Good morning. Please turn with me in your Bibles to Exodus chapter 32.
Originally was going to cover up to 33.6, but I'm actually only going to be able to cover up to the end of chapter 32.
And I'll finish the rest of that with the next sermon that we are in Exodus.
If you don't have a Bible, please raise your hand. We'd love to bring a copy over to you that you can use while you are here.
Exodus, it's the second book in the Bible. Exodus chapter 32, verses 1 to 35.
Let me pray now for the reading and preaching of God's Word.
Heavenly Father, you are the consuming fire.
And you burn hot with zeal for the glory of your name.
And we do not want to be a lukewarm people.
But Lord,
we recognize that we have failed in our worship.
We have been lacking in our zeal.
And we need your grace.
Your forgiveness.
Even to be in your presence.
And so today, Lord, we want to look again in your Word that you might speak to us
and show us more of Jesus, your Son.
Fill our minds and our hearts
with his grace and truth.
That we might be transformed the way you intend for us to be.
Amen.
When the people saw that Moses delayed to come down from the mountain,
The people gathered themselves together to Aaron and said to him,
Up, make us gods who shall go before us.
As for this Moses, the man who brought us up out of the land of Egypt,
we do not know what has become of him.
So Aaron said to them,
Take off the rings of gold that are in the ears of your wives, your sons, and your daughters, and bring them to me.
So all the people took off the rings of gold that were in their ears and brought them to Aaron.
And he received the gold from their hand and fashioned it with a graving tool and made a golden calf.
And they said,
These are your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt.
When Aaron saw this, he built an altar before it.
And Aaron made a proclamation and said,
Tomorrow shall be a feast to the Lord.
And they rose up early the next day and offered burnt offerings and brought peace offerings.
And the people sat down to eat and drink and rose up to play.
And the Lord said to Moses,
Go down, for your people, whom you brought up out of the land of Egypt, have corrupted themselves.
They have turned aside quickly out of the way that I commanded them.
They have made for themselves a golden calf and have worshipped it and sacrificed to it and said,
These are your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt.
And the Lord said to Moses,
I have seen this people, and behold, it is a stiff-necked people.
Now therefore, let me alone, that my wrath may burn hot against them,
and I may consume them, in order that I may make a great nation of you.
But Moses implored the Lord his God and said,
O Lord, why does your wrath burn hot against your people,
whom you have brought out of the land of Egypt,
with great power and with a mighty hand?
Why should the Egyptians say,
With evil intent did he bring them out,
to kill them in the mountains and to consume them from the face of the earth?
Turn from your burning anger and relent from this disaster against your people.
Remember Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, your servants,
to whom you swore by your own self,
and said to them,
I will multiply your offspring as the stars of heaven,
and all this land that I have promised I will give to your offspring,
and they shall inherit it forever.
And the Lord relented from the disaster that he had spoken of bringing on his people.
Then Moses turned and went down from the mountain
with the two tablets of the testimony in his hand,
tablets that were written on both sides,
on the front and on the back they were written.
The tablets were the work of God,
and the writing was the writing of God,
engraved on the tablets.
When Joshua heard the noise of the people as they shouted,
he said to Moses,
There's a noise of war in the camp.
But he said,
It is not the sound of shouting for victory,
or the sound of the cry of defeat,
but the sound of singing that I hear.
And as soon as he came near the camp
and saw the calf and the dancing,
Moses' anger burned hot.
And he threw the tablets out of his hands
and broke them at the foot of the mountain.
He took the calf that they had made
and burned it with fire
and grounded the powder
and scattered it on the water
and made the people of Israel drink it.
And Moses said to Aaron,
What did this people do to you
that you have brought such a great sin upon them?
And Aaron said,
Let not the anger of my Lord burn hot.
You know the people that they are set on evil.
For they said to me,
Make us gods who shall go before us.
As for this Moses,
the man who brought us out of the land of Egypt,
we do not know what has become of him.
So I said to them,
Let any who have gold take it off.
So they gave it to me,
and I threw it into the fire,
and out came this calf.
And when Moses saw that the people had broken loose,
for Aaron had let them break loose
to the division of their enemies,
then Moses stood in the gate of the camp and said,
Who is on the Lord's side?
Come to me.
And all the sons of Levi gathered around him.
And he said to them,
Thus says the Lord God of Israel,
Put your sword on your side, each of you,
and go to and fro from gate to gate throughout the camp,
and each of you kill his brother and his companion and his neighbor.
And the sons of Levi did according to the word of Moses.
And that day,
about 3,000 men of the people fell.
And Moses said,
Today you have been ordained for the service of the Lord,
each one at the cost of his son and of his brother,
so that he might bestow a blessing upon you this day.
The next day,
Moses said to the people,
You have sinned a great sin,
and now I will go up to the Lord.
Perhaps I can make atonement for your sin.
So Moses returned to the Lord and said,
Alas, this people has sinned a great sin.
They admit for themselves gods of gold,
but now, if you will, forgive their sin.
But if not,
please blot me out of your book that you have written.
But the Lord said to Moses,
Whoever has sinned against me,
I will blot out of my book.
But now go,
lead the people to the place about 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.
Then the Lord sent a plague on the people,
because they made the calf,
the one that Aaron made.
This is God's holy and authoritative word.
You may be seated this time.
It's easy to trust God when everything in your life is going your way.
The true test of our faith is whether or not we trust God
when things are not going our way.
When your business is failing.
When your relationships are unraveling.
When your reputation is sullied.
