The Second Word: The Image of the LORD

Please turn with me in your Bibles to Exodus chapter 20.

Exodus 20 · chapter mention

We're going through a series in the book of Exodus,

and we're slowing down in Exodus chapter 20

Exodus 20 · chapter mention

to take 10 weeks to go through the Ten Commandments.

We're on the second commandment today.

I am going to preach on verses 4 to 6,

because we preached on verses 1 to 3 last week,

but I'm going to read from verses 1 to 6.

You get the context of the verses.

Let me pray for the reading and preaching of God's Word.

Heavenly Father, Your Word is precious to us.

It is more precious to us than refined gold,

because in Your Word, You have revealed Yourself to us,

because in Your Word, we encounter Jesus, our Savior,

who makes us wise for salvation.

Because in Your Word, we have life.

We find Your truth.

So we ask again that You would speak to us this morning.

We humble ourselves before You.

In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.

If you would please stand with me, if you are able,

for the reading of God's Word.

Exodus chapter 20, verses 1 through 6.

Exodus 20:1–6

And God spoke all these words, saying,

I am the Lord, your God,

who brought you out of the land of Egypt,

out of the house of slavery.

You shall have no other gods before me.

You shall not make for yourself a carved 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.

You shall not bow down to them or serve them,

for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God,

visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children

to the third and the fourth generation of those who hate me,

but showing steadfast love to thousands

of those who love me and keep my commandments.

This is God's holy and authoritative Word.

Please be seated.

The saying, a picture is worth a thousand words,

is said to have emerged in the U.S.

sometime in the 20th century in the advertising industry,

pointing out the fact that a single image

can convey multiple ideas at once.

We gravitate toward images,

and images tend to leave indelible marks on our minds.

If you read a novel, for example,

and then you watch a movie version of it,

when you go back to read the novel,

you can't help but conjure up those images

that you've seen in the movies,

no matter how inaccurate they may be

and no matter how unfaithful they may be

to the actual text.

I'm sure many of you can relate to the experience

of seeing images that you wish you could unsee,

whether it's a graphic image that inflames your lust

or a dark, frightening image that gives you nightmares

when sleeping.

And because these images are powerful,

they can also be very dangerous.

They can hijack our imaginations

and control our thinking about people and things.

Images can be very misleading.

Many pictures taken at unfortunate moments

out of context have cost people their jobs and reputations.

Conversely, many airbrushed and carefully crafted images

have shaped perceptions of people

that are far from the reality.

The second word of the Ten Commandments

addresses these concerns about images.

It teaches us that rather than making

and worshipping images of creatures,

we are to worship the word of God,

Jesus Christ,

who is the image of the invisible God.

So first, we're going to look at the command,

the images of creatures,

and the motivation to obey this command,

the jealousy of God.

And third, we're going to see the fulfillment

of this command in the image of God,

Jesus Christ.

It says in verses 4 to 5,

you shall not make for yourself a carved 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.

You shall not bow down to them or serve them.

So this is referring to kind of three divisions

of the visible created world in Genesis 1.

The heavens where the birds rule,

the ground where the livestock and the animals rule

and the humans ultimately rule

and the waters below where the fish rule.

And so he's in this command

including all of God's creation,

all created beings.

You are not to make images of them.

However, that doesn't mean that

you need to go and burn your painting of the dog,

of your dog,

or that Michelangelo was an idolater

for making his famous sculpture of David.

The second commandment does not bar

all painting sculptures in stained glass windows

depicting animals and humans.

The Bible is not anti-art.

In fact, later in Exodus 31,

the Lord commissions,

he gifts and commissions Bezalel and Oholiab

to create art inside the tabernacle,

including weaving drawings of the cherubim,

the angels, into the curtains

and making sculptures of cherubim

with their wings spread over the Ark of the Covenant.

Not only that,

in Numbers 21, 6-9,

when fiery serpents were killing the Israelites

due to their rebelling against the Lord,

God himself commanded Moses

to create a bronze serpent,

make it,

and to set it on a pole

so that people might look upon it

and be healed.

