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The Ten Commandments: A 10-Day DevotionalSample

The Ten Commandments: A 10-Day Devotional

DAY 2 OF 10

You Shall Have No Idols

Most generally, the second commandment forbids self-willed worship—worshiping God as we choose rather than as he demands. In particular, the second commandment makes two prohibitions: 

1. We are not to make images to represent God in any form. 

2. We are not to worship images of any kind. 

The second commandment does not intend to outlaw art or painting or aesthetic considerations. The tabernacle displayed angels and palm trees, the ark will have cherubim, and God himself gave the Spirit to Bezalel and Oholiab that they might be skilled artists and craftsmen. God is not against beauty. What he prohibits is infusing any object with spiritual efficacy, as if man-made artifacts can bring us closer to God, represent God, or establish communion with God.

Reflect

How does Ezekiel 18:1–18 serve as a corrective to a wrong understanding of the threat given in the second commandment?

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