Topical Bible: Idolatry: Punishment of Exclusion from Heaven

◄ Idolatry: Punishment of Exclusion from Heaven ►

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Idolatry, the worship of idols or the elevation of anything above God, is a grave sin consistently condemned throughout the Bible. It is considered a direct violation of the first and second commandments, which emphasize the exclusive worship of the one true God. The punishment for idolatry is severe, often resulting in spiritual death and exclusion from the Kingdom of Heaven.

The Old Testament provides numerous examples of God's judgment against idolatry. In Exodus 20:3-5 , God commands, "You shall have no other gods before Me. You shall not make for yourself an idol in the form of anything in the heavens above or on the earth below or in the waters beneath. You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God." This command underscores the seriousness with which God views idolatry.

The consequences of idolatry are further illustrated in the history of Israel. When the Israelites turned to idol worship, they faced divine retribution. In Deuteronomy 29:18-20 , God warns that those who turn to idolatry will face His wrath: "Make sure there is no man or woman, clan or tribe among you today whose heart turns away from the LORD our God to go and worship the gods of those nations... The LORD will never be willing to forgive him; His wrath and zeal will burn against that man, and every curse written in this book will rest upon him."

The New Testament continues this theme, emphasizing that idolatry is incompatible with inheriting the Kingdom of God. In 1 Corinthians 6:9-10 , Paul writes, "Do you not know that the wicked will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who submit to or perform homosexual acts, nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor verbal abusers, nor swindlers, will inherit the kingdom of God." This passage clearly states that idolaters, among others, will be excluded from Heaven.

Similarly, in Galatians 5:19-21 , Paul lists idolatry among the "acts of the flesh" and warns, "I warn you, as I did before, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God." This reiterates the message that idolatry leads to spiritual exclusion.

The Book of Revelation also addresses the fate of idolaters. Revelation 21:8 declares, "But to the cowardly and unbelieving and abominable and murderers and sexually immoral and sorcerers and idolaters and all liars, their place will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur. This is the second death." This passage highlights the ultimate punishment for idolaters: eternal separation from God.

Throughout Scripture, idolatry is depicted as a sin that leads to spiritual death and exclusion from the eternal presence of God. The Bible consistently warns believers to guard against idolatry and to remain faithful to the worship of the one true God, as the consequences of failing to do so are dire and eternal.

Torrey's Topical Textbook

1 Corinthians 6:9,10
Know you not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind,
Torrey's Topical Textbook

Ephesians 5:5
For this you know, that no fornicator, nor unclean person, nor covetous man, who is an idolater, has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God.
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Revelation 22:15
For without are dogs, and sorcerers, and fornicators, and murderers, and idolaters, and whoever loves and makes a lie.
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Library

Deuteronomy
... the rights of a husband, the punishment of adultery and seduction, the exclusion
of certain ... and this no doubt explains the idolatry and worship of the ...
/.../mcfadyen/introduction to the old testament/deuteronomy.htm

The Pentateuch.
... is crowded with great events"the death of Miriam, the exclusion of Moses and ... the
history of Balaam and his prophecies, the idolatry and punishment of the ...
/.../barrows/companion to the bible/chapter xix the pentateuch.htm

Zwingli's Distinctive Doctrines.
... they suffer the mildest kind of punishment, namely, the ... first clearly introduced
this wholesale exclusion of all ... his abhorrence of heathen idolatry and every ...
/.../ 52 zwinglis distinctive doctrines.htm

Book 9 Footnotes
... a prophet's permission for being partaker in idolatry itself, out ... law of the Jews,
for the exclusion of lepers ... or some other way of Divine punishment, as did ...
/.../josephus/the antiquities of the jews/book 9 footnotes.htm

The Preface to the Commandments
... By Egypt is meant a place of idolatry and superstition; by the house of ... Besides the
poena damni, the punishment of loss,' which is the exclusion of the ...
//christianbookshelf.org/watson/the ten commandments/1 3 the preface to the.htm

An Exhortation to Theodore after his Fall. Letter I.
... and shut up the temple, and caused the deceit of idolatry to flourish ... hell; but I
say that a far more severe punishment than hell is exclusion from the ...
/.../chrysostom/on the priesthood/an exhortation to theodore after.htm

Appendix.
... Defence of the Discourse Concerning the Idolatry Practiced in ... sins still some debt
of temporal punishment to pay ... in the cell of long seclusion and exclusion. ...
/.../white/the great controversy between christ and satan /appendix.htm

Twenty Fourth Sunday after Trinity Prayer and Spiritual Knowledge.
... with this kind of knowledge to the exclusion of every ... sect of Satan; it is filled
with open idolatry, lies and ... of true Christians and for the punishment of the ...
/.../luther/epistle sermons vol iii/twenty fourth sunday after trinity.htm

The Royal Marriage Feast.
... an angry God, returning to inflict deserved punishment. ... been previously wedded to
the idolatry of covetousness ... could possibly have been a ground of exclusion. ...
/.../arnot/the parables of our lord/xii the royal marriage feast.htm

The Book of Jubilees
... he learned the judgment and the eternal punishment of sinners ... the sons of Noah; the
introduction of idolatry by Ur ... on the Day of Atonement, the exclusion of the ...
//christianbookshelf.org/deane/pseudepigrapha/the book of jubilees.htm