So it was a memorial,

and it was kept as a memorial for God's people.

So it's not that all images are forbidden.

The connection is in verse 5,

because verse 4 is joined to verse 5.

It says,

You shall not bow down to them

or serve them.

The point is that

we must not make any image

of anything or anyone

for the purpose of worshipping them.

That is why later in 2 Kings 18, verse 4,

2 Kings 18:4

when the Israelites start making offerings

to the very bronze serpent

that God had commanded Moses to make,

King Hezekiah rightly smashes it into pieces

to stop the idolatry.

Unfortunately,

this has been an all-too-common practice

in human history.

The heavens and the earth

and the waters each have great creatures

that have amazed human beings

throughout history,

and they have been tempted to worship them.

For example,

if we were to behold the Andean condor,

the largest bird of prey on earth,

spreading out its majestic wings

up to 10 feet 9 inches long

and defying gravity

and soaring as high as

18,000 feet in the heavens

with the Andean mountains

on the backdrop,

imagine that awe-inspiring sight.

It was so inspiring

that the ancient Andean civilizations

in South America

associated the Andean condor

with their sun god

and believed that it ruled

the upper world.

If we were to behold

the African savannah elephant

weighing a whopping 24,000 pounds

and standing over 13 feet tall

and every time it walks,

it's shaking the ground

and that rumble spreads

to four miles away,

we would marvel at it.

So maybe it's not surprising

that many cultures

worshipped gods

and represented gods

as elephants.

Hindu cosmology

says that the earth

is propped up

by mythical world elephants

and Ganesha,

the elephant god,

is one of the most popular gods

in the Hindu pantheon.

If you were to behold

a southern humpback whale,

which can weigh

nearly 200,000 pounds

and stretch nearly 60 feet high

or 60 feet in length,

and then it could still

haul its great body

above the water

and breach the surface

of the Pacific Ocean,

you would stand amazed.

Perhaps that's why

it's used as a representation

of Tangaroa,

the sea god

that controls the tides

and the mythology

of the Maori people

in New Zealand.

Similarly,

the foreign gods

we encounter

in the Old Testament

in Egypt and Canaan

are often associated

with some aspect

of creation

and worship

as some creature,

including Anubis,

a jackal,

Horus,

a falcon,

Pharaoh,

a serpent,

Baal,

a bull or ram,

Dagon,

a fish,

Asherah,

a woman.

That reminds us

that human beings

are also merely creatures

whose images

we must not create

for worship.

We might think

that we're no longer

susceptible

to the worship

of creatures,

but in truth,

we are.

There are people

whose rooms

are filled

with posters,

cards,

and other images

of sports stars,

athletes,

and they spend

hundreds of thousands

of dollars

to collect memorabilia

connected to them.

And they pay thousands

of dollars

to go to all their games,

and after they're inducted

to the Hall of Fame,

they go to Springfield

or Cooperstown

or Canton,

and they literally

go pay homage.

That's what they call it.

Before the bust

or the statue

of the athlete.

Sometimes star athletes

are treated like demigods

of Greek mythology

like Hercules

or Achilles.

I recently saw the trailer

of the movie Elvis.

Have you guys seen that?

I don't know if it's good

because I haven't seen it.

And he's singing

and, you know,

prancing around the stage

and he is playing guitar

and he's singing

and the crowds

are screaming

at the top of their logs

and stretching their arms

to try to reach him

and women are literally

swooning in front of him

and falling.

And it's been over 45 years

since Elvis' death.

But still,

to this day,

thousands of Elvis fans

make what they call

the pilgrimage

to Graceland

every year

to pay tribute to him.

They hold a candlelight

vigil service

at his gravesite,

which looks a lot like

a worship service.

And there's an American

music journalist

named Robert Christgau

who says this about Elvis.

He says,

I know he invented

rock and roll

in a manner of speaking,

but that's not why

he is worshipped

as a god today.

