'Idols' in the Bible
Meanwhile, Laban had been out shearing his sheep. While he was away, Rachel stole her father's personal idols.
Now as to your gods, if you find someone has them in their possession, he's a dead man. Take our relatives as witnesses, search through our belongings, and take whatever belongs to you that's in my possession." But Jacob didn't know that Rachel had stolen the idols.
Meanwhile, Rachel had taken the idols, placed them inside the saddle of her camel, and sat on them. Laban searched through the whole tent, but found nothing.
Then Rachel told her father, "Sir, please don't be angry that I cannot stand up in your presence. It's that time of the month." So Laban searched for the idols, but never did find them.
"You are not to turn to their idols or cast gods out of melted metal for yourselves. I am the LORD your God.
"You are not to make worthless idols, images, or pillars for yourselves, nor set up for yourselves carved images to bow down to them in the land, because I am the LORD your God.
I'll destroy your high places and cut down your sun pillars. Then I'll cast your dead bodies on top of the bodies of your idols. I'll loathe you.
they are to drive out all the inhabitants of the land and destroy all their idols and their molten images. You are to demolish all their high places,
This is what you are to do to them: tear down their altars, break their pillars, cut down their ritual pillars, and burn their carved idols in fire,
You have seen their detestable practices, their idols of wood, stone, silver, and gold that they had with them.
He had turned away from the idols that were at Gilgal. So he told Eglon, "I have a secret message for you, king." King Eglon responded "Silence!" and all of his attendants left him.
Meanwhile, Ehud escaped while they were delayed, passed by the idols, and escaped in the direction of Seirah.
This man Micah had his own shrine, had crafted his own ephod and some household idols, and had installed one of his sons as a priest.
Then the five men who had gone to scout out the territory of Laish told their relatives, "Are you aware that in these houses there's an ephod, some household idols, a carved image, and a cast image? You know what you need to do."
the five men who had gone to scout out the land arrived, entered Micah's home and confiscated the carved image, the ephod, the household idols, and the cast image. Meanwhile, the priest stood outside by the entrance to the gate with the 600 men armed with military weapons.
After they went into Micah's home and took possession of the carved image, the ephod, the household idols, and the cast image, the priest challenged them. "What are you doing?" he asked them.
The priest was happy to oblige, so he took the ephod, the household idols, and the carved image and went along with the army.
They cut off his head and stripped him of his weapons. They sent people throughout the territory of the Philistines to report the good news in the temples of their idols and to the people.
The Philistines abandoned their idols there, and David and his army carried them off.
Doing this was sinful, because the people traveled as far as Dan to appear before one of their idols.
He also removed the male cult prostitutes from the land and destroyed all the idols that his ancestors had made.
and they served idols, a practice that the LORD had warned them, "You are not to do this."
"Because King Manasseh of Judah has committed these despicable things, acting more sinfully than did all of the Amorites who preceded him, including making Judah sin with its idols,
because he completely adopted his father's lifestyle, serving the same idols his father had served and worshipped.
Furthermore, Josiah removed the mediums, the necromancers, the household gods, the idols, and every despicable thing that could be seen in the territory of Judah and in Jerusalem, so that he might confirm the words of the Law that had been written in the book that Hilkiah the priest had discovered in the LORD's Temple.
They stripped him, took his head and armor, and sent messengers throughout the territory of the Philistines to report the news to their idols and to the people.
The Philistines abandoned their gods there, so David ordered that their idols be incinerated.
For all of the gods of the other nations are mere idols, but the LORD fashioned the heavens!
Encouraged by what Oded's son Azariah the prophet had said in his prophecy, Asa removed the detestable idols from throughout the entire territories of Judah and Benjamin, and from the cities that he had captured in the hill country of Ephraim. He repaired the LORD's altar that stood in front of the vestibule of the LORD's Temple.
Then all the people went to the temple of Baal, broke its altars and idols to pieces, and executed Mattan, the priest of Baal, in front of the altars.
They abandoned the LORD's Temple and the God of their fathers, and they served Asherim and idols. As a result this guilt of theirs resulted in wrath coming upon Judah and Jerusalem.
He also eliminated the foreign gods and idols from the LORD's Temple, along with all of the altars that he had built in Jerusalem and on the mountain where the LORD's Temple was located, and he discarded them outside the city.
I despise those who trust vain idols; but I have trusted in the LORD.
For all the gods of the nations are worthless idols, but the LORD made the heavens.
