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THOU SHALT MAKE THEE NO MOLTEN GODS
by Pastor Jeromy John Visser
(Introduction:)
Brothers and sisters, in this morning's study we'll be expanding upon a commandment given to us by Yahweh through His servant Moses that's found in Exodus 34:17 -- "Thou Shalt Make Thee No Molten gods." We will also take a deeper look at the ten plagues that Yahweh sent upon Egypt and I hope to prove that this was not only an attack on Pharaoh's kingdom and his unruly people but also an outright attack on their false gods directly.
My friends, these lower-case 'gods' are an important enough issue to Yahweh that His first commandment to us was "Thou shalt have no other gods before me (Exodus 20:3)." The Bible also teaches us "God standeth in the congregation of the mighty; he judgeth among the gods (Psalm 82:1)" and Paul taught "Howbeit then, when ye knew not God, ye did service unto them which by nature are no gods (Galatians 4:8)." False gods are a very serious matter that are beginning to exist more and more all over the world, especially in the United States of America where almost every 'new god' is accepted and tolerated by the government.
Surprisingly, most of Christianity denies the existence of these 'other gods' mostly due to false teachings about "The Lord our God is one." It seems that the enemy will stop at nothing to hide the clear-cut teachings of the Bible and would rather devote large amounts of resources into promoting the false doctrine that 'ALL gods are one.' As of late, I've seen increased activity in this so-called 'train of thought' and just this week I heard another pastor teaching that Buddha, Allah and the Israel God were all the same entity. He continued to justify the entire teaching by stating that "Allah means 'god' in their language" as if the title 'God' is the very name of Yahweh Himself. I say that this type of thinking is a damnable doctrine endorsed by Satan.
Take your Bibles and turn with me this morning to Exodus, chapter 34. It says starting at verse 14; "For thou shalt worship no other god: for Yahweh, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God: Lest thou make a covenant with the inhabitants of the land, and they go a whoring after their gods, and do sacrifice unto their gods, and one call thee, and thou eat of his sacrifice; And thou take of their daughters unto thy sons, and their daughters go a whoring after their gods, and make thy sons go a whoring after their gods. Thou shalt make thee no molten gods (Exodus 34:14-17)."
This is a strict commandment repeated by Yahweh throughout most of the Old Testament and also re-affirmed in several places throughout the New Testament like when Paul teaches "For though there be that are called gods, whether in heaven or in earth, as there be gods many, and lords many (1 Corinthians 8:5)." Having the ability to discern 'the true from false' as Christians is essential for the proper service of Yahweh and as this study will show -- many of these same 'lesser gods' still exist today and still have devoted followings, especially among the pagan circles. One will only need to do a little research into the numerous counterfeit gods I'm about to mention if they need further proof of this fact.
Those familiar with our mighty King Solomon might even recall that in all his wisdom he "did evil in the sight of Yahweh, and went not fully after the Yahweh, as David his father (1 Kings 11:6)." How could this happen? The answer is in this same book so just start reading the account at the beginning of the chapter; "But king Solomon loved many strange women, together with the daughter of Pharaoh, women of the Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Zidonians, and Hittites; Of the nations concerning which Yahweh said unto the children of Israel, Ye shall not go in to them, neither shall they come in unto you: for surely they will turn away your heart after their gods: Solomon clave unto these in love. And he had seven hundred wives, princesses, and three hundred concubines: and his wives turned away his heart. For it came to pass, when Solomon was old, that his wives turned away his heart after other gods: and his heart was not perfect with Yahweh his God, as the heart of David his father. For Solomon went after Ashtoreth the goddess of the Zidonians, and after Milcom the abomination of the Ammonites."
We'll address these individual deities a little later in the year but for now catch that it was Solomon's love of 'strange woman' that eventually lead his heart to worship the false gods Ashtoreth and Milcom. This word 'strange' comes from the Hebrew word nokrîy (pronounced nok-ree') and it literally means "alien, foreigner or different (Strong's #H5237)." King Solomon himself would later teach "For a whore is a deep ditch; and a strange woman is a narrow pit (Proverbs 23:27)" for ignoring Yahweh's plain teaching of "Thou shalt make no covenant with them, nor with their gods (Exodus 23:32)." Solomon also says of the 'strange' woman: "her end is bitter as wormwood, sharp as a twoedged sword. Her feet go down to death; her steps take hold on hell (Proverbs 5:4-5)."
