The Second Commandment is God’s loving guardrail for worship. It does not ban all art or everyday symbols; rather, it forbids using images to represent God for the purpose of worship. Like in this video, Images appearing in Apostles-Creed.org videos are educational illustrations only, not intended for worship and not to be viewed as accurate representations. God is spirit and holy. He claims our exclusive devotion and sets the terms for how He is to be worshiped. The Second Commandment is:
“You shall not make for yourself an idol, or any likeness of what is in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the water under the earth. “You shall not worship them or serve them; for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children, on the third and the fourth generations of those who hate Me, but showing lovingkindness to thousands, to those who love Me and keep My commandments.” (Exo 20:4-6 NAS)
Why are statues or images wrong for worship?
The first reason is that God cannot be seen.
God is invisible and infinite. Only the Son of God can see and stand before God as our High Priest. It is impossible to create an image of the true God.
“No man has seen God at any time; the only begotten God, who is in the bosom of the Father, He has explained Him.” (John 1:18 NAS)
“No one has beheld God at any time; if we love one another, God abides in us, and His love is perfected in us.” (1Jo 4:12 NAS)
“Who alone possesses immortality and dwells in unapproachable light; whom no man has seen or can see. To Him be honor and eternal dominion! Amen.” (1Ti 6:16 NAS)
It is impossible to create an image of the invisible God. Any statue or image created to represent God cannot be accurate. If an image is created of God, it should only be for the purpose of explaining a concept. The purpose for statues and images is only to represent ideas and not for the purpose of religious worship.
The second reason is that it is illogical to worship something created by God.
Bowing to something God created elevates a created being over the creator Himself.
“For He has been counted worthy of more glory than Moses, by just so much as the builder of the house has more honor than the house. For every house is built by someone, but the builder of all things is God.” (Heb 3:3-4 NAS)
The hierarchy of God’s creation makes idol worship illogical. In the created order, God comes first; angels next, then humans; then animals, plants, the inanimate creation, and human-made things last. Worshiping any created thing, whether angels, people, animals, plants, the stars, or man-made objects, turns the created order upside down. If humans made it, it cannot be God. God made us, not the other way around.
The third reason is that God commanded not to worship statues and images.
The Bible plainly states that God forbids us to bow to images or statues and worship them as God. God will not accept it.
“You shall not make for yourselves idols, nor shall you set up for yourselves an image or a sacred pillar, nor shall you place a figured stone in your land to bow down to it; for I am the LORD your God.” (Lev 26:1 NAS)
“Let all those be ashamed who serve graven images, Who boast themselves of idols; Worship Him, all you gods.” (Psa 97:7 NAS)
It is an embarrassment to serve an idol as God. Worshiping an idol is an outright rejection of what God has clearly commanded in His Word.
What does the second Commandment specifically Forbid?
You must not make or use idols or images of anything above, on, or under the earth, and you must not worship or serve them.
“You shall not make for yourself an idol, or any likeness of what is in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the water under the earth. “You shall not worship them or serve them.” (Exo 20:4-5 NAS)
This does not mean all images or statues are banned. Coins, art, and everyday symbols do not break the second commandment. Jesus answered the Pharisees saying,
“Whose likeness and inscription is this?” They said to Him, “Caesar’s.” Then He said to them, “Then render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s; and to God the things that are God’s.” (Matt 22:19-21 NAS)
The Cherubim were on the Ark of the Covenant and on the curtains of the temple.
“And you shall make two cherubim of gold, make them of hammered work at the two ends of the mercy seat.” (Exo 25:18-22 NAS)
“Moreover, you shall make the tabernacle with ten curtains of fine twisted linen and blue and purple and scarlet material; you shall make them with cherubim, the work of a skillful workman.” (Exo 26:1 NAS)
While statues and images are not forbidden for decorative or teaching purposes, God forbids using anything as a representation of Him as an object of worship.
“You shall not make for yourselves idols, nor shall you set up for yourselves an image or a sacred pillar, nor shall you place a figured stone in your land to bow down to it; for I am the LORD your God.” (Lev 26:1 NAS)
“So watch yourselves carefully, since you did not see any form on the day the LORD spoke to you at Horeb from the midst of the fire, lest you act corruptly and make a graven image for yourselves in the form of any figure, the likeness of male or female, the likeness of any animal that is on the earth, the likeness of any winged bird that flies in the sky, the likeness of anything that creeps on the ground, the likeness of any fish that is in the water below the earth. “And beware, lest you lift up your eyes to heaven and see the sun and the moon and the stars, all the host of heaven, and be drawn away and worship them and serve them, those which the LORD your God has allotted to all the peoples under the whole heaven.” (Deut 4:15-19 NAS)
What does “The Lord is a jealous God” mean?
