29 Bible Verses about Sacrilege
Most Relevant Verses
“So when you see the abomination that causes desolation, spoken of by the prophet Daniel, standing in the holy place” (let the reader understand),
Anyone who eats it will bear his punishment, for he has profaned what is holy to the Lord. That person must be cut off from his people.
You will not incur guilt because of it once you have presented the best part of it, but you must not defile the Israelites’ holy offerings, so that you will not die.”
You who say, “You must not commit adultery”—do you commit adultery? You who detest idols, do you rob their temples?
Don’t you have houses to eat and drink in? Or do you look down on the church of God and embarrass those who have nothing? What should I say to you? Should I praise you? I do not praise you for this!
Aaron’s sons Nadab and Abihu each took his own firepan, put fire in it, placed incense on it, and presented unauthorized fire before the Lord, which He had not commanded them to do.
So the servants’ sin was very severe in the presence of the Lord, because they treated the Lord’s offering with contempt.
God struck down the men of Beth-shemesh because they looked inside the ark of the Lord. He struck down 70 men out of 50,000 men. The people mourned because the Lord struck them with a great slaughter.
So Saul said, “Bring me the burnt offering and the fellowship offerings.” Then he offered the burnt offering.
When they came to Nacon’s threshing floor, Uzzah reached out to the ark of God and took hold of it because the oxen had stumbled.
Manasseh set up the carved image of Asherah, which he made, in the temple that the Lord had spoken about to David and his son Solomon, “I will establish My name forever in this temple and in Jerusalem, which I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel.
Now the Chaldeans broke into pieces the bronze pillars of the Lord’s temple, the water carts, and the bronze reservoir, which were in the Lord’s temple, and carried the bronze to Babylon.
When they came to Chidon’s threshing floor, Uzzah reached out to hold the ark because the oxen had stumbled.
For the sons of that wicked Athaliah broke into the Lord’s temple and even used the sacred things of the Lord’s temple for the Baals.”
But when he became strong, he grew arrogant and it led to his own destruction. He acted unfaithfully against the Lord his God by going into the Lord’s sanctuary to burn incense on the incense altar.
Then Ahaz gathered up the utensils of God’s temple, cut them into pieces, shut the doors of the Lord’s temple, and made himself altars on every street corner in Jerusalem.
Under the influence of the wine, Belshazzar gave orders to bring in the gold and silver vessels that his predecessor Nebuchadnezzar had taken from the temple in Jerusalem, so that the king and his nobles, wives, and concubines could drink from them.
If anyone destroys God’s sanctuary, God will destroy him; for God’s sanctuary is holy, and that is what you are.
It is necessary to silence them; they overthrow whole households by teaching what they shouldn’t in order to get money dishonestly.
Shepherd God’s flock among you, not overseeing out of compulsion but freely, according to God’s will; not for the money but eagerly;
And He said to them, “It is written, My house will be called a house of prayer. But you are making it a den of thieves!”
saying, “Give me this power too, so that anyone I lay hands on may receive the Holy Spirit.”
So King Joash of Judah took all the consecrated items that his ancestors—Judah’s kings Jehoshaphat, Jehoram, and Ahaziah—had consecrated, along with his own consecrated items and all the gold found in the treasuries of the Lord’s temple and in the king’s palace, and he sent them to Hazael king of Aram. Then Hazael withdrew from Jerusalem.
At that time Hezekiah stripped the gold from the doors of the Lord’s sanctuary and from the doorposts he had overlaid and gave it to the king of Assyria.
So King Shishak of Egypt went to war against Jerusalem. He seized the treasuries of the Lord’s temple and the treasuries of the royal palace. He took everything. He took the gold shields that Solomon had made.
So Asa brought out the silver and gold from the treasuries of the Lord’s temple and the royal palace and sent it to Aram’s King Ben-hadad, who lived in Damascus, saying,
He took all the gold, silver, all the utensils that were found with Obed-edom in God’s temple, the treasures of the king’s palace, and the hostages. Then he returned to Samaria.
Although Ahaz plundered the Lord’s temple and the palace of the king and of the rulers and gave the plunder to the king of Assyria, it did not help him.
In the spring Nebuchadnezzar sent for him and brought him to Babylon along with the valuable utensils of the Lord’s temple. Then he made Jehoiachin’s brother Zedekiah king over Judah and Jerusalem.
From Thematic Bible
Sacrilege » By despoiling the temple
Although Ahaz plundered the Lord’s temple and the palace of the king and of the rulers and gave the plunder to the king of Assyria, it did not help him.
So King Joash of Judah took all the consecrated items that his ancestors—Judah’s kings Jehoshaphat, Jehoram, and Ahaziah—had consecrated, along with his own consecrated items and all the gold found in the treasuries of the Lord’s temple and in the king’s palace, and he sent them to Hazael king of Aram.
