You shall not make for yourself an idolThis commandment is part of the Decalogue, given to Moses on Mount Sinai. It emphasizes the prohibition against idolatry, which was prevalent in the ancient Near East. Idols were often physical representations of deities, and this commandment underscores the monotheistic nature of the Israelite faith, distinguishing it from surrounding polytheistic cultures. The Hebrew word for "idol" can also mean "graven image," indicating any carved or crafted representation intended for worship. This commandment reflects God's desire for His people to worship Him in spirit and truth, without reliance on physical objects.
in the form of anything in the heavens above
This phrase prohibits the creation of images representing celestial bodies or beings, such as the sun, moon, stars, or angels. In ancient cultures, these were often deified and worshipped. The Israelites were to recognize that these creations were made by God and not to be worshipped themselves. This aligns with the broader biblical theme that God alone is the Creator and worthy of worship, as seen inGenesis 1:1 andPsalm 19:1.
on the earth below
This part of the commandment forbids the making of idols representing earthly creatures, such as animals or humans. Many ancient religions, including those in Egypt and Canaan, worshipped gods in the form of animals or hybrid creatures. The Israelites were called to a higher understanding of God, who is not confined to any earthly form. This reflects the biblical teaching that humanity is made in the image of God (Genesis 1:27), and thus, no created being should be worshipped.
or in the waters beneath
This phrase extends the prohibition to images of aquatic life, which were also objects of worship in various ancient religions. The Egyptians, for example, revered the Nile and its creatures. By forbidding the worship of anything in the waters, the commandment reinforces the idea that God is sovereign over all creation, including the seas and their inhabitants. This is echoed in passages likePsalm 104:25-26, which celebrate God's dominion over the waters.
Overall, this commandment calls for exclusive devotion to God, rejecting the worship of any created thing. It points to the transcendence and uniqueness of God, who cannot be adequately represented by any physical form. This principle is further developed in the New Testament, where Jesus teaches that true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth (John 4:24).
Persons / Places / Events
1.
MosesThe prophet and leader of the Israelites who received the Ten Commandments from God on Mount Sinai.
2.
Mount SinaiThe mountain where God gave Moses the Ten Commandments, including the commandment against idolatry.
3.
IsraelitesThe chosen people of God who were delivered from slavery in Egypt and were given the Law to guide their covenant relationship with God.
Teaching Points
Understanding IdolatryIdolatry is not limited to physical statues or images but includes anything that takes the place of God in our hearts and lives.
God's UniquenessThe commandment underscores the uniqueness and incomparability of God, who cannot be represented by any created thing.
Guarding Our HeartsBelievers are called to examine their lives for modern forms of idolatry, such as materialism, power, or relationships that overshadow our devotion to God.
Worship in Spirit and TruthTrue worship is directed to God alone, in spirit and truth, as Jesus taught, rather than through physical representations.
Covenant FaithfulnessThe commandment is a call to remain faithful to the covenant relationship with God, who is a jealous God, desiring our exclusive worship and allegiance.
Bible Study Questions and Answers
1.What is the meaning of Exodus 20:4?
2.What does Exodus 20:4 teach about creating "an image" for worship?
3.How can we identify modern "idols" in our lives today?
4.Why does God prohibit making "any likeness" of things in Exodus 20:4?
5.How does Exodus 20:4 connect with Jesus' teachings on worship?
6.How can we ensure our worship remains focused solely on God?
7.What does Exodus 20:4 mean by "an image in the form of anything"?
8.How does Exodus 20:4 relate to the prohibition of idolatry?
9.Why is the commandment in Exodus 20:4 significant in Christian theology?
10.What are the top 10 Lessons from Exodus 20?
11.Do Catholics engage in idolatry?
12.Is it wrong to make an image? (Exodus 20:4-5 vs. Exodus 25:18-20)
13.Is depicting divine figures in cartoons inappropriate?
14.What was the purpose of the Second Council of Nicea?What Does Exodus 20:4 Mean
You shall not make for yourself an idolExodus 20:4 begins, “You shall not make for yourself an idol…”
• God speaks in the singular “you,” pressing the command personally on every believer (cf.Deuteronomy 5:8).
