Are we so different from the ancient inhabitants of Judah? We may not have statues of Baal in our closets that we periodically pull out for worshipping. And we do not go to our rooftops to bow down to the stars of heaven. But the heart impulses of the ancients to bring them to worship in those ways are still alive and well in our hearts today. It is a fact that Baal worship has its modern reincarnations: Baal was another name for the gross national product, and wherever people see bank balances, prosperity, a sound economy, productivity…as the essence of their security, Baal is still worshiped.¹

What idol worship does is give to a created thing the attention and affection that rightly belongs to God alone. "Idolatry creates competing sovereigns, saviors, and satisfactions, but from and through and to the Lord are all things (Romans 11:36). Zephaniah points to the truth that we as humans quickly prize people or position, power or possessions more than God.”² The New Testament explains further that our idolatries and the sinful behaviours related to them flow from hearts that want sinful things (James 4:1–3). So we are not so different from the ancient inhabitants of Judah. The idols may have changed their shape, but the impulse from which idolatry flows is as powerful as ever. If we peel away the clothing of respectability, behind which we conceal the messy reality of our hearts, we are all condemned as idolaters.³