In the spring
So Asa brought out the silver and gold from the treasuries of the Lord’s temple and the royal palace and sent it to Aram’s King Ben-hadad, who lived in Damascus, saying,
At that time Hezekiah stripped the gold from the doors of the Lord’s sanctuary and from the doorposts he had overlaid and gave it to the king of Assyria.
Sacrilege » Condemned
Don’t you have houses to eat and drink in? Or do you look down on the church of God and embarrass those who have nothing? What should I say to you? Should I praise you? I do not praise you for this!
Anyone who eats it will bear his punishment, for he has profaned what is holy to the Lord. That person must be cut off from his people.
You will not incur guilt because of it once you have presented the best part of it, but you must not defile the Israelites’ holy offerings, so that you will not die.”
You who say, “You must not commit adultery”—do you commit adultery? You who detest idols, do you rob their temples?
Sacrilege » Forbidden
If anyone destroys God’s sanctuary, God will destroy him;
Shepherd God’s flock among you,
It is necessary to silence them; they overthrow whole households by teaching what they shouldn’t in order to get money dishonestly.
Anyone who eats it will bear his punishment, for he has profaned what is holy to the Lord. That person must be cut off from his people.
Sacrilege » Instances of » Of the money-exchangers in the temple
Jesus went into the temple complex and drove out all those buying and selling in the temple. He overturned the money changers' tables and the chairs of those selling doves. And He said to them, "It is written, My house will be called a house of prayer. But you are making it a den of thieves !"
In the temple complex He found people selling oxen, sheep, and doves, and [He also found] the money changers sitting there. After making a whip out of cords, He drove everyone out of the temple complex with their sheep and oxen. He also poured out the money changers' coins and overturned the tables. He told those who were selling doves, "Get these things out of here! Stop turning My Father's house into a marketplace!"
He
Sacrilege » Instances of » Nadab and abihu offer "strange" (unauthorized) fire
But Nadab and Abihu died in the Lord’s presence when they presented unauthorized fire
Aaron's sons Nadab and Abihu each took his own firepan, put fire in it, placed incense on it, and presented unauthorized fire before the Lord, which He had not commanded them [to do]. Then flames leaped from the Lord's presence and burned them to death before the Lord. So Moses said to Aaron, "This is what the Lord meant when He said: I will show My holiness to those who are near Me, and I will reveal My glory before all the people." But Aaron remained silent. read more.
Moses summoned Mishael and Elzaphan, sons of Aaron's uncle Uzziel, and said to them, "Come here and carry your relatives away from the front of the sanctuary to [a place] outside the camp." So they came forward and carried them in their tunics outside the camp, as Moses had said. Then Moses said to Aaron and his sons Eleazar and Ithamar, "Do not let your hair hang loose and do not tear your garments, or else you will die, and the Lord will become angry with the whole community. However, your brothers, the whole house of Israel, may mourn over that tragedy when the Lord sent the fire. You must not go outside the entrance to the tent of meeting or you will die, for the Lord's anointing oil is on you." So they did as Moses said.
Sacrilege » Instances of » Of uzziah
But when he became strong, he grew arrogant and it led to his own destruction. He acted unfaithfully against the Lord his God by going into the Lord's sanctuary to burn incense on the incense altar. Azariah the priest, along with 80 brave priests of the Lord, went in after him. They took their stand against King Uzziah and said, "Uzziah, you have no right to offer incense to the Lord-only the consecrated priests, the descendants of Aaron, have the right to offer incense. Leave the sanctuary, for you have acted unfaithfully! You will not receive honor from the Lord God." read more.
Uzziah, with a censer in his hand to offer incense, was enraged. But when he became enraged with the priests, in the presence of the priests in the Lord's temple beside the altar of incense, a skin disease broke out on his forehead. Then Azariah the chief priest and all the priests turned to him and saw that he was diseased on his forehead. They rushed him out of there. He himself also hurried to get out because the Lord had afflicted him. So King Uzziah was diseased to the time of his death. He lived in quarantinewith a serious skin disease and was excluded from access to the Lord's temple, while his son Jotham was over the king's household governing the people of the land.
Sacrilege » Instances of » Of those who profaned the lord's supper
For whoever eats and drinks without recognizing the body,
Sacrilege » Instances of » Of uzzah
When they came to Nacon's threshing floor, Uzzah reached out to the ark of God and took hold of it, because the oxen had stumbled. Then the Lord's anger burned against Uzzah, and God struck him dead on the spot for his irreverence, and he died there next to the ark of God.
Sacrilege » Instances of » Of ahaz
Then Ahaz gathered up the utensils of God’s temple, cut them into pieces,
Sacrilege » Instances of » Of the people of beth-shemesh
God struck down the men of Beth-shemesh because they looked inside the ark of the Lord.
Sacrilege » Instances of » Esau sells his birthright
Jacob said, “Swear to me first.” So he swore to Jacob and sold his birthright to him.
Sacrilege » Instances of » Of korah and his group
just as the Lord commanded him through Moses. It was to be a reminder for the Israelites that no unauthorized person outside the lineage of Aaron should approach to offer incense before the Lord