Topical Bible: Idolatry: They Who Practise are Vain in Their Imaginations

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Idolatry, the worship of idols or the excessive reverence for created things, is a recurring theme throughout the Bible, consistently condemned as a grievous sin against God. The practice of idolatry is often associated with the vanity of human imagination, as it involves the creation and worship of gods fashioned by human hands and minds, rather than the worship of the one true God.

The Apostle Paul addresses the futility of idolatry in Romans 1:21-23 : "For although they knew God, they neither glorified Him as God nor gave thanks to Him, but they became futile in their thinking and darkened in their foolish hearts. Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images of mortal man and birds and animals and reptiles." Here, Paul highlights the vanity and foolishness inherent in idolatry, as those who practice it turn away from the truth of God to worship the created rather than the Creator.

The Old Testament also speaks to the vanity of idolatry. In Isaiah 44:9-20, the prophet vividly describes the absurdity of idol-making, where craftsmen fashion gods from the same materials used for mundane purposes, such as cooking or warming themselves. Isaiah 44:18 states, "They do not comprehend or discern, for He has shut their eyes so they cannot see and closed their minds so they cannot understand." This passage underscores the spiritual blindness and lack of understanding that accompany idolatrous practices.

The Psalms further illustrate the emptiness of idol worship. Psalm 115:4-8 declares, "Their idols are silver and gold, made by the hands of men. They have mouths, but cannot speak; they have eyes, but cannot see; they have ears, but cannot hear; they have noses, but cannot smell; they have hands, but cannot feel; they have feet, but cannot walk; they cannot utter a sound with their throats. Those who make them become like them, as do all who trust in them." This passage emphasizes the lifelessness of idols and the spiritual deadness of those who trust in them.

The prophets frequently warned Israel against the allure of idolatry, which often led the nation into spiritual adultery and away from their covenant relationship with God. Jeremiah 10:14-15 states, "Every man is senseless and devoid of knowledge; every goldsmith is put to shame by his idols. For his molten images are a lie, and there is no breath in them. They are worthless, a work to be mocked. In the time of their punishment, they will perish." The prophet Jeremiah highlights the ultimate worthlessness and deception of idols, which cannot save or deliver in times of trouble.

In the New Testament, the early church faced the challenge of idolatry in the Greco-Roman world, where the worship of multiple gods was prevalent. The Apostle John exhorts believers in 1 John 5:21 , "Little children, keep yourselves from idols." This admonition serves as a timeless reminder for Christians to guard their hearts against anything that might take the place of God in their lives.

Idolatry, therefore, is not merely the physical act of bowing to statues or images but extends to any form of misplaced trust or devotion that supplants God’s rightful place in the human heart. The Bible consistently portrays idolatry as a vain and futile endeavor, leading to spiritual blindness and separation from the true source of life and salvation.

Torrey's Topical Textbook

Romans 1:21
Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened.
Torrey's Topical Textbook

Library

Proposition Though the Necessity and Indispensableness of all the ...
... commonly they yield and submit to practise those things ... The natural consequence of
which absurd idolatry, and also ... upon them for it was, that they were given ...
/.../v proposition v though the.htm

Paul and Barnabas in Lystra.
... of priests, who could securely practise there the ... by the indefinite phrase, "times
past." Idolatry seems to ... and his posterity, by which they were constituted ...
/.../dick/lectures on the acts of the apostles/lecture xv paul and barnabas.htm

Concerning Worship.
... For this kind of idolatry, whereby man loveth, idolizeth, and embraceth his ... God to
move and stir in them; that they may come to practise this acceptable ...
/.../proposition xi concerning worship.htm

Though in Almost Every Age There have Indeed Been in the Heathen ...
... it their business to study and practise the duties ... respect to the worship of God,
idolatry prevailed universally ... so as to be without excuse, yet "they did not ...
/.../vi proposition vi though in.htm

Sin in the Heart the Source of Error in the Head
... Romans 1:29, 32); and that those who practise such sins ... He accounts for all the idolatry
and sensuality, all the ... They knew too much for their own comfort in sin ...
/.../shedd/sermons to the natural man/sin in the heart the.htm

Scriptural Predictions of an Apostasy.
... does not, and will not, experience and practise it in ... banqueting, money getting,
lewdness, and idolatry, as we ... From the pulpit they speak in elegant, flowery ...
/.../orr/the gospel day /chapter ii scriptural predictions of.htm

The Order of Thought which Surrounded the Development of Jesus.
... by the separation of the northern tribes, they dreamt of ... of theocracy and the worship
of Jehovah over idolatry. ... maintain that we must not practise virtue like ...
//christianbookshelf.org/renan/the life of jesus/chapter iv the order of.htm

Concerning the Communion, or Participation of the Body and Blood ...
... blood of Christ, dehorts them from idolatry, and partaking ... that this ceremony, by
those that practise it, hath ... saith, If they eat doubting, they eat their own ...
/.../proposition xiii concerning the communion.htm

Twenty-Seven Articles Respecting the Reformation of the Christian ...
... and of faith, soon began to set up idolatry and their own ... and Poetic should be retained;
or they might be ... studied in a condensed form, to practise young people ...
/.../iii twenty-seven articles respecting the.htm

The First vision "On Earth"
... not with (hostile) watching (such as you practise. ... gods and worshipped them, gods
whom they knew not ... and Ephraim, participated in introducing idolatry later on ...
/.../bullinger/commentary on revelation/the first vision on earth.htm