Exodus 34:1–9, King James Version
Italic words were supplied in the English translation for clarity.
Exodus 34:1–9
New Tablets and the Divine Character Proclamation
Hew new tables like the first, and come up alone
Moses is to cut two stone tables like the first; God will write the words of the tables Moses broke. He is to be ready in the morning, come to the top of Sinai, and let no man be seen on the mount, nor flocks feed before it. He hews the tables, rises early, and goes up with them in his hand.
The name proclaimed: mercy and un-cleared guilt together
The LORD descends in the cloud, stands with him, and proclaims the name. He passes by and proclaims: the LORD, the LORD God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, abundant in goodness and truth, keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity, transgression, and sin, and that will by no means clear the guilty, visiting iniquity of fathers on children to the third and fourth generation.
Moses bows and worships. He asks the Lord to go among them, because they are stiffnecked, to pardon iniquity and sin, and to take them as inheritance. Character language after the calf holds compassion and continuing judgment in one proclamation. It answers Moses' plea for presence without turning God into either mere softness or mere threat. 'Visiting iniquity' must not be used to punish children for a parent's crime as policy.
How this should shape us
When a bond is remade, keep both the new tables and the name that is more than tables: mercy, truth, forgiveness, and uncleared guilt. Ask God to stay with a stiff-necked people rather than pretending they are now safe to manage on their own.
Teach it back
Explain Exodus 34:1–9 in your own words. Include both movements, its place in Exodus, one historical or compositional uncertainty, one affected person or group, and one conclusion the complete context rules out.
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Go deeper
The explanation above is meant to stand on its own. Open these notes only if you want language, history, disagreements, or source locations.
Where careful interpreters disagreeThe strongest options and their difficulties
Where do careful interpreters disagree?
Best judgment: Careful interpreters agree that the received text states the following: Moses prepares replacement tablets, ascends alone, hears the divine name and a formula of mercy, loyalty, forgiveness, and continuing judgment, then asks God to remain with the people. They disagree over source layers, date, historical recovery, archaeology, Hebrew details, ritual development, legal use, and canonical relationship in different proportions; this study treats the final form directly while marking those alternatives as probable or uncertain rather than settled fact.
How certain? probableResearch trail and exact locationsThe source record behind this section
Supports: Exact KJV wording, paragraph metadata, supplied-word markup, and complete verse coverage for this thought unit.
Exodus 34:1–9, pinned eng-kjv2006 USFM corpus
Supports: Masoretic Hebrew wording, morphology, names, speech, law, ritual vocabulary, older-English controls, and translation limits.
Open Scriptures MorphHB v.2.2, commit 6a5db284c715c18b239422e57bb89684e6a19f00, wlc/Exod.xml, words and morphology for 34:1–9
Supports: Unit-bounded Hebrew, syntax, lexical, textual, name, measure, legal, ritual, and older-English notes; silence is not evidence.
NET Bible Exodus PDF, complete 127-page PDF, translation and verse-attached translator notes for 34:1–9
Supports: Leadership vacuum, image worship, narrative and political-religious background, covenant rupture, lethal response, renewed presence, and source alternatives.
Yale Bible Study, 'The Golden Calf,' complete study guide pp. 1–5, calf, Jeroboam relationship, covenant breach, intercession, Levite violence, presence, divine character, and Exodus 34; applied to Exodus 34:1–9
Supports: Mountain location uncertainty, covenant and treaty comparison, source plurality, mediation, Decalogue, covenant blood, and priestly dwelling instruction.
Yale Bible Study, 'Sinai,' complete study guide pp. 1–6, covenant, Moses and the mountain, Decalogue, Exodus 24, and tabernacle framing; applied to Exodus 34:1–9
Supports: Architectural and ritual comparanda, pattern language, movement, possible historical models, and explicit reconstruction limits.
Homan, 'The Tabernacle in Its Ancient Near Eastern Context,' complete article sections on form, furnishings, shown pattern, temple-building parallels, portability, and historical-versus-literary models; applied to Exodus 34:1–9
Supports: Material-source theology, skilled labor, voluntary gifts, half-shekel assessment, manufactured holiness, and the limits of idealized production language.
