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The first and second of the Ten Commandments are pretty
straightforward. The Lord God says, “You shall have no other gods before Me.
You shall not make for yourself an idol, or any likeness of what is in heaven above
or on the earth beneath or the water under the earth. You shall not worship
them or serve them” (Ex 20:3-4). It is easy to think that idolatry is an issue
that humanity has outgrown. Many of us do not regularly encounter temples or
shrines where devotees make sacrifices and offerings as acts of worship before
a statue. We might be tempted to think that higher education, sociological
changes, and even perhaps intellectual evolution have rendered idolatry
obsolete. If we have the privilege to travel the world or get to know people
who come from other parts of the world, however, we will quickly realize that
idolatry in its most overt forms is still prevalent today. Moreover, there are
subtler forms of idolatry that are even more ubiquitous, perhaps even taking
place unwittingly in our lives. That is how subtle idolatry is.
In our text today, the sin of idolatry is the primary focus.
The context of this portion of Habakkuk has been dealing with the impending
judgment on Babylon .
Four pronouncements of “Woe” have been issued to this point for a variety of
transgressions. And now we come to the final one, but it is actually a root
cause of the others. Why has Babylon
pillaged, plundered, enslaved, and killed so many people? They are idolaters. As
Roberston writes, “Because their religious orientation was wrong, their moral
standards had to be perverted.”[1]
David Prior says similarly, “What we worship affects our choices and our
lifestyles. The Babylonians had chosen idolatry, and their social and national
life bore the inevitable trademarks of their consequent lifestyle.”[2]
Therefore the judgment announced in this passage is well-deserved for the
Babylonians.
However, Habakkuk’s words are not merely for the
Babylonians. They were also for his fellow-countrymen. Had Judah itself
not fallen into rampant idolatry and the sins that flowed out of it, they would
not be facing the Babylonian invasion. God had raised up the Babylonians to
bring judgment on Judah
for its sins. The condemnation against idolatry here in this passage is
intended to rebuke the Jewish idolater who erroneously believes that he will
escape judgment because of his ethnic heritage as a citizen of God’s chosen
nation. But even among the righteous in Judah , there would be a great
temptation, upon seeing the Babylonians swiftly conquer their homeland, to
conclude that the idols of other nations were mightier than the God of Israel. The
words delivered through the prophet here were a stern warning to never turn
aside from the worship of the one true God to idols.
The message is also for us still today, for idolatry can
creep into our lives in little known or least expected ways. Few, if any, of us
would carve statues to worship or go to shrines or temples to make sacrificial
offerings. And yet idols can be found elsewhere in our lives from time to time,
and we need to be able to identify them so that we can be on guard against them
and turn away from them in devotion to the only God who really is.
Before we deal with how to identify the idols in our lives,
let us dive into our text and discover the answer to the question that the
prophet rhetorically poses in verse 18: “What profit is the idol” The short
answer is, “The idol is of absolutely no profit!” So there you go. We can just
have the benediction and be on our way. This could be the shortest sermon I’ve
ever preached. No, rather, we must look at what our text says about why the idol is of no profit. And there
are three reasons set forth.
I. The idol is a powerless god created in the image of the
one who crafts it. (v18)
The Bible tells us that mankind was created in the image of
God. Scholars have debated for centuries what, exactly, this all entails. The
full and detailed meaning of “the image of God” in which we were created will
likely never be understood until we get to heaven, but at a minimum, we can
understand that there are ways in which human beings have been made to be like
the God who made us. Most commonly, it is said that this includes having a
mind, a will, and emotions. It certainly goes beyond this to include the
ability to communicate, the ability to create, and the capacity for
relationships – including a relationship with Him. The image of God also seems
to encompass being God’s representatives in exercising authority in the created
world.
