M.  What is idolatry, or to have strange gods?

      S.  It is in the place of the only only ^strue God, which hath openly and manifestly shewed and disclosed himself unto us in the holy scriptures, to set other persons or things, and of them ^tto frame and make to ourselves as it were certain gods, to worship them as gods, and to set and repose our trust in them.  For God commandeth us to ^uacknowledge him alone for our only God, that is, that of those things that wholly belong to his majesty, and ^xwhich we owe to him alone, we transfer not any part, be it never so little, to any other, but that to him alone and entirely we give his whole honour and service, whereof to yield any whit to any other, were a most heinous offence.

      M.  What be the things that we properly owe to God alone, wherein thou sayest that his proper and peculiar worshipping consisteth?

      S.  Innumerable are the things that we owe to God; but they all may be well reduced to four chief points.

      M.  Which be they?

      S.  That we give unto his majesty ^ythe sovereign honour, and to his goodness the greatest ^zlove and affiance; that we flee to him, ^aand crave his help; that with thankfulness we yield, ^bas due to him, ourselves and all that we have.  These things are to be given, as to none other, so to him alone, if we desire to have him alone our ^cGod, and to be his peculiar people.

      M.  What mean those last words, "before me," or "in my sight"?

      S.  That we cannot once so much as tend to revolting from God, but that God is ^dwitness of it; for there is nothing so close nor so secret that can be hid from him.  Moreover, he thereby declareth that he requireth not only the ^ehonour of open confession, but also inward and sincere godliness of heart, for that he is the understander and judge of secret thoughts.

      M.  Well then, let this be enough said of the first commandment.  Now let us go on to the second.

      S.  "^fThou shalt not make to thyself any graven image, nor the likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or in the earth beneath, nor in the water under the earth: thou shalt not bow down to them, nor worship them; for I the Lord thy God am a ^gjealous God, and visit the sins of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me, and shew mercy unto thousands in them that love me, and keep my commandments."