Biblical Evidence for Praying to and Worshiping God While Bowing or Kneeling Before a Statue of a Creature Made by Human Hands

Is this sort of thing permissible? On the surface of it, it seems absurd, according to a Protestant worldview, and especially in a Protestant iconoclastic (usually Calvinist) view. It may even strike some Catholics as an odd thing, put this way (and I purposely wanted to make the title of this post as "striking" as I could, to pique folks' curiosity). Yet (shockingly enough) it is entirely justified by explicit, expressly sanctioned (by God) biblical data, as I shall show further below.
First, let us consider for a moment what three anti-Catholic Protestants (the first a Baptist: Ken Temple, the second and third, Presbyterians: The Anonymous One or TAO, and Ron DiGiacomo) stated about such a scenario, in a recent combox thread at the Boors All blog:

. . . being able to feel and touch and see the relics and statues and icons and other "devotional helps" is really idolatry; but the RC or former Protestant doesn't see it; he or she is deceived. Officially, they say "no"; but in reality, they are involved in idolatry . . . 
Of course, they don't use the word "idolatry" to describe their own practices, but they make and bow down to statues (2nd commandment idolatry) . . . I've already pointed out that only the most stupid idolaters think the idol is the thing being worshiped. They all claim to be worshiping something by means of the image, except in the most extreme cases.
Is to knowingly kneel before a statue-likeness of Jesus while praying to God through the true Jesus a violation the Second Commandment? . . . would it have been acceptable for a Jew to kneel before a statue of Messiah prior to the incarnation while praying to God? If that would have been sin, then why may a Romanist do the same thing today?

Alright; having been instructed by these three giants of Christian theology and spirituality, we summarize from the above, the following things:

1) Statues (connected with prayer or worship) are idols.

2) Relics are idols.

3) Icons are idols.

4) #1-3 are idols because we are "able to feel and touch and see" them.

5) Making and bowing down to a statue is "2nd commandment idolatry".

6) Even if one understands that the inanimate object used in devotion (statue, etc.) is not the true God (or gods) being worshiped or prayed to or asked to intercede (as most folks who do these things do indeed grasp -- it is freely granted by the critic), it is nevertheless still idolatry, simply by virtue of the presence of the image itself. Whether the image is the means or the end in the act of worship or prayer, idolatry is occurring.
7) The 2nd commandment (prohibition of idolatry) is violated even if the statue is of Jesus, and even if the person praying is knowingly praying to the "true Jesus" to God the Father, using the statue as a mere devotional or visual aid.

8) A Jew during Old Covenant could not make a statue of the Messiah as an aid to prayer or worship (arguably -- but not necessarily -- implied: any and all statues as devotional aids were forbidden).

