Making a Gold Calf

 

Exodus 32:1 (EXB)

The people saw that ·a long time had passed and Moses had not [Moses delayed to] come down from the mountain. So they ·gathered [assembled] ·around [or against] Aaron and said, “[This man] Moses ·led [brought] us out of Egypt, but we don’t know what has happened to him. Make us ·gods [or a god; or an image of God] who will ·lead [go before] us.”

Moses had gone to meet with God on behalf of the people of Israel, but these people became weary of waiting his return so, they confronted Moses’ right-hand man, his brother Aaron.

As a man of God, what was Aaron to say, what was he to do?

Tell them be still and know (Psalm 46:10)?

Tell them to wait patiently for the Lord (Psalm 40:1)?

Tell them to wait for the Lord; be strong, and let your heart take courage; wait for the Lord! (Psalm 27:14)?

Tell them if it seems slow in coming, wait. It’s on its way. It will come right on time (ref. Habakkuk 2:3)?

Exodus 32:2 & 4 (EXB) gives us the answer,

Aaron said to ·the people [them], “·Take [Pull] off the gold earrings that your wives, sons, and daughters are wearing, and bring them to me.” He took ·the gold [it] from ·the people [their hands] and formed it ·with a tool [or in a mold] and made a ·statue [image] of a calf.

Then this High Priest of Israel went on to build an altar before the calf and announced, “Tomorrow there will be a ·special feast to honor [festival for] the Lord.” (v5)

Right…

Clearly Aaron was just as impatient as all the people and his trust in Moses’ mission from God and in God Himself had begun to wane. Why else would he cave so easily to the demands of the crowd and not stand firm? Aaron’s belief and faith had wavered.

Oh beloved, human nature remains the same to this day. As people of God, how often does this happen to us? The answer, too often.

You receive a promise from God, but you think it’s taking way too much time to come down from the mountain so, you decide to make your own plan. You decide to manipulate a situation and perhaps confront a person in order to make things happen.

Seems like you’ve forgotten the countless times God has come through for you? All those times He brought you out of worse situations, led you out of Egypt? Yes, you fail to recall and to think of those times, instead you’re making a gold calf, creating a way out for yourself.

Pulling at this and that, listening to this one and that one and not remembering the vision God gave you, not your friends, not your family members, the vision He gave to you.

Beloved, today God is saying to you,

it is not yet time for it to come true. But the time is coming quickly, and what I show you will come true. It may seem slow in coming, but wait for it; it will certainly take place, and it will not be delayed. (Habukkuk 2:3 GNT)

So, don’t let your impatience lead you into making a gold calf, it may look good but it’s not the real thing. What God has planned for you is solid, real, lasting. God is busy causing everything to work together for your good (Romans 8:28) and that takes time. Put down whatever tools you’re using to form and mould your life into the image you believe it should look like.

You have surrendered to God, trust Him, He made the plan for your life (Jeremiah 29:11), He made the way of escape from any and all situations (1 Corinthians 10:13). See what you’re going through as just that, something that you are going through, nothing remains the same (Ecclesiastes 3:1); this small and temporary trouble we suffer will bring us a tremendous and eternal glory, much greater than the trouble (2 Corinthians 4:17 GNT).

It may seem slow in coming but patiently wait, just wait because making a gold calf will only lead to a terrible outcome.

Amen †

Shelley Johnson “Making a Gold Calf” ©2026 February 6, 2026