2 Kings 21:7

21:7 He put an idol of Asherah he had made in the temple, about which the Lord had said to David and to his son Solomon, “This temple in Jerusalem, which I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel, will be my permanent home. ¹ 

2 Kings 21:11

21:11 “King Manasseh of Judah has committed horrible sins. ²  He has sinned more than the Amorites before him and has encouraged Judah to sin by worshiping his disgusting idols. ³ 

Exodus 32:21

32:21 Moses said to Aaron, “What did this people do to you, that you have brought on them so great a sin?”

Exodus 32:1

The Sin of the Golden Calf

32:1 ⁴ When the people saw that Moses delayed ⁵  in coming down ⁶  from the mountain, they ⁷  gathered around Aaron and said to him, “Get up, ⁸  make us gods ⁹  that will go before us. As for this fellow Moses, ¹⁰  the man who brought us up from the land of Egypt, we do not know what ¹¹  has become of him!”

Exodus 14:15-16

14:15 The Lord said to Moses, “Why do you cry out to me? Tell the Israelites to move on. ¹²  14:16 And as for you, ¹³  lift up your staff and extend your hand toward the sea and divide it, so that ¹⁴  the Israelites may go through the middle of the sea on dry ground.

Exodus 14:2

14:2 “Tell the Israelites that they must turn and camp ¹⁵  before Pi-hahiroth, between Migdol and the sea; you are to camp by the sea before Baal Zephon opposite it. ¹⁶ 

Exodus 33:9

33:9 And ¹⁷  whenever Moses entered the tent, the pillar of cloud would descend and stand at the entrance of the tent, and the Lord ¹⁸  would speak with Moses. ¹⁹ 

[21:7]  ¹ tn Heb “In this house and in Jerusalem, which I chose from all the tribes of Israel, I will place my name perpetually (or perhaps “forever”).”

[21:11]  ² tn Heb “these horrible sins.”

[21:11]  ³ sn See the note at 1 Kgs 15:12.

[32:1]  ⁴ sn This narrative is an unhappy interlude in the flow of the argument of the book. After the giving of the Law and the instructions for the tabernacle, the people get into idolatry. So this section tells what the people were doing when Moses was on the mountain. Here is an instant violation of the covenant that they had just agreed to uphold. But through it all Moses shines as the great intercessor for the people. So the subject matter is the sin of idolatry, its effects and its remedy. Because of the similarities to Jeroboam’s setting up the calves in Dan and Bethel, modern critics have often said this passage was written at that time. U. Cassuto shows how the language of this chapter would not fit an Iron Age setting in Dan. Rather, he argues, this story was well enough known for Jeroboam to imitate the practice (Exodus, 407-10). This chapter can be divided into four parts for an easier exposition: idolatry (32:1-6), intercession (32:7-14), judgment (32:15-29), intercession again (32:30-33:6). Of course, these sections are far more complex than this, but this gives an overview. Four summary statements for expository points might be: I. Impatience often leads to foolish violations of the faith, II. Violations of the covenant require intercession to escape condemnation, III. Those spared of divine wrath must purge evil from their midst, and IV. Those who purge evil from their midst will find reinstatement through intercession. Several important studies are available for this. See, among others, D. R. Davis, “Rebellion, Presence, and Covenant: A Study in Exodus 32-34,” WTJ 44 (1982): 71-87; M. Greenberg, “Moses’ Intercessory Prayer,” Ecumenical Institute for Advanced Theological Studies (1978): 21-35; R. A. Hamer, “The New Covenant of Moses,” Judaism 27 (1978): 345-50; R. L. Honeycutt, Jr., “Aaron, the Priesthood, and the Golden Calf,” RevExp 74 (1977): 523-35; J. N. Oswalt, “The Golden Calves and the Egyptian Concept of Deity,” EvQ 45 (1973): 13-20.

[32:1]  ⁵ tn The meaning of this verb is properly “caused shame,” meaning cause disappointment because he was not coming back (see also Judg 5:28 for the delay of Sisera’s chariots [S. R. Driver, Exodus, 349]).

[32:1]  ⁶ tn The infinitive construct with the lamed (ל) preposition is used here epexegetically, explaining the delay of Moses.

[32:1]  ⁷ tn Heb “the people.”

[32:1]  ⁸ tn The imperative means “arise.” It could be serving here as an interjection, getting Aaron’s attention. But it might also have the force of prompting him to get busy.

[32:1]  ⁹ tn The plural translation is required here (although the form itself could be singular in meaning) because the verb that follows in the relative clause is a plural verb – that they go before us).

[32:1]  ¹⁰ tn The text has “this Moses.” But this instance may find the demonstrative used in an earlier deictic sense, especially since there is no article with it.

[32:1]  ¹¹ tn The interrogative is used in an indirect question (see GKC 443-44 §137.c).

[14:15]  ¹² tn The text literally says, “speak to the Israelites that they may journey.” The intent of the line, using the imperative with the subordinate jussive or imperfect expressing purpose is that the speaking is the command to move.

[14:16]  ¹³ tn The conjunction plus pronoun (“and you”) is emphatic – “and as for you” – before the imperative “lift up.” In contrast, v. 17 begins with “and as for me, I….”

[14:16]  ¹⁴ tn The imperfect (or jussive) with the vav (ו) is sequential, coming after the series of imperatives instructing Moses to divide the sea; the form then gives the purpose (or result) of the activity – “that they may go.”

[14:2]  ¹⁵ tn The two imperfects follow the imperative and therefore express purpose. The point in the verses is that Yahweh was giving the orders for the direction of the march and the encampment by the sea.

[14:2]  ¹⁶ sn The places have been tentatively identified. W. C. Kaiser summarizes the suggestions that Pi-Hahiroth as an Egyptian word may mean “temple of the [Syrian god] Hrt” or “The Hir waters of the canal” or “The Dwelling of Hator” (“Exodus,” EBC 2:387; see the literature on these names, including C. DeWit, The Date and Route of the Exodus, 17).

[33:9]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “and it was when.”

[33:9]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “and he”; the referent (the Lord) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[33:9]  ¹⁹ tn Both verbs, “stand” and “speak,” are perfect tenses with vav (ו) consecutive.