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Exodus 31-33
Easy-to-Read Version
Exodus 31-33
Easy-to-Read Version
Bezalel and Oholiab
31 Then the Lord said to Moses, 2 “I have chosen a man from the tribe of Judah to do some special work for me. His name is Bezalel son of Uri son of Hur. 3 I have filled Bezalel with the Spirit of God—I have given him the skill and knowledge to do all kinds of things. 4 He is a very good designer. And he can make things from gold, silver, and bronze. 5 He can cut and set beautiful jewels. And he can work with wood. He can do all kinds of work. 6 I have also chosen Oholiab to work with him. Oholiab is the son of Ahisamach from the tribe of Dan. And I have given skills to all the other workers so that they can make everything that I have commanded you:
7 the Meeting Tent;
the Box of the Agreement;
the mercy-cover that is on it;
8 the table and everything on it;
the pure gold lampstand and everything used with it;
the altar for burning incense;
9 the altar for burning offerings and the things used at the altar;
the bowl and the base under it;
10 the special clothes for Aaron the priest;
the special clothes for Aaron’s sons when they serve as priests;
11 the sweet-smelling anointing oil;
the sweet-smelling incense for the Holy Place.
These workers must make everything the way that I have commanded you.”
The Sabbath
12 Then the Lord said to Moses, 13 “Tell the Israelites this: ‘You must follow the rules about my special days of rest. You must do this because they will be a sign between you and me for all generations. This will show you that I, the Lord, have made you my special people.
14 “‘Make the Sabbath a special day. If someone treats the Sabbath like any other day, that person must be killed. Whoever works on the Sabbath day must be separated from their people. 15 There are six other days in the week for working. But the seventh day is a very special day of rest. That is the special day to honor the Lord. Anyone who works during the Sabbath must be killed. 16 The Israelites must remember the Sabbath and make it a special day. They must continue to do this forever. It is an agreement between them and me that will continue forever. 17 The Sabbath will be a sign between me and the Israelites forever.’” (The Lord worked six days and made the sky and the earth, and on the seventh day he rested and relaxed.)
18 When God finished speaking to Moses on Mount Sinai, he gave him the two stone tablets of the agreement. God had written on the stones with his finger.
The Golden Calf
32 The people saw that a long time had passed and Moses had not come down from the mountain. So they gathered around Aaron. They said to him, “Look, Moses led us out of the land of Egypt, but we don’t know what has happened to him. So make us some gods to go before us and lead us.”
2 Aaron said to the people, “Bring me the gold earrings that belong to your wives, sons, and daughters.”
3 So the people collected all their gold earrings and brought them to Aaron. 4 He took the gold from the people and used it to make an idol. Using a special tool, he shaped the gold into a statue of a calf.
Then the people said, “Israel, here are your gods! These are the gods that brought you out of the land of Egypt!”[a]
5 Aaron saw all these things, so he built an altar in front of the calf. Then Aaron made an announcement. He said, “Tomorrow will be a special festival to honor the Lord.”
6 The people woke up very early the next morning. They killed animals and offered them as burnt offerings and fellowship offerings. They sat down to eat and drink. Then they got up and had a wild party.
7 At the same time, the Lord said to Moses, “Go down from this mountain. Your people, the people you brought out of the land of Egypt, have committed a terrible sin. 8 They have very quickly turned away from what I commanded them to do. They made a calf from melted gold for themselves. They are worshiping that calf and making sacrifices to it. The people have said, ‘Israel, these are the gods that led you out of Egypt.’”
9 The Lord said to Moses, “I have seen these people, and I know that they are very stubborn. They will always turn against me. 10 So now let me destroy them in anger. Then I will make a great nation from you.”
11 But Moses begged the Lord his God, “Lord, don’t let your anger destroy your people. You brought them out of Egypt with your great power and strength. 12 But if you destroy your people, the Egyptians will say, ‘God planned to do bad things to his people. That is why he led them out of Egypt. He wanted to kill them in the mountains. He wanted to wipe them off the earth.’ So don’t be angry with your people. Please change your mind! Don’t destroy them. 13 Remember Abraham, Isaac, and Israel. These men served you, and you used your name to make a promise to them. You said, ‘I will make your people as many as the stars in the sky. I will give your people all this land as I promised. This land will be theirs forever.’”
