The Golden Calf
Ilumi Kids · Stories
Moses went up a very high mountain to talk with God. He stayed there for many days, receiving the Ten Commandments, which were God's special rules for His people.
Down below, the people of Israel started to get impatient. "Where is Moses?" they wondered. They were scared and felt lonely without their leader.
While Moses was on the mountain with God, the people grew impatient and asked Aaron for a god they could see. Aaron collected their gold earrings and made a calf, and the people threw a party in front of it. When Moses came down with the tablets of the law, he was heartbroken, broke the tablets, and destroyed the idol.
Where it is in the Bible: Exodus 32
Only God deserves our worship; nothing should take his place in our hearts.
After reading, use these questions to help your child remember and apply the story.
Moses went up a very high mountain to talk with God. He stayed there for many days, receiving the Ten Commandments, which were God's special rules for His people.
Down below, the people of Israel started to get impatient. "Where is Moses?" they wondered. They were scared and felt lonely without their leader.
So, they went to Aaron, Moses' brother, and had a very bad idea. They wanted a new god they could see and touch, a god to guide them through the desert.
Aaron, instead of telling them to wait for God, asked everyone to bring their gold earrings. He gathered all that shiny gold the people gave him.
With all that gold, Aaron made a statue. It was a calf, a little golden bull! He put it on an altar for everyone to see.
The people got excited and started to celebrate around the golden calf. They forgot about the true God who saved them from Egypt and guided them with a cloud and a pillar of fire.
The People: This is your god, O Israel, who brought you out of Egypt!
Up on the mountaintop, God saw everything that was happening. He told Moses that the people had made an idol and had forgotten Him very quickly.
Moses' heart was very sad. He loved the people and asked God to have mercy and forgive them, reminding God of His promises.
"I have seen these people," the Lord said to Moses. "They are a stubborn people." — Exodus 32:9
Moses came down from the mountain carrying the two stone tablets with the commandments written by the finger of God. When he saw the people dancing for the golden calf, he was so sad and angry that he broke the tablets on the ground.
Moses destroyed the golden calf, grinding it into powder. He showed the people that there is only one true God, and it is only Him we should worship and obey, because He truly loves us and guides us.