When your research or career is stalling.
When your bank account is running low.
When you're feeling insecure and overwhelmed.
What does your heart turn to and depend on?
That is your God.
Your functional God.
That is your idol.
If it's not the true God.
And my burden this morning and my prayer for you this morning
is to contend for the love and allegiance of your heart.
So that when everything is peeled away at the very core of who you are
and at the very bedrock of your life.
You find God himself.
And nothing less than God.
We are all idolaters by nature.
And there's only one hope for people like you and me.
And it's the main point of my sermon today.
Is only the forgiveness secured by Christ our substitute
can save us from God's fiery wrath toward idolaters.
And we're going to talk about the folly of idolatry.
The fire of God's wrath.
And the forgiveness of sin.
It's easy to read this account that many of us are familiar with.
About the golden calf and Israel's idolatry.
With a sense of superiority and disbelief.
How could the Israelites be so foolish
after all that they have seen the Lord God do on their behalf?
But note in verse 1 their uncertain circumstances.
What they are not seeing.
They're not right now seeing Yahweh intervene with the ten plagues
upon the land of Egypt.
They're not seeing Yahweh split the Red Sea right now.
This is what they are seeing.
They're seeing it says when the people saw
that Moses delayed to come down from the mountain.
That's what they're seeing.
What's dominating the Israelites' mind right now
is the absence of Moses.
The mediator between God and his people Israel.
They're getting anxious.
They're getting insecure.
Moses is the one who has been speaking for Yahweh the whole time.
And interceding on behalf of the Israelites.
And if there's no one to go before Yahweh on their behalf,
how can they possibly complete this journey
and enter the promised land?
Rather than remembering what they have seen of God
and what they do know of God
and his promises and his faithfulness,
their view, their horizon is entirely taken up
by the uncertainty and urgency of the here and now.
What are you seeing right now in your horizon
when you look around at your life?
What's filling up your view?
In what ways do you feel that God has delayed
in fulfilling his promises to you?
Are your eyes starting to wonder?
Is your heart starting to stray
to cling to other solutions, other gods?
We know from Exodus 24, 15 to 18
that the glory of the Lord God dwelt on Mount Sinai,
which it said had the appearance of a devouring fire
on the top of the mountain
in the side of the people of Israel.
And we know that before Moses went up
to meet with the Lord at the top of the mountain,
he put Aaron and Hur in charge of the people
so that he could decide disputes among them
and judge them.
And then he entered into the cloud up to the mountain.
And it says in 24, 18,
that Moses was on the mountain 40 days and 40 nights.
So that's a long time for someone to be away by himself
without any provision for food
or especially after disappearing
into what looks like a devouring mountain,
fire, smoke, cloud.
Imagine if I told you
that I was going on a solitude retreat
to meet with God with no timetable for return.
And then you had no way of getting in touch with me.
You probably would not wait 40 days
before you report me as missing.
And the situation is far worse for the Israelites.
It's not hard to replace Sean.
It is really hard for the Israelites to replace Moses.
The Israelites can't just get another Moses.
This is in the days of the old covenant.
Not every believer has the spirit of God in them.
Not everyone has direct access to God in Jesus.
It says later in Exodus 33, 11,
the Lord used to speak to Moses face to face
as a man speaks to his friend.
And this was Moses' unique privilege in that time.
And he didn't do that.
God didn't speak like that with anyone else in Israel.
So from the Israelites' vantage point,
this is a legitimate crisis.
Not only do they think
that they've lost their political leader,
they also think that they've lost
their access to God himself.
They don't have their mediator,
their spiritual leader.
So he says in verse one,
that the people gathered themselves together to Aaron
and said to him,
Up, make us gods who shall go before us.
As for this Moses,
the man who brought us up out of the land of Egypt,
we do not know what has become of him.
You can see the people's impatience.
The mob has formed to make their demands.
Up, Aaron.
Get off your bum.
Do something about this crisis.
Make us gods who shall go before us.
And their misplaced hope and faith
is clearly seen in this phrase.
The man who brought us up out of the land of Egypt
is nowhere to be seen.
But remember what Yahweh said,
the Lord said in Exodus 20, verse two,
I am the Lord your God
who brought you out of the land of Egypt.
It's not Moses who brought Israel
out of the land of Egypt.
But that's what the people are saying.
That Moses,
the man who brought us out of the land of Egypt,
he's nowhere to be seen.
The Israelites were not ultimately
in this situation oriented toward God
through Moses.
They were oriented toward Moses.
Rather than seeing Moses as a tool of Yahweh,
they saw Yahweh as a tool
that they can wield using Moses.
There's a difference between relying on God
to answer your prayers through people
and relying on people.
Israel's ultimate trust was not in the Lord
and they saw him not as the end
and the goal of their lives
and of their worship,
but only as a means to an end.
This is why they don't hesitate
to demand the construction of an idol
to take his place.
They say,
make us gods who shall go before us.
After an initial quick reading,
it might seem like the Israelites
are trying to rewrite history,
forsaking Yahweh altogether
to turn to a different God
that they hadn't known before.
But if you read the narrative carefully,
you can see that they're actually
setting up the golden calf
as an image,
an idol,
a representation of Yahweh.
The Israelites say of the golden calf,
these are your gods,
O Israel,
who brought you up
out of the land of Egypt.
The word translated gods here
is actually the same Hebrew word
that's been used to refer to the true God
dozens of times already
in the book of Exodus.
