In the non-Christian and non-Jewish world, many gods
and lords
might be worshipped. Yet these gods are so-called
: they exist only in the minds of their worshippers. (Still, as Paul will argue in 1 Corinthians 10:1–33, there are demonic powers at work behind the worship of idols.)
Gods
and lords
do not indicate two separate categories, but rather two ways in which pagan worshippers would refer to their idols. Especially in the eastern part of the Roman Empire, gods were often described as lords
; in other words, as rulers.
5 Car, s'il est des êtres qui sont appelés dieux, soit dans le ciel, soit sur la terre, comme il existe réellement plusieurs dieux et plusieurs seigneurs,