Spiritual altars have a deep significance in the Bible. They can represent places of worship and sacrifice to God, but evil altars are linked to idolatry, spiritual bondage, and false gods. These evil altars can bring negative influence over lives, families, and nations.
What Are Spiritual Altars?
Spiritual altars in the Bible were typically places where sacrifices and prayers were made. They were physical representations of worship. However, throughout history, people also built altars for false gods and idols, which led to spiritual destruction. Today, spiritual altars can refer to any practice or belief that goes against the teachings of God, leading to spiritual bondage.
These spiritual altars can manifest as sinful habits, generational curses, or influences that pull us away from God. The Bible provides clear instructions on how to confront and tear down these evil altars.
50 Bible Verses Against Spiritual Altars
Here are 50 Bible verses to help you stand against spiritual altars and break free from their hold:
1. Matthew 15:13 (ESV)
“He answered, ‘Every plant that my heavenly Father has not planted will be rooted up.’” This verse reminds us that anything not planted by God, including spiritual altars, will be destroyed.
2. Jeremiah 1:10 (ESV)
“See, I have set you this day over nations and over kingdoms, to pluck up and to break down, to destroy and to overthrow, to build and to plant.” God empowers us to tear down evil altars in our lives and rebuild with His truth.
3. Judges 6:25-26 (ESV)
“Pull down the altar of Baal that your father has, and cut down the Asherah that is beside it and build an altar to the Lord your God.” Gideon’s story teaches us that we must remove idols and replace them with true worship to God.
4. Exodus 20:3-5 (ESV)
“You shall have no other gods before me.” God commands us not to serve or build altars to false gods, reminding us of His rightful place in our lives.
5. Deuteronomy 12:3 (ESV)
“You shall tear down their altars and dash in pieces their pillars.” This powerful command emphasizes that we must destroy altars built for false gods.
6. James 4:7 (ESV)
“Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” This verse shows the importance of submitting to God and resisting the evil that may arise from spiritual altars.
7. 1 Kings 18:30-32 (ESV)
“Elijah repaired the altar of the Lord that had been thrown down.” Elijah’s restoration of God’s altar after confronting Baal worshipers is a great example of spiritual victory over false altars.
8. Isaiah 44:9-10 (ESV)
“All who make idols are nothing, and the things they treasure are worthless.” This verse reminds us that idols, and the spiritual altars built for them, hold no power before God.
9. 2 Chronicles 33:15-16 (ESV)
“He took away the foreign gods and the idol from the house of the Lord.” Manasseh’s repentance included removing spiritual altars that defiled God’s temple.
10. Ezekiel 6:4 (ESV)
“Your altars shall become desolate, and your incense altars shall be broken.” God’s judgment on evil altars shows the consequences of worshiping anything other than Him.
11. Leviticus 6:12 (ESV)
“The fire on the altar shall be kept burning on it; it shall not go out.” Keeping the fire of true worship burning is essential in overcoming false spiritual altars.
12. Isaiah 1:29 (ESV)
“For they shall be ashamed of the oaks that you desired; and you shall blush for the gardens that you have chosen.” The Bible condemns the worship at false altars made in “sacred groves.”
13. 2 Kings 23:12 (ESV)
“The altars on the roof of the upper chamber of Ahaz, which the kings of Judah had made, and the altars that Manasseh had made in the two courts of the house of the Lord, he pulled down and broke in pieces.” This verse shows how righteous leaders destroy false altars and cleanse places of worship.
14. Exodus 34:13 (ESV)
“You shall tear down their altars and break their pillars and cut down their Asherim.” God calls for the destruction of altars made for pagan gods.
15. Psalm 78:58 (ESV)
“For they provoked him to anger with their high places; they moved him to jealousy with their idols.” High places and altars to idols anger God and are spiritual strongholds that must be broken.
16. Ezekiel 20:29 (ESV)
“Then I said to them, ‘What is the high place to which you go?’ So its name is called Bamah to this day.” High places were common in idolatrous practices, but they were forbidden by God.
