Exodus 32:30–35
The Bible4Jesus.com Podcast
About this episode
We come now to the aftermath of a great sin. They have taken the gold of their redemption from Egypt and fashioned it into a dumb idol, a golden calf, and have thrown a pagan festival in its honor. In response, God's righteous anger burned hot, and He offered to wipe them out and start over with Moses. Moses, in the first great act of intercession, appealed to God's own name and reputation, and God relented from the immediate destruction He had threatened. The covenant has been shattered, symbolized by the tablets Moses smashed on the ground. Three thousand of the ringleaders have been executed by the Levites. A great sin has been committed, and it hangs in the air like a toxic cloud. Sin of this magnitude requires more than just a judicial sentence; it requires atonement.