That being said, it's very much a Biblical teaching that embracing the 'strange' or 'foreign' will eventually lead a person towards also serving 'strange' and 'foreign' gods. This aspect is apparent in so many parts of the world that have accepted numerous 'new age religions' and soon end up teaching their unarmed followers 'strange doctrines (Hebrews 13:9).' One should also be able to see that this is yet another clear-cut warning against forbidden miscegenation and mixing which provokes Yahweh to wrath for this very reason. "Ye cannot serve God and mammon (Matthew 6:24)."
I'd like to expand on how these particular molten gods came to be with us before we focus on them directly. Turn in your Bibles over to Psalm 95:3 and it says "For Yahweh is a great God, and a great King above all gods." As I've already stated, the first commandment alone is proof of these false gods' existence but did you ever stop to wonder how they came to be in the first place? The key is found back in the Garden of Eden when Satan lies to Eve by saying "For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil (Genesis 3:5)."
Indeed, this is the age-old battle of man wanting to be gods rather than following Yahweh the Most High. The Word teaches us that it is 'man's hands' that fashion these 'false gods of silver and gold' like this verse found in Isaiah 37:19; "for they were no gods, but the work of men's hands" and another -- "ye shall serve gods, the work of men's hands, wood and stone, which neither see, nor hear, nor eat, nor smell (Deuteronomy 4:28)." It should be rather obvious thus far that these molten or 'metal' gods are produced by wicked men but thank goodness Yahweh rules over them all and is complete control.
I'm certain most of my congregation has heard the term 'God of gods' before. This is one more description of our King and this term is nestled in various places in the Bible. In Deuteronomy 10:17 it says "For Yahweh your God is God of gods, and Lord of lords, a great God, a mighty, and a terrible, which regardeth not persons, nor taketh reward" and in Daniel 11:36 it expands "he shall exalt himself, and magnify himself above every god, and shall speak marvellous things against the God of gods."
It should go without saying that Yahweh is the omnipotent Creator in charge of all things but I'd just like to share one more passage of scripture to further drive home the two points I've already made so far. Turn with me to Psalm 82 and read the first two verses; "God standeth in the congregation of the mighty; he judgeth among the gods. How long will ye judge unjustly, and accept the persons of the wicked?" Again, Yahweh is 'God of gods' and these very gods exist because we 'accept the persons of the wicked.'
As I stated a few moments ago, each of the ten plagues that Yahweh sent into Egypt was not only an attack on the heart-hearted Pharaoh and his kingdom but a strike at their many false gods. In Exodus 12:12 we read "For I will pass through the land of Egypt this night, and will smite all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and against all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgment: I am Yahweh." I will attempt to show you which 'dumb god' each part of the ten plagues represented.
The very first plague sent by Yahweh through Moses was 'blood.' Exodus 7:17-18 reads "Thus saith Yahweh, In this thou shalt know that I am Yahweh: behold, I will smite with the rod that is in mine hand upon the waters which are in the river, and they shall be turned to blood. And the fish that is in the river shall die, and the river shall stink; and the Egyptians shall lothe to drink of the water of the river."
This was a blatant attack on Hap (aka: Hapi), the god of the Nile who is associated with Osiris and fertility worship. This false idol is always depicted in the form of a man, but his breasts are those of a women and are intended to indicate the powers of fertility and nourishment that he supposedly possessed. Two other bogus deities related to the River Nile are Amon and Khnum who was also considered the 'guardian' of the Nile.
The next plague that Yahweh sent into Egypt was frogs. In Exodus 8:2-3 we discover "If thou refuse to let them go, behold, I will smite all thy borders with frogs: And the river shall bring forth frogs abundantly, which shall go up and come into thine house, and into thy bedchamber, and upon thy bed, and into the house of thy servants, and upon thy people, and into thine ovens, and into thy kneadingtroughs."
Here we find a direct strike on Heka (aka: Heqt) the toad goddess and wife of another false god known as Knepfh (aka: Khnum). She was considered goddess of land, resurrection and of procreative power and because of her the ancient Egyptians considered frogs and toads sacred and the harm of these reptiles was supposedly punished by torture and eventual death. She is represented as a human female with a frog's head.
The third plague sent by Yahweh was annoying gnat-lice. We read in Exodus 8:16-17; "And Yahweh said unto Moses, Say unto Aaron, Stretch out thy rod, and smite the dust of the land, that it may become lice throughout all the land of Egypt. And they did so; for Aaron stretched out his hand with his rod, and smote the dust of the earth, and it became lice in man, and in beast; all the dust of the land became lice throughout all the land of Egypt."
