The Way of Worship

If the first commandment is against worshiping the wrong God, the second commandment is against worshiping God in the wrong way.

Self-Willed Worship

Most generally, the second commandment forbids self-willed worship—worshiping God as we choose rather than as he demands. In particular, the second commandment makes two prohibitions:

1. We are not to make images to represent God in any form.

2. We are not to worship images of any kind.

The second commandment does not intend to outlaw art or painting or aesthetic considerations. The tabernacle displayed angels and palm trees, the ark will have cherubim.

What he prohibits is infusing any object with spiritual efficacy, as if man-made artifacts can bring us closer to God, represent God, or establish communion with God.

The Old Testament is full of examples of God’s people using man-made artifacts for self-willed worship. The golden calf is the most famous example. Remember, Aaron proclaimed a feast to Yahweh, and the people declared that these were the gods who brought them up out of Egypt (Ex. 32:4–5). The Israelites weren’t worshiping Baal. They were trying to worship the Lord their God, but they were doing it in the wrong way. They were violating the second commandment.

Sins and Souls

What are we to make of the threat in verse 5

It’s not a reference to generational curses, hexes, or demonic oppression. Nor does it mean that a righteous child will be punished unfairly for the sins of his wicked father. That’s a common misunderstanding from verse 5, so common, it seems, that Ezekiel 18 means to correct it. In Ezekiel 18:20 we read, “The soul who sins shall die. The son shall not suffer for the iniquity of the father, nor the father suffer for the iniquity of the son.” God does not say to a righteous child, “Tough break, kid, your dad was wicked, so I’m going to really let you have it.” The book of Ezekiel will not let us take that view of the second commandment.

So what does the warning mean? This warning is about God’s judgment on those who walk in the wicked ways of their parents and grandparents and great-grandparents. Look at verse 5 carefully. God says he will visit “the iniquity of the fathers to the third and the fourth generation of those who hate me.” The children share in their father’s punishment because they share in their father’s sins.

No One Like Him

God is jealous. No image will capture God’s glory. Every man-made representation of the Divine will be so far less than God as to incite his jealousy. Think about it: the more chaste and pure a husband, the more his jealousy is aroused by an adulterous wife. God is supremely pure, and he cannot bear to share his glory with another, even if the other is a sincere attempt to represent (and not replace) the one true God.

Keeping the Commandment Today

First, guard against images of God both external and imagined

Many Christian leaders seek to build services around people’s felt needs. Or they spare no expense in putting on an elaborate production Sunday after Sunday. While the motivations may be pure (or not), God’s way is to build up his people by edifying teaching, not by entertaining theater.

look to Christ as the fulfillment of the second commandment.