King James Version, Updated™

(1) When the people saw that Moses delayed coming down from the mountain, the people gathered themselves together and went to Aaron, and said to him, "Get up, make us gods, who shall go before us; as for this Moses, the man that brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him."

(2) So Aaron said to them, "Break off the golden earrings, which are in the ears of your wives, of your sons, and of your daughters, and bring them to me."

(3) Then all the people broke off the golden earrings which were in their ears, and brought them to Aaron.

(4) And he received the golden earrings from their hand, and fashioned it with a graving tool, then he made it into a molten calf; and they said, "These are your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt."

(5) When Aaron saw it, he built an altar before it; and Aaron made a proclamation, and said, "Tomorrow is a feast to the LORD."

(6) They rose up early the next day, and offered burnt offerings, and brought peace offerings; and the people sat down to eat and to drink, and rose up to play.

(7) And the LORD said to Moses, "Go, get down from here; for your people, whom you brought out of the land of Egypt, have corrupted themselves.

(8) They have turned aside quickly out of the way which I commanded them; they have made themselves a molten calf, and have worshipped it, and have sacrificed to it, and said, 'These are your gods, O Israel, who have brought you up out of the land of Egypt.' "

(9) And the LORD said to Moses, "I have seen this people, and, behold, they are a stubborn people.

(10) Now therefore let me alone, that my wrath may burn hot against them, and that I may consume them; and I will make of you a great nation."

(11) Moses prayed to the LORD his God, and said, "LORD, why does your wrath burn hot against your people, whom you have brought forth out of the land of Egypt with great power, and with a mighty hand?

(12) Why should the Egyptians speak, and say, 'For evil did he bring them out, to kill them in the mountains, and to consume them from the face of the earth?' Turn from your fierce wrath, and repent of this evil against your people.

(13) Remember Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, your servants, to whom you swore by your own self, and said to them, 'I will multiply your descendants as the stars of heaven, and all this land that I have spoken of will I give to your descendants, and they shall inherit it forever.' "

(14) And the LORD repented of the evil which he thought of doing to his people.

(15) Then Moses turned, and went down from the mountain, and the two tablets of the testimony were in his hand; the tablets were written on both sides; on the one side and on the other they were written.

(16) The tablets were the work of God, and the writing was the writing of God, engraved on the tablets.

(17) When Joshua heard the noise of the people as they shouted, he said to Moses, "There is a noise of war in the camp."

(18) But he said, "It is not the voice of them that shout for victory, neither is it the voice of them that cry for being overcome, but the noise of them that sing I hear."

(19) It came to pass, as soon as he came near the camp, that he saw the calf, and the dancing; and Moses' anger burned hot, and he threw the tablets out of his hands, and broke them beneath the mountain.

(20) Then he took the calf which they had made, and burned it in the fire, and ground it to powder, and scattered it on the water, and made the children of Israel drink of it.

(21) Moses said to Aaron, "What did these people do to you, that you have brought so great a sin on them?"

(22) And Aaron said, "Do not let the anger of my lord burn hot; you know the people, that they are set on evil.

(23) For they said to me, 'Make us gods, which shall go before us; as for this Moses, the man that brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him.'

(24) And I said to them, 'Whoever has any gold, let them break it off.' So they gave it to me; then I cast it into the fire, and out came this calf."

(25) When Moses saw that the people were naked, (for Aaron had made them naked to their shame among their enemies),

(26) then Moses stood in the gate of the camp, and said, "Who is on the LORD’S side? Let him come to me." And all the sons of Levi gathered themselves together to him.

(27) And he said to them, "Thus says the LORD God of Israel, 'Every man put his sword by his side, and go in and out from gate to gate throughout the camp, and every man kill his brother, and his companion, and his neighbor.' "

(28) So the children of Levi did according to the word of Moses; and that day about 3,000 men of the people fell.

(29) Moses said, "Consecrate yourselves today to the LORD, every man went against his son, and his brother; so that he may bestow on you a blessing this day."

(30) It came to pass on the next day, that Moses said to the people, "YOU have sinned a great sin; and now I will go up to the LORD; perhaps I shall be allowed to make an atonement for your sin."

(31) And Moses returned to the LORD, and said, "Oh, these people have sinned a great sin, and have made themselves gods of gold.

(32) Yet now, if you will forgive their sin--; but if not, I pray, blot me out of your book which you have written."

(33) Then the LORD said to Moses, "Whoever has sinned against me, I will blot him out of my book.

(34) Now go, lead the people to the place of which I have spoken to you; behold, my Angel shall go before you; nevertheless in the day when I visit, I will visit their sin upon them.

(35) And the LORD plagued the people, because of the the calf, which they had Aaron make.