David Powlison’s “Idols of the Heart and Vanity Fair” Revisited

David Powlison’s 1991 essay, “Idols of the Heart and Vanity Fair,” has been widely influential. It is a beautifully written and insightful article.

In the latest edition of CCEF’s Journal of Biblical Counseling, Powlison revisits the article 20+ years later. In so doing, he offers some introductory comments, orienting the reader to the main question the essay tries to answer (How is sin more than behavior?) and addressing a misunderstanding or misapplication of the original piece (whether the article encourages people to go on an “idol hunt”).

For one week, the original article and the new introduction are available here for free.