And Aaron said to them: Take the golden earrings from the ears of your wives, and your sons and daughters, and bring them to me.
וַיֹּ֤אמֶר אֲלֵהֶם֙ אַהֲרֹ֔ן פָּֽרְקוּ֙ נִזְמֵ֣י הַזָּהָ֔ב אֲשֶׁר֙ בְּאָזְנֵ֣י נְשֵׁיכֶ֔ם בְּנֵיכֶ֖ם וּבְנֹתֵיכֶ֑ם וְהָבִ֖יאוּ אֵלָֽי׃
5 Church Fathers comment on this verse
They inflicted severe harm upon Aaron. Observing their obstinance and lack of spiritual purity, he instructed them to remove their gold jewelry and throw it into the flames; whatever emerged from the fire, he declared, would become their god.
It is noted that, by the directive of this Aaron, the Israelites were instructed to remove their ‘earrings,’ which were then used as material for the idol. So, what can we conclude? Moses adorned the ears of the Israelites with ‘earrings,’ symbolizing the law, while a misguided brother, driven by wicked intent, removes this adornment from their ears and transforms it into an idol. At the inception of sin, there was a significant removal of these ‘earrings’—a suggestion to disregard the divine command. Can the companion of the original fall be praised by the serpent, who, under the guise of wisdom and goodness, encourages a departure from God’s commandments? This illustrates what it means to deprive the ‘hearing’ of the ‘earrings’ that represent God’s law.
Did Moses not ascend the mountain alongside you, and did he not enter the cloud in your presence? If you climb the mountain and encounter neither Moses nor Jesus, proceed as you wish. If you possess the manna and the quail, as well as the pillar and the cloud, how can it be that Moses is absent from you when all that he accomplished remains with you? Aaron interacted with the people, yet he recognized that they intended to stone him as they had done to Hur, to whom Moses had directed the elders to ‘go to judgment’ (Exodus 24:14) before ascending the mountain.
After this incident, Hur is no longer mentioned; thus, it is understood that when the people rebelled against Aaron during the creation of the golden calf, Hur met his death for opposing the Israelites' desire to alter their worship of God. Therefore, to avoid his own fate and prevent the people from being punished for killing him, and also to deter them from crafting numerous gods for themselves and returning to Egypt—even though they had not entered it—Aaron cunningly instructed the wives to encourage their husbands, hoping that compassion for their jewelry or a love for God would steer them away from the idol they intended to create.
When the people noticed that Moses had delayed in descending from the mountain, the Israelites, who had previously witnessed the signs of divine judgement as they journeyed to the sea to instill fear, and who had been surrounded by miracles of divine provision in the barren wilderness for their reconciliation, cast aside these signs and wonders due to a lack of faith. They ceased to regard the miraculous phenomena around them with reverence. Observing Moses' absence, they succumbed to the idolatry of Egypt, for now, before them stood a calf, a visible object of worship that they could openly revere, having already entertained such thoughts in their hearts. When their covert idolatry became overt, Moses, who had been concealed, then revealed himself to confront those whose idolatrous actions flourished beneath the sacred cloud. God separated the shepherd from the flock for forty days (Exodus 24:18) so that the flock might demonstrate that their trust was tied to the calf. Despite receiving abundant blessings from God, they chose a lifeless calf as their leader, one that could neither graze nor eat. Moses, who instilled fear in them, was removed for idolatry to flourish audibly; because of Moses’ prohibition, they had been silent, only voicing their desires within. They cried out, ‘Make us gods to walk before us’ (Exodus 32:1).
In the establishment of a realm disconnected from reason, they serve as ornaments of understanding: the logos, which he intuitively grasps regarding theology, stemming from earnest contemplation of matters; akin to necklaces, the theological perspectives that emerge from natural reflection; and like wrists upon the hands, the authentic manifestations of virtues according to divine wisdom. The ‘earrings’ symbolize the truths of theology, which exist intrinsically within the mind and are birthed from devout contemplation of reality through natural reflection; the ‘wrists’ embody the actualization of virtues through spiritual endeavors.
Alternatively, the ‘earrings’ represent inherent reason, as the ear symbolizes rationality; the ‘necklaces’ signify the profound commencement of the soul, with revelation reflecting splendor and dominion; and the ‘wrists’ upon the hands illustrate the cherished initiation of the soul, made evident through acts of love.
The practice of wearing earrings has ancient roots, observed among women, young girls, and men. Bas-reliefs from Assyria depict figures such as kings, officials, and eunuchs adorned with earrings. This tradition was also noted by Wilkinson in ancient Egypt. In a moment of turmoil, Aaron requests his preferred ornaments to quell the idolatrous activities, yet he falls short in his leadership. Later Jewish writings note a story where Hur, who was appointed to aid Aaron, was killed by an angry crowd, which led a frightened Aaron to ask the people solely for their earrings. Although Flavius Josephus does not explicitly mention the golden calf incident, he alludes indirectly to the fears of the Israelites. Some believed that Moses had been devoured by wild animals, while others thought that God had taken him away.
Passages read together with this verse.
THEOSIS