To whom it may concern:

I am a Christian who is having an issue with clearly understanding the First Commandment. It has been a very long time since I've read the Bible, and I don't remember having learned the Commandment, exactly the way it is written in the Bible, when I was in Catholic elementary school. I am now starting to pick up my Bible, and it has become very important for me to have a clear understanding on things, but (in regards to this commandment) there is SO much controversy over how it is to be interpreted. Here is what I mean:

The Catholics (and whomever else support that it is OKAY to have images that are likenesses of the things in heaven) claim that they are NOT disobeying this commandment. They are focusing, rather, on the first and last 'parts', as having 1) initiated the true meaning, and then 2) wrapped it up: the first being 'part' that we shall have NO OTHER GODS before our ONE TRUE GOD; the last being that we are NOT TO WORSHIP FALSE GODS (ie. GRAVEN IMAGES). They claim that this is the TRUE message of the commandment and that they are NOT worshiping their religious statues (they give many biblical references as to the nature of worship, so as to explain how they are NOT worshiping their statues and such, but this would take too much time to gather and include here, but I've read many articles about this issue).

MORE IMPORTANTLY, they claim (those in support of owning statues/pictures) -- and THIS IS WHERE I HAVE MY OWN ISSUE WITH THIS COMMANDMENT -- that IF THIS IS THE WAY THE COMMANDMENT IS TO BE INTERPRETED (ie. as meaning NOT to own RELIGIOUS IMAGES of ANY KIND), that this would mean that NO GRAVEN IMAGE (ie. STATUE/IMAGE of ANY sort) would be allowed: NO statue or picture of a BIRD, a DOG OR CAT, or even a PHOTOGRAPH of a FAMILY MEMBER -- because this IS part of the commandment: NO likenesses of ANYTHING in the HEAVENS, in the EARTH, or BELOW THE WATERS. And one cannot IGNORE that part and ONLY focus on the 'things' in the heavens!!!

So, it is in this way that they see that it is STRICTLY WORSHIP/IDOLIZATION (putting ANYTHING BEFORE GOD in any way) that is the issue, and NOT the ownership of graven images. It was ALSO stated that (in some other language?) "GRAVEN IMAGE" actually means "IDOL" -- and IF THAT IS THE CASE, then the Commandment would become PERFECTLY CLEAR and would NOT mean that one could not own statues or pictures of birds, cats, or whatever...and this would therefore INCLUDE religious statues. It would mean NOT TO OWN IDOLS (those things that one would put BEFORE GOD).

I have to say, if it were to be taken the other way -- meaning we were not to own any statues or pictures of:
* anything in the likeness of that in the HEAVENS;
* in the image of MAN;
* any BEAST or CREEPING thing upon/below the earth/waters;
* any thing BENEATH THE WATERS
....if this was the case, well I would have BARE WALLS and FURNITURE!!! Because -- once again -- how could we interpret it that way (if that were to be the correct way) WITHOUT INCLUDING IMAGES OF EVERYTHING, and NOT ONLY those things in the HEAVENS. I don't think God meant it that way exactly.