Ben-Dov, 'The Materiality of a Divine Dwelling,' complete article sections on Exodus 20 and 25–40, donated and assessed materials, craft, manufactured objects, and divine presence; applied to Exodus 34:1–9
Sources for This Section
These records identify the source, the claim it supports, and the exact location used. A source remains evidence to evaluate; it does not replace the biblical text.
Biblical text
King James (Authorized) Version — eng-kjv2006
eBible.org and CrossWire Bible Society
USFM archive eng-kjv2006_usfm.zip; source files dated 2026-08-19; downloaded 2026-08-24; archive SHA-256 aec1b3b26c622fd3d963d2bbac963016b9513246ffbfa20da00bb100372ea007; normalized corpus SHA-256 09aef51d90488aa7b9722b3fd9a93f4b25f6bf2064c5fd798fb39673c300ddf2.
Supports: Exact KJV wording, paragraph metadata, supplied-word markup, and complete verse coverage for this thought unit.
Exact location: Exodus 34:1–9, pinned eng-kjv2006 USFM corpus
Open source ↗hebrew text and morphology
Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible: Exodus
Open Scriptures
Open Scriptures, release 2.2
Supports: Masoretic Hebrew wording, morphology, names, speech, law, ritual vocabulary, older-English controls, and translation limits.
Exact location: Open Scriptures MorphHB v.2.2, commit 6a5db284c715c18b239422e57bb89684e6a19f00, wlc/Exod.xml, words and morphology for 34:1–9
Open source ↗translation and translator notes
NET Bible: Exodus with translators' notes
Biblical Studies Press
eBible.org distribution of the NET Bible, PDF generated 2026-08-12
Supports: Unit-bounded Hebrew, syntax, lexical, textual, name, measure, legal, ritual, and older-English notes; silence is not evidence.
Exact location: NET Bible Exodus PDF, complete 127-page PDF, translation and verse-attached translator notes for 34:1–9
Open source ↗open university course study guide
The Golden Calf Study Guide
Joel S. Baden and John J. Collins
Yale Bible Study, 2019 course edition
Supports: Leadership vacuum, image worship, narrative and political-religious background, covenant rupture, lethal response, renewed presence, and source alternatives.
Exact location: Yale Bible Study, 'The Golden Calf,' complete study guide pp. 1–5, calf, Jeroboam relationship, covenant breach, intercession, Levite violence, presence, divine character, and Exodus 34; applied to Exodus 34:1–9
Open source ↗open university course study guide
Sinai Study Guide
Joel S. Baden and John J. Collins
Yale Bible Study, 2019 course edition
Supports: Mountain location uncertainty, covenant and treaty comparison, source plurality, mediation, Decalogue, covenant blood, and priestly dwelling instruction.
Exact location: Yale Bible Study, 'Sinai,' complete study guide pp. 1–6, covenant, Moses and the mountain, Decalogue, Exodus 24, and tabernacle framing; applied to Exodus 34:1–9
Open source ↗ancient near eastern comparative architecture study
The Tabernacle in Its Ancient Near Eastern Context
Michael M. Homan
TheTorah.com, 2018
Supports: Architectural and ritual comparanda, pattern language, movement, possible historical models, and explicit reconstruction limits.
Exact location: Homan, 'The Tabernacle in Its Ancient Near Eastern Context,' complete article sections on form, furnishings, shown pattern, temple-building parallels, portability, and historical-versus-literary models; applied to Exodus 34:1–9
Open source ↗modern jewish scholarly material and literary study
The Materiality of a Divine Dwelling
Jonathan Ben-Dov
TheTorah.com, 2017
Supports: Material-source theology, skilled labor, voluntary gifts, half-shekel assessment, manufactured holiness, and the limits of idealized production language.
Exact location: Ben-Dov, 'The Materiality of a Divine Dwelling,' complete article sections on Exodus 20 and 25–40, donated and assessed materials, craft, manufactured objects, and divine presence; applied to Exodus 34:1–9
Open source ↗