It's the same word
that's used to refer to God
over 2,000 times
throughout the Old Testament.
They're not saying
this is a new God
that you should worship.
They're saying
this is the old God,
Yahweh,
who brought you up
out of the land of Egypt.
This is why
after Aaron builds an altar
before the golden calf,
he proclaims a feast
to who?
The Lord.
Yahweh.
Israelites
are not rewriting history.
They're saying
that the golden calf
represents Yahweh.
So this then
is a violation
of the second commandment
of the Ten Commandments
we saw in Exodus 20.
You shall not make for yourself
a carved image
or any likeness
of anything
that is in heaven above
or that is in the earth beneath
or that is in the water
under the earth.
You shall not bow down
to them
or serve them.
They created this image
because they thought
that it would keep them
connected to the Lord
when they feared
the absence of the Lord
due to the absence of Moses.
So they reduced God
into something tangible,
something that they can see
and touch.
But ironically,
this creation of the image
that they built
to represent God
is actually idolatry.
And Moses conveys that to us
by using plural verbs
and pronouns
throughout this narrative.
The Hebrew word for God,
Elohim,
when it's used to refer to God
is plural,
always plural.
It's a plural of majesty,
as grammarians call it.
But because it's referring
to the one true God,
whenever you use verbs
associated with that noun,
the verbs are always
in the singular.
However,
in this narrative,
even though that word
for God is the same,
all the verbs
and the pronouns
are in the plural.
It's like Moses
is conveying to us,
these Israelites
are thinking that
they're worshiping
the true God.
They're thinking that
they have an idol
to represent Him.
But in reality,
they're just setting up
an alternate God.
They're worshiping
multiple gods.
They are idolaters
because a false representation
of God
is nothing less
than a replacement God.
Psalm 106, 19-20
says of this incident,
they made a calf in Horeb
and worshipped
a metal image.
They exchanged
the glory of God
for the image
of an ox
that eats grass.
It's dripping with irony
and it's tragic
in the full sense
of that word.
Remember that
the glory of God
appeared
like a devouring fire
on top of the mountain.
He was resting there
while Moses is conversing,
meeting with God.
So I assume
that that's still going on.
The glory of God
is on top of the mountain.
And here they are.
They look at that glory
in the absence of Moses
and then they say,
oh no.
I can't deal with that.
That's a little too
scary.
Too
powerful.
Too
wild.
Untamed.
Godlike.
We need something
a little more
manageable.
Something a little
more familiar.
How about a cow?
Cows a symbol
of fertility.
Nations around them
who worship Baal
depicted him as a cow.
They give us milk.
They give us meat.
They give us free labor.
How insulting
and degrading
to the living God.
In what ways
are you
misrepresenting God?
Instead of shaping
your views
and your lives
to conform
to who God is
and what he has said
in his word,
are you shaping
God
remaking God
according to
your own
21st century
secular
humanistic
western sensibilities?
Do you read
God's word
to see if your
perception of God
is accurate?
Do you submit
to God's word
and let it
examine you
or do you
quickly dismiss
or ignore
anything in scripture
that doesn't fit
with your own
value system
or preconception
of God?
does your
God
never contradict
you
your beliefs
never confront
you
in your sins?
Then you don't
know God
at all.
You're not
worshiping God
you're worshiping
a false
representation
of God
which is
idolatry.
in what ways
have you
domesticated
God?
Tamed him?
In what ways
have you
made him
less offensive
more manageable
more familiar
more like the
gods that our
peers worship
out in the world
and less like the
God of the Bible?
the nations
surrounding Israel
could not
conceive of a
deity without
the aid of
images
and so they
manufactured
idols and
held special
rituals to
attract the
presence
the spirits
of the God
into that
idol
at which point
they can now
control that
God
have access
to him
whenever they
wanted
but God
the true
God
will never
suffer such
indignity
he is the
king
he is the
creator of
the cosmos
and do we
puny humans
dare to
control him
and make him
do our
bidding?
Are you
using God
as a means
to your
end?
As a means
for gaining
status
acceptance
and respect?
