Golden calf

For other uses, see Golden calf (disambiguation).

Adoration of the Golden Calf by Nicolas Poussin: imagery influenced by the Greco-Roman bacchanal

The golden calf (עגל הזהב) was an idol (a cult image) made for the Israelites during Moses' absence, as he went up to Mount Sinai. According to the Hebrew Bible, the calf was made by Aaron to satisfy the Israelites, whereas the Quran indicates the maker to be Samiri.

In Hebrew, the incident is known as "Chet ha'Egel" (חטא העגל) or "The Sin of the Calf". It is first mentioned in Exodus 32:4 (Taha 20:83 in the Quran). In Egypt, whence the Hebrews had recently come, the Apis Bull was the comparable object of worship, which the Hebrews were reviving in the wilderness. Among the Egyptians' and Hebrews' neighbors in the Ancient Near East and in the Aegean, the Aurochs, the wild bull, was widely worshipped, often as the Lunar Bull and as the creature of El. Its Minoan manifestation survived as the Cretan Bull of Greek myth.

Summary of the Biblical narrative

The Worship of the Golden Calf by Filippino Lippi (1457–1504)

When Moses went up onto Mount Sinai to receive the Ten Commandments (Exodus 19:20), he left the Israelites for forty days and forty nights (Exodus 24:18). The Israelites feared that he would not return and asked Aaron to make gods for them (Exodus 32:1). The Bible does not note Aaron's opinion of this request, merely that he complied, and gathered up the Israelites' golden earrings. He melted them and constructed the golden calf.

Aaron also built an altar before the calf, and the next day, the Israelites made offerings and celebrated.

The Lord told Moses that his people had corrupted themselves, and that he planned to eliminate them, but Moses argued and pleaded that they should be spared (Exodus 32:11); the Lord relented. Moses went down from the mountain, but upon seeing the calf, he too became angry. He threw down the tablets upon which God's law had been written, and broke them. Moses then burnt the golden calf in the fire, ground it to powder, scattered it on water, and forced the Israelites to drink it. He questioned Aaron about the event, who admitted to collecting the gold, throwing it into the fire, and out came a calf. Then Moses gathered the sons of Levi and set them to slaying a large number of adult males (3000). A plague then struck the Israelites. Nevertheless, the Lord stated that he would one day visit the Israelites' sin upon them.

Since Moses had broken the tablets, the Lord instructed him to return to Mount Sinai yet again (Exodus 34:2) to receive a replacement.

Interpretation

The Sin of Idolatry

Within the context of the narrative, God has just finished delivering the Ten Commandments to the Israelites, which included the Second Commandment regarding the prohibition against idolatry, that is, the making of images (similitudes) to be used in the worship of Yahweh. Further interpretation also suggests that the prohibition of the Second Commandment also included any adoption of the rites and traditions of the pagan nations, not merely the making of images.

Many Christian scholars have suggested that the Israelites were worshipping the Egyptian god Apis, falling back into what they had known for centuries while in captivity. It is suggested that the "idolatry" (a voiding of the Second Commandment) on display here was the worship of another god. However, forging an image of Apis would not have violated the Second Commandment before it had literally violated the First, "worship no other gods".

As such, what may have actually transpired within the event is that the Israelites had not so much voided the First Commandment so much as they had violated the Second, which prohibited the making of an image of Yahweh. In Exodus 32 it states: "When Aaron saw this, he built an altar in front of the calf and announced, 'Tomorrow there will be a festival to the LORD (Yahweh).'" Within the context of the Exodus story, it would be highly unlikely that the Israelites, after witnessing the miracles of the Exodus first hand, would have fallen into the worship of another god immediately after Yahweh had just spoken the Decalogue in their midst.

Complicating the matter still further, there are indications in the story that the Israelites intended a replacement Moses rather than a replacement or even icon for God Himself. For instance, the rationale they gave Aaron for making the thing in the first place (Ex. 32:1) was "because this the man Moses, who took us out of the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him."

General Questions

The worship of the golden calf. From the Nuremberg Chronicle (1493).

The story has long raised a number of interesting questions, How can gold be burnt? How can burnt gold be ground to powder? Why was Aaron, who went on to be the head priest, not punished for his action? Aaron leads a somewhat charmed life, missing out on the consequences of his actions, similar to the Snow-white Miriam issue.

Gold is one of the most stable metals in the periodic table of elements and does not oxidize or react with most chemical agents. Burning a gold statue is thus impossible from a scientific point of view. With a melting point of 1337.33 K it would be impossible to even melt it using a standard wooden fire.

The possibility of grinding up gold is even less likely considering the technological limitations of the time. Gold is highly malleable and thus trying to grind it using a regular stone on stone mill would simply flatten the metal or deform it without creating the sought after gold dust.

Additionally, gold is insoluble in water and highly dense. Gold would simply sink to the bottom of a glass of water and therefore it would be impossible to make a heterogenous mixture of water and gold.

In the documentary hypothesis, the story is not present in the Priestly source. It would certainly not fit in with their view of Aaron. The story occurs in the Elohist component. This author is rather anti-Aaron, and pro Moses.