FURTHERMORE: There are excerpts of the Bible that INDICATE that ALL OF THE ABOVE was ALLOWED/INSTRUCTED by the Lord, such as:
(First of all, we know about the “golden calf”, which was a clear case of idolatry (false god worship).)
From an article: Let us look between Exodus 20 where the commandment is given, and Exodus 32 where the Israelites break that commandment of worshiping no other gods and are killed for idolatry. In fact, God commands Moses to make graven images: Exodus 25:16-20, 26:1, 31:
16 And you shall put into the ark the testimony which I shall give you. 17: Then you shall make a mercy seat of pure gold; two cubits and a half shall be its length, and a cubit and a half its breadth. 18: And you shall make two cherubim of gold; of hammered work shall you make them, on the two ends of the mercy seat. 19: Make one cherub on the one end, and one cherub on the other end; of one piece with the mercy seat shall you make the cherubim on its two ends. 20: The cherubim shall spread out their wings above, overshadowing the mercy seat with their wings, their faces one to another; toward the mercy seat shall the faces of the cherubim be.
26:1 1: "Moreover you shall make the tabernacle with ten curtains of fine twined linen and blue and purple and scarlet stuff; with cherubim skillfully worked shall you make them….31: "And you shall make a veil of blue and purple and scarlet stuff and fine twined linen; in skilled work shall it be made, with cherubim;
God commands Moses to make a graven image with cherubim. Thus, he commands them in the very ark of the covenant in which God himself resided. Even the ark itself is gold that is refined, cut to adorn a place where God would reside in a special manner. There is a mercy seat of pure gold. That in and of itself is a graven image. Plus, it is purely done in a religious context and the making of these images was to bring more Glory to God himself. Notice also that God wants those cherubim to be skillfully made (vv. 1, 31). Why would he want them to be skillfully made if it was a sin to make such cherubim? God doesn’t want somebody to haphazardly mold something together, but he desires someone to skillfully mold those cherubim, as well as the mercy seat. It is important to God, that man does his best in molding that graven image. He wants it to look good. God recognizes that images can help us in the worship of God himself. *****THERE IS MORE TO THIS ARTICLE AT THE VERY BOTTOM OF THIS MESSAGE (SO AS TO NOT MAKE THIS TOO CONFUSING) BUT IT IS LENGTHY AND NOT NECESSARY TO READ, UNLESS ANYBODY WANTS TO.

LASTLY, Jesus made something very clear about the Commandments -- about what was MOST IMPORTANT (not that we should ignore the rest), as if to make two (encompassing) Commandments. And it is clear to me that IF THOSE TWO COMMANDMENTS cannot be honestly followed, the rest ALSO cannot be. In this way, they are the starting and finishing points. They are where we need to be, and if we can arrive there (to the best of our ability, and through the grace of the Lord) then all else, through Him, will naturally follow, as can ONLY be the case. That is to say, if we LOVE GOD, we WILL love our neighbour (for the sake of God). If we LOVE our neighbour, we will NOT kill him...we will NOT covet his goods, etc, etc, etc... And I'm sure you know I am talking about: MATTHEW 22: 36-41: 'You shall love the Lord your God with your whole heart, and with your whole soul, and with all your mind; and you shall love your neighbour as yourself (for the sake of God).'

And so that is my concern, which I think I am clear on now, based on what I have written above, but still want to make sure about it -- with the exception, perhaps, of MYTHOLOGICAL pictures statues, such as a GRYPHON or MERMAID (I do not wish to own anything ACTUALLY representing evil); however, with such images, too, there is CONTROVERSY. The UNICORN for example is almost ALWAYS seen (if NOT always) as a symbol of good (except, perhaps, if it is black). Some Biblical scholars seem to think it is the representation of the devil. But I've also read where it symbolizes Christ! It seems that the described 'images' in such prophecies could be attributed to any number of creatures or things, if one uses one's imagination. And so, I would like futher clarification on the First Commandment, such as if it IS okay to own images, how about MYTHOLOGICAL ones, such as UNICORNS, GRYPHONS, or MERMAIDS (I have gotten rid of some old snake jewelery, as well as some dragon candle and incense burners, because I felt that these were images directly attributed to describing Satan in the Bible). Any insight on this would be greatly appreciated!

Thank you very much!

Take Care & God Bless~
Dianne









REST OF ARTICLE ABOUT FIRST COMMANDMENT:

We see elsewhere that images are commanded by God to be made to even save people from death!! Numbers 21:7-9:

7: And the people came to Moses, and said, "We have sinned, for we have spoken against the LORD and against you; pray to the LORD, that he take away the serpents from us." So Moses prayed for the people. 8: And the LORD said to Moses, "Make a fiery serpent, and set it on a pole; and every one who is bitten, when he sees it, shall live." , 9: So Moses made a bronze serpent, and set it on a pole; and if a serpent bit any man, he would look at the bronze serpent and live.

