drink

In Telugu different verbs for humans drinking (tāgu / తాగు) and animals drinking (cēḍu / చేడు) are required.

The Idolatry of the Israelites

Artwork by Sister Marie Claire , SMMI (1937–2018) from Bengaluru, India.

For more information about images by Sister Marie Claire and ways to purchase them as lithographs, see here .

For other images of Sister Marie Claire paintings in TIPs, see here.

The following artwork “The Golden Calf” is part of a series of 56 paintings on biblical themes by Kazakh artist Nelly Bube (born 1949):

Copyright by Norwegian Bible Society , used with permission.

For other images of Nelly Bube in TIPs, see here.

complete verse (Exodus 32:20)

Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Exodus 32:20:

  • Kupsabiny: “Then he got/took that thing resembling a calf which those people had molded and burned (it) and then he crushed (it) into powder form and poured it into water and gave that water to the Israelites to drink.” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
  • Newari: “Then taking the bull calf they had made he burnt it in fire and made it into powder and mixed it with water and made the Israelites drink it.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
  • Hiligaynon: “Then he took the little-god cow that they had-made and he burnt (it). Afterward he ground it into-fine-powder and mixed (it) with water, and had- the people of the Israel -drink (it).” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
  • Bariai: “It came about that he took that carving of the bulmakao and then threw it into the fire and cooked it. And when it was done, then he pounded it so that it became small [pieces] like dust, and then cast it down into the water, and so he made the Israel people to drink that water.” (Source: Bariai Back Translation)
  • Opo: “He carry calf which they make, burn it with fire, grind it changing into ashes, throw it in water. And he say children of Israel they must drink it.” (Source: Opo Back Translation)
  • English: “Then he/I took the statue of the young bull that they had made and melted it in the fire. When it cooled, he/I ground it into fine powder. Then he/I mixed the powder with water and forced the Israeli people to drink it.” (Source: Translation for Translators)

Translation commentary on Exod 32:20

And he took the calf probably means that Moses “seized” the bull-calf, since he was very angry. Which they had made refers to the people, not just to Aaron. And burnt it with fire is exactly what the Hebrew says, but since it was made of gold, Good News Translation has “melted it.” New American Bible has “he fused it.” And ground it to powder is literally “and he ground until [it was] fine.” The word for ground is used for grinding grain in a mill. The word for powder is used in 16.14 to describe how fine the manna was, so Good News Translation has “fine powder.”

This reference to burning, grinding, and scattering has caused some scholars to believe the calf was really made of wood and only covered with gold, since gold cannot be burned. Others say that gold is too soft to be ground into powder. But these terms are meant to describe total destruction. The expression in fact may have been borrowed from an ancient Canaanite myth where the goddess Anat destroys the god Mot by burning, grinding, and scattering him.

And scattered it upon the water is literally “and he scattered it upon the face of the waters.” The source of the water is not indicated, but Deut 9.21 suggests it came from a mountain brook. Good News Translation says that he “mixed it with water,” but this changes the picture, which in the Hebrew is that of scattering the gold powder like sowing seed. And made the people of Israel drink it probably refers to all the Israelites. This was certainly a form of punishment, but it was also probably an ancient form of trial, in order to find out who were the guilty ones. (See Num 5.16-22.) Verse 35 may give the results of this “trial by ordeal.” (See the comment there.)

Quoted with permission from Osborn, Noel D. and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on Exodus. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 1999. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .