Exodus 32:15-26

New International Version

¹⁵ Moses turned and went down the mountain with the two tablets of the covenant law^(A) in his hands.^(B) They were inscribed^(C) on both sides, front and back. ¹⁶ The tablets were the work of God; the writing was the writing of God, engraved on the tablets.^(D)

¹⁷ When Joshua^(E) heard the noise of the people shouting, he said to Moses, “There is the sound of war in the camp.”

¹⁸ Moses replied:

¹⁹ When Moses approached the camp and saw the calf^(F) and the dancing,^(G) his anger burned^(H) and he threw the tablets out of his hands, breaking them to pieces^(I) at the foot of the mountain. ²⁰ And he took the calf the people had made and burned^(J) it in the fire; then he ground it to powder,^(K) scattered it on the water^(L) and made the Israelites drink it.

²¹ He said to Aaron, “What did these people do to you, that you led them into such great sin?”

²² “Do not be angry,^(M) my lord,” Aaron answered. “You know how prone these people are to evil.^{(N) 23} They said to me, ‘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.’^{(O) 24} So I told them, ‘Whoever has any gold jewelry, take it off.’ Then they gave me the gold, and I threw it into the fire, and out came this calf!”^(P)

²⁵ Moses saw that the people were running wild and that Aaron had let them get out of control and so become a laughingstock^(Q) to their enemies. ²⁶ So he stood at the entrance to the camp and said, “Whoever is for the Lord, come to me.” And all the Levites rallied to him.