Idol

The Adoration of the Golden Calf, Nicolas Poussin, 1633

An idol is an image or object fashioned by humans for the purpose of worshiping a deity. Motivated by the human tendency to rely on visible representations, cultures throughout antiquity produced statues, images, or paintings symbolizing deities and revered them. God, however, strictly forbids the making of idols in any form, material, or likeness and categorically prohibits idolatry.

Meaning of Idol

In general dictionaries, an idol is defined as “a figure made of wood, stone, metal, clay, or similar materials to which religious significance is ascribed,” or “an object or person regarded as divine.” In the Hebrew Bible, several terms are used to designate idols, the most common being ’elil (אֱלִיל), meaning “nothing” or “vanity.” Other terms include massekah (מַסֵּכָה, molten image), pesel (פֶּסֶל, carved image), and teraphim (תְּרָפִים, household gods). In the New Testament, the Greek word eidolon (εἴδωλον), derived from eidos (εἶδος, “form” or “appearance”), is used to denote idols or false gods. This term later gave rise to the English word idol.

Types of Idols

Tangible Idols

In the Bible, idols are often described as objects fashioned from materials such as wood or stone.

Idols in the Old Testament

Name	Characteristics	Illustration
Teraphim	The earliest idols mentioned in the Bible, regarded as household or tribal guardian deities.
Molech	A deity worshiped by the Ammonites (also called Moloch, Milcom, or Malcam), depicted with the head of a bull and a human body with outstretched arms. In the Valley of Ben Hinnom, children were placed on Molech’s arms and burned as offerings.
Baal	The storm, rain, and fertility god venerated by the Canaanites and neighboring nations. High places and pillars were set up for Baal, who was frequently worshiped alongside Asherah.
Asherah	A goddess regarded as the wife of the supreme god El and the mother of seventy gods, including Baal. She was typically represented as a wooden image, and the term Asherah may refer either to the goddess herself or to her carved cultic pole.
Golden Calf	An Egyptian idol believed to symbolize strength and fertility. When the Israelites thought their leader Moses had perished on Mount Sinai, they fashioned a calf—an animal long considered sacred—for worship. The Northern Kingdom of Israel later continued to venerate golden calves.
Bronze Snake	Originally made at God’s command during the wilderness period, when Israelites bitten by venomous snakes were healed by looking at it. Over time, however, the people ascribed supernatural power to the image itself, and it was worshiped for nearly 800 years.
Sacred Stones	Pillar-shaped idols. God expressly forbade the Israelites from erecting such objects. The “pillar of Beth-shemesh in the land of Egypt,” mentioned in the Bible, refers to an obelisk, a symbol of solar worship in ancient Egypt.

• Worship of the Cross Is Idolatry

A crucifix and statue of Mary on the altar of a Catholic church in Germany

Many Christians assume that only images from other religions, such as Buddhist statues or pagan idols, constitute idolatry. However, any image made under the pretext of worshiping God is likewise considered an idol. Today, many venerate crosses or statues of Mary, pray while holding a cross or rosary, or keep such objects on their person or in their cars as protective charms. These practices indicate that crosses and Marian statues function as idols.

For details, refer to: Cross

Intangible Idols

Idolatry also extends beyond physical objects into the intangible realm whenever something is loved or prioritized above God, leading people away from Him. Human traditions or doctrines that cause believers to neglect God’s commandments become doctrinal idols. Likewise, greed for status, honor, or wealth can turn into idols that divert believers from the true path of faith. Since the dictionary definition of an idol includes “an object or person revered as a god,” following human beings more than God also constitutes idolatry.

God’s Prohibition of Idolatry

God is the Creator who made the heavens and all things in the universe. The Bible rebukes as folly the attempt to seek the Creator through images fashioned in the likeness of created things.

Who has understood the mind of the LORD, or instruct the LORD as his counselor? . . . Before him all the nations are as nothing; they are regarded by him as worthless and less than nothing. With whom, then, will you compare God? What image will you liken him to? As for an idol, a craftsman casts it, and a goldsmith overlays it with gold and fashions silver chains for it.

