11. The 40 days and 40 nights came to an end. Then the Lord gave me the two stone tablets. They were the tablets of the covenant.
12. The Lord told me, "Go down from here right away. The people you brought out of Egypt have become very sinful. They have quickly turned away from what I commanded them. They have made a metal statue of a god for themselves."
13. The Lord said to me, "I have seen these people. They are so stubborn!
14. Do not try to stop me. I am going to destroy them. I will wipe them out from the earth. Then I will make you into a great nation. Your people will be stronger than they were. There will be more of you than there were of them."
15. So I turned and went down the mountain. It was blazing with fire. I was carrying the two tablets of the covenant.
16. When I looked, I saw that you had sinned against the Lord your God. You had made for yourselves a metal statue of a god. It looked like a calf. You had quickly turned away from the path the Lord had commanded you to follow.
17. So I threw the two tablets out of my hands. You watched them break into pieces.
18. Then once again I fell down flat in front of the Lord with my face toward the ground. I lay there for 40 days and 40 nights. I didn't eat any food or drink any water. You had committed a terrible sin. You had done an evil thing in the Lord's sight. You had made him angry.