17. Hosea 10:8 (ESV)
“The high places of Aven, the sin of Israel, shall be destroyed. Thorn and thistle shall grow up on their altars, and they shall say to the mountains, ‘Cover us,’ and to the hills, ‘Fall on us.’” This prophecy foretells the destruction of spiritual altars built for sin.
18. Isaiah 17:8 (ESV)
“He will not look to the altars, the work of his hands, and he will not look on what his own fingers have made, either the Asherim or the altars of incense.” This verse encourages us to reject the idols and spiritual altars made by human hands.
19. Amos 3:14 (ESV)
“On the day I punish Israel for his transgressions, I will punish the altars of Bethel, and the horns of the altar shall be cut off and fall to the ground.” God’s judgment comes upon altars erected for false worship.
20. Zechariah 13:2 (ESV)
“And on that day, declares the Lord of hosts, I will cut off the names of the idols from the land, so that they shall be remembered no more.” God promises to remove idols and false altars from the land.
21. 1 Kings 13:2 (ESV)
“And the man cried against the altar by the word of the Lord and said, ‘O altar, altar, thus says the Lord: “Behold, a son shall be born to the house of David, Josiah by name, and he shall sacrifice on you the priests of the high places who make offerings on you.”‘” This prophecy condemns the evil altars built during Israel’s rebellion.
22. Jeremiah 19:5 (ESV)
“They have built the high places of Baal to burn their sons in the fire as burnt offerings to Baal, which I did not command or decree, nor did it come into my mind.” God condemns the evil altars where detestable sacrifices were made.
23. Isaiah 65:11 (ESV)
“But you who forsake the Lord, who forget my holy mountain, who set a table for Fortune and fill cups of mixed wine for Destiny.” This verse refers to idolatrous practices that lead to spiritual altars dedicated to fortune and fate, rather than God.
24. Numbers 23:1 (ESV)
“And Balaam said to Balak, ‘Build for me here seven altars, and prepare for me here seven bulls and seven rams.’” Balaam’s request for altars was tied to trying to manipulate God’s will for personal gain, which is condemned in Scripture.
25. Deuteronomy 16:21 (ESV)
“You shall not plant any tree as an Asherah beside the altar of the Lord your God that you shall make.” God prohibits combining pagan worship with His holy worship.
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26. Ezekiel 43:8 (ESV)
“By setting their threshold by my threshold and their doorposts beside my doorposts, with only a wall between me and them, they have defiled my holy name by their abominations that they have committed.” This verse condemns the act of setting up false altars next to God’s sanctuary.
27. Isaiah 17:7 (ESV)
“In that day man will look to his Maker, and his eyes will look on the Holy One of Israel.” Turning away from false altars and idols brings our focus back to God.
28. 2 Kings 21:3 (ESV)
“For he rebuilt the high places that Hezekiah his father had destroyed, and he erected altars for Baal.” This verse tells the story of how evil altars were rebuilt during a time of spiritual rebellion.
29. Isaiah 57:5-6 (ESV)
“You who burn with lust among the oaks, under every green tree, who slaughter your children in the valleys, under the clefts of the rocks. Among the smooth stones of the valley is your portion.” The prophet Isaiah speaks out against altars where horrific sacrifices were made.
30. Psalm 106:34-39 (ESV)
“They did not destroy the peoples, as the Lord commanded them, but they mixed with the nations and learned to do as they did. They served their idols, which became a snare to them.” This psalm speaks of the dangers of spiritual altars that come from mingling with ungodly practices.
31. Hosea 8:11 (ESV)
“Because Ephraim has multiplied altars for sin, they have become to him altars for sinning.” The Bible warns that false altars only lead to more sin.
32. Deuteronomy 27:5 (ESV)
“And there you shall build an altar to the Lord your God, an altar of stones. You shall wield no iron tool on them.” God gives specific instructions for how His altars should be built.
33. Ezekiel 16:24-25 (ESV)
“You built yourself a vaulted chamber and made yourself a lofty place in every square. At the head of every street you built your lofty place and made your beauty an abomination.” The prophet Ezekiel condemns the construction of altars in every street for idol worship.