14 So the Lord felt sorry for the people. He did not do what he said he might do—he did not destroy them.
15 Then Moses went down the mountain. He had the two stone tablets with the agreement on them. The commandments were written on both sides of the stone, front and back. 16 God himself made the stones, and God himself wrote the commandments on them.
17 Joshua heard the noise from the party in camp. He said to Moses, “It sounds like war down in the camp!”
18 Moses answered, “It is not the noise of an army shouting for victory. And it is not the noise of an army crying from defeat. The noise I hear is the sound of music.[b]”
19 When Moses came near the camp, he saw the golden calf and the people dancing. He became very angry, and he threw the stone tablets on the ground. The stones broke into several pieces at the bottom of the mountain. 20 Then Moses destroyed the calf that the people had made. He melted it in the fire. Then he ground the gold until it became dust and threw it into the water. Then he forced the Israelites to drink that water.
21 Moses said to Aaron, “What did these people do to you that would make you do this? Why did you lead them to do such a terrible sin?”
22 Aaron answered, “Don’t be angry, sir. You know that these people are always ready to do wrong. 23 The people said to me, ‘Moses led us out of Egypt, but we don’t know what has happened to him. So make us some gods to lead us.’ 24 So I told the people, ‘If you have any gold rings, then give them to me.’ The people gave me their gold. I threw the gold into the fire, and out of the fire came this calf!”
25 Moses saw that Aaron had let the people get out of control. They were being wild, and all their enemies could see them acting like fools. 26 So Moses stood at the entrance to the camp and said, “Anyone who wants to follow the Lord should come to me.” Everyone from the tribe of Levi ran to Moses.
27 Then Moses said to them, “I will tell you what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: ‘Every man must get his sword and go from one end of the camp to the other. You men must kill those who are against the Lord, even if they are your brothers, friends, or neighbors.’”
28 The people from the tribe of Levi obeyed Moses. That day about 3000 of the people died. 29 Then Moses said, “Take your role today as special servants of the Lord because you were willing to fight against even your own sons and brothers. You will receive a blessing for this.”[c]
30 The next morning Moses told the people, “You have committed a terrible sin! But now I will go up to the Lord, and maybe I can do something so that he will forgive you for your sin.” 31 So Moses went back to the Lord and said, “Please listen! These people committed a terrible sin and made a god from gold. 32 Now, forgive them of this sin. If you will not forgive them, then erase my name from your book.[d]”
33 But the Lord said to Moses, “The only people I erase from my book are those who sin against me. 34 So now, go down and lead the people where I tell you to go. My angel will go before you and lead you. When the time comes to punish those who sinned, they will be punished.” 35 So the Lord caused a terrible sickness to come to the people. He did this because they told Aaron to make the golden calf.
I Will Not Go With You
33 Then the Lord said to Moses, “You and the people you brought out of Egypt must leave this place. Go to the land that I promised to give to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. I promised them that I would give that land to their descendants. 2 So I will send an angel to go before you, and I will defeat the Canaanites, Amorites, Hittites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites. I will force them to leave your land. 3 So go to the land filled with many good things,[e] but I will not go with you. You people are very stubborn. If I go with you, I might destroy you along the way.”
4 The people heard this bad news and became very sad, so they stopped wearing jewelry. 5 This was because the Lord said to Moses, “Tell the Israelites, ‘You are a stubborn people. I might destroy you even if I travel with you only a short time. So take off all your jewelry while I decide[f] what to do with you.’” 6 So the Israelites stopped wearing their jewelry at Mount Horeb.
The Temporary Meeting Tent
7 Moses used to take a tent a short way outside the camp. He called it “the meeting tent.[g]” Anyone who wanted to ask something from the Lord would go to the meeting tent outside the camp. 8 Any time Moses went out to the tent, all the people watched him. They stood at the entrance of their tents and watched Moses until he entered the meeting tent. 9 Whenever Moses went into the tent, the tall cloud would come down and stay at the entrance to the tent. And the Lord would speak with Moses. 10 So when the people saw the cloud at the entrance of the tent, they would go to the entrance of their own tents and bow down to worship God.