Moses makes a bronze serpent, a graven image. Those in opposition do not think a graven image should be made at all in a religious context. Such a person, during Moses’s time, would have ended up dead, because he would have refused to acknowledge the goodness of the serpent in the graven image. In fact, the only way that people avoid death is by taking a look at the graven image of a serpent. Again, God mandates a graven image to be made and people can only be given the chance to live if they look at the image. The opposer would have been a dead opposer.

Jesus himself even speaks of this episode in Number 21 in reference to how he brings salvation: John 3:13-15

13: No one has ascended into heaven but he who descended from heaven, the Son of man. 14: And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of man be lifted up, 15: that whoever believes in him may have eternal life."

Jesus specifically uses the image of Moses creating and using that graven image as a means to heal and even save people. He doesn’t put that in a negative light. He commends it so much that he thus uses that event to point to how salvation comes in Jesus Christ. Just as only those who looked at the graven image of a serpent were saved from death, those who look to Jesus who will be crucified and raised will have eternal life. We must believe in Jesus. Why would Jesus make a comparison, if making the graven image of the serpent was a sin?

Now, that should settle the issue, but there is more evidence given in Scripture that God approves of making graven images for religious purposes. Now David wanted to make a temple for God. However, God told David that he would not make a temple, but his son Solomon would make the temple. David would receive instructions from God on what the temple would consist of. The ark of the covenant, which already consisted of graven images, would be surrounded with much other statuary.

1 Chronicles 28:11, 17-19:

11: Then David gave Solomon his son the plan of the vestibule of the temple, and of its houses, its treasuries, its upper rooms, and its inner chambers, and of the room for the mercy seat;… 17 and pure gold for the forks, the basins, and the cups; for the golden bowls and the weight of each; for the silver bowls and the weight of each; 18: for the altar of incense made of refined gold, and its weight; also his plan for the golden chariot of the cherubim that spread their wings and covered the ark of the covenant of the LORD. 19: All this he made clear by the writing from the hand of the LORD concerning it, all the work to be done according to the plan.

Look at all the statuary surrounding the ark of the covenant. Gold is everywhere, and notice that what he was writing was coming from ‘the hand of the Lord.’ So this carefully constructed temple and statuary had not only the approval of God, but came from God himself.

Let us see when it was actually done by Solomon when he put this into practice, 1 King 6:22-29:

22: And he overlaid the whole house with gold, until all the house was finished. Also the whole altar that belonged to the inner sanctuary he overlaid with gold. 23: In the inner sanctuary he made two cherubim of olivewood, each ten cubits high. 24: Five cubits was the length of one wing of the cherub, and five cubits the length of the other wing of the cherub; it was ten cubits from the tip of one wing to the tip of the other. 25: The other cherub also measured ten cubits; both cherubim had the same measure and the same form. 26: The height of one cherub was ten cubits, and so was that of the other cherub. 27: He put the cherubim in the innermost part of the house; and the wings of the cherubim were spread out so that a wing of one touched the one wall, and a wing of the other cherub touched the other wall; their other wings touched each other in the middle of the house. 28: And he overlaid the cherubim with gold. 29: He carved all the walls of the house round about with carved figures of cherubim and palm trees and open flowers, in the inner and outer rooms.

Cherubim, or graven images are constructed all over the place in the temple of God. The temple as we know was centrally tied into the worshiping of God. All through 1 Kings 6 & 7 we see Solomon having made lots of graven images with cherubim. This is making images for religious purposes.

