The Second Commandment

The Text

Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image,
or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above,
or that is in the earth beneath,
or that is in the water under the earth:
{5} Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them,
nor serve them:
for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God,
visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children
unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me;
{6} And showing mercy unto thousands of them that love me,
and keep my commandments.

Exodus 20:4-6

Rules for Understanding the Commandments

The Westminster Larger Catechism (1648)

Question 108: What are the duties required in the second commandment?
Answer: The duties required in the second commandment are,

• all such religious worship and ordinances as God has instituted in His Word;
  • receiving,
  • observing,
  • and keeping pure
  • and entire
• particularly in the name of Christ;
  • prayer
  • and thanksgiving
• of the Word
  • reading,
  • preaching,
  • and hearing
• of the sacraments
  • administration
  • and receiving
• church government and discipline;
  • the ministry
  • and maintenance thereof;
• religious fasting;
• swearing by the name of God,
• and vowing unto Him:
• all false worship;
  • disapproving,
  • detesting,
  • opposing,
• removing it
  • according to each one's place and calling,
• and all monuments of idolatry.

Question 109: What are the sins forbidden in the second commandment?
Answer: The sins forbidden in the second commandment are,

• any religious worship not instituted by God Himself;
  • all devising,
  • counseling,
  • commanding,
  • using,
  • and anywise approving,
• tolerating a false religion;
• the making any representation of God,
  • of all
  • or of any of the three persons,
  • either inwardly in our mind,
  • or outwardly in any kind of image or likeness of any creature whatsoever;
• all worshiping
  • of it,
  • or God in it
  • or by it;
• any representation of feigned deities,
  • the making of
  • and all worship of them,
  • or service belonging to them;
• all superstitious devices,
• the worship of God,
  • corrupting
  • adding to it,
  • or taking from it,
  • whether invented and taken up of ourselves,
  • or received by tradition from others,
    • though under the title of antiquity,
    • custom,
    • devotion,
    • good intent,
    • or any other pretense whatsoever;
• simony;
• sacrilege;
• of the worship and ordinances which God has appointed
  • all neglect,
  • contempt,
  • hindering,
  • and opposing

Question 110: What are the reasons annexed to the second commandment, the more to enforce it?
Answer: The reasons annexed to the second commandment, the more to enforce it, contained in these words,

For I the Lord thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate Me; and showing mercy unto thousands of them that love Me, and keep My commandments;

are,

• besides God's sovereignty over us,
• and propriety in us,
• His fervent zeal for His own worship,
• and His revengeful indignation against all false worship,
• as being a spiritual whoredom;
• accounting the breakers of this commandment such as hate Him,
• and threatening to punish them unto divers generations;
• and esteeming the observers of it
  • such as love Him
  • and keep His commandments,
• and promising mercy to them unto many generations.

The Westminster Larger Catechism (1648) explains our duties under the Second Commandment. You will notice that the brilliant Puritan Theologians who compiled the Catechism discerned duties in passages of Scripture which do not begin with the words "Thou shalt" or "Thou shalt not."

Every word of God is a command for us.

 

But even the "thou shalts" and the "thou shalt nots" demand more from us than we might first think:

How to Study the Ten Commandments

How to use the Catechism for a Moral Inventory

First, you must agree that the Catechism has correctly explained the implications of the Commandment. Assuming it has, you must agree with God that you are obligated to carry out those principles in your life.

Second you must ask yourself if you have violated each aspect of the command.

Third, you must take steps to develop the Character of Christ, and eliminate "character defects" from your life.

1. The Lawful Approach to God
2. The Throne of Law
3. The Altar and Capital Punishment
4. Sacrifice and Responsibility
5. Holiness and Law
6. Law as Warfare
7. Law and Equality

Moloch Worship and the Liturgies of Capital Punishment

• Do I Agree With God's Word?
• Have I Violated This Commandment?
• Am I Resolved to Obey it in the Future?
• How This Commandment was Applied in Early American Law

The Ten Commandments Home Page

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