Declaring creatures to be gods and merging them with God YHWH
God YHWH is a Spirit (John 4:24) and not a creature, for He is the Eternal. He is therefore neither a human nor man nor woman, but as Creator of all (Genesis 1:1) he is nevertheless called "Father".
“In the beginning God (#0430; Elohim, plural God) created the heavens and the earth,” Genesis1:1.
And Abraham planted a grove in Beersheba, and there he called YHWH (#03068; YHWH, name of God) the everlasting God (#0410; EL, Almighty),” Genesis 21:33.
“I ascend to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God” [says Christ] in John 20:17.
Father, because He stands at the basis of everything and all creatures without being a creature Himself.
Idolatry, however, is always a glorification of creatures, starting with the fallen angel called the devil or satan. To continue from there idolizing people; for example, from Babylon the human Baal (#3434), king Marduk/Evil-Merodach (#0192) and wife Artemis (#735) who are subsequently worshiped worldwide under many aliases. This resulted in, among other things, the Greek and Roman idols leading to church idolatry in trinity, biunity or under the name "Jehova" via freemason CT Russell. Freemasonry, Kabbalah and Hinduism also draw from the same Babylonian source that was passed on through the Greek Empire, Roman Empire, Roman Catholic Church; idolatry that is actually Satan's and leads back to him...
Some see as justification for their human gods that Genesis 1:27 says "that God created man and woman in their image", so that God would have a human body. However, "their" is a plural form. God (#0430; Elohim, plural form of God) refers to God and Christ in connection with God who were involved in Creation together. God as Creator Almighty and Christ as “Chief Workman”:
“when he laid the foundations of the earth, I was at His Side, I was His Chief Craftsman (#0525; amown, master craftsman). I was delighted every day, always rejoicing in His Presence,” Proverbs 8:29-30.
God is a Spirit (John 4:24); and Christ has a visible body (Romans 8:11). So people were given a visible body with a spirit in their image.
Churchmen and theologians/priests do not have this knowledge and can therefore be corrupted into idolatry of creatures, while they believe they take the Bible as a starting point. It is an open statement to say that they are not led by God's Spirit; the fact that they make faith their paid profession in the worldly church says more than enough.
The Bible tells that similarly educated kings and families bring idolatry into God's Temple and thus identify God with their idolatry, which is truly an abomination:
"He [King Manasseh, son of King Hezekiah, 2Kings 20:21] put an idol of Asherah (#0842) he had made in the temple, about which the LORD had said to David and to his son Solomon: "In this house, and in Jerusalem, which I have chosen out of all tribes of Israel, will I put my name for ever", 2Kings 21:7.
Manasseh and family/kings before and after him also committed this idolatry...
PLEASE NOTE: there is no statue of God in God's Temple. Simply because God is invisible and Spirit; and because God forbids the making of idols:
“Do not make an idol; you shall not make an image of anything that is in the heavens or on the earth or in the water under the earth".
You shall not bow down to them or worship them, for I, YHWH (#03068; YHWH, Name of God) your God (#0410; EL, God, Almighty), am a jealous God (#0430; Elohim, plural), responding to the transgression of fathers by dealing with children to the third and fourth generations of those who reject me”, Exodus 20:4-5.
Their heinous idolatry led to the murder of many innocent Israelites, to the deception into imitating that idolatry and thus completely destroyed Israel, but also resulted in the premature death of those kings.
Other idols mentioned in the Bible include Asherah (#0842, aliases Astarte, Asteroth, Earth Mother), Rompha (#4481; Rhemphan), Baal Moloch (#3434 Moloch), Chemosh (#03645) and Milcom (#04445), where Moloch and Milcom are synonymous. And Moloch is also synonymous with Baal, Tammuz, Attis, Adonis, Adon, Zeus, Hercules and so on.
Let us, knowing the example of Israel, beware of bringing such heinous idolatry into our countries and society! It is spiritual corruption leading to murder, war and destruction. Moreover, those who practice such idolatry will perish forever:
“But the cowardly, the unbelieving, the abominable, the murderers, the fornicators, the sorcerers, the idolaters (#1496; eidololatres, with idol worship), and all liars, their part shall be in the lake that burneth with fire and brimstone: this is the second death,” Revelation 21:8.
Choose against idolatry/idol worship, for it clearly only has corrupting effects and leads to eternal death. So shedding an old life is really necessary. To choose a new clean life afterwards!