In this context, “jealous” means to be fiercely protective or vigilant of one’s rights or possessions. God’s people are His possession. God demands and expects His people to honor Him as God alone.
“And the LORD has today declared you to be His people, a treasured possession, as He promised you, and that you should keep all His commandments.” (Deut 26:18 NAS)
“Looking for the blessed hope and the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Christ Jesus; who gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from every lawless deed and purify for Himself a people for His own possession, zealous for good deeds.” (Tit 2:13-14 NAS)
God’s people following after other gods provokes God’s jealousy.
“So the angel who was speaking with me said to me, “Proclaim, saying, ‘Thus says the LORD of hosts, “I am exceedingly jealous for Jerusalem and Zion. (Zec 1:14 NAS)
“For they provoked Him with their high places, and aroused His jealousy with their graven images. When God heard, He was filled with wrath, And greatly abhorred Israel.” (Psa 78:58-59 NAS)
To give worship or honor to any other god but Him is spiritual harlotry. God requires faithfulness in all worship to be directed towards Him and Him alone.
“And yet they did not listen to their judges, for they played the harlot after other gods and bowed themselves down to them. They turned aside quickly from the way in which their fathers had walked in obeying the commandments of the LORD; they did not do as their fathers.” (Jdg 2:17 NAS)
Idolatry is harlotry against God and incites His jealousy and wrath.
What does it mean “God will visit the iniquity to the third and fourth generation?”
The word “visit” in this instance means to “attend to.” God attends to His disciplinary judgment upon those who serve idols. This disciplinary judgment happens in this life and after death.
“You shall not worship their gods, nor serve them, nor do according to their deeds; but you shall utterly overthrow them, and break their sacred pillars in pieces. “But you shall serve the LORD your God, and He will bless your bread and your water; and I will remove sickness from your midst.” (Exo 23:24-25 NAS)
God is the One who delivers His people from their adversaries and causes His people to prosper. Serving idols will result in God abandoning them to their own destruction.
“And the LORD said to the sons of Israel, “Did I not deliver you from the Egyptians, the Amorites, the sons of Ammon, and the Philistines? “Also when the Sidonians, the Amalekites and the Maonites oppressed you, you cried out to Me, and I delivered you from their hands. “Yet you have forsaken Me and served other gods; therefore I will deliver you no more. “Go and cry out to the gods which you have chosen; let them deliver you in the time of your distress.” (Jdg 10:11-14 NAS)
When God’s commands are not kept, the consequences can linger across a society, just as He made Israel’s children of those who sinned against God wander forty years in the wilderness.
“And your sons shall be shepherds for forty years in the wilderness, and they shall suffer for your unfaithfulness, until your corpses lie in the wilderness. ‘According to the number of days which you spied out the land, forty days, for every day you shall bear your guilt a year, even forty years, and you shall know My opposition.” (Num 14:33-34 NAS)
Idolaters incur God’s judgment in this life, often with disastrous repercussions on their own children and society. Unless they repent, they will face judgment after death.
“Therefore, consider the members of your earthly body as dead to immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and greed, which amounts to idolatry. For it is on account of these things that the wrath of God will come.” (Col 3:5-6 NAS)
“But for the cowardly and unbelieving and abominable and murderers and immoral persons and sorcerers and idolaters and all liars, their part will be in the lake that burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death.” (Rev 21:8 NAS)
What is showing mercy to thousands to those who love me and keep my commandments?
God actively shows lovingkindness to His people. He forgives, preserves, provides, guides, disciplines, and saves as a Father would to their child. Scripture frames thousands of people and generations to underscore the breadth and endurance of His mercy.
“But the lovingkindness of the LORD is from everlasting to everlasting on those who fear Him, And His righteousness to children’s children.” (Psa 103:17 NAS)
God proclaims that He is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger and rich in steadfast love and faithfulness. He forgives sin yet does not leave the guilty unpunished, causing the consequence to reach later generations.
“Then the LORD passed by in front of him and proclaimed, “The LORD, the LORD God, compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in lovingkindness and truth; who keeps lovingkindness for thousands, who forgives iniquity, transgression and sin; yet He will by no means leave the guilty unpunished, visiting the iniquity of fathers on the children and on the grandchildren to the third and fourth generations.” (Exo 34:6-7 NAS)
God commands us to not worship idols. If you have faith in God and love Him you will keep His commandments.
“If you love Me, you will keep My commandments.” (John 14:15 NAS)
God, the one true and faithful Lord, shows lovingkindness to a thousand generations for those who love Him and keep His commandments.