He is worshipped

as a god today

because in addition

to inventing rock and roll,

he was the greatest

ballad singer

this side of Frank Sinatra

because the spiritual

translucence

and reigned in-gut sexuality

of his slow weeper

and torchy pop blues

still activate

the hormones

and slavish devotion

of millions of female

human beings worldwide.

Justin Bieber

Why are you guys laughing?

Has 114.1 million

Twitter followers.

That's more number

of followers

than adherents

of Judaism

worldwide.

And they call themselves

believers.

And some of the more

extreme believers

send death threats

to anyone who dares

to harm Justin Bieber

or criticize him

or refuse to give him

a Grammy.

Korean pop boy bands

and girl bands

are literally known as

idols.

And if you consider

BTS' fanatic fan base,

I think that's an apt description.

So this kind of extreme

celebrity devotion

is so widespread today

that psychiatrists now

actually have an official

term for it.

Celebrity worship syndrome.

CWS.

Which is an obsessive

addictive disorder

where people are

overly invested in the

details of celebrities'

personal and professional

life.

But no matter how

impressive or powerful

an animal might be,

no matter how

accomplished

and authoritative

and successful

or even holy

a man or woman

might be,

the inescapable reality

is that they are all

mere creatures.

And therefore,

it is tragic

to worship them.

We ought to stand

in wonder of

and worship

the Creator

who made them

because the marvelous

works in creation

point to God's

eternal power

and divine nature.

The God who created

nature transcends

nature and therefore

cannot be reduced

to things that are

in nature.

Romans 1, 21-25

hits the nail

right on the head

in its description

of sinful humanity.

It says,

For although they knew God,

they did not honor Him

as God

or give thanks to Him,

but they became

futile in their thinking

and their foolish hearts

were darkened.

Claiming to be wise,

they became fools

and exchanged

the glory

of the immortal God

for the images

resembling mortal man

and birds

and animals

and creeping things.

Therefore,

God gave them up

in the lusts

of their hearts

to impurity,

to the dishonoring

of their bodies

among themselves

because they exchanged

the truth about God

for a lie

and worshipped

and served the creature

rather than the Creator

who is blessed forever.

Amen.

Recall how God created

man and woman

in Genesis 1-27.

So God created man

in His own image.

In the image of God,

He created him.

Male and female,

He created them.

If you examine

Egyptian and Assyrian texts

written around the same time

as the book of Genesis,

they speak of idols

and images of gods

being placed inside

the temples of those gods

and they believe

that these images

were actually inhabited

by the deity,

indwelled by the deity.

But in Genesis,

the Lord,

the Eden,

is styled as a temple,

described as a temple,

but He does not create

an idol.

Instead,

He creates image,

His image bearers,

man and woman,

because they are the ones

that are to represent God

to the rest of creation

because they are the ones

that are to lead

the worship of God.

And so for God's image bearers

who are to lead

all creation

in worship

to instead

worship the things

that are in creation,

to bow before

the creatures themselves

is far below our station.

We are created

to worship the creator,

not creatures.

But this commandment

doesn't merely forbid

the worship of false gods.

It also warns us

against worshiping

the true God falsely.

Later in Exodus 32,

during the prolonged

absence of Moses,

the Israelites

hit the panic button

because they don't think

Moses is coming back

and they think

that they've lost

the mediator

between God and them.

And so they make

a golden calf

and worship that idol.

And it's easy for us

to think that

they were forsaking Yahweh

and turning to a false,

different God.

But if you read

the narrative carefully,

you can see that

they're actually setting up

the golden calf

as an image

or representation

of Yahweh.

Here in Exodus 20,

Exodus 20:2

verse 2,

Yahweh says,

I am the Lord

your God

who brought you

out of the land

of Egypt.

But there in Exodus

Exodus 32:4

32, verse 4,

the Israelites say

of the golden calf,

these are your gods,

O Israel,

who brought you up

out of the land

of Egypt.