Are you
using God
as a means
to get what
your heart
desires
health
wealth
success
God is not
a tool
for you
to wield
toward your
own ends
you are
his tool
we are
his tool
to be
wielded
for his
glory
it's
possible
actually
seamlessly
to blend
God
with an
idol
in our
sinfulness
as the
Israelites
did
so that
we have
a hard
time
even
detecting
these
idols
in our
lives
because
it's
so
enmeshed
with
our
belief
and
worship
of
God
Habakkuk
1
11
speaks
of
guilty
men
whose
own
might
is
their
God
do
you
idolize
your
own
strength
your
own
beauty
your
own
intelligence
Job
says to
God
Job
31
24
to
28
if I
have
made
gold
my
trust
were
called
fine
gold
my
confidence
if I
rejoiced
because
my
wealth
was
abundant
or because
my
hand
had
found
much
this
also
would
be
an
iniquity
to be
punished
by the
judges
for I
would have
been
false
to
God
above
money
can be
an
idol
as
Jesus
made
very
clear
in his
teachings
Matthew
6
24
Philippians
3
19
teaches
that
people's
belly
can be
their
God
pleasure
lust
sensuality
can be
someone's
God
covetousness
is
idolatry
Colossians
3
5
says
so
from
these
biblical
examples
we can
discern
what an
idol
is
by
asking
these
two
questions
one
what
do
you
count
on
and
put
your
trust
in
other
than
God
really
try to
ask
yourself
that
question
or
secondly
what
do
you
desire
more
than
God
or
what
are
you
devoted
to
more
than
God
pastor
Tim
Keller
who
is
a
renowned
Christian
author
and
he
went
home
to be
with
the
Lord
two
days
ago
and
he
wrote
a
book
entitled
counterfeit
gods
where
he
helpfully
defines
an
idol
this
way
and
I'll
quote
in
full
what
is
an
idol
an
idol
is
anything
more
important
to
you
than
God
anything
that
absorbs
your
heart
and
imagination
more
than
God
anything
you
seek
to
give
you
what
only
God
can
give
a
counterfeit
God
is
anything
so
central
and
essential
to
your
life
that
should
you
lose
it
your
life
would
feel
hardly
worth
living
an
idol
has
such
a
controlling
position
in
your
heart
that
you
can
spend
most
of
your
passion
and
energy
your
emotional
and
financial
resources
on
it
without
a
second
thought
it
can
be
family
and
children
or
career
and
making
money
or
achievement
and
critical
acclaim
or
saving
face
and
social
standing
it
can
be
a
romantic
relationship
peer
approval
competence
and
skill
secure
and
comfortable
circumstances
your
beauty
or
your
brains
a
great
political
or
social
cause
your
mortality
and
virtue
or
even
success
in the
Christian
ministry
an
idol
is
whatever
you
look
at
and
say
in
your
heart
of
hearts
if
I
have
that
then
I'll
feel
my
life
has
meaning
then
I'll
know
I
have
value
then
I'll
feel
significant
and
secure
there
are so
many
ways
to
describe
that
kind
of
relationship
to
something
perhaps
the
best
one
is
worship
often
it's
the
best
things
in
life
things
that
God
has
created
as
good
that
become
the
most
despotic
idols
in
our
own
lives
as
some
people
have
put
it
we
humans
have
a
sinful
tendency
to
turn
good
things
into
God
things
and
precisely
because
they are
good
things
our
idolatry
can be
much
harder
to
detect
if
you
look
at
the
way
Aaron
the
Israelites
build
an
altar
and
then
they
proclaim
a
feast
in
verse
5
and
then
they
rise
up
early
and
offer
up
burnt
offerings
and
peace
offerings
that
bears
a
striking
resemblance
to
their
worship
of
Yahweh
earlier
on
in
Exodus
24
45
when
Moses
rose
early
in
the
morning
and
built
an
altar
and
the
people
offered
burnt
offerings
and
sacrificed
peace
offerings
of
oxen
to
the
Lord
but
this
time
instead
of
offering
oxen
to
God
they
have
made
an
ox
their
God
instead
of
offering
a
burnt
offering
that
is
pleasing
to
God
they
make
God
burn
hot
with
anger
against
them
with
their
idolatry
but
it's
the
resemblance
between
true
worship
and
false
worship
that
beguiles
the
Israelites
when
I
was
in
high
school
in
an
art
class
I
painted
Leonardo
da
Vinci's
The
Last
Supper
it
was
so
comically
inferior
that
nobody
would
ever
mistake
it
for
any
kind
of
special
art
so
there's
nothing
harmful
about
it
but
imagine
if
some
artist
who
is
truly
exceptionally
skilled
made
a
very
realistic
counterfeit
and
tried to
dupe
people
into
buying
it
for
millions
and
millions
of
dollars
that's
more
deceptive
it's
more
compelling
because
it's
so
similar
when
you're
invested
in a
good
cause
you
might
idolize
the
good
rather
than
doing
the
good
for
God
without
knowing
that
that's
what
you
are
in
fact
doing
it
feels
so
good
it
feels
so
right
it
feels
so
meaningful
it
feels
so
fulfilled
but
that
very
thing
can
be
the
most
tyrannical
idol
in
your
life
so
we
have
to
be
vigilant
and
here's
the
folly
and
tragedy
of
idolatry
remember
what
has
been
happening
all
this
time
we've
been
on
top
of
the
mountain
with
Moses
for
like
the
last
month
and
a
half
what
has
been
happening
over
the
last
seven
chapters
what
is
Yahweh
been
saying
to
Moses
over
the
40
days
and
40
nights
he
has
been
giving
him