What was God’s response to this? Did he condemn the construction of the temple because it was adorned with all this cherubim? Let us look at God’s response to Solomon when the job was finished:

1 Kings 9:1-3:

1: When Solomon had finished building the house of the LORD and the king's house and all that Solomon desired to build, 2: the LORD appeared to Solomon a second time, as he had appeared to him at Gibeon. 3: And the LORD said to him, "I have heard your prayer and your supplication, which you have made before me; I have consecrated this house which you have built, and put my name there for ever; my eyes and my heart will be there for all time.

God saw of course everything that Solomon had built. He saw all those graven images of all the cherubim, that apparently were skillfully made. However, He not only did not condemn Solomon for making that statuary, but said, He ‘consecrates this house which you have built’, and promises that He would be there for all time!!!! How can God be there for all time if He condemns graven images!!!! Because that statuary was meant not to detract from God’s glory, but helped in the worship of God Himself.

We see that for religious purposes in Exodus 25, Numbers 21, 1 Kings 6&7, statuary can be made that will not detract from God, but even give Him more glory. We also see this in a much later time in Ezekiel 41:17-19, which included images of cherubim and man. What the Church does is the same in its statuary is not to detract from God or to replace God as the Israelites did in Exodus 32. God recognized that such images are good for people and as people have senses, these images can help people in their worship of Him. The Church likewise gives us statues whose goal is to bring God’s glory. It helps us to bring to mind the heavenly realities of God’s presence to us. Thus, statuary and images, if made in a way to not make them as a god, helps to bring to our senses heavenly realities to our mind. We can see that God not only commends, but even commanded the making of statuary, from Moses to Ezekiel.

The images of cherubim are commended by God in the Old Testament. One may say, ‘well, that is true, but the Church has all these statues and icons of Jesus and all the saints. There is nothing about statuary of people commended or commanded by God, so maybe that is what God is condemning in Exodus 20:4. ’ Well, one thing to note that in Ezekiel 41:18-19 there is a mention of making statuaries of men:

18And it was made with cherubim and palm trees, a palm tree between cherub and cherub. Each cherub had two faces, 19so that the face of a man was toward a palm tree on one side, and the face of a young lion toward a palm tree on the other side; thus it was made throughout the temple all around.

So it was permissible even in the Old Testament to make an image of a man. However, it is agreed that the cherubim, who represent the angels who lived in heaven with God were the ones represented in most of the works commended by God. There could be no pictures of Jesus in the Old Testament because Jesus had not yet revealed himself to his people. The Word did not become flesh until the New Covenant. In fact, the Word, Jesus, did become flesh (Jn 1:14). Even though Jesus existed from the beginning (Jn 1:1, 8:58), God’s people did not know Him as of yet. When He became flesh, the incarnation changed the whole world around in this area. Christ deigned to become man for our salvation. No image could be made of someone who is pure Spirit, but in the incarnation, Jesus became man, enabling us to have an image of Him. Hebrews 1:3 says: 'Who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person'. Statues help us to bring to mind, and meditate on Jesus (and brings to our minds the reality of the incarnation) precisely because He became flesh for us. It also it brings to mind that Jesus intercedes now for us in heaven (Heb. 7:25). It is permissible for His followers to make images of Him to bring Him Glory. The Church knows that statues that reflect Christ's image, is not a god.

When Jesus came into the world and was resurrected, those who were in Sheol, were now released, and the Old Testament saints could now go to heaven. So as heaven was opened up, to not only the Old Testament saints, but also the saints that would arise in the New Covenant. In the New Covenant they became those who also live in His presence in heaven. Since statues of heavenly beings were ok in the Old Covenant, now in the New Covenant, those heavenly beings now include the saints who are now in heaven. And now in the new covenant, God enjoys not only company with the angels of heaven (as signified by the ‘skillful works’ of images of cherubim by Moses, Solomon, and Ezekiel), but also the saints of heaven also reside in the presence of God. The statues of the saints help us to visualize the people who though having a body of flesh just as us, did great things in the service of God. Seeing those statues of saints help us to visualize and model our lives after those saints who strove for holiness. They also give us a visual reminder of the fact that these people are in heaven, and they pray for us. We are told in Hebrews that we come to the spirits of just men made perfect, Heb. 12:1, 22-24:

1: Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with perseverance the race that is set before us, 22: But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to innumerable angels in festal gathering,…23: and to the assembly of the first-born who are enrolled in heaven, and to a judge who is God of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect, 24: and to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks more graciously than the blood of Abel.

