Exodus 32 · Verse 4

Exodus 32:4

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.

Exodus 32:4, King James Version

Exodus 32:4 in other translations

BSB	He took the gold from their hands, and with an engraving tool he fashioned it into a molten calf. And they said, “These, O Israel, are your gods, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt!”
WEB	He received what they handed him, fashioned it with an engraving tool, and made it a molded calf. Then they said, “These are your gods, Israel, which brought you up out of the land of Egypt.”
ASV	And he received it at their hand, and fashioned it with a graving tool, and made it a molten calf: and they said, These are thy gods, O Israel, which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt.
YLT	and he receiveth from their hand, and doth fashion it with a graving tool, and doth make it a molten calf, and they say, ‘These thy gods, O Israel, who brought thee up out of the land of Egypt.'
DARBY	And he took them out of their hand, and fashioned it with a chisel and made of it a molten calf: and they said, This is thygod, Israel, who has brought thee up out of the land of Egypt!
BBE	And he took the gold from them and, hammering it with an instrument, he made it into the metal image of a young ox: and they said, This is your god, O Israel, who took you out of the land of Egypt.
Webster	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 are thy gods, O Israel, which brought thee out of the land of Egypt.

What does Exodus 32:4 mean?

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown

4. 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 Egyptians, worshipped at Memphis under the form of a live ox, three years old. It was distinguished by a triangular white spot on its forehead and other peculiar marks. Images of it in the form of a whole ox, or of a calf's head on the end of a pole, were very common; and it makes a great figure on the monuments where it is represented in the van of all processions, as borne aloft on men's shoulders. they said, These be thy gods, O Israel, which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt--It is inconceivable that they, who but a few weeks before had witnessed such amazing demonstrations of the true God, could have suddenly sunk to such a pitch of infatuation and brutish stupidity, as to imagine that human art or hands could make a god that should go before them. But it must be borne in mind, that though by election and in name they were the people of God, they were as yet, in feelings and associations, in habits and tastes, little, if at all different, from Egyptians. They meant the calf to be an image, a visible sign or symbol of Jehovah, so that their sin consisted not in a breach of the FIRST [Ex 20:3], but of the SECOND commandment [Ex 20:4-6].

Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown, 1871 · public domain

Adam Clarke's Commentary

Verse 4 Fashioned 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 this is a most strange and unaccountable transaction. Was it possible that the people could have so soon lost sight of the wonderful manifestations of God upon the mount? Was it possible that Aaron could have imagined that he could make any god that could help them? And yet it does not appear that he ever remonstrated with the people! Possibly he only intended to make them some symbolical representation of the Divine power and energy, that might be as evident to them as the pillar of cloud and fire had been, and to which God might attach an always present energy and influence; or in requiring them to sacrifice their ornaments, he might have supposed they would have desisted from urging their request: but all this is mere conjecture, with very little probability to support it. It must however be granted that Aaron does not appear to have even designed a worship that should supersede the worship of The Most High; hence we find him making proclamation, Tomorrow is a feast to the Lord, (יהוה); and we find farther that some of the proper rites of the true worship were observed on this occasion, for they brought burnt-offerings and peace-offerings, Exo 32:6, Exo 32:7 : hence it is evident he intended that the true God should be the object of their worship, though he permitted and even encouraged them to offer this worship through an idolatrous medium, the molten calf. It has been supposed that this was an exact resemblance of the famous Egyptian god Apis who was worshipped under the form of an ox, which worship the Israelites no doubt saw often practiced in Egypt. Some however think that this worship of Apis was not then established; but we have already had sufficient proof that different animals were sacred among the Egyptians, nor have we any account of any worship in Egypt earlier than that offered to Apis, under the figure of an Ox.

Adam Clarke, 1831 · public domain

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on Exodus 32:1-6

While Moses was in the mount, receiving the law from God, the people made a tumultuous address to Aaron. This giddy multitude were weary of waiting for the return of Moses. Weariness in waiting betrays to many temptations. The Lord must be waited for till he comes, and waited for though he tarry. Let their readiness to part with their ear-rings to make an idol, shame our niggardliness in the service of the true God…

Read the full comment on Exodus 32:1-6 →

Exodus 32:4 in the original Hebrew

Word-by-word with transliteration, English gloss and Strong's number. Tap a number for the full definition and every place the word is used.

