TEARING DOWN IDOLS, ALTARS AND HIGH PLACES
In Biblical language, high places are the physical locations where religion happens. It is interesting to note that the Hebrew word “bamah”, or some variation of the word, is still used in Judaism and Christianity to describe the elevated place in a religious structure where the religious leaders perform their so-called “ministry” services of preaching, prayer, Bible reading and ceremony. Instead of bema, or bima, the more common word used to describe these architectural features is “altar”.
From literal readings of Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy, Joshua, 1 Kings,2 Chronicles, Ezekiel, and dozens of other scriptures, generations of religious leaders have concluded that altars and high places are worship locations prescribed by God. And these might be appropriate interpretations except for several other scriptures that say he does not want his people to build physical altars as places to worship.
God’s alternative to worship at altars in buildings is to worship in spirit and truth as we see in these scriptures:
| Scripture | Interpretation |
| John 4:21-24:
Jesus said to her, “Woman, believe Me, an hour is coming when neither in this mountain nor in Jerusalem will you worship the Father.
22 “You worship what you do not know; we worship what we know, for salvation is from the Jews.
23 “But an hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for such people the Father seeks to be His worshipers.
24 “God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.”
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This scripture describes what worship will be like for New Covenant disciples. It anticipates the time when each person experiences death to the practice of religion and a new spiritual life that includes things they don’t do any more and things they now do different.
Old things they will not do:
New things they will do:
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| Make an altar of earth |
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| Make an altar for incense (i.e. prayer) out of wood. |
STUDY TIP: See Prayer and The Lord’s Prayer for understanding of prayer. |
| You shall not go up steps to my altar | The symbolism here is that people use their own physical effort (i.e. go up steps) to lift themselves up to reach God and offer sacrifices to him. In effect, God is saying: “Do not use physical effort (i.e. religion) to go to the place where you offer your sacrifices to me.” This is consistent with the fact that a person’s body is a temple/altar in which spiritual worship occurs. Thus there is no need to have an altar for worship, nor is there a need to go to a special place, or do anything with the physical body to worship because the spirit in the body is always ready for worship — no matter where the physical body is located (e.g. in Jerusalem, on a mountain, or at an altar, etc.). God is provoked by all of these idolatrous works of man’s hands because they violate his commands against laborious work. People who engage in such physical activity have not entered into God’s rest. They have violated his command regarding the Sabbath rest. See Sabbath, Fasting and Rest, and Fourth Commandment for more about religious work. |
| You have not come to a mountain that can be touched | The reference to touching here is to the use of physical effort (i.e. religion) to reach out an touch God. Since the spirit of God is in people, there is no need to use physical effort to touch him or communicate with him. Those who do use physical effort (i.e. religion) to break through to touch God will experience an adverse reaction from him. |
| Do not follow the customs of other nations |
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COMMENTARY: We learn from the above scriptures that altars and high places are not really the places where God wants his people to worship him. Altars, temples, incense and all the other physical items found in temples are mere symbols and shadows of the spiritual truth that is available only to New Covenant disciples who read and interpret with spiritual eyes.
Old Covenant religionists make the mistake of thinking that physical places and physical things are what God wants because they interpret scripture literally and because they do not study the Bible thoroughly to discover other scriptures that effectively negate what the literal scriptures say. It is only by in-depth study that through the who Bible that spiritual truth will be discovered.
Elevated altars and podiums are so common in religious architecture, including Judaism and Christianity, that we might wonder why God gave specific instructions to Israel to demolish and tread upon high places. There are several possible reasons:
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To better understand God’s reasoning, it is also critical to recognize that, in Bible times, high places were the locations where ancient, pagan religions conducted their sacrifices to their gods. God borrowed the term “altar” (the most prevalent feature of a high place) to symbolize the place where he wanted spiritual worship to happen. But for God, that place was not a physical place. Rather, true worship happens in the Ark of the Covenant (i.e. the heart of New Covenant disciples where God’s laws are written) which symbolically represents the spirit of a New Covenant disciple.
We see this kind of worship in scripture where God says that people should make themselves an altar. This does not mean to make an altar for themselves. Rather, it means to consider themselves to be an altar. This is symbolic language for making themselves New Covenant disciples. The catch to being a New Covenant disciple, is, however, that first they must cease being Old/First Covenant religionists.
This spiritual view of worship is totally opposite of the way that surrounding nations (e.g. Canaanite nations, Egypt, Babylon, etc.) worshiped. It was because God knew that Israel would be tempted to follow the religious customs of these nations that he told Israel to utterly destroy the nations that occupied the promised land and to tear down high places. This would be impossible for Israel to do if it depended on human will and ability. It is possible, however, for true prophets, angels, messiahs, high priests, witnesses, and warriors that God sends into battle armed only with the power of his spoken voice.
Despite God’s clear warnings that he would destroy their high places, however, Israel’s kings did not obey God’s orders to tear down high places. God subsequently punished Israel by sending into exile in foreign religious nations. That same fate exists for contemporary Jews and Christians who do not tear down their idols and the high places where they carry on their prostitution.