Exodus 32:26
New International Version
So he stood at the entrance to the camp and said, “Whoever is for the LORD, come to me.” And all the Levites rallied to him.

New Living Translation
So he stood at the entrance to the camp and shouted, “All of you who are on the LORD’s side, come here and join me.” And all the Levites gathered around him.

English Standard Version
then Moses stood in the gate of the camp and said, “Who is on the LORD’s side? Come to me.” And all the sons of Levi gathered around him.

Berean Standard Bible
So Moses stood at the entrance to the camp and said, “Whoever is for the LORD, come to me.” And all the Levites gathered around him.

King James Bible
Then Moses stood in the gate of the camp, and said, Who is on the LORD'S side? let him come unto me. And all the sons of Levi gathered themselves together unto him.

New King James Version
then Moses stood in the entrance of the camp, and said, “Whoever is on the LORD’s side—come to me!” And all the sons of Levi gathered themselves together to him.

New American Standard Bible
Moses then stood at the gate of the camp, and said, “Whoever is for the LORD, come to me!” And all the sons of Levi gathered together to him.

NASB 1995
then Moses stood in the gate of the camp, and said, “Whoever is for the LORD, come to me!” And all the sons of Levi gathered together to him.

NASB 1977
then Moses stood in the gate of the camp, and said, “Whoever is for the LORD, come to me!” And all the sons of Levi gathered together to him.

Legacy Standard Bible
so Moses stood in the gate of the camp and said, “Whoever is for Yahweh, come to me!” And all the sons of Levi gathered together to him.

Amplified Bible
then Moses stood in the gate of the camp, and said, “Whoever is on the LORD’S side, come to me!” And all the sons of Levi [the priestly tribe] gathered together to him.

Christian Standard Bible
And Moses stood at the camp’s entrance and said, “Whoever is for the LORD, come to me.” And all the Levites gathered around him.

Holman Christian Standard Bible
And Moses stood at the camp’s entrance and said, “Whoever is for the LORD, come to me.” And all the Levites gathered around him.

American Standard Version
then Moses stood in the gate of the camp, and said, Whoso is on Jehovah's side, let him come unto me. And all the sons of Levi gathered themselves together unto him.

Contemporary English Version
So Moses stood at the gate of the camp and shouted, "Everyone who is on the LORD's side come over here!" Then the men of the Levi tribe gathered around Moses,

English Revised Version
then Moses stood in the gate of the camp, and said, Whoso is on the LORD'S side, let him come unto me. And all the sons of Levi gathered themselves together unto him.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
he stood at the entrance to the camp and said, "If you're on the LORD's side, come over here to me!" Then all the Levites gathered around him.

Good News Translation
So he stood at the gate of the camp and shouted, "Everyone who is on the LORD's side come over here!" So all the Levites gathered around him,

International Standard Version
he stood in the gate of the camp and called out: "Whoever is for the LORD come over to me," and all the sons of Levi gathered around him.

Majority Standard Bible
So Moses stood at the entrance to the camp and said, “Whoever is for the LORD, come to me.” And all the Levites gathered around him.

NET Bible
So Moses stood at the entrance of the camp and said, "Whoever is for the LORD, come to me." All the Levites gathered around him,

New Heart English Bible
then Moses stood in the gate of the camp, and said, "Whoever is on the LORD's side, come to me." All the sons of Levi gathered themselves together to him.

Webster's Bible Translation
Then Moses stood in the gate of the camp, and said, Who is on the LORD'S side? let him come to me. And all the sons of Levi assembled themselves to him.

World English Bible
then Moses stood in the gate of the camp, and said, “Whoever is on Yahweh’s side, come to me!” All the sons of Levi gathered themselves together to him.
Literal Translations
Literal Standard Version
and Moses stands in the gate of the camp and says, “Who [is] for YHWH? [Come] to me!” And all the sons of Levi are gathered to him;

Young's Literal Translation
and Moses standeth in the gate of the camp, and saith, 'Who is for Jehovah? -- unto me!' and all the sons of Levi are gathered unto him;

Smith's Literal Translation
And Moses will stand in the gate of the camp, and will say, Who for Jehovah? to me. And all the sons of Levi will assemble together to him.
Catholic Translations
Douay-Rheims Bible
Then standing in the gate of the camp, he said: If any man be on the Lord's side let him join with me. And all the sons of Levi gathered themselves together unto him:

Catholic Public Domain Version
and standing at the gate of the camp, said: “If anyone is for the Lord, let him join with me.” And all the sons of Levi gathered themselves together to him.

