But as we shall see, more is involved in this commandment than a simple prohibition of what we might call gross idolatry. THE TEXT These are the statutes and judgments, which ye shall observe to do in the land, which the Lord God of thy fathers giveth thee to possess it, all the days that ye live upon the earth . . . ALL YOUR DAYS God is never to be worshiped apart from His Word. The pagan nations inhabiting Canaan worship their gods on the mountains, on the hills, and under luxuriant trees. Specifically, altars are to be thrown down, along with the sacred stone pillars.
Nothing is to be donated to the British museum.
There are two issues here. One can break the first and second commandments together, or one can break the second commandment by itself. In the latter case, the true God is worshiped through a lying image. We must be careful here. God s name makes a place holy, and not the other way around.