Topical Bible: Offerings: The Jews often: Presented to Idols

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In the history of Israel, offerings were a central aspect of worship and devotion to God. However, the Hebrew Scriptures also recount instances where the Israelites deviated from their covenantal obligations and presented offerings to idols, a practice that was strictly forbidden by the Mosaic Law.

Biblical Prohibition Against Idolatry

The first commandment given to the Israelites was a clear prohibition against idolatry: "You shall have no other gods before Me" (Exodus 20:3). The Israelites were commanded to worship Yahweh exclusively and to avoid the practices of the surrounding nations, which often included idol worship. Leviticus 19:4 further instructs, "Do not turn to idols or make for yourselves molten gods. I am the LORD your God."

Instances of Idolatrous Offerings

Despite these clear commands, the Old Testament records several instances where the Israelites fell into the sin of idolatry, offering sacrifices to false gods. One notable example is during the reign of King Solomon, who, influenced by his foreign wives, built high places for the worship of other deities: "On a hill east of Jerusalem, Solomon built a high place for Chemosh the abomination of Moab, and for Molech the abomination of the Ammonites" (1 Kings 11:7).

The prophet Jeremiah lamented the idolatrous practices of the people, who offered sacrifices to the "Queen of Heaven" and other deities: "The children gather wood, the fathers light the fire, and the women knead dough to make cakes for the Queen of Heaven. They pour out drink offerings to other gods to provoke Me to anger" (Jeremiah 7:18).

Consequences of Idolatrous Offerings

The consequences of offering sacrifices to idols were severe. The prophets consistently warned that such practices would lead to divine judgment and national calamity. In 2 Kings 17:16-18 , the fall of the Northern Kingdom of Israel is attributed to their idolatry: "They abandoned all the commandments of the LORD their God and made for themselves two cast idols of calves and an Asherah pole. They bowed down to all the host of heaven and served Baal... So the LORD was very angry with Israel, and He removed them from His presence."

Prophetic Calls to Repentance

Throughout the prophetic literature, there is a recurring call for the Israelites to repent and return to the worship of Yahweh. The prophet Isaiah called the people to abandon their idolatrous ways: "Wash and cleanse yourselves. Remove your evil deeds from My sight. Stop doing evil!" (Isaiah 1:16). Similarly, the prophet Hosea urged the people to return to the LORD: "Return, O Israel, to the LORD your God, for you have stumbled by your iniquity" (Hosea 14:1).

Theological Implications

The practice of offering sacrifices to idols highlights the tension between Israel's covenantal identity and their frequent lapses into the religious practices of surrounding nations. It underscores the biblical theme of faithfulness to God and the dangers of syncretism. The prophets' denunciations of idolatry serve as a reminder of the importance of exclusive devotion to God and the consequences of spiritual infidelity.

Torrey's Topical Textbook

Ezekiel 20:28
For when I had brought them into the land, for the which I lifted up my hand to give it to them, then they saw every high hill, and all the thick trees, and they offered there their sacrifices, and there they presented the provocation of their offering: there also they made their sweet smell, and poured out there their drink offerings.
Torrey's Topical Textbook

Library

Corinth
... the antitype of all the sacrificial offerings, and that ... of feeling, but all too often
truths presented ... presenting Christ, roused the unbelieving Jews to more ...
//christianbookshelf.org/white/the acts of the apostles/lesson 24 corinth.htm

Jew and Gentile
... on an extensive merchandise with the offerings brought to ... the Gentiles to live as
do the Jews?" Galatians 2 ... In his ministry, Paul was often compelled to stand ...
/.../white/the acts of the apostles/lesson 19 jew and gentile.htm

The Tears of Christ.
... the fraud and falsehood which too often disgrace our ... offerings of self-sacrifice
and love; offerings of a ... the desecrated temple of the Jews, silent, abandoned ...
/.../the life of duty a years plain sermons v 2/sermon xlv the tears of.htm

The So-Called Letter to Diognetus
... when they give blood and fat and whole burnt offerings, and are ... 17They are treated
by the Jews as foreigners ... Here, as so often in the Epistle, we can sense a ...
/.../richardson/early christian fathers/the so-called letter to diognetus.htm

Paul in Jerusalem.
... and presented in the temple certain offerings, which the ... so strong as to alarm the
Jews, and rouse ... Notwithstanding the fickleness which men often discover in ...
/.../dick/lectures on the acts of the apostles/lecture xxv paul in jerusalem.htm

"Lo, I Come": Exposition
... thee for thy sacrifices or thy burnt offerings, to have ... Mine ears hast thou digged."
Our ears often need digging ... same time, dealing as he was with Jews by whom ...
/.../spurgeon/spurgeons sermons volume 37 1891/lo i come exposition.htm

Paul a Prisoner
... These freewill offerings betokened the loyalty of the Gentile ... Paul, not only to the
unbelieving Jews, but to ... How often would the Lord have prolonged the work ...
/.../white/the acts of the apostles/lesson 38 paul a prisoner.htm

On Idolatry
... of it which anciently prevailed among Jews and gentiles ... xi, 8-13;) and false gods
often require of ... days, vigils, fasts, images, candles, offerings, by burning ...
/.../arminius/the works of james arminius vol 1/disputation 23 on idolatry.htm

[Endnotes]
... The offerings required were beyond the means of the very poor ... of that hatred of the
human race so often advanced against the Jews.""Milman's History ...
//christianbookshelf.org/killen/the ancient church/endnotes.htm

Covenanting Enforced by the Grant of Covenant Signs and Seals.
... from me."[728] And this he has often made his ... upon his ordinances, whether in presenting
offerings unto him ... of the exercises to which both Jews and Gentiles are ...
/.../cunningham/the ordinance of covenanting/chapter xi covenanting enforced by.htm