The Bible says that we are surrounded by these witnesses in heaven as noted in Hebrews 12:1. It also says that we come to the spirits of just men made perfect. It is interesting that this is noted precisely while the Bible speaks to Jesus as the mediator of the new covenant. This does not detract us from God, but brings us closer to Him. They pray for us. Statues help to bring to our mind this heavenly reality.

I do want to close with some comments given by St. John of Damascus, (675-749 AD), in his battle against those who rejected images, and those who rejected the tradition of the Church, he gives us some reasoning on the issue, On the Divine Images, 1:16-17:


16. In former times God, who is without form or body, could never be depicted. But now when God is seen in the flesh conversing with men, I make an image of the God whom I see. I do not worship matter; I worship the Creator of matter who became matter for my sake, who willed to take His abode in matter; who worked out my salvation through matter. Never will I cease honoring the matter which wrought my salvation! I honor it, but not as God. How could God be born out of things which have no existence in themselves? God’s body is God because it is joined to His person by a union which shall never pass away. The divine nature remains the same; the flesh created in time is quickened by a reason-endowed soul. Because of this I salute all remaining matter with reverence, because God has filled it with His grace and power. Through it my salvation has come to me. Was not the thrice-happy and thrice-blessed wood of the cross matter? Was not the holy and exalted mountain of Calvary matter? What of the life-bearing rock, the holy and life-giving tomb, the fountain of our resurrection, was it not matter? Is not the ink in the most holy Gospel book matter? Is not the life-giving altar made of matter? From it we receive the bread of life! Are not gold and silver matter? From them we make crosses, patens, chalices! And over and above all these things, is not the Body and Blood of our Lord matter? Either do away with the honor and veneration these things deserve, or accept the tradition of the Church and the veneration of images. Reverence God and His friends; follow the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. Do not despise matter, for it is not despicable. God has made nothing despicable. To think such things is Manichaeism. Only that which does not have its source in God is despicable – that which is our own invention, our willful choice to disregard the law of God – namely, sin. If you despise and abhor the command to make images because they are material things, consider the words of Scripture: "And the Lord said to Moses: See, I have called by name Bezalel the son of Uri, son of Aur, of the tribe of Judah, and I have filled him with the spirit of God with ability and intelligence, with knowledge and all craftsmanship to devise artistic designs, to work in gold, silver and bronze, in cutting stones for setting and in carving wood, for work of every craft. And behold, I have appointed with him Oholiab, the son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan, and I have given ability to all able men, that they may make all that I have commanded you." (Ex. 31:1-6) …

17. We use all our senses to produce worthy images of Him, and we sanctify the noblest of the senses, which is that of sight. For just as words edify the ear, so also the image stimulates the eye. What the book is to the literate, the image is to the illiterate. Just as words speak to the ear, so the image speaks to the sight; it brings us understanding. For this reason God ordered the ark to be constructed of wood which would not decay, and to be gilded outside and in, and for the tablets to be placed inside, with Aaron’s staff and the golden urn containing the manna, in order to provide a remembrance of the past, and an image of the future. Who can say that these were not images, heralds sounding from far off? They were not placed aside in the meeting-tent, but were brought forth in the sight of all the people, who gazed upon them and used them to offer praise and worship to God. Obviously they were not adored for their own sake, but through them the people were led to remember the wonders of old and to worship God, the worker of wonders. They were images serving as memorials; they were not divine, but led to the remembrance of divine power.