Now I shall proceed to demolish all this from Holy Scripture (which prevails against mere man-made false traditions and notions every time). Remember the title of this post: "Biblical Evidence for Praying to and Worshiping God While Bowing or Kneeling Before a Statue of a Creature Made by Human Hands." This practice was indeed permitted by God in the Old Covenant (and Jesus said that He came to fulfill the law, not abolish it: Matthew 5:17-20).
If we can demonstrate that statues were properly connected (in any way) with prayer and worship in the Old Testament, then icons would be another instance of the same thing (a visual representation of some sort). That covers #1, #3, and #5. I have shown the biblical sanction of relics, with explicit examples, in my book, Bible Proofs for Catholic Truths (the best proofs being 2 Kgs 2:11-14; 13:20-21; and Acts 19:11-12). That disposes of #2 and also #4 (wicked touchy-feely things). 
#6 is demolished by showing an instance of such created images being used in worship of the true God, and not being condemned as idolatry in the Bible, when they occur, which I shall do shortly. Moreover, in my recent paper, Dishonest, Illogical Sleight-of-Hand (From Anti-Catholics TAO and Ken Temple) in the Accusation of Alleged Catholic Idolatrous Worship at Mass, I gave many, many biblical examples of true idolaters actually believing that inanimate created objects were gods other than the one God of Israel: creator of heaven and earth, and thus worshiping the created matter as God (or gods). The normal description for idolatry in the Old Testament is that sort of scenario. This puts the lie to the thought of #6 above, that idolatry (as biblically described and condemned) is usually using an image as a means to the end of worshiping God or false gods.
#7 is a little indirect, since there are no man-made statues of Jesus mentioned in the New Testament. But I would contend that if images of created things are permissible, then it would  certainly also be permissible to have a statue of Jesus, Who is, by the Incarnation, the eikon (or "image") of the invisible God (Col 1:15), because if the more supposedly "objectionable" thing is allowed (statues of creatures as devotional aids), then the relatively less objectionable thing also would be (a statue of Jesus Who actually was a man Who could be seen and touched).
The same thought takes out #8 (at least viewed from the vantage-point of the Incarnation having already taken place), but since TAO and Ken Temple have argued that all images whatsoever as devotional aids are idolatrous outrages, a statue of Jesus would be included anyway. Showing the permissibility of a non-Jesus visual aid would also by simple deduction justify the statue of Jesus.
The Jews were commanded to fashion the ark of the covenant (Ex 25: 8 ff.). God revealed to them that He was present in a special, profound sense above the mercy seat on top of it (Ex 25:22; 30:6; Lev 16:2; Num 7:89; 1 Sam 4:4; 2 Sam 6:2; 1 Chron 13:6). It even contained manna inside (Heb 9:2-4), and bread and wine were priestly offerings (Gen 14:18; Lev 23:3; Num 15:5, 7, 10). The Jews bowed towards the temple when they prayed and worshiped (2 Chron 7:3; Ps 5:7; 138:2), which was a physical object thought to be particularly holy precisely because God was "specially present" inside of it.
Now here is the "clincher" and where the point is established beyond any doubt: the Jews would not only bow down, but prostrate themselves before the ark of the covenant and pray and worship God . That's already an inanimate object fashioned by mens' hands, and people are bowing before it. That is gross idolatry, according to the ridiculously unbiblical mentalities of TAO and Ken. Remember, above, how Ken stated that "being able to feel and touch and see . . . 'devotional helps' is really idolatry." And TAO (whom we all know is and must be infallible at all times) informed us that "only the most stupid idolaters think the idol is the thing being worshiped. They all claim to be worshiping something by means of the image." Here are the biblical proofs:

Joshua 7:6-7 Then Joshua rent his clothes, and fell to the earth upon his face before the ark of the LORD until the evening, he and the elders of Israel; and they put dust upon their heads. [7] And Joshua said, "Alas, O Lord GOD, why hast thou brought this people over the Jordan at all, to give us into the hands of the Amorites, to destroy us? Would that we had been content to dwell beyond the Jordan!"

1 Chronicles 16:1-2, 4 And they brought the ark of God, and set it inside the tent which David had pitched for it; and they offered burnt offerings and peace offerings before God. [2] And when David had finished offering the burnt offerings and the peace offerings, he blessed the people in the name of the LORD, . . . [4] Moreover he appointed certain of the Levites as ministers before the ark of the LORD, to invoke, to thank, and to praise the LORD, the God of Israel.

2 Kings 19:14-15 Hezeki'ah received the letter from the hand of the messengers, and read it; and Hezeki'ah went up to the house of the LORD, and spread it before the LORD. [15] And Hezeki'ah prayed before the LORD, and said: "O LORD the God of Israel, who art enthroned above the cherubim, thou art the God, thou alone, of all the kingdoms of the earth; thou hast made heaven and earth. [it's not absolutely certain that this is right before the ark, but it could quite possibly be, by the language used]

  You may wonder at this point what any of this has to do with statues? Well, the statues were the large cherubim that sat atop the ark of the covenant: representations of winged celestial beings, with feet and hands. God said that He was "enthroned" on the mercy seat on top of the ark, between the two cherubim with outstretched wings (see references above for the mercy seat; also the passage immediately above; Ps 80:1; 99:1; Is 37:16; Ezek 10:4; Heb 9:5). These were described in the detailed instructions for constructing the ark (Ex 25:18-22).
Therefore, whenever the Jews or the high priest alone or other important figures prayed and worshiped before the ark of the covenant, they were doing so also before two statues (of creatures) made by men . The objections above, from unbiblical traditions of men, are thus annihilated from explicit Scripture. God can't command and condone in one place what He supposedly condemned and prohibited in another.
Moreover, it wasn't just the ark of the covenant that had statues on it. The temple itself was filled with images and statues of cherubim (Ex 26:31; 2 Chron 3:7), so that every time worship took place in it, statues and other images were involved. The New Bible Dictionary ("Cherubim"; 1962 ed., p. 208) states:

Figures of cherubim formed part of the lavish decorations of Solomon's Temple (1 Ki. 6:26 ff.). Two of these, carved in olivewood and overlaid with gold. dominated the inner sanctuary. They stood about 15 feet in height, with a total wing-spread of similar dimensions, and when placed together they covered one entire wall.

