The Second Commandment

(Exodus 20:4-6) "Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth: Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me; And shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments."

While the first commandment deals with God being foremost at the center of our lives, the second addresses the manner by which He is to receive our attention and affection. As people, we like facts - tangible physical proof! We like things we can touch, see, feel, and hear and smell. In an attempt to relate to God, it is easy for us to set up images (either in our minds or literally) that help to define who God is to us.

To make an image of the True God or other gods is forbidden in this commandment. God is Spirit and therefore no material representation could possibly resemble Him. It is clear in the Bible that the evidence of God is clearly seen in the things which He has made and does. The worship of God through likenesses in the sky or the earth or water or any other figment of our imagination is idolatry.

(Psalms 115:3-8) "But our God is in the heavens: he hath done whatsoever he hath pleased. Their idols are silver and gold, the work of men's hands. They have mouths, but they speak not: eyes have they, but they see not: They have ears, but they hear not: noses have they, but they smell not: They have hands, but they handle not: feet have they, but they walk not: neither speak they through their throat. They that make them are like unto them; so is every one that trusteth in them."