p. 8 | Short Sermons on the Commandments by W. A. McCutchen

Review and Herald Publishing Association · Takoma Park Station, Washington, D. C. · Apr 18, 1907

Short Sermons on the Commandments

By W. A. McCutchen

The Second Commandment

W. A. MC CUTCHEN

“Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth: 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; and showing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments.” Ex. 20: 4-6.

In this commandment we have a prohibition of that which is a culmination of the thing forbidden in the first commandment; and this culmination is reached by easy and natural steps if the first command is disregarded. In other words, when one has other gods than the true God, it is perfectly natural to begin to make images and likenesses to represent those gods. It represents that low order of worship which must see the object worshiped, and has no element of faith in it. Its devotees can not, as did Moses, see “Him who is invisible.” And these images, being the product of human hands, can not be endowed by the worshiper, in his own mind, with any greater attributes than his own. Hence it is not only an affront to God thus to worship another than he, but it has no uplifting power to the worshiper.

Some have thought that this command forbids the making of any kind of likeness or picture for any purpose, but this hardly seems tenable in the light of other facts and scriptures. If so, how are we to account for the pictures described in the Bible—the great image of Daniel 2, the beasts and images of Daniel, Ezekiel, and Revelation, used in the symbolic prophecies, the views and heavenly scenes presented, all of which were given by God himself as object-lessons? The Lord also gave specific instruction to “write the vision and make it plain upon tables” (Hab. 2:2), which, by our pictorial charts and illustrations we are enabled to do. Moreover the Lord caused figures of angels to be wrought in the hangings and coverings of the sanctuary, and golden statues of cherubim on the mercy-seat anciently. It is evident that the command is simply against the making of images and likenesses for the purpose of worshiping—“Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image,” etc.—and not that thou mayest not make them for general purposes other than to worship.

No surer sign of rank idolatry of the lowest order could be offered than the worship of images; for “they be no gods, which are made with hands.” Acts 19: 26. The making and worshiping of graven images seems to be a further step in the downward road of idolatry, a worse offense in God’s sight than the having of other gods in the mind and affections; for in connection with his prohibition of it in this command the Lord points out

that he is “a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate” him. He seems to put the matter stronger in this commandment than in the first. The two offenses are of the same character, but the actual making and bowing down to images would carry with it the weight of example; while the other, though the idol be in the heart and allowed to usurp the place of God, and sinful in the extreme to the individual cherishing the idol, yet it might not influence or affect another. Thus the difference, if any, would be in degree, and not in kind.

Some in studying this command have questioned the justice of God in “visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children,” and it has appeared to them almost irreconcilable with the nature of God. It should not be overlooked that the visiting of the iniquities of the fathers upon the children is upon those who “hate” God—those children who continue idolatrous and disobedient. At the same time God is merciful “unto thousands of them”—even descendants of these haters of God—that “love” God and “keep” his commandments; thus showing that this visiting of the iniquities of the fathers upon the children is invited by the continued course of rebellion on their part, while at the same time this visitation may be averted by turning to God and loving him and keeping his commandments, making it an individual matter after all. “God is no respecter of persons,” he declares through the apostle (Acts 10: 34); but he is a respecter of character; so that “in every nation he that feareth him, and worketh righteousness, is accepted with him.” Acts 10: 35. Let us not invite a visitation of God’s wrath upon us by rebellion and disobedience, but let us love him and keep his commandments, and be “accepted with him” now and in the end.

Dallas, Tex.