Another matter, “that You took out of the land of Egypt,” (Exodus 32:11), why did he see fit to mention the exodus from Egypt here? Rabbi Avin said in the name of Rabbi Shimon ben Yehotzadak: To what is this matter analogous? To a king who had a fallow field. He said to a sharecropper: ‘Go and tend to it and transform it into a vineyard.’
The sharecropper went, tended to that field, and planted a vineyard. The vineyard grew and produced wine, but it fermented. When the king saw that the wine fermented, he said to the sharecropper: ‘Go cut it down, is it a vineyard that produces vinegar that I seek?’ The sharecropper said to the king: ‘My lord king, how many expenditures did you expend on this vineyard before it stood, and now you seek to cut it down?
If you say it is because its wine fermented, it is because it is young, that is why it fermented and it does not produce fine wine.’ So too, when Israel performed that act,22The sin of the Golden Calf. the Holy One blessed be He sought to annihilate them. Moses said: ‘Master of the universe, did You not take them out of Egypt, from a place of idolaters? Now they are inexperienced,’ as it is stated: “For Israel was a lad and I loved him” (Hosea 11:1). ‘Wait a bit, go with them, and they will perform good deeds before You.’
That is, “that You took out of the land of Egypt.” “Why shall the Egyptians speak, [saying: He took them out for evil, to kill them in the mountains and to destroy them from upon the face of the earth? Relent from your enflamed wrath] and reconsider regarding the evil against Your people” (Exodus 32:12). Rabbi Ḥanina bar Abba said: Let reconsideration be common before You.23Moses prayed that even in the future, God should be willing to reconsider punishments that He would decide to impose upon Israel (Etz Yosef).
The Holy One blessed be He said to him: ‘What did you say, “reconsider regarding the evil against Your people”? As you live, so I will do,’ as it is stated: “The Lord reconsidered the evil” (Exodus 32:14).