{
  "id": "dict_002638",
  "term": "Idol",
  "slug": "idol",
  "letter": "I",
  "entry_type": "theological_term",
  "entry_family": "theological_term",
  "depth_profile": "standard",
  "short_definition": "An idol is an image, object, false god, or substitute devotion that receives worship or trust belonging to God alone. Scripture consistently forbids idolatry and calls God’s people to worship Him only.",
  "simple_one_line": "",
  "tooltip_text": "",
  "aliases": [],
  "scripture_references": [],
  "original_language_terms": [],
  "related_entries": [],
  "see_also": [],
  "lede_intro": "",
  "at_a_glance_definition": "",
  "at_a_glance_key_points": [],
  "description_academic_short": "In the Bible, an idol can be a carved image or physical representation used in false worship, but idolatry also includes giving ultimate loyalty, trust, or devotion to anything other than the true God. The Old and New Testaments strongly condemn idols because they turn the heart from the Lord. Biblical teaching emphasizes exclusive worship of God and warns that idols are spiritually deceptive and powerless in themselves.",
  "description_academic_full": "An idol, in biblical usage, is anything treated as worthy of the worship, trust, reverence, or allegiance that belongs to God alone. Often this refers to physical images or representations connected with pagan worship, which Scripture repeatedly forbids and exposes as false and empty in contrast to the living God. At the same time, the Bible’s teaching on idolatry reaches beyond carved objects to the deeper issue of the heart: people may make idols of anything they love, fear, or trust more than the Lord. Scripture therefore presents idolatry as both an outward practice and an inward rebellion, and it calls God’s people to reject every rival to God and to worship Him alone in covenant faithfulness.",
  "background_biblical_context": "",
  "background_historical_context": "",
  "background_jewish_ancient_context": "",
  "key_texts_primary": [],
  "key_texts_secondary": [],
  "original_language_note": "",
  "theological_significance": "",
  "philosophical_explanation": "",
  "interpretive_cautions": "",
  "major_views_note": "",
  "doctrinal_boundaries": "",
  "practical_significance": "",
  "meta_description": "An idol is an image, object, false god, or substitute devotion that receives worship or trust belonging to God alone. Scripture consistently forbids idolatry and calls God’s people to worship Him only.",
  "public_url": "/companion-bible-dictionary/idol/",
  "json_url": "/companion-bible-dictionary/data/dictionary/idol.json",
  "final_disposition": "PUBLISH_CANONICAL"
}