11 In this way the Lord spoke to Moses face to face like a man speaks with his friend. Then Moses would go back to the camp, but his helper, Joshua son of Nun, always stayed in the tent.
Moses Sees the Glory of the Lord
12 Moses said to the Lord, “You told me to lead these people, but you did not say who you would send with me. You said to me, ‘I know you very well, and I am pleased with you.’ 13 If I have really pleased you, then teach me your ways. I want to know you. Then I can continue to please you. Remember that these people are your nation.”
14 The Lord answered, “I myself will go with you. I will lead you.”[h]
15 Then Moses said to him, “If you don’t go with us, then don’t make us leave this place. 16 Also, how will we know if you are pleased with me and these people? If you go with us, we will know for sure. If you don’t go with us, these people and I will be no different from any other people on the earth.”
17 Then the Lord said to Moses, “I will do what you ask. I will do this because I am pleased with you and because I know you very well.”[i]
18 Then Moses said, “Now, please show me your Glory.”
19 Then the Lord answered, “I will show my love and mercy to anyone I want to. So I will cause my perfect goodness to pass by in front of you, and I will speak my name, Yahweh, so that you can hear it. 20 But you cannot see my face. No one can see me and continue to live.”
21 Then the Lord said, “Here is a place for you to stand by me on this large rock. 22 I will put you in a large crack in that rock. Then I will cover you with my hand, and my Glory will pass by. 23 Then I will take away my hand, and you will see my back. But you will not see my face.”
Footnotes
- Exodus 32:4 Israel … Egypt This shows that the people worshiped the calf as a special symbol for the Lord, and even this was forbidden. See 1 Kings 12:26-30.
- Exodus 32:18 music Or “singing.”
- Exodus 32:29 Take your role … blessing for this This seems to be the point when the priesthood changed. Before this time, the priests came from the firstborn sons; after this time, they came from the sons of Aaron of the tribe of Levi.
- Exodus 32:32 your book The book of life, in which God has written the names of his chosen people. See Rev. 3:5; 21:27.
- Exodus 33:3 land … things Literally, “land flowing with milk and honey.”
- Exodus 33:5 jewelry … decide This is a wordplay in Hebrew, but people often wore jewelry to remind them of their false gods.
- Exodus 33:7 meeting tent This is probably a tent that Moses used only until the real Meeting Tent was built.
- Exodus 33:14 lead you Or “give you rest.”
- Exodus 33:17 I know you very well Literally, “I know you by name.”
Exodus 31-33
New International Version
Exodus 31-33
New International Version
Bezalel and Oholiab(A)
31 Then the Lord said to Moses, 2 “See, I have chosen Bezalel(B) son of Uri, the son of Hur,(C) of the tribe of Judah, 3 and I have filled him with the Spirit of God, with wisdom, with understanding, with knowledge(D) and with all kinds of skills(E)— 4 to make artistic designs for work in gold, silver and bronze, 5 to cut and set stones, to work in wood, and to engage in all kinds of crafts. 6 Moreover, I have appointed Oholiab(F) son of Ahisamak, of the tribe of Dan,(G) to help him. Also I have given ability to all the skilled workers(H) to make everything I have commanded you: 7 the tent of meeting,(I) the ark of the covenant law(J) with the atonement cover(K) on it, and all the other furnishings of the tent— 8 the table(L) and its articles, the pure gold lampstand(M) and all its accessories, the altar of incense,(N) 9 the altar of burnt offering(O) and all its utensils, the basin(P) with its stand— 10 and also the woven garments(Q), both the sacred garments for Aaron the priest and the garments for his sons when they serve as priests, 11 and the anointing oil(R) and fragrant incense(S) for the Holy Place. They are to make them just as I commanded(T) you.”
