[042] The Golden Calf - Activity Worksheets

God called Moses to the mountain for 40 days and 40 nights. During this time he gave him instructions for the tabernacle and the offerings. When God finished speaking to Moses on Mount Sinai, he gave him two tablets of stone inscribed by the very finger of God. They contained the Ten Commandments.

Meanwhile, the people of Israel had become impatient waiting for Moses to return with a message from God. Moses had been gone for so long that the people gave up on him and begged Aaron (Moses' brother) to build them an altar so they could worship.

Aaron answered them, "Take the gold earrings off your wives, your sons and your daughters. Bring the earrings to me." So all of the people took off their earrings. They brought them to Aaron. He took what they gave him and made it into a metal statue of a god. It looked like a calf. He shaped it with a tool. Then the people said, "Israel, here is your god who brought you up out of Egypt." Exodus 32:2-4

Then they held a festival and bowed down to worship their idol. So quickly they had fallen back into the idolatry they were accustomed to in Egypt and disobeyed God's new commands. Especially after what they witnessed before Moses went up to Mt Sinai (remember that from the last lesson?)