"So I [Aaron] said, 'Who has gold?' And they took off their jewelry and gave it to me. I threw it in the fire and out came this calf." Exodus 32:24 (MSG)
From the time we're little children, we know how to make excuses for our wrong-doings. We get caught with our hand in the cookie jar and exclaim, "But, mommy! I was getting a cookie for YOU!" We get caught making out on the couch with our girlfriend and exclaim, "It's not what it looked like! We weren't lying together. We were just hugging, lost our balance, and fell over." We are questioned about our sin and obfuscate the truth to the point we're arguing over the definition of the word "is."
We can shake our heads and laugh at Aaron for expecting Moses to believe that he threw gold in the fire and, when he pulled it out, there was this statue of a calf. The reality is that each one of us, at one time or another, have stretched the truth in an attempt to avoid the consequences.
The path to maturity begins with the single step of being honest about ourselves and our mistakes. Only when we're willing to admit the truth about our shortcomings can we begin the process of repentance and positive growth.
By the way – “kr” I like what you usually add as well. I was going to tell you that I read NLT and my version of the verse 11 is “But Moses tried to pacify the Lord his God…” definitely puts a different spin on things!
Good word today, Tom! Verse 5 popped out at me:
“Aaron saw how excited the people were, so he built an altar in front of the calf. Then he announced, “Tomorrow will be a festival to the Lord!””
So, basically Aaron built a golden idol, but then proclaims it’s all in honor of The One True God??? Craziness!
I wonder how many times we’ve worshipped idols in our life, but tried to convince ourselves that our intent was in honor of The Almighty God? We’d only be fooling ourselves!
11-13 Moses tried to calm his God down.
What? Seriously? I don’t remember this verse in the Bible. The NIV version is less abrupt, 11 But Moses sought the favor of the LORD his God. I prefer the Message version. It reminds me of my son telling me, “Dad you promised not to get so mad. Don’t break your promise.” I like the idea that we can ask God to have mercy on us and spare His anger. We mess up daily. He loves us and gives us many, many chances. It is the gift of grace.