Because of our sinfulness, inherent within us since the fall
of Adam, the image of God in man is distorted, but it is not destroyed. It is
still present, but corrupted. Our mind, will and emotions are disordered and
run contrary to the will of God. We communicate, but often what and how we
communicate is not honoring to God. We create things to serve our own misguided
desires. We abuse authority in self-serving rather than God-serving ways. And
our relationships become theaters of our depravity. This includes our
relationship with God. Rather than worshiping and serving God the creator, we
have an innate tendency to worship and serve the creation. Paul says it this
way in Romans 1, “Professing to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the
glory of the incorruptible God for an image in the form of corruptible man and
of birds and four-footed animals and crawling creatures. … They exchanged the
truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the
Creator, who is blessed forever” (Rom 1:22, 25). We see it in nearly every
culture of the world. Temples
are filled with statues and images of deities who look like men and animals and
are said to possess the power to affect daily life and experience. Rocks and
trees are set apart as sacred and viewed as possessing supernatural powers.
Habakkuk says that all this religious zeal that takes place
around the altars and shrines of idols is completely without profit. It is a
powerless thing that has been crafted by the artistry of men. The word
translated idol in verse 18 refers to
something carved from wood, and the word for image that follows it refers to something made from molten metal.
The idea is that a carver has taken a piece of wood, made it into an image,
covered it with gold or silver, and then set it up as the god he will worship.
How quickly he has forgotten or ignored the fact that it is “his own handiwork.”
Isaiah describes the folly of it. He says that a man plants
a tree and watches it grow, and then he cuts it down. “Half of it he burns in
the fire; over this half he eats meat as he roasts a roast and is satisfied. He
also warms himself and says, ‘Aha! I am warm, I have seen the fire.’ But the
rest of it he makes into a god, his graven image. He falls down before it and
worships; he also prays to it and says, ‘Deliver me, for you are my god’”
(44:16-17). He says that those who do this “do not know, nor do they
understand,” they do not remember, so as to realize, “I have burned half of it
in the fire … Then I make the rest of it into an abomination, I fall down
before a block of wood!” (44:19).
The idolater does not ask, “What does God want for me, or
require of me?” Rather the idolater asks, “What do I want, and what would I
require of a god?” And then he makes that thing, and sets it up to serve his
wants and needs. If he wants money or possessions, he makes an idol of
prosperity. Then he goes and does what he wants to attain that prosperity, and
says, “Well, my god did not tell me not to
do this, or stop me from doing it.” Right! Because this god is powerless. He
was made in the image of its maker. But we were made in the image of our Maker,
and our lives were meant to be lived to serve and worship Him. The idol is of
no profit or value because it is a powerless god which is nothing more than the
handiwork of sinful human beings trying to make a god in their own image and
imagination.
Now, secondly, we see that …
II. The idol is a speechless god deceiving the one who calls
upon it. (vv18-19)
There are some people who are so prone to dishonesty that it
is sometimes said of them, “You can tell they are lying because their lips are
moving.” It would be a terrible thing to have that kind of reputation. Well,
the idol’s lips never move, and yet it always lies. Notice that verse 18 says
that the idol is a teacher of falsehood, and then says idols are “speechless.”
That phrase “speechless idols” at the end of the verse could be just as well
rendered, “dumb dumbies,” in the sense that dumb means unable to speak. But though
they are silent and speechless, they are persuasive communicators. What they
communicate, however, are falsehoods that deceive those who call upon them.
Positioned on an altar or in a place of prominence, the idol
claims to be something it is not. It claims to be a deity and that it is worthy
of worship and service. How can that be, when it is merely the handiwork of a
craftsman? Not only does it claim to be something that it is not, but it also
promises what it cannot deliver. The idolator is deceived into thinking that
the idol is able to meet his or needs, to work and move powerfully on his or
her behalf, to impart wisdom into his or her life. It cannot! It is merely an
inaminate object! It can do none of the above. It claims to be something it is
not, it promises what it cannot deliver, and also it cannot respond to the
prayers it receives. One says to it, “Awake!” and another, “Arise!”, yet
another, “This is our teacher!” But the idol cannot awaken, arise, or teach. It
sits there like a bump on a log, because it is nothing more than a bump on a
log.
Some years ago, I toured a Hindu temple in which the devout
old priest walked us around showing us the gods which are worshiped there. He
even called them idols. One, he said,
was Vishnu – the four armed human figure holding various items in each of his
four hands. Another he said was Shiva – another human figure who wears a cobra
like a necklace. And then his voice began to shake as we came to the statue of
Ganesha – the elephant-headed god. He said, “This is the god that I am most
devoted to.” He described how he began his day. He would enter the temple and
ring the bell to awaken Ganesha from his sleep, and then he would come and
remove the idol from its bed and remove its pajamas. He would then bathe
Ganesha in milk, because, in his words, “Ganesha likes the milk.” Then he would
dress Ganesha in his clean clothes for the day, place him on the altar, and set
before him his breakfast of fruit slices. And then he would prostrate himself
before the idol and pray. Hearing the emotion in his voice, it suddenly dawned
on me that this man was not mindlessly engaging in the rituals of an inherited
tradition. He sincerely believed that
this statue was his god, and he treated him as such. That idol has never, can
never, and will never say a word, but it has deceived this man into thinking
that it is something that it is not. And there are untold multitudes in the
world today who are just as deceived. This includes those who are deceived by
the more subtle, yet equally dangerous forms of idolatry.
We come then to the final reason why the idol is of no
profit …
III. The idol is a lifeless god which condemns the one who
trusts in it. (v19)
By nature, we are trusting people. We want to trust, and
choose where to place our trust based on various reasons. We come into the
world trusting our parents. We tend to trust others whom we know well. We trust
ourselves and our own abilities make important decisions and handle
responsibilities that come our way. We even trust in inanimate objects. For
example, when we apply pressure to the horizontal pedal on the left in the
floorboard of our cars, we trust that
the brakes will engage and bring the car to a stop. But trust can be broken,
leaving us hurting and confused. We want to trust our government officials, but
broken campaign promises and hollow rhetoric leave us puzzled about whether we
can or should. We want to trust the authorities of justice, but injustice
abounds and leaves us feeling as though we cannot. We want to trust those we
love, but past heartbreaks tell us that we need to be careful.
There is, of course, a deeper level of trust reserved for
life’s ultimate hopes and ambitions, and for eternal peace and rest. Whom, or
what, do we trust to deliver upon those things? Do we trust ourselves to create
our own destinies? Do we trust others to create opportunities for us or deliver
us from trouble? When it comes to this deeper level of trust, the Bible is
clear that God, and God alone, is worthy of our trust when it comes to the most
important matters of life. The Psalmist said, “Trust in Him at all times, O
people; Pour out your heart before Him; God is a refuge for us” (62:8). Again,
“You who fear the Lord, trust in the Lord; He is their help and their shield”
(115:11). Isaiah says, “Trust in the Lord forever, for in God the Lord, we have
an everlasting Rock” (26:4). Blessing is promised to the one who so trusts the
Lord: “Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord and whose trust is the Lord”
(Jer 17:7). But when we cease or fail to trust in the Lord in this way, we do
not suddenly find ourselves trusting no one or nothing. Instead, we begin to
trust other things, maybe anything, perhaps everything, but always the wrong
thing.
The Bible speaks of those who trust in riches (Prov 11:28);
powerful people (Psa 146:3; Jer 17:5); human strength and power (Psa 20:7);
beauty (Ezk 16:15); their own hearts and minds (Prov 28:26; 3:5); and even in
evil (Isa 30:12).[3] And then
there are those who trust in objects of their own making to do for them what
only God can do. And anytime we trust in anyone or anything to do for us what
God alone can do, we have entered into idolatry. As one scholar writes,
“Idolatry is essentially the worship of that which we make, rather than of our
Maker. And that which we make may be found in our possessions, a home, a
career, an ambition, a family, or a multitude of other people or things. We
‘worship’ them when they become the focal point of our lives, that for which we
live. And as the goal and centre of human existence, they are as foolish as any
wooden idol or metal image.”[4]
This is why verse 19 says that the idol has “no breath at
all inside of it.” The Hebrew word for “breath” here is the word ruach. It is an interesting word that
can be translated as breath, life, or spirit. Often, it means all three, as it
does here. Though the idol has been skillfully crafted, and overlaid with gold
and silver, it has no spirit within it. It cannot breathe. It possesses no
life. It is a dead thing. No matter what one trusts ultimately for life, death,
and eternity, if it is not the Lord and Him alone, it is a dead thing. It has
no life in itself and cannot impart life. The only thing it is able to do is
condemn the one who trusts in it.
We begin to see now the danger of trusting in idols.
Idolatry renders unto something or someone which is not God that level of
devotion, of worship, of service of which God alone is worthy, even as it
ascribes unto the idol the ability to do what God alone can do. It is an affront
of the greatest severity to God, because it says to Him essentially, “You are
not worthy of my worship, my devotion, and my service, because You cannot or
will not do for me what I wish; therefore I will devote myself to the service
and adoration of this other thing.” Is it any wonder then that the
pronouncement of “Woe!” is given?
This word “woe” is at one and the same time a word of lament
and a word of condemnation. It is a word of lament because it expresses pity
upon the one cries out in vain for something other than God to do for it what
only God can do. It is also a word of lament and pity because of the judgment
that is coming for that one. “Woe” is a word of warning saying that one is
falling under the judgment and condemnation of God. Because of the grievous
rebellion and spiritual anarchy of idolatry, no one who trusts in idols can
expect to find salvation and acceptance before the God who commands us to trust
in Him alone. As the original NIV translates Jonah 2:8, “Those who cling to
worthless idols forfeit the grace that could be theirs.” The lifeless idol has
condemned the one who trusted in it.
Now that we understand the severity of idolatry, and the
reasons why the idol is of no profit, we need to go on a search and destroy
mission to identify and uproot the idols in our lives. The overt forms of
idolatry are obvious. We know that graven images, be they statues, pictures,
“good luck charms,” magical objects, etc. are not to be trusted, worshiped, or
served. And few of us here today would knowingly do so. But we are all prone to
fall prey to life’s more subtle forms of idolatry. To discover, there are texts
and there are tests.
The texts are found in the New Testament. For example in 1
Corinthians, the Apostle Paul speaks of human beings in whom the Corinthian
Christians have placed far too much trust. The Corinthians are saying to one
another, “I am of Paul,” and “I of Apollos,” and “I of Cephas,” and “I of
Christ” (1:12). Paul says, “Has Christ been divided? Paul was not crucified for
you, was he? Or were you baptized in the name of Paul?” (1:13). Friends,
whether it is a favorite pastor or preacher (as was the case with the
Corinthians), or a loved one such as a parent, grandparent, spouse, child, or
dear friend, we must see to it that our devotion and affection to that one does
not rival the affection and devotion of which only God-in-Christ is worthy. I
cannot save you, but I can point you to the Savior who can. It is Christ and
Him alone. Your parents or grandparents may have been great Christians, and by
their faith in Christ, they will be saved. But by their faith in Christ, you
cannot be saved. You must have your own!
Another text is Philippians 3:19, where Paul denounces those
“whose god is their appetite.” I prefer the King James here, which says that
their god “is their belly.” I always like to bring this one up as we get closer
to lunchtime to make the people who are squirming with anticipation of getting
out of church quickly feel awkward. I say that tongue in cheek, but it does
illustrate Paul’s point. He is not talking about eating exclusively, but the
sensate desires of our lives. He is speaking of the one whose life has become
consumed with satisfying those desires of his natural flesh, be they food or
drink, companionship, pleasure, possessions, etc. If one would disobey the word
and will of God to satisfy a desire in one’s life, then that desire has become
an idol. A related text is Colossians 3:5, in which Paul says that greed (or
covetousness) “amounts to idolatry.” The thing which I want so badly that I
would turn away from God in order to possess it is my idol. If I attain it, it
will not satisfy me ultimately because it cannot. That desire is in my life to
train me that true satisfaction cannot be found in earthly things, but in
relationship with God alone.
So there are these texts which help us identify our idols,
and then there is a series of practical tests.
(1) The Test of Devotion – What is it that you love more
than anything else in life?
(2) The Test of Dependence – In whom, or in what, do you
ultimately trust? That is, what or whom do you trust to carry you through life
and death, to deliver you from trouble both now and in eternity? To whom or to
what do you turn when trouble arises?
(3) The Test of Delight – What gives you the most pleasure
and satisfaction?
(4) The Test of Decision – When there is an important
decision to make, what or who guides you?
(5) The Test of Desire – What is it that you long for more
than anything, the thing of which you would say, “If I only had that, my life would be complete”?
(6) The Test of Disaster – What are you most afraid of
losing in your life? What is it which, if destroyed, would make you feel that
life was no longer worth living?
(7) The Test of Destiny – Supposing that you had the
assurance of life everlasting in heaven, what is it that you most look forward
to once you are there? In other words, “If I cannot have ____________ in
heaven, then I do not want to go.”[5]
Friends, if the answer to any of those questions is
something other than God, then you have discovered your idol. God alone must be
the object of our highest devotion, the ground of our foundational trust, and
the source of our utmost satisfaction. He alone is a sure and certain guide
through life’s difficulties and decisions. He alone can make our lives complete
in a personal relationship with Him. He alone must be what we long for most of
all in heaven. If heaven meant having anything and everything else besides Him,
then it would not be heaven at all. To have heaven is to have Him, and to have
Him is to know that we have heaven as well. And the best news is that if we
have Him, we can never lose Him, nor will He lose us. If we have God and lose
all else, then we have not lost anything. If we have everything and do not have
God, then we will lose all either in life or death.
In contrast to the idol which cannot speak, which cannot
breathe or impart life, which only deceives and condemns the one who trusts in
it, we have a God who is alive, who does speak, who is able to teach us truth,
and who can save those who call upon Him. Thus the prophet says in verse 20,
“But the Lord is in His holy temple. Let all the earth be silent before Him.” Wiersbe
says, “Instead of talking to a silent idol, we have a speaking God who tells us
to be silent.”[6] Habakkuk
understood that he was included in the summons to silence. All his
speculations, all his questions and complaints, and even his repeated prayers
to God about the troubles of his day must cease as he bows before the throne of
heaven, from which God speaks with a voice that drowns out all others. Unlike
the idols who have no life, breath, or spirit within them, God imparts to us
His word, breathed out into the inspired pages of Scripture telling us to turn
away from our idols and entrust ourselves to Him, to worship Him, and to serve
Him. And this divine and eternal Word of God became one of us to die for our
rebellious idolatry and receive in Himself all of the woes that are due to us
in the condemnation of righteous judgment. In contrast to the idol who has no
life, Jesus lived our life for us and laid His life down to save us. And where
the idol is powerless to save anyone, Jesus is mighty to save everyone who
turns away from vain idols and casts themselves upon His mercy. If you will
silence yourself before Him, you can hear Him saying, “A righteous God and a
Savior; there is none except Me. Turn to Me and be saved, all the ends of the
earth; for I am God, and there is no other” (Isa 45:22).
[1] O.
Palmer Robertson, The Books of Nahum, Habakkuk, and Zephaniah (New
International Commentary on the Old Testament; Grand Rapids: Eerdmans,
1990), 207.
[2] David
Prior, The Message of Joel, Micah & Habakkuk (The Bible Speaks
Today; Downers Grove, Ill.: InterVarsity, 1998), 257.
[3] Waylon
Bailey, “Habakkuk,” in Kenneth L. Barker and Waylon Bailey, Micah, Nahum,
Habakkuk, Zephaniah (New American Commentary, vol. 20; Nashville: Broadman
& Holman, 1998), 347.
[4] Peter C.
Craigie, cited in Prior, 259.
[5] This
list is adapted from Warren Wiersbe, From
Worry to Worship (Lincoln ,
Neb.
[6] Wiersbe,
93.
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