A false god is something that people worship instead of worshiping God. There is only one God. However, people worship other things that they think are like God in some way. These other things are called “gods” or “false gods.” The word "goddess" is used to talk about a female false god.
These gods are not real, but people think they are real. Sometimes people worship only one god, but it is still a false god. It is not the one God who Christians and Jews worship.
People sometimes make objects into idols to worship. These idols are symbols of the people’s false gods. However, Yahweh is the one and only God. God commanded people not to worship any false god (see: Exodus 20:3).
The people in the nations around Israel worshiped false gods. The Israelites often became like the people of other nations and started worshiping false gods. God said that when his people worshiped false gods, it was like his people were committing adultery (see: Jeremiah 23:10; 29:23; Ezekiel 23:37; Revelation 2:22; 18:9; 19:2). This is a metaphor used to talk about God’s people rejecting him.
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