Isaiah 40:13–20

God cannot be compared to any created being. For this reason, when He descended on Mount Sinai to proclaim the Ten Commandments, He revealed only His voice, not His form. Among the commandments, the second explicitly forbade the making of idols:

“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; . . . Do not make any gods to be alongside me; do not make for yourselves gods of silver or gods of gold.”

Exodus 20:4–23

By declaring, “You shall not make for yourself an image in the form of anything,” God made clear that no idol of any kind is to be worshiped. Even if fashioned with the intent of honoring God, any man-made image is still idolatry. Moreover, the Bible teaches that idols are futile—powerless as scarecrows—and not to be feared:

This is what the LORD says: “Do not learn the ways of the nations or be terrified by signs in the sky, though the nations are terrified by them. For the customs of the peoples are worthless; they cut a tree out of the forest, and a craftsman shapes it with his chisel. They adorn it with silver and gold; they fasten it with hammer and nails so it will not totter. Like a scarecrow in a melon field, their idols cannot speak; they must be carried because they cannot walk. Do not fear them; they can do no harm nor can they do any good.”

Jeremiah 10:2–5

Idols exist solely by human will and craftsmanship. Since they are made by human hands, they can neither bless nor harm their makers. God warned that those who persist in making idols despite His clear command incur His abhorrence and His curse:

“Cursed is the man who carves an image or casts and idol—a thing detestable to the LORD, the work of the craftsman’s hands—and sets it up in secret.” Then all the people shall say, “Amen!”

Deuteronomy 27:15

History of Idolatry in the Bible

In the Old Testament period, the Israelites frequently lapsed into idolatry under the influence of the Canaanites and neighboring peoples. Whenever they turned away from God to worship idols and serve other gods, they suffered hardship and distress; when they obeyed God’s statutes and commandments, they received His blessings. Although God repeatedly sent prophets to admonish them, the people persisted in wickedness, and eventually the nation was conquered by foreign powers.

The Wilderness Period

After the Exodus, the Israelites brought with them into the wilderness the idolatrous habits learned in Egypt. While Moses remained on Mount Sinai for forty days to receive the Ten Commandments, the people assumed he had died and made a golden calf to worship as a god. In anger at their idolatry, Moses smashed the tablets inscribed with the commandments. The covenant between God and the people was broken, and about 3,000 idolaters were put to death.
Later, as Israel was about to enter Canaan after forty years in the wilderness, Moabite women enticed them to join in sacrifices to Baal of Peor. God’s wrath broke out against them, and a plague struck the camp, killing 24,000.

For details, refer to: Life in the Desert

The Period of the Judges

Once settled in Canaan, the Israelites soon adopted the idolatrous practices of neighboring peoples, worshiping Baal, Ashtoreth, and other deities. In judgment, God gave them over to the hands of surrounding nations such as Mesopotamia, Moab, Philistia, and Midian. Each time the Israelites cried out in distress, God raised up judges to deliver them. Yet after each judge died, the people relapsed into idolatry, and this cycle continued throughout the period of the Judges.

During this time, Israel lacked a unified system of worship. Many tribes and families built high places and offered sacrifices according to their own customs. To call the nation back to faithfulness, God sent Samuel, who served as both prophet and judge. Samuel traveled throughout the land, proclaiming God’s word, urging the people to put away idols like Baal and Ashtoreth, and teaching them to serve God alone.

For details, refer to: Judges

The United Monarchy

When the prophet Samuel grew old, the people demanded a king to rule them like the surrounding nations. God permitted a monarchy, and Saul was anointed as Israel’s first king, followed by David and then David’s son Solomon. In order to maintain stable relations with surrounding nations, Solomon entered into political marriages, taking about 1,000 wives and concubines. In his later years, these foreign wives led him into idolatry, and he built shrines for Chemosh, Milcom, Ashtoreth, and numerous other deities. As Solomon turned away from God, Israel suffered attacks from neighboring nations and entered a period of instability. After Solomon’s death, under his son Rehoboam, the kingdom divided into the Southern Kingdom of Judah and the Northern Kingdom of Israel, leaving the nation weakened.

