New English Translation
Exodus 32:4
4He accepted the gold from them, fashioned it with an engraving tool, and made a molten calf. Then they said, “These are your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of Egypt.”
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, “Break off the gold earrings that are on the ears of your wives, your sons, and your daughters, and bring them to me.” 3So all the people broke off the gold earrings that were on their ears and brought them to Aaron. He accepted the gold from them, fashioned it with an engraving tool, and made a molten calf. Then they said, “These are your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of Egypt.” 5When Aaron saw this, he built an altar before it, and Aaron made a proclamation and said, “Tomorrow will be a feast to the Lord.” 6So they got up early on the next day and offered up burnt offerings and brought peace offerings, and the people sat down to eat and drink, and they rose up to play.
Read all of Exodus 32Exodus 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 20:23You must not make gods of silver alongside me, nor make gods of gold for yourselves.
- Deuteronomy 9:16When I looked, you had indeed sinned against the Lord your God and had cast for yourselves a metal calf; you had quickly turned aside from the way he had commanded you!
- Psalms 106:19They made an image of a calf at Horeb, and worshiped a metal idol.
- Isaiah 44:9All who form idols are nothing; the things in which they delight are worthless. Their witnesses cannot see; they recognize nothing, so they are put to shame.
- Isaiah 46:6Those who empty out gold from a purse and weigh out silver on the scale hire a metalsmith, who makes it into a god. They then bow down and worship it.
- Acts 7:41At that time they made an idol in the form of a calf, brought a sacrifice to the idol, and began rejoicing in the works of their hands.
- Acts 17:29So since we are God’s offspring, we should not think the deity is like gold or silver or stone, an image made by human skill and imagination.
- Exodus 28:9“You are to take two onyx stones and engrave on them the names of the sons of Israel,
- 1 Kings 12:28After the king had consulted with his advisers, he made two golden calves. Then he said to the people, “It is too much trouble for you to go up to Jerusalem. Look, Israel, here are your gods who brought you up from the land of Egypt.”
- 2 Kings 10:29However, Jehu did not repudiate the sins which Jeroboam son of Nebat had encouraged Israel to commit; the golden calves remained in Bethel and Dan.
- 2 Chronicles 11:15Jeroboam appointed his own priests to serve at the worship centers and to lead in the worship of the goat idols and calf idols he had made.
- 2 Chronicles 13:8Now you are declaring that you will resist the Lord’s rule through the Davidic dynasty. You have a huge army, and bring with you the gold calves that Jeroboam made for you as gods.
- Hosea 8:4They enthroned kings without my consent! They appointed princes without my approval! They made idols out of their silver and gold, but they will be destroyed!
- Hosea 10:5The inhabitants of Samaria will lament over the calf idol of Beth Aven. Its people will mourn over it; its idolatrous priests will wail over it, because its splendor will be taken from them into exile.
- Hosea 13:2Even now they persist in sin! They make metal images for themselves, idols that they skillfully fashion from their own silver; all of them are nothing but the work of craftsmen! There is a saying about them: “Those who sacrifice to the calf idol are calf kissers!”
- Exodus 32:8They have quickly turned aside from the way that I commanded them – they have made for themselves a molten calf and have bowed down to it and sacrificed to it and said, ‘These are your gods, O Israel, which brought you up from the land 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
In the dictionaries
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
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