Parshas Ekev

“And you shall not bring an abomination into your house” (Devarim 7, 26)

It is a negative commandment that we may not form a connection to anything of idol worship with our money or (retain it) in our possession in order to benefit from it and about this it says; “and you shall not bring an abomination into your house” etc.

Amongst the roots of this commandment is, in order to distance a person from any type of idol worship

Included in this prohibition are both idolatry itself, items that serve idolatry and also anything which is offered to it. Both idolatry of a Jew and that of a non-Jew are included, only that the idol of a non-Jew is forbidden as soon as it is made and that of a Jew is only forbidden once it is worshipped.

Some of the things included in this commandment are that a person should not allow the money with which G-d has favored him to become combined with other money which was earned by theft or violent robbery or by taking interest or any other ugly practice, for all this is included in “offerings to idolatry” that is, that the inclination of a person is evil, covets things and brings them to his house and the Evil Inclination is termed “idolatry”.  Concerning these monies, and so too concerning offerings to idol worship, about all of them the end of the verse says; “and you shall come under the ban as it is” that is to say that anything which is connected with it is banned, for the blessing of G-d is not to be found in it and it will be destroyed and eradicated from the world.

This prohibition applies in every place and at every time, to men and women.