New American Bible
Moses stood at the gate of the camp and shouted, “Whoever is for the LORD, come to me!” All the Levites then rallied to him,

New Revised Standard Version
then Moses stood in the gate of the camp, and said, “Who is on the LORD’s side? Come to me!” And all the sons of Levi gathered around him.
Translations from Aramaic
Lamsa Bible
Then Moses stood in the gate of the camp and said, Who is on the LORD'S side? Let him come to me. And all the Levites gathered themselves together to him.

Peshitta Holy Bible Translated
And Moshe saw the people that they had sinned against themselves, for Ahron caused them to sin, that their names would be stinking at their end.
OT Translations
JPS Tanakh 1917
then Moses stood in the gate of the camp, and said: 'Whoso is on the LORD'S side, let him come unto me.' And all the sons of Levi gathered themselves together unto him.

Brenton Septuagint Translation
then stood Moses at the gate of the camp, and said, Who is on the Lord's side? let him come to me. Then all the sons of Levi came to him.

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
Moses Breaks the Tablets
25Moses saw that the people were out of control, for Aaron had let them run wild and become a laughingstock to their enemies. 26So Moses stood at the entrance to the camp and said, “Whoever is for the LORD, come to me.” And all the Levites gathered around him. 27He told them, “This is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: ‘Each of you men is to fasten his sword to his side, go back and forth through the camp from gate to gate, and slay his brother, his friend, and his neighbor.’ ”…

Cross References
Numbers 25:5
So Moses told the judges of Israel, “Each of you must kill all of his men who have joined in worshiping Baal of Peor.”

Deuteronomy 33:9
He said of his father and mother, ‘I do not consider them.’ He disregarded his brothers and did not know his own sons, for he kept Your word and maintained Your covenant.

Joshua 24:15
But if it is unpleasing in your sight to serve the LORD, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your fathers served beyond the Euphrates, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you are living. As for me and my house, we will serve the LORD!”

1 Kings 18:21
Then Elijah approached all the people and said, “How long will you waver between two opinions? If the LORD is God, follow Him. But if Baal is God, follow him.” But the people did not answer a word.

2 Chronicles 29:11
Now, my sons, do not be negligent, for the LORD has chosen you to stand before Him, to serve Him, to minister before Him, and to burn incense.”

Psalm 94:16
Who will rise up for me against the wicked? Who will stand for me against the workers of iniquity?

Malachi 3:18
So you will again distinguish between the righteous and the wicked, between those who serve God and those who do not.”

Matthew 10:37
Anyone who loves his father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me; anyone who loves his son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me;

Matthew 12:30
He who is not with Me is against Me, and he who does not gather with Me scatters.

Luke 14:26
“If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters—yes, even his own life—he cannot be My disciple.

John 6:66-69
From that time on many of His disciples turned back and no longer walked with Him. / So Jesus asked the Twelve, “Do you want to leave too?” / Simon Peter replied, “Lord, to whom would we go? You have the words of eternal life. ...

John 12:26
If anyone serves Me, he must follow Me; and where I am, My servant will be as well. If anyone serves Me, the Father will honor him.

Acts 5:29
But Peter and the other apostles replied, “We must obey God rather than men.

Romans 6:16
Do you not know that when you offer yourselves as obedient slaves, you are slaves to the one you obey, whether you are slaves to sin leading to death, or to obedience leading to righteousness?

1 Corinthians 10:21
You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons too; you cannot partake in the table of the Lord and the table of demons too.


Treasury of Scripture

Then Moses stood in the gate of the camp, and said, Who is on the LORD's side? let him come to me. And all the sons of Levi gathered themselves together to him.

who is on

Joshua 5:13
And it came to pass, when Joshua was by Jericho, that he lifted up his eyes and looked, and, behold, there stood a man over against him with his sword drawn in his hand: and Joshua went unto him, and said unto him, Art thou for us, or for our adversaries?

2 Samuel 20:11
And one of Joab's men stood by him, and said, He that favoureth Joab, and he that is for David, let him go after Joab.

2 Kings 9:32
And he lifted up his face to the window, and said, Who is on my side? who? And there looked out to him two or three eunuchs.

