What is the meaning of Psalm 115:8? Those who make them Psalm 115 has just pictured idols that “have mouths, but cannot speak, eyes, but cannot see….” (vv. 5-7). The craftsman who shapes such lifeless images is choosing to invest skill, energy, and affection in an object that can never respond. Scripture repeatedly exposes this futility: • Isaiah 44:13-17 shows a carpenter cutting down a tree, burning half for fuel, then worshiping the other half—“Shall I bow to a block of wood?” • Exodus 20:4 warns, “You shall not make for yourself an idol,” placing the maker already on disobedient ground. • Romans 1:22-23 describes people who “exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images,” revealing that intellectual brilliance cannot protect a heart that willingly forms false gods. By making an idol, a person signals an inward departure from the living Lord to the dead works of his own hands. become like them The chilling result is likeness. Idols cannot hear prayer, feel compassion, guide, or save; and the crafter mirrors that impotence. • 2 Kings 17:15 puts it plainly: “They followed worthless idols and became worthless themselves.” • Jeremiah 2:5 echoes, “They followed idols and became idolaters.” • Contrast this with 2 Corinthians 3:18, where beholding the glory of the Lord transforms believers “into His image.” We resemble what we revere. In practical terms: – Hearts grow unresponsive to God’s voice, as deaf as the statue’s ears. – Spiritual vision dims, matching the idol’s blind eyes. – Moral paralysis sets in; idols cannot move, and neither can the conscience of the one molded after them. as do all who trust in them The verdict stretches beyond artisans to every devotee. Trust, not just craftsmanship, seals the likeness. • Jonah 2:8 warns, “Those who cling to worthless idols forsake His loving devotion.” • Psalm 135:18 repeats the same principle, “Those who make them will be like them, as will all who trust in them.” • 1 John 5:21 closes the apostolic witness with “Little children, keep yourselves from idols,” underscoring that New-Covenant believers are not immune. Whenever security or identity is shifted from the Lord to money, status, pleasure, or any created thing, that object slowly stamps its dead image on the soul. Only trust in the living God brings life. summary Psalm 115:8 teaches a sobering spiritual law: we become what we worship. The craftsman who shapes an idol, and the worshiper who relies on it, both end up as lifeless, senseless, and powerless as the object of their devotion. In contrast, trusting the living Lord fills a person with His life, alertness, and power. Choosing the right object of trust is therefore the decisive issue of every heart. |
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