19. At Mount Horeb they made ⌊a statue of⌋ a calf.They worshiped an idol made of metal.
20. They traded their glorious God for the statue of a bull that eats grass.
21. They forgot God, their savior,the one who did spectacular things in Egypt,
22. miracles in the land of Ham,and terrifying things at the Red Sea.
23. God said he was going to destroy them,but Moses, his chosen one, stood in his wayto prevent him from exterminating them.
24. They refused ⌊to enter⌋ the pleasant land.They did not believe what he said.
25. They complained in their tents.They did not obey the Lord.
26. Raising his hand, he sworethat he would kill them in the wilderness,
27. kill their descendants among the nations,and scatter them throughout various lands.
28. They joined in worshiping the god Baal while they were at Peor,and they ate what was sacrificed to the dead.
29. They infuriated God by what they did,and a plague broke out among them.
30. Then Phinehas stood between God and the people,and the plague was stopped.
31. Because of this, Phinehas was considered righteous forever,throughout every generation.
32. They made God angry by the water at Meribah.Things turned out badly for Moses because of what they did,
33. since they made him bitter so that he spoke recklessly.
34. They did not destroy the people as the Lord had told them.