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Assembled Camp Entrance Gate Gathered Levi Moses Rallied Side Standeth Stood Themselves Together Way
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Assembled Camp Entrance Gate Gathered Levi Moses Rallied Side Standeth Stood Themselves Together Way
Exodus 32
1. The people in the absence of Moses, caused Aaron to make a calf
7. God informs Moses, who intercedes for Israel, and prevails
15. Moses comes down with the tablets
19. He breaks them
20. He destroys the calf
22. Aaron's excuse for himself
25. Moses causes the idolaters to be slain
30. He prays for the people














So Moses stood
The act of standing here signifies a position of authority and readiness. Moses, as the leader appointed by God, takes a decisive stance amidst chaos. The Hebrew root for "stood" is "עָמַד" (amad), which often implies taking a firm position. This moment is pivotal, as Moses is not just physically standing but also spiritually and morally standing for God’s righteousness.

at the entrance to the camp
The entrance of the camp is a significant location, symbolizing a point of decision and transition. In ancient Israelite culture, the entrance was often a place of judgment and decision-making. Moses positions himself here to confront the sin of idolatry that has infiltrated the camp, marking a boundary between holiness and sin.

and said, 'Whoever is for the LORD, come to me.'
This call is a profound moment of decision. The phrase "for the LORD" in Hebrew is "לַיהוָה" (la-YHWH), indicating allegiance to Yahweh, the covenant God of Israel. Moses is calling the people to declare their loyalty amidst the idolatry of the golden calf. This is a call to repentance and a return to covenant faithfulness.

And all the Levites rallied to him
The Levites' response is immediate and collective. The Hebrew root for "rallied" is "אָסַף" (asaph), meaning to gather or assemble. Historically, the Levites were set apart for priestly duties, and their rallying to Moses signifies their dedication to God’s service. This act sets the Levites apart as defenders of God’s holiness, foreshadowing their future role in Israel’s religious life.

(26) Then Moses stood in the gate of the camp.--The third and crowning step was now to be taken. Though the idol had been seized and its destruction commenced, though Aaron had been rebuked and put to shame, yet the revel continued. Once launched on an evil course, the bulk of the people persisted in it. Moses felt that God was openly insulted by such conduct, against which death was denounced by the Law (Exodus 22:20), and which might at any moment provoke God to destroy the whole people (Exodus 32:10). He therefore proceeded to suppress the idolatry by a stern act of judicial severity--an execution on a large scale of those taken flagrante delicto. Standing in the gate--i.e., the principal gate--of the camp, he summoned to his aid those who were on the Lord's side, and gave them orders to go through the camp from end to end, and put to death all whom they found still engaged in the mad revel.

All the sons of Levi.--This must not be understood literally. All the Levites would not have heard the summons of Moses, and some were evidently among those who persisted in idolatry (Exodus 32:27-29). In the language of the sacred writers, "all" constantly means "the greater part."

Verse 26. - Moses stood in the gate of the camp. We must understand "the principal gate," since the camp had several (ver. 27) Who is on the Lord's side? Let him come to me. Literally, "Who for Jehovah? To me" - but expressed, as the Hebrew idiom allows, in three words, forming an excellent rallying cry. All the sons of Levi - i.e., all who heard the cry. It is evident that there were Levites among the idolaters (vers. 27, 29.)

Parallel Commentaries ...


Hebrew
So Moses
מֹשֶׁה֙ (mō·šeh)
Noun - proper - masculine singular
Strong's 4872: Moses -- a great Israelite leader, prophet and lawgiver

stood
וַיַּעֲמֹ֤ד (way·ya·‘ă·mōḏ)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Qal - Consecutive imperfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 5975: To stand, in various relations

at the entrance
בְּשַׁ֣עַר (bə·ša·‘ar)
Preposition-b | Noun - masculine singular construct
Strong's 8179: An opening, door, gate

of the camp
הַֽמַּחֲנֶ֔ה (ham·ma·ḥă·neh)
Article | Noun - common singular
Strong's 4264: An encampment, an army

and said,
וַיֹּ֕אמֶר (way·yō·mer)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Qal - Consecutive imperfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 559: To utter, say

“Whoever
מִ֥י (mî)
Interrogative
Strong's 4310: Who?, whoever, in oblique construction with prefix, suffix

is for the LORD,
לַיהוָ֖ה (Yah·weh)
Preposition-l | Noun - proper - masculine singular
Strong's 3068: LORD -- the proper name of the God of Israel

come to me.”
אֵלָ֑י (’ê·lāy)
Preposition | first person common singular
Strong's 413: Near, with, among, to

And all
כָּל־ (kāl-)
Noun - masculine singular construct
Strong's 3605: The whole, all, any, every

the Levites
בְּנֵ֥י (bə·nê)
Noun - masculine plural construct
Strong's 1121: A son

gathered
וַיֵּאָסְפ֥וּ (way·yê·’ā·sə·p̄ū)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Nifal - Consecutive imperfect - third person masculine plural
Strong's 622: To gather for, any purpose, to receive, take away, remove

around him.
אֵלָ֖יו (’ê·lāw)
Preposition | third person masculine singular
Strong's 413: Near, with, among, to


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OT Law: Exodus 32:26 Then Moses stood in the gate (Exo. Ex)
Exodus 32:25
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