The argument is then made (by those who only dimly understand the Bible and relationship between the Old and New Covenants), that this was done away with in the New Covenant. That's too hasty of a conclusion, since Jesus said that the Law was still very much intact (Matthew 5:17-20). He commanded His followers to obey the teachings of the Pharisees, who strictly followed the law (Matthew 23:1-3). St. Paul called himself a Pharisee three times, after the resurrection (Acts 23:6; 26:5; Philippians 3:5). Paul showed respect to the high priest, even when he was on trial (Acts 23:4-5). Jesus and His followers observed the Jewish feasts and rituals, and worshiped in the Temple. The Bible even gives an account of the high priest Caiaphas (who helped condemn Jesus) actually giving a true prophecy about Jesus (John 11:47-52).
When addressing non-Christian Jews (Jews who practice Judaism and do not accept Jesus as Messiah), Paul calls them "brethren." (Acts 13:26,38; 22:1; 23:1,5-6). He and his companion were called "brethren" too, by the "rulers of the synagogue" in at least one instance (Acts 13:15). Cf. Acts 18:8: "Crispus, the ruler of the synagogue, believed in the Lord, together with all his household . . ." St. Stephen did the same before a council with Jewish elders, scribes, and the high priest (Acts 6:12; 7:1), addressing them as "brethren and fathers" (7:2). Paul used the exactly same terminology, as recorded in Acts 22:1. Paul was still worshiping and even presiding over the services in synagogues (Acts 13:13-44). Acts 18:4 describes Paul as having "argued in the synagogue every sabbath," thus implying that he was worshiping there, too. He wouldn't just barge in after the service and start arguing. He would have worshiped with them first.
Acts 3:1 tells us that Peter and John were worshiping at the Temple, during the ninth hour. The notes in my RSV explain that the ninth hour was 3 PM "when sacrifice was offered with prayer (Ex 29.39; Lev. 6.20; Josephus, Ant. xiv.4.3)." Acts 2:46 described the early Christians as "day by day, attending the temple together." This would have certainly included St. Paul, too, when he was in Jerusalem, and he himself alludes to his presence in the Temple as well as synagogues (Acts 24:12), and is described as continuing to participate in Temple rituals (Acts 21:26: "Then Paul took the men, and the next day he purified himself with them and went into the temple, to give notice when the days of purification would be fulfilled and the offering presented for every one of them" -- cf. 25:8: "Neither against the law of the Jews, nor against the temple, nor against Caesar have I offended at all"). In Acts 22:7 he refers to his practice of "praying in the temple," and in Acts 24:18 as having been "purified in the temple" (see also 24:17: "I came to bring to my nation alms and offerings").
The first Christians (and Jesus Himself) were still worshiping in the Temple, and abiding by Jewish rituals. The sacrifices were still being made there. Herod's Temple (the third one built) no longer had the statues of cherubim, but "the walls were painted with figures of them (see Talm Ydma' 54a)" (International Standard Bible Encyclopedia: "Cherubim"). Therefore, they prayed and worshiped, in New Covenant times (including the period after the Ascension of Jesus and Pentecost), with the aid of images , in plain sight, in the Temple. 
 Excavations in Samaria in Israel uncovered a number of ivory plaques dating from the ninth to tenth centuries (the time of the Solomon's temple). These ivories provide the closest surviving examples of  the decorations of Solomon's temple. The example here depicts two cherubim.
No (desperate) objection can be made concerning the absence of literal statues in the third (Herod's) Temple, however, because the ones in Solomon's Temple (1 Kgs 6:23-35) had been approved by God ("I have consecrated this house which you have built" -- 1 Kgs 9:3). God couldn't say one thing at one time, and change His mind later on and say it was now a grave sin (the omniscient God cannot change His mind, and that would overthrow His own morality, anyway, which is equally impossible). Therefore, having mere paintings later rather than statues is no indication that anything had fundamentally changed. Herod (not the most pious man of all time in the first place) simply built according to a plan other than the original one, recorded in the Bible.
Case closed . . .

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