They're not saying

this is a new God

that you should worship.

They're saying

this is the old God,

Yahweh,

who brought you

out of Egypt.

And then Aaron

builds an altar

right before

the golden calf

and then he proclaims

a feast to Yahweh,

to the Lord.

So the Israelites

are not rewriting history

by saying that

golden calf

and not Yahweh

brought them out

of Egypt.

They're saying

that the golden calf

represents the Lord.

It is the image

of Yahweh.

So that's a violation

of the second commandment.

They created the image

because they thought

that it would keep them

connected to the Lord.

And when they fear

the absence of God

due to the absence

of Moses,

they reduce God

into something

that they can control,

something tangible,

something that they can see.

But ironically,

the creation of the image

is tantamount to idolatry.

So to rub that point in,

Moses describes

the incident in Exodus 32

as if the Israelites

were creating

multiple gods,

even though they're only

creating one golden calf.

They say to themselves,

these are your gods

in the plural.

So they're actually

resorting to polytheism

when they try to create

an idol to represent God.

Because an idol

cannot rightly represent God.

There are several reasons

why images of God

must not be used in worship,

why they cannot rightly

stand for God.

And first reason

is that they always

misrepresent God.

In Deuteronomy 4,

where Moses reiterates

the Ten Commandments,

he says,

since you saw no form

on the day that the Lord

spoke to you at Horeb

out of the midst of the fire,

beware lest you act corruptly

by making a carved image

for yourselves

in the form of any figure.

When God spoke to the Israelites

at Mount Horeb,

he revealed no form

or appearance.

As 1 Timothy 1.17 says,

God is invisible.

Why?

Because as John 4.24 says,

God is spirit.

And those who make images

of the invisible God

are publishing lies about God

because they are representing God

in ways that he has not

himself revealed.

Habakkuk 2.18 puts it pointedly,

What profit is an idol

when its maker has shaped it?

A metal image,

a teacher of lies.

Images we make

can only be lies

that falsely represent God.

The second reason

why images are forbidden

is that they domesticate God.

The nations surrounding Israel

could not conceive a deity

without the aid of images.

So they manufactured idols

and held special rituals

to attract the presence

of the deity to the idol,

to the image,

at which point the God

became accessible to them

and controllable.

Idolatry is an attempt

to tame God

and to confine God.

Images we make

are deaf and dumb.

They cannot speak.

But as we observed

last week from verse 1,

a distinguishing attribute

of the true God

in contrast with

the false gods of the world

is that God speaks.

It's precisely the point

of Deuteronomy 4.12.

It says,

Then the Lord spoke to you

out of the midst of the fire.

You heard the sound of words

but saw no form.

There was only a voice.

God has chosen

to reveal himself

not through a picture,

not through a form,

but through his word.

A carved idol

or a painted image of God's

can be carried

or carried around

and put to the service

of our own agendas.

If you walk into

Asian restaurants

scattered throughout the city,

you will find that many of them

have mini altars

right at the entrance

with little images

and sometimes

with incense burning

as sacrifices to them.

They believe that these gods

will bring many people

to their businesses

and prosper them.

That's the appeal

of these idols.

They are tangible

and therefore

they seem real to people.

They are static.

They are fixed

in time and space.

And because these idols

don't speak to us,

we're not accountable to them.

We don't have to do

anything they say.

Instead,

we can take them around

and set them up

to endorse anything

that we want them to bless.

We can wear them

around our necks

as good luck charms.

We can put them

on our rear view mirrors.

We can put words

into the mouths

of these idols

because they cannot speak.

In contrast,

the Lord is a person

and not an object.

So he speaks to us

unlike the idols

of this world

and he can interrupt

our lives

and he can intervene

in our lives

by speaking to us.

You get to know things

by looking at them

and using them.

You get to know a person

by listening

to what they say.

Images are not

to be used

in the worship of the Lord

because to do so

would violate

God's sovereignty

and freedom.

You cannot

domesticate God.

