Study Desk

When He had finished speaking with him on Mount Sinai, He gave Moses the two tablets of the testimony, tablets of stone, written by the finger of God.

Now when the people saw that Moses delayed to come down from the mountain, the people assembled around Aaron and said to him, "Come, make us a god who will go before us; for this Moses, the man who brought us up from the land of Egypt—we do not know what happened to him."

Then he took the gold from their hands, and fashioned it with an engraving tool and made it into a cast metal calf; and they said, "This is your god, Israel, who brought you up from the land of Egypt."

"They have quickly turned aside from the way which I commanded them. They have made for themselves a cast metal calf, and have worshiped it and have sacrificed to it and said, 'This is your god, Israel, who brought you up from the land of Egypt!'"

Then Moses pleaded with the LORD his God, and said, "LORD, why does Your anger burn against Your people whom You have brought out from the land of Egypt with great power and with a mighty hand?

"For they said to me, 'Make a god for us who will go before us; for this Moses, the man who brought us up from the land of Egypt—we do not know what happened to him.'

And he said to them, "This is what the LORD, the God of Israel says: 'Every man of you put his sword on his thigh, and go back and forth from gate to gate in the camp, and kill every man his brother, and every man his friend, and every man his neighbor.'"

Then Moses returned to the LORD and said, "Oh, this people has committed a great sin, and they have made a god of gold for themselves!

Then the LORD passed by in front of him and proclaimed, "The LORD, the LORD God, compassionate and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in faithfulness and truth;

Then God said, "Behold, I am going to make a covenant. Before all your people I will perform miracles which have not been produced in all the earth nor among any of the nations; and all the people among whom you live will see the working of the LORD, for it is a fearful thing that I am going to perform with you.

—for you shall not worship any other god, because the LORD, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God—

"Three times a year all your males are to appear before the Lord GOD, the God of Israel.

"For I will drive out nations from you and enlarge your borders, and no one will covet your land when you go up three times a year to appear before the LORD your God.

"You shall bring the very first of the first fruits of your soil into the house of the LORD your God. "You shall not boil a young goat in its mother's milk."

"And He has filled him with the Spirit of God, in wisdom, in understanding, in knowledge, and in all craftsmanship;

'Every grain offering of yours, moreover, you shall season with salt, so that the salt of the covenant of your God will not be lacking from your grain offering; with all your offerings you shall offer salt.

'When a leader sins and unintentionally does any of the things which the LORD his God has commanded not to be done, and he becomes guilty,

'For I am the LORD your God. Consecrate yourselves therefore, and be holy, because I am holy. And you shall not make yourselves unclean with any of the swarming things that swarm on the earth.

'For I am the LORD who brought you up from the land of Egypt, to be your God; so you shall be holy, because I am holy.'"

"Speak to the sons of Israel and say to them, 'I am the LORD your God.