The Sabbath
12 Then the Lord said to Moses, 13 “Say to the Israelites, ‘You must observe my Sabbaths.(U) This will be a sign(V) between me and you for the generations to come,(W) so you may know that I am the Lord, who makes you holy.(X)
14 “‘Observe the Sabbath, because it is holy to you. Anyone who desecrates it is to be put to death;(Y) those who do any work on that day must be cut off from their people. 15 For six days work(Z) is to be done, but the seventh day is a day of sabbath rest,(AA) holy to the Lord. Whoever does any work on the Sabbath day is to be put to death. 16 The Israelites are to observe the Sabbath,(AB) celebrating it for the generations to come as a lasting covenant. 17 It will be a sign(AC) between me and the Israelites forever, for in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, and on the seventh day he rested and was refreshed.(AD)’”(AE)
18 When the Lord finished speaking to Moses on Mount Sinai,(AF) he gave him the two tablets of the covenant law, the tablets of stone(AG) inscribed by the finger of God.(AH)
The Golden Calf
32 When the people saw that Moses was so long in coming down from the mountain,(AI) they gathered around Aaron and said, “Come, make us gods[a] who will go before(AJ) us. As for this fellow Moses who brought us up out of Egypt, we don’t know what has happened to him.”(AK)
2 Aaron answered them, “Take off the gold earrings(AL) that your wives, your sons and your daughters are wearing, and bring them to me.” 3 So all the people took off their earrings and brought them to Aaron. 4 He took what they handed him and made it into an idol(AM) cast in the shape of a calf,(AN) fashioning it with a tool. Then they said, “These are your gods,[b](AO) Israel, who brought you up out of Egypt.”(AP)
5 When Aaron saw this, he built an altar in front of the calf and announced, “Tomorrow there will be a festival(AQ) to the Lord.” 6 So the next day the people rose early and sacrificed burnt offerings and presented fellowship offerings.(AR) Afterward they sat down to eat and drink(AS) and got up to indulge in revelry.(AT)
7 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Go down, because your people, whom you brought up out of Egypt,(AU) have become corrupt.(AV) 8 They have been quick to turn away(AW) from what I commanded them and have made themselves an idol(AX) cast in the shape of a calf.(AY) They have bowed down to it and sacrificed(AZ) to it and have said, ‘These are your gods, Israel, who brought you up out of Egypt.’(BA)
9 “I have seen these people,” the Lord said to Moses, “and they are a stiff-necked(BB) people. 10 Now leave me alone(BC) so that my anger may burn against them and that I may destroy(BD) them. Then I will make you into a great nation.”(BE)
11 But Moses sought the favor(BF) of the Lord his God. “Lord,” he said, “why should your anger burn against your people, whom you brought out of Egypt with great power and a mighty hand?(BG) 12 Why should the Egyptians say, ‘It was with evil intent that he brought them out, to kill them in the mountains and to wipe them off the face of the earth’?(BH) Turn from your fierce anger; relent and do not bring disaster(BI) on your people. 13 Remember(BJ) your servants Abraham, Isaac and Israel, to whom you swore by your own self:(BK) ‘I will make your descendants as numerous as the stars(BL) in the sky and I will give your descendants all this land(BM) I promised them, and it will be their inheritance forever.’” 14 Then the Lord relented(BN) and did not bring on his people the disaster he had threatened.
15 Moses turned and went down the mountain with the two tablets of the covenant law(BO) in his hands.(BP) They were inscribed(BQ) 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.(BR)
17 When Joshua(BS) heard the noise of the people shouting, he said to Moses, “There is the sound of war in the camp.”
18 Moses replied:
“It is not the sound of victory,
it is not the sound of defeat;
it is the sound of singing that I hear.”
19 When Moses approached the camp and saw the calf(BT) and the dancing,(BU) his anger burned(BV) and he threw the tablets out of his hands, breaking them to pieces(BW) at the foot of the mountain. 20 And he took the calf the people had made and burned(BX) it in the fire; then he ground it to powder,(BY) scattered it on the water(BZ) 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,(CA) my lord,” Aaron answered. “You know how prone these people are to evil.(CB) 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.’(CC) 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!”(CD)
25 Moses saw that the people were running wild and that Aaron had let them get out of control and so become a laughingstock(CE) 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.
27 Then he said to them, “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: ‘Each man strap a sword to his side. Go back and forth through the camp from one end to the other, each killing his brother and friend and neighbor.’”(CF) 28 The Levites did as Moses commanded, and that day about three thousand of the people died. 29 Then Moses said, “You have been set apart to the Lord today, for you were against your own sons and brothers, and he has blessed you this day.”