IWhat he shows is that the incarnation is tied into the issue. The Manicheans, who battled St. Augustine on some issues, taught that matter was bad, and that grace and good could not come out of material things. As the Word became Flesh, he took upon matter. And it was good. The Protestant too often sees material things as bad, and that is why they refer to the Catholic way of using material means to reflect God as idolatrous. That in part explains the rejection of many Protestants of things such as water being a means of grace through baptism, and the rejection of the Eucharist as the true presence of Christ. This view of material as ‘bad’ and ‘Spiritual’ as good unfortunately gives a stilted view of how God works in the world. He notes as well in Exodus 31 that God made the people skilled in making those carved images that he commanded Moses to have done in Exodus 25. He also notes that images bring into our mind the realization of divine remembrances, which help us to worship God better.

Wow! You really posted a lot of stuff. Deep in your heart do you really need me to answer? I believe you know the answer!

I do have some suggestions:

1) If you are concern about the translation from Hebrew, I would suggest you use the "Jewish Bible" - by David Stern as one of your references. I mention "one of your references" because it is recommended you use other translations as well (NASB, NIV, etc.) to do a proper scholarly work.

2) Image is not the problem. It is the "graven image" ie.. to inculcate, to sculpt, to emphasize, etc... that is the problem. That is why there was a clarification,"Thou shall not have any other gods before me". Anything that you put between you and GOD is your God! This can be money, fame , your children, your spouse etc... not just some image.

3) Best of all, ask the Holy Spirit for interpretation. It is His book.

4) This is the order of importance when studying the scriptures:
a) What the scripture say?
What is my interpretation? What are other interpretations from other spiritual brethren?
c) What are traditions around the word of GOD?

Note that a) is absolute truth while and C) are not.

Dear Diane,

In the case of both the ark of the covenant with cherubim and the brass serpent in Numbers 21, it was GOD that commanded that these be made. They did not come from the imagination of man.

The first example of false religion is found in Genesis when Cain chose his own way rather than God's way. True worship has nothing to do with the flesh. Php 3:3, "For we are the circumcision, which worship God in the spirit, and rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh."

Some of the things included in your post are in error. Cherubim are not angels. For a description of cherubim, see Ezek 1:5-24, They are called "living creatures", but they are never called angels.

Secondly, only Christ is immortal and has been resurrected at this time. There is no one who has ascended but Him. Those saints who have died in Christ are in their grave. He remembers who are His and will raise them to life in His own time.

John 3:13
And NO MAN hath ascended up to heaven, but He that came down from heaven, even the Son of man Which is in heaven.

2Timothy 2:16-19
But shun profane and vain babblings: for they will increase unto more ungodliness. And their word will eat as a canker: of whom is Hymenaeus and Philetus; who concerning the truth have erred, saying that the resurrection is past already; and overthrow the faith of some.

Our Lord Jesus Christ:
1Tim 6:16
Who ONLY hath immortality, dwelling in the light which no man can approach unto; Whom no man hath seen, nor can see: to Whom be honor and power everlasting. Amen.

The spiritual beings called "seraphims" in Isaiah 6:2 is the same Hebrew name for the "burning ones" used of the "fiery serpents" [nacheshim saraphim] in Nu 21. God sent fiery serpents to punish the People of Israel because of their unbelief.

Nu 21:6
And the Lord sent fiery serpents among the People, and they bit the People; and much of the people of Israel died.

When the people of Israel confessed their sin and asked Moses to pray to God for forgiveness, God gave Moses the commandment to make a serpent of brass and put it on a pole and a serpent had bitten any man, when he saw the serpent of brass, he lived. This serpent of brass was NOT an image to be worshiped. The brass serpent was prophetic of the ascension and glory of Christ.

The People were always turning to idols. Anything that is gazed upon or venerated that is not God is an idol. Unfortunately, the People turned to idolatry over and over again and turned away from the one true God. They were even worshiping images of serpents as part of their false and evil idolatry.

