Bible Strands
Acts 7:40
They said to Aaron, ‘Make us gods who will go before us! As for this Moses who led us out of the land of Egypt, we do not know what has happened to him.’
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — The Israelites address Aaron while Moses remains delayed on the mountain, demanding visible deities after rejecting his leadership. The words — προπορεύσονται (proporeusontai) translates literally to "will go before," and θεοὺς (theous) means "gods." The thread — This exact phrasing matches the parallel accounts in Exodus 32:1 and Exodus 32:23. Why it lands — The text records a direct command to replace a visible leader with manufactured idols, requiring the reader to confront the pattern of trading obedience for immediate, tangible security.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Greek words
King James Version
Saying unto Aaron, Make us gods to go before us: for as for this Moses, which brought us out of the land of Egypt, we wot not what is become of him.
Cross-references
- Exodus 32:1 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!”
- Exodus 32:23 They 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!’