Thou Shalt Have No Other Gods before Me: Concerning Idols

Through this passage, the Scripture says, “the graven image, that the maker thereof hath graven it,” “the molten image, even the teacher of lies,” and “it is laid over with gold and silver.” From this we can know that all idols are things made by man. Therefore, we can understand that both the one who makes an idol and the one who believes in and relies on that man-made idol gain no profit at all.

Psalm 115:4-8 “4Their idols are silver and gold, The work of men’s hands. 5They have mouths, but they speak not; Eyes have they, but they see not; 6They have ears, but they hear not; Noses have they, but they smell not; 7They have hands, but they handle not; Feet have they, but they walk not; Neither speak they through their throat. 8They that make them shall be like unto them; Yea, every one that trusteth in them.”

Through the first and second commandments among the Ten Commandments, God clearly spoke to us as follows.

Exodus 20:3-6 “3Thou shalt have no other gods before me. 4Thou shalt not make unto thee a graven image, nor any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth: 5thou shalt not bow down thyself unto them, nor serve them; for I Jehovah thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children, upon the third and upon the fourth generation of them that hate me, 6and showing lovingkindness unto thousands of them that love me and keep my commandments.”

Thus, God commanded us that only God must be before us. Nevertheless, the reason many other gods exist among us is that people have made graven images for themselves. In other words, just as God made known through the prophet Habakkuk above, people have made many idols for themselves.

Leviticus 26:1 “Ye shall make you no idols, neither shall ye rear you up a graven image, or a pillar, neither shall ye place any figured stone in your land, to bow down unto it: for I am Jehovah your God.”

Through these words, we can know that other gods, that is, idols, are things that people have made, and are still making, for themselves (Rom. 1:20-25). On the other hand, we must know and believe that God is not one made by people, but the I AM.

Exodus 3:13-14 “13And Moses said unto God, Behold, when I come unto the children of Israel, and shall say unto them, The God of your fathers hath sent me unto you; and they shall say to me, What is his name? what shall I say unto them? 14And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you.”

Amen. Truly, it is so. God is not like other gods, that is, the idols people have made. He is the One who exists of Himself, and He is the Word. And unlike lifeless idols, this word of God is living and active even today.

John 1:1 “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.”

Hebrews 4:12 “For the word of God is living, and active, and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing even to the dividing of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and quick to discern the thoughts and intents of the heart.”

Therefore, for us today also, we must have only Jesus, who is the Word, and other idols must never exist among us.

Deuteronomy 4:15-19 “15Take ye therefore good heed unto yourselves; for ye saw no manner of form on the day that Jehovah spake unto you in Horeb out of the midst of the fire. 16Lest ye corrupt yourselves, and make you a graven image in the form of any figure, the likeness of male or female, 17the likeness of any beast that is on the earth, the likeness of any winged bird that flieth in the heavens, 18the likeness of anything that creepeth on the ground, the likeness of any fish that is in the water under the earth; 19and lest thou lift up thine eyes unto heaven, and when thou seest the sun and the moon and the stars, even all the host of heaven, thou be drawn away and worship them, and serve them, which Jehovah thy God hath allotted unto all the peoples under the whole heaven....”

No one has seen God. This is because if a man sees God, he will die (Ex. 33:20). Therefore, even to Moses, only seeing God’s back was permitted (Ex. 33:21-23). In Deuteronomy 4:15 above, God said, “Ye saw no manner of form on the day that Jehovah spake unto you in Horeb out of the midst of the fire.” This means that no one saw the form of God, but only heard the word of God. Therefore, we can know that we must not make any idol in any form, but must only read, hear, and keep the word of God written in the Scriptures (Rev. 1:3).

However, long ago in the wilderness, the people of Israel demanded that Aaron make gods for them.

Exodus 32:1-4 “1And when the people saw that Moses delayed to come down from the mount, the people gathered themselves together unto Aaron, and said unto him, Up, make us gods, which shall go before us; for as for this Moses, the man that brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we know not what is become of him. 2And Aaron said unto them, Break off the golden rings, which are in the ears of your wives, of your sons, and of your daughters, and bring them unto me. 3And all the people brake off the golden rings which were in their ears, and brought them unto Aaron. 4And he received it at their hand, and fashioned it with a graving tool, and made it a molten calf: and they said, These are thy gods, O Israel, which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt.”

Thus, because they feared that Moses might have died, the people of Israel demanded that Aaron make gods for them, and Aaron made a calf-shaped image according to their demand. In the end, because of this sin, Moses came down from Mount Horeb and became very angry, and he himself broke the two tablets of stone, on which the Ten Commandments were written, which God had made for him (Ex. 32:19). A sad history is also recorded: those who were on Jehovah’s side consecrated themselves to God and slew their sons and brothers, their friends and neighbors, so that about three thousand men died that day (Ex. 32:26-29). Through this tragic event of the past, we can realize that even God’s people can make idols for themselves if they do not believe the word of God (Col. 3:5). We can also know that God surely judges those who make and rely on idols.

Therefore, we must never try to rely on forms that we can see with our eyes and touch with our hands. Even Thomas, the disciple of Jesus, tried to believe only after seeing and touching the risen Jesus himself, and he was rebuked by Jesus for this (John 20:25-29). Rather, we must believe that the Word who became flesh is Jesus, and that Jesus is the true image of God (John 1:18, John 14:8-9). Therefore, we must all become the sheep of Jesus who believe and follow only the words of Jesus. This will truly be profitable for us.

John 10:3-5 “3To him the porter openeth; and the sheep hear his voice: and he calleth his own sheep by name, and leadeth them out. 4When he hath put forth all his own, he goeth before them, and the sheep follow him: for they know his voice. 5And a stranger will they not follow, but will flee from him: for they know not the voice of strangers.”

1 Peter 1:8-9 “8whom not having seen ye love; on whom, though now ye see him not, yet believing, ye rejoice greatly with joy unspeakable and full of glory: 9receiving the end of your faith, even the salvation of your souls.”

Amen.