Welcome and thank you for taking a bible break to test your knowledge of God's word. This week's question:

Aaron, the brother of Moses and a fluent speaker, who is sent by God as a spokesman before Pharaoh and the Israelites, while Moses, with his staff is the contact with God through whom the plagues of Egypt, the parting of the sea, and the destruction of Pharaoh's army take place.

Exodus 14:31 When Israel saw the great power which the Lord had used against

The Egyptians, the people feared the Lord, and they believed in the Lord and in

His servant Moses.

Before two months have passed from leaving Egypt, food runs short and in chapter 16 they grumble against Moses and Aaron saying that it would have been better to die in Egypt with food than to starve in the wilderness. So God provides manna for food. Then the water runs short and the grumbling is so intense that Moses fears being stoned by the people in Exodus 17:4. God tells Moses to strike the rock with his staff in Exodus 17:6 and water pours forth.

Soon Moses prepares the people to see the sight of the Lord on Mt. Sinai with smoke, lightning, and great sounds like a loud trumpet, so much so, that the people trembled in chapters 19-20. Only Moses went beyond the boundary set up by God at the base of Mt. Sinai to receive the laws of God for all the people of Israel.

When Moses return from Mt. Sinai consumes 40 days and 40 nights (Exodus 24:18), the people pressed Aaron to make an idol so God could go before them so that they as well as everyone else could see.

Exodus 32 1-4 Now when the people saw that Moses delayed to come down from the

mountain, the people assembled about Aaron and said to him, "Come, make us a god

Who will go before us; as for this Moses, the man who brought us up from the land

Of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him." Aaron said to them, "Tear off

The gold rings which are in the ears of your wives, your sons, and your daughters, and

Bring them to me." Then all the people tore off the gold rings which were in their ears

And brought them to Aaron. He took this from their hand, and fashioned it with a

Graving tool and made it into a molten calf; and they said, "This is your God , O

Israel, who brought you up from the land of Egypt."

So this is not just any idol-this is God. Or so they thought. They burned an offering before it and set up a great feast and soon rose up to play. God tells Moses of the problem and wants to destroy the people, but Moses changes His mind with the argument that the Egyptians would say He brought them out of Egypt just to destroy them. When Moses returns to camp he asks Aaron:

Exodus 32:21-24 Then Moses said to Aaron, "What did this people do to you, that you

Have brought such great sin upon them?" Aaron said. "Do not let the anger of my lord

Burn; you know the people yourself, that they are prone to evil. For they said to me,

'make a god for us who will go before us; for this Moses, the man who brought us up

From the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him.' "I said to them,

'whoever has any gold, let them tear it off.' So they gave it to me, and I threw it into

The fire, and out came this calf."

So their you have our answer today a golden calf. Aaron did not use the courage that it took to stand against sin that is always crouching at the doorway. He gave in to the pressure of the people. We too should use courage not to put any image or idea before the Lord.

Romans 1:21-23 For even though they knew God, they did not honor Him as God or

give Thanks, but they became futile in their speculations, and their foolish heart was

Darkened. Professing to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of

The incorruptible God for an image in the form of corruptible man and the birds

And the four-footed animals and crawling creatures.

Let us not exchange the truth for a lie, nor worship the creature rather than the creator.