The Golden Calf of Israelites

**Waqar Daniel** Mon 01 Dec 2008, 6:48 am

"And when the people saw that Moses delayed to come down from the mount, the people gathered themselves together unto Aaron, and said unto him, Up, make us gods, which shall go before us; for as for this Moses, the man that brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we know not what is become of him. And Aaron said unto them, Break off the golden rings, which are in the ears of your wives, of your sons, and of your daughters, and bring them unto me. And all the people brake off the golden rings which were in their ears, and brought them unto Aaron. 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." (Exodus 32:1-4)

Motivation for making a Golden Calf
The basic motivation is given in the chapter itself that led some Israelities to ask Aaron to make them a god that would lead them as they did not know what had happened to their leader (Moses) who led them out of Egypt.

From where did they get the idea of making a Golden Calf as god?
There were nearly two thousand gods worshiped in Egypt. The question that really boggles the mind is why did Israelities, who had seen God the Most High do wonders and miracles before their eyes opt to make a Golden Calf.

The idea of worshiping golden calf was not alien to Israelities as they had lived in Egypt and it was one of the animal deities that was worshiped in Egypt.

As the writings of the First Dynasty show among the most important animal cults were bull cults. The ancients believed that the powerful bull represented the personality of the king; slate palettes dating back as far as 3100 BC even show kings as bulls. This animal was chosen because it symbolized the king.

Priests of the bull cults identified a sacred bull by its very specific markings. Once the bull was proclaimed to be a god incarnate, it was taken to the temple compound where it was purified, stabled in majestic quarters, fed the best foods, and given a herd of the finest cows.

The bull god was called Apis and Apis was incarnation of the god Ptah, the creator of the universe and master of destiny. The birth of an Apis calf was a time for celebration among ancient Egyptians, since this meant that a living god had been born into their midst.

Therefore, the golden calf was made keeping in mind that it was worshiped in Egypt as creator of universe and was god of destiny and the Israelities after waiting for Moses thought of a god who would lead them to their destiny and who could be a better choice than Apis.

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Pastor Tue 02 Dec 2008, 8:48 am

Daniel this is a very informative commentary on the subject. I agree that the Israelities must have got some information and some deity whom they thought would be powerful enough to lead them to their destiny and that was the promised land.

I learn another lesson from this story and last Sunday I gave sermon on this in my small Church. I have learnt that during tribulations we must not turn to other gods but to rely and trust God the Most High, who is the creator of Universe and earth and everything in it.

It is human nature to panic in times of tribulation and try to take matters in their own hands and thus ruin everything and bring the wrath over them.

One thing I would like to ask, how do you link Biblical reference with Biblegateway? I will be obliged and thanks in advance.

God bless you mightly and the work you are doing