Notice what is said about this in 2Kings concerning the most righteous king of Judah, King Hezekiah:

2Kings 18:3-5
And he did that which was RIGHT in the sight of the Lord, according to all that his father David did. [b]He removed the high places, and BROKE IN PIECES THE BRAZEN SERPENT THAT MOSES HAD MADE: for unto those days the children of Israel did burn incense to it: and he called it Nehushtan [a brass thing].

There is no justification for any image in regard to the worship of God. "For we are saved by hope: but hope that is SEEN is NOT hope: for what a man sees, why does he yet hope for? But if we hope for that we see not, THEN we with patience WAIT for it." (Ro 8:24,25)

4hope

There are several noteworthy issues regarding Christianity and the second commandment (the first commandment being " I am YHWH thy God). The first issue is that according to Paul, the inventor of modern Christianity, Jesus destroyed the Law of God and as such, Christians do not have to keep the law. If the Christians do not have to keep the law, why do they forbid cross dressing, tattooing, etc. The next issue is regarding the actual meaning. Most christians a believe that they are to interpret the bible themselves as long as they ask the "holy spirit" to explain. This is obviously a false and impractical method as it only leads to people inventing their own doctrines based on their own thoughts and feelings, claiming the "spirit put it in their heart". The actual prohibition is agains making a graven image in the likeness of a being ( which is coincidentally what the commandment says). This is unrelated to whether the object is worshipped or not. This means that it is forbidden to make a graven (3 dimensional) form in the likeness of a being. Paintings and such do not fall under the prohibition as they are not graven, but are on a flat surface (2D). in this case "likeness" refers to the essence, meaning that it cannot cube made to closely resemble the object portrayed. This may allow for some images that are not detailed, but images like " Michaelangelo's David" would be considered unkosher, aside from the fact that that david is uncircumcised. So while many Christians are "zealous" for the law when it comes to criticizing catholics for the practice, they themselves have miniature statues of angels and other beings in their homes, thinking that they are golfer because they aren't worshipping them, despite the fact that they are just as forbidden. As far as the seraphim/cherubim (cherubimS is incorrect and redundant as the "im" at the end denotes pluralism, such as El and Elohim, or Goy and Goyim), God did not command the images in the temple to be designed as such, but it is a non issue as seraphim do not actually exist and as such they are not beings, nor have a likeness. Seraphim only appear in allegorical or otherwise unreal depictions, such as in visions.
The last and most important issue that Christians always miss regarding this commandment is WHY it was prohibited to worship these images as God, or to otherwise make an image of God. Let us take an example found in the exodus story. When the Israelites re brought out of Egypt, they made themselves an image of a calf and worshipped it for bringing them out of Egypt. Most Christians see this as an example of "worshipping another God", but what they dont know is that they were actually worshipping God, but claiming that the image was His, and as such it was not "another" god. Many translations rob the readers of this information by translating God's name incorrectly as "Lord". In the hebrew, and in correct translations, it will read " this is Yahweh who brought you out of Egypt" when referring to the molten calf, while other would incorrectly say " this is the lord" or " your god" making it seem like it could be another god. What is interesting is that even though they were worshipping Yahweh, they were punished for the act of making Him an image. Why would it be wrong to worship an image of Yahweh? The answer is that Yahweh has no image. This is what distinguished this God from others. Everything that has an image (is visible) is by extension a creation by God. God is not created and has no image. This is why it is forbidden to make an image of Him, because He has none. For example, if God looked like a bear with a snake head and 5 eyes, then it would be okay to make an image of a bear with a snake head and 5 eyes and make the claim that" this is Yahweh" or "this is what Yahweh looks like". Not does God not have an image, but He cannot make himself visible. Any attempt would result in a creation. For example, the "burning bush" was "created" by God as it came into existence by His will (aside from the fact that it was the angel of God that manifested). If Jesus was God, then it would be correct to make a human image and claim it as God, but Jesus too was created. If the man Jesus was God, then it would also be true that God is a man named Jesus.