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Begin wherever your curiosity leads. The studies will be here when you’re ready. When I shared my first Matthew study on Facebook today, I mentioned that I planned to post daily, though I might not share every post on Facebook. As I continue setting up this blog, I’ve realized that what matters most to me is making my past studies available for anyone who wants to explore them. For now, I’ll be adding posts to my heart’s content as I work through those studies. Some days that may mean one post; other days it may mean several. I’ll continue reading through and preparing each one before sharing it. There is no need to keep up with everything as it appears. This blog is becoming a place you can browse at your own pace—begin with a book, a question, or a study that interests you, and follow from there. The Bible Books page gathers studies by book, while Study Threads helps connect topics that travel through more than one book. The labels on individual posts also bring related material to...
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31. Ten Commandments: Becoming Like What We Trust

God’s Image Study • Commandment 2: Idols and Images

Having examined idols within the heart, we must consider what that allegiance produces. Psalm 115 carries the discussion beyond the object and into the condition of those who trust it.

The psalm describes idols made from silver and gold. They possess the outward features of living beings, yet those features do not function: mouths cannot speak, eyes cannot see, ears cannot hear, and feet cannot walk.

Then comes the warning:

“Those who make them will become like them,
Everyone who trusts in them.”

— Psalm 115:8, LSB

Notice everyone who trusts in them. The warning reaches beyond the craftsman to the person placing confidence in what was made.

The LSB footnote also gives are like them as an alternative rendering. Both readings connect the worshiper’s condition with the idol. The following verses direct Israel, Aaron’s house, and those who fear God to trust YHWH (יהוה), who provides their help and protection. Read Psalm 115:4–11, LSB.

This gives us something serious to examine: what is happening to my ability to receive instruction when I become devoted to something I refuse to question?

I may have eyes to read a passage while avoiding the detail that challenges me. I may hear someone’s explanation while preparing a defense before understanding what they mean. I may speak often about truth while refusing to examine an attachment that determines what I will accept.

These are applications to consider as we examine the psalm’s warning. The question belongs to each of us, including those who have spent years studying.

Ezekiel describes another situation that helps us examine the difference between receiving words and responding to them.

People invite one another to hear the message from God. They come, sit, and listen. Yet their conduct does not follow what they hear, and their hearts pursue gain. The prophet is compared to an appealing musical performance: they appreciate hearing him without doing what he says. Read Ezekiel 33:30–33, LSB.

Notice the details together. There is interest, attendance, listening, and appreciation. All of that can occur while the instruction remains unpracticed.

This connects with our earlier examination of religious music and atmosphere. We can ask what happens after the gathering ends. Did the message bring something into view that I am willing to address? Does the instruction continue to guide my decisions when there is no audience, music, or familiar voice?

The comparison also applies when I read alone. I can enjoy a study because it challenges someone else, then resist the same examination when it reaches me.

Am I allowing the word to examine the person reading it?

Within this God’s Image study, another passage deserves careful attention alongside these warnings.

In 2 Corinthians 3, Paul describes a letter of Christ written through the Spirit of the living God upon hearts. He locates the ministers’ sufficiency in God. Later, he speaks of the veil being removed when a person turns to the Lord, and of transformation into the same image as the Lord’s Glory is beheld. Read 2 Corinthians 3:3–6, 14–18, LSB.

Placed alongside Psalm 115, this gives us a comparison to examine: likeness associated with trust in lifeless idols, and transformation associated with the Lord and the Spirit.

We should attend to the direction of that transformation. Am I seeking God’s instruction so that my understanding and conduct can change? Or am I repeatedly reshaping what I read to preserve the person I already insist on being?

I need to remain willing to say: I may have missed something. Let me read it again. Let me hear the explanation fully. Let me examine whether my response comes from the passage or from my attachment to a conclusion.

That willingness must remain even when the cost is admitting that something cherished needs correction.

Threads to Follow

  • The image God commands: How should Exodus 25:18–22 be read alongside the prohibition in Exodus 20:4–6?

  • A jealous God: What does God’s declaration in Exodus 20:5 reveal about the allegiance He requires?

  • Love expressed through obedience: How does Exodus 20:6 connect love for God with keeping His commandments?

The books were opened…

🌿 By Maria Emilia

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