34. Amos 5:21 (ESV)
“I hate, I despise your feasts, and I take no delight in your solemn assemblies.” Even religious gatherings can become altars to idolatry when they stray from God’s commandments.
35. 2 Kings 23:4 (ESV)
“And the king commanded Hilkiah the high priest to bring out of the temple of the Lord all the vessels made for Baal, for Asherah, and for all the host of heaven.” Removing idols and their altars was necessary to restore true worship to God.
36. Isaiah 27:9 (ESV)
“Therefore by this the guilt of Jacob will be atoned for, and this will be the full fruit of the removal of his sin: when he makes all the stones of the altars like chalkstones crushed to pieces, no Asherim or incense altars will remain standing.” This verse highlights that when sin is atoned for, evil altars are destroyed.
37. 1 Samuel 7:3 (ESV)
“Then Samuel said to all the house of Israel, ‘If you are returning to the Lord with all your heart, then put away the foreign gods and the Ashtaroth from among you and direct your heart to the Lord and serve him only.’” This calls for the removal of all idols and spiritual altars to foreign gods.
38. 2 Chronicles 14:3 (ESV)
“He took away the foreign altars and the high places and broke down the pillars and cut down the Asherim.” King Asa’s reforms involved breaking down evil altars and high places, clearing the way for the worship of the true God.
39. Hosea 10:2 (ESV)
“Their heart is false; now they must bear their guilt. The Lord will break down their altars and destroy their pillars.” This verse condemns the false hearts of those who build altars to idols, promising their destruction.
40. Deuteronomy 12:2 (ESV)
“You shall surely destroy all the places where the nations whom you shall dispossess served their gods, on the high mountains and on the hills and under every green tree.” God commands His people to destroy every place where false worship occurred.
41. 2 Kings 18:4 (ESV)
“He removed the high places and broke the pillars and cut down the Asherah.” Hezekiah was known for his zeal in removing the altars dedicated to idols.
42. Exodus 23:24 (ESV)
“You shall not bow down to their gods nor serve them, nor do as they do, but you shall utterly overthrow them and break their pillars in pieces.” This verse urges us not only to resist false worship but to actively destroy the objects of idolatry.
43. Ezekiel 6:6 (ESV)
“Wherever you dwell, the cities shall be waste, and the high places ruined, so that your altars will be waste and ruined, your idols broken and destroyed.” God’s judgment includes the destruction of evil altars.
44. Deuteronomy 7:5 (ESV)
“But thus shall you deal with them: you shall break down their altars and dash in pieces their pillars and chop down their Asherim and burn their carved images with fire.” The Bible commands a thorough destruction of altars dedicated to false gods.
45. 2 Chronicles 34:4 (ESV)
“And they chopped down the altars of the Baals in his presence, and he cut down the incense altars that stood above them.” This shows the determination of King Josiah to cleanse the land of evil altars.
46. Numbers 33:52 (ESV)
“Then you shall drive out all the inhabitants of the land from before you and destroy all their figured stones and destroy all their metal images and demolish all their high places.” This verse calls for the removal of all traces of idolatry, including the altars built in high places.
47. Ezekiel 16:39 (ESV)
“And I will give you into their hands, and they shall throw down your vaulted chamber and break down your lofty places.” This is a prophecy of God’s judgment against those who have built altars for idols.
48. Isaiah 17:10 (ESV)
“For you have forgotten the God of your salvation and have not remembered the Rock of your refuge; therefore, though you plant pleasant plants and sow the vine-branch of a stranger.” The people who forgot God and turned to idols built altars to false gods, and judgment was coming upon them.
49. Ezekiel 6:13 (ESV)
“And you shall know that I am the Lord, when their slain lie among their idols around their altars, on every high hill, on all the mountaintops, under every green tree, and under every leafy oak.” God speaks of His judgment on idol worshipers who built altars on high places.
50. 2 Chronicles 30:14 (ESV)
“They set to work and removed the altars that were in Jerusalem, and all the altars for burning incense they took away and threw into the Kidron Valley.” The people of Jerusalem cleansed their city by destroying the altars used for false worship.
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