Exodus 32:1-29
When the people saw that Moses was so long in coming down from the mountain, They got up to indulge in revelry, Aaron allow then to made a calf as their gods by gold and silver from their earring.
God's angry burnt to Israelite, but Moses sought the favor of the Lord.
Moses said to those who come to him, the Levites, "Each man trap 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."
The Lord replied to Moses, "Whoever has sinned against me I will blot out of my book. The Lord struck the people with a plague because of what they did with the calf Aaron had made.
Only six weeks after making their solemn covenant-pledge with God the people are clamouring(吵著) for a replica of the old gods of Egypt. "They were a slave people, still with the minds of slaves, even if God had set them free'.
And Aaron, God's high priest, not only makes the bull-calf, but identifies it with God.
Death is the penalty for those who break covenant - but Israel is saved by the selfless prayer of Moses.
The broken tablets dramatically proclaim the broken covenant. Such sin cannot go wholly unpunished.
Why?
The prayer of Moses 1)according to God's promise and God's concerning 2)Close to the Lord 3)Bear each other when face the challenge of life and dead 4) Serve the Lord and serve the people, the key point is God is love
God takes account of human response, not so much 'changing his mind' as acting in a different way.
Who is for God? Moses' own tribe the Levites, rally to him. What follows is 'holy war': an example is made of a few - maybe ringleaders(頭目), more likely worshippers caught by chance. "Brother' means follow-Israelite. But even family ties are less important then loyalty to God.
Moses not only prayed to the Lord sought for mercy from the Lord and he asked Levites kill his brothers who worships the bull-calf.
How?
God is more important then family-tie when fellow family are turn away from the Lord.
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