• An “idol” is anything fashioned to represent a deity or to become an object of devotion. Scripture treats idolatry as spiritual adultery (Hosea 2:13) and a direct rival to loving God with all our heart (Matthew 22:37).
• Paul warns that greed itself can be idolatry (Colossians 3:5), proving this command reaches beyond carved figures to every substitute god we invent.
In the form of anything“…in the form of anything…”
• The wording slams shut every loophole. No material, image, or concept is exempt.
•Isaiah 44:9-20 paints idol-makers shaping wood and metal, only to bow to what their own hands crafted—futile and tragic.
•Acts 17:29 reminds that the divine nature is not like “an image formed by human skill and imagination,” underscoring how any attempt to visualize God shrinks Him to creaturely limits.
In the heavens above“…in the heavens above…”
• Ancient cultures worshiped sun, moon, stars, and celestial beings (2 Kings 23:5;Jeremiah 19:13).
•Psalm 19:1 declares the heavens proclaim God’s glory; they are signs, not deities.
•Romans 1:24-25 warns that exchanging the Creator for created things—even majestic heavenly bodies—ushers in moral collapse.
On the earth below“…on the earth below…”
• Canaanite idols featured bulls, fertility symbols, and human figures (Exodus 32:4;1 Kings 18:26).
• God’s people were to see every earthly creature as part of His handiwork, never His rival (Psalm 95:3-6).
•1 John 2:15-17 cautions against loving the world’s system—another modern form of earth-bound idolatry.
In the waters beneath“…or in the waters beneath.”
• Egypt revered Nile gods, fish deities, and crocodile images (Ezekiel 29:3).
•Jonah 2:8 observes, “Those who cling to worthless idols forsake His loving devotion,” an insight spoken from the depths of the sea itself.
•Revelation 13:1 pictures a beast rising from the sea, symbolizing rebellious powers—an ultimate warning that watery idols are as dangerous as any other.
summaryExodus 20:4 bans every attempt to fashion, visualize, or substitute anything for the one true God—whether drawn from sky, land, or sea. He alone deserves worship, and any rival, tangible or invisible, steals the devotion that belongs to Him. By rejecting idols, we guard our hearts, keep our vision of God undistorted, and walk in the freedom and joy He designed for His people.
(4)
Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image.--The two main clauses of the second commandment are to be read together, so as to form one sentence: "Thou shalt not make to thee any graven image, &c., so as to worship it." (See the explanation of Josephus,
Ant. Jud.,iii. 5, ? 5: '
? ???????? ?¢
??? ??????? ??????? ?????? ???? ?????????? ??????????.) It was not until the days of Hebrew decline and degeneracy that a narrow literalism pressed the words into an absolute prohibition of the arts of painting and sculpture (Philo,
De Oraculis,? 29). Moses himself sanctioned the cherubic forms above the mercy-seat, the brazen serpent, and the lilies and pomegranates of the golden candlestick. Solomon had lions on the steps of his throne, oxen under his "molten sea," and palm-trees, flowers, and cherubim on the walls of the Temple, "within and without" (
1Kings 6:29). What the second commandment forbade was the worship of God under a material form. It asserted the spirituality of Jehovah. While in the rest of the ancient world there was scarcely a single nation or tribe which did not "make to itself" images of the gods, and regard the images themselves with superstitious veneration, in Judaism alone was this seductive practice disallowed. God would have no likeness made of Him, no representation that might cloud the conception of His entire separation from matter, His purely spiritual essence.
In heaven above . . . in the earth beneath . . . in the water under the earth.--Comp.Genesis 1:1-7. The triple division is regarded as embracing the whole material universe. In the Egyptian idolatry images of all three kinds were included.
Verse 4. As the first commandment asserts the unity of God, and is a protest against polytheism, so the second asserts his spirituality, and is a protest against idolatry and materialism. Verses 4 and 5 are to be taken together, the prohibition being intended, not to forbid the arts of sculpture and painting, or even to condemn the religious use of them, but to disallow the worship of God under material forms. When the later Jews condemned all representations of natural objects (Philo,
De Orac. 29; Joseph.
