1 Now when the people saw that Moses was delayed in coming down from the mountain, they gathered around Aaron and said, “Come, make us gods who will go before us. As for this Moses who brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we do not know what has happened to him!”

2 So Aaron told them, “Take off the gold earrings that are on your wives and sons and daughters, and bring them to me.”

3 Then all the people took off their gold earrings and brought them to Aaron. 4He took the gold from their hands, and with an engraving tool he fashioned it into a molten calf. And they said, “These, O Israel, are your gods, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt!”

5 When Aaron saw this, he built an altar before the calf and proclaimed: “Tomorrow shall be a feast to the Lord.”

6 So the next day they arose, offered burnt offerings, and presented peace offerings. And the people sat down to eat and drink and got up to indulge in revelry.

7 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Go down at once, for your people, whom you brought up out of the land of Egypt, have corrupted themselves. 8How quickly they have turned aside from the way that I commanded them! They have made for themselves a molten calf and have bowed down to it. They have sacrificed to it and said, ‘These, O Israel, are your gods, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt.’”

9 The Lord also said to Moses, “I have seen this people, and they are indeed a stiff-necked people. 10Now leave Me alone, so that My anger may burn against them and consume them. Then I will make you into a great nation.”

11 But Moses sought the favor of the Lord his God, saying, “O LORD, why does Your anger burn against Your people, whom You brought out of the land of Egypt with great power and a mighty hand? 12Why should the Egyptians declare, ‘He brought them out with evil intent, to kill them in the mountains and wipe them from the face of the earth’? Turn from Your fierce anger and relent from doing harm to Your people. 13Remember Your servants Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, to whom You swore by Your very self when You declared, ‘I will make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky, and I will give your descendants all this land that I have promised, and it shall be their inheritance forever.’”

14 So the Lord relented from the calamity He had threatened to bring on His people.

15 Then Moses turned and went down the mountain with the two tablets of the Testimony in his hands. They were inscribed on both sides, front and back. 16The tablets were the work of God, and the writing was the writing of God, engraved on the tablets.

17 When Joshua heard the sound of the people shouting, he said to Moses, “The sound of war is in the camp.”

18 But Moses replied:

19 As Moses approached the camp and saw the calf and the dancing, he burned with anger and threw the tablets out of his hands, shattering them at the base of the mountain. 20Then he took the calf they had made, burned it in the fire, ground it to powder, and scattered the powder over the face of the water. Then he forced the Israelites to drink it.

21“What did this people do to you,” Moses asked Aaron, “that you have led them into so great a sin?”

22“Do not be enraged, my lord,” Aaron replied. “You yourself know that the people are intent on evil. 23They told me, ‘Make us gods who will go before us. As for this Moses who brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we do not know what has happened to him!’

24 So I said to them, ‘Whoever has gold, let him take it off,’ and they gave it to me. And when I threw it into the fire, out came this calf!”

25 Moses saw that the people were out of control, for Aaron had let them run wild and become a laughingstock to their enemies. 26So Moses stood at the entrance to the camp and said, “Whoever is for the Lord, come to me.”

And all the Levites gathered around him.

27 He told them, “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: ‘Each of you men is to fasten his sword to his side, go back and forth through the camp from gate to gate, and slay his brother, his friend, and his neighbor.’”

28 The Levites did as Moses commanded, and that day about three thousand of the people fell dead.

29 Afterward, Moses said, “Today you have been ordained for service to the Lord, since each man went against his son and his brother; so the Lord has bestowed a blessing on you this day.”

30 The next day Moses said to the people, “You have committed a great sin. Now I will go up to the Lord; perhaps I can make atonement for your sin.”

31 So Moses returned to the Lord and said, “Oh, what a great sin these people have committed! They have made gods of gold for themselves. 32Yet now, if You would only forgive their sin.... But if not, please blot me out of the book that You have written.”

33 The Lord replied to Moses, “Whoever has sinned against Me, I will blot out of My book. 34Now go, lead the people to the place I described. Behold, My angel shall go before you. But on the day I settle accounts, I will punish them for their sin.”

35 And the Lord sent a plague on the people because of what they had done with the calf that Aaron had made.

1 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Leave this place, you and the people you brought up out of the land of Egypt, and go to the land that I promised to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob when I said, ‘I will give it to your descendants.’ 2And I will send an angel before you, and I will drive out the Canaanites, Amorites, Hittites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites. 3Go up to a land flowing with milk and honey. But I will not go with you, because you are a stiff-necked people; otherwise, I might destroy you on the way.”

