10399. Rise, make us gods which shall go before us. That this signifies falsities of doctrine and of worship, thus things idolatrous, is evident from the signification of "gods," as being truths (on which see n. 4295, 4402, 7010, 7268, 7873, 8301), and in the opposite sense falsities (n. 4402 end, 4544, 7873), consequently "to make gods" denotes to make falsities of doctrine, or doctrine from falsities; and from the signification of "which shall go before us," as being which they may follow, thus according to which they may institute worship. That "to make gods which shall go before us" denotes idolatrous things, is evident. Moreover, it is idolatrous to worship external things separate from internal ones (see n. 4825, 9424). Concerning this kind of idolatry a few words shall here be said. The externals of the church that was to be instituted with the Israelitish nation were all those things which were commanded Moses by the Lord on Mount Sinai, which were the Tent of meeting with the ark therein, the propitiatory over it, the table upon which were the breads of faces, the lampstand, the altar of incense, likewise the altar of burnt offering, the garments of Aaron and of his sons, especially the ephod upon which was the breast plate, besides also the oil of anointing, the incense, the blood of the burnt-offering and of the sacrifice, the wine for a drink-offering, the fire upon the altar, besides many other things. The Israelitish and Jewish nation worshiped all these things as holy, without the holy which they represented, and thought nothing whatever about the Lord, about heaven, about love, about faith, about regeneration, thus about those things which were signified. As their worship was of such a nature, it was a worship of wood, of bread, of wine, of blood, of oil, of fire, of garments, but not of the Lord in these. That relatively to these things such worship is not Divine worship, but idolatrous, is manifest.