What is the significance of the Golden Calf story?
Mentioned in Exodus 32 and I Kings 12 in the Old Testament, worship of the golden calf is seen as a supreme act of apostasy, the rejection of a faith once confessed. The figure is probably a representation of the Egyptian bull god Apis in the earlier period and of the Canaanite fertility god Baal in the latter.
What is the moral of the golden calf?
Protecting against the enemy from within. Forty days earlier, the People of Israel had seen it all. The Bible tells us that after the Israelites make the golden calf, God tells Moses to “Go down, because your people, whom you brought up out of Egypt, have become corrupt.” God doesn’t say my people, but your people.
Why is King Josiah important?
Josiah is credited by most biblical scholars with having established or compiled important Hebrew scriptures during the Deuteronomic reform which probably occurred during his rule. Josiah became king of the Kingdom of Judah at the age of eight, after the assassination of his father, King Amon.
What did Josiah reform Margaret Barker?
According to the Old Testament account in 2 Kings 23, he removed all manner of idolatrous items from the temple and purified his kingdom of Canaanite practices.
Why did Moses destroy the golden calf?
Biblical narrative The Israelites feared that he would not return and demanded that Aaron make them “a god to go before them”. Moses burnt the golden calf in a fire, ground it to powder, scattered it on water, and forced the Israelites to drink it.
What can we learn from King Josiah?
Remove evil from your sight The last lesson we can learn from Josiah is to remove evil from our sight. Josiah renewed the covenant with the Lord to follow all his commands and love the Lord with all his heart, soul, and mind. This action encouraged all the people of Judah to follow his lead.
What were the reforms of King Josiah?
The reform consisted of removing pagan altars and idols from the Temple, destroying rural sanctuaries and fertility cults, and centralizing worship at the Temple of Jerusalem.
What is the story of the Golden Calf in Exodus?
The story of the golden calf is found in Exodus 32:1–6. The children of Israel had been in bondage in Egypt for over two hundred years. God called Moses, the deliverer, and told him that He had heard their cries and was about to deliver them ( Exodus 3:6–8 ).
Why did the Israelites build a golden calf on Mount Sinai?
As the Israelites grew impatient with Moses on Mount Sinai, they decided to make a new god to “go up before them” or worship so they took their gold jewelry and melted it down to build a Golden Calf.
How did the Israelites try to justify setting up the calf?
The Israelites tried to justify their reasons for setting up the calf. Later in the passage, when Moses confronted Aaron about why he built the calf, Aaron offered nothing but excuses. Often, when we worship idols in our lives, we can create our own form of logic for why we are justified in worshipping anything less than God.
How did the Jews worship the Golden Calf?
The next day, the people rose early and made their way to the golden calf, where they offered sacrifices and started worshipping. The Torah tells us, “The Jewish people sat to feast and rose to play,” which Rashi explains to mean that, in addition to idolatry, they also committed acts of immorality and murder. 11
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MZY7ZiS7t8I