Devarim 4:16

16 Lest ye corrupt yourselves, and make you a pesel, the temunah of any semel, the likeness of zachar or nekevah,

Devarim 4:16 Meaning and Commentary

Deuteronomy 4:16

Lest ye corrupt yourselves
And not themselves only, but the word and worship of God, by idolatry, than which nothing is more corrupting and defiling, nor more abominable to God:

and make you a graven image, the similitude of any figure;
a graven image, in the likeness of any figure, an idea of which they had formed in their minds;

the likeness of male or female;
of a man or a woman; so some of the Heathen deities were in the likeness of men, as Jupiter, Mars, Hercules, Apollo and others in the likeness of women, as Juno, Diana, Venus Some think Osiris and Isis, Egyptian deities, the one male, the other female, are respected; but it is not certain that these were worshipped by them so early.

Devarim 4:16 In-Context

14 And Hashem commanded me at that time to teach you chukkim and mishpatim, that ye might do them in ha’aretz whither ye go over to possess it.

15 Be shomer over yourselves, therefore; for ye saw no manner of temunah on the yom that Hashem spoke unto you in Chorev out of the midst of the eish;

16 Lest ye corrupt yourselves, and make you a pesel, the temunah of any semel, the likeness of zachar or nekevah,

17 The likeness of any behemah that is on ha’aretz, the likeness of any winged fowl that flieth in the air,

18 The likeness of anything that creepeth on the adamah, the likeness of any dag (fish) that is in the waters below;