instructions
for
building
the
tabernacle
because
God's
not only
going to
go
before
them
to
defeat
their
enemies
and
lead
them
into
the
promised
land
because
God
wanted
to
dwell
among
them
he
wanted
to
be
near
them
and
he
wanted
to
be
with
them
he
was
not
going
to
be
aloof
or
distant
God
was
not
going
to
hold
them
at
an
arm's
length
while
holding
his
nose
he
was
going
to
come
and
dwell
among
his
own
people
in a
way
that
no
other
nation
on
earth
could
have
ever
dreamed
of
and
yet
not
knowing
what's
on
God's
very
heart
because
of
their
impatience
and
because
of
their
insecurity
they
settled
for
a
golden
calf
they
thought
an
idol
of
an
ox
was
the
best
Yahweh
had
for
them
it's
such
a
sad
reality
but
that's
how
so
many
people
around
us
live
it's
like
when
I'm
cooking
up
a
delicious
gourmet
meal
rich
with
omega
3
fatty
acids
and
all
kinds
of
essential
nutrients
for
my
third
daughter
who's
two
and
then
she
just
decides
she
wants
to
eat
string
cheese
and
Oreos
except
that
an
idol
is
infinitely
worse
and
eternally
consequential
whatever
your
idol
may be
it
doesn't
matter
how
great
you
think
it
is
do
you
really
think
that
is
God's
best
for
you
idolatry
is
bad
yes
because
it
demeans
God
because
it
detracts
from
him
yes
but
it's
also
astoundingly
foolish
because
it
short
changes
us
the
living
God
came
and
dwelt
among
us
in
the
flesh
in
his
son
Jesus
Christ
the
living
God
indwells
all
believers
by
his
very
Holy
Spirit
the
living
God
promises
to
indwell
to
dwell
with
us
forever
in
the
new
heavens
and
the
new
earth
and
would
you
trade
him
for
that
pale
shriveled
up
perishing
thing
God
burns
with
anger
because
he
burns
with
love
and
passion
for
his
people
so
the
folly
of
idolatry
provokes
the
fire
of
God's
wrath
verses
7
to
29
and
notice
how
God
reflects
back
to
Moses
what
the
Israelites
said
in
their
misplaced
faith
and
hope
in
verse
7
it
says
and
the
Lord
said
to
Moses
go
down
for
your
people
whom
you
brought
up
out
of
the
land
of
Egypt
have
corrupted
themselves
remember
that in
the
preceding
passages
God
has
repeatedly
said
that
Israel
is
my
people
again
and
again
and
God
said
my
people
and
he
has
repeatedly
said
I
am
the
Lord
your
God
who
brought
you
out
of
the
land
of
Egypt
but
now
here
Israel's
attempt
to
bring
God
near
to
them
down
to
their
level
on
their
own
terms
in
idolatrous
ways
has
actually
alienated
God
even
further
from
them
so
God
reflects
what
they
themselves
have
said
and
distances
himself
from
them
your
people
that
you
brought
out
from
the
land
of
Egypt
and
he
says
to
Moses
in
verses
9
to
10
I
have
seen
this
people
and
behold
it
is
a
stiff
necked
people
now
therefore
let
me
alone
that
my
wrath
may
burn
hot
against
them
that
I
may
consume
them
in
order
that
I
may
make
a
great
nation
of
you
God
is
threatening
to hit
the
refresh
button
to
consume
all
of
Israel
and
restart
a
great
nation
with
Moses
similar
to
the
promise
he
made
earlier
to
Abraham
in
Genesis
12
too
but
Moses
intervenes
as
an
intercessor
makes
a
humble
and
tactful
request
of
God
in
verses
11
to
13
he
says
oh
Lord
why
does
your
wrath
burn
hot
against
your
people
whom
you
have
brought
out
of
the
land
of
Egypt
with
great
power
and
with
a
mighty
hand
why
should
the
Egyptians
say
with
evil
intent
did
he
bring
them
out
to
kill
them
in
the
mountains
and
to
consume
them
from
the
face
of
the
earth
turn
from
your
burning
anger
and
relent
from
this
disaster
against
your
people
remember
Abraham
Isaac
and
Israel
your
servants
to
whom
you
swore
by
your
own
self
and
said
to
them
I
will
multiply
your
offspring
as
the
stars
of
heaven
and
all
this
land
that
I
promised
I
will
give
to
your
offspring
and
they
shall
inherit
it
forever
Moses
corrects
the
Israelites
misplaced
faith
and
hope
and
reinstates
them
into
right
relationship
with
God
says
they
are
your
people
God
you
brought
them
out
and
Moses
appeals
to
God's
unchanging
character
God's
promises
that
he
had
made
to
his
people
he
says
the
Lord
you
swore
by
your
own
self
and
you
do
not
change
Hebrews
6
13
to
18
says
for
when
God
made
a
promise
to
Abraham
since
he
had
no
one
greater
by
whom
to
swear
he
swore
by
himself
so
when
God
desired
to
show
more
convincingly
to
the
heirs
of
the
promise
the
unchangeable
character
of his
purpose
he
guaranteed
it
with
an
oath
so
that
by
two
unchangeable
things
in
which
it
is
impossible
for
God
to
lie
we
who
have
fled
for
refuge
might
have
strong
encouragement
to
hold
fast
to
the
hope
set
before
us
God's
promises
are
unchangeable
for
two
reasons
one
he
guaranteed
it
with
an
oath
which
is
binding
cannot
change
it
and
two
he
swore
the
oath
by
himself
and
since
there
is
that
and
because
it
is
impossible
for
God
to
lie
the
promises
of
God
which
he
swore
by
himself
are
guaranteed
to
his
people
by
these
two
unchangeable
realities
so
Moses
understood
this
and so
he
appeals
to
the
promises
of
God
you
promised