A domesticated God

is no God at all.

It's important to note

that we can commit

idolatry

even with good images.

For example,

an image of a dove

to represent

the Holy Spirit

or even a cross

to represent

Jesus or crucifix.

If we treat them

not as reminders

of God

but as representations

of God.

If we start to

attach spiritual significance

and weight to them

as if God

were present in them.

If we hang them

on our view of the mirrors

and thinking that

they'll protect us

from accidents

or put them over our beds

thinking that they would

keep us from nightmares

then we're reducing

God to an image

in violation

of the second commandment.

I still remember

several years ago

when we were still

meeting at Kennedy Longfellow

School

during the Lord's Supper

a guest in our church

walked up

to take communion

and then he pulled out

this huge cross necklace

and then he handed it to me

and he said

hey, can you bless this for me?

And that's

it was really awkward

because it was in the middle

of communion

but it also made me

really uncomfortable

because it seemed to me

like he was treating

that pendant

like an amulet

like a good luck charm.

Let me get this thing

blessed by a pastor

now I can carry it around

and it's going to bring me

good luck

it's going to bring

blessings to my life.

And so I told them

hey, I will not bless

your necklace

but I will bless you

and I just

blessed them

personally.

So

there are many ways

we can

and another example

of this

I can't help but think

of the

adoration of the

or veneration of the saints

in some of the denominations.

I think that falls

under the prohibition

of the second commandment.

The catechism

of the Catholic Church

cites Basil

and says

the honor rendered

to an image

passes to its prototype

and whoever

venerates an image

venerates the person

portrayed in it.

It further distinguishes

that the honor

paid to sacred images

is a respectful

veneration

not the adoration

due to God

alone.

But I think

that's splitting hairs.

I think that's

a distinction

without a difference.