This plague was sent against Geb 'the exalted cackler' who was the Egyptian god of earth and vegetation. Egyptians of old believed Geb to be the father of Isis, Osiris and Seth (aka: Set) and husband of another false deity -- the 'sky goddess' known as Nut. This worthless god is represented by a human body covered with assorted foliage and a goose's head, hence the nickname of 'great cackler.' Egypt has lots of these fictitious gods as you'll soon see.
Following that, Yahweh sent in flies as we read in Exodus 8:21; "If thou wilt not let my people go, behold, I will send swarms of flies upon thee, and upon thy servants, and upon thy people, and into thy houses: and the houses of the Egyptians shall be full of swarms, and also the ground whereon they are. And I will sever in that day the land of Goshen, in which my people dwell, that no swarms of flies shall be there; to the end thou mayest know that I am Yahweh in the midst of the earth."
These 'swarms' were groups of various insects as we discover in Psalm 78:45 which reads "He sent divers sorts of flies among them, which devoured them; and frogs, which destroyed them." John Wesley's Explanatory Notes says "Flies - Or insects of various kinds; not only flies, but gnats, wasps, hornets; and those probably more pernicious than the common ones were." Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible reads "Swarms of flies - Generally, supposed to be the dog-fly, which at certain seasons is described as a plague far worse than mosquitos. Others, however, adopt the opinion that the insects were a species of beetle, which was reverenced by the Egyptians as a symbol of life, of reproductive or creative power. The sun-god, as creator, bore the name Chepera, and is represented in the form, or with the head, of a beetle."
The fifth attack on Pharaoh and his false Egyptian gods is found in Exodus 9:3; "Behold, the hand of Yahweh is upon thy cattle which is in the field, upon the horses, upon the asses, upon the camels, upon the oxen, and upon the sheep: there shall be a very grievous murrain." This word 'murrain' is from the Hebrew word deber and is translated as 'pestilence' forty-seven times throughout the Bible. Brown-Driver-Briggs' Hebrew Definitions explains it as "cattle disease or cattle-plague." Anthrax, anyone?
Anyway, this attack by Yahweh was directed towards Apis 'the bull god.' His counterpart was Hathor, the cow goddess. Their place of worship was at On (Heliopolis). The Egyptians also worshipped the lion, wolf, dog, cat, ape, and goat in the form of false idols but the ox, heifer, and ram (Khnum) were considered the most sacred. Supposedly, the soul of Osiris dwelled inside of Apis and he's the very 'molten calf' that impatient Israelites persuaded Aaron to fashion while Yahweh was giving Moses the Law.
The sixth plague from Yahweh on Egypt is found in Exodus 9:8; "And Yahweh said unto Moses and unto Aaron, Take to you handfuls of ashes of the furnace, and let Moses sprinkle it toward the heaven in the sight of Pharaoh. And it shall become small dust in all the land of Egypt, and shall be a boil breaking forth with blains upon man, and upon beast, throughout all the land of Egypt."
This was an attack on Thoth (Imhotep) 'the god of medicine' and wisdom. The Egyptians had several medical deities, to whom, on special occasions, they sacrificed choice Israelite slaves. They were burned alive on a high altar and their ashes were cast into the air that with every scattered ash a blessing might descend upon the people. Moses took these same ashes and scattered them upon all the priests, people, and beasts causing boils, thus shaming the god Thoth. This event is afterwards called 'the botch of Egypt' (Deuteronomy 28:27), as if it were some new disease and never heard of before that time.
Yahweh's seventh attack on Pharaoh and his false gods is found in Exodus 9:18-19 and it reads "Behold, to morrow about this time I will cause it to rain a very grievous hail, such as hath not been in Egypt since the foundation thereof even until now. Send therefore now, gather thy cattle, and all that thou hast in the field; for upon every man and beast which shall be found in the field, and shall not be brought home, the hail shall come down upon them, and they shall die."
This was an attack on Nut 'the sky goddess.' She was shown in Egyptian artwork as a dark, star-covered naked woman, holding her body up in an arch, facing downwards. Her arms and legs were imagined to be the pillars of the sky, and hands and feet were thought to touch the four cardinal points at the horizon. Under her feet lay the earthen god Geb 'the exalted cackler.' This could also be considered an attack on Isis, goddess of life or Seth, protector of crops.