Ant. Jud. 8:7, § 5), they not only enslaved themselves to a literalism, which is alien from the spirit of both covenants, but departed from the practice of more primitive times - representations of such objects having had their place both in the tabernacle (
Exodus 25:31-34;
Exodus 28:33, 34) and in the first temple (
1 Kings 6:18, 29, 32, etc.). Indeed, Moses himself, when he erected the "brazen serpent" (
Numbers 21:9) made it clear that representations of natural objects were not disallowed by the law. To moderns in civilized countries it seems almost incredible that there should ever have been anywhere a real worship of images. But acquaintance with ancient history or even with the present condition of man in savage or backward countries, renders it apparent that there is a subtle fascination in such material forms, and that imperfectly developed minds will rest in them not as mere emblems of divinity, but as actually possessed of Divine powers The protest raised by the second commandment is still as necessary as ever, not only in the world, but in the very Christian Church itself, where there exists even at the present day a superstitious regard for images and pictures, which is not only irrational, but which absorbs the religious feelings that should have been directed to higher objects.
Any graven image. Perhaps it would be better to translate "any image," for the term used (
pesel) is applied, not only to "graven" but also to "molten images" (
Isaiah 40:19;
Isaiah 44:10;
Jeremiah 10:14; etc.), since these last were in almost every instance
finished by the graving tool.
Or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above -
i.e., "any likeness of any winged fowl that flieth in the air." Compare
Deuteronomy 4:17.
The water under the earth. See
Genesis 1:6, 7. The triple division here and elsewhere made, is intended to embrace the whole material universe. Much of the Egyptian religion consisted in the worship of animals and their images.
Parallel Commentaries ...
Hebrew
{You shall} notלֹֽ֣א(lō)Adverb - Negative particle
Strong's 3808:Not, nomakeתַֽעֲשֶׂ֨ה־(ṯa·‘ă·śeh-)Verb - Qal - Imperfect - second person masculine singular
Strong's 6213:To do, makefor yourselfלְךָ֥֣(lə·ḵā)Preposition | second person masculine singular
Strong's Hebrewan idolפֶ֣֙סֶל֙ ׀(p̄e·sel)Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 6459:An idol, imageof any kind,וְכָל־(wə·ḵāl)Conjunctive waw | Noun - masculine singular construct
Strong's 3605:The whole, all, any, everyor an imageתְּמוּנָ֡֔ה(tə·mū·nāh)Noun - feminine singular
Strong's 8544:Something portioned, out, as a, shape, phantom, embodiment, manifestationof anythingאֲשֶׁ֤֣ר(’ă·šer)Pronoun - relative
Strong's 834:Who, which, what, that, when, where, how, because, in order thatin the heavensבַּשָּׁמַ֣֙יִם֙ ׀(baš·šā·ma·yim)Preposition-b, Article | Noun - masculine plural
Strong's 8064:Heaven, skyabove,מִמַּ֡֔עַל(mim·ma·‘al)Preposition-m | Adverb
Strong's 4605:The upper part, with prefix upward, above, overhead, from the topthe earthבָּאָ֖֨רֶץ(bā·’ā·reṣ)Preposition-b, Article | Noun - feminine singular
Strong's 776:Earth, landbelow,מִתַָּ֑֜חַת(mit·ta·ḥaṯ)Preposition-m | Adverb
Strong's 8478:The bottom, below, in lieu ofor the watersבַּמַּ֖֣יִם ׀(bam·ma·yim)Preposition-b, Article | Noun - masculine plural
Strong's 4325:Water, juice, urine, semenunderמִתַּ֥֣חַת(mit·ta·ḥaṯ)Preposition-m
Strong's 8478:The bottom, below, in lieu ofthe earth.לָאָֽ֗רֶץ(lā·’ā·reṣ)Preposition-l, Article | Noun - feminine singular
Strong's 776:Earth, land
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OT Law: Exodus 20:4 You shall not make for yourselves (Exo. Ex) 
