idolatry

“Making an idol out of doctrinal accuracy, ministry success, or moral rectitude leads to constant internal conflict, arrogance and self-righteousness” – Tim Keller

Ezekiel Study session 9

“It is crucially important to see the link between worship, allegiance to a divine patron, and social ethics in the Hebrew Bible. In Israel’s polytheistic environment, there was no assumed connection between “religion and ethics” (to use our modern categories). The gods demanded worship and certain levels of allegiance, but Yahweh was unique in that he demanded generosity and justice for the lower class as an expression of allegiance to him.

Worship was tethered to justice in a fundamental way, to a degree that was unequaled in the ancient Near East.

Ancient deities were embodiments of social institutions and natural forces, many of whom were cruel or at least uncaring for the well-being of the poor. Worship of these gods did not involve the formation of a moral sensibility. But Yahweh worship, rooted in a conviction that every human is an image of Elohim, was joined with ethics.

Ezekiel 8:1-17 is a classic expression of this worldview. When people give their allegiance to deities and forces other than Yahweh, it’s not long before the poor suffer. See Amos 5:21-24 for a classic expression of this.” – Tim Mackie

"You shall not make idols for yourselves or erect an image or pillar, and you shall not set up a figured stone in your land to bow down to it, for I am the Lord your God" - Leviticus 26:1