You can say

that it's veneration

and not worship

or adoration

all you want

but when you

prostrate yourself

before icons

of saints

when you

pray to these

images as if

they are the

ears of God

when you make

pilgrimages

to admire

and seek healing

from the relics

of saints

like the

Shroud of Turin

or the bones

of deceased

godly men

and women

from the past

when you

parade the

icons of saints

throughout town

for people

to venerate

as they do

every year

in East Cambridge

at the feast

of Saint

Cosmes

and Damien

in Cambridge

how is that

not a violation

of verse 5

you shall not

bow down

to them

or serve them

in fact

the technical

Greek word

that Catholics

used to refer

to the veneration

of the saints

is douleia

which means

service

and this verse

tells us

not to serve

the images

Catholic

apologists

Pope Gregory

for example

who argued

for the preservation

of images

in church buildings

even when people

were appropriately

worshipping them

said this

those who cannot

read may by

looking at the

walls

read what they

cannot read

in books

this is how

church icons

came to be known

as quote

books of the

laity

because much

of the lady

many of the

lady were

illiterate

at the time

however

that's misguided

because

God did not

reveal himself

to his people

in pictures

but in words

the Lord

spoke to you

out of the

midst of the

fire

you heard

the sound

of words

but saw

no form

there was

only a voice

and I don't

think it's

an accident

that God

reveals himself

to his people

in the midst

of fire

and clouds

of glory

because these

things smoke

cloud and fire

they reveal

something about

God

but they also

appropriately

veil God

Deuteronomy

5.22

says these

words

the Lord

God

spoke to

you

to your

assembly

at the

mountain

out of the

midst

of the

fire

the cloud

and the

thick

darkness

with a loud

voice

and he added

no more

this veiling

of God

suggests to us

that while

no creature

is hidden

from God's

all-knowing

eye

no creature

is hidden

from God's

sight

all are

naked

and exposed

before the

eyes of

God

however

God

himself

does not

lay naked

in that

way

before all

men

we cannot

plumb the

depth of

God's

infinite

glory

and so

we are to

teach people

to read

we are to

teach people

the word

that's how

we are to

know

God

so that's

the command

and what's

the motivation

verses 5

to 6

it's the

jealousy

of God

you shall

not bow

down to

them

or to

worship

or serve

them

for I

the Lord

your God

am a

jealous

God

might be

shocking

to some

of you

that God

is described

here as

jealous

the Hebrew

word behind

it is a

word that

combines

zeal or

passion

with jealousy

which is

typical of

a lover

numbers 5

14

use that

same word

to describe

a husband

who suspects

that his

wife has

been unfaithful

to him

the jealousy

that comes

over and

it's the

same word

that is

used

here

if we

we

commonly in

English

use the

word jealousy

and envy

interchangeably

but if we

make a

technical

distinction

jealousy

is what

we feel

for what

is rightly

ours

so when

your spouse

belongs to

you

is unfaithful

it is right

for you to

feel jealous

in that

situation

because he

or she

rightly

belongs

to you

envy

is when

you

desire

something

that doesn't

belong

to you

that's

when you

covet

that's

when you

desire

something

that is

someone

else's

that's

envy

so

God

is never

jealous

of

other

people

what

they

have

but he

is

jealous

for

his

people

he

has

no

envy

but he

has

jealousy

for his

people

because

he

has

redeemed

them

he has

paid

the cost

to make

them

his own

and he

loves

them

and he

is devoted

to them

and so

he wants

to keep

them

for himself

to be

exclusively

devoted

to him

and it's

intense

love of

God

and jealousy

of God

that drives

this

God to

punish

infidelity

it says

in verses

five to

six

for I

the Lord

your God

am a

jealous

God

visiting

the

iniquity

of the

fathers

and the

children

to the

third

and fourth

generation

of those

who hate

me

but showing

steadfast

love

to the

thousands

of those

who love

me

and keep

my

commandments

these

verses

have

troubled

people

throughout

the

ages

because

they

appear

to

suggest

that

God

imputes

the

sins

of

guilty

fathers

on

innocent

children

and punishes

them

for it

but that's

not the

case

for a number

of reasons

first

it doesn't

say

anywhere

that these

children

are

innocent

the

Lord

speaks

of the

third

and

fourth

generation

of those

who

hate

me

when

scriptures

speak

of the

iniquity

of the

fathers

it usually

couples

it with

the iniquity

of the

sons

as well

and

that's

because

parents

and

children

are

organically

connected

in such

a way

that

sons

fill up

the

sins

of

their

fathers

scriptures

are

very

clear

in other

places

that

God

does

not

punish

innocent

children

for the

sins

of

their

parents

for example

Deuteronomy

24 16

his father

shall not

be put

to death

because

of their

children

nor

shall

children

be put

to

death

because

of

their

fathers

each

one

shall

be

put

to

death

for

his

own

sin

in

Ezekiel

18 20

the soul

who sins

shall die

the son

shall not

suffer for

the iniquity

of the

father

nor the

father

suffer for

the

iniquity

of the

son

so the

punished

children

in this

case