All who serve carved images and those who praise idols will be humiliated. Worship him, all you "gods"!
They worshipped their idols, and this became a trap for them.
They shed innocent blood the blood of their sons and daughters whom they sacrificed to the idols of Canaan, thereby polluting the land with blood.
Their idols are silver and gold, crafted by human hands.
The idols of the nations are silver and gold, worked by the hands of human beings.
Their land is filled with idols; they bow down to the work of their hands, to what their own fingers have made.
At that time, mankind will throw their silver and gold idols that their fingers have made as objects of worship to the moles and to the bats.
will I not deal with Jerusalem and her idols as I have dealt with Samaria and her images?'"
A message about Egypt: "Watch out! The LORD rides on a swift cloud, and is coming to Egypt. The idols of Egypt tremble before him, and the hearts of the Egyptians melt within them.
The spirits of the Egyptians within them will be drained of courage, and I will bring their plans to nothing. They will consult idols and spirits of the dead, and mediums and spiritists.
Then you will defile your carved idols that are overlaid with silver and your images plated with gold. You'll throw them away like disgusting objects and say to them, "Away with you!"
For at that time, everyone will throw away their idols of silver and their idols of gold that your hands have sinfully made for yourselves.
I, the LORD, am the one, and I won't give my name and glory to another, nor my praise to idols.
Those who trust in carved idols will turn back and be completely disappointed, along with those who say to metal images, "You are our gods.'"
All of them will be put to shame indeed, disgraced! The makers of idols will go off in disgrace together.
"Gather together and come; draw near and enter, your fugitives from the nations. Those who carry around their wooden idols know nothing, nor do those who keep praying to a god that cannot save.
"Bel bows down, Nebo stoops low. Their idols are on beasts, on livestock. Your loads are more burdensome than their reports.
"I will denounce your righteousness and your works, for your collections of idols will not benefit you.
"Israel, if you return to me," declares the LORD, "Return to me, remove your detestable idols from my presence, and don't waver.
"For the people of Judah have done evil in my eyes," declares the LORD. "They have put their detestable idols in the house that is called by my name in order to defile it.
Their idols are like scarecrows in a cucumber field. They can't speak! They must always be carried because they can't walk! Don't be afraid of them because they can do no harm, nor can they do any good."
Beaten silver is brought from Tarshish, and gold from Uphaz. The idols are the work of a craftsman and of the hands of a goldsmith. Their clothing is violet and purple. The idols are all the work of skilled craftsmen.
Everyone is stupid and without knowledge. Every goldsmith is put to shame by his idols, for his images are false. There is no life in them.
Judah, you have as many gods as you have towns, and you have set up as many altars to the shameful idols as there are streets in Jerusalem. You burn incense to Baal on these altars.
Yet my people have forgotten me, and they burn incense to worthless idols that make them stumble in their journey on the ancient paths. They walk on trails, on a way that is not built up.
Don't follow other gods to serve and worship them. Don't provoke me with the idols you make with your hands, and I won't bring disaster on you.'
But you didn't listen to me," declares the LORD, "so as to provoke me with the idols you make with your hands to your own harm.
They put their detestable idols in the house that is called by my name and defiled it.
He will set fire to the temples of the gods of Egypt. He will burn their idols and take them captive. He will wrap himself with the land of Egypt like a shepherd wraps himself with a garment, and then he will leave from there in peace.
"Declare and proclaim among the nations. Lift up a banner and proclaim. Don't conceal anything. Say, "Babylon will be captured. Bel will be disgraced, and Marduk will be destroyed. Her idols will be disgraced, and her filthy images will be destroyed.'
A drought against her waters. They'll dry up. For it's a land of idols, and they go mad over their terrifying images.
Everyone is stupid and without knowledge. Every goldsmith is put to shame by his own idols, for his images are false, and there is no life in them.
Therefore, look, days are coming when I'll punish the idols of Babylon. Her entire land will be put to shame, and all her slain will fall in her midst.
"Therefore, look, days are coming," declares the LORD, "when I'll punish her idols, and throughout her land the wounded will groan.
Your altars will become desolate and your sun pillars will be shattered. I'll throw your slain down right in front of your idols.
I'll place the corpses of the Israelis in front of their idols. I'll scatter your bones around your altar.
In all the places where you live, the cities will be desolate. The high places will also be desolate so that your altars will be laid waste, bearing the punishment appropriate to them. Your idols will be shattered, your sun pillars will be hewn down, and your works will be obliterated.