4 When the people heard this bad news, they went into mourning, and no one put on any of his jewelry. 5For the Lord had said to Moses, “Tell the Israelites, ‘You are a stiff-necked people. If I should go with you for a single moment, I would destroy you. Now take off your jewelry, and I will decide what to do with you.’”

6 So the Israelites stripped themselves of their jewelry from Mount Horeb onward.

7 Now Moses used to take the tent and pitch it at a distance outside the camp. He called it the Tent of Meeting, and anyone inquiring of the Lord would go to the Tent of Meeting outside the camp. 8Then, whenever Moses went out to the tent, all the people would stand at the entrances to their own tents and watch Moses until he entered the tent. 9As Moses entered the tent, the pillar of cloud would come down and remain at the entrance, and the Lord would speak with Moses. 10When all the people saw the pillar of cloud standing at the entrance to the tent, they would stand up and worship, each one at the entrance to his own tent.

11 Thus the Lord would speak to Moses face to face, as a man speaks to his friend. Then Moses would return to the camp, but his young assistant Joshua son of Nun would not leave the tent.

12 Then Moses said to the Lord, “Look, You have been telling me, ‘Lead this people up,’ but You have not let me know whom You will send with me. Yet You have said, ‘I know you by name, and you have found favor in My sight.’ 13Now if indeed I have found favor in Your sight, please let me know Your ways, that I may know You and find favor in Your sight. Remember that this nation is Your people.”

14 And the Lord answered, “My Presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.”

15“If Your Presence does not go with us,” Moses replied, “do not lead us up from here. 16For how then can it be known that Your people and I have found favor in Your sight, unless You go with us? How else will we be distinguished from all the other people on the face of the earth?”

17 So the Lord said to Moses, “I will do this very thing you have asked, for you have found favor in My sight, and I know you by name.”

18 Then Moses said, “Please show me Your glory.”

19“I will cause all My goodness to pass before you,” the Lord replied, “and I will proclaim My name — the Lord — in your presence. I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion.”

20 But He added, “You cannot see My face, for no one can see Me and live.”

21 The Lord continued, “There is a place near Me where you are to stand upon a rock, 22and when My glory passes by, I will put you in a cleft of the rock and cover you with My hand until I have passed by. 23Then I will take My hand away, and you will see My back; but My face must not be seen.”

69 Meanwhile, Peter was sitting out in the courtyard, and a servant girl came up to him. “You also were with Jesus the Galilean,” she said.

70 But he denied it before them all: “I do not know what you are talking about.”

71 When Peter had gone out to the gateway, another servant girl saw him and said to the people there, “This man was with Jesus of Nazareth.”

72 And again he denied it with an oath: “I do not know the man!”

73 After a little while, those standing nearby came up to Peter. “Surely you are one of them,” they said, “for your accent gives you away.”

74 At that he began to curse and swear to them, “I do not know the man!”

And immediately a rooster crowed.

75 Then Peter remembered the word that Jesus had spoken: “Before the rooster crows, you will deny Me three times.” And he went outside and wept bitterly.

1 When morning came, all the chief priests and elders of the people conspired against Jesus to put Him to death. 2They bound Him, led Him away, and handed Him over to Pilate the governor.

3 When Judas, who had betrayed Him, saw that Jesus was condemned, he was filled with remorse and returned the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and elders. 4“I have sinned by betraying innocent blood,” he said.

“What is that to us?” they replied. “You bear the responsibility.”

5 So Judas threw the silver into the temple and left. Then he went away and hanged himself.

6 The chief priests picked up the pieces of silver and said, “It is unlawful to put this into the treasury, since it is blood money.” 7After conferring together, they used the money to buy the potter’s field as a burial place for foreigners. 8That is why it has been called the Field of Blood to this day. 9Then what was spoken through Jeremiah the prophet was fulfilled:

11 Meanwhile Jesus stood before the governor, who questioned Him: “Are You the King of the Jews?”

“You have said so,” Jesus replied.

12 And when He was accused by the chief priests and elders, He gave no answer.

13 Then Pilate asked Him, “Do You not hear how many charges they are bringing against You?”

14 But Jesus gave no answer, not even to a single charge, much to the governor’s amazement.