Exo 32:1-2 | KingComments | STEP | In the previous chapters we have seen Who God is. Here we see who man, His people, is. By that we learn to admire God more, because despite the sin of the people the tabernacle is built from Exodus 35 onward. God comes to dwell with a people who have misbehaved themselves like this. The people are getting impatient. Moses stays away for so long. They do not realize that Moses is on the mountain for their benefit. They speak of him as “this Moses”. There is a scornful sound in it. There is no trust in him nor in the LORD because they “do not know what has become of him”. And all this while they saw him enter the cloud of God’s presence. Moses is here a picture of the Lord Jesus Who went to heaven. Because the Lord Jesus stays away for so long, in professing Christianity the thought of His return has been lost. The hope is gone. The fact that He is in heaven to commit Himself there for His people has no meaning whatsoever. The result is that Christians abuse each other and connect with the world, as the Lord Jesus suggests in a parable ( ). Through the people’s proposal to Aaron to make a god, the people reject Moses. This is because now that they no longer have Moses in their midst, they have turned back to Egypt in their hearts. They reject Moses and his words. Has he not recently reminded them that they will not have any other gods besides the LORD, neither of silver nor of gold ( )? But they don’t want to obey him. In the same way, professing Christianity acts in relation to Christ. The voices to introduce tangible things into the experience of religion are becoming stronger and stronger. It is because one does not want to listen to Christ and His Word. Then people come up with such proposals.

‏ Exodus 32:1-2

The People Ask for an Idol

In the previous chapters we have seen Who God is. Here we see who man, His people, is. By that we learn to admire God more, because despite the sin of the people the tabernacle is built from Exodus 35 onward. God comes to dwell with a people who have misbehaved themselves like this.

The people are getting impatient. Moses stays away for so long. They do not realize that Moses is on the mountain for their benefit. They speak of him as “this Moses”. There is a scornful sound in it. There is no trust in him nor in the LORD because they “do not know what has become of him”. And all this while they saw him enter the cloud of God’s presence.

Moses is here a picture of the Lord Jesus Who went to heaven. Because the Lord Jesus stays away for so long, in professing Christianity the thought of His return has been lost. The hope is gone. The fact that He is in heaven to commit Himself there for His people has no meaning whatsoever. The result is that Christians abuse each other and connect with the world, as the Lord Jesus suggests in a parable (Mt 24:48-49).

Through the people’s proposal to Aaron to make a god, the people reject Moses. This is because now that they no longer have Moses in their midst, they have turned back to Egypt in their hearts. They reject Moses and his words. Has he not recently reminded them that they will not have any other gods besides the LORD, neither of silver nor of gold (Exo 20:23)? But they don’t want to obey him.

In the same way, professing Christianity acts in relation to Christ. The voices to introduce tangible things into the experience of religion are becoming stronger and stronger. It is because one does not want to listen to Christ and His Word. Then people come up with such proposals.

Aaron Makes the Golden Calf

The people are only too willing to supply materials for making a god they can see. For that they want to make sacrifices, it may cost something (Isa 46:6). The ear decorations are gladly handed in. The ear is stripped of what it adorns, and that is listening to God’s Word.

Aaron gives it the shape of a calf and gives the calf the honor that only God is worthy of. He grants the calf the honor of redemption from Egypt. All God’s miracles are forgotten. Psalm 106 gives an impressive account of this (Psa 106:19-23). Aaron builds another altar for it and even calls out a feast whereby he mentions the name of the LORD.

This is one of the events Paul quotes from the history of the people of Israel, of which he says that they “happened as examples for us, so that we would not crave evil things as they also craved” (1Cor 10:6). In the following verse he then cites this event with the golden calf: “Do not be idolaters, as some of them were; as it is written, “The people sat down to eat and drink, and stood up to play”” (1Cor 10:7).

Paulus refers to the ‘festivities’ around the golden calf. The Israelites became idolaters. Idolatry means: to put something else in the place of God and of Christ. That can easily happen. It really does not have to be about things that we know are sinful, wrong things. We see that here. What is their idolatry? It is said directly behind it: eating and drinking and playing. Are these wrong activities? Not in themselves, but they are wrong for Israel.

The people have lost contact with Moses, their great leader. He has been gone for a long time, people don’t see him anymore and don’t hear him anymore. That’s why they say to Aaron that he should make a god. Aaron does that and the golden calf arises on its pedestal. Then they start to eat, drink and play. So what is the cause of eating, drinking and playing? That Moses has been gone for so long.

What is the example for us here? The Lord Jesus has been gone for so long, it seems as if He never comes back. Then the thought creeps in: “Let’s make it easy for ourselves in this world and live life as we like it. We’ll make a god for ourselves too, one we like, one with whom we can get along, and life becomes one big party!” But it is a feast without the true God. These kinds of sounds can be heard around us with people who profess to be Christians, but who do not take into account the coming of Christ.

When the Christian no longer looks forward to the coming of the Lord Jesus, he will focus on earthly things. Things other than the Lord Jesus take up his time and attention. The spiritual leaders take the lead. They do not want to lose their position and respond to what the people ask (2Tim 4:3).

The feast forms the pious sauce over the wicked fuss. In many shades, this practice is repeated in professing Christianity. Pagan holidays are covered with a Christian sauce (Christmas), wicked lifestyles are declared expressions of godly love (blessing of so-called same-sex marriages).