“You shall not make for yourself a carved image, or 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.” Exodus 20:4
What does this mean?
Because we love and worship God, we should not make our own pretend gods.
Consider this passage from Isaiah 44:13–17:
“The carpenter stretches a line; he marks it out with a pencil. He shapes it with planes and marks it with a compass. He shapes it into the figure of a man, with the beauty of a man, to dwell in a house. 14 He cuts down cedars, or he chooses a cypress tree or an oak and lets it grow strong among the trees of the forest. He plants a cedar and the rain nourishes it. 15 Then it becomes fuel for a man. He takes a part of it and warms himself; he kindles a fire and bakes bread. Also he makes a god and worships it; he makes it an idol and falls down before it. 16 Half of it he burns in the fire. Over the half he eats meat; he roasts it and is satisfied. Also he warms himself and says, ‘Aha, I am warm, I have seen the fire!’ 17 And the rest of it he makes into a god, his idol, and falls down to it and worships it. He prays to it and says, ‘Deliver me, for you are my god!’”
Reflect
- What do you think is the prophet Isaiah’s main point that he wants to convey to his people?
- We might think Isaiah’s audience was quite foolish to bow down to what they made with their own hands, but are there things in your life that are created by the hands of people that you are tempted to worship (e.g., technology, music, clothes, friends, grades, etc.)?
- How does this passage of Scripture help you understand the second commandment better?
Pray
Father, thank you so much that your word shows us how stupid it is to worship things we’ve made with our own hands. Give us enough wisdom to worship you, the maker of our hands, minds, hearts, and the giver of our every breath. Apart from you we can do nothing. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.
This devotion is adapted from the Ten Commandments Study Guide