God
you
swore
by
yourself
by
your
unchanging
name
your
name
is
the
Lord
I
am
who
I
am
I
will
be
who
I
will
be
the
same
yesterday
today
and
forever
that
is
who
you
are
and
by
your
name
you
swore
that
you
will
do
this
for
your
people
of
course
God
already
knew
this
and
he
didn't
need
to
be
reminded
by
Moses
but
this
is
God's
gracious
condescension
that
he deals
with
in this
way
because
he
ordains
that
he
will
work
in
answer
to
the
prayers
and
intercession
of
his
saints
so we
should
also
approach
God's
throne
of
grace
boldly
in
prayer
and
hold
God
to
the
promises
that
he
has
made
that's
not
being
presumptuous
that's
not to
presume
upon
God
that's
to
honor
God
because
we're
taking
God
at
his
word
and
we're
expressing
our
trust
in
his
unchanging
character
God
graciously
responds
to
Moses
intercession
in
verse
14
he says
the
Lord
relented
from
the
disaster
that
he
had
spoken
of
bringing
on
his
people
now
this
doesn't
mean
that
God
changed
his
mind
like
we
humans
do
numbers
23
19
specifically
says
God
is
not
man
that
he
should
lie
or
a
son
of
man
that
he
should
change
his
mind
has
he
said
and
he
will
not
do
it
or
has
he
spoken
and
will
he
not
fulfill
it
the
word
there
the
phrase
to
change
his
mind
is
the
same
word
that's
translated
relent
here
in
Exodus
32
14
God
is
not
fickle
like
human
beings
God
is
all
knowing
and
unchanging
and
the
word
relent
here
communicates
the
fact
that
our
prayers
really
work
because
God
has
chosen
to
fulfill
his
unchanging
eternal
purposes
in response
to our
prayers
this
relenting
of God
actually
proves
that
God
never
changes
his
mind
why
because
he
is
fulfilling
what
he
has
spoken
and
promised
to
Abraham
Isaac
and
Jacob
if
God
really
had
wiped
out
the
Israelites
that
would
be
proof
that
he
did
change
his
mind
that
he
sometimes
does
not
keep
his
promises
in
relationships
with
humans
contracts
get
renegotiated
promises
get
broken
but
with
God
that
is
never
the
case
what
has
God
promised
you
brothers
and
sisters
I
will
never
leave
you
nor
forsake
you
Philippians
4
6
7
do not
be
anxious
about
anything
but
in
everything
by
prayer
and
supplication
with
thanksgiving
let
your
request
be
made
known
to
God
and
the
peace
of
God
which
surpasses
all
understanding
will
guard
your
hearts
and
your
mind
in
Christ
Jesus
do
you
want
God's
peace
that
surpasses
understanding
to
replace
your
fear
and
anxiety
God
says
pray
hold
God
to
that
promise
tell
him
God
you
promised
you
said
have
you
spoken
and
will
you
not
do
it
he
will
answer
your
prayer
first
John
1
9
if we
confess
our
sins
he's
faithful
and
just
forgive
us
our
sins
and
to
cleanse
us
from
all
unrighteousness
you
can
take
that
check
to
the
bank
it
will
never
bounce
Moses
comes
down
from
the
mountain
with
the
tablets
of
the
testimony
in
his
hand
and
these
tablets
are
called
the
work
of
God
and
the
writing
was
in
the
writing
of
God
engraved
on
the
tablets
in
contrast
the
golden
calf
is
the
work
of
man
Aaron
used
a
graving
tool
to
fashion
it
but
the
stone
tablets
have
the
very
writing
of
God
engraved
on
it
with
the
finger
of
God
specifically
stipulating
you shall
not make
for yourself
a carved
image
which the
Israelites
are doing
so it
is fitting
that when
Moses sees
the
idolatry
and
revelry
of
the
people
righteous
anger
seizes
him
and
he
throws
the
tablets
out
of
his
hand
and
breaks
them
which
is a
visual
representation
as the
tablets
shatter
of
the
shattered
terms
of
the
covenant
that
Israelites
have
broken
a
little
over
a
month
after
they
said
in
Exodus
24
7
all
that
the
Lord
has
spoken
we
will
do
and
we
will
be
obedient
they
said
that
a
little
over
a
month
ago
and
they
have
broken
it
all
in
the
first
half
of
this
passage
we
are
told
repeatedly
that
God's
wrath
burned
hot
against
the
anger
burned
hot
which
is
then
expressed
in the
burning
up
of
the
holding
calf
with
fire
and
grinding
it
in
powder
and
scattering
on
the
water
and
making
the
people
of
Israel
drink
it
so
they
can
taste
physically
the
spiritual
bitterness
of
idolatry
and
when
Moses
confronts
Aaron
he
blames
the
people
and
shirk
responsibility
it's
really
funny
actually
the way
he
does
that
note
the
contrast
between
verse
four
which
is
God's
infallible
commentary
this is
Aaron
fashioned
the
idol
with
the
graving
tool
and
made
a
golden
calf
that's
what
God
thinks
happened
verse
24
this is
what
Aaron
tells
Moses
happened
I
told
people
to
take
their
gold
off
they
gave
it
to
me
and
I
threw
it
into
the
fire
and
out
came
this
calf
who
could
have
foreseen
it
it's
a
textbook
example
of how
you
should
not
confess
your
sins
there
is
no
ownership
no
recognition
of the
gravity
of his
sins
only
casting
off
blame
on
other
people
and
this
is
also
ironic
and
tragic
because
what
else
has
God
been
telling
Moses
on top
of the
mountain
that
Aaron
is
going
to be
the
high
priest
for
God's
people
what
is
this
high
priest
doing
