing. You had quickly stopped doing the things that the Lord your God had commanded you to do.
• Psalms 106:19At Horeb, the Israelites used gold to make a cow, and they worshipped it.
• Isaiah 44:9All the people who make idols are fools. The images which make them so happy are useless. Those who worship idols cannot see the truth. They do not understand what they are doing, and they will be ashamed.
• Isaiah 46:6Some people make idols for themselves. They pour out gold coins from their purse. They weigh silver on their scales. They pay a worker with special skill to use the silver and the gold to make a god. Then they bend down low in front of it, and they worship it!
• Acts 7:41It was then that the people made something that would be an idol for them. They made it from gold with the shape of a young bull. They killed some animals and they burned them as a gift for their idol. The people then had a big meal together because they were very happy. They thought that they had made something that was very good.
• Acts 17:29So, because we are God's children, we should not think that he is a thing like an idol. Clever people use gold or silver or stone to make images of gods. But God is not like these things that people choose to make for themselves.
• Exodus 28:9Take two onyx stones and write on them with a sharp tool. Write the names of the sons of Israel.
• 1 Kings 12:28So King Jeroboam talked to his advisors. He used gold to make images of two young cows. He said to the people, ‘It is too difficult for you to go to Jerusalem to worship the Lord, as you have done before. So I have made these gold cows for you instead. Look at them, Israelite people! These are your gods that rescued you and brought you out from Egypt.’
• 2 Kings 10:29But Jehu did not turn away from the sins of Nebat's son, Jeroboam. Jeroboam had caused Israel to worship images of calves. There were still gold calves at Bethel and Dan.
• 2 Chronicles 11:15Jeroboam chose his own priests to offer sacrifices at the altars that he had built on the hills. They worshipped the idols of goats and young bulls that Jeroboam had made.
• 2 Chronicles 13:8Now you want to fight against the Lord's own kingdom that he has chosen David's descendants to rule over. You have a very large army. You bring with you the gold statues of young bulls that Jeroboam made for you as your gods.
• Hosea 8:4My people chose kings to rule them, but they did not ask me about it. They chose people to lead them, but I did not agree. They used their silver and their gold to make idols for themselves. But that will destroy them in the end.
• Hosea 10:5The people who live in Samaria will be afraid. They will worry about their image of a calf at Beth Aven. They will weep because it will go away from them. The priests who serve the idol will cry too. They know that an enemy will take away their great and beautiful idol.
• Hosea 13:2Now the Israelites continue to do more and more sins. They use metal to make idols for themselves. They use clever skills to make idols from silver. All their idols are only things that people have made themselves. People offer sacrifices to the image of a calf. They say, ‘Kiss the calf!’
• Exodus 32:8They have already turned away from my commands. They have made for themselves an image of a calf. They have bent down low to worship it. They have made sacrifices to give it honour. They are saying, “This is the god of the Israelites, the god who brought us out of Egypt!” ’

Commentaries on Exodus 32:4

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 4Fashioned it with a graving tool - There has been much controversy about the meaning of the word חרט cheret in the text: some make it a mould, others a garment, cloth, or apron; some a purse or bag, and others a graver. It is likely that some mould was made on this occasion, that the gold when fused was cast into it, and that afterwards it was brought into form and symmetry by the action of the chisel and graver. These be thy gods, O Israel - The whole of…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 1-6Verses 1-6 In all probability these three chapters originally formed a distinct composition. The main incidents recorded in them follow in the order of time, and are therefore in their proper place as regards historical sequence. The golden calf - The people had, to a great extent, lost the patriarchal faith, and were but imperfectly instructed in the reality of a personal unseen God. Being disappointed at the long absence of Moses, they seem to have…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 4fashioned it into a molten calf: The idol might have been a bull, similar to the Egyptian god Amon-Re, which the people knew from Egypt. The bull represented power, domination, and fertility. The writer might have said calf to despise the idol. Or, Aaron might have made a calf, thinking this sin was less severe than making a full-sized bull. These, O Israel, are your gods, who brought you up out: The people credited the idol with what they had just said…Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 44. fashioned it with a graving tool, after he had made it a molten calf--The words are transposed, and the rendering should be, "he framed with a graving tool the image to be made, and having poured the liquid gold into the mould, he made it a molten calf." It is not said whether it was of life size, whether it was of solid gold or merely a wooden frame covered with plates of gold. This idol seems to have been the god Apis, the chief deity of the…Read the comment

Topics related to Exodus 32:4

• Amusements and Worldly Pleasures
• Engraving
• Falsehood
• Idol
• Idolatry
• Molding
• Quotations and Allusions

In the dictionaries

• Egypt
• Israel
• Egypt, Egyptian
• Israel, Israelites
• Jacob, Israel
• Aaron
• Bullock
• Calf
• Consume
• Corrupt

Commentaries on Exodus 32

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Rashi on Tanakh
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings