The Danger of Idolatry

A Verse

2 Kings 18:4

He removed the high places, smashed the sacred stones and cut down the Asherah poles. He broke into pieces the bronze snake Moses had made, for up to that time the Israelites had been burning incense to it. (It was called Nehushtan.)

A Comment

This morning’s passage may seem a little obscure, but I wanted to share with you some of my reflections on this passage after reading it last week. The context is Hezekiah, the king of Judah, reforming the worship of Judah when he started to reign as king. Hezekiah was a good king, though one could say that his regard for the future prosperity of Judah was short-sighted (2 Kings 20:12-21). But for this morning’s passage, I want us to consider how a good thing (the bronze serpent that Moses fashioned in the wilderness for the healing of the people) became a bad thing, an idol intended to replace the LORD.

As I just mentioned, the bronze serpent was made by Moses during Israel’s wanderings in the wilderness. You can read about it in Numbers 21, but for those that don’t want to have to turn back to Numbers, here are the main verses: The LORD said to Moses, “Make a snake and put it up on a pole; anyone who is bitten can look at it and live.” So Moses made a bronze snake and put it up on a pole. Then when anyone was bitten by a snake and looked at the bronze snake, they lived.

The bronze serpent on the pole was a provision from the LORD during the wilderness wandering intended to heal them and strengthen their faith in the LORD who heals them. Yet, over time, the people of Judah turned the good thing of God’s provision into a bad thing by worshipping the bronze serpent itself, burning incense to it. What was intended for good by God to the Israelites was taken and turned into an end in itself. They forgot the God who provided for them, and instead, trusted in the provision rather than the provider.

I think this story reminds us that we must be very careful not to put our hope in the provision itself, but in the God who provides. God made provide all sorts of wonderful, well-timed blessings to His people, but He never intends for us to turn those good things into gods. There is only one true God whom we should place our trust. We must be sober-minded and watchful that we do not look to the things that God has provided us and turn them into a replacement for God himself.

A Prayer

Would you pray with me?

A Blessing

Now may the Lord of Peace himself give you peace at all times and in every way. the Lord be with all of you.