"False God" is a song by Taylor Swift from her album Lover (2019). The song uses heavy religious imagery and metaphors to describe a relationship that is mainly based on physical and sexual attraction, with references to worship, altars, and heaven and hell as symbols for intimacy and conflict. The lyrics explore the challenges of a long-distance relationship and the tension between physical desire and emotional stability. The phrase "false god" in the song refers to their love being like a false deity that they still worship passionately despite its flaws and imperfections. In this context, the "false god" represents the couple's intense but possibly unstable devotion to each other, expressed with religious symbolism to highlight the depth and complexity of their connection.
Additionally, the term "false god" in a broader religious sense (especially in Abrahamic religions) refers to idols or deities considered illegitimate or non-functional in contrast to the one true God worshiped in these faiths. However, in Taylor Swift's song, the term is used metaphorically rather than literally.