After Yahweh sent in hailstones He sent in another plague as we read in Exodus 10:4 -- "Else, if thou refuse to let my people go, behold, to morrow will I bring the locusts into thy coast: And they shall cover the face of the earth, that one cannot be able to see the earth: and they shall eat the residue of that which is escaped, which remaineth unto you from the hail, and shall eat every tree which groweth for you out of the field."
This attack was centered on Anubis, who was the 'god of the fields and cemeteries.' He is depicted as a man with the head of a jackal-like animal but unlike a real jackal, Anubis' head is black, representing his position as a god of the dead. He is rarely shown fully-human, but he is depicted as such in the Temple of Abydos of Rameses II himself. This plague adds insult to injury and destroys everything else that the hail had missed so it could also be considered an assault on Isis or Seth.
Before His final attack on the firstborn of Egypt, Yahweh sends another plague as found in Exodus 10:21-23; "And Yahweh said unto Moses, Stretch out thine hand toward heaven, that there may be darkness over the land of Egypt, even darkness which may be felt. And Moses stretched forth his hand toward heaven; and there was a thick darkness in all the land of Egypt three days: They saw not one another, neither rose any from his place for three days: but all the children of Israel had light in their dwellings." Who had the light?
This was an attack on Ra (or Amon-Re) 'the sun god' and so-called physical father of all Pharaohs. He was considered by Egyptians to be self-created, the creator of all and he is often pictured as a hawk or as a hawk-headed man with a solar disk encircled by a cobra over his head. This final warning by Yahweh was completely against Pharaoh's lead god and didn't effect the Israelites who had Jesus as their 'light' and were 'passed over.'
The final attack by Yahweh is found in Exodus 11:4-7; "Thus saith Yahweh, About midnight will I go out into the midst of Egypt: And all the firstborn in the land of Egypt shall die, from the firstborn of Pharaoh that sitteth upon his throne, even unto the firstborn of the maidservant that is behind the mill; and all the firstborn of beasts. And there shall be a great cry throughout all the land of Egypt, such as there was none like it, nor shall be like it any more. But against any of the children of Israel shall not a dog move his tongue, against man or beast: that ye may know how that Yahweh doth put a difference between the Egyptians and Israel."
This was an attack on Pharaoh 'the god-king' himself. Pharaoh was not only considered a king by Egyptians but was worshipped as a god supposedly being an incarnation of Ra 'the sun god' and Osiris 'the giver of life.' Because Pharaoh’s son was also considered a lower-case god, an actual living 'god' of Egypt died as a result of this plague. This was also the start of the Christian Passover and the beginning of the actual exodus from Egypt's false gods and hard bondage into 'the promised land.'
(Intention:)
My intention with this particular sermon is really to prove that these false gods exist around us. Many people forget that these 'strange gods' are fashioned by man from "gold, and of silver, of brass, of iron, of wood, and of stone (Daniel 5:4)" and "the gods of the people are idols (1 Chronicles 16:26)." As such, anything that we spend more time with than Yahweh can run a major risk of becoming an idol. Cars are made of metal, houses are made of wood and jewelry is made from gold and silver so let's do our best to always put Yahweh at the center of our efforts.
I also wanted to point out that Pharaoh is an earthly example or representative of Satan and it was Yahweh that hardened his heart throughout these ten attacks to "multiply His signs and wonders in the land of Egypt (Exodus 7:3)." We have a second witness in the epistle of Paul to the Romans where he says; "For the scripture saith unto Pharaoh, Even for this same purpose have I raised thee up, that I might shew my power in thee, and that my name might be declared throughout all the earth (9:17)." Pharaoh didn't have any choice in the matter being 'a chosen vessel of dishonor' unto Yahweh but fortunately we do. "To day if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts (Hebrews 4:17)." It is the foolish man that wars against Yah or denies His existence but it's also a deceptively-called 'educated thought process' that is rampant among today's liberal snakes.
It's my prayer that Jesus Christ will use this morning's teaching to bless you with wisdom and it's my sincere wish that each of us will re-evaluate our lives with an honest heart and ask ourselves if we're doing all that we can to further Yahweh's kingdom here on earth. If not, maybe we need to remove some of our own 'false idols' to better serve Him.
[ Sunday,
March 6th,
2005 ]
Last Page Update:
February 08, 2006
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