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What God Says about Idolatry


I have been overwhelmed this last year* with God’s expressions of His view of idolatry:

Disobedient: “You shall have no other gods before me. You shall not make for yourself an idol in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the fathers to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me” (Deut. 5:7-9).

Stupid: “But their idols are silver and gold, made by the hands of men. They have mouths, but cannot speak, eyes, but they cannot see; they have ears, but cannot hear, noses, but they cannot smell; they have hands, but cannot feel, feet, but they cannot walk; nor can they utter a sound with their throats. Those who make them will be like them, and so will all who trust in them” (Psalm 115:4-8).

Demonic: “Do I mean then that a sacrifice offered to an idol is anything, or that an idol is anything? No, but the sacrifices of pagans are offered to demons, not to God, and I do not want you to be participants with demons” (1 Cor. 10:19-20).

Definition: “Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry” (Colossians 3:5).

Vile: “He behaved in the vilest manner by going after idols, like the Amorites the LORD drove out before Israel” (1 Kings 21:26). 

Detestable: “He walked in the ways of the kings of Israel and even sacrificed his son in the fire, following the detestable ways of the nations the LORD had driven out before the Israelites” (2 Kings 16:3). “For you have spent enough time in the past doing what pagans choose to do—living in debauchery, lust, drunkenness, orgies, carousing and detestable idolatry” (1 Peter 4:3).

Worthless: “He walked in all the ways of Jeroboam son of Nebat and in his sin, which he had caused Israel to commit, so that they provoked the LORD, the God of Israel, to anger by their worthless idols” (1 Kings 16:26).

Not Saved: “Idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God” (Galatians 5:20-21).

God has not changed His view. We should not differ with Him. There are billions of idolaters in the world today. God is not tolerant of idolatry or idols. 

“Dear children, keep yourselves from idols” (1 John 5:21). 

“Therefore, my dear friends, flee from idolatry” (1 Cor. 10:14). 

“For they themselves report what kind of reception you gave us. They tell how you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God” (1 Thess. 1:9).


*Written November 2007.

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