Idolatry and False Worship - The Second Commandment

Pre-reading: Exodus 20:4-6

Today, in our current cultural context here in South Africa, it is unlikely that you will see people bowing down to idols. However, if you were to travel to some other countries such as Thailand or India, you will likely be confronted with people bowing down before an image of some deity. Idolatry is therefore very much alive in our world today. This article will seek to explain what the second commandment has to say about idolatry and worship and seek to show that even though we may not be confronted with traditional forms of idol worship, this commandment is still very relevant for us today.

The second commandment builds on the first commandment in that it not only prohibits other gods, but prohibits the worship of them. More specifically, it prohibits the worship of false gods through carved images in the likeness of anything in all creation - heaven, earth and sea (Exodus 20: 4).  To do so is to misuse God's creation. Since God's creation reveals his divine nature and eternal power (Romans 1:20) he calls us to praise and recognise him when we look at his creation. Idol worship fails to do this because it does not lift its eyes above the created level to where the Creator sits. In this way, this prohibition is very relevant for us today. While the making of graven images is not a temptation in our cultural context, we are nevertheless tempted to misinterpret creation. We do this when we look for what only God can give in the created things. Perhaps you are seeking the fulfilment only God can give in the life you are busy building. You may not be making a golden calf, but is your desire to build a prosperous life any different? In short, does your pursuit of earthly things amount to idolatry? Consider yourself. What is it exactly that you are building? A golden calf? An idol? Or is it a life of devoted service that honours God?

This leads to the second aspect of this commandment which is that it prohibits false worship of God. In the context of the second commandment, it means two things. Firstly, that we are not to worship God through a graven image in the likeness of any created thing (this was the sin of King Jeroboam in 1 Kings 12:26-30) and secondly, that we are not to visibly portray God in any way. This issue is addressed directly in Deuteronomy 4:15, "Therefore watch yourselves very carefully. Since you saw no form on the day that the LORD spoke to you at Horeb out of the midst of the fire." Moreover, "To whom then will you compare me, that I should be like him? Says the Holy One" (Isaiah 40:25). The same Hebrew word for form in Deuteronomy 4:15 is used for the word likeness in Exodus 20:4 and thus we can conclude that God is saying that since he has given us no likeness and since no likeness can adequately reveal him we are not to make an image of him. It is true that God has made human beings in his image and in that sense he has given us a likeness. But the point here is that no depiction we might make of God can possibly give him honour since it cannot accurately reveal who he is. An application of this today is that we ought to be careful how we think about God. Again, we may not be constructing a golden calf, but we may well be constructing a false understanding of God in our minds. Perhaps the God of the Bible is a little too harsh for our liking, so we avoid considering the passages which speak of his punishment for sin. Or perhaps our life experiences have caused us to overly focus on one aspect of God's character at the expense of another. True, our life experiences are often powerful ways in which God teaches us about himself, but the call is always to wholly know God as he has revealed himself in scripture and creation. Our worship of him will then bring him greater glory and honour. It is not for nothing that Jesus says, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your… mind,” (Matthew 22:37).

Verse five of Exodus 20, “for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God,” provides the reason for this commandment. God is concerned with how we worship him and that we do not worship carved images of other gods because he is a jealous God.  Exodus 34:14 presses home the significance of this characteristic. "For you shall worship no other god, for the LORD, whose name is Jealous, is a Jealous God." Here God says that jealousy is such an integral part of his character that his name is Jealous. But what does it mean? Perhaps the image of a husband and a wife is helpful. We could say that in the same way that a husband is jealous for his wife the LORD is jealous for his people and his glory. Thus, in the context of the second commandment, God’s jealousy for his own glory means that he will not share it with anyone or anything through corrupted worship. 

But it goes deeper. In the second commandment we see two responses that flow out from God’s jealousy. Justice and mercy. Justice in that he will visit the iniquity of the fathers upon the children and mercy in that he will show steadfast love to thousands of those who love him. We see this connection elsewhere in scripture. Joel 2:18 connects God’s jealousy to his pity. “Then the LORD became jealous for his land and had pity on his people.” Zephaniah 1:18 connects it to his wrath. “...In the fire of his jealousy, all the earth shall be consumed…” Thus, we could say that behind God’s justice and mercy stands his jealousy. There is a strong warning here. Those who do not repent will experience God’s jealous wrath. But there is a beautiful promise too. God is faithful and will always show jealous love to those who repent and honour him as God.

Ultimately, we see the promise of the second commandment to be fulfilled in Jesus Christ. It is because God is a jealous God that he sent Jesus his Son to die on the cross for our disobedience of the second commandment. It is because he is jealous for his name and his people that he acted to save them. David himself prophesied in Psalm 69:9 concerning Jesus, “For zeal for your house has consumed me…” What a comfort! What an assurance to know that Jesus was so zealous for God’s house that it literally consumed him! Who then can bring a charge against us? Who then shall separate us from his love? “He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things?” (Romans 8:32). Does this not cause you too to fulfil the second commandment? Does this not cause you to worship God with fear, reverence and joy?

For further study and reflection

God’s jealousy like a husband for his wife:

• Ezekiel 16
• Hosea 1-2

God’s jealousy in connection with justice and mercy:

• Deuteronomy 32:16
• Isaiah 37:32
• Ezekiel 36:5-6
• Zechariah 1:14-17

New Testament passages:

• Romans 1:18-32

Psalms:

• Psalm 115

Confessions:

• Heidelberg Catechism LD35

Written by Joel Boon, VGK Pretoria