is he
making
atonement
is he
making
intercession
is he
repenting
and seeking
forgiveness
of God
for his
people
no
he's
just
pointing
fingers
that's
a sad
state
of this
nation
people
of God
and
where
there
is
no
genuine
repentance
sin
multiplies
all the
more
it says
in
verse
25
and
when
Moses
saw
that
the
people
had
broken
loose
for
Aaron
had
let
them
break
loose
to
the
derision
of
their
enemies
the
phrase
broken
loose
can
have
both
literal
and
figurative
meaning
there
is
no
discipline
and
order
in
the
camp
so
that
they
have
become
the
laughingstock
of
their
surrounding
nations
and
the
enemies
broken
loose
morally
they
have
become
loose
and
promiscuous
this
was
insinuated
earlier
in
verse
6
when
it
said
that
the
people
sat
down
to
eat
and
drink
and
rose
up
to
play
the
Hebrew
word
translated
play
there
is
the
same
word
that
Potiphar's
wife
uses
in
her
false
accusation
of
Joseph
that
he
tried
to
make
sexual
sport
of
her
and
tried
to
rape
her
she
says
the
Hebrew
servant
whom
you
had
brought
among
us
came
in
to
me
to
laugh
at
me
or
to
play
with
me
Paul
actually
confirms
this
in
1 Corinthians
10
6-8
when he
refers
back
to
the
Israelites
idolatry
of the
golden
calf
he
cites
Exodus
32-6
the
people
sat
down
to
eat
and
drink
and
they
rose
up
to
play
and
then
he
comments
this
way
we
must
not
indulge
in
sexual
immorality
as
some
of
them
did
this
is
why
it's
all
the
more
appropriate
that
Moses
refers
to
their
idolatry
as
a
great
sin
three
times
in
this
passage
since
adultery
is
most
often
referred
to
as
in
scripture
as
the
great
sin
the
people
have
broken
loose
in
revelry
and
lechery
and
in
doing
so
they
have
been
adulterous
and
unfaithful
toward
God
himself
so
in
verses
26
to
29
Moses
rallies
the
people
of
God
who
is
on
the
Lord's
side
is
there
anyone
left
come
to
me
and
all
the
Levites
which
is
the
same
tribe
that
Moses
and
Aaron
belong
to
they
come
to
him
and
Moses
relates
to
them
a
prophetic
word
of
the
Lord
he
says
put
your
sword
on
your
side
each
of
you
and
go
to
and
throw
from
the
gate
to
gate
throughout
the
camp
and
each
of
you
kill
his
brother
and
his
companion
and
his
neighbor
the
Levites
obey
and
3,000
men
perish
as a
result
and
Moses
tells
the
Levites
today
you
have
been
ordained
for
the
service
of
the
Lord
each
one
at
the
cost
of
his
son
and
of
his
brother
so
that
he
might
bestow
a
blessing
upon
you
this
day
you
might
be
wondering
I
thought
God
relented
earlier
what's
happening
well
it's
true
that
God
did
relent
in
verse
14
from
destroying
the
Israelites
wholesale
but
that
doesn't
mean
that
God
has
atoned
for
their
sin
or
forgiven
their
sin
there
is
still
punishment
left
a
gracious
one
small
one
compared
to
what
they
deserved
because
of
God's
mercy
but
the
lack
of
genuine
repentance
and
the
lack
of
a
true
high
priest
leads
to
the
zeal
of
the
Levites
leads
them
to
being
ordained
their
hands
are
filled
they're
given
a
mandate
and
a
charge
to
assist
the
priest
in
the
work
around
the
tabernacle
and
the
temple
after
this
point
on
if
Moses
response
and
the
Levites
actions
seem
over
the
top
to
us
it's
because
we
don't
take
idolatry
as
an
affront
to
God's
glory
seriously
enough
we
don't
burn
hot
against
sin
we
see
sin
all
around
us
and
yet
we
don't
burn
against
it
because
we
don't
burn
hot
for
God's
glory
and
I
think
one of
the
reasons
why we
don't
take
idolatry
very
seriously
is
because
we
don't
relate
to
God
on
personal
terms
idolatry
is
not
some
abstract
sin
idolatry
is
personal
it's
when
you
take
something
that
rightly
belongs
to
someone
and
give
it
to
someone
else
who
has
no
right
or
claim
to
it
have
you
ever
felt
angry
have
you
ever
burned
with
anger
when
you
or
your
friend
that
you
love
or
your
family
member
was
overlooked
for
something
that
rightly
deserved
maybe
an
award
maybe
a
job
a
promotion
an
admission
to
college
someone
else
undeserving
got it
does
it
not
make
you
angry
if
you
love
that
person
it
would
make
you
angry
what
if
someone
took
your
spouse
your
wife
your
husband
and
he
or
she
committed
adultery
with
someone
else
that
is
personal
idolatry
takes
what
belongs
only
to
God
what
he
alone
deserves
what
he
has
rightly
every
claim
to
and
then
we
take
that
away
from
him
and
give
to
someone
who
is
undeserving
of
it
and
if
we
are
burning
for
the
glory
of
God
it
should
make
us
burn
hot
with
anger
I
remember
visiting
Myanmar
in
2009
on
a
short
term
missions
trip
with
Hannah
and
visiting
the
city
of
Bagan
in
that
city
it's
an
ancient
kingdom
what
became
later
Myanmar
there
used
to
be
14,000
plus
Buddhist
temples
pagodas
monasteries
and
stupas
and
to
this
day
there's
still
over
2,200
temples
and
pagodas
and
it's
a
vast
country
landscape
and
you
could
take
in
the
whole
site
in
one
breathtaking
view
and
I
remember
as I
marveled
at the
beauty
of it
feeling
convicted
this
should
be
tearing
me
up
inside
that
there
is
so
much
idolatry