"You'll learn that I am the LORD, when the fatally wounded will be among their idols, around their altars, on every hill, on top of the mountains, under every luxuriant tree, and under all the full-grown foliage every place where they've offered fragrant aromas to all their idols.
"As for his beautiful ornament, he set it up in majesty, but they made detestable images and loathsome idols. Therefore, I'll give them something loathsome
So I entered, looked around, and there was every form of crawling thing, loathsome animals, and all kinds of idols from the house of Israel carved all around the wall.
"Son of Man, these men have taken idols into their hearts. They've placed the stumbling block that is their own iniquity right in front of their faces. Should I be consulted by them at all?
Therefore, speak up and tell them, "This is what the Lord GOD says, "Every person from Israel's house who follows his idols and sets the stumbling block that is his own sin in front of his face, and then consults a prophet, I the LORD will answer him according to how many idols he embraces.
I'll do this in order to capture the hearts of Israel's house who have become alienated from me due to all of their idols."'"
"Therefore you are to tell Israel's house, "This is what the Lord GOD says, "Turn away! Turn away from your idols, and abandon your detestable practices!
For when a native Israeli or a resident alien abandons me to set up idols in his heart behind my back, and then places the stumbling block of his iniquity right in front of his own face, then approaches a prophet to inquire of me on behalf of his own self-interest, I, the LORD will answer him myself.
"Then you took your sons and daughters whom you bore for me and sacrificed them for your idols to eat. As though your prostitutions were an insignificant thing,
you also slaughtered my sons and offered them to idols, incinerating them in fire.
This is what the Lord GOD says: "Because your lust has been poured out and your nakedness has been uncovered by your acts of fornication with your lovers, and because of all your detestable idols and the blood of your sons, whom you offered to them,
if he doesn't eat at mountain shrines, and doesn't look to the idols that have been erected in Israel's house, if he doesn't defile his neighbor's wife or approach a woman during her time of menstrual separation,
oppresses the afflicted and the poor, robs others, doesn't return security for a debt, looks to idols, does detestable things,
That is, suppose he doesn't eat at the mountain shrines, doesn't look to the idols of Israel's house, doesn't defile his neighbor's wife,
Then I told them, "Each of you are to abandon your detestable practices. You are not to defile yourselves with Egypt's idols. I am the LORD your God.'"'"
"But they rebelled against me and weren't willing to obey me. None of them abandoned their detestable practices or their Egyptian idols. So I said, "I'll pour out my anger on them, extending my fury in the middle of the land of Egypt.'
because they kept on rejecting my ordinances. They didn't live life consistent with my statutes, they profaned my Sabbaths, and their hearts followed their idols.
I told their children in the wilderness, "You are not to follow the statutes of your ancestors, observe their ordinances, or be defiled by their idols.
because they didn't observe my ordinances. Instead, they rejected my statutes, profaned my Sabbaths, and worshipped their ancestors' idols.
When you present your gifts and make your sons pass through the fire, you continue to defile yourselves with your idols to this day. Should I be inquired of by you, you house of Israel? As I live," declares the LORD, "I certainly won't be inquired of by you."
And now, you house of Israel, this is what the Lord GOD says, "Go ahead and serve your idols, both now and later, but later you'll listen to me, and you won't profane my sacred name again by your offerings and idols.
"You are to say, "This is what the Lord GOD says: "The city keeps on shedding blood within her, hastening her time to be judged. She crafts idols that defile her.
"""You're guilty because of the blood that you've shed. You were defiled by the idols that you've made. You've caused your judgment day to draw near and have even come to the end of your life. Therefore, I've made you an object of derision among the nations and to other lands.
"She defiled herself with all their idols. She never abandoned the immorality that she practiced in Egypt during her youth, where they laid down with her and fondled her virgin breasts, lavishing her with all kinds of favors.
These things will happen to you because of your sexual immorality that was patterned after what the nations do. You've been defiled by their idols.
because they've committed adultery, and blood covers their hands. They've also committed adultery with their idols, making their sons born to me to pass through the fire as an offering to them.
When they killed their sons as offerings to their idols, they brought them to my sanctuary and defiled it. Look what they've done with my Temple!
"This is what the Lord GOD says: "I will destroy the idols and put an end to the images that come from Memphis. There will no longer be a prince from the land of Egypt, and I will terrify the land of Egypt.