I. BACKGROUND OF EXODUS 32:17,18 II.
The Hebrew people had been in Egyptian bondage for four hundred years, but God miraculously delivered them from the clutches of Pharoah and his army by drowning them in the Red Sea following the tenth plague sent on the nation of Egypt. These Israelites under the leadership of Moses travel to Mt. Sinai where they will remain for eleven months before beginning the forty year wilderness wandering. After only a few weeks at Mt. Sinai, God gives the ten commandments to Moses and the Israelites vow to obey them, but they become impatient with Moses because he ascends the mountain a second time and remains there forty days while God gives further revelation of the Law.
In his absence the people plead with Aaron to make a golden calf; Aaron, being a weak leader, consents, and the golden calf if roomed from the gold jewelry brought out of Egypt by the Israelites. They sing and dance around the calf, but Moses is unaware of this breach of conduct until God reveals this evil to him (Exodus 32:7-8). Moses descends Mt. Sinai, hears at a distance the “sound” of their worship, and hears the words of Joshua: “There is the sound of war in the camp.”
III. EXPLANATION OF EXODUS 32:17-18 IV.
Two elements are pertinent in the brief passage: (1) word meaning for “singing,” and (2) associated behavior to this “singing.”
(1) Word meaning
The Hebrew word for “sound” (NIV translation) (KOLE or QOWL) occurs four times in Exodus 32:17-18. This Hebrew word is used in other references in the Old Testament for the bleating sound of sheep, the crackling sound of thunder or the yelling sound of someone who calls out loud. The first time Joshua thinks the sound is a sound of war in the camp, but he misunderstood the sound, for Moses replied, “It is not sound of victory, it is not the sound of defeat.” John Durham says, “it was neither the exultant victory cry of triumph or the keening lamentation of defeat.”1 Joshua failed to properly interpret the singing or sound; his spiritual senses were dulled, preventing him from accurately interpreting the music.
But Moses correctly interpreted this sound; he said it was the sound of “singing.” The Hebrew word for “singing” is AW-NAW, but what kind of singing is inferred in the context, since there are obviously different kinds of singing? The context provides the answer: it is CHAOTIC SINGING or CONFUSED NOISE---as evidenced by the chaotic behavior of the worshipping Israelites. This same Hebrew word can also mean to depress literally or figuratively; to beat down, to afflict; to answer back. Chaotic singing or confused noise will produce these emotions of depression and affliction. Moses knew the distinction between triumphant and lamenting music, and neither is chaotic, but this “singing” of the Israelites was totally different. Rabbi Ramban makes a wise observation about Moses’ ability to discern different kinds of music: “Moses however with his mastery of the sciences knew how to differentiate between the various kinds of noise. He said that it was the noise of song that was audible to him.”2 Aaron nor Joshua could not properly discern the kind of music, but Moses, because of his training in Egypt, could discern the true nature of music and what conduct it produced in the Israelites.
(2) Associated behavior
All music, whether jazz, rock and roll, blues, classical, country western, hip hop, or Christian produces a DISTINCT sound, and thus produces DISTINCT effects in the listener. What were the effects produced in the children of Israel as they worshipped the golden calf they carved with their hands? Exodus 32:6,25 provides the answer: revelry and running wild. Revelry is associated with sexual orgies in pagan worship; running wild means casting off restraint---letting emotions override clear thinking. How did other people react to this “new kind of music” being played and sung by the Israelites? Exodus 32:25 says these Israelites became a “laughingstock” or a shame to their enemies.
The Hebrew word for “laughingstock” literally means according to S.R. Driver, “a whispering among those who rose up against them.”3 These surrounding pagans whispered among themselves in a mocking manner. At what were these pagans mocking? The context of verse 25 provides the answer: (1) IMMORALE BEHAVIOR: the Israelites were running wild and out of control in sexual frenzy, and (2) ABANDONMENT OF GOD: these pagans knew the Hebrews were non-idolatrous worshippers of Jehovah God, and now they have abandoned this worship by adopting pagan methods of music and idolatry. The Israelites worshipped God in music, danced around the golden calf, and the surrounding pagans laughed and laughed.
What kind of music was used by these recently-liberated Israelites? According to the Hebrew word for singing (AW-NAW) in this context it was a chaotic depressing, afflicting, beating down type of music. No, it was not a funeral dirge kind of music which is slow in tempo and eliciting a feeling of normal grief and sadness, but an UPBEAT, FAST TEMPO, REPETITIVE, MONOTONOUS, DISCORDANT, DRIVING kind of music designed to evoke positive happiness and excitement. How do we know the music was characterized this way? Because of its effects on the Israelites: revelry, dancing, running wild, casting off all normal moral restraints. Quite, slow, harmonious, melodic, reflective, relaxing music does not produce this effect. The word for “dancing” in verse 19 is the same word describing the dancing of Miriam and the women in Exodus 15:20, but in that passage the dancing does not appear to be out of control. That music was more conducive to a dance of joy measured by restraint, but here in Exodus 32:19 the dancing is definitely out of control and casting off all moral restraint.
Why would this kind of music be classified in the Hebrew word and labeled as chaotic, depressive, afflicting, beating down? How could such upbeat music be depressive, afflicting? Because of its effect on true worship of God. Normally a fast-temp music with a positive upbeat produces excitement and happiness, and it certainly did with these Israelites, but it also produced a depressive affliction on the true emotions of worship. It majors on human, self-centered feelings of giddiness, rather than the true character and attributes of God. Their worship was an ILLUSION OF TRUE WORSHIP! They worshipped the true God in a false way, with false music! Unwholesome music depresses, beats down, afflicts true worship.
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