“Know therefore that the LORD your God, He is God, the faithful God, who keeps His covenant and His lovingkindness to a thousandth generation with those who love Him and keep His commandments” (Deut 7:9 NAS)
He also will destroy all those who do not keep His commandments.
“But repays those who hate Him to their faces, to destroy them; He will not delay with him who hates Him, He will repay him to his face.” (Deut 7:10 NAS)
God actively ordains the obedient believer’s path for good, granting guidance, fruitfulness, and mercy, so that “it may be well with you” as a result of keeping His commandments.
“Only be strong and very courageous; be careful to do according to all the law which Moses My servant commanded you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, so that you may have success wherever you go. “This book of the law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it; for then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have success.” (Jos 1:7-8 NAS)
This is not a vending-machine promise or a guarantee of monetary riches. God blesses those who keep His commandments and makes their way prosperous. In Scripture, “prosper” means more than money. It means God actively orders a person’s path for good success under His hand, steady steps, wise choices, fruitful work, and being in His presence.
What does the Second Commandment require?
The commandment forbids making images of God or false gods and forbids worshiping or using those images in a religious worship any way, anywhere. God calls us to worship Him according to His rules, not ours, keeping pure the practices He gives in Scripture and refusing anything that adds to or takes from them.
“Whatever I command you, you shall be careful to do; you shall not add to nor take away from it.” (Deut 12:32 NAS)
“Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” (Matt 28:19-1 NAS)
“I charge you in the presence of God, who gives life to all things, and of Christ Jesus, who testified the good confession before Pontius Pilate, that you keep the commandment without stain or reproach until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ.” (1Ti 6:13-14 NAS)
God’s commandments are not abolished. These commandments are to be kept forever. The second commandment forbids inventing, promoting, ordering, using, or approving any kind of worship that God did not command.
“They have forsaken Me and have made this an alien place and have burned sacrifices in it to other gods that neither they nor their forefathers nor the kings of Judah had ever known… a thing which I never commanded or spoke of, nor did it ever enter My mind” (Jer 19:4-5 NAS)
We are to reject and oppose false worship. Do not participate in any idolatrous event or anything that promotes idolatry.
“What do I mean then? That a thing sacrificed to idols is anything, or that an idol is anything? No, but I say that the things which the Gentiles sacrifice, they sacrifice to demons, and not to God; and I do not want you to become sharers in demons. You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons; you cannot partake of the table of the Lord and the table of demons. Or do we provoke the Lord to jealousy? We are not stronger than He, are we? All things are lawful, but not all things are profitable. All things are lawful, but not all things edify.” (1Co 10:19-23 NAS)
“If your brother, your mother’s son, or your son or daughter, or the wife you cherish, or your friend who is as your own soul, entice you secretly, saying, ‘Let us go and serve other gods’… you shall not yield to him or listen to him; and your eye shall not pity him, nor shall you spare or conceal him.” (Deut 13:6-8 NAS)
God forbids any change to His worship, adding or taking away, whether it comes from our own ideas or from long-standing traditions, even if those practices seem ancient, customary, devout, or well-intended.
“’But in vain do they worship Me, Teaching as doctrines the precepts of men.’ “Neglecting the commandment of God, you hold to the tradition of men…” He was also saying to them, “You nicely set aside the commandment of God in order to keep your tradition… thus invalidating the word of God by your tradition which you have handed down; and you do many things such as that.” (Mark 7:9-13 NAS)
What is the right way to think about God?
We are to worship God from the heart, not with images. Know Him by his attribute’s holiness, justice, goodness and in Christ who is the image of the invisible God.
“God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.” (John 4:24 NAS)
Avoid places and practices that normalizes image-worship. Don’t build your worship on man-made ceremonies that God didn’t appoint. Centering worship on worldly ideas, current political agendas, or anything other than the Lord leads people towards idolatry.
“I solemnly charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by His appearing and His kingdom: preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort, with great patience and instruction. For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires; and will turn away their ears from the truth, and will turn aside to myths.” (2Ti 4:1-4 NAS)
Abandon all acts that take your attention away from the true God, His Word, and His Spirit. God forbids using images or statues to worship Him and commands us to worship Him in Christ, by His Word, from the heart. Idolatry provokes His jealousy and brings real judgment, yet He shows steadfast mercy to thousands who love Him and keep His commandments. Therefore, reject every practice that adds to or takes from His worship, turn from every idol, and seek Him in Scripture, prayer, and obedient faith. In this way, you will be directed on a path of righteousness and draw near to the Lord.