The LORD was angry enough with Aaron to destroy him, but at that time I also prayed for Aaron.
Parallel translations
- WEB Yahweh was angry enough with Aaron to destroy him. I prayed for Aaron also at the same time.
- KJV And the LORD was very angry with Aaron to have destroyed him: and I prayed for Aaron also the same time.
- NKJV And the Lord was very angry with Aaron and would have destroyed him; so I prayed for Aaron also at the same time.
- NASB The Lord was also angry enough with Aaron to destroy him; so I also prayed for Aaron at the same time.
- NLT The Lord was so angry with Aaron that he wanted to destroy him, too. But I prayed for Aaron, and the Lord spared him.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Even Aaron, who made the calf, faced God's anger, but Moses interceded for him too. No one's guilt is too great for prayerful intercession or too small to need it.
Overview
Aaron's leading role in the idolatry made him liable to destruction, showing that office and privilege offer no exemption from accountability. Moses' specific prayer for Aaron demonstrates intercession even for those most responsible for sin. It points forward to Christ, whose intercession reaches the chief of sinners who come to Him.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 4
- Heb 7:26–28Such a high priest truly befits us—One who is holy, innocent, undefiled, set apart from sinners, and exalted above the heavens.
- Exod 32:35And the LORD sent a plague on the people because of what they had done with the calf that Aaron had made.
- Exod 32:21“What did this people do to you,” Moses asked Aaron, “that you have led them into so great a sin?”
- Exod 32:2–5So Aaron told them, “Take off the gold earrings that are on your wives and sons and daughters, and bring them to me.”
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
Moses promised a Prophet like himself to whom Israel must listen (18:15); Jesus is that Prophet, the one who keeps the covenant we broke and becomes the curse for us by hanging on a tree (Gal 3:13).
How Deuteronomy 9:20 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.