What other scriptures warn against spiritual adultery and idolatry? Starting Point: Ezekiel 16:24 “You built yourself a mound and made yourself an elevated shrine in every public square.” God pictures Jerusalem’s idolatry as marital betrayal. Scripture picks up this theme from Genesis to Revelation. Echoes in the Law of Moses • Exodus 20:4-5 — “You shall not make for yourself an idol… for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God.” • Exodus 34:14-16 — Israel must “tear down” pagan altars lest they “play the harlot” with foreign gods. • Deuteronomy 31:16 — God foretells, “This people will rise up and prostitute themselves with the foreign gods of the land.” Prophets Who Call Out Spiritual Infidelity • Jeremiah 3:6-10 — Judah “committed adultery with stones and trees.” • Hosea 2:2 — “She is not My wife… Let her remove her adulterous look from her face.” • Hosea 4:12-13 — “A spirit of prostitution has led them astray.” • Isaiah 57:3-8 — The people “burn with lust among the oaks,” opening “beds” for idols. • Ezekiel 6:9 — “They will loathe themselves for the evil they did… how their hearts were unfaithful.” • Ezekiel 23:37 — “They have committed adultery, blood is on their hands; they committed adultery with their idols.” Warnings in the Psalms and Wisdom Books • Psalm 106:36-39 — Idols became “a snare,” and the nation “prostituted themselves.” • Proverbs 2:16-19; 5:3-11; 7:6-27 — The adulteress illustrates the seductive pull of false worship. Jesus Exposes Heart-Level Idolatry • Matthew 6:24 — “No one can serve two masters… You cannot serve God and money.” • Matthew 12:39 — “An adulterous generation craves a sign.” • Mark 8:38 — Adulterous allegiance to the world brings shame before the Son of Man. • John 4:23-24 — True worship must be “in spirit and truth,” not on man-made mountains. Apostolic Teaching Against Idols • Romans 1:21-23 — Exchange of God’s glory for images leads to every corruption. • 1 Corinthians 10:6-7, 14 — “Do not be idolaters… flee from idolatry.” • 2 Corinthians 11:2-3 — Paul is jealous “to present you as a pure virgin to Christ.” • Galatians 5:19-21 — Idolatry listed among the “works of the flesh.” • Ephesians 5:5 — “No immoral or greedy person—such a man is an idolater—has an inheritance.” • Colossians 3:5 — “Greed… is idolatry.” • James 4:4 — “Friendship with the world means enmity with God.” • 1 John 5:21 — “Little children, keep yourselves from idols.” • Revelation 2:14, 20 — Pergamum and Thyatira rebuked for teaching that leads to “sexual immorality and eating food sacrificed to idols.” • Revelation 17:1-5 — Babylon portrayed as “the mother of prostitutes and of the abominations of the earth.” Living Faithfully Today • Idolatry is any rival love that steals devotion owed to Christ alone. • God’s covenant jealousy is a protecting love that seeks our purity. • True worship embraces God’s Word, rejects cultural syncretism, and pursues single-hearted obedience. • The Spirit empowers us to “flee idols” and keep ourselves for the Bridegroom who is coming soon. |
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