30 The next day Moses said to the people, “You have committed a great sin.(CG) But now I will go up to the Lord; perhaps I can make atonement(CH) for your sin.”
31 So Moses went back to the Lord and said, “Oh, what a great sin these people have committed!(CI) They have made themselves gods of gold.(CJ) 32 But now, please forgive their sin(CK)—but if not, then blot me(CL) out of the book(CM) you have written.”
33 The Lord replied to Moses, “Whoever has sinned against me I will blot out(CN) of my book. 34 Now go, lead(CO) the people to the place(CP) I spoke of, and my angel(CQ) will go before you. However, when the time comes for me to punish,(CR) I will punish them for their sin.”
35 And the Lord struck the people with a plague because of what they did with the calf(CS) Aaron had made.
33 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Leave this place, you and the people you brought up out of Egypt, and go up to the land I promised on oath(CT) to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, saying, ‘I will give it to your descendants.’(CU) 2 I will send an angel(CV) before you and drive out the Canaanites, Amorites, Hittites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites.(CW) 3 Go up to the land flowing with milk and honey.(CX) But I will not go with you, because you are a stiff-necked(CY) people and I might destroy(CZ) you on the way.”
4 When the people heard these distressing words, they began to mourn(DA) and no one put on any ornaments. 5 For the Lord had said to Moses, “Tell the Israelites, ‘You are a stiff-necked people.(DB) If I were to go with you even for a moment, I might destroy(DC) you. Now take off your ornaments and I will decide what to do with you.’” 6 So the Israelites stripped off their ornaments at Mount Horeb.(DD)
The Tent of Meeting
7 Now Moses used to take a tent and pitch it outside the camp some distance away, calling it the “tent of meeting.”(DE) Anyone inquiring(DF) of the Lord would go to the tent of meeting outside the camp. 8 And whenever Moses went out to the tent, all the people rose and stood at the entrances to their tents,(DG) watching Moses until he entered the tent. 9 As Moses went into the tent, the pillar of cloud(DH) would come down and stay at the entrance, while the Lord spoke(DI) with Moses. 10 Whenever the people saw the pillar of cloud standing at the entrance to the tent, they all stood and worshiped, each at the entrance to their tent.(DJ) 11 The Lord would speak to Moses face to face,(DK) as one speaks to a friend. Then Moses would return to the camp, but his young aide Joshua(DL) son of Nun did not leave the tent.
Moses and the Glory of the Lord
12 Moses said to the Lord, “You have been telling me, ‘Lead these people,’(DM) but you have not let me know whom you will send with me. You have said, ‘I know you by name(DN) and you have found favor(DO) with me.’ 13 If you are pleased with me, teach me your ways(DP) so I may know you and continue to find favor with you. Remember that this nation is your people.”(DQ)
14 The Lord replied, “My Presence(DR) will go with you, and I will give you rest.”(DS)
15 Then Moses said to him, “If your Presence(DT) does not go with us, do not send us up from here. 16 How will anyone know that you are pleased with me and with your people unless you go with us?(DU) What else will distinguish me and your people from all the other people on the face of the earth?”(DV)
17 And the Lord said to Moses, “I will do the very thing you have asked,(DW) because I am pleased with you and I know you by name.”(DX)
18 Then Moses said, “Now show me your glory.”(DY)
19 And the Lord said, “I will cause all my goodness to pass(DZ) in front of you, and I will proclaim my name,(EA) the Lord, in your presence. I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion.(EB) 20 But,” he said, “you cannot see my face, for no one may see(EC) me and live.”
21 Then the Lord said, “There is a place near me where you may stand on a rock. 22 When my glory passes by, I will put you in a cleft in the rock(ED) and cover you with my hand(EE) until I have passed by. 23 Then I will remove my hand and you will see my back; but my face must not be seen.”
Footnotes
- Exodus 32:1 Or a god; also in verses 23 and 31
- Exodus 32:4 Or This is your god; also in verse 8
Easy-to-Read Version (ERV)
Copyright © 2006 by Bible League International
New International Version (NIV) 
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