וירא אהרן. שטעו ונתירא שמא ישימו לב לאמר מה יושיענו זה וישימו עליהם ראש לפיכך ויבן מזבח לפניו להשהותם עד שיבא משה: וירא אהרן, “when Aaron saw, (realised), etc.” the people had misinterpreted the apparent ability of this golden calf to speak; he was afraid that they might kill him (for having made an idol) and he built an altar for the Lord on which offerings would be offered on the morrow, by which time he thought Moses would surely have returned. According to our author, we find that the prophet Samuel when pressured to anoint a king for the people resorted to a similar stratagem in Samuel I 11,14, when he suggested that he would meet their request on the following day. [This comparison is invalid, as the prophet Samuel had consulted with G–d about how to deal with the people’s demand. Ed.]
ויאמר חג לה' מחר. כלומר למחר נעמידהו על המלוכה ונעשה חג לה' על מנהיג ונעשה שלמים לשם הקב"ה כמו שמצינו בשאול כשנתחדשה המלוכה: