The Bible Slam: Exodus Chapter 32

After 40 days, Moses is ready to finally leave the mountain. But before he goes, God furiously observes that Aaron and the Israelites decided to make another god because Moses was gone for so long. God threatens to destroy the Israelites. Moses reminds God of his previous promises so "the LORD repented of the evil which he thought to do unto his people" (Exodus 32:14).

Moses descends the mountain to discover raucous partying. The Israelites were dancing butt naked around a golden calf.   Furious, Moses smashes the tablets that God had written on and demands that Aaron explain what happened.

According to Aaron, the wicked people were demanding a god to follow, so he had them toss their gold earrings and jewelry into a fire and POOF! A golden calf popped out!

If he was indeed telling the truth, perhaps this didn't seem so strange to Moses or Aaron since they had recently done a bunch of magic tricks and plagues in front of Pharaoh earlier in the book Exodus.

Moses burns the golden calf, grinds it into powder, and then makes the people drink water mixed with the gold dust.   Then, he commands the people who decide to side with Yahweh instead of the golden calf to slaughter their brothers, companions and neighbors by sword.   3,000 people were allegedly murdered by these sons of Levi who decided to follow the God of Moses.

This wasn't enough.   Moses goes back up the mountain to get more tablets and God then sends a plague upon the people of Israel.   He also proclaims, "Whosoever hath sinned against me, him will I blot out of my book."

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Discussion Points.

Chapters such as this one are very difficult for many of us to believe are factual. For those who dig deep into the biblical story, there are some excellent books that discuss the occult/metaphysical meaning of these stories and their symbolic meaning. A good starting point is Deceptions and Myths of the Bible, by Lloyd M. Graham.

If the bible is to be viewed from an occult point of view instead of a literal history, the golden calf is said to tie into the astrological sign of Taurus. Here's a clip from Zeitgeist that gives an overview of some of the metaphysical interpretations of the bible. Part 2 discusses the Moses symbolism and the bull. Part 3 shows how the ten commandments were likely to have come from Egypt. Three parts are included below because they are quite interesting.

For those who believe that this book is the literal, inerrant and factual truth, then where did the Israelites get so much gold, let alone how did a golden calf magically come out of a fire without any craftsmanship?   Similarly, how did Moses single-handedly burn it and grind it into powder?   Surely, it had to be a fairly sizeable piece of artwork, if we are to believe that thousands of people were dancing around it … and that its powder could be drank by thousands.

Can you imagine killing your friends and family members by sword?   This was the punishment, and a gory one at that.   It wasn't enough … God sends plagues, too.

Toward the end of this chapter (SAB King James version), we are told:

32:32 Yet now, if thou wilt forgive their sin–; and if not, blot me, I pray thee, out of thy book which thou hast written.

32:33 And the LORD said unto Moses, Whosoever hath sinned against me, him will I blot out of my book.

What is the book?   This is the first reference in the bible.   Is this the same as what is known as "the Akashic Records?"   Is the life story of each person written in a book, and is it a record of sins or predestined events for each soul?

Finally, considering how much God hated the golden calf and declared a mass slaughter, plagues and "snuffing" people out of "the book" for celebrating it, it is ironic that in October 2008, members of the far Christian right had a prayer ceremony before Wall Street's golden bull. These are the people who insist that the bible is inerrant and literal. Do they not read it?

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