Exodus 20:23 (KJV)

Passage

Ye shall not make with me gods of silver, neither shall ye make unto you gods of gold.

Nearby Context

Exodus 20:21 And the people stood afar off, and Moses drew near unto the thick darkness where God was.

Exodus 20:22 And the LORD said unto Moses, Thus thou shalt say unto the children of Israel, Ye have seen that I have talked with you from heaven.

Exodus 20:23 Ye shall not make with me gods of silver, neither shall ye make unto you gods of gold.

Exodus 20:24 An altar of earth thou shalt make unto me, and shalt sacrifice thereon thy burnt offerings, and thy peace offerings, thy sheep, and thine oxen: in all places where I record my name I will come unto thee, and I will bless thee.

Exodus 20:25 And if thou wilt make me an altar of stone, thou shalt not build it of hewn stone: for if thou lift up thy tool upon it, thou hast polluted it.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "shall", "make", "gods", "silver", and "neither". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "shall" and "make", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 22's "And the LORD said unto Moses Thus..." into verse 24's "An altar of earth thou shalt make...", so "shall" and "make" belong inside that flow. In Exodus context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "shall" and "make" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.