וַיִּקַּ֣חvai.yi.Kachand he took [them]H3947

מִיָּדָ֗םmi.ya.Damfrom hand theirH3027

וַיָּ֤צַרvai.Ya.tzarand he fashionedH6696

אֹתוֹ֙'o.To<obj.> itH853

בַּחֶ֔רֶטba.Che.retwith <the> toolH2747

וַֽיַּעֲשֵׂ֖הוּvai.ya.'a.Se.huand he made itH6213

עֵ֣גֶל'E.gela calf ofH5695

מַסֵּכָ֑הma.se.Khahmolten metalH4541

וַיֹּ֣אמְר֔וּvai.Yo.me.Ruand they saidH559

אֵ֤לֶּה'E.lehtheseH428

אֱלֹהֶ֙יךָ֙'e.lo.Hei.kha[are] gods yourH430

יִשְׂרָאֵ֔לYis.ra.'ElO IsraelH3478

אֲשֶׁ֥ר'a.SherwhoH834

הֶעֱל֖וּךָhe.'e.Lu.khathey brought up youH5927

מֵאֶ֥רֶץme.'E.retzfrom [the] land ofH776

מִצְרָֽיִם\׃mitz.Ra.yimEgyptH4714

Source: STEPBible TAHOT/TAGNT (Tyndale House, CC BY 4.0).

Cross references for Exodus 32:4

Nehemiah 9:18
Yea, when they had made them a molten calf, and said, This is thy God that brought thee up out of Egypt, and had wrought great provocations;
Deuteronomy 9:16
And I looked, and, behold, ye had sinned against the Lord your God, and had made you a molten calf: ye had turned aside quickly out of the way which the Lord had commanded you.
1 Kings 12:28
Whereupon the king took counsel, and made two calves of gold, and said unto them, It is too much for you to go up to Jerusalem: behold thy gods, O Israel, which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt.
Acts 7:41
And they made a calf in those days, and offered sacrifice unto the idol, and rejoiced in the works of their own hands.
Exodus 32:8
They have turned aside quickly out of the way which I commanded them: they have made them a molten calf, and have worshipped it, and have sacrificed thereunto, and said, These be thy gods, O Israel, which have brought thee up out of the land of Egypt.
Isaiah 44:9-10
They that make a graven image are all of them vanity; and their delectable things shall not profit; and they are their own witnesses; they see not, nor know; that they may be ashamed. Who hath formed a god, or molten a graven image that is profitable for nothing?
Hosea 13:2
And now they sin more and more, and have made them molten images of their silver, and idols according to their own understanding, all of it the work of the craftsmen: they say of them, Let the men that sacrifice kiss the calves.
Romans 1:21-23
Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened. Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools, And changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things.
2 Kings 10:29
Howbeit from the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who made Israel to sin, Jehu departed not from after them, to wit, the golden calves that were in Beth–el, and that were in Dan.
Hosea 8:4-5
They have set up kings, but not by me: they have made princes, and I knew it not: of their silver and their gold have they made them idols, that they may be cut off. Thy calf, O Samaria, hath cast thee off; mine anger is kindled against them: how long will it be ere they attain to innocency?
2 Chronicles 11:15
And he ordained him priests for the high places, and for the devils, and for the calves which he had made.
Hosea 10:5
The inhabitants of Samaria shall fear because of the calves of Beth–aven: for the people thereof shall mourn over it, and the priests thereof that rejoiced on it, for the glory thereof, because it is departed from it.

Ranked by reader votes · OpenBible.info cross references (CC BY).

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge

fashioned.
20:23; De 9:16; Ps 106:19-21; Isa 44:9,10; 46:6; Ac 7:41; 17:29
a graving.
28:9,11
calf.
1Ki 12:28,32; 2Ki 10:29; 2Ch 11:15; 13:8; Ho 8:4,5; 10:5; 13:2
These.
8; Jud 17:3,4; Ne 9:18; Isa 40:18,19; Ro 1:21-23
which brought.
1,8; 20:2

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (Samuel Bagster, c. 1836) · public domain

Context

Exodus 32:3
And all the people brake off the golden earrings which were in their ears, and brought them unto Aaron.
Exodus 32:4
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.
Exodus 32:5
And when Aaron saw it, he built an altar before it; and Aaron made proclamation, and said, To morrow is a feast to the Lord.

Read all of Exodus 32

Exodus 32:4 in other languages

Spanish Reina-Valera 1909	El cual los tomó de las manos de ellos, y formólo con buril, é hizo de ello un becerro de fundición. Entonces dijeron: Israel, estos son tus dioses, que te sacaron de la tierra de Egipto.
French Bible J.N. Darby 1885	et il les prit de leurs mains, et il forma l’or avec un ciseau, et il en fit un veau de fonte. Et ils dirent: C’est ici ton dieu, ô Israël! qui t’a fait monter du pays d’Égypte.
German Elberfelder 1871	Und er nahm es aus ihrer Hand und bildete es mit einem Meißel und machte ein gegossenes Kalb daraus. Und sie sprachen: Das ist dein Gott, Israel, der dich aus dem Lande Ägypten heraufgeführt hat.
Latin Clementine Vulgate	Quas cum ille accepisset, formavit opere fusorio, et fecit ex eis vitulum conflatilem: dixeruntque: Hi sunt dii tui Israël, qui te eduxerunt de terra Ægypti.