that
there's
so
much
lostness
that
so
many
people
have
been
led
astray
to
worship
what
is
not
true
and
that
God
who
deserves
all
their
worship
and
all
of
their
allegiance
has
been
deprived
of
the
worship
that
he
alone
deserves
that's
what
Paul
felt
in
Acts
17
16
when
he
was
walking
around
Athens
and
he
saw
that
the
city
was
full
of
idols
and
he
said
that
his
spirit
was
provoked
within
him
he
was
inwardly
agitated
and
distressed
he
was
provoked
to
wrath
if
we
cared
about
God
if
we
cared
about
his
glory
if
we
cared
about
his
reputation
we
would
be
upset
do
you
care
that
there
are
nations
that
are
perishing
that
are
worshipping
idols
this
very
minute
so
should
we
then
go
out
strap
the
sword
to
our
side
visit
camp
to
camp
to
demonstrate
our
zeal
for
the
Lord
no
why
not
because
if we
did
we
would
all
die
we
think
we're
the
Levites
in the
story
no
we're
the
rest
of
the
Israelites
all
have
sinned
and
fall
short
of the
glory
of
God
all
have
succumbed
to the
seduction
of
idolatry
no
one
deserves
to
live
no
one
deserves
to
dwell
with
God
so
the
last
few
verses
of
this
chapter
tell us
that
there's
still
atonement
yet
to be
made
Moses
says to
the
people
in
verse
30
following
you
have
sinned
a
great
sin
and
now
I
will
go
up
to
the
Lord
perhaps
I
can
make
atonement
for
your
sin
so
Moses
returned
to
the
Lord
and
said
alas
this
people
have
sinned
a
great
sin
they
made
for
themselves
gods
of
gold
but
now
if
you
will
forgive
their
sin
but
if
not
please
blot
me
out
of
your
book
that
you
have
written
but
the
Lord
said
to
Moses
whoever
has
sinned
against
me
I
will
blot
out
of
my
book
but
now
go
lead
the
people
to
the
place
about
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
and
the
Lord
sent
a
plague
on
the
people
because
they
made
the
calf
the
one
that
Aaron
made
you
could
see
from
the
punishment
that
there
was
no
atonement
for
sin
here
Moses
is
inadequate
he's
insufficient
to
make
atonement
for the
sins
of
God's
people
and you
can
see
it
in
his
tentativeness
as
he
I
can
make
atonement
if
you
will
forgive
their
sins
but
if
not
he's
bargaining
with
God
he's
offering
himself
as a
substitute
to be
punished
on behalf
of
God's
people
to be
blotted
out
from
the
book
of
life
and
God
won't
do
it
because
Moses
is
not
worthy
to
take
the
place
of
all
of
God's
people
and
suffer
on
their
behalf
and
that
points
to
the
ultimate
sacrifice
that
Jesus
makes
worthy
to
stand
between
the
gap
between
God
and
his
sinful
people
and
Jesus
is
worthy
to
lay
down
his
life
as
our
substitute
so
that
our
names
are not
blotted
off
from
the
book
of
life
can
you
imagine
the
horror
of
that
I'm
sure
some
of
you
have
experienced
the
minor
embarrassment
of
going
to
a
place
where
you
need
a
reservation
or
you
need
to
have
your
name
on
the
list
you
and
it's
like
you're
not
on
the
list
you
sure
you're
supposed
to
be
here
you
sure
you
were
invited
it's
gotta
be
in
there
somewhere
can
you
look
again
sorry
your
name's
not
on
there
that's
the
reality
that
every
sinner
faces
all
of
us
that's
the
faith
that
we
deserve
before
the
throne
of
God
before
the
judgment
seat
of
God
at
the
gates
of
heaven
God
looks
at
the
book
of
life
he
looks
for
your
name
I
don't
see
it
the
only
reason
your
name
has
not
been
blotted
out
from
the
book
of
life
is
because
Jesus
paid
for
your
sin
it's
because
you
put
your
faith
in
Jesus
and
Jesus
said
he
who
conquers
as we
saw
earlier
in
Revelation
3
5
in
the
assurance
the
assurance
of
pardon
the
one
who
conquers
and
we
know
from
the
book
that
those
who
conquer
are
those
who
conquer
by
the
blood
of
the
lamb
and
the
word
of
the
testimony
that
the
one
who
conquers
will
be
clothed
in
white
garments
and
I
will
never
blout
his
name
out
of
the
before
his
angels
if
you
put
your
faith
your
whole
faith
in
Jesus
and
Jesus
alone
for
your
forgiveness
of
sins
and
for
your
salvation
that
you
can
boldly
approach
God's
throne
with
confidence
knowing
that
your
name
will
never
be
blotted
out
from
that
book
of
life
and
that
my
brothers
and
sister
is
what
we
rejoice
in
what
we
celebrate
and
why
we
worship
and
that
is
what
we
sing
about
that
more
than
anything
else
because
his
gift
is
God
himself
so
I
appeal
to
you
if
you
don't
know
this
Jesus
be
washed
by
the
blood
of
the
lamb
so
that
your
name
is
never
blotted
out
let's
pray
together
father
it is
so
good
it is
so
good
to be
known
by
you
for
you
say
in your
word
you
know
us
by
name
it is
so
good
to
belong
to
Jesus
your
son
to
be
united
with
him
by
faith
to
be
identified
with
him
so
that
because
of
his
perfect
sacrifice
on
the
cross
we
can
have
security
assurance
we
can
be
forgiven
of
our
sins
lord
help
us
never
to
lose
sight
of
this
wonderful
reality
help
us
to
forsake
all
our
idols
for
there
is
no
one
worthy
of
our
worship
like
you
oh
lord
god
and
the
lamb
that
was
slain
and
it's
in
his
precious
name
the
name
of
Jesus
we
pray
amen