10653. 'You shall not make gods of cast metal for yourself' means worship of self and not of the Lord. This is clear from the meaning of 'making gods of cast metal' as establishing worship in tune with self-love, dealt with in 10406, 10503, and worship that is in tune with self-love is worship of self and not of the Lord, because worship of self is the end, whereas worship of the Lord is the means to that end. Whatever is the end is the master and whatever is the means is the servant; and the means is regarded by the end in no other way than as a servant is by his master. This is what worship is like with those who regard the holy things of the Church as the means, and mastery as the end.

10503. 'And they have made gods of gold for themselves' means, and they cultivate a hellish delight. This is clear from the meaning of 'making gods for themselves' as cultivating; and from the meaning of 'gold' as delight belonging to external kinds of love, thus delight that is hellish, dealt with above in 10402. Four kinds of idols are mentioned in the Word - those made of stone, those made of wood, those made of silver, and those made of gold. Idols made of stone served to mean a cult consisting of falsities contained in religious teachings, and those made of wood a cult consisting of evils contained in them; idols made of silver served to mean the cult of what was false in both teachings and life, and those made of gold the cult of what was evil in both. Consequently idols made of gold served to mean the worst cult of all. Those who practised it not only falsified truths but also adulterated forms of good; for they called evils forms of good, and resulting falsities truths. All people who are ruled by self-love and nevertheless believe the Word practise this cult; for they use the literal sense of the Word to lend support to everything they think and do, thus to the cult or worship of themselves.