The grinding to powder action is also repeated in King Josiah's reign when "He burned the high place and ground it to powder", which echos the "then he ground it to powder, scattered it on the water and made the Israelites drink it"

Aaron's statement

When Aaron has made the golden calf, he says the rather confusing statement "These are your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of Egypt." It is confusing because there is a single calf, so why refer to it as gods (plural). It is also not clear why it might be involved with bringing the people up from Egypt.

According to Exodus 32:4 the golden calf is made "...And they exclaimed, "This is your god O Israel, who brought you up from the land of Egypt!""

The preceding paragraph contains an inaccurate quotation of Exodus 32:4. The verse reads 'these' just prior to 'Elohim-of-you,' which explicitly pluralizes the reference to Elohim, which is often used in singular or plural contexts in the bible (see the wiki article for Elohim).

However, later on in 1 Kings 12:28, Jeroboam tries to stop the Northern Israelites from visiting Jerusalem. He has two high places erected at Dan and Bethel as new offering places. At each of these he has constructed a golden calf and says "It is too much for you to go up to Jerusalem. Here are your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of Egypt." A similar phrase.

The creation of the golden calves may have been an attempt to identify the Lord with Baal. Among the Phoenicians, Baal was sometimes called the "calf" whereas the supreme god El (God) was called the "bull". Bovine whole-burnt offerings were an important part of Baal worship. The golden calf may have been a zoomorphic ark for Baal, just as winged lions (cherubim) were for the Lord. By making a calf pedestal, instead of a lion, would have been an attempt to identify the Lord with the Canaanite son of Dagon, Baal.

The construction of the two golden calves would have been seen as a gross blasphemy by the Kings author, on a par with the original Golden Calf episode. The Levite priests in the North would have found those golden calves an irritation as they were looked after by non-Levite priests, and were probably seen as idolatrous. A reference to the original golden calf episode may have been seen fitting. There may even have been some cross over of the language.

As adoration of wealth

A metaphoric interpretation emphasizes the "gold" part of "golden calf" to criticize the pursuit of wealth. This usage can be found in Spanish where Mammon, the Gospel personification of idolatry of wealth, is not so current.

Summary of the Quranic Narrative

Moses had been gone for forty days and his people were becoming restless, for they did not know that God had extended his time by a further ten days. Samiri, a man who was inclined towards evil, suggested that they find themselves another guide, as Moses had broken his promise (of getting back in 40 days). He said to them: "In order to find true guidance, you need a god, and I shall provide one for you."

So he collected all their gold jewelry that they carried from the Pharaoh's people, dug a hole in which he placed the lot, and lit a huge fire to melt it down. During the casting, he threw a handful of dust, making actions like a magician's to impress the ignorant. From the molten metal he fashioned a golden calf. It was hollow, and the wind passing through it produced a sound. Since superstition was embedded in their past, they quickly linked the strange sound to something supernatural, as if it were a living god. Some of them accept the golden calf as their god.

Moses' brother Aaron, who acted as their leader in Moses' absence, was grieved and spoke up: "O my people! You have been deceived. Your Lord is the Most Beneficent. Follow and obey me."

They replied: "We shall stop worshiping this god only if Moses returns."

On his return Moses saw his people singing and dancing around the calf statue. Furious at their pagan ritual, he flung down the Tablet of the Law he was carrying for them. He tugged Aaron's beard and his hair, crying: "What held you back when you saw them going astray? Why did you not fight this corruption?"

Aaron replied: "O son of my mother, let go of my beard! The fold considered me weak and were about to kill me. So make not the enemies rejoice over me, nor put me among the people who are wrong-doers."

Moses' anger began to subside when he understood Aaron's helplessness, and he began to handle the situation calmly and wisely. So he went to Samiri and asked him, "And what is the matter with you, O Samiri? (Why did you do so?)"

Samiri said: "I saw what you saw not, so I took a handful of dust from the hoof print of the Messenger Gabriel's horse and threw it (into the fire in which were put the ornaments of the Pharaoh's people, or into the calf). Thus my inner-self suggested to me."

Moses said: "Then go away! And verily, your punishment in this life will be that you will say: 'Touch me not' (you will live alone exiled away from mankind); and verily (for a future torment), you have a promise that will not fail. And look at your god, to which you have been devoted. We will certainly burn it, and scatter its particles in the sea."

For details see: 20:83

In Popular Culture

• The golden calf is also the award given at the Netherlands Film Festival, regarded as the Dutch counterpart to the Academy Awards.
• Mooby the Golden Calf is a recurring fictional character in View Askewniverse that alludes to the golden calf.
• In Arcade Fire's second album, Neon Bible, the title track features lyrics referring to the golden calf. [1]

See also

• Torah parshiot or portions dealing with the Golden Calf: Ki Tissa and Eikev
• Red Heifer

External links

• The Golden calf from a Jewish perspective at Chabad.org
• The Golden calf from Ein Hod perspective
• Islamic interpretation of the story of the Golden calf in the Qur'an
• Story of Muses and Aaron in the Qur'an

• Jewish Encyclopedia: Calf, Golden