The Divided Kingdom Period

• Northern Kingdom of Israel
  

Jeroboam, a former servant of Solomon, became the first king of the Northern Kingdom of Israel. Fearing that the people would turn their loyalty to the king of Judah if they continued to worship in Jerusalem, he set up golden calves at Bethel and Dan, built altars, appointed priests not approved by God, and instituted feasts of his own making. In doing so, he led the nation into idolatry. All subsequent kings of Israel followed Jeroboam’s precedent, and the Bible refers to this as “the way of Jeroboam” or “the sin of Jeroboam.”

In the northern kingdom, repeated coups occurred as officials assassinated reigning kings and seized the throne. These rulers did not fear God but often used idolatry as a means of consolidating their power. Among them, King Ahab, together with Queen Jezebel, turned Israel into a nation devoted to Baal and Asherah worship. They built a temple to Baal in Samaria, supported 850 prophets of Baal and Asherah, and even killed the prophets of God. Later kings likewise abandoned God and continued in idolatry. Despite the warnings of the prophets, Israel never repented and ultimately fell to Assyria around 721 BC.

For details, refer to: Northern Kingdom of Israel

• Southern Kingdom of Judah
  

The Southern Kingdom of Judah, with Jerusalem and the temple of God at its center, was in a better position to serve God than the northern kingdom. Nevertheless, most of its kings also turned to idolatry and forsook God.

Rehoboam, the first king after the division, set up idols and Asherah poles and engaged in detestable practices. Later, kings such as Ahaz and Manasseh erected altars to Baal, and even offered their own children as sacrifices in the Valley of Hinnom. As judgment, Judah was repeatedly attacked by surrounding nations, including Aram, Israel, Edom, and Philistia, suffering loss of life, captivity, and plunder. Manasseh himself was taken captive to Babylon, where he experienced great distress and eventually repented. The final king of Judah, Zedekiah, also practiced idolatry, and the priests and people followed his example. Although God continually sent prophets to warn them, they ignored His message. Ultimately, Babylon invaded Judah. Zedekiah witnessed the execution of his sons, after which his eyes were gouged out, and he was taken captive. Jerusalem’s temple and other buildings were burned, many of the people were killed or deported, and the nation’s wealth was plundered. Having forsaken God, Judah fell in 586 BC.

Even so, some kings of Judah turned away from idolatry and restored God’s law, receiving blessings during their reigns. King Asa obeyed God’s commands, abolished widespread idolatry, and was granted peace. When faced with an invasion by a Cushite force numbering one million, he prevailed with God’s help. Jehoshaphat, the son of Asa, upheld God’s law and prohibited idolatry, recognizing that blessing comes through obedience. When Moab, Ammon, and Edom formed an alliance against Judah, God granted a decisive victory. Kings Hezekiah and Josiah restored proper worship by celebrating the long-neglected Passover and destroying idols throughout the land, actions that pleased God. As a result, Hezekiah survived the Assyrian invasion that had destroyed the northern kingdom, being delivered by God’s intervention.

For details, refer to: Southern Kingdom of Judah

From the Old Testament through the New Testament, idolatry is consistently condemned as detestable before God. It arises whenever people turn away from God to serve other gods. Believers are therefore called to examine their lives and hearts to ensure that no form of idolatry, whether outward or inward, takes root, but instead to remain devoted solely to God. Through the New Covenant Passover, believers become one body with Christ and temples of the Holy Spirit. Accordingly, the Apostle Paul reminded the church in Corinth: “What agreement is there between the temple of God and idols? For we are the temple of the living God.” To keep idols, whether physical or spiritual, drives out the Spirit of God and opens the way for the control of evil spirits. As God’s temple, believers must cast out all idols, live in holiness, and be guided by the Spirit, who leads them into the kingdom of heaven.

See also

• Cross

Related videos

• Sermon: When Israel Was Strong & When Israel Was Weak

External links

• Church of God Official Website
• WATV Media Cast