are not

innocent

second

the

expression

the third

and fourth

generation

refers to

the maximum

number

of generations

that may

be alive

at one

time

for example

God's

blessing

on

Joseph

is seen

in the

fact

that in

Genesis 50

Genesis 50:23

verse 23

Joseph saw

Ephraim's

children

of the

third

generation

so to

Joseph's

fourth

generation

that would

be his

down to

his

great

grandson

similarly

Job

42 16

tells us

that Job

was blessed

by God

that he

lived 140

years

and saw

his sons

and his

sons

sons

four

generations

so seeing

the welfare

of your

progeny

down to

the fourth

generation

is a sign

of God's

great

blessing

the welfare

of children

and grandchildren

were

particularly

important

back in

the day

because

children

were seen

in those

times

not as

economic

liabilities

but as

economic

assets

because

they're the

ones that

would help

you to

farm

they're the

ones who

would take

care of

you when

you're old

and unable

to do

manual

labor

and so

when

disaster

befalls

your sons

it's also

punishment

of the

father

so wicked

father

in seeing

the disaster

that comes

upon his

sons

ends his

life in

despair

realizing

that he

has even

brought

his

progeny

to ruin

it is

the mere

opposite

of what

Joseph and

Job

experienced

as

Jewish

scholar

Jeffrey

Teague

notes

quote

this

indicates

that the

suffering

of the

descendants

is

intended

as a

deterrent

to

and punishment

of their

ancestors

not a

transfer of

guilt

to the

descendants

in their

own

right

third

though out

of the

intensity

of his

love

and jealousy

the unfaithful

fathers

see the

punishment

for their

own sins

even in the

welfare of

their children

to the

third and

fourth

generation

this is

contrasted

with the

loyal love

that God

shows

to those

who keep

his

commandments

he says

showing

he shows

steadfast

love

to

thousands

of those

who love

me and

keep my

commandments

because of

the parallel

between those

verses

I interpret

thousands

to mean

thousands

of

generations

that's

why it

says in

the footnote

to the

ESV

that's how

the NIV

and CSB

translate it

so thousands

of generations

God will

remember your

iniquity to

the third

and fourth

generation

if you are

unfaithful to

him you break

his covenant

with him

but he will

remember your

love to him

for a thousand

generations

remember that

the third

and fourth

generations

represent the

maximum number

of generations

that a person

might live to

see so it's

really still

within your

own

lifetime

it is

one

lifetime

that God

remembers

and punishes

your sin

but he will

remember

long after you

are dead

and gone

your faithfulness

your love

toward him

for a thousand

generations

we see an

example of this

in second

Kings 20

when the nation

of Judah

is besieged

by the nation

of Assyria

because of

their sin

and they

deserved

punishment

they deserved

exile

but the Lord

says to

King Hezekiah

who is the

great

great

great

great

great

great

great

great

great

great

great

grandson

of David

this is much

more than

third and fourth

generation

this is what he

says to him

I will deliver

you and this

city out of

the hand

of the king

of Assyria

and I will

defend this

city for my

own sake

and for

my servant

David's sake

even though

David unfaithful

for so many

generations

God says

I still

remember

David

and so

I will

show you

kindness

I will

show you

mercy

God's

memory

of our

faithfulness

far outlasts

his memory

of our

unfaithfulness

and that's

what this

passage is

teaching us

it's a

testament

not of

God's

vengefulness

but of

his mercy

and grace

and the

ultimate

example of

God showing

steadfast love

to a thousand

generations

is seen

in Jesus

because in

2 Samuel 7

16

God had

promised

the king

David

that he

will rule

his house

will rule

forever

but the

dynasty

humanly speaking

ended

the nation

of Israel

and Judah

were exiled

to foreign

countries

they were not

in the promised

land anymore

and yet

after all

those years

after hundreds

of years

after all

those generations

God brings

Jesus

from the line

of David

to be the

messianic king

who reigns

and fulfills

that promise

to David

he remembers

his faithfulness

to a thousand

generations

and that brings

me to my

final point

the fulfillment

of this

commandment

in the image

of God

Jesus fulfills

the second

commandment

and brings it

to its intended

goal

the reason why

God forbade

the creation

of images

for worship

was because

he intended

from the beginning

to send

Jesus

the son of

God

and Jesus

is his

ultimate image

and we

ought to

worship

him

Colossians

3 15

tells us

that Jesus

is the

image

of the

invisible

God

John 1 14

says that

the word

of God

became

flesh

and dwelt

among us

that's Jesus

Jesus

is the

one

divinely

sanctioned

image

of the

invisible

God

so if

you want

to know

what God

is like

you don't

have to

look to

other things

instead of

paintings

and sculptures

the Lord

gives us

a living

and breathing

person

in

Jesus

Christ

so if

you want

to know

what God

is like

look to

Jesus

his life

revealed

in his

word

look at

his

compassion

and mercy

towards

sinners

in his

life

look at

the love

that Jesus

displays

when he

lays down

his life

for us

on the

cross

and dies

for our

sins