Exodus 32:5

5 When Aaron saw this, he built an altar in front of the calf and announced, “Tomorrow there will be a festival to the LORD.”

Exodus 32:5 in Other Translations

KJV
5 And when Aaron saw it, he built an altar before it; and Aaron made proclamation, and said, To morrow is a feast to the LORD.
ESV
5 When Aaron saw this, he built an altar before it. And Aaron made proclamation and said, "Tomorrow shall be a feast to the LORD."
NLT
5 Aaron saw how excited the people were, so he built an altar in front of the calf. Then he announced, “Tomorrow will be a festival to the LORD !”
MSG
5 Aaron, taking in the situation, built an altar before the calf. Aaron then announced, "Tomorrow is a feast day to God!"
CSB
5 When Aaron saw [this], he built an altar before it; then he made an announcement: "There will be a festival to the Lord tomorrow."

Exodus 32:5 Meaning and Commentary

Exodus 32:5

And when Aaron saw it
In what form it was, and what a figure it made, and how acceptable it was to the Israelites. The Targums of Jonathan and Jerusalem paraphrase it,

``and Aaron saw Hur slain before him;''

for reproving them for their idolatry, as the Midrash F5, quoted by Jarchi, says: and Aaron fearing they would take away his life if he opposed them,

he built an altar before it;
that sacrifice might be offered on it to it:

and Aaron made proclamation, and said, tomorrow [is] a feast to the
Lord;
that is, he gave orders to have it published throughout the camp, there would be solemn sacrifices offered up to the Lord, as represented by this calf, and a feast thereon, which was a public invitation of them to the solemnity: though some think this was a protracting time, and putting the people off till the morrow, who would have been for offering sacrifice immediately, hoping that Moses would come down from the mount before that time, and prevent their idolatry.


FOOTNOTES:

F5 So Pirke Eliezer, c. 45.

Exodus 32:5 In-Context

3 So all the people took off their earrings and brought them to Aaron.
4 He took what they handed him and made it into an idol cast in the shape of a calf, fashioning it with a tool. Then they said, “These are your gods, Israel, who brought you up out of Egypt.”
5 When Aaron saw this, he built an altar in front of the calf and announced, “Tomorrow there will be a festival to the LORD.”
6 So the next day the people rose early and sacrificed burnt offerings and presented fellowship offerings. Afterward they sat down to eat and drink and got up to indulge in revelry.
7 Then the LORD said to Moses, “Go down, because your people, whom you brought up out of Egypt, have become corrupt.

Cross References 1

  • 1. Leviticus 23:2,37; 2 Kings 10:20; Joel 2:15
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