Graven Images:

Confounded be all they that serve graven images, that boast themselves of idols: worship him, all ye gods. Psalm 97:7. confounded be the idolaters. Let them be ashamed. Let them be disappointed. Let them learn that their idols are not real gods. May their boasting be in vain. The heathen had their idols, but the people of God at times have also drifted into idolatry. The Israelites once made a golden calf and said, “These are thy gods, O Israel, which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt” (Exodus 32:8. Of course, they knew the golden calf which could not walk did not bring them out of Egypt. So the calf was only a symbol of deity, which constituted idolatry. Then why did the people resort to image-making? Because they wanted a concrete manifestation of an invisible being. Man thinks it is difficult to remain close to a being he cannot see with the naked eye, so he creates some symbol to represent the being. But this is not needed, for our relationship to God is one of faith, not by sight (2 Cor. 5:7). The Ten Commandants forbid the making and worshiping of images: “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